I had the opportunity to travel with Dhoni, the Indian Cricket team captain on a King Fisher flight to Delhi from Chennai. There was a hustle-bustle when Dhoni entered the plane along with his wife Sakshi and many people were rushing in to greet them and shake hands with Dhoni. I mustered courage to introduce myself as a friend of Srikkanth, the chairman of the selection team and requested him for a photograph if it was not inconvenient? Dhoni was ever smiling and said we can do it at the T3 terminal after we land. To my surprise, he remembered to oblige me by posing for a picture at the T3 terminal at Delhi. I was happy enough to bless him and wish him many more laurels and credits to his fame!!
He started sprinting towards his wife who was already near the exit gate with his back-pack when many more fans thronged him for photographs at the terminal. There was not a shade of regret on his face as he had lost the IPL Chalenger series only the previous evening at Chennai.
Let us not glorify him beyond a certain point. We have a culture of hero worship in success followed by public ridicule in failure. He understands that he is a time-bound temporary hero and as they say "This shall also pass." In this age of inflated egos, he comes as a breath of fresh air. Hope he maintains his peace within. If a chance meeting with him can help us to become humble, he has done greater service than winning any match!
ReplyDeleteGood pic.
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