CLASSIC TRUE STORY SUDHA MURTHY (W/o Narayana Murthy) AND J R D TATA

CLASSIC TRUE STORY
SUDHA MURTHY (W/o Narayana Murthy) AND J R D TATA

It was probably the April of 1974... Bangalore was getting warm and Gulmohars
Were blooming at the campus. I was the only girl in my postgraduate
Department and was staying at the ladies' hostel. Other girls were pursuing
Research in different departments of Science. I was looking forward to going
Abroad to complete a doctorate in Computer science. I had been offered
Scholarships from Universities in the US. I had not thought of taking up a
Job in India ...
One
Day, while on the way to my hostel from our lecture-hall complex, I Saw an
Advertisement on the notice board. It was a standard job-requirement notice
From the famous automobile company Telco (now Tata Motors). It stated that
The company required young, bright engineers, hardworking and with an excellent
Academic background, etc. At the bottom was a small line: "Lady
Candidates need not apply." I read it and was very upset. For the first
Time in my life I was up against gender discrimination.
Though I was not keen on
Taking up the job, I saw it as a challenge. I Had done extremely well in
Academics, better than most of my male peers. Little did I know then that in
Real life academic excellence is not enough to be successful? After reading
The notice I went fuming to my room. I decided to inform The topmost person
In Telco's management about the injustice the company was perpetrating. I got
a postcard and started to write, but there was a problem: I did not know who
Headed Telco. I thought it must be one of the Tatas. I knew JRD Tata was the
Head of The Tata Group; I had seen his pictures in newspapers (actually,
Sumant Moolgaokar was the company's chairman then). I took the card,
Addressed It to JRD and started writing.
To this day I remember
Clearly what I wrote. "The great Tatas have always been pioneers. They
Are the people who Started the basic infrastructure industries in India, such
As iron and steel, chemicals, textiles and locomotives. They have cared for
Higher Education in India since 1900 and they were responsible for the
Establishment of the Indian Institute of Science. Fortunately, I study there.
But I am surprised how a company such as Telco is discriminating on the basis
Of gender." I posted the letter and forgot about it. Less than 10 days
Later, I received a telegram stating that I had to appear for an interview at
Telco's Pune facility at the company's expense. I was taken aback by the
Telegram. My hostel mate told me I should use the opportunity to go to Pune
Free of cost and buy them the famous Pune saris for cheap! I collected Rs 30
Each from everyone who wanted a sari. When I look back, I feel like laughing
At the reasons for my going, but back then they seemed good enough to make
The trip. It was my first visit to Pune and I immediately fell in love with
The city.

To this day it remains dear to me. I feel as much at home in Pune as I do in
Hubli, my hometown. The place changed my life in so many ways. As directed, I
Went to Telco's Pimpri office for the interview. There were six people on the
Panel and I realized then that this was serious business.

"This is the girl who wrote to JRD," I heard somebody whisper as
Soon as I entered the room. By then I knew for sure that I would not get the
Job. The realization abolished all fear from my mind, so I was rather cool
While The interview was being conducted... Even before the interview started,
I reckoned the panel was biased, so I told them, rather impolitely, "I
Hope this is only a technical interview."

They were taken aback by my rudeness, and even today I am ashamed
About My attitude. The panel asked me technical questions and I answered all
Of them. Then an elderly gentleman with an affectionate voice told me,
"Do you Know why we said lady candidates need not apply? The reason is
That we have never employed any ladies on the shop floor. This is not a co-Ed
College; this is a factory. When it comes to academics, you are a first
Ranker throughout. We appreciate that, but people like you should work in
Research laboratories." I was a young girl from small-town Hubli.
My world had been a limited place. I did not know the ways of large
Corporate houses and their difficulties, so I answered, "But you must
Start somewhere, otherwise no woman will ever be able to work in your
Factories." Finally, after a long interview, I was told I had been
Successful.
So This was what the
Future had in store for me. Never had I thought I would Take up a job in
Pune. I met a shy young man from Karnataka there, we became good friends and
we got married. It was only after joining Telco that I realized who JRD was:
the Uncrowned king of Indian industry. Now I was scared, but I did not get to
meet him till I was transferred to Bombay.... One day I had to show some
reports to Mr. Moolgaokar, our chairman, who we all knew as SM. I was in his
office on The first floor of Bombay House (the Tata headquarters) when,
suddenly JRD walked in.
That was the first time
I saw "appro JRD". Appro means "our" in Gujarati. This
was the affectionate term by which people at Bombay House called him. I was
feeling very nervous, remembering my postcard episode. SM Introduced me
nicely, "Jeh (that's what his close associates called him), this Young
woman is an engineer and that too a postgraduate. She is the first woman to
work on the Telco shop floor." JRD looked at me ... I was praying he
would not ask me any questions about my interview (or the postcard that
preceded it). Thankfully, he didn't.
Instead, he remarked.
"It is nice that girls are getting into engineering in our country. By
the way, what is your name?"
"When I joined
Telco I was Sudha Kulkarni, Sir," I replied. "Now I am Sudha
Murthy."
He smiled started a
discussion with SM. As for me, I almost ran out of the room.
After that I used to see
JRD on and off. He was the Tata Group chairman And I was merely an engineer.
There was nothing that we had in common. I was In awe of him. One day I was
waiting for Murthy, my husband, to pick me up after office hours. To my
surprise I saw JRD standing next to me. I did not know how to react. Yet
again I started worrying about that postcard. Looking back, I realize JRD had
forgotten about it. It must have been a small incident for him, but not so
for me.
"Young lady,
why are you here, Office time is over?" he asked.
“I said,
"Sir, I'm waiting for my husband to come and pick me up."
JRD said, "It
Is getting dark and there's no one in the corridor. I’ll wait with you till
your husband comes.”
I was quite
used to waiting for Murthy, but having JRD waiting alongside made me
extremely uncomfortable.
I was nervous. Out of
the corner of my eye I looked at him. He wore a simple white pant and shirt.
He was old, yet his face was glowing. There wasn't any air of superiority
about him. I was thinking, "Look at this person. He is a chairman, a
well-respected man in our country and he is waiting for the sake of an
ordinary employee." Then I saw Murthy and I rushed out. JRD called and
said, "Young lady, Tell your husband never to make his wife wait
again."
In 1982 I had to resign
from my job at Telco. I was reluctant to go, but I really did not have a
choice. I was coming down the steps of Bombay House after wrapping up my
final settlement when I saw JRD coming up. He was absorbed in thought. I
wanted to say goodbye to him, so I stopped. He saw me and Gently,
He said, "So what
are you doing, Mrs. Kulkarni?" (That was the Way he always addressed
me.)
"Sir, I am leaving
Telco."
"Where are you
going?" he asked.
"Pune, Sir. My
husband is starting a company called Infosys and I'm shifting to Pune."
"Oh! And what will
you do when you are successful.” He asked
Sir, I don't know
whether we will be successful." , I said
"Never start with
diffidence," he advised me. "Always start with confidence. When you are successful you must give back to society. Society
gives us so much; we must reciprocate. I wish you all the best."

Then JRD continued walking up the stairs. I stood there for what seemed like a millennium. That
was the last time I saw him alive. Many years later I met Ratan Tata in the
same Bombay House, occupying the chair JRD once did. I told him of my many
sweet memories of working with Telco. Later, he wrote to me, "It was
nice hearing about Jeh from you. The sad part is that he's not alive to see you
today.”
I consider JRD a great man because, despite being an extremely busy person, he valued one postcard
written by a young girl seeking justice. He must have received thousands of
letters everyday. He could have thrown mine away, but he didn't do that. He respected
the intentions of that unknown girl, who had neither influence nor money, and
gave her an opportunity in his company. He did not merely give her a job; he
changed her life and mindset forever.

Close to 50 per cent of the students in today's engineering colleges are girls. And there
are women on the shop floor in many industry segments. I see these changes
and I think of JRD. If at all time stops and asks me What I want from life, I
would say I wish JRD were alive today to see how the company we started has
grown. He would have enjoyed it wholeheartedly. My love and respect for the
House of Tata remains undiminished by the passage of time. I always looked up
to JRD. I saw him as a role model for his simplicity, his generosity, his
kindness and the care he took of his employees. Those blue eyes always
reminded me of the sky; they had the same vastness and magnificence.