A treasure that made me rich

Among many other things what life has taught me is that you don’t have to be the direct beneficiary of something to become a happy man in your life.

I was a happy and proud Indian when India won the cricket World Cup, though I never got a penny from it. Dhoni got, Tendulkar got and other players who have played and not played all got a fortune of cash. But not me. I was still happy, say even more than Sreesanth.

I was also a happy Indian when A.R. Rehman got Oscar award. When he took the award I took the happiness. But I was not that happy when the movie Slumdog Millionaire bagged the award. Not because I have anything against the movie. But I don’t subscribe to the idea of foreigners selling the pathetic conditions of our slum life to the world. And I still believe if the movie has won the academy award it is just because of some ‘white hands’ in it.

When Viswanathan Anand became the Grand Master I was double happy. He was an Indian first and South Indian second. The later one was the reason for my double happiness. All south Indians are that way. They become happier if the person concerned is a South Indian. The same applies to in sadness too. Otherwise ask Karunanidhi. He was sad when Kalmadi went to Tihar, depressed when Raja followed and when Kanimozhi went, he cried.

When I think of Viswanathan Anand’s extraordinary brain power, I wish our politicians had got half of it. I must admit, it is a thought that makes me sad, not happy.

I was always happy to watch Sania Mirza play, whether she win or lose. It was the same case with every Indian, I bet. I felt proud when she won and sympathized when she lost. At least she tried hard, I argued for her. The way she was progressing I thought one day she will conquer the world. She proved me wrong and conquered a Pakistani. She still plays for India as an Indian. However, today many Indians see her as Sania Malik not as Sania Mirza. That’s the problem.

Another woman I am really happy with is Mrs. Sonia Gandhi. Can anyone imagine where the Congress Party will be today if she was not in the helm of affairs? I am saying this not because I am a Congressman. In that case I am also happy with the way Mr. Narendra Modi is carrying out his work in Gujarat (except his inaction during the riot). With no personal connections with either of these two, I still feel happy about them and their work.

Another time I felt much happier is when Mr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam became the President of India. People like him are real treasures of the country and when he has been selected for the high position of Indian President, I felt myself getting honoured.

And comes to think of treasures, I feel I am one of the most honoured, fortunate, luckiest, richest and happiest men in the world today. That is because Shree Padmanabhaswamy temple, where thousands of crores of wealth being been unearthed, is situated just one hour ride from my home.