Prof. Pillai called me and asked “Will you work hard I will make you...

14th July 2004, around 8 a.m.

I reached 392 A, Mahale Plot, Gokhale Nagar, Pune, the address mentioned in the prospectus that I had purchased for admission to the Sadhana Centre for Management & Leadership Development (SCMLD). On reaching, I met few ex-SCMHRD students who were organizing the event. I also met the coordinator, Ms Joycee. To my surprise, my name was not in the list of admitted candidates as I had only faxed the DD and had not sent the original copy. Since I had not got admission, I could not stay in the campus. I was trapped in an alien land where I knew no one. I almost begged and cried. From the ground floor to the third floor I met all the support staff. I was asked to wait and meet the Director Prof. M S Pillai. I had a very brief interaction with him while in Delhi and knew that he was a very tough man. Anxious to meet him, I waited...

14th July2004, 11a.m.

I got a chance to meet Prof. M S Pillai who had come to his office for a break. He heard me out and asked me to wait. The next two days I had five such meetings. Meanwhile, I was introduced to Kamal, Gautam and Amit who were my batch mates who stayed outside the campus. They were instructed by Prof. Pillai and Joycee Madam to allow me to stay at their house as I had no place to go.

16th July around 8 p.m.

Prof Pillai called me and asked “Mehnat karega na, main bahut bhag daud karayega.” I nodded in affirmation. He smiled and said go take admission. I left a sigh of relief and became 2004 B 79, the name I became famous with, for the next two years and years to come. This day was the beginning of a real transformation from a rough, undisciplined, average student with bad English, into a successful corporate person and eventually a successful human being. I have had

such multiple instances with him which had a great impact on my life and are fresh in my memory but here I am quoting just a few which shaped me to be a better human being and become what I am today. I remain indebted to this great soul for my entire life. Being the first batch, he was very close to us and had ensured every minute attention to shape us to become better human beings and better professionals. The man who threatened (and probably meant), “I will put chilli powder at the right places,” helped me-I was the last to be admitted, to become the first to be placed, and all credit goes to the one and only, my beloved Sir, Prof. Pillai. Here are a few instances I would like to quote:

National Seminar 1 SCMLD (July 2005)

I was enthusiastic about inviting and creating a panel of marketing and advertising people. I had met a few of the stalwarts in Mumbai and FICCI Frames and had a few visiting cards left. I sent out letters of invitation to a few of these key professionals. The copy of the letter also went to Prof Pillai. To the biggest horror of my life, the letter (e-mail) had multiple spelling and grammatical errors. I was called inside the cabin and from that day onwards, I made sure I did a spell check before sending any mail, and read it at least twice. Thanks to Pillai Sir for making me get into this habit.

Placement visits

On my multiple visits to Prof. Pillai at Delhi, I was amazed to see the profound respect he got from the who’s who of the corporate world. No senior corporate leader ever called him by his name; everybody had that respect in their eyes. Everyone ensured that they dropped Prof Pillai till the gate or till his car. His simplicity was so immense that he always stayed in a simple two star hotel while his students stayed in large corporate suites. He always used a simple car and availed economy class to commute. My biggest learning came when we had two students in marketing yet to be placed. I told Prof Pillai that he should talk to the Voltas Marketing head who he knew. He refused, saying, “I have given these people many chances; if anybody else wants to contact, he is free to do so.” I took that as a personal challenge. The next day, I took a bus from Pune to Mumbai to meet Mr K J Jawa who is now MD of Daikin India. I had had a brief meeting with Mr Jawa earlier and also had his mobile number. I reached the Voltas office at Chinchpokli, Mumbai, at around 10 a.m., waited for Mr Jawa till 4.00 p.m., and then when he heard I was from Prof Pillai’s B-School, he talked to me for a good 40 minutes. Three days later, he sent his HR to SCMLD campus and both my friends Aniket and Anant got placed with one of the leading brands of India, Voltas. Lesson learnt - never give up and take initiative yourself.

There are many such instances that occurred over the 16 years that I knew him, but I would like to relate the last meeting I had with him when he came to my house along with Madam and Manu for dinner.

The last dinner with MSP - 8th October 2018

I had been inviting Sir for long, to come and have dinner at my place. Eventually, on his visit to Delhi for Manu’s book launch, he agreed and asked me to pick him up. I picked him up at around 8 p.m., and brought him to my house in Delhi. He met my son and my wife. My son, who was four and a half years old, got talking with Sir, and Sir spoke to him and observed his activities for hours. I still remember his lines: “Let him explore what he wants to do, don’t bother him. He will learn by exploring.” Sir allowed my son to narrate his stories and take him through his story books. When I mentioned that Manu was a writer, my son promptly stopped addressing Sir, and switched to Manu about his stories. We all laughed, never centered that this would be our last dinner with him. I never felt he would go away so soon. He gave me another lesson that day-how to be a good father and a responsible citizen. I am what I am because of him. My family and I miss him and we know that his blessings are always with us. His lessons are many but, I always follow, a few to keep myself motivated.

Prof. Pillai called me and asked “Will you work hard-I will make you run around a lot.” I nodded in affirmation. He smiled and said go take admission

What he taught us

Leadership of vision, truth and truthful action, for an inner shift from

• Qualification – to – Education
• What I can get – to – What I can give
• Self-centered success – to – Selfless accomplishments
• Teaching and studying – to – Learning and realization
• Indifference and inaction – to – Bold initiative and decisive action
• Casualness and mediocre approach – to – An indomitable urge to excel
• External examination and certification – to – Self-examination and satisfaction
• Employment as mere job and salary – to – A great opportunity to unfold and express oneself
• Forced up gradation of quality – to – An unflinching mission to serve by offering the best
• Competitive rivalry – to – Support and collaboration for competitiveness
• Reward-induced limited motivation – to – Limitless self-motivation
• Excuses and escapism – to – Accountability and taking charge
• Policed discipline – to – Principle bound self-discipline
• Knowing and doing – to – Performing and achieving
• I can’t – to – I can
• Mere living – to – Living by leaving a legacy
• Service and means of life – to – Serving and meaning to life,
• When ‘I’ become ‘We’, and
• ‘We’ taking responsibility, and becoming responsible for building a world of prosperity, peace, harmony, hygiene, health, happiness and relationships.

I thank Sir for all this and much more. I wish he was with us to continue to give his wisdom. I am glad we could meet for that two-day training organized for the first batch and also at my house for dinner. I will cherish it always. Sir, has not just lived life, but also left a legacy.