I was way past my teens when I had first read the mind-boggling J. K Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (later changed to Sorcerer’s Stone).

Just imagine a young orphan boy, staying in a cupboard in the house of his mean maternal aunt, overbearing uncle and nuisance of a cousin; one day suddenly finds that while he is a ‘nobody’ in the normal world, he is a celebrity in the wizard world. Wouldn’t something like that happening to you change your life? Though fantastic, I was absolutely taken by the idea of the existence of a parallel world of witches and wizards. Where wizards use their magic wands to get things done, use owls for their mail delivery (of course, they are still ignorant of emails and untroubled by mobile phones) and use floo powder for transportation. We do have our life-simplifying gadgets but doesn’t waving a wand to get things done sound cool? Larger-than-life creatures: pure blood unicorns, giant spiders and dragons take the reader on a journey to fantasy land. Admit it, doesn’t studying potions, charms, dark arts and transfiguration sound more interesting than algebra, history, grammar and business administration?

Life of danger and excitement, of curses and charms, of loyalties and betrayals; that’s what Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry represents. I have heard quite a few fairy tales in my life but nothing beats the wide medley of characters, their details and apt names, and the utmost newness of the subject. Each book gave me a juicy slice of this forbidden world but left me hungry for more. Like thousands of other fans, I was mightily sad to see the end of this fabulous journey.

Obviously, I have seen the films and while I actually wouldn’t say it’s the murder of the book, I must say, nothing beats the book. My mind has far better creativity and more fertile imagination that not even the best camera in the world can capture. It’s not a book but an experience only a true Harry Potter fan can understand. I hope l’il Aanya too enjoys the fantastic world of Harry Potter as her mother did.

And now when I am in my thirties, have a husband and a kid, I am still waiting for the acceptance letter of Hogwarts.