Signed by famous Papa

In an age where letter writing is close to being elbowed out of existence by a horde of electronic Johnnies-come-lately, here’s a book that reinforces the intrinsic value of letters as a means to convey something.

While putting pen to paper — or hitting the keyboard — can commit all manner of writing to the brutal clarity of black and white, a personal letter is a magical thing. And when this communication is from a parent to a child, it can well turn out to be the character-building distillate of life experiences. Embellished as it would be with a parent’s unconditional love, what else could such a treasured treatise of words be termed but a legacy?

So it is fitting that journalist-turned-author Sudha Menon’s second book, a collection of 18 letters from as many eminent parents to their daughters, should be titled Legacy .

The writers — an eclectic mix of bankers, industrialists, IT giants, an artist, and a master chef, amongst others — who may be colossuses to the world at large, but simply Ma , Papa , Amma or Appa to their kids, share nuggets of wisdom on the innumerable things that shaped their lives.

Almost every one of the letter writers has delved into his or her past, the lessons learnt along the way, and put things in perspective. But for such a book, the narrative may never have been shared with their children, lost as it may have been in the rough and tumble of day-to-day life.

Such as K.V. Kamath, Chairman of Infosys and non-executive Chairman of ICICI Bank, who wrote to his daughter, Ajnya, “You might think this is a fond parent’s indulgent letter to his daughter, but to me, this is a conversation with myself about the things that I might or might not have expressed to you all these years.”

Narayana Murthy, founder of Infosys, tells Akshata, his daughter, “Success to me is bringing a smile to the faces of people when you enter a room,” and goes on to add, “Put interest of society ahead of your own family’s interest, and the interest of the family ahead of your own personal interest. This is the only way, my child, that we can make this a better world for our children and grandchildren.”

Outlining his personal recipe for success to daughters Deepika and Anisha, badminton ace Prakash Padukone writes, “The most important thing about my childhood was my refusal to complain about my lot in life… the refusal to whinge or whine about anything, even as a child of seven when I first took up the game.” Readers get a peek into the rooted-to-ground-reality Padukone household when he tells Deepika, “When you are visiting us, you make your own bed, clear the table after meals, and sleep on the floor if there are guests at home.” Then continues, “If you occasionally wonder why we refuse to treat you like a star it is because you are our daughter first and a star later. We want you to remember that you have to eventually return to the real world.”

The common thread running through all the 18 letters is that values are an important ingredient of character building, and, of course, that there is no shortcut to success.

Asked about the gender bias in her book, Sudha replies, “I think we need to give women as much positive reinforcement and motivation as possible, given the kind of challenges they have to face every day. Women speak a common language wherever they are in the world, and that involves a lot of the gentler, softer side of life. I wanted this as a ‘go-to’ book for women to be inspired by and derive confidence from. They can be assured that everything is possible with lots of determination and commitment, even if the odds are heavily stacked against them.”

Getting access to these incredibly busy people was indeed a challenge, she confesses, but when presented with the concept, most were happy to partner her in the project.

“They were unsure how to go about it because most had not written a letter in a really, really long time,” she says, adding that she spent hours chatting with them about their growing-up years, unlocking dormant memories, till they discovered they had a mountain of material to convey.

No accident then that these letters leave the reader enriched and motivated, and the recipient grateful for a priceless gift whose value multiplies with time.

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