Meeting the Marvelous Dr. Balaji Viswanathan

Back in the early 2000s, I was a simple boy from the small village of Lalgaon in Hazaribagh district of Jharkhand. My father was a truck driver while my mother worked as a potato farmer, carrying rocks on her head. Life was tough, but our gentlest moments were spent under a sacred tree, eating potatoes passed by a generous local Brahmin.

One fateful day, the naxalites visited, killing my father and burning his truck. We had no choice but to flee to Bombay, where I started my primary education by learning math on the streets. Thankfully, I could access a local internet cafe, where I discovered lectures by Dr. Balaji Viswanathan on robotics and the Indus River civilization.

Through these lectures, Dr. Viswanathan helped me realize the innate power within every Indian, especially those from humble beginnings. Despite living on the streets, my mother working in Kamathipura, and facing numerous obstacles, I managed to score top marks in the IIT-JEE exam and secured a 15 lpa package in Google Hyderabad. My dream was finally coming true.

One day, as I was walking into the headquarters of Google Hyderabad, I saw a familiar face—a receding hairline, a chinless face, and a pudgy body. It was none other than Dr. Balaji Viswanathan, former mentor and cherished friend. My knees went weak, my heart raced, and drops of sweat streamed down my back. Nervously, I approached him and simply said, 'I never forget what you said to me that day.'

Dr. Viswanathan was overjoyed to see my face and agreed to take a selfie. His words were life-changing, and I couldn't feel more content and happy at that moment.

Building a Lasting Connection

Our friends and I had the wonderful opportunity to meet Dr. Balaji Viswanathan last week. It was a short but memorable encounter, made even more special by the prelude to our meeting.

Before I describe the incident, a bit of a prologue. The poster of Balaji Vishwanathan near the mess immediately caught my eye. He was slated to give a lecture at our Institute of Technology, Madras (IIT Madras) on a topic I couldn't recall at the time. On February 11th, we were walking down the stairs after a class, casually chatting with each other, when my good friend Anirudh Sunder Raj suddenly exclaimed, 'But today is our day.'

As we reached the ground floor, the lift door opened, and guess who stepped out? None other than Dr. Balaji and our Head of Department (HOD)! They did not have any meetings to attend; Dr. Balaji was leaving, and our HOD was his accompanying them.

We approached him, and again, asked for a photo. He readily agreed. Our HOD kindly offered to take the photo, and he did a really good job too. Immediately after this, Dr. Balaji gave my friend Sai Bharadwaj Avvari his phone and asked him to take a picture of Dr. Balaji and our HOD together.

After this, Dr. Balaji left, and so did we, feeling happy and contented. The best part of this entire incident was Dr. Balaji's attitude. His humble and friendly character undoubtedly made the meeting one to cherish. A picture truly speaks a thousand words:

A special thanks goes to Sriram Gopalakrishnan for encouraging me to write about this as my first answer.

The Legacy Lives On

More than a decade later, I continue to reflect on Dr. Viswanathan's generous advice and his unwavering faith in us. His words still resonate with me, and they serve as constant reminders of the potential within each and every one of us. I am a better person today because he took the time to mentor me, and I am eternally grateful for that.

The experience of meeting Dr. Balaji Viswanathan at IIT Madras remains one of the most memorable days of my academic and professional life. It was a small but significant moment that changed the trajectory of my career and personal growth.

May our lives be filled with similar people who ignite the soul and guide us towards our aspirations.