Of Leaders and Losers- 1. The Strong Comeback

            We normally associate leaders only with the power to control the course of others’ lives.  The aim of the anecdotes related below is to disprove that notion.  People in their own small ways can make the difference not only to their lives but also to others.  Such leaders are highlighted in this series. Some others get the opportunity of helping others’ lot improve but they seek to dump it. Many more think negatively and, deservingly, get reflected in the ‘losers’ part of this series. Some stories may also bring out the contrast between leaders and losers!

            In a small town of India, there lived an IIT aspirant called Srinu.  His extended family looked up to him because none of them had ever come close to making it to the esteemed institution.

            The boy diligently worked his way through the stressfully packed schedule – on weekdays, he would wake up at 4 a.m., study until 5 a.m. and walk off to a tuition pertaining to the Engineering entrance examination of the state by 5.15 a.m., return from the class by walk by about 6.45 a.m., have breakfast, get ready and cycle to school by 7.30 a.m., attend school between 8 a.m. and 1 p.m., return home by 1.30 p.m.  After having had his fill for lunch, he would leave home by about 3 p.m., take a bus to attend the tuition for IIT entrance from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m. covering the subjects of Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry return home by abut 7.45 p.m. or 8 p.m., have dinner, do balance home work and study for unit tests if any and then go to bed.  He would pack some snacks from home for a quick bite in between.  Occasionally his father would get to drop him or pick him up from tuition, which would help him relax a bit extra.  He made it a point not to disturb his waking and sleeping schedule on Saturday though the time meant for school would be spent on dusting books or assisting in house hold work.  He could relax for a while only on Sundays.

            Despite his struggle, he never hesitated in helping any class-mate having doubts, even if it ate into his personal time, however small that time was.

            He was cheerful yet humble enough not to take the appreciation he got from his teachers, elders and neighbours get into his head.  He loved writing and whatever he wrote became more attractive with his lovely handwriting.  Srinu was now in Standard XII.  He was just a year from realising his dream of getting into the Indian Institute of Technology.

            The boy was relieved that he would get to use a gearless bike, a second-hand Sunny Zip, to commute to and from his IIT tuition.  It would save him a valuable half an hour of time, in the least.  Moreover, there was no need for some elder to ferry him, since the legal age to acquire a driver’s license for a gearless two-wheeler was fifteen, while he was already sixteen.  If he took the vehicle to his morning tuition, he would save another 15-20 minutes.                   

            By October, the month of festivities as per the Indian almanac, the entire syllabus had been completed.  Srinu eagerly looked forward to writing his CBSE – XII standard exams in style and making it to the IIT with a good rank.

            Life cruised comfortably.  Now, you’ll start wondering whether this story is all about coping with a punishing routine.  No, please hold on…..

            A 500 metre patch enroute to his IIT tuition was the part of a highway where heavy vehicles plied.  Not that Srinu did not navigate the stretch successfully.  One day, in November, he was returning from the IIT tuition and crossing that stretch on the highway.  He did not notice a speeding truck behind him since the driver did not honk the horn nor was the vehicle so close as to catch Srinu’s attention from the rear-view mirror.  Evenas he noticed the truck in his mirror, he fell unconscious.  The truck hit him from behind and the boy was uprooted from his two-wheeler and fell on his left on a heap of ballast with a thud.  Passers by gathered around, identified him by his books and informed his parents.

            Srinu regained consciousness on the next morning.  That was when he experienced pain, despite all the painkillers and tranquilliser administered on him.  When the nurse in the ICU wanted him to swallow a pill, he wanted to reach for it by his right hand; the real impact of the hit-and-run accident became evident then – he realised he could not raise it, despite his best effort!

            All the pain in his body seemed to be no match for the toll in his mind and tender heart had to take in the wake of this new reality!

            ‘The boy has been paralysed.  Some of the nerves in his left brain are irrepairably damaged,’ said the most famous neurologist in his town.

            ‘Is there no hope?’ asked the visibly upset parents, hoping against hope for a positive response from the doctor.

            ‘Allopathy offers no cure’, he replied. ‘but you can try alternative medicine if you so want’.

* * * * * * * *

            Visits of relatives, friends, class-mates and school-teachers added to Srinu’s woe.  ‘What a plight to befall a brilliant boy!’ some would bemoan.  ‘We thought you would make it to the IIT.  We never knew your dream would be left unrealised’, lamented some others.  ‘Life is full of shattered dreams.  We have to learn to cope’, came a bit of free advice.  ‘How sad!’ seemed to be a common refrain.

            Srinu could take it no longer.  He now started to search for alternative medicine to cure paralysis.

            Meanwhile, his parents took him to more famous neurologists in two metro cities.  The reply was the same – that nothing could be done to make his right hand work.

            Finally a famous neurologist in a remote corner of India operated upon the boy and enabled shoulder – elbow movement in his right hand in due course.

            Srinu continued to google and finally chanced upon a naturopathic healing solution to his problem.  But the healer was away in the Himalayas, somewhere beyond Mussoorie.  It improved things, but only marginally. 

‘I’m able to move my hand’, declared Srinu heartily.  Others could notice that it was just a movement, and not good enough to hold something with his palm in the least, to write was out of question.

            Many people got over problems of bones and nerves through Ayurveda.  Srinu’s parents took him all the way to Kerala for their famed Ayurvedic treatment.  The doctor examined the boy and suggested, ‘The treatment is for a year.  But your situation is so bad that I cannot guarantee improvement.  If you want to give it a try stay here.  At first, if you wish, take the one-week treatment.  We’ll proceed further if you are satisfied.’  The hopeful boy agreed for the short duration of treatment.  At the time of review, the doctor reiterated what he had said earlier.  Srinu and his parents returned to their hometown without waiting any longer.

            The disciplined optimist that he was, Srinu did the exercises he should have done as per the directive of the healer.  Srinu expected a miracle to happen and hoped that it would happen soon enough.  He continued his preparation for the exams of XII standard as well as that of the Engineering entrance.

            Come early summer and it is exam time.  The miracle had not happened yet, and Srinu’s sorrow increased by leaps and bounds when all others in his class but he took the examinations of XII standard.  No, it was not a case of ‘sour grapes’ or ‘why should I be prevented from writing the examination while many others, including rank dunces could’, but of experiencing sorrow of loss since the examination Board rejected his plea for a scribe.  His hardwork proved futile before bureaucratic insensitivity!

            Grief over took him and enveloped him on all sides – his fightback was to no avail and his hopes of being an IIT-ian were dashed forever.  Summer went by with his cheeks being showered constantly by his tears!

            Grief does different things to different people.  Some people give up on life, some others want to wreak vengeance for their woes and a few others, driven to suicide.  But readers would have known that the hero of this story, Srinu, was no loser.  He decided not to give up.

            ‘Get me a certificate of Physical Disability.  I’ll run an STD booth and make a living.  If I can’t bring you happiness through achievements, I should at least stop dependence on you for my needs’, the seventeen-year-old announced to his dumbstruck parents.  This piece of news was disclosed to his uncle, Vishwanath, a person with a never-say-die spirit.

            Vishwanath monitored the progress of the boy and was happy at whatever little improvement took place, but scolded himself at not judging the depth of sorrow in Srinu’s heart.  He now made sure to spend as much time as he could in Srinu’s company.  He related stories of people succeeding against trying circumstances.  Helen Keller now became an inspiration for the boy.  This inspiration gave him a wonderful idea that he could learn to write with his left hand!

            This idea turned out to be life-changing for Srinu!  In course of time, he wrote as beautifully, with his left hand, as he used to with his right hand!  After a while, he could attempt about 60% of the required number of questions to be answered in the duration of the exam, three hours.  In a few days, he could attempt about 75% of the required number of questions.  His confidence grew leaps and bounds.  Well before exam time, he could answer all the questions to be answered within the prescribed time.

            When the month of March arrived next year, Srinu appeared for the Standard XII examination and wrote well, to his satisfaction.  The results reflected his confidence – he passed with flying colours!

            His preparation for the IIT entrance exam had to be sacrificed for the writing practice of the left hand!  However Srinu made it to a free seat in a local engineering college, after having cleared the engineering entrance examination of the state!

            In the second year of B.E. (Computer Science), he registered for a Robotics competition for college students.  Some jealous class-mates remarked, ‘Look at his ambition!’ while a few exchanged surreptitious smiles and sarcastic glances.

            It was a state level inter-collegiate competition, and Srinu was a little unsure of his performance vis-à-vis others.  His brain-child, Versatile, could run on sand, jump over hurdles, move comfortably at 45º without friction and at 60 º with friction.  Needless to say, he won the competition hands down and was selected for the competition at the national level.

            When he reached the venue at Bhubaneswar, his team was far from being the hot favourite.  The dynamics of team-work were also different from those of individual working.  A total of 792 colleges from across the countries, including the IITs turned up to vie for the top honours.  The task assigned to all the team was the designing of a robot which, in addition to the characteristics of Versatile, could also act as a submarine under water and could also come out of it fast.  Since the task was common to all, the fastest robot won.  The models of the IIT of Kanpur and Kharagpur started off and favourites and in the end, the improvised Versatile won by a huge time difference!

            At this moment, Srinu remembered his IIT dream.  So what if he had not made it to the prestigious institution, his talent was recognised at the national level!

* * * * * * * *

            Srinu completed his graduation.  His father, who silently monitored the boy’s progress and ensured he was always on the track of realising his dreams, decided to make his love for the boy known to the latter- he gave the permission to try and drive their car.  With one hand always in a sling, it was going to be a daunting task for Srinu to drive.  But he persevered and did it!

* * * * * * * * *

            Srinu conscientiously decided against high-paying jobs which, in his opinion, ‘may require a compromise on his value system’. So, with a team dedicated to values, he set up a software firm, which made reasonable progress.  He was independent, and values had been given primacy over the volume of the business.  He, naturally, leads a contented life!

 * * * * * * * * *

            Now, Srinu is no great celebrity or leader about whom information is readily available on the internet.  He is just another nameless and faceless person whom we come across while we commute to office and back.  By being determined, he led himself away from disappointment, pain and disgust into the realm of crowning glory.  Is he not a leader?