What was the first public speech I heard? I was lucky in that. It was by our great first Prime Minister of India, Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru. And would you believe it when I say it was in our school? Those were the days when such top leaders visited even such smaller institutions. In fact, even Dr. Radhakrishnan spoke to us children in our school. Quite possibly, this was the first one I had listened to. I was in the 3rd or 4th standard and could not understand a word of what he said. Powerful oration. By the time Pt. Nehru visited our school, I was a little grown-up and could understand. Much later, after moving to Chennai, I had gone alone to Delhi. My mom’s uncle’s youngest son, about whom I had written earlier, was connected with the school activities—the same school where I had studied. Two powerful speakers had been invited to the school. One was the redoubtable Dr. Chandrasekhar, and the other was M. Sondhi, a great orator. We had to pick him up from his MP quarters and escort him to the school. Without any apprehension, fear, or anxiety that we were meeting an MP, a top leader, we went. Though both of us were very young, the reception we received at the MP’s apartment was great. He was so friendly and unassuming. In the car, there was a Buddhist monk too, whom Sondhi Sahab had invited, and both of us boys just listened to their political conversation. The late Sondhiji kept us spellbound with his oration. Dr. Chandrashekhar’s speech was totally opposite—down-to-earth, simple, and straight. Great lessons for us in knowing the different ways of speaking, communication, and the difference between oration and speech. A totally enjoyable and informative evening.

I was not a meeting-going type. Though once, I listened to a talk by the late J. Krishnamurthy, which was too heavy for my mind. Other than that, it was the leaders of the unions and associations speaking.

From the audience side, it is so easy to make comments about speeches and criticize. Enter the stage and stand before a podium, and then we will know what it takes to utter even a single line.

To be honest, I have never criticized any speech. I would just listen and try to absorb. At a young age, I was a little shy and would not dare ask a question or raise a doubt, even in school. For a shy person, the stage was the most inappropriate place to even dream of entering.

A long time back, in one of the posts, I had written about a training program I had attended in Mumbai. It was a three-month-long program and exposed us to so many things. It was one of the best training sessions I have attended. And it is there I got the nerve to get on the stage.

Continued in 236. Not So Loudspeaker - Part 2