Why mentors matter?
Those who made it to the top
of their fields on the guiding lights that showed them the way
The Oxford dictionary
claims the word `mentor' originated back in the mid 18th century, “via French
and Latin from Greek Mentõr, the name of the adviser of the young Telemachus in
Homer's Odyssey.“ In Homer's epic, Athena, goddess of wisdom, war and craft
took Mentor's form so as to guide and counsel both Odysseus and his son
Telemachus through their journey. How well one dispenses of the
responsibilities it comes with defines the future of his or her protégé. Those
who credit their mentors for their success talk about that relationship.
Out of my shell
“It is my drama teacher Jim
Woland, at Palmyra High school in Pennsylvania, where I completed my 12th
grade, who left an impact in shaping my initial years as an actor,“ says actor
Shernaz Patel.
Woland taught Patel acting
and drama and cast her as a lead in James Kirkwood's There Must Be a Pony,
which he directed for the school. “That was back in the 1980s.It was the play's
world premiere and he faced a lot of flak for casting an Indian as the
protagonist,“ Patel recalls. “He drew me out of my shell.That experience
changed me.“
Jim had a gentle way in
which he taught, yet he was inspirational.“He had a wicked sense of humour.He
took us to New York to watch shows on Broadway, something I never thought I
would do,“ Patel shares.
Now an acting teacher,
Patel says, “A good teacher makes you want to be better and that's what he did.
I hope to imbibe that quality when I teach students. My parents are actors and
I wanted a journey separate from theirs.Thanks to Jim, I got the confidence to
blossom on my own.“
Tough love
Actor Perizaad Zorabian was
just 20 when she moved to New York in 1994, to pursue an MBA programme. “I was
Daddy's little girl to the core, and had this dream that I would ace the
programme, conquer New York, and build a huge empire for my father,“ she
recalls. But she was in for a rude awakening. “I was miserable. I felt
displaced from the warmth and love I took for granted at my parents' home.“
Determined to get tougher,
Zorabian decided to find a job and landed one at the Hotel Lexington, under a
“Mr Sam Bhadha,“ then the General Manager there, and now a dear family
friend.Zorabian believes the three years she worked with her mentor have
defined who she's become as a person. “Being a Parsi himself and having two
young daughters, I think Mr Bhadha made it his mission to make my life a living
hell,“ she says with a laugh. “A tough taskmaster, he was stern and his
approach taught me the value of discipline and humility.“
Mum's the word
It's a well-known fact that
author Amish, best known for his Shiva trilogy, is actually an IIM, Calcutta
graduate. The emphasis on education, says Amish, was a direct result of his
mother Usha Tripathi's efforts. He says, “We are four siblings: my elder
sister, elder brother, my twin brother and I. We grew up in a typical
middle-class household of the 70s and 80s. Both my parents were from small
towns, but they had big dreams for all of us.Not so much in terms of what exact
professions we should follow, but more with regard to achieving our true and
full potential in life.“
Tripathi's mother insisted
on sending him and his siblings to schools “beyond our social standing.“The
senior's drive has always been a source of inspiration for Tripathi. Along with
the impor tance of dreaming big, she also emphasised that there was no
substitute for hard work. “`Sust baithe rehne se kuch nahin hone wala hai',
were her exact words.“
He spotted a talent
It was about 15 years ago
that TV show host, Chef Amrita Raichand was invit ed to Chef Sanjeev Kapoor's
show “as a celebrity guest.“ She hardly thought the meeting would affect a
career change for her.
“We stayed in touch and
when he was over once , Chef found me struggling with my son Agastya's food
tantrums. More than dinner that evening, I fed him stories of how challenging
it was to get my son to eat healthy.“
Readying to launch his own
food channel at the time, Chef Sanjeev Kapoor asked Raichand if she would
consider doing a cookery show, “which would centre on fun meal ideas for kids,“
says Raichand.She went on to improve her skills at international culinary schools,
“thanks to Chef Sanjeev's constant encouragement,“ says Raichand.
Never give up
Director of the
National-Award wining Ventilator, Rajesh Mapuskar began his film career as an
assistant to Rajkumar Hirani, a collaborator from his advertising days and
considers him his guru and close friend. “Having worked with him in Munna Bhai
M.B.B.S, Lage Raho Munna Bhai and 3 Idiots, I've learnt everything about
filmmaking from him. But what I really appreciate about him is his
determination to not give up.“ To illustrate his mentor's fine trait, Mapuskar
recalls an incident from the sets of 3 Idiots.Hirani and team were to shoot the
climax of the film in Ladakh in the month of June. A 230-member crew arrived on
the location and the weather seemed ideal. But once the camera was set up, the
sky became overcast and it began snowing. “We knew we had to call off the shoot
but Raju was hopeful that the sky would clear up. When it didn't, he was the
last man to leave the location. A year later, he went back to the same location
and shot the scene. He just doesn't give up.“
MM30JUN7
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