Indulekha Aravind's report "Ordinary people" (Weekend, March 2) cites factors that have led to the success of Indians abroad. Though national culture plays a major role in shaping one's character and abilities, it is, at best, a facilitator. It is true that the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), American universities and foreign companies facilitate ambitious career orientation more smoothly. What, however, distinguishes a person's success is her willingness to take advantage of favourable circumstances or rise above frosty surroundings. So, Satya Nadella of Microsoft may have learnt team skills and leadership while playing cricket in his school at Hyderabad, but many others have learnt little even when playing at national level.
Also, there is a growing realisation that academic scores need not be a crucial parameter for career excellence. According to Laszlo Bock, senior vice-president of people operations at Google, his company attaches more importance to willingness to learn than to grades or expertise during the selection process.
Therefore, even as we applaud Indians for their success overseas, we should not underestimate the worth of those from IITs and other educational institutes who chose to stay back to serve their country and reached the zenith of their career despite a discouraging environment.
Y G Chouksey Pune
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