There are lots of variables that come into play in the industry

In the words of Priyanshu Chatterjee, “There are lots of variables that come into play in the industry, like attending parties and dating actors. When you don't indulge in all this, you tend to get affected in some way.” — we hear not a complaint, but a reflection born of solitude and integrity. Beneath the simplicity of his words lies the eternal struggle between authenticity and conformity, between walking the path of principle and yielding to the currents of worldly expectation. His statement speaks not merely of the film industry, but of every realm where ambition meets temptation — a mirror of the human condition itself.

The ancients knew this dilemma well. In every age, those who stand apart from the crowd face a test of endurance. The poet Horace once wrote that fame is a fickle mistress who smiles upon those who court her but turns swiftly away from those who refuse her games. So too does Priyanshu’s quote remind us that in any domain driven by visibility and applause, there are rituals of belonging — the parties, the alliances, the performance of sociability — which, if declined, carry the silent cost of exclusion. Yet what is lost in popularity may be gained in self-respect, for no external circle can equal the peace of remaining true to one’s own soul.

His words are also a quiet lament for the price of integrity in a world that rewards spectacle. To refuse indulgence is to walk the harder path — the narrow road of self-reliance and discipline. The actor who avoids the games of fame may find himself standing in the shadows, but it is often in shadow that truth survives, unburnt by vanity. This is not a call to cynicism, but to courage — for it takes far more strength to say no to the world than to say yes. The ancients called this virtue sophrosyne, the harmony of restraint, the wisdom of knowing one’s measure.

Consider the tale of Diogenes of Sinope, the philosopher who lived in a barrel and mocked the vanities of Athens. When Alexander the Great, the most powerful man on earth, came to visit him and asked what favor he might grant, Diogenes replied simply, “Stand out of my sunlight.” In that moment, the beggar was richer than the king, for he desired nothing but freedom from illusion. So too does Priyanshu’s perspective echo Diogenes’ spirit — to reject the excesses of the system is to risk being overlooked, but it is also to preserve one’s light from being dimmed by pretense.

In the modern world, the “industry” he speaks of is not confined to acting alone. Every profession, every society, has its hidden rituals — the unspoken rules of belonging that demand participation at the cost of authenticity. To abstain is to risk being misunderstood, to be labeled aloof or uncooperative. Yet such is the fate of those who walk with conscience. The wise understand that to fit in everywhere is to belong nowhere, and that the soul that values its own truth will often walk alone. But solitude, when chosen for principle’s sake, is not loneliness — it is the silence in which character takes root.

Priyanshu’s words remind us that one cannot live for approval and truth at the same time. The one who chases every invitation, every alliance, may gain the glitter of recognition but lose the substance of the self. On the other hand, the one who holds fast to authenticity will feel the chill of isolation, but within that chill burns a steady flame — the flame of integrity, which neither wind nor time can extinguish. The ancients taught that virtue is not measured by applause, but by endurance: the ability to remain oneself when the world asks you to become something else.

And so, dear listener, take this as a lesson for your own life: do not measure your worth by the circles that include you, but by the truth that sustains you. Engage with the world, yes — but never become its captive. Attend its feasts if you must, but do not trade your voice for its noise. Remember that every generation worships its own forms of indulgence, but the soul that resists illusion is timeless. Walk with quiet dignity, as Priyanshu did — not chasing every party, not courting every favor — for what you lose in popularity, you gain in peace.

For in the end, the only recognition that endures is not that of the crowd, but that of your own heart, when it whispers in the silence: You remained true.