Beyond classrooms: The mentors who matter

‘My auditor inspired me beyond numbers’

My auditor, Ramakrishnan sir, has always been a guiding light in my life. Whenever I find myself lost or unsure, he is the one who gently shows me the way forward. What makes him so special is the way he guides, he never with lectures or instructions, but through stories. Simple, short stories that somehow hold all the answers I need. Just two from him are enough to clear the fog and open up paths I couldn’t see before. His words don’t just give me solutions, they stir something inside me. He has this rare gift of making complicated things feel simple, of helping me notice opportunities even in the middle of challenges. Just being around him brings a sense of calm, and his wisdom gives me the courage to keep moving. I often think about how lucky I am to have him as a mentor: someone who doesn’t just guide me but also inspires me. Someone who lights up my journey with kindness, patience, and a wisdom that never fades.

—Anand Coomaraswami, entrepreneur

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‘FORTUNATE TO HAVE A MENTOR WHO BUILDS STUDENTS’ CONFIDENCE’

I’ve been incredibly fortunate to have multiple guiding forces and nurturing energies in my life. I have learned many valuable lessons along the way. Training with my Guruji, Shri Koushik Aithal, has been a life-changing experience. To be a good guru implies many noble traits, but perhaps the most significant one is his generosity in sharing his knowledge without any hesitation. Another important quality is his ability to correct without damaging one’s morale. A good guru will always encourage the student to have their unique identity rather than live in the former’s shadow. He creates safe environments for the students to express themselves, attempt challenging tasks that may otherwise seem impossible, build their confidence and keep communication open.

—Vandana Srinivasan, vocalist

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‘A lenient mother but a strict teacher’

Being her daughter and disciple, the ability to multitask or switch roles is something I’ve learned from my mother and Guru, Vidya Bhavani Suresh. No matter how fun she may be as a mom, when it comes to teaching, she’s strict about ensuring complete dedication and doesn’t let go until she’s satisfied with my output. At the same time, she doesn’t believe in rote reproduction and is open to my ideas too. What I really appreciate about her teaching style is that she encourages me to think for myself. Every time I watch her perform, I’m blown away by her nuanced choreography. I attribute my personal sense of discipline to her. She never takes the art form for granted. In all, my guru is a true inspiration to me.

—Mahitha Suresh, Bharatanatyam performer

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‘VALLUVAR MY GUIDE, TAUGHT ME HOW TO LIVE’

We often celebrate our teachers as those who stand before us in classrooms, but sometimes a teacher’s voice comes across centuries, quiet yet timeless. For me, that teacher is Valluvar. When I journeyed through his words, what I found was his presence as a teacher. He never once speaks of himself in the Tirukkural, and perhaps that is his first lesson: true wisdom does not demand recognition. Through his verses, he taught me compassion not as weakness, but as strength. He reminded me that patience is not passivity, but perseverance. He taught me to respect others, manage anger, value humanity above all else, and give chances to people even when it is not easy. His words asked me to love myself without arrogance, to love others without expectation, and to educate myself without pride. In his verses, I learned sustainability, hard work, observation, and silence, all as tools for living. In fact, I have painted myself walking alongside Valluvar, as if student and teacher share the same path. On this Teachers’ Day, I bow to him with gratitude for the way he shaped my journey, strength, and silence. Some teachers don’t just lessons, they teach us how to live.

—Sowmya, artist

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‘MY GURU TAUGHT ME TO LOVE SOUND OF VIOLIN’

My Guru, Lalgudi Jayaraman sir, prized most the ideals of discipline and hard work. One of the things I learned most from my journey with him and something that has shaped my journey since is that the root and core of everything is passion. But the way that passion gets converted into an end product is only through discipline and systematic hard work. He was a phenomenal example of the combination of passion, love for the sound of music, brilliance in decoding and understanding nuances, attention to detail, a mind-boggling amount of hard work in executing the ideas understood, and impeccable panache in finally delivering or communicating those ideas. You need to see this process through step by step; otherwise, there’s a good chance that somewhere along the way it gets dissipated and loses form. The impact he has had on me is an unending love for the art form, for the sound of the violin. To thoroughly enjoy the music that my violin gifts me. That, in turn, spearheads the efforts that go into learning, exploring, and practising the music. To be true to myself in whatever new explorations I undertake, to never compromise on practice and preparation, to take no stage lightly, to think my decisions through critically, to see the scope for detail, nuance, and imagination in every phrase of music and most of all, to never allow myself to settle when I know I can do better.

—Shreya Devnath, violinist