S.D. Shibulal walked into the board room of a city hotel in his crisp, white dhothi and the plain mauve shirt, looking very relaxed. Shibu, as everyone calls him, had just served his last day as CEO Infosys, the company he helped found along with six friends. A day later he was, along with his wife Kumari Daniel, travelling to his native village Muhamma, near Alappuzha, for a function of the Sarojini Damodaran Foundation (SDF), they launched 15 years back.
Shibu listened intently to Kumari as she talked animatedly about the various activities of SDF, its heartburns and successes during their brief stopover in the city. “We have gone ahead with the belief that education is the cornerstone of a strong society. Our primary mission is to provide scholarships for economically weak students. In these 15 years we have sponsored 1,056 students. And we helped bright young students pursue their dreams. So we have doctors, engineers, nurses, and graduates among them,” says Kumari looking every inch a corporate honcho, systematic, ready with facts and with a clear vision for the foundation’s future.
“We have experienced disappointment like when students have backed out midway through their study citing various reasons. But the positives have compensated for these minor setbacks. Looking back, SDF is proud of the young achievers like the youngster who is now a Fellow in Neonatal Medicine at John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford School of Pediatrics and the many professionals working across the globe.”
Apart from education, SDF, Kumari says, supports cardiac surgeries for young children, a pension scheme for destitute persons above 70 years of age who have no regular income or family support, has instituted awards for Best Organic Farmers, supports a Finishing School in Dharwad in association with Vidya Poshak, a seven-year scholarship based on merit for education post 10th standard till post-graduation, supports music, fine arts and more.
During the early Infosys days Shibu and his friends Narayana Murthy and Nandan Nilekani took a decision that their wives would not be in anyway involved in the company affairs. So Kumari looked after the home, and her two children. The children took wings, Infosys grew into a huge brand and Shibu became busy as never before. That was when Kumari, with Shibu’s backing, launched SDF. “I have not really had time to be involved in the functioning of SDF. She has been in charge. One thing we insisted on in all our programmes is depth and longevity,” says Shibu.
So will Shibu spend more time with SDF now? “Yes some more time than before. But I still have a few commitments. My daughter wants me to help with her hospitality business, I’m a member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Agenda Council on Emerging Multinationals, then there is the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII), Information and Communication Technology Academy of Kerala, I’m a member of the Board of Trustees of Boston University where I did my MS and some other organisations I’m involved with. This is the first time I’m attending an SDF function in Kerala. But surely I’ll have more time for the foundation,” he adds.
Kumari already has a bucket list of the places she wants to travel with Shibu. “Yes, I have been to most of the places that she has on her list but I have always been in and out of them rather than spending time to explore it. So, this is on the agenda,” agrees Shibu with a smile.
New York, Shibu has often said, is his favourite city. “My daughter is there and that’s one reason,” he justifies with a guffaw. Where does Kerala figure in his favourite list? “I’m always a Keralite at heart and spirit. I have seen the State grow. In the case of cities like Kochi there is scope for better infrastructure. The hospitality industry has made huge strides but there is need to evolve.” He stops, points to a bottle of water on the table and continues, “See, even in the case of this mineral water industry there has been this attempt to go forward according to changes. We now have bottles of varying sizes. This is true of any industry.”
Maharaja’s College is a place both Shibu and Kumari hold close to their heart. This was where they met leading to their wedding. “The last time we were together in Kochi we went to Maharaja’s. It must have been after almost 30 years that we were together in the campus. The ambience was still the same, except it was quieter that day. We walked around uninterrupted till someone recognised me and all the fun ended,” recounts Shibu.
When he landed his first job with BEST nearly 36 years back, Shibu was really taking a sort of risk. Possibilities and opportunities for a post-graduate those days were limited to a government job or teaching.
And that’s what Shibu’s parents wanted their only child to do. BEST was recruiting for officers’ posts related to computers and Shibu had no idea about computers then.
“I feel this is the huge change that has come about in our society. It has become more liberal. Today, I meet so many youngsters who tell me that they want to do something different. They think differently and the parents are ready to back their dreams. Let me tell that like anyone who has gone through this grind, you need to be hard-working, disciplined, and willing to work 24x7. But you also must think differently and, of course, you need luck on your side,” says Shibu as he and Kumari call it a day.
