It was in the evening of 12.4.2001. I was in the Ram Manohar Lohia Hospital and my Secretary Sri Sarma rang up. He sounded sad and gave me the unbelievable news that Dewang Mehta was no more-a victim of a heart attack in Sydney, Australia.
I knew Dewang Mehta for more that 11 years. As soon as I took over as Secretary, Department of Electronics in June 1990, one of the first things I did was to get in touch with the industry associations. Nasscom was then a young, vibrant body and the vibrancy was reflected in Dewang Mehta–so full of cheer and energy. He had the brightness of technical knowledge and at the same time, had an innate sense for timing, fashion and an enormous capacity to charm people. In these days, when at the political level the importance of information technology has been realized, it is difficult to visualize the tremendous role he played in promoting the cause of Indian software to make it what it is today. In fact, Dewang Mehta had become Mr. Indian Software. Every other sector of the industry used to pray that what it needed to solve problems was a Dewang Mehta!
Dewang had come to symbolize the vigorous, imaginative, entrepreneurial, pushy and persuasive representative and spokesman, which every industry needs these days. Today, the role of an industry champion is not only to get national policy concessions but also influence international opinion. Dewang Mehta was superb in this area.
I was fortunate to be involved in the evolutionary process of the Information Technology sector, particularly the software industry in India since 1990. I think I was doubly fortunate to have to come to know Dewang Mehta who was the catalyst and champion of the software segment. He used to say in many of the meetings which we addressed together, that I was the Lord Rama of the Indian software industry and he was my Hanuman. My standard response to this remark was that the great Rama could not cross the ocean to go to Lanka. It was Hanuman, who chanting the name of Rama, leapt across the ocean. Hanuman had gone far beyond the capacity of Rama.
Dewang Mehta was the Hanuman of the Indian software industry. Hanuman’s key strength–being Pawan putra (the son of the wind God)–was speed. Information technology is connected with speed and Dewang Mehta matched that speed whenever the industry needed it.
Dewang Mehta brought a tremendous style and panache to the software industry. At one time it used to be said that beauty and IT go together. His associations with the National Institute of Fashion Technology probably proved this point. Nasscom’s Annual Meetings were always graced by a vibrant fashion show! Of course Dewang Mehta was the supreme impresario as well as the master of ceremonies. We used to wonder how he could rattle off the names of the charming fashion models without bating an eyelid. He was the most eligible bachelor in the country when death snatched him so cruelly away from us.
The Greeks have a saying that those whom the Gods love die young. All of us in the software industry and Indians in general, who are proud that at last there is one sector where we are globally recognized, loved Dewang. But perhaps the Gods loved him more.
