We often here small stories about eminent personnel which inspire and affect many people. These stories are some times heartening, some times funny, some times even sad; but, they hold a capacity to change a particular narrative about a person we personally don't know.
I am quoting one similar situation which I witnessed myself yesterday (21-june-2017).
It was International day of yoga yesterday, as a part celebration, we at IIT Kanpur had organized a mass demonstration of yoga. The venue planned was the cricket ground and one day before the event it had to be changed to indoor because of rain forecast... wish I could sing "rain rain come again, huge rajat wants to do yoga...." perhaps this don't work now when I am over 25...
The new venue is the flight hanger!! Oh, lemme tell you, IIT Kanpur has its own airstrip and we have 5 gliders, which fly. This institute also had a commercial helicopter service which is now stopped for obvious commercial reasons.
Yes, back to the flight hanger, its huge building with two parallel long walls shouldering many rafters supporting at least few hundred metal (asbestos) sheets making a very high one storey structure. Both terminals of the parallel walls are closed with huge metal sliding doors, god knows how they are opened, my guess is they must be motor controlled.
Early morning (at 4am off course), the care takers of hanger had the order to clear the space for people doing yoga (500 people couldn't fit though). Huge doors of the hanger were opened welcoming the much expected pre mansoon rains. The rain drops riding the cool morning breeze gushed in. All the fleet were moved out to the taxi lane, standing one behind the other giving a perfect shot to the shutterbugs.
Volunteers in nice custom designed Orange shirts which had the dulha (bride groom) printed on the front!!! Well, the groom is the "Logo of International day of yoga", the name given by the Yoga master and it was his marriage we were preparing for last one week. The orange colour wore by the thin and fat was looking great. This shirt was a culprit in diverting some of the active volunteers towards selfies and photography. why say no?
Now, By now the tent guy had spread long green carpet lanes exactly in straight lines making the floor really adorable. Quickly all the volunteers started placing banners inside and outside making the hanger look like a perfect yoga hall... One volunteer team made some arrangement for leaving footwear of the people coming. Yes, that is embarrassing for me write, perhaps we still need instructions to leave our footwear and a team to take care of this exercise, another unfortunate truth of a premier institute.
Next in line was, to arrange some refreshments for all the people who performed yoga. People will be tired no... That is were I was posted to deliver my duties. And the duty was to see that all get a juice packet and water if they wish. This is where the title story of this post happened. I know i stretched it a little, but it is worth it.
After the yoga performance, obviously after the photo opportunity with all the dignitaries, I returned to my post to serve my duty assigned. The dignitaries included the Director of the Institute himself. For those who don't know what a director post in IIT Kanpur is, let me tell you, He is chief of the institute like the vice chancellor in a University, He is the student patron and a representative of the The President of India. Specially, for IIT Kanpur, this is even more tough and demanding post compared to other institutes. Such a person is no less than a celebrity or a any our elected leaders. I haven't met him ever, no more than 1 % student meet him, I guess.
He was the chief guest, and to my surprise, after all the photo opportunities, while he was leaving, he came to my stall of refreshments. Many of his colleagues followed him, I don't know how many were his body guards, none were in uniform, so. A tall handsome guy, which students rarely get to see, unless they are extremely good or extremely bad, was walking towards my stall. Thanks to the water and juice, I was distributing.
I offered him a juice pack, I remember very well it was Topicana pomegranate in my hand. He said, he will have water instead. We had filled some of the use-n-throw glasses to the half. Glasses were half full, there was a simple reason, we had only one container of water for those many people, and perhaps who will prefer water when juice were distributed next to it?, so only half glass.
Director sahaab simply took a glass of water and drank in one or two seconds may be, yes he was quick. As soon as he drank half a glass of water, to my shock, he fully bent down to the floor to pick up a glass which I hadn't noticed being on the floor, and threw both (along with his glass) in to the dust bin. One of the colleagues, started saying he would lift it up, by the time, he completed his statement, the glass which was on floor was thrown in the dust bin.
This scene is a real life scene, which is so small to be reported somewhere. But, I being the witness of something unusual event, made me feel, that, I should write about it. The simplicity of the person at top is the beauty of this country, which we studied in our history books, yesterday, I witnessed myself. This incident made me feel proud of the head of the institute I study in. The ideals of this nation are intact!
