Fast forward to the day of the shoot and it was all becoming real as I sat there waiting.
Ma hadn’t been keeping too well and I fretted that she may not be able to attend even as I knew I had to blank out everything and concentrate on rehearsals. My sister coordinated from Sydney for her to spend the morning with a friend who stayed close to Yashraj studios. Later, Ma sat proudly in the audience as I spoke. Namrata, thank you.
My niece, Deeksha Maudgal was there to cheer for me too, she had lived with us in the year the pact began and had seen the magic unfold.
My sister in law, Shubha Maudgal who doesn’t wear sarees (much) but put up one special post on the pact just for me, read every story I wrote, she made it in the last five minutes into the audience from a Ganesh sthaapna at a cousin’s home.
Viji Amma had confirmed her presence via mail to the audience management team. This without even reading the details on the mail, just because I’d asked her to be there, she took the day off and sat answering her mails and phone calls in the audience holding area.
On the production team, my past met my present, with Sonia being creative director on the show and Shifa writing for the show. This was very special, we’d all begun our careers in television together.
My biggest support on the pact and in life, Ketav, flew in that morning with the children. He and the kids had played mock audience at home and made me practice my talk many times.
And I brought every pacter with me to that stage by wearing the saree I wore on #worldsareeday. I was carrying our celebration to the red dot with me.
Many things collided together for me on the red dot on 24th August, 2017, the day of the shoot.
Validation for my belief in what I did,and continue to do, is foremost. But to get this validation in the presence of my children was the most precious.