What makes Harry Potter so fantastico?

“Expelliarmus!”

Yeah, that was the way Harry Potter had totally disarmed me. I was not very inclined towards reading fantasy fiction at that time, but then a friend of mine lent me his Harry Potter book and suggested I read it. Hesitatingly, I picked it up.

My first book ironically was the second part in the series - Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. When I started reading the book, I didn’t even know the meaning of the word ‘Muggle’, or if Voldemort was a good guy or a bad guy. (Yeah, I was that ignorant back in seventh grade.) Nevertheless, I started reading it and things soon explained themselves and I felt comfortable with the story. Little did I know that I was embarking upon the most magical adventure of my lifetime; one that shall go on forever till I go to the grave.

As I began to read it, I was totally mesmerized with the plot and the characters in it. It was indeed a fantastico feeling – one that I had never achieved by watching the movies. Everything about the book was so perfect – I wanted to know more and more and yet wished that the book would never end. And when it ended, I still distinctly remember the feeling. I was in sheer adoration of the masterpiece and cursed myself for having stayed away from it for so long.

I proceeded to read all the books from then – the first part of the series foremost, and then the remaining as they were released. I could not – and still cannot – stop admiring JK Rowling’s power of imagination for having created such a brilliant piece of work.

I was also awestruck when I realized how the tiny threads left in the plot right from the very first chapter of the first book united with each other so beautifully in the last part – it was a complete circle.

Harry Potter is not just a story for kids about a boy wizard who discovered he had magical powers and was introduced to the fantasy world on his eleventh birthday; it’s much more than that. It is a tale of friendship, courage, love and above all, never giving up. Whenever a Potterhead (as Harry Potter fans like to call themselves) meets another Potterhead, we are instantly connected by a unique bond. It’s not just about being in the same fandom.  It is because we know that the other person too went through the same saga of joys and sorrows, friendships and heartbreaks and thus is more often than not, a better person as a result of it. It’s not just another story; it becomes the cornerstone of your thought processes. And in my opinion, that is what makes Harry Potter so fantastico.

This blog post is inspired by the blogging marathon hosted on IndiBlogger for the launch of the #Fantastico Zica from Tata Motors. You can apply for a test drive of the hatchback Zica today.