“Christmas is my favourite time of the year,” says Lena. “It’s mainly because there is nothing more fulfilling than exchanging gifts and making merry with your loved ones. I would say that Christmas during my childhood was the best time I used to have. Till I was nine, I used to believe that Santa does exist and that he would come to my home, riding the reindeers to give me Christmas gifts. Every year I used to write letters to Santa mentioning what I would love to have that particular year. My parents would ensure that I would receive exactly what I wanted if I continued to be a good girl. They would silently place the gift under the tree and I would be very happy to unwrap it and see that Santa had fulfilled my wish.
“Things have changed and I am the one who has been asked to become the Santa every year. My sister’s kids wait for my arrival with their gifts. However, this year I am away from home and shooting for a Tamil movie in Chennai.”
She is looking forward to celebrating Christmas at the location. “Hopefully, it will be a different experience to celebrate the occasion with people whom you have just started knowing. I think it will help us bond well as a team. But there is no doubt that I will badly miss my home and my sister’s kids. But I have already sent them gifts and hope they will not miss their Santa Claus this year,” Lena smiles.
Her mother’s fruit cakes and red wine were an inevitable part of Lena’s Christmas celebrations. “I wish to go home soon and have some of it even after Christmas, just for the sake of my satisfaction because it is very rare that I spend a Christmas without them.”
