Anand Mahindra, the Chairman of Mahindra Group, shared a personal anecdote during his speech at the 4th Atal Bihari Vajpayee Memorial Lecture highlighting how his one-year-old daughter's accident underscored the importance of finding solutions within one's own backyard. Harsh Goenka, Chairperson of RPG Group, shared Mahindra's insightful speech on X (formerly Twitter).
During his speech, Mahindra reflected on a challenging period when his young daughter endured a hand injury which needed microsurgery. Despite consulting prestigious surgeons in London and Paris, it was Dr Joshi, a doctor from Mumbai, who ultimately delivered successful treatment. Mahindra recounted, "After the surgery, he stitched into my daughter's tiny fingernail a simple metal eye hook of the kind you'll find in a blouse. The total cost of that device was two rupees. Miraculously, it worked. A decade later, my daughter was playing the piano with the same hand.”
Dr Joshi's unique yet straightforward remedy and not only it restored Mahindra's daughter to health but also ingrained in him a profound recognition of the potential within one's own nation.
“Always, always look for solutions in your own backyard before you think the best solution lies overseas. And how did this affect me and my career? Well, I'm certain there after that, when it came to making big decisions and big bets in business that were based on homegrown technology, I never again lacked the courage to do so,” he added.
Mahindra's story underscores the potential of native innovation and the promise of homegrown technology. The video has garnered significant attention, amassing over 170k views and several comments.
“Thanks @hvgoenka for sharing @anandmahindra pearls of wisdom. Think globally and Bet locally! Wise words indeed,” one of the X users wrote.
Another user added, “I have always enjoyed reading Anand Mahindra's stories on X. Keep them rolling, Anand. You make my day. God Bless.”
“This is so touching and wonderful. Listening to him will certainly change my mindset," added the third one.