Former head of flight dynamics and space navigation for the Indian space agency, BP Dakshayani, like any other Indian woman, has many defined roles. Four years ago, a picture of a group of women clad in saris celebrating an Indian spacecraft successfully entering Mars orbit, went viral and the world finally became acquainted to the role played by the feminine gender in the country's space programme.
Among them was BP Dakshayani. She had led the team that kept an eye on the satellite, making sure it goes exactly where they want it to go. An already tough job, she found additional hurdles in her career, set in the form of responsibilities expected by women in India. As a child growing up in the 1960s, in a town in Karnataka, Dakshayani pursued a Master's degree at a time when educating girls was not a priority. Having joined ISRO in 1984, she was put to work on orbital dynamics, and is today a specialist in the area.
While many applaud the group of saree-clad women celebrating their success, not many can see how they got to that stage. Having been married off to an orthopaedic surgeon, Dakshayani suddenly had a household to run. She looked after her large family, including her husband, parents-in-law, five brothers-in-law, and later, her two children. “I used to get up around 5 am because I had to cook for seven, eight people and it was not easy. Also, our food habits are such that we need chapatis which take time to make. So I would cook for the whole family and then come to office.”
In the evenings, she would get back home and start cooking. She admits it was tough. Many of her relatives soon assumed she would quit her job. “But, I am not a person who gives up easily. Also, my father used to say that we should try until the end. Even when it comes to technical things, if I don't understand something, I read it many times until I do.” She said there were days when she would go to bed at 1 am or 2 am, and get up again at 4 am to work.
What drove her was her work and solving problems. It also helped that she actually loves cooking. “I keep doing some small small modifications and try making new things. I say cooking is similar to coding- just as one small change in the code will result in a different number, similarly a small change in ingredients will result in a different taste,” she said.
