This is a phrase Nobel laureate Venkatraman Ramakrishnan – only the seventh person of Indian origin to have won the honour - seems to have forgotten at least the first part of it ..and he is definitely going places now.
Ramakrishnan is reported to have expressed "Disgust" at the outpouring of mail received by him from India, especially from Tamil Nadu and his school, after the conferment of the Nobel. He may be right in pointing out that several teachers have suddenly discovered him as their student in his school/college days in India, while he remembers none of them.
He may be justified in his anger, but spare a thought for his teachers in some outback of Tamil Nadu - it was a moment of pride for them however remote they may be -something that would have made them smile and feel proud for their teaching and profession. It only makes me feel that he does not want to attribute his success to his alma mater and his earliest mentors. I was disappointed with his "disgust".
In Developmental Psychology it’s a proven thing that the formative years of between 5 - 18 years for any individual will emboss a blueprint for an entire life. Knowledge, feelings and emotions developed in these years will have an impact on your entire life and will be very difficult to reverse at a later stage in life. So it’s all the more important to acknowledge this phase.
In the recent past I had been to my school as part of a drive to have a reunion of our class in the school premises. while waiting for the principal to take permission for the reunion, I happened to meet some of my old school teachers, who were organising a fete. One of them was Mrs.Anitha she used to take non-detailed English (basically stories) and social science classes for us in the last few years of the schooling. Time had taken a toll on her, she looked a bit old and being robbed of the zest she had when we were in school...some 15 years ago.
Though not a very pretty women in the contemporary sense, but Mrs.Anitha was very intelligent and charming. Many boys including me had a crush on her and would go to lengths to impress her.. ahem..I think I am deviating from the topic ... I will cover my crushes in a different blog ;). The point I am trying to make is she had an impact on the person I am today. How so ?? you may ask - she sowed the seeds in me to cultivate the habit of reading books. Let me explain ...being the first bencher I was usually asked to stand up and read the text which she would explain to the class. And in order to impress her I used to make it a point to read up the matter before hand and make sure I read the sentences and pronounced the words correctly .... all for a "Good Vipin" and "Thank You" at the end of the class ...but that was enough to put a smile on my face for the rest of the day. If it was not for this kind of infatuational inspiration I probably would not be very inclined to read involuntarily and I have eventually picked up reading a lot later in life. Till date I try to read the sentences correctly and try to get the diction right....so much for a crush :)
Alma Mater is Latin for Nourishing Mother, and is frequently referred to one's school, college -which has nourished our thirst for knowledge. So what Mr.Venkatraman has achieved in his life is a result of an invisible blue print a layout set out by his nourishing surrogate mother - his teachers and his school. A simple thank you would have done it - for his stature If only he acknowledged their contribution however obscure it may be it would have spread cheer amongst countless people and blessings of whom would only add to his acomplishment.But alas..."Disgust" ??
Acknowledgement, gratitude and if possible a bit of support is all a mother would ever want for her care and upbringing -but would never ask. If that’s not given then in my opinion his Nobel and his life will have no nobility to it.
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