Against All Odds Real Life Survival Stories.
[Applause]
it’s september of 1976
we are traveling back in time september
of 1976
a young teacher had just been appointed
in birla college
those of you who are from kalyan know
about this
it was a beginning of the new ten plus
two plus three format
and big college did not have rooms for
conducting lectures of class 11
so these will be held at century rayon
school
three kilometers away this poor teacher
had
no home and he lacked the funds to pay
for deposit
of a rental home after spending two
weeks
as an unpaid guest at the centurylink
guest house
he was politely asked to move out
because the rules
for it an extension desperate for a
place to stay
he appealed to his students to search
for a place where he could stay and at
that time he told them frankly that i
will not be able to afford
a deposit because
the next day a student walks up to his
teacher and says sir
you can stay in my house free of cost we
can provide your corner
but there is a catch that student’s
father
was a gardener in the local crematorium
shamshanghat
of maharan village on the outskirts of
shahada and this boy’s house was right
inside the crematorium
also there was no electricity in that
house there were six other occupants in
that house which was
hardly half the size of this change but
beggars cannot be choosers
and the teacher immediately accepted the
offer and shifted incidents
the sole source of light in that entire
crematorium
was a sodium vapor lamp on a pole
which was right next to the spot where
the dead bodies used to be burned on the
female fire
now this determined teacher used to sit
under that
land to prepare the notes for his next
year’s lectures
because he was educated in the
vernacular medium and he used to sit
with books and lick stories
to translate everything for the next
lectures
oh yeah around 7 pm suddenly this lamp
would go off
without warning and the whole place
would be
engulfed into pitch black
flicking on a stable torch the teacher
would gather his books quickly
and start walking 400 meters away to his
humble abode
he had to be careful because the place
was full of slithering snakes
there were bats chattering out shooting
and not very far away
there was also the call of a jackal and
hyenas
on reaching to that spot he used to
occupy that corner and fall into a tired
sleep
after a laborious day this ritual lasted
four months till he found a place as a
paying guest
and during these four months his early
dinner
like i need to tell you that also his
early dinner
used to consist of missile power worth
five rupees
for the first 10 days
what would be three for the next ten and
sukha bhajiya and power for the last 10
that could have heard now how do i know
all these details about this man
ladies and gentlemen the man i’m
referring to a teacher of teachers
a stalwart is none other than
my father
[Applause]
and all that i have told you is the
story of his life how he began
he became a legend in his own right for
the next 30 plus years state has
taught and guided and created careers of
thousands of students
many of whom have been placed across the
world run successful businesses
or also our corporate leaders
much to share this joy many of his
students are also
successful teachers what more could a
teacher ask for
and all of the students including myself
including myself we credit shaytan sir
for
creating in us a strong desire for
knowledge
a strong thirst for teaching with the
basics
learning with the why and most
importantly
never said i spend now many many people
must have been thinking in my earlier
days also that
this boy must have been
this boy must have been mentored to be a
teacher right since his student is
well that’s far from the truth even
though my mom and dad both are teachers
i was never programmed to be a teacher
in fact
they both allowed me to explore the best
thing that they did as parents was give
me freedom
so i was preparing for a corporate
career i was getting ready to do my mba
when suddenly tragedy struck but my
father’s business suffered a serious
setback
and at that time teaching chose me
it was as if i was destined to become a
teacher as soon as i got that
opportunity i took to it like a fish
takes to water
and i am very blessed that i was taught
by great teachers
and loved by my students so i learned
from both these cases
most important thing that everyone
should understand guys
is you are never too big to learn from
anyone you can learn even from your
juniors
and i would like to tell all the
youngsters here never try to copy anyone
if i would have tried to copy my
illustrates
always try to be the best version of
yourself
now in the last 21 years that i have
been a teacher i have met some amazing
survivors
people who take the leap of faith
people who come over a lot of odds one
of them was madurai
a class 12th student who was writing her
exams
during which her father suffered a
massive heart attack and died on the
spot
our teachers immediately went and come
sailed her and explained to her that you
should not
discontinue your papers that is not what
your father would want
thankfully the emotional will work and
madura decided to continue
but when you picture the scene your dear
father’s
cold body is lying on the floor
your distraught mother is sitting next
to the body
completely lost her eyes wet with tears
completely swollen and every time a
visitor walks in the dad goes
there’s a lot of chaos emotional turmoil
and in the middle of this
you write your exam knowing fully
when you come back you have to say bye
bye goodbye to your darling father
but that’s what mudra did and she passed
through flying colors
when the going gets tough the tough get
going
[Applause]
my is another example of a fantastic
fighter he was sincerely preparing for
his second year third year degree exams
when his father
a driver with mara assisted electricity
board who was standing outside his
vehicle
[Music]
suddenly one of the ropes snapped and
the transformer fell down on mr monday
completely crushing his back months were
spent in the hospital
and on one of the visits
birth to be a driver inspired by his
father’s faith in him
amid died deeper into his studies
finished his fourth graduation
got a degree in law and also became a
qualified company secretary
today one day a telestandard
is the head company secretary of asia’s
largest real estate firm
he is responsible for legal compliances
of
52 group companies winners
always find ways always
the third and perhaps the most closest
to my heart the example that i would
like to share with you
is all two of my students and what i
would say i will express my gratitude to
the universe for allowing me a chance
to teach
these students both boys lost their
sight
at a very young age but not their vision
sidekick provision they used to sit in
the class with regular students
with a recording device in hand on the
first bench all
senses completely focus their ears
popped up
and i am proud to say that they did not
just pass their exams
they inspired all their attachments and
they inspired their teachers as well
kumar used to even come from a rural
place called writing which is like 10 or
12 kilometers away
traveling in public transport now this
guy from a very poor background this guy
from a middle class family educated
background
being a brilliant student kumar also
decided to get into
music is gifted with a music magical
voice and he also
creates lot of love with music and
whosoever is working in an i.t firm as a
software tester
they do not need sympathy all they need
is an
opportunity coming to the second phase
of
my journey this was about my journey as
a teacher now my journey as an offline
traveler
i have met some wonderful survivors
throughout the world
i have traveled to many places in india
is abroad
wonderful of kenya the hardy mountain
folk of the himalayas
the farmers and tridents of maharashtra
rajasthan
all these people have common challenges
they are faced with
very very unpredictable climatic
conditions severe drought
poverty sometimes exploited by the
system
and always being challenged by the
elements
but you will rarely find more happy
people
they are always joyous they are always
smiling and most importantly they are
always needing to share
during the everest base camp trend and
before that
i would like to mention that in suddenly
classified
tough times do not last but tough people
don’t
and when the light flows unexpected
challenges like that
they do not mind why me
they chill up and say try me
you and i are far more blessed than
these people
a special mention to this lady from
australia
during the everest base came back in
2018 we met
soon sue was from australia 64 year old
breast cancer survivor
and she was there to reach the base camp
along with her daughter
her 40 year old daughter we were so
happy and thrilled to meet her
that the cancer could not defeat her but
two days after
after that we bumped into a group again
and we came to know that sue was finding
it very difficult to continue because of
the high altitude
her body had become weak and she may not
be able to continue
traveling and completing her trip well
we felt sorry for her but we could pray
that’s what we could do we reached the
other space camp at 5 000 340 meters
and two days after that when we were on
our way down
what do we see this gutsy lady climbing
up with her porter
in her own words if i could say
well the chemotherapy and cancer
weakened my body but not my spirit and
you don’t get a chance again
to come back to the himalayas all the
way from australia
so i just decided to push myself a bit
more
she deserves a round of applause
and this lady from australia what do all
of them have in common a super strong
will
a will to survive a will to never give
up a will
to ensure that they smile even in the
toughest situations
a will to rise like a phoenix
from when everything
seems lost these guys open their waves
of fire
and they take off now does it mean
to learn the art of survival we must
go through crushing defeats or face
severe setbacks
or have a loved one taken away from us
no not at all do you have any idea which
is the toughest exam that
any one of us passed was it boards
10 standard 12 standard no chartered
accountancy
no mbbs or iit entrance exams
not at all the toughest most difficult
life-threatening challenging
mind-blowing exam that all the persons
in this room
have appeared for and have passed with
flying colors
without help from any teacher any books
or any important questions yes
taking the first breath after being born
since you’re having this for nine months
you were floating
in your mother’s home free of any
worries and tensions being fed
ready-made food
and everything that is required through
that cord
which connected you to your mom no
tension at all suddenly when you are
violently pushed out
nobody even asks you you are finally
pushed down into a room full of lights
blinding lights full of masked men
and women there were no forbidden so
people weren’t used to us
so full of master and women and as your
body adjusts to the cold
labor room you realize something is
missing
your brain tells you it is the oxygen
and no no the lack of oxygen
something that is available in abundance
supply in that safe cocoon
and your survival instinct kicks in and
you are
quickly directed to breathe in a lung
full of oxygen
and that humongous effort is
so much that humongous effort is so much
allowed that your fragile body
cannot take it and you let out a loud
that is a sweet sound that everybody is
waiting to listen to
as soon as you cry everyone in that room
and outside
hug each other cry tears of joy give
high fives because
a survivor
[Applause]
without anything except your survival
instinct
my dear friends why be afraid of the
challenges that life throws at you
normally we get time to prepare for them
many times we forget that we are born
survivors
we lose the plot and we just drag
ourselves through lives
to such people i have one simple message
stop existing
start living it’s extremely important
to understand the day of one life let’s
make the most of it
let’s not crave let’s start buying let’s
not repent no regrets
because what you wanted to do then you
did it now don’t repent
and even if somebody forced you to do
something against your will
unfortunately promise yourself that such
a day is never going to come back in my
life
and i will be my boss i will be my ruler
and i will laugh a lot
smile a lot spread a lot of joy because
we have this one birth i don’t know
about the rebirth or something they say
that
the past is history the future
is mystery what we have today
is a gift and that is why it is called
present
[Applause]
yesterday is a lost chair
[Applause]
such that even after we have been gone
for 100 years
people remember us through our words
through our actions
and through the people and lives that we
touched because
where there is a will there are ways
thank you
[Applause]