To dream and to do.....

What makes one great is a question that would elicit varying answers and is highly debatable. Many considerations enter this discussion and there are few definitive answers that are if they could be found. My point of view is that, the following makes a person great: 1. Excellence in his/her field 2. An ability to wield disproportionate influence 3. Has contributed to society positively 4. Has progressed without a Godfather They are the ones who set the stage for those who came after them to play out their romance. Pioneers, warriors, revolutionaries, innovators, dreamers, adventurers and creators, they stretched the limits of the freedom they were born into. They challenged the dead certainties of their times with the power of ideas, conviction—and faith in themselves above all, without consideration of the system. Looking at only India over the last twenty five years, my laundry list is as follows: 1. N.R.Narayanamurthy – NRN hailed from a tiny town in Karnataka, of poor Brahmin stock and went on to build one of India’s most respected organizations, Infosys in an India that offered entrepreneur’s very little support. He changed the way Indian entrepreneurs think that allowed future generations of young Indian’s to dream big. 2. Dhirubhai Ambani – Well, the young uneducated man from a non-decrepit Gujarat village built India’s largest privately owned corporation with vision and sheer guts. He taught us to think large, think fast and never mind the obstacles. 3. Kapil Dev – Before him, the Indian spinner came on to bowl in the tenth over of an Innings. In 1978 on his debut he struck Sadiq Mohammed of Pakistan, with a sharp bouncer, forcing the batter to call for a helmet. Indian fast bowling had arrived. Kapil then lead a rookie Indian team to the 1983 World Cup win, getting a nation to believe that we are good enough to compete with the big boys. 4. Shahrukh Khan – The Badshah of Bollywood is popular worldwide and wins his place in my list simply because he rose in an industry rife with Godfather’s. Khan made it on his own and makes every Indian proud, particularly, the Indian Muslim, who can identify with him and dream big. 5. APJ Abdul Kalam – A technocrat and scientist, he rose from a very humble background in Tamil Nadu. Leading India into the 21st Century as President was the culmination of a wonderful life. 6. Sachin Tendulkar – The greatest batter in cricket, of our time and probably of all time. He was a nation’s hope on the cricket field for many years. 7. Arvind Kejriwal – He seems to bat for the common, beleaguered Indian and frightens the run of the mill politician. Kejriwal seeks to make a difference with intelligence, daring and chutzpah. 8. Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw- Indian woman entrepreneur. She is on the Forbes list of the world's 100 most powerful women and the Financial Times’ top 50 women in business list.A woman role model par excellence, she has put India on the Bio Tech map of the world. I would have loved to place Mother Teresa on this list, but left her out simply because she was not born an Indian. Do let me know if you do not agree with my list.