A philanthropist, renowned author, and chairperson of the Infosys Foundation, Sudha Murty has been conferred with Padma Bhushan for 25 years of social work in the fields of healthcare, education, art and culture, animal welfare, and women empowerment.

“I hope my recognition today inspires the younger generation to take up social welfare as a vocation. It is needed for the continuous development of our great nation. I always feel that generosity of a few is hope for a million,” the 72-year-old said after receiving the award.

President Droupadi Murmu presents Padma Bhushan to Smt Sudha Murty for Social Work. A philanthropist, renowned author and Chairperson of Murty Foundation, she has initiated many projects in the fields of healthcare, education, art & culture, animal welfare and women's empowerment pic.twitter.com/qQJeEjnKfY

— President of India (@rashtrapatibhvn) April 5, 2023

Her husband and Infosys founder NR Narayana Murthy, as well as son Rohan and daughter Akshata were also present at the ceremony, which concluded yesterday April 5 in Delhi.

In a LinkedIn post, her son Rohan shares Sudha’s story as a mother, teacher, writer, and social worker. 

Trained as an engineer, Sudha taught computer science in a small women’s college in Bengaluru in the early 90s. She married Narayana Murthy, with whom she later co-founded Infosys, which today is India’s second largest IT company.

 For 25 years, Sudha ran the Infosys Foundation, the philanthropic arm of Infosys established with an aim to support the underprivileged sections of society.

“While she loved this life, she often felt she could have done even more. She often felt she was as capable, if not more, than my father or any of his colleagues at his work. But as I grew up, I watched her turn this desire into a more positive force,” writes Rohan.

He also recalled that when he was in high school, his mother was almost never home.

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A post shared by Akshata Murty (@akshatamurty_official)

“She was constantly in the middle of relief work for floods, earthquakes, working with tribal communities in remote jungles, among other activities. I saw, first hand, how this work impacted lives, gave her meaning and purpose, and a tremendous satisfaction that this was the purpose of her birth — to help those she can,” he adds.

Along the way, Sudha rediscovered her passion for writing. “Her example, for me, has been one of purpose, to be able to re-define oneself with good intent, passion, extreme hard work, and a lot of humility,” writes Rohan.

Nearly 15 years ago, when his father was conferred the Padma Vibhushan for his work in founding and building Infosys, Rohan asked him the lessons to learn from his life experiences. “He said, “with a lot of luck, perhaps, the circumstances of one’s birth need not determine their fate”. He reminded me that luck defines nearly everything, but we still have agency over the choices we make. That lesson has stayed with me,” he adds.

“Both my parents have lived lives that have reinforced these ideas. Like everybody who learns from their parents, my sister (Akshata Murty) and I are very lucky to have been born into a set of circumstances to learn from these two people, among others,” he adds.

Read the full post here. 

Edited by Divya Sethu