Remembering Alan Rickman

I was in train to Chennai when I heard the news of Alan Rickman’s death and prayed so hard that it be a hoax. I cried silently in the almost empty compartment. The tears didn’t just mean the death of my favourite actor. Alan Rickman, in many ways, symbolized the best part of my childhood.

I started this blog six years ago because of a book which totally changed my life. Until then, I was a mediocre teenager with very average English skills and almost zero self-confidence. All that changed after I discovered Harry Potter, when I was fourteen. It introduced me into this magnificent world of books and since then it has been my best teacher. Today, I want to write about the man who was a significant part of that glorious childhood. To the best Snape we’ve ever had:

Severus Snape being my first favourite literary character, I was waiting keenly for his introduction scene in the movie. There he was, swooping into the classroom with his black cloak billowing majestically. He kept us all bewitched with those words ‘There will be no foolish wand waving or silly incantations in this class’. Oh, he was every inch the Snape that I had in mind. The baritone voice and that unique diction inspired me so much that I put in extra effort in my next English exam. My English Ma’am called me alone to the staff room and asked me if I really wrote the essay answer myself. I couldn’t help but smile at my inside joke. I remember the times when I spammed the entire D drive with Rickman wallpapers; enacting Snape scenes with my sister, complete with Alan’s tiny nod-like jerk (a mannerism we noticed in many of his movies); rewinding snape scenes and watching it repeatedly until the dialogues were by-heart; vowing to design my first website as a fanpage for Alan Rickman.

He was no less charming in his other movies. That disappointed look on Col.Brandon’s face when he sees Marianne with another guy (I kept thinking she was such a fool to ignore him). He made us root for the villains too. Who can ever forget his stylish Hans Gruber? I sure wished it was John Mcclane who fell off the thirty second floor. Even though Harry (Love Actually) was a jerk, Alan Rickman was too adorable to hate. Frankly, I can only remember more of the Sheriff than Robin Hood. The list is endless. Rickman was ridiculously charming in all the roles he played.

When I read Station Eleven recently, there was one thing that I didn’t quite understand. The death of a character’s favourite actor deeply affects him. I wondered how a person can be so sad about someone whom they have never met. Now I do. There are thousands of potterheads all over the world now, mourning the loss of their favourite Slytherin. Each of us remembers him for our own special reasons. To me he was my first hero, first crush and Severus Snape. I can’t imagine the grief for those people who’ve actually met him. If only he’d pull a miracle like Jamie. We truly, madly, deeply miss you, Alan.

 

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