Educator, author and philanthropist, Sudha Murty’s attitude and efforts consistently bear fruit and win hearts.
By Nichola Marie
“I made my husband a businessman. My daughter made her husband Prime Minister of the UK.”
A wonderful quotable quote from the irrepressible Sudha Murty, made in jest but with a ring of truth… She did provide the seed capital of ₹10,000 from her emergency funds to her husband NR Narayana Murthy to start Infosys; the same company now has a market cap of over $80 billion. And her daughter Akshata is credited with being the driving force behind husband Rishi Sunak’s rise to power. There’s clearly not much she cannot do!
On the off-chance that Murty — herself a Rajya Sabha MP currently — ever desired to run for the highest office in the land, she could well end up on the winner’s podium, broad smile and handloom sari neatly in place.
Raising The Bar
For one, she lacks neither in capability nor in breezy confidence. The first woman engineer to have worked with India’s largest auto manufacturer TELCO, she snagged the job after she had dashed off a postcard to the company’s Chairman JRD Tata himself complaining of the “men only” gender bias. A special interview later, she was hired immediately.
In 1996, she started Infosys Foundation, which provides tremendous support to programmes in the areas of education, healthcare, destitute care, rural development, and arts and culture. “I can proudly say that it is not merely a job, it’s my passion and I do it for the love of it,” she has vouched, while also crediting her dedicated team.
Making A Difference
A visiting professor at the PG Center of Bangalore University, she also taught at Christ University. Recipient of the Padma Shri and the Padma Bhushan, it is her avatar as author (she has over 40 books to her credit) and motivational speaker that has perhaps won her the most hearts. Growing up with her maternal grandparents, listening to stories from their life and mythology, is what, she believes, gave her a rich perspective on life.
Ever championing gender harmony, she declares, “Women contribute significantly to the functioning of society and the economy. If they were to stop working, it would create a major imbalance and affect various aspects of daily life.”
