Iana Devangaddy of Bangalore was a student at
Cambridge when Jawahar Lal Nehru went to study
there. He developed a close association with Nehru.
It was because of this relationship that his son,
Deren Angaddy, heard a lot about Nehru during his
childhood. Impressed with his personality, Deren
used to impersonate him. Later Deren became a
film actor.
When Attenborough planned to produce a film on
Gandhi, with an investment of about $ 25 million.
Deren was selected to play the role of Nehru.
However, after six months he was told by the film
producers that he was being dropped from the list
of actors and that Roshan Seth had been chosen to
play this role instead. This decision was made six
months after Deren Angaddy had been offered the
role, during which time he had worked hard to
perfect his role. The news shocked him to the point
where he committed suicide.
Why did Deren Angaddy take such a drastic step?
Was it because he had worked hard to develop an
ability which had no further use? Seemingly this
had plunged him into a depression so deep that he
took his life.
People tend to overlook the fact that professional
skill and ability achieved by hard struggle is an
investment in itself. Even if they fail to find an
immediate outlet, life’s labours are never lost in the
long run. Sooner or later opportunities are bound to
present themselves to draw on such painfully
acquired skills.
Ref - The Moral Vision
- by Maulana Wahiduddin Khan
