Indian of the year

Indian of the year

People from different walks of life open up on who they believe qualifies as the most outstanding ‘Indian of the Year’. Ivor Vaz reports…

Ivor RazUpdated: Sunday, December 29, 2019, 09:39 AM IST
article-image

I’d like to pick the Indian fast bowling unit as my hero for 2019. History tells you that when bowlers hunt in a pack, teams end up winning. They’ve all contributed equally. The success of the fast bowling unit is one of the principal reasons why India is so successful across formats at the moment.

— Varun Aaron, Fast Bowler, India Cricket

I can think of no better recipient than the eminent lawyer, Dr. Subhash C. Kashyap. He is a former Secretary General of the 7th, 8th and 9th Lok Sabha, and Lok Sabha Secretariat from 1984 to 1990. He is a well-known political scientist, an expert in Indian Constitution and Constitutional Law, and a distinguished scholar. He is also a recipient of the prestigious Padma Bhushan in the field of Public Affairs. We lawyers tend to look up to him as a role model, as he is a man of procedure, law and ethics. He is not influenced by politics or politicians, and his opinion can only be sought, not bought. It is believed that everyone from the Prime Minister to the President constantly seek his advice.

— Kaviraj Singh, Secretary General, Indian National Bar Association, New Delhi

My pick for 2019 is Manoj Bajpayee. Last month, he brought home from Australia the Asia Pacific Screen Award (APSA) for Best Actor, with his flawless performance in the film, Bhonsle. He also became the face of the successful web television series The Family Man. Earlier this year, he received the Padma Shri, for his contribution to cinema. As a co-actor, I feel privileged to spend time with him on and off the sets. He is like an acting school in himself. He makes you so comfortable that you don’t see the legend but the character he’s portraying. He has a very friendly equation with everyone on the sets, and goes out of his way to help newcomers feel comfortable.

— Sharib Hashmi, Actor

My vote would go to India’s number one neurosurgeon, Dr. Satish V. Khadilkar (MD, DM, DNBE, FIAN, FICP, FAMS, FRCP), the incumbent Dean of Bombay Hospital Institute of Medical Sciences. Dr Khadilkar has held leadership positions in various organisations including the Muscular Dystrophy Society, Multiple Sclerosis Society India, Indian Academy of Sciences, Parkinson's Disease Movement Disorder Society, Indian Academy Neurology, and Neurological Society India. Most recently he was conferred a Fellowship by the Royal College of Physicians (London). In the context of an acute shortage of neurology workforce in India today, it is heartening to know that Dr. Khadilkar is a role model that many young doctors choose to follow.

— Dr. C.N. Purandare, Gynaecologist-Obstetrician & Immediate Past President of the International Federation of Gynaecology & Obstetrics (FIGO)

The one Indian that comes to mind is Abdur Rahman, who until recently was posted to the State Human Rights Commission in Mumbai as Special IGP in Mumbai. This Maharashtra cadre IPS officer chose to resign from his job as a protest against the Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB), which was approved by the Rajya Sabha and passed by the Lok Sabha earlier this month. Rahman described the Bill as communal and unconstitutional, and as one that went against the religious pluralism of India. Since quitting his job, he has been regularly inviting all justice loving people to oppose the Bill in a democratic manner as he says it runs against the very basic feature of the Constitution.

— Fr. Flovi D’Souza, Principal, Don Bosco High School, Borivali

Space scientist and Chairperson of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), Kailasavadivoo Sivan (or K. Sivan as he is widely known as) gets my vote for ‘Indian of the Year’. A PhD in aerospace from IIT Bombay, Sivan has a Masters in aerospace from Indian Institute of Science. It was the live streaming of the Chandrayaan 2 landing that brought into public consciousness the sheer magnitude of India’s lunar mission. It’s true that a last-minute software glitch led to the crash landing of the spacecraft. What people must realise is that Chandrayaan-2 was a highly complex mission in terms of significant technology–it brought together an Orbiter, Lander and Rover with the goal of exploring the South Pole of the Moon, something no one had attempted before. So this ‘failure’ must be looked upon as a learning experience.

— Bryan Rodrigues, Lead singer & guitarist, Simply The Best (Music Band)

RECENT STORIES