India, March 21 -- *SPOILER ALERT* Don't read further if you are planning to see the film.

This is not a film review though. Manjummel boys is a good film if not a great one, and definitely worth a watch. My essay is related to the film only tangentially.

Before the pandemic, I was on a solo trip and did something so uncharacteristic that my mind boggles to this day. I decided to try my hand at paragliding. This whole exciting adventure can be divided into four very scary parts and all of them have to be done by deliberately shutting down your survival instinct, the very thing that keeps you alive.

All things that are inherently dangerous, if not fatal

One, you are strapped into a strange man's lap and praying that he'll not grab your...