Three Thousand Stitches ~ Sudha Murthy

-by Silvadra...


Three Thousand Stitches

Ordinary People Extraordinary Lives

                                                                                                        

    Three Thousand Stitches is a book with a collection of 11 short stories. Every story you read is a quintessence of Sudha Murthy’s Journey and Real-life experiences, with a message engraved in every story. These simple yet powerful, heart-warming stories will sink you with a mixture of emotions.

Being chairperson of a non-profit organization (Infosys Foundation), these are instances of her philanthropic work.

For more than two decades, she has been working for underprivileged societies.

1st Story

Three Thousand Stitches:-

    This is an awesome story and a blazing example of social work. “Devdasi” is one of the worst rituals in Karnataka temples that has been going on for several decades. Sudha Murthy steps into this project to eradicate such dehumanizing rituals like the one-woman army. Later, she gets a young companion, Abhay Kumar (a young man from Delhi). They got death threats from the pimps and local goons, but everything was trifarious to their inevitable spirit of goodwill. Together they helped almost three thousand Devdasi and their children to get back to their everyday life and as a reward, they gifted her an embroidered bedspread with three thousand stitches.

   “ This is from our hearts to yours. This will keep you cool in summer and warm in winter. Just like our affection towards you.”




2nd Story

How to Beat Boys:-

    In this story, Sudha Murthy has described her hurdles during her college days as the one and only lady in her engineering college. She has described how she used to be teased by calling it "Potato" and other tantrums. But she has not blamed her classmates for such behavior; on the contrary, she has blamed their psychic inabilities and our conservative society that discouraged the mingling of boys and girls even as friends.

    Gradually when she started unleashing herself and started glowing in her academics, those backstabbers faded away. But she was very cautious while mentioning those odds. She has never mentioned that all boys were obstacles on the contrary she has admitted that those were the same boys who taught her some of life’s lessons later, such as the value of keeping a sense of perspective and being sporty.

    Yes, she has formulated a way to shut up Backstabbers, that is ‘performance’.

  “I aimed to become self-sufficient, I would be my best friend and my worst enemy.”

3rd Story

Food For Thought:-

    This story describes several vegetables and their origins. A delicious story detailing India’s vibrant and diverse appetite for its food.

“Who really said that India is a country? It is a continent- culturally vibrant, diverse in food and yet, distinctly Indian at heart.”


 

4th Story

Three Handfuls of water:-

    The author’s life was irrevocably altered by a journey to Kashi For a Ganga bath and a Promise to give up a longing while offering three handfuls of water.

“If you decide to fulfill your vow with your heart and soul, then the desire for the object goes away with time and that way of life simply becomes a habit.”

“Give up what you love the most.”


 

5th Story

Cattle Class:-

    In this story, she has described a misshaped incident that happened to her at Heathrow International Airport in London and a befitting reply-

 “There is nothing shameful in knowing the native language. It is, in fact, my right and my privilege. “

    There is also a great story about George Bernard. George Bernard Shaw was a great thinker of his time. We can learn a great lesson from this part.

“My mind, no way affected by the clothes I wear.”




6th Story

A life Unwritten:-

    An important message is conveyed through this story of Sudha Murthy’s father R.H Kulkarni, that a single act of kindness can mean the world to someone.

“A few kind words and encouragement had changed a young girl’s life.”

 

7th Story

No Place Like Home:-  

    This is a tragic tale about the hardship of women who, in an effort to provide a better lifestyle for their family, move to places like Kuwait and Dubai in search of more salary and a pleasant lifestyle- only to find themselves reduced to the whims and fancies of their employers. Sudha Murthy gave up on her life’s dream to send these women back home safely.

“India is changing. Gone are the days when people worked for a minuscule salary. Honesty carries a high price in India now.”

 

8th Story

A Powerful Ambassador:-  

    This is a great message to all of us that signifies the impact of movie content on us and also signifies the evolution of Bollywood toward western culture and its worldwide impact.

“I have followed the evolution of Bollywood through the use of technology and also from simple innocent romances to the aggressive and bold portrayal of it today and from classical dances to the drill-team type of dances to breakdance and now, twerking.”

    This is so apt. She has also explained that marvelously-

“If somebody talks about the importance of good values, it may impact one person in the crowd. If someone writes about them, then it may change a few more. But if it is shown in Bollywood through a powerful story, then the impact is much more drastic. As an actor, one must own the responsibility to spread the right messages.”

 

9th Story

Rasleela and the Swimming Pool:-  

    The 21st-century version of the age-old stories of Krishna’s Rasleela and Draupadi’s story of the Akshayapatra is edited and narrated by Sudha Murthy’s granddaughters.

 

10th Story

A Day In the Infosys Foundation:-  

    The title itself contains a synopsis of the narrative. The twist is that Suddha Murty accompanied her buddy around one day since she couldn't understand why she couldn't go to a ceremony at her friend's house.

“It is not that simple. A day at the foundation is filled with many activities, some of which aren’t easy to explain.”


11th Story

I Can’t We Can:-  

“Confidence doesn’t mean that everything will go our way. It simply gives us the ability to accept failures that we will inevitably meet on our path and move forward with hope.”

    Alcoholics Anonymous is a community that helps alcoholics give up the habit of drinking for good. What is their story? What do they do? How do they help others? Where do they operate from? And also how alcohol affects our society and future generations. 

“One of life’s goals is the ability to understand human nature and raise a fellow being from rock bottom to becoming a useful member of society. We all lose a few battles in our lives, but we can win the war.”


_____________________________________




.... Mrs. Sudha Murhty on Three Thousand Stitches ....




Either be a "hero" in someone's story, or a "stranger"....!!

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