Sudha Murthy will be seen gracing the finale episode of the Kaun Banega Crorepati season 11, on Sony Entertainment.
In a conversation with host Amitabh Bachchan, who pointed out that she was the first ever woman engineer from Hubli, yet she had to face a lot of flack for her choice of career, she said, “In 1968, I figured I love applied sciences therefore I should pursue engineering. My grandmother was aghast! My father felt I will do good as a consulting doctor as my communications skills were good but my mother was banking on my mathematical skills and felt I should become a Mathematics professor so that I can manage a house also going forward. Some people even commented that a girl opting for engineering is unimaginable, this is field meant for boys,” she said, adding that she was the only girl in a class of 600 students.
“The principal had to give me admission based on my marks, but with a few clauses– to wear a saree through the course of engineering degree, not to go to the college canteen, or talk to any boy in the college.” The first two clauses weren’t as difficult to follow as the third. “After a year, when the results came and since I was the rank holder, the boys started talking to me (laughs). But the most difficult part that I faced was that there was no girls washroom in the entire college. I thought if I raise this, my only option will be to drop out of the college since everyone was against my decision to pursue engineering anyway. I used to walk 2 kms to reach my college at 7am and once the college got over at 11am, I used to walk back 2 kms and then use the restroom. In these years, what I truly understood is the importance of a hygienic toilet, because only a woman can understand what hardships she has to face. This actually led me to build 16,000 toilets across various states once I became the chairman of Infosys Foundation.”
