I can still remember the first day that I was introduced to J.K. Rowling and her magical world – I was loaned a copy of ‘Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone’ which I gobbled up and there was no turning back. Like millions of children across the globe, I grew up with Harry Potter. Often I laughed with him and his friends, sobbed uncontrollably when he lost his Godfather, cheered at the Quidditch World Cup, memorized almost all the spells and with all my heart, believed such a world to exist.
Unlike kids in other parts of the world, I never had the privilege of standing in long midnight lines to purchase a copy of the newest book, but to my credit, I did go to Landmark in Kolkata at 7 am to buy ‘Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows’ and also took the entire day off from work to read it at one go!
The movies followed, in all their grandeur and what was only imagination in individual minds was brought to the cinematic screens. In my opinion, I do not believe there could be a director better than Chris Columbus who converted the first two books into cinema. Each film had its own charm and disappointments to fans of the books who would remember instances to the last pin with precision and were never really satisfied. Nevertheless, the films were superbly cast: Aside from the star three, my favourites were – Alan Rickman as the most appropriate Snape, nobody could have done more justice to Sirius Black – Harry’s notoriously handsome godfather than Gary Oldman, Helena Bonham Carter was brilliant and much hated as Bellatrix Lestrange, not to forget the dashing Oliver Wood and Robert Pattinson as the tragic Cedric Diggory. Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson were almost perfect descriptions of the characters and glancing at ‘Over the Years’ picture series – a brilliant compilation by The Telegraph, it’s almost like we never realised that we were growing up with them too (Click here to view the first screen test of the actors); As each story went into deeper, graver plots – we became all the more entangled and Rowling pulled each reader into the fathoms of this world and it’s enchantments.
The media seems to have gone crazy with the umpteen numbers of angles being created to talk about the saga and its multiple facets: Time Magazine put together the Top 10 Coolest Harry Potter Spells, Entertainment Weekly brings to us 19 Exclusive Behind-the-Scenes Pics from the Whole Series!, not to forget a variety of Snape vs Ron games and a plentitude of quizzes!
There have been a variety of media moments, but hardly one more public and full of sentiments than J.K. Rowling’s and the trio’s speeches to each other at the Deathly Hallows Part 2 London Premiere; It was almost impossible to control tears as a sobbing J.K. Rowling told fans of her characters that “Hogwarts will always be there to welcome you home”. It is indeed true that whenever times have been low, when life has seemed mundane, when one has felt lonely and homesick – I have always been rescued and swept away by the muscle of the simple but powerful story and her passionate storytelling. Harry Potter has taught me much – about friendships, hardships, the English language and among others, the very crucial lesson that life is never perfect, so one must try to be at peace with what they have else they lose that moment as well.
Perhaps that is why the latest Deathly Hallows Part 2 trailer ensures that anyone who calls themselves an ardent fan has their hair on the back of the neck standing and the inescapable tears. It’s not just a book series or a multi-million dollar earning movie saga – Harry Potter has been epic. Fiction maybe, but epic. There have been numerous posters created for the movie but the one that grabbed my attention in an instant was that of Hogwarts burning – a depiction of the Battle of Hogwarts. The last movie appears to be so much more sombre, so much darker and full of a variety of emotions that I wonder how the screen writer would have been able to capture all of that into a couple of hours – Beginning from the finding of the horcruxes, the bringing back of Dumbledore, the sensitive narrative of Severus Snape and the tragic losses of Lupin and George and finally, the last battle.
The series has always been an uproar, drawing the world’s attention hence the cast and crew have been touring since the past few months with big ticket premiers in London and New York – I have been following closely and almost ninety percent of my recent tweets and posts have been updates. Notable ones follow: With her new hairdo, Emma Watson looked like a dream at the London premiere in an Oscar de la Renta gown and wore a bronzed Bottega Veneta to the New York one. Apart from her, the noteworthy fashion icons included Tom Felton and Matthew Lewis (Draco Malfoy and Neville Longbottom) – to quote E! “Growing up has agreed with them” and I couldn’t agree more!
My father often tells me that literature is that which will remain alive decades after the author has passed into oblivion – one that one generation will pass onto another, one that will never grow old and die out. I wonder, will Harry Potter ever cease to exist? What child will not want to read about a wand choosing the wizard at Ollivander’s, a school of witchcraft and wizardry wherein subjects were Charms, Potions, Defense against the Dark Arts and the likes, common rooms that open with a password, a championship played on broomsticks, Bertie Botts Every Flavour Beans, Diagon Alley, Platform Nine and Three Quarters, Invisibility Cloaks, Gringotts, the delectable cuisine that the Hogwarts house elves churned out and the enchanted ceiling at the Great Hall, to only name a few. In fact, a sincere confession is that among others, I sometimes feel that there might be a letter coming my way – an invitation to join Hogwarts, at a post graduate level or sorts. It might not be soup for the intellectually stimulated soul, but it is a story and an honest one; I see no reason why it wouldn’t survive time.
Although I grieve that this Friday will mark the end of the cinematic journey which brought to life much of what was in the book and took the story to people and places that had not been fortunate enough to be introduced to the literary phenomenon.
I will not be one of the first to watch the movie but this meagre tribute to J.K. Rowling was the least I could do to thank her for helping me to dream and to think further than I would have ever probably dared to tread. Thank her and all those who participated in making this journey memorable for each of us who possess a book or a film – for ensuring that growing up was that much more fun.
Come July fifteenth, the world would finally know that the scar had not pained Harry for nineteen years. All was well.