Jackie Shroff on His Love for Nature and Environment: My mother was very fond of flowers

Jackie Shroff has always been an active advocate of the environment and cleanliness, motivating the audience to work towards a cleaner tomorrow. But what is it exactly that sparked his curiosity to ignite conversations and work for a healthy future?

Sharing a memory from the past, Jackie Shroff says, “My mother was very fond of flowers. In a 10-by-10 room, there was a tiny little balcony. She used to grow roses there, and she loved those roses. I could see the thorns too. I could see the roses too. So, I saw all these things there and I understood that there is pain as well as happiness.”

Jackie Shroff reveals developing a bond with the soil. “I became friends with the soil. I understood that my mother would water it, give it a little sunlight…Then I realised, as I grew older, where did my brother go? He went into the soil. And when I understood that he had gone into the soil, I started becoming friends with the soil. I started loving my soil. I want to save topsoil, which is not there anymore. There was so much talk about topsoil for a while, and then everyone became quiet about it,” he adds.

Shroff urges the audience to carry the idea forward. “Every child should know that topsoil is the only thing that gives us food. Beneath it, there is all kinds of soil, but there is topsoil. How much topsoil do we actually have? Does anyone know? Look it up sometime in a book and see how much topsoil is actually left on Earth. We keep walking around, enjoying ourselves on this Earth, but we need to respect the Earth. We keep trampling it under our feet as we walk, but look at that Mother Earth. She is protecting us,” he says.

Jackie Shroff believes in maintaining a healthy bond with the soil and environment. “When I go into the ground, everything will become part of the soil. So, let’s be friends with the soil. That’s why we are here, basically. Enjoy your life, but don’t enjoy life by doing things that you are not supposed to do. Do a little pleasure, a little dance, a little fun, spend time with friends, have little conversations about things – but focus more on what you guys are doing with…” he concludes.