I so wish my dad was alive to see me do a Hindi film after acting

Hear now, O children of remembrance and of love, the words of Harshvardhan Rane, who spoke not from pride, but from the deep chambers of the heart: “I so wish my dad was alive to see me do a Hindi film after acting in six Telugu movies. I sometimes imagine him giving me feedback on my work. But I derive strength from knowing he is watching over me.” In these words lies the eternal bond between the living and the departed—the unbroken thread of love, legacy, and longing that ties generations across the veil of time. It is the cry of a son who walks forward, yet never forgets the hand that first taught him to walk.

This quote, though born in the life of an actor, speaks to all who labor beneath the gaze of memory. Rane’s voice is not one of sorrow alone, but of reverence. His father, though gone from the visible world, remains the unseen companion of his journey—the silent audience in every triumph, the imagined mentor in every doubt. In wishing his father alive, Rane gives voice to a universal yearning: that those who shaped us might witness the fruits of their own love. Yet in the same breath, he finds strength—not in despair, but in faith, in the knowing that love does not die, but merely changes its form.

From the earliest times, the ancients have spoken of this connection. In the temples of Egypt, the dead were called the Akhu—the shining ones who guide the living. The Greeks told of heroes who, though fallen, watched from the Elysian Fields. And in the sacred books of the East, it is written that ancestors dwell near, not in body, but in spirit, whispering wisdom into the hearts of their descendants. So too does Rane’s reflection echo this timeless belief—that the bond between parent and child is not severed by death, but deepened through remembrance.

Consider the tale of Alexander the Great, who, before his every campaign, would speak to the spirit of his father, Philip of Macedon. Though his father was gone, Alexander believed his strength flowed from him. Each victory was an offering, each conquest a continuation of his father’s dream. Like Harshvardhan, Alexander’s greatness was not born in isolation—it was inherited in spirit, nurtured by the echo of a father’s vision. So too, when Rane imagines his father’s feedback, he is not lost in grief but participating in the eternal conversation between past and present.

The meaning of this quote, then, lies not only in love but in motivation. For remembrance can weigh upon us, or it can lift us higher. The wise do not let memory bind them to sorrow; they let it guide them toward fulfillment. Rane draws strength from his father’s unseen presence—proof that the truest mentors continue to teach even in silence. He reminds us that to live well, to strive with integrity, is to honor those who came before. Every act of courage, every step of progress, becomes a silent tribute to those whose dreams flow through our veins.

There is also, in his words, a message for all who have lost loved ones: grief need not be only pain; it can become purpose. The longing for their witness can transform into fuel for greatness. To imagine their pride, their counsel, their applause—this becomes a source of sacred energy, a fire that burns without consuming. In this, Rane’s heart joins the chorus of all who have ever said, “I wish they could see me now,” and who, through that wish, rise to do something worthy of being seen.

The lesson, then, is clear: cherish those who have gone before you not by weeping for their absence, but by living in a way that reflects their light. Let memory be a mirror in which you see not only what was, but what can still become. Speak to your ancestors through your actions; answer their love through your achievements. For though time may separate the living from the dead, devotion bridges eternity.

Thus, the words of Harshvardhan Rane stand as a quiet hymn to love that endures beyond loss. They teach that greatness is not a solitary pursuit, but the continuation of a legacy begun long before us. When we strive with purpose, when we honor those unseen who shaped us, we carry them forward into every triumph. And in doing so, we discover the most powerful truth of all—that those we love are never truly gone; they live within us, guiding every step toward the destiny they once dreamed for us.