Vijay Dinanath Chauhan, a 12-year-old boy wronged grievously. Lost his father to a conspiracy hatched by some anti-social elements.
Ajay Singh Rathod, a young man with a loving family. He faced injustice, lost his brother while his father was incapacitated in a dastardly attack by terrorists.
This is with reference to two successful Bollywood movies viz Agneepath and Sarfarosh. Both the protagonists were put through similar situations. They lost their dear ones and their families were in trouble. Moreover, as usual, the society was least empathetic. However, after a bitter struggle, eventually, they had their justice. But why did Vijay Chauhan meet a tragic end while Ajay flourished?
The difference starts with the choices they made thereafter. Vijay Chauhan modified an age-old saying to ‘Become a thief to punish a thief.’ He became a criminal himself. He inflicted pain on innocent people to meet his ends. On the other hand, Ajay Rathod chose to become inclusive. He went to the root of the evil in society and destroyed the roots of terrorism. He empathized with the pain in society.
That is all with life. External situations aren’t under your control all the time. However, your inner world lies at your discretion. Either you can choose inclusiveness or selfishness, greatness or meanness, the choice is always yours.
Not to resort to revenge
On a less intense note and realistic example, Sourav Ganguly’s words in his autobiography ‘a century is not enough’ might make some sense if one’s contemplating revenge:
In your life, you may often come across people who will harm you and hinder your growth. I experienced this especially when I was a young player struggling to make it big. A lot of us – and I was no exception to this at one point of time – think of taking revenge to settle the score.
Today, as a happily retired middle-aged cricketer, I would advise you not to resort to revenge. You will only be wasting energy and, more importantly, precious time.
I would urge all young professionals to channel that energy into their own well-being. Be the best that you can be. I have lived all my life with detractors. The only way to deal with them is to be so good at your work that they fall by the wayside. Bettering your performance is the best revenge that you can award your enemy.
These are not mere words. We have witnessed his rise from the lowest ebb of his career-after his spat with Greg Chappel- to being the Asian Cricketer of the Year!
On the closing note, remember that the only way to avoid a problem is to rise above a problem. All the birds find shelter when it rains, but eagles fly above the clouds. Revenge does not address the root of the problem but makes you the problem. As Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev says, always try to be a part of the solution and not the problem(paraphrasing).
Also read: Series Review: The Forgotten Army- Azaadi ke liye
P.C.
