ABOUT ME

Prem Kumar Pothina

I, Prem Kumar Pothina an Advocate by profession am 64 years of age. I was an entrepreneur until the age of 50; indulging in several business activities since my age of 24. I had the flair to write articles and short stories since my schooldays, but sadly I never cared to nurture and to improvise the profound skill. I had this ability to be a writer since my age of eight when I was in the 3rd or 4th grade, and belatedly I am now pursuing it with all my best efforts to reach one and all, blending it with my understandings. The most profound ability I had was to imagine or conceive a dramatic event in its paradox and translate it on paper which is an essential element to compliment the art of writing. The third fundamental faculty required of a writer is the ‘courage’ to express his feelings or thoughts irrespective of any criticism, which I was abundantly loaded with. At the age of eight, I posted a four-page movie script from my Boarding school to my father’s cousin who was a famous cine producer, without even a second thought as to how he would react. The second unforgettable instance was that at my age of 15. I penned a romantic letter with exceptional poetic flow as a favour, at the request of my cousin addressed to her fiancé. He was shocked on receiving it and enquired my elders whether his fiancé was really that talented. There was a furor in my family after she confessed that it was me. We were a joint family of almost twenty living together, and they all surrounded me interrogating who my girlfriend was. They never believed me and were sure that I was involved in some sort of affair. In fact, I had no clue of such romantic feelings at that age, but it was the poetry which was extremely qualified which caused suspicion in my family. No one could find the difference between an ‘ability’ and ‘intent’ hence they failed to identify my talent. I confess that I neglected all my inherent qualities out of negligence for I lacked focus.

The best of my past was that I quickly adapted to changes that fate placed in front of me as a result of my impulsive choices made earlier. Deep introspection later made me shed the bad habit of blaming others for the cause and its repercussions; realizing that they were only the natural result of my earlier actions. I embraced the results as benefits and adapted to the change. If one calls it ‘karma’ or ‘fate’ or ‘taqdeer’; I now have a complete understanding of it. The choices I took were all risky which gave turbulent results for almost two and half decades, but they did not wear me out due to the tremendous energy I was naturally gifted with. By my nature, I continued the risky choices which were looked at by all as bizarre. There were snakes as challenges and ladders of opportunity in equal turns. Undeterred with the plunges I grabbed the first ladder I could lay my hands on; irrespective of the size of prospects I might enjoy. Anything was acceptable to me, without relating them to my past. Resultantly I survived enjoying the present benefits. The conspicuous element in all the phases of my life was my relentless efforts to improvise; which caught the eye of all around both of my well-wishers and adversaries, but I continued to lack focus. I failed to recognize myself. Absurd, I pampered my self-esteem more at the stage of my minor achievements, thereby grossly failing to recognize the neglected inherent quality. That is the pitfall of a man who lacks ‘wisdom’. The sparkle of wisdom depends at which juncture of life, and age, you attain it. I sure was lucky for at least I became slightly wise at 50, and at an important juncture. Or else I would have remained now as a person only with abundant grey hair.

My past failures are the inspiration and the backbone of my writings, for they did remind me of my blur. But what mostly influenced me were not only what I had read from a few great Authors and their profound knowledge and imagination; but also, from the people around me from the high net worth to the common persons.  If I have to draw my profile, I can only state that, ‘My only accomplishment is that I have survived; learning at every twist and turn,’ and in the process I had discovered about myself even though late after the middle-age. Turbulent times cannot be understood unless you are the troubled, where you always had your heart in your mouth. It’s not a canvass that can be interpreted. Academic accomplishments of a person can be achieved with hard work and negligible intelligence, hence are not just everything to be proud of. Surviving a storm is not just different but an enlightenment by itself, and it cannot be won by any ability. It’s by understanding and introspection that makes you a winner. You need to understand the storm and sail through it like as if it was not there at all. If one remains desperate and frustrated, blaming others and himself for his faults; then for sure he lacks imagination. It needs creativity to survive. I wish to offer this concept to all my readers and is now possible because I can give you the nearest understanding with my ability to write, and help you stride the storm that could be troubling you.

The present-day perils in society is not the pandemic Covid-19, or the economic disaster; but the fanatism of religion, caste, creed and region; all together which are the main investment of a Political party. The entire society is infected with at least one or all of those incurable diseases which is taking away our happiness. We are being played by the Politicians who have invested well in our weaknesses and turned them to fanatism. Politicians and propagandists are using social media in a clever way. If Samuel Johnson the famous English writer would have been among us today, his famous political statement would have been; “Patriotism is the first stage of a scoundrel”. Not the last stage; as he earlier stated. We are stuck between the ‘devils’ and the ‘deep sea’. The real patriot will not proclaim himself as one; but will practice it at his home first and then familiarize them with his neighbors.

Criticism is supposed to be healthy with a purpose to correct the criticized. But the present-day quality of criticism is showcasing the world around us in wrong colors. It has become extremely perverted. The abstract is made to believe as real. Through ‘Prem’s World’ my only attempt is to avoid ourselves being played by the outside world and encourage you to see life in its original dimension. I don’t claim newness. I am not a philosopher nor a religious propagandist. If I pick a story from Mahabharata, it does not mean I am canvassing Hinduism, not I will become a Christian pastor by quoting a text from the Bible. I intend to use my art of writing to dilute the misunderstanding, so that one can save himself from being played. The clutter around us dissuades us all from our full potential and ultimate happiness.  I am only attempting to offer a good reading to make our day more thoughtful and remove some stains injected into our mind. I hope my writings will inspire many who were lost like me and clear the confusion. I am not selling anything. I am only sharing my perception.