Lord Jagannath is my best friend and I call him sanga (buddy). I have been living in Bhubaneswar for the last four years, far away from my friends and family members and the connection that I have built with him has helped me overcome hurdles and difficult times.

When I was living in Calcutta, I had only heard of Him. But after coming to this state, I have found a spiritual link with the Lord. I still remember the first time that I visited the Lord's temple in Puri - I cried incessantly. I could never find a reason why. Even now, every time I see him in the sanctum sanctorum, tears roll down my face.

Coming to the temple is one of my biggest stress busters. I often drive to Puri early in the morning and late at night to visit the Lord. I make it a point to be a part of rath yatra every year. I always visit the festival as a part of the crowd of devotees and never as an actor, because I believe He is the biggest star of the world.

Every ritual associated with this festival is unique - right from the pahandi, in which the three Lords are brought to the chariot by their followers, to the process of constructing the chariots.

Over the past few weeks, I have been shooting for a film in Himachal Pradesh. But I had told my director clearly that the shoot needed to be wrapped up before the festival. I wanted to return to Odisha at the earliest possible so that I could plan for my trip for rath yatra.

I had brought home a pet dog last year. So, during the festival time, I had no idea where to leave him as I was also extremely eager to attend the rath yatra. I had booked a hotel in Puri and fortunately they allowed me to bring my pet along. They do not generally allow guests to bring pets. This reinforced my faith in the Lord and I still cherish the incident.

One of the best facets of the festival is the unbridled faith among the devotees. I see thousands of people thronging the holy town. Many of these people do not have a place to stay. People from diverse backgrounds and ages come together to be a part of the festival all in the name of the Lord.

Every ritual associated with the chariot festival is special and brings with it uncommon notions. I have also been to snan yatra and also bahuda yatra a number of times and have immensely enjoyed them.

People from various castes, creed and religion come together to pull the chariot and accompany the Lord and His siblings to the abode of their aunt. This is unique and I don't think happens anywhere else in the world.

A spirit of volunteerism fills the air on the day of the festival that is breathtaking. I have seen youngsters lifting elderly people in their arms to help them catch a glimpse of the Lord on His chariot and watch people make an effort to make foreign tourists understand the meaning of the rituals. Such instances are encouraging.

The sight of thousands of people eagerly waiting for hours to either pull the chariot or simply have a glimpse of Him gives me goosebumps.

The concept of treating the Lord as a human being also enthuses me.

I speak to the Lord as my friend and ask him questions like, "How are you?" or "How is life?"

I also never demand anything from Him or ask Him to fulfil my wishes. I just share my emotions, happy or sad, and leave everything to Him for I believe He has already put in place the best things in life for me.

I always make it a point to visit Him on my birthday. Even at my home, I have idols of the Lord and His siblings and worship Him daily. When I came to Odisha, I knew no one here but gradually I made acquaintances and started getting more offers for roles in movies. The only thing I feel is that I will be here till the time Lord Jagannath wants me to be here.