Story of Dashrath Manji

Yesterday as curtains came down on the first season of Satyameva Jayate,  Aamir Khan took the example of a man lesser known “Dashrath Manji” to portray the strength of individual will and persistence.  I first heard of this man in October 2009 from a little girl of 9^th Standard as she prepared herself for a district level oratorical competition.  I was touched not just by the phenomenal delivery but the story itself. A touching story of greatness so conveniently missed, a story of will, a story of perseverance, a story that everyone intending to do something different needs to read. So  I had made available the speech verbatim for a wider audience later.  The story of the man had as great an impact on me yesterday as it had 3 years earlier. Hence once again here I am sharing the speech of this little girl with all of you.. .

“17^th August, 2007. Dashrath Manjhi died. I read this news on page 10 of the Times of India, and, guess what the front page featured that day? Salman Khan & John Abraham, today’s role models, chorusing at a meeting in New Delhi – “Work hard and you could have our strength and biceps”. Huh! If only you had dumbbells to build the inner strength, not just the biceps. Contrast this with Gandhiji, the half naked scarecrow framed fakir, his frail frame housing an indomitable spirit which could stop an entire nation in its tracks.

If Gandhiji had been alive he would have proclaimed Dashrath Manji to be  one of his ilk. This poor , illiterate outcaste labourer from Bihar had a cast iron spirit. When his wife died at a young age from an illness that plagues most of India – no, not cancer or TB, not heart disease either, but inaccessible healthcare, he decided to turn adversity into an opportunity. His wife could have been saved – if only – he could have cut through a hill and taken her to a hospital, just 10 kms as a crow flies. Circumventing the hill took 50 kms, which on a bullock cart meant a death sentence for even a not so serious ailment.

In grief, he petitioned the government, pleaded with the bureaucracy and knocked on all possible doors to have a road cut through the hill so that his wife’s fate should not befall others with a similar plight. The local collector rebuffed his repeated pleas… and added sarcastic insult to bereaved injury by saying that if he was so desperate to help others, he could do the task himself…… Callousness and impoliteness have their silver lining. Dashrath Manjhi took this crude remark as a challenge and decided to do the job himself.

Ridicule, indifference and taunts were the gifts from his fellow villagers for his mission, and if you were in their shoes, even you would have been amused. How can a man cut through a mountain with just a hammer and chisel as his tools!! A half starved man at that! But Dashrath Manjhi was an ordinary man with an extraordinary spirit. He sold a few precious belongings to buy the hammer and chisel, shifted his house to the base of the mountain and after his day’s work as a labourer he chiseled away at the hill.

It took about 5 years for the ridicule to turn into grudging admiration… and another 5 years to transform itself into help in the form of food and water and an occasional hand to chip away the stones. Dashrath manjhi’s love for his wife was producing unimaginable results. In about 10 years time, people began to notice a change in the shape of the hill. Instead of a defiant rockface there was a depression in the middle and in a period of 22 years, the mountain had been scaled,…. not by climbing it,… but by cutting through! Dashrath Manjhi’s love’s labor gave birth to a CLEAR FLAT PASSAGE through the hill measuring about 16 FEET wide, reducing a 50 km circuitous route to a mere 8 km.

The press had labeled him as a modern day Shah Jahan, though I personally feel that by doing so, they did a great disservice to his memory. The magnificence of Shah Jahan’s homage to his wife fills us with a sense of awe at the craftsmanship of 22 thousand artisans, while Dashrath Manjhi’s homage in the form of 22yrs of single handed hard labor makes us hold a mirror to ourselves, showing us the EVERESTIAN efforts our body and soul are capable of. To me Dashrath Manjhi’s abiding message is that when you expire, you should inspire….inspire others to make a difference!”

Aamir Khan and this little girl have done their bit to get the story to us – now what are we going to do about the learnings?

Thinkers 50

The Thinkers 50 list is published! The verdict is out! Clayton Christensen becomes the most influential thinker in the world. It is not too surprising to see him at that position. Even his one article “How will you measure your life?” ( http://hbr.org/2010/07/how-will-you-measure-your-life/ar/1 ) alone makes him worthy of this honor. This article brings the reader back to fundamentals of life. It is wonderful to see so many people influencing the way forward for the society. The interesting thing for us as Indians is to see quite a few people of Indian-origin that list.

Though it may not be a surprise entry – the one that really makes me feel happy this time around is to see a person on that list who is not only of Indian Origin but one who also spends a fair amount of time in India – Vineet Nayar, CEO of HCL. I had written a review of his lovely book “Employees First, Customers Second”  ( http://rajshankar.wordpress.com/2010/07/23/employees-first-customers-second-by-vineet-nayar/ ) Kudos to Vineet Nayar! And I truly hope this signals the beginning of a trend – Indians working from India figuring on this list.

I have derived immense inspirations from many authors and thinkers on that list. The list serves as a source of encouragement for many aspiring writers and thinkers as well.

Please do have a look at the interesting list of amazing thinkers, video interviews, their profiles and their works – Happy Reading! http://www.thinkers50.com/

“mama” or “anna” – lots to learn from this man!

As we were discussing some concepts in class about customer relationship and employee engagement – the discussions were about are we doing enough for employees or are we creating enough value for the customer, something struck me really hard! There is this person in the college that I teach whose name I do not know (doubt if many know it!) – that sounds surprising isn’t it? He is called “mama”! Everyone calls him “mama” and he more like the person who in Chennai is called “anna” – a generic way to address someone who is elder to us. This man is fairly into his latter half of life, slow, sober, does odd tasks at the institute like serving tea, lunch, water etc There is not much that we can take-away from all this but what struck me the most are these:

• Punctual: This man was always on time much before anyone else came in and more importantly “at work”; this is a laudable point since there is no one watching if he is doing something or not and most of his chores are odd jobs
• Pleasant: He is definitely not the most handsome or smart. But his smile makes him always approachable. During the 6 days I watched him, he served me, a wounded student who was finding it difficult to walk, other faculty without any remorse (not even an iota of doubt). He was always ready to help and do work – sounds banal? NO its not banal at all – considering how a customer gets treated at service centers today
• Expresses concern: He ensures he folds his hands and invites people who visit the place at least all faculty and guests. He inquires if you need water or coffee / tea, and brings it to you every time you request it without showing a face. At least whenever I passed by I found him busy and with one person always asking him for the next service.
• Says Thank you: He says “thank you” in truly regional fashion every time he serves or takes a request – sometimes you wonder why is he saying thanks when in fact we should be thanking him!
• Commitment & Hard work: He is never tired or at least never lets anyone notice it. The Admin manager told me he leaves only when he is told to in the evening and it doesn’t seem to matter to him that he is working more than the other younger counterparts (other mamas’ in the making) – I have my own doubts if they ever will become one who is so fondly called!
• Delights: Today he brought me “upma” for b’fast. No, this is not the delight point. Most of the days due to lack of facility at my guest house I come into the institute and request for a quick bite before class. Most the days it is “mama” who is around (I also come in early) and gets me my morning fuel before class. A couple of days back I had asked him for “upma” and on his return he told me that it was unavailable. I told him its ok! And today morning he delighted me by bringing “upma” as soon as I came into the institute and even before asking him to buy me some b’fast. He told me lovingly that I had asked the other day and he could not get it so he decided to get it on the way from a hotel near the station that serves it. He also told me that without b’fast it would be a difficult start to the day.

I truly hope all other “mamas’ to be” will take him as a role model and walk his footsteps. It may help them settle and create a better lifestyle for their next generation.

We have a lot to take away from him. Why are we looking all over the place for how to practice customer relationship, customer delight and work ethics? It is right here in front of us. Let’s acknowledge, appreciate and learn by being more aware of all such every day examples around us.