The grand finale episode of KBC season 11 telecasted yesterday. The episode opened with rollover contestant Sukhvinder Kaur from Amritsar on the hot seat. Sukhvinder played very well and took home Rs 12.5 lakh from the show.
The show ended in a very special way with the last Karamveer episode of the season. And for that, the host of the show Mr. Amitabh Bachhan invited the author, philanthropist, and chairperson of Infosys Foundation, Mrs. Sudha Murthy. The moment she entered the show, Big B touched her feet.
She was invited as Karmaveer not only because she is the chairperson of Infosys but also supports rural development and educational program in remote areas of India. Sudha Murthy then starts sharing her inspirational life story. She told that in the college from which she did engineering had 599 boys and she was the only girl there. Even the college principal put on three conditions before giving her admission to the college. First, she needs to wear saree every day; second, she will not visit the college canteen, and last, she will not talk to boys on the premises.
She has been honored with the country's fourth-highest civilian honor -- Padma Shri Award-- by late former president Dr. A. P. J. Abdul Kalam. She became the first female engineer to join India's largest auto manufacturer company, TATA Engineering and Locomotive Company (TELCO), and was also the first woman engineer of her village, Shiggaon. Later, Sudha Murthy and N. R. Narayana Murthy, her husband, founded Infosys Foundation in 1996. Also, at the PG Center of Bangalore University, she gives lectures as a visiting professor.
Further, in the mid of the show, Amitabh Bachchan asked Mrs. Murthy about the story if she wrote a letter to J.R.D Tata, complaining of gender discrimination at TELCO. To answer that, she recalled the incident and narrated the whole story.
She said:
"When I was in college in 1974, I got a scholarship to study in America and I was preparing to go there. However, one day I came across a TELCO job vacancy advertisement but the advertisement mentioned that only men can apply. This made me furious. I decided to write a letter to the company about the matter but since I didn't know the person to whom I had to address the letter, I wrote the postcard to J.R.D Tata complaining about the "only male" employees policy and stated my point that women work better than men and if they are not given the chance, they won't be able to prove themselves."
She added,
“J.R.D Tata was a man with an extraordinary vision. He changed the only 'male employees' policy and ordered to conduct interviews and examinations for female applicants also.”
Big B told us that she has established 'The Murthy Classical Library of India' at Harvard University and also got built 60000 libraries in total. Plus, she has supported a movement to provide computers and library facilities in Karnataka-based government schools.
She also told about the work her foundation does with the help of a story. She mentioned how she and her foundation stopped Devadasi custom. She said,
“The lives of Devadasis are different. They are subjected to exploitation. One needs determination to bring in changes in the lives of Devadasis. I would approach them wearing pants and t-shirt and without a bindi, they would chase me away. When I narrated the experience to my father, he told me to don traditional wear and dress like them. After bringing in changes in my dressing style, the Devadasis welcomed me. I am happy that I have helped bring 3,000 Devadasis to the mainstream.”
She also narrated a story that the most difficult thing for her during her engineering course was that there was no girls toilet in the college. She said,
“That is when I realised the importance of toilets.”
Adding that as part of the Infosys Foundation, they have built around 16,000 toilets.
The finale episode of Kaun Banega Crorepati 11 became very special because of Sudha Murthy's amazing life stories, and she made it a night to remember. She took home Rs 25,00,000 from the show.
