Interview
What is your full name? My full name is [Your Name]. It is special in a very personal cultural way for our whole family, and I am proud that it can be part of me all my life.
May I see your ID? Of course, here it is. Do feel free to have a read through.
Where are you from? I’m originally from [Your City/Country]. It is an incredibly colorful and multicultural location, and it has really influenced my value system, perspective, and personal identity through the years.
Do you work or study? I am studying [Your Field] in university right now. While it is one of the most challenging but very rewarding courses I have ever taken, I am becoming more and more excited about its theoretical background as well as practical implications.
Discuss your birthday routine? PREVIOUSLY: I celebrate my birthday in a rather understated manner, but sadly ceremonious. I’m a small family and friends type of person, rather than splashy get-togethers — eating together, deep conversation, time with people I love is much more filling to me than fancy parties. I also make an effort to use the occasion for a little introspection — to to take stock of the year behind and establish a few coherent intentions for the one ahead, which I feel brings a kind of purposefulness to day that festive celebration alone does not quite provide.
When you were younger what did you do on your birthday My childhood birthday celebrations were much more exuberant affairs than I celebrate now. I have fond memories of them — days spent building anticipation, my parents decorating the house, family filling the place and turning it into something quite festive but also a bit chaotic for 24 hours. The birthday cake was always the focal point — my mom would make it from scratch, and just its look (plus we all sang together) created a joy that seemed utterly outsized for the basic elements involved — something only childhood can do.
Whether you need to celebrate your birthday? The actions associated with birthday celebration matter less to me than what they convey — especially what those actions represent: an intentional stopping point to recognize one’s own ongoing existence, a feeling of being appreciated by those you care for, and a time marker with intentionality rather than something that simply slips through your fingers unnoticed. Yes, but not for vanity — I think there is some value in recognizing these kinds of endings on purpose because titling the days that are not marked by routine helps provide a story line that monotony cannot.
Who according to you is the most celebrated birthday boy in India? This is highly dependent on regional, religious and familial variation but in many Indian communities birthdays of young children — especially first (first) birthday are celebrated with utmost joy as the completion of the very meaningful first year of life. The milestone birthday of elderly relatives — especially decade milestones indicating long life — are also celebrated with reverence and community gathering reflecting a strong cultural value for the elders in families. On a national system, the birthdays of historic and religious leaders — from Mahatma Gandhi to many others like him, to founders of several religions, and cherished poets are observed with legitimate cultural significance across numerous groups.