First of all, I owe you an apology for being away for a while. The past few months have been unusually busy, as most of my time went into promoting my book, The Oxygen Countdown. So many of you supported it through shares, comments, and simple words of appreciation. Trust me, even the smallest gesture meant the world to me and made every bit of hard work worth it.

Recently, during an interview with an American media outlet, I was asked a rather beautiful question.
“What if your best friend randomly showed up? What would you do, where would you go?”

That question stirred something deep within me and made me want to share a very personal tradition of mine, my Christmas routine.

Christmas has always been one of my most cherished occasions of the year. I genuinely wait for it. Every Christmas, without fail, I indulge in small acts of joy, and one ritual stands above the rest.

I watch The Mermaid (2016), a film I have been revisiting every single Christmas since 2020. It is one of my all-time favorite movies, directed by the brilliant Stephen Chow, a filmmaker I deeply admire.

The film beautifully portrays compassion, especially towards marine life, and highlights how rapid human expansion and technological intrusion are destroying natural ecosystems, particularly the oceans. The depiction of sonar usage and its devastating impact on marine creatures is something that truly stays with you.

The reason I associate this movie with Christmas is simple.

Christmas represents joy, love, hope, and compassion, the very teachings of Jesus Christ that should never be forgotten. This film mirrors those values powerfully. For me, it symbolizes how incredibly beautiful the world is and reminds me that love does exist, and that it is the most beautiful force in the universe.

Love, empathy, and compassion should always be our priorities.

So yes, this is my Christmas ritual.

Once again, I wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a wonderful New Year ahead. Please take care of your family, cherish your loved ones, and if you have not yet watched The Mermaid, I truly recommend it. It is more than a film. It is a feeling.

With warmth and gratitude,

Manvendra Singh Bisht (and Mks ofcourse!) 😉