An ode by a fan
It all ends...or so it says on a series of character posters for Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows part 2.
Now i don’t need to whine about how it’s going to be an emotional moment for me and all, coz everyone knows that already.
Hence, i think it would be better to celebrate the end, with a recollection of my fascinating journey into the world of MAGIC! Mine, which has been quite interesting, now when I recall it.Prologue.
Although i consider myself to be one of the most diehard fans in the wizarding world, i started off quite late. Infact, i didnt grow up along with the protagonists, as most of the real affectionados have. My introduction happened when i was just about to pass out of school, January 2005 to be more precise . Before that, even though i was one of the most dedicated visitor to the library, i was somehow unaware of the potter phenomenon. I just knew from a couple of newspaper reports that a certain boy wizard's stories have spellbound the world, but didn't get into the details, usually ignored it altogether.
Part 2.
After that fateful day changed my cinema-life forever, i was itching for more. And off came the news from school circles that Harry Potter 3 (six months after its theatrical release) was playing in morning show! We ran off there the very next day, to find out to our surprise that it was actually film 2, not 3. I was happier for being closer to the beginning of the story, having missed only film 1 (Half blood prince book was about to be released!).
The film started, and with that huge golden WB logo, every aspect of the story/film captured my attention, and...the seed had been sown, the infant cinephile had turned into a potterfan.
Part 3 :
A couple of months later, i finished my school exams, and while coming out of an engineering entrance exam centre, bought Prisoner of Azkaban book, finished it off the same day and ran off to the earlier described friend to see its film version. We went to his cousin's place, saw it on VCD.
I enjoyed the fact that i was predicting each scene before it happened onscreen, filled up the details of the story not included in the screenplay and got appreciation from the friends' cousins, and satisfaction by me.
But i hated the film too much for not adhering to the book storyline.
This has been the biggest grouse for all the booklovers all over, but with time i understood better and Prisoner of Azkaban became my favorite movie in the franchise!
Anyways, that day we realised that we needed a DVD player, and now i realise, that my friend referenced above till now, Ankush, had become my first and most passionate cinema buddy, passionate of the kind that people referred to both of us as Movie Maniacs!
So, we bought identical DVD players and needless to say, the first DVD I bought, was Harry potter 1/2/3 and saw all of them back to back in one night. At one moment, my mother asked me what this strange creature was. "Thats a Hippogriff", told my father!
And by now i had remembered all the books almost chapter by chapter, plus each and every dialogue in the films in both English & Hindi. The Hindi dubbed dialogues were more humorous at times, but due to the affinity for the books, i chose watching the English versions hereafter.
Part 4/6/5:
I finished Goblet of fire, went to buy Order of phoenix (which was out of stock), returned home with the newly released Half Blood Prince and became perhaps the only person to skip an entire harry potter book.
The very next week, i sent Ankush, who brought me Order of the Phoenix and finally i was up and ready, fully acquainted with every published detail about the hogwarts world till date.
Movie 4 released and i went for it with ex-school friends group. The hindi movie experience was a disaster due to bad cinema hall. I somewhat cried.
Luckily, just a week after that, an IMAX theatre debuted in Delhi, and hope for redemption was back.
I told Ankush this news after a dull session of physics coaching class, who readily agreed and now we had to plan and execute an escape during the 15 minutes break before the math class. We wrote an application to be allowed to leave early to collect some crucial certificates from school, got it approved from the ever suspecting incharge (she hinted that our parents will be informed to cross check. I was horrified but put up a straight face and said: "Cool" !), borrowed 500 bucks from another friend, and voila. We were onboard the Metro train that crosses the entire Delhi city from westend to beyond east, into Uttar Pradesh. Murphy's law applied its full power in delivering every obstacle possible, and we reached full 20 mins after...
... "the sow has started".
said the Box Office clerk. (yes, he said S(h)ow! )
I and Ankush: " whatever".
clerk: " Rs. 200 each".I: " but the newspaper said admission is Rs. 170".
Clerk: " thats +30 for weekends.
I: (fuck) " Whatever".
We ran to the Audi, the usher escorted us upto the entrance, opened it, and in we entered to get the first IMAX experience of our life!
I looked around in every direction, trying to figure out where the famed screen was. Up, down(just a figure of speech!), left, right . Nowhere to be seen. Only the sound of the impostor Prof. Moody explaining the unforgivable curses. Then it dawned upon me, why they called it the IMAX Experience®. The entire wall alongside which i was walking, was the screen, way up above my head. After i reached my seat on the other end of that screen (the scene was over till then!), i was speechless and Ankush had only one word to say : GORGEOUS!
Film 5/6.
I joined college, Ankush got drifted away from potter world because of being in another college, and i met Kartik: my equally fanatic potter Friend. Together we saw films 5/6, and won the University Harry Potter quiz, tied at the first place with a mean looking/behaving law guy (probably a Slytherin).
Some batchmates respected us for that, some made fun (harry potter? so childish, ha ha ha.... and stuff like that !)
I just said: god forgive them, for they know not, poor they.
From Kartik i got Books 1/2 and completed my course in official paperback!
Later i discovered Shantu, a self made connoisseur of cinema, who became a equally good cinema buddy, but his sole interest in HP series would be Emma 'Granger' Watson (since movie 4 !).
I also met 'Pandey', who later went on to become the greatest fan of the Hindi version of Harry Potter (my equal, if not greater). He passionately read the complete gist of the books on Wikipedia first, and later on, the books too. But we share a unique camaraderie over the like for epic hindi dubbed Dialogues in the film series.
At this point, i would like to share one brief video, which for me is an example of how excellently people in India, across boundaries, have accepted harry to be their own and made it close to their heart. Plus the voice dubbing team has done a great, sincere job. Respects.
Book 7
Finally the readers' equivalent of this day (15 july 2011) arrived, and i told Kartik how to buy the Deathly Hallows book online with his Dad's credit card(!) and get it delevered at 6 AM. Whilst reading it first, he kept giving me regular updates via sms, and i never missed replying to all those sms'es with a 'fuck u'.
And then we grieved the end of the story, celebrated the end of He Who Must Not Be Named, waited for the ultimate film to arrive. And a couple of more things happened.
We went for a last harry potter quiz of college life, to win alone this time and defeate that mean Slytherin guy if he dared come.
He did come, but ultimately a couple of Ravenclaws won (with cheating, of course!) and we were shattered.
Also, the lone IMAX theatre in North India closed down. (I still haven't fully recoverd from that loss, plus not forgiven Shantu who had declined to go see the last film that played there- Spiderman 3)
When Michael Bay shot portions of Transformers 2 using IMAX cameras, i made a pact with Ankush, that if we get decent Jobs by then, we will travel all the way to Mumbai to catch The Deathly Hallows in IMAX 3D !
I on my part, am going to witness it both in English and Hindi, 3D and 2D.
Pandey will of course be catching a Hindi version, wherever it plays in South India!
Both me and Ankush have got decent jobs in the same reputed company, but going to Mumbai will not be possible due to my 'decent' job. Nonetheless, he forgot the pact long ago, i had to remind him on facebook!
After posting this, i going to see the Hindi version in Lucknow. Hoping to get the English 3D one at the Best 3D cinema screen in Delhi, along with Kartik, who has promised to wait for me till i arrive in Delhi. Lets see!
Shantu is longing to see Hermionee one last time, without further ado. Hence i'll not withhold him from having that pleasure any longer.
So, that brings me here again, actually whining about how it is an emotional moment for me, particularly with that 1st year photo above, which makes a recap of all those 7 years' adventures play before me in a jiffy,
and brings about a flurry of emotions, almost close to cr.....
...naaah, its just something in my eyes!
One final ode ....
To Harry Potter, the BOY WHO LIVED!
To Harry Potter, the BOY WHO LIVED!
