I read two Self-help books in 2016 that changed my life. I learned a lot from them and wanted to implement all the ideas in real life. To do so, I needed time, and to make the time I had to get rid of my job. So, I quit my job in August 2016. I informed my parents about my resignation after quitting which left them in a state of shock and despair. In my head I kept thinking, I was always looking for one reason to quit, this plan was months in the making. I started my music journey on 1st September 2016. The day Just Suddenly was born.
I had no idea if I was going to be able to survive and make money through music, but it was a risk I was willing to take. I took a lot of odd jobs to survive, and sadly none of them worked. For almost a year, I was struggling and built up my band’s brand while I continued to write new songs. I was also burning through my savings and within a year I had reached my limit.
All this while my parents kept tormenting me and criticizing me for quitting my job. They called me a fool. I remember my dad kept checking on me each month, to see if I’d made any progress. He just wanted to say “I told you so.” My parents have a very middle-class mentality. For them, having a decent job with a stable income meant happiness and security. They couldn’t digest the fact that I wanted to try something different with my life. That I wouldn’t be happy doing a 9-5 job. They kept thinking their advice is the best advice and that I should follow in their footsteps. They had no faith in my music or that it would work. And for the most part, they were right. It’s been 5 years and I still haven’t cracked how to earn from my original music.
However, they failed to take into consideration that there were other ways of surviving that would enable me to pursue my dream along the sidelines. And that’s exactly what happened. I was able to find a way to survive by taking guitar lessons for children. My parents still didn’t have faith that I could survive on my own and they were open to lending me money for my survival. However, I haven’t borrowed any money from them after quitting my job. As years passed by they realized that I was doing just fine without having a job, I wasn’t broke, and I lived a happy life with whatever I was doing.
I remember very distinctly that my parents called me a failure within 6-8 months of quitting my job. They wanted instant results and they were growing impatient. I kept telling them, that I need more time to figure this out. You let me study for 4 years to complete engineering, and you’re not even giving me 1 year to crack the music career? A career path that everyone is afraid to take on because it’s difficult. And you expect me to show results in half a year? I remember them saying, “You’re a failure. You’ve wasted your life.” And I said, “This conversation is over.” And I walked out and didn’t speak with them for months.
I wrote this song because that day, my parents broke me. They said some extremely mean things that hurt me deeply. I knew every Indian kid goes through this ordeal with their parents. I wanted to write a song for all those children and give them faith, to point out that parents can be wrong, parents make horrible mistakes and the first person to suffer because of them are the children. Cause we take years of lessons for our careers and jobs, but we take zero lessons for parenting or falling in love. But don’t you think lessons about love and parenting are just as important as a career? Hell, they are even more important once you crack your education. But more often than not, these two points are the most neglected.
The next problem that they had was with me adopting kids, by kids, I mean pets. I have adopted 2 stray cats and 1 stray dog. I do a lot of stray work in my locality. I call myself Spiderman for all the stray dogs that need medical attention or fall sick. My parents did not approve of me doing a noble deed and helping innocent animals in need. They’ve called it foolish and pointless. They haven’t told me even once, that they are proud of me for saving so many stray animals. Edlyn has told me she is proud of me. Avni has told me she is extremely proud of me. Even Sweta admired me for my efforts. At least a hundred people have appreciated me for always stepping up to save stray animals. I have attempted to save 100+ stray dogs and cats in seven years, and I’ve only ever heard criticism and a lack of appreciation from my parents for my noble deed.
I have tried thanking them for birthing me and investing so much time and effort in nurturing me. They’ve made me who I am today. If it weren’t for their safe and kind environment, I wouldn’t have turned into a healthy and sane adult. I recently came across a traumatized person named Urvi, whose adult life is a mess because she has horrible parents and a terrible environment at home. So, I know I got a good life and it is all thanks to my parents. But I am writing this song for those 20% mistakes that my parents made and how they hurt me, not to blame them. I have forgiven them and I will continue to do so, at least I’ll try to. And I hope they don’t make a grave mistake. But, all I want them to do is to hear me out, accept that they were wrong, acknowledge that they made a mistake, and learn from it.
