75 Amazing Indians Who Made A Difference

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75 Amazing Indians Who Made a Difference invites readers into the captivating lives of 75 diverse Indians, each distinguished with the prestigious Padma awards. Organised into compact biographical chapters, the book provides concise yet compelling stories, offering readers insights into the trajectories, challenges, and successes of these inspiring personalities who broke set stereotypes.

As India commemorates seven-and-a-half decades of independence, this book offers a timely celebration of the nation's achievers, presenting role models from diverse walks of life. The book fills the void of role models for young Indians by providing readers a glimpse into the lives of Indians who have significantly shaped their fields and society. A must-read for those seeking inspiration and a deeper understanding of the diverse tapestry of Indian excellence.

Vishal K Gupta is a world-renowned professor of business, currently at The University of Alabama (USA). He is a member of the 10K Club (10000+ Google Scholar citations) and is ranked among the top two per cent of scientists worldwide by Stanford University. He grew up in Delhi, completed his mechanical engineering degree from Punjab Technical University (India), and received a PhD in business administration from the University of Missouri (USA). His work experience includes machine tools, tertiary education, and automotive ancillary industries.

Vishal Gupta is a Professor of Organisational Behaviour at Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, India's top B-school. He teaches leadership to MBA students, and trains leaders from reputed corporations from around the world at IIM Ahmedabad. His leadership skills course on Coursera is ranked among the top five leadership courses of all time on the platform. He grew up in Lucknow, and holds an undergraduate degree in engineering from BITS Pilani, and a PhD degree from IIM Lucknow.

When the Roman Senate ordered Julius Caesar, conqueror of Gaul, to disperse his troops, he instead led the 13th legion under his command across the river Rubicon on the northern border of Italy, in clear violation of Roman law. At the time, Roman generals were forbidden by law from entering Rome with a standing army.

To do so was treason. As Caesar made the momentous decision to cross the river at the head of his soldiers, he is said to have declared Alea iacta est, a dramatic Latin proclamation that later became famous in English as the die is cast. Crossing the river with the army to enter Italy put Caesar in an irreconcilable opposition to the Senate, turning him into a traitor and making the expression Crossing the Rubicon forever synonymous with passing a point of no return.

Caesar's historic decision on that fateful day was memorialised in Parallel Lives, a series of profiles of notable personalities from ancient Greece and Rome, written by the philosopher Plutarch. Over the next two millennia, Plutarch's biographical account became the source of information on ancient heroes. To this day, Parallel Lives remains one of the most read biographical books of all times.