Picking one’s heroes, writes Priyanka Chaturvedi

This week, after years and years of loyalty to the BlackBerry, I finally bid it a final goodbye. This comes after four failed attempts. Don’t you, dear reader, react like how others around me did to the news ‘Why were you even using the phone from the stone age era till now?’ Hmph. Ek Blackberry ki ahmiyat tum kya jaano poochnewale babu! Let the next question in your head not be android hai ya iOS?! Sigh, more heartache for the already heartbroken. It’s gone and I shall not mourn is the motto as I adjust to the new handset. 

I heard Michelle Obama’s speech this week. I was totally in awe by the end of her speech and wanted to get both the children to hear what she spoke at the convention. However, the son would rather discuss Pokémon GO and his chances of adding to his virtual Pokémon collection by exploring the area we live in, most of the places he had never found interesting till he discovered Pokémons there! So I excitedly tried to explain the US elections to my daughter and told her that America perhaps was all set to create history by electing their first woman president Hillary Clinton. She gave me a look of surprise, but quickly asserted that it took Americans quite a while to make that choice while we Indians had done it several years ago. Whoa! How does one even argue with that point of view coming from the almost nine-year-old little lady? It is rightfully said you can outshout the world but only your own can leave you speechless! I faced that moment. 

I discovered there was another reason why hearing MO’s speech at that point in time was least of her priorities because at that time the most important task for her was to try and connect to Varun Dhawan or Virat Kohli. Wait, it isn’t even either/or anymore but rather him AND him, too. Priorities! On a piece of paper her friends (as a joke) had made her jot down some random mobile number which they said belonged to Varun Dhawan. She handed over the paper to me and wanted me to call him and get her to speak. No amount of convincing made her believe that the number is not his and it isn’t freely available on Google, that’s where her friends had sourced it from.

Thankfully, the number was ‘temporarily disconnected’ else whoever the number belonged to would have had to handle a lot of calls coming his or her way! The attempt to connect is still on!

To each their own choice of hero, I say. At the same time, it’s also imperative for each of the heroes to realise the onus of expectations they carry, of a generation that looks up to them for inspiration. As of now, Varun Dhawan’s dance skills and Virat Kohli’s match winning skills as Indian cricket team captain are helping her set her goals. I am trying to get her to get inspired by their fitness goals and work on those more than anything else.

The tussle is on and I am willing to bet on who will finally prevail!