MID-DAY: How did the idea of writing a book on this intriguing and interesting phase of The Buddha’s life emerge?
ADVAIT KOTTARY: THE idea for this book really grew out of my own personal questions — about life, purpose, and the search for meaning. I’ve always been drawn to the human side of Siddhartha’s story, and I think that comes, in part, from my training as an actor. That practice of stepping into someone else’s shoes, of cultivating empathy, made me especially curious about not just what Siddhartha did, but how he felt — what it took emotionally and psychologically to make the choices he did. I’m also a very visual thinker; when I read a story, I see it unfold like a film in my mind.

Advait Kottary. Pic Courtesy/Instagram

After leaving my engineering job to pursue a more creative path, I went through a period of real struggle — grappling with questions of motivation, identity, and direction. It was during that time that I stumbled upon Thich Nhat Hanh’s Old Path, White Clouds at home. That book opened up an entirely new dimension of Siddhartha’s life for me. Like most of us, I was familiar with the broad strokes — his renunciation, his enlightenment — but this was the first time I paused to consider the sheer conviction it must have taken to persist through years of hardship, even near-death, in search of truth. That level of commitment felt deeply human and profoundly inspiring. I realised then that there was an emotionally raw, powerful story to be told — but it had to be from Siddhartha’s perspective, rooted in his doubts, his courage, and his inner transformation.