Anupam Kher's new book talks about his childhood

On the 13th of March, the engagement series Rendezvous by The Chambers hosted the launch of the multi-faceted celebrity Anupam Kher’s new novel, ‘Your Best Day is Today!’. 

The evening was one of understated elegance, at The Taj West End, Bengaluru with a niche guestlist comprising Ms. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, Mr. Tejasvi Surya, Mr. Mohandas Pai and other renowned business personalities.

In conversation with Madhu Nataraj, Bengaluru’s very own danseuse and entrepreneur, Kher spoke about his own experiences and lessons meant to help one face dark times head-on, more than ever, during this pandemic.

Walking down memory lane, he took time to disclose a few one-liners he acquired from his grandfather who used to remind him that, “Failure is an event, never a person” and so for Kher, staying positive and fearless of failure was an ever-present part of his lifestyle, whether it was sleeping on the railway station in Mumbai or working alongside globally-acclaimed actors such as Robert De Niro. “My life is a sum total of my failures...I’ve survived for 36 years because I never get bogged down by the fear of failing,” he says. 

Though the book encompasses an amalgamation of his own escapades during the pandemic, much of its heart was obtained through his learnings as a child. “If we carry our childhood persona with us everywhere we go, we will have such joy...such a wonderful quality of life and in that sense, your best day will be today because everyday you will feel a sense of achievement,”  the actor narrated while explaining the significance of the character of Bittu (what he was called at home as a child) in the book.

“Bittu”s biggest role model however, has remained his mother, Dulari Kher to whom he has dedicated the book and credited the title. As the story goes, when Anupam and Raju Kher were children, she used to drop them to the school gate and say, “Your best day is today.” These are words that Anupam Kher carried with him through whatever life could throw his way. 

As the curtain closed on a resplendent evening of delicious cocktails, delightful conversations and delectable food, thought-provoking insights on the importance of positivity was the take-away.