Being A `Gandhi`

Being A `Gandhi`

The problem of being born to an iconic parent may not be Harilal's alone

It is said that comparisons are odious. But there are many people in this world who wish they were born to rich or famous parents, thereby ensuring a smooth and easy life. But little do people realise that it does not necessarily have to translate into a smooth ride for children born to rich and famous people.

A case in point is Harilal Gandhi, son of Mahatma Gandhi. A wonderful film that captures the `burden` of being born a Mahatma's son is `Gandhi My Father`, a 2007 release, directed by Feroz Abbas Khan. While India catapulted Gandhiji to the status of `Father Of The Nation`, his problem was his own father. Harilal held diverse views about life from Gandhiji and couldn't quite fathom the `discrimination` his father meted out to him in the name of universal love and justice. While Gandhiji committed himself to a process of internal evolution, thereby leading him from a barrister to a Mahatma, Harilal wanted to lead a normal life. The film depicts Harilal as openly expressing his displeasure against his father. He undergoes a deep identity crisis, gets into harmful ways, and despite the best efforts of his parents to align him to them, suffers a lonely and painful end.

While it seems fascinating from the outside to be born into the household of a Bachchan, or a Nehru-Gandhi, or an Ambani, the process of coming to terms with expectations of people, or from their own selves, cannot be easy. God has ways of placing various types of problems in people's laps. While the children of the not-so-rich and famous have to grapple with the daily struggles of life, the children of the rich and famous have a different kind of battle to deal with.

As a teen, when Amitabh Bachchan was at the peak of his career and rose to become a integral part of the nation's consciouness, I always wondered how Shweta and Abhishek would cope with their father's status when they grew up and understood the dynamics of how the country viewed their father. Amongst common people, those with their first name as Amitabh must be inviting interesting reactions the first time they mention their name to somebody. While some might say what's there in a name, ask the people who have to contend with it!

An article on the Internet titled `Stardom yet to happen`, dated March 21, 2012, brings about the predicament of Abhishek Bachchan. It says: “Abhishek Bachchan has yet to experience the pinnacle of success. Till date, his glory is being questioned by many movie trade analysts. Before his every release the discussions amongst the movie trade analysts about his career and his dropping graph has become worrisome. He has always been compared with his father’s work and experience. Hence his individuality and performance get overshadowed if we take a clue from his twitter where it is clear that father and son will always be a senior and junior Bachchan.” -- (source: http://tinyurl.com/7xs6g5g).

The article adds: “For Abhishek, being born to father like Amitabh Bachchan is the most fortunate event ever happened but at the same time it is the tragedy when it comes to his career. People who don’t know him feel that increasing popularity of Big B is over shadowing Abhishek’s individuality; which they feel can be indirectly affecting Junior Bachchan’s persona.

But people who know him closely vouch on the fact that Abhishek respects his father’s work and popularity. He feels proud talking about his father’s success and achievements. He also knows that his father's achievement and popularity are not something that he has inherited. He has to put in his best effort to make a mark in the film Industry.”

Thus being born to a socially respected and admired person presents a double edged sword. While it is a privilege, it also comes with its share of pressures of being somebody's son or daughter.

This problem need not necessarily be only of children of celebrities. There can be conflicts in homes where a successful parent wants his/her child to follow on his or her path. Or, children could feel a complex within as they naturally start comparing themselves with their parent. The problem and complexities of human identity reveal interesting aspects of human psychology.

While this is a subject in itself and can unravel fascinating aspects about human behaviour, the lesson from Harilal's life is clear – and that is, whether you are born to the rich and famous, or to ordinary parents, the shaping of one's identity is an individual responsibility. More importantly, every individual must take responsibility for his or her life.

At the end of it all, we all will be judged solely by how much we contributed, rather than by how much we received.