How I Planned My Son's 4th Birthday

Delhi-based Deep Gupta, founder and onwer of Media Milestone, a brand management fi rm, shares his rare and rather precious experience of being ‘Party Planner’ for his son, Ayaan’s, Disney-themed birthday bash

PICTURE this: a grown man sitting cross-legged on the floor in a tastefully done up living room. Brightly coloured gift-wrap sheets are strewn all around him and the floor is a maze of assorted Disney cartoon toys. It’s one o’clock in the morning and everyone is asleep. There’s an oddly-satisfying hush that’s occasionally interrupted by the rustle of the polka-dotted ribbons the man is comparing critically, completely absorbed in putting together the little details that would make up what he considers one of the biggest days in the year.

That visual seems like something out of those idealistic Hollywood movies, but in fact, that man was me. Four years ago, on February 24, 2013, I was blessed with a beautiful baby boy. And life has been a grand adventure ever since. This year, I was determined to celebrate one of the greatest days of my life, by throwing the best possible birthday party of my little man! Since the idea of a big birthday bash for Ayaan seeped into my head, I had made it my mission to ensure the day would be one of the best days he’s had so far in his young life.

When I’d casually mentioned my intentions to friends, they assumed I was talking about hiring a party planner while burning a considerably large hole in my pocket. But my wife Seema, and the rest of my family, knew I’d something completely different up my sleeve.