Subrata Roy Sahara’s ‘Life Mantras’ has the potential to help transform people’s attitude towards him

 

‘Life Mantras’, authored from behind bars by Subrata Roy Sahara and released recently, holds huge potential. Although it’s too early to predict the general course of public opinion on the man, the sense of direction can still be gauged from the activities the book has generated so far.
While Twitter has seen active involvement from people with differing views on the subject, other social media platforms are abuzz, too. His book, available on Snapdeal, Amazon and at various other online outlets, has drawn readers who continue to buy Life Mantras to get a peek into the life of one of India’s most vibrant businessman.
Any man whose success story reads like that of Mr Roy’s – When he laid the foundation of Sahara India Pariwar in 1978, it was with the mere capital of 2,000 (about $32) and three workers. Today, in a span of only 37 years, he has helped build a behemoth worth 1,80,000 crore (about $27 billion) – is bound to create interest. Everyone wants to know the secret behind such meteoric rise, and that’s what the book brings to the table. It is exhaustive and thought-provoking.
Unveiled simultaneously at more than 5000 locations in India, the book is a collection of lessons learnt in life, the successes, failures, joys, disappointments, and much more. It is philosophical, too. Prolonged imprisonment does that to a man. ‘Saharasri’, as he is popularly known, has discussed in detail life experiences, observations, as well as his insights into the day-to-day issues of people.

 
Not withstanding his ongoing problems with the law, Mr Roy’s take on life and its various aspects cannot be ignored, like his approach on how to handle psychological and emotional aspects of life, vis-à-vis the basic instincts inherent in all human beings. This can only come through experiences.
Interestingly, Life Mantras is only the first book in the ‘Thoughts from Tihar’ trilogy. After, 37-year worth of experience can hardly be accommodated in 298 pages.
One of his conclusions in the book ends with the line – “Peace never chases happiness, happiness chases peace”. It’s a reflection of the transformation process the man is apparently going through.
There are quite a few of us who believe Subrata Roy is in the wrong and is being rightly condemned. There are also those of us who think he is a victim of some kind of vendetta. Till date, SEBI’s version has prevailed. The book might just help change mindsets.