On Happiness, and Where You Come From

If you have reached here, then I am so blessed.

I know you will be carrying a lot of questions. And some of the answers may not make sense to you — probably forever. But that is how life is, my son. Life is a complicated puzzle, and you have to solve it. And the only way to solve it — to truly glide through it — is to learn the skill of being happy at any given moment.

Happiness, Avyaansh, is a state of mind. Sadness, grief, all sorts of emotions will come, and they will pass. Our mind is like an ocean. Waves rise and fall — waves of emotions, waves of thoughts. You have to hold on to the ones that give you peace. Thoughts of progress. Thoughts of building yourself. Thoughts of how to get better — in your fitness, your career, your finances, your well-being. And thoughts of your people — the ones standing behind you, the ones who love you, the ones who are your family.

Take very, very good care of your mother. She is a hardworking, intelligent, smart woman. I respect her.

But life is life, Avyaansh. We don't always get to explain it. If you have reached here — let me tell you plainly — I love you from the core of my heart. You might not understand why we may not be talking or seeing each other. I don't know how to explain that. I don't know what is right, what is wrong. But if you ever reach out, or if the universe conspires to bring us face to face again — we'll talk.

Until then, I want to leave you with one thought. One that has stayed with me, because I have lived a little more life than you. Everybody's life carries different experiences, and you should embrace yours fully.

In my life, a book came to me — I was not looking for it, but books come to me and I read them. It was Chanakya Niti. Chanakya said that a disrespectful wife — even one who has given birth to 100 honourable sons — is to be done away with. An honourable son will always remain an honourable son. But a disrespectful wife will kill you, every single day.

It won't make sense to you right now, Avyaansh. And I don't want you to ever have to understand it through your own pain.

But I want you to know why I share it — because even in the middle of whatever life brings, the thought that you exist, that you are out there, makes me happy. And I hold onto that happiness.

There are a few things that make me happy, my son. My fitness transformation is one. When I look back and I see a man of this stature — changing himself, earning every single rep — it gives me happiness. The kind that comes from knowing a person put in the hard work. I wish that happiness for you too. The happiness that only you can give yourself.

When I look back at my portfolio, I feel something similar. We were not rich, Avyaansh. We were poor people. Your grandfather — my father — used to roll beedis on weekends to support his family. He went to a government school where there was no proper education. And yet, he thrived. He cleared Class 10th with very good marks. And one day, from a village, with just fifty rupees in his pocket, he boarded a train to Tata Nagar.

From there, he joined Tata Motors — erstwhile Telco — and from there, his life changed, my son. He studied while working. He studied while raising a family. He cleared his engineering, earned promotions, built something. And for me — for your father — life was comparatively okay because of what he did.

That is the background you come from. You should know it.

We were six kids, Avyaansh. Life was not luxury. But I never felt it — because the environment was so full of warmth. We were happy. We were playing. There were no quarrels at home. Life was heaven. I never felt anything was missing. I had food on my table. I had a bed to sleep in. I had a roof over my head. I had a loving family.

You have a loving mother. I was going to a good school. You are going to a good school. And that is all that matters.

I was blessed. And you are blessed.

The only goal, Avyaansh, is to progress from here. Life has given you a certain baseline — a strong one, built by your grandfather's fifty rupees and your father's sweat. Your goal is to take a larger jump from that baseline. In whatever direction you choose — spirituality, sport, business, art, anything. You will figure it out when you interact with life. Life will show you.

I hope this makes some sense.

And one more thing — I am building a fitness app. I have named it after you. It is called Avya — the short form of Avyaansh. It is not about the money. But I am pouring my heart and soul into it, so that if we ever meet again, I can look you in the eye and say: this one was for you. From the beginning. Always.

Let's see how it goes.

Your father is happy, Avyaansh. At peace with life. And as I know you are my son — you will find the same.

Until next time —

Love you,