Remembering the veteran actor Om Prakash on his birth anniversary (19 December 1919 - 21 February 1998)

A man had a fulsome meal in a modest restaurant in Bombay and when the waiter presented the bill he went straight to the manager and admitted honestly that he had no money.

He added that he hadn't eaten for the past two days and was terribly hungry so was forced to do this.

The manager heard his story patiently as the man promised that the day he gets a job the first thing he would do was to settle the bill. The manager smiled and told him to leave wishing him luck.

The waiter who stood watching the drama was aghast. He questioned the manager "Saab why did you let him go". The manager replied, "Go and do your work".

Few months later the same man came to the restaurant and settled his pending bill to the utter dismay of the waiter. The man thanked the manager and told him that he had bagged an acting offer.

The manager visibly happy offered him a cup of tea and a friendship blossomed between the two. The actor soon became a known face and did multiple films at a time.

Later he owned a bungalow and a chauffeur driven car. Times had changed but everytime he passed by that area he made it a point to visit the restaurant for a cup of tea with the manager who had shown incredible sympathy years ago.

Faith at times does wonders. Had the manager thrashed and humiliated the hungry man that day maybe the industry wouldn't have got a talented and natural actor called *Om Prakash*.