[Rena]

An angry letter from a young lady made JRD Tata change his rule

Sudha was livid when a job advertisement posted by a Tata company at
the institution where she was completing her post graduation stated that
"Lady candidates need not apply". She dashed off a post card to JRD
Tata, protesting against the discrimination. Following this, Sudha was
called for an interview and she became the first female engineer to work
on the shop floor at Telco (now Tata Motors). It was the beginning of an
association that would change her life in more ways than one."
There are two photographs that hang on my office wall. Everyday when I
entered my office I look at them before starting my day. They are
pictures of two old people. One is of a gentleman in a blue suit and the
other is a black and white image of a man with dreamy eyes and a white
board. People have often asked me if the people in the photographs are
related to me. Some have even asked me, "Is this black and white photo
that of a Sufi saint or a religious Guru?"
I smile and reply "No, nor are they related to me. These people made an
impact on my life. I am grateful to them." "Who are they?" "The man in
the blue suit is Bharat Ratna JRD Tata and the black and white photo is
of Jamsetji Tata." "But why do you have them in your office?"" You can
call it gratitude."Then, invariably, I have to tell the person the
following story. It was a long time ago. I was young and bright, bold and
idealistic. I was in the final year of my Master's course in Computer
Science at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) in
Bangalore, then known as the Tata Institute. Life was full of fun and
joy. I did not know what helplessness or injustice meant.
It was probably the April of 1974. Bangalore was getting warm and
gulmohars were blooming at the IISc 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 realised 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 realisation 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 realised 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 and kindly smile and
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 realise 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?" he
asked. "Office time is over." 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 paused.
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." "Sir, I don't know
whether we will be successful." "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.

(Sudha Murthy is a widely published writer and chairperson of the
Infosys Foundation involved in a number of social development initiatives.
Infosys chairman Narayan Murthy is her husband.)


Article sourced from: Lasting Legacies (Tata Review- Special
Commemorative
Issue 2004), brought out by the house of Tatas to commemorate the 100th
birth
anniversary of JRD Tata on July 29, 2004

[meera]

Really it is a very inspiring letter for girls like us.She is a successful woman behind a successful person.[img]smileys/smiley1.gif[/img]

[AjayKumar.Kataram]

Good one....

[Sean2]

Really an inspiring one.
thanks

[maryannsms]

Very inspiring Rena. Thanks for sharing your story to us.

[djbabu]

nice