Saturday, January 23, 2010

Salaam.. Dr Kalam!

In 2000, I read “Wings of Fire”. The next year, I read “Ignited Minds”, and a year later, “India: Vision 2020”.

The common thing among these immensely inspiring titles was its author: Dr APJ Abdul Kalam… one of the most famous scientists of India, and the most popular President of the country.

Until yesterday, it seemed a rather impossible dream to see and listen to Dr Kalam. But it was realized rather suddenly, when he came to inaugurate “Technovision” festival of SRKNEC. Ms Kirti Deo, my sister-in-law who studies there, managed to get a VIP pass, and we had an 11th-row view of the whole function.

The motorcade arrived at 10:15 AM. Even among the sea of people, it was easy to spot Dr Kalam, with his trademark silver locks and the grey Safari suit. On his arrival, the audience gave him a standing ovation, and all eyes were fixed on his every move.



In his speech, Dr Kalam spoke of empowering the nation through technology. He talked of his vision of making India a developed nation by the year 2020, and gave a 10-point strategy to achieve it. He detailed the PURA (Provision of Urban amenities to Rural Areas) mission, a recent initiative launched by Govt of India. He advised the students to have a systems approach (systems design, systems integration and systems management), suggested the faculty members to focus on the technologies of the future (such as nanotechnology and intelligent biotechnology).

Getting briefly into his favourite role of a teacher, he asked the audience questions about inventors and their inventions, and when the crowd gave right answers every time, chuckled, “Amazing students”.

He talked about success and failure, and administered an oath to “work with integrity and succeed with integrity.”

For a person of 80 years of age, Dr Kalam exhibited a physical fitness and mental sharpness that was quite amazing. He walked briskly; spoke firmly and even admonished a lensman who was insolent enough to be talking in a high voice. His speech was interspersed with light humour. When the students promised him they will live up to the oath, he said, "Your parents will be watching you!"

The function ended with national anthem, and it felt great to be singing it alone with this great son of this soil.

Wings of Fire” only details his life-span up to 1991. Dr Kalam went on to become Chief Scientific Advisor to the Prime Minster and oversaw the Buddha Smiling Again at Pokhran in May 1998. In 2002, he became the eleventh President of India. I hope he comes out with another volume of his auto-biography in which he shares his experiences in these high-profile positions.

Dr Kalam, Dr R A Mashelkar, Dr Anil Kakodkar… These people are epitome of excellence in their fields, be it missile technology, polymer chemistry, or nuclear science. Listening to them is always an intellectually enriching experience, one that pulls us out from our dreary routine and makes us have some faith in human resilience to beat all odds.

Monday, January 18, 2010

Turning 30...


Last week, I was chatting with a friend, and she vexed eloquent about Ishaan, her cousin. He is all of five  three years old (thankfully) and yet seems to be really sharp for his age. I said something to the effect about the next generation already beating us in smartness. And she said, "Next generation? Oh yes, you are now an old man!"

I was rather confused for a moment... And then it hit me.

Last month, I turned 30.

So what?” the younger lot among you might say.
We understand... Join the club” the elderly among you will say.

One doesn’t take much notice when one completes the teenage years and turns 20. We are all too fascinated with ourselves, and eager to set the world in proper shape. We pride ourselves on our ideas, blissfully unaware that most of them have already been tried, tested and either implemented or failed. We just can’t wait to enter the twenties and take charge of our lives.

Stepping across to the thirties is a sobering experience. The mist lifts from the eyes, and reality kicks in. One by one, you begin to discover what you are capable of, and equally importantly, what you aren’t as capable of as you once thought.

Moreover, a significant large among us are married by 29-30 years. And quite frankly, the spouses have a special way of getting us on the ground level, turning us more humane from our demi-god image (mostly in our own mind).

And the funny thing is... You sense the change yourselves. You no longer enjoy doing things you once used to.

Some doors close for you, be it IITs or civil service. And it is said that, as a mathematician, if you don’t come up your best work by early twenties, you are finished. For someone whose dream (okay, okay... one of the dreams) was to be a mathematician/physicist, it is quite heart-wrenching.

If the teenage years are about enjoyment, and the twenties are about education, the thirties are about endurance; we supposed to be more mature, more responsible, and more serious towards life.

It’s not that we are not supposed to make mistakes, but we are expected to learn from them.

The past decade has been quite a roller-coaster ride, a sine wave. There are a few things that I did right, and some things I could have done better. And there are a lot many things I should have done, but didn’t manage to.

And...ah, yes... There are things I shouldn’t have done, but did them anyway... Mostly out of ignorance or immaturity. I have my share of regrets.

A couple of weeks ago, we visited the Ramkrishna Math in the city. Standing before the huge statue of Swami Vivekananda, I could only think of a line from this great Warrior Monk:

God, give me the courage to change the things I can,
Strength to bear the things I cannot;
... and wisdom to be able to distinguish between the two.”

Laus Deo.