Between 2008 and 2015, I have seen the infinity of his wisdom and the sensitivity and humility with which he lived his life. I have attended countless lectures of his, travelled extensively with him, listened to the numerous thoughts he’s shared. I have shared walks and lunch-and-dinner conversations, and heard him call me a student, a friend, a co-author and often just ‘funny guy’. In each of these associations, he ignited new thoughts, encouraged new actions and taught me that all failures, howsoever immense, are only temporary.

Dr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam’s greatest legacy is the generations of Indians he has inspired to dream, excel and rise. The story of a newspaper boy rising to become a space scientist, rocket engineer, missile expert and eventually the eleventh President of India has given his countrymen the hope that hard work and talent do pay off in the long run. It has also shown millions of Indians that the choices and effort one makes in life can conquer any odds or disadvantages of birth. I remember a professor in Australia once introducing Dr Kalam to his class saying, ‘Even in his eighties, for the youth of India, he commands the respect of a sage and the charisma of a rock star.’

Dr Kalam had a special affinity with the youth. I remember him saying many a time, ‘Up to the age of seventeen, the mind of a youth can be shaped. Beyond that it becomes difficult.’ Hence, he dedicated a large part of his time, during his presidency and after that as well, to shaping the mind of the Indian youth. He wanted them to have three traits—righteousness, creativity and courage. He even gave it the form of an equation, which he called the ‘Knowledge Equation’, where knowledge is defined as the sum of these three traits. And of course, he famously said, ‘Knowledge makes you great’. With four simple words, he outlined the pathway to greatness. Such was the simplicity of Dr Kalam.

I was a part of the creation of many of Dr Kalam’s speeches covered in this book. Each piece was intensely researched, composed, rejected and then re-composed before it came to its final form. Dr Kalam would sit across the table with the computer, as the text of the speech was projected on a wall of the small office. We would debate every single idea and thought that would go into the speech. Version after version would come up and in some cases, we’d have more than twenty versions of a speech!

Dr Kalam was very particular about his audience and he would always ask, ‘Is this lecture going to inspire all the listeners? Will it be interesting for the people present?’ These carefully selected words would then be delivered with craftsmanship by Dr Kalam, igniting the audience’s dreams every single time. He had a way of engaging his listeners and making them all feel important and capable of contributing to a cause rather than merely being the audience at a speech.