3 Inspirational Stories from the Life of Dr. Abdul Kalam

Curtain-raiser

Dr Abdul Kalam was born in 1931 in the island town of Rameshwaram. He distributed newspapers as a young boy and his sister mortgaged her gold bangles to support his education in aeronautical engineering. Later, he rose to become the Missile Man of India and the 11th President of the country.

His whole life is so inspiring but I have selected 3 stories that leave a deep imprint on our minds and serve to energize us till this day.

1st Story - Mastering the Failures

In 1958, Dr Kalam traveled to Dehradun to appear in an interview at the Air Force Selection Board. He loved flying machines from an early age and wanted to be a pilot. However, as luck would have it, he failed in the interview. Armed forces are a personality based organization and he had been brought up in a very humble environment by his parents. So, in his early years, his level of confidence and communication skills were low.

This incident so intensely affected the young Kalam that he concluded his life had no meaning. He even contemplated suicide. On his way back, he stopped at Rishikesh and met Swami Sivananda. He explained to the sage his dilemma and requested him to show him the way out.

Swami ji advised him to forget the past and accept his destiny since life has its own rhythm. Dr Kalam sensed the wisdom in the master’s words, learned from his failure and decided to go ahead with his plans. Next day, he appeared in another interview at New Delhi at the Directorate of Technology and Development (Air), MoD and cleared it in the first go.

Rest is history.

2nd Story- Leadership by Trust

Dr Kalam was the Project Leader for the development of the prestigious Satellite Launch Vehicle, SLV-3. He was working with the leader of the Indian Space Programme, Professor Vikram Sarabhai.

The trial of the first experimental flight was scheduled on 10 Aug 1979. It was a 23m long,

4-stage SLV rocket, weighing 17 tons. It was a marvel of the science of avionics and completely an indigenous effort. It won’t be an exaggeration to say that it was a part of our national dream to emerge as a space power. Consequently, the whole world and especially, Indians were waiting for this crucial launch with great expectations and curiosity.

The first stage was perfect. But the second stage went out of control due to a snag in the control system. The flight terminated after 317 seconds and the SLV crashed into the sea off Sriharikota. In his autobiography, Dr Kalam writes that he experienced a total black out at that juncture. It was a disaster he was not prepared for. The whole nation plummeted into despair.

In the evening, a press conference was scheduled. Dr Vikram Sarabhai decided to chair the conference and asked Dr Kalam to be present. Many sharp and unpleasant questions regarding the future of India’s Space aspirations were asked and taken on by Dr Sarabhai. He also shouldered the responsibility for the failure of the SLV launch.

Dr Kalam and his team worked with renewed vigor in the face of increasing criticism. The second experimental flight was launched after about a year on 18 Jul 1980. The rocket soared majestically into the sky  and at 600 seconds, Rohini satellite entered the orbit. Indian made its grand entry into the select club of nations which had this exclusive capability. Our national dream was realized.

In the evening, again, there was a press conference. This time, Dr Sarabhai asked Dr Kalam to chair the conference. And when quizzed about the reason behind this decision, he just smiled.

Dr Kalam chaired the press conference that evening and became a household name in India and abroad. Throughout his career, he remained indebted to Dr Sarabhai for his immense gesture where he took the entire responsibility for SLV failure on his shoulders but when the flight was successful, he endowed, Dr Kalam, the Project Leader, with the credit.

That’s the stuff great leaders are made of.

3rd Story- The Beauty of Simplicity

After the successful launch of the SLV mission, Mrs. Indira Gandhi, who was then the Prime Minister of India, expressed a desire to meet Dr Kalam. While this was an amazing piece of news by all standards, he had a real problem. He had no suitable clothes to wear for such an important occasion! He was a simple man from Rameshwaram who knew how to deal with rockets but had no idea how to go about social affairs of this nature.

But his well wishers rightly advised him to forget about this aspect because at that moment, he was beautifully clothed in his success.

He finally met Mrs. Gandhi who congratulated him on his glorious effort and was truly proud of his genius.

In a world which thrives on scores of industries dishing out fashionable products and cosmetics, promising a striking outward appearance, Dr Kalam’s simplicity, inner beauty and sheer brilliance shine like rare gems.

Afterword

The Promise

Though it is challenging to aptly conclude an article about a tall leader like Dr APJ Abdul Kalam, I would like to reproduce an excerpt from Wings of Fire which is Dr Kalam’s autobiography. Here, he describes success with the following lines from an unknown poet:

God has not promised
Skies always blue
Flower-strewn pathways
All our life through
God has not promised
Sun without rain
Joy without sorrow
Peace without pain
But God has promised
Strength for the day
Rest for the labor
Light for the way

The Agni Poem

And last but not the least, a poem composed by Dr Kalam after the successful launch of Agni, India’s first Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM):

Do not look at Agni

as an entity directed upwards

to deter the ominous

or exhibit your might

It is fire

in the heart of an Indian

Do not give it

the form of a missile

as it clings to the

burning pride of this nation

and thus is bright

***