The tale of two presidents ....

The history of a nation can perhaps be narrated best by the story of its leader, perhaps that is why it is called HIStory. (Please pardon my insensitivity toward gender neutral language but that is the word in the Dictionary) 

This is the tale of two great democracies of the world, one the world's largest super power and the other largest democracy and knowledge industry powerhouse. The leaders I have chosen  to discuss are not the most historic figures like George Washington or Mahatma Gandhi, but rather because their lives of the two men is represents their nations' history in the second half of the 20th century. 

Birth 

Barack Hussein Obama was born on August 4th 1961 to a Caucasian American woman and a Kenyan gentleman which was a fairly short lived marriage and the son saw his father just once after the divorce. He went to spend years of his  childhood in Indonesia with his step father and mother.

Dr APJ Abdul Kalam was born on October 15th 1931 to a Muslim family at Rameshwaram in South India. The family business was to rent boats to local fishermen for a living. 

The time they were born, both countries were in the midst of a social revolution and  poised on the cusp of a dramatic change.  In India it was Independence movement lead by Mahatma Gandhi and the growing civil rights for Afro-Americans protests led by Martin Luther King in the States. 

The impact of the movements did help both the men meet their destinies in lot of ways.

Intial Career 

A 16 year old Abdul Kalam could walk in a free India specialized in Aeronautical Engineering from Madras Institute of Technology and joined ISRO. He went on to play a crucial role in India's first indigenous Satellite Launch Vehicle (SLV-III) which successfully injected the Rohini satellite in the near earth orbit in July 1980 making India an exclusive member of Space Club. 

Barack Obama  went on to graduate from Columbia University and Harvard Law School, where he was president of the Harvard Law Review ( First black president here too ). Obama worked as a community organizer and practiced as a civil rights attorney before serving three terms in the Illinois Senate.

APJ Kalam rose in the ranks as scientist and its is considered the ISRO, DRDO and few other research institutions which are purely meritocracy driven organisations with minimum interference from the bureaucracts which explains why they have stood the test of time. He was responsible for the development and operationalisation of AGNI and PRITHVI Missiles. 

The break through moment 

Kalam became a house hold name with the success of Pokran II nuclear blasts and the term 'missile man' of india was coined by the media. He became the symbol of modern India's intellect and military might. 

Obama came into the limelight with his key note address in the Democratic Party Convention where he spoke in favour of John Kerry and when he came out heavily down on President Bush and advocated the need for CHANGE, The folks in the democratic convention stood up and took notice. 

Rise to Power 

Dr Kalam rise to the presidency is a telling comment on the vote bank politics Indian politicians have perfected. The BJP lead proposed his name so that they could take claim to the nuclear bomb and parties like Congress, SP and Mayawati wanted to be associated the fact they supported a Muslim President to the highest office. 

Obama's rise to power is a far more compelling story of the US people getting tired of the same old politics. The people set aside both the old establishment candidates Hillary Clinton in the democratic primary elections and then Sen. McCain was defeated by a large margin in the U.S elections. 

What their tales tell us about the two nations 

Indian democracy is very fragmented with several regional parties playing kingmaker in central politics. The two principal political parties are across the communalism idealogy divide which prevents much co-operation between them partly driven by rheotric. A political career is scoffed at by the common man, because it is like a family business, muscle power, criminaliaztion and the black money which are the factors which decide the outcome. 

U.S on the other hand has an election system which provides state funding, primary elections and a fair chance for any one to run for president. By limiting the president's post for 2 terms, it is ensured newer leaders come to the fore and they do not have octogenarians clinging to power unlike in India.  It has its shortcomings in terms of lobbyists ruling the roost and bi-partisian apathy to world affairs. 

A final Note 

Dr Kalam was born in South India, which was far removed from the scars of the India-Pakistan partition which has poisoned the minds of generations. The high proportion of Muslim community in India is still under the poverty line and less access to education compared to the nation's average. 

Obama was born to a white mother and spent his early childhood in Jarkata and later  on with his white maternal grandparents did not see the travails in a usual black neighbourhood and was never denied the opportunity for growth.

The success of both men can perhaps attributed to the fact they were not beaten by the system in their formative years. 

India needs an inspirational leader to emerge from the grassroots and Obama needs to walk the talk and take America forward to chart the future histories of these two great nations.