I Too Had a Dream

by Verghese Kurien

Architect of 'Operation Flood', the largest dairy development programme in the world, Dr Verghese Kurien has enabled India to become the largest milk producer in the world. A man with a rare vision, Dr Kurien has devoted a lifetime to realizing his dream - empowering the farmers of India. He has engineered the milk cooperative movement in India. It was a sheer quirk of fate that landed him in Anand where a small group of farmers were forming a cooperative, Kaira District Cooperative Milk Producers'Union Limited (better known as Amul), to sell their milk. Intrigued by the integrity and commitment of their leader, Tribhuvandas Patel, Dr Kurien joined them. Since then there has been no looking back. The 'Anand pattern of cooperatives'were so successful that, at the request of the Government of India, he set up the National Dairy Development Board to replicate it across India. He also established the Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation to market its products. In these memoirs, Dr Verghese Kurien, popularly known as the 'father of the white revolution', recounts, with customary candour, the story of his life and how he shaped the dairy industry. Profoundly inspiring, these memoirs help up comprehend the magnitude of his contributions and his multifaceted personality.

Genres: Biography, Nonfiction, India, Autobiography, Business, History, Indian Literature

264 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 1, 2005

Reviews

[Dr. Appu Sasidharan (Dasfill) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Verghese Kurien is considered the father of the white revolution in India. He is also popularly known as the milkman of India.

This memoir tells us about the ups and downs of his life. He pioneered the Anand model of dairy cooperatives.

This memoir tells us how much work is going behind each milk product we consume every day. The author brilliantly writes the setbacks and triumphs regarding the introduction of the milk powder. The memories of the establishment of Amul - Anand Milk Utapadak Ltd Dairy will bring a lot of nostalgia to us. Amul is the synonym for nostalgia for many people from India due to its outstanding products and brilliant ad campaigns.

His life is a perfect example of how a single individual's hard work and determination can change the outlook of a whole country towards a product.

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[Komal · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Life's Battles do not always go to the faster or stronger man, in the end the man who wins is the man who thinks he can!"
Veghese Kurien is just an epitome of that!
He believed and preached and practised that there is an opportunity in every crisis!
The title is just the reflection of that! He was an engineer and always dreamed of a comfortable life and a job! However, life had something else in store for him! He was sent to Anand, and he had to oblige, as he couldn't buy out the bond! And rest as they say is History!
He made most of the common resource that we all have - 24 hours in a day! He just had one idea - a very good idea - true development is the development of men and women. He remained an employee of the farmers and served them well. No amount of money, power could influence him to digress from the path of common good. The co-operative movement, operation flood, revolutionized the Dairy industry in India!
The book not only talks about his struggles in overcoming bureaucratic hurdles, arranging funds, indigenously developing the technology to make milk powder from buffalo milk, but also reveals his insights, his take on the governments, the mindset of selfish people, and how all believed in and were to some extent intimidated by Kurien.
At one instance where NZ officer threatens Dr Kurien to stop exporting Amul abroad, and claims that the global market 'belongs' to them, Kurien having already heard a lot earlier , says 'if all Indians were to spit, your nation will drown in it.
The story of Amul, NDDB, GCMMF, IRMA all go to show his optimism about the future of India, he believes that it is possible to remove all the evils like corruption , if at the helm we have strong headed and stout headed people e who will not bow and will never compromise the larger interest of the common man.
My key take away from this inspiring memoir of a humble man is - "Life is a privilege, and to waste it is wrong. In living this privilege called life, you must accept responsibility for yourself, always use your talents to the best of your ability and contribute somehow to the common good. Failure is not about not succeeding, rather it is about not putting in your best effort and contributing, however modestly , to the common good.

[Udit Nair · Rating 4 out of 5]

A delightful read into one of the most visionary man who indeed went on to create a super brand called Amul. The book talks about all the challenges faced by Dr Kurien in order to lead a people's movement in the form of the cooperatives. It is indeed ironical that most of the challenges were indeed from within the system. He clearly detests the bureaucracy and he does provide many instances to support his claims within this book.

The book beautifully mentions about the role of stalwarts like Sardar Vallabhai Patel, Tribhuvandas Das, Morarji Desai, Lal Bahadur Shastri and many more figures who enabled Dr Kurien and others to lead from the front and make India self sufficient when came to dairy production. There are many interesting political stories mentioned across the aisles and time frame which does make the book a very interesting read.

The fundamental belief that a cooperative must be a business enterprise and it has to run like one formed the the base of everything Dr Kurien did. Along with it was the goal that the business was to maximize the price paid for the milk. As a result the whole organisation ran on the premise that welfare of farmers is of paramount importance and everything becomes secondary. This essentially makes it one of the most democratic and people friendly experiment in the history of independent India.

Dr Kurien firmly believed that when tools of development are placed in the hands of our rural people,and when their energy and wisdom is linked with skill of committed professionals, there is nothing they cannot achieve. Dr Kurien defended the model and resisted every bureaucratic and political attempt to overthrow the democratic model he developed over the years. This one surely remains one of the models which needs to be replicated in other sectors too.

[Umair Mir · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the finest books to comprehend the essence of democracy, to know its not a fault of the democracy as a system, the fault lies in us ?
how to bring about the great transformation of our nation, when the remarkable potential of a common man is unleashed, how cooperative sector forms a unique model of empowering the people. The country can only progress if the real power of making decision emanates at the grass root level. All in all, a fantastic read to realize the potential of Aam Admi..

[Alcatraz Dey · Rating 5 out of 5]

I was sure that Verghese Kurien would have discussed how he sacrificed friendships, slumber, movies and worked single-handed-ly to make Amul a success story. But I was surprised when I found that he didn't discuss his personal life as such and only focused the book towards milk industry and how he contributed into it. The book teaches us a very different orientation towards leadership, management and power. Verghere Kurien was surely a man of his principles and therefore he never got scared by anyone and even in his autobiography, he has taken names without any fear which makes it more interesting to read.
The kind of motivation, confidence and learning this book has provided, I remember only one book that can be added in the same league- A.P.J Abdul Kalam's Wings of Fire. The amount of work Verghese Kurien has done for farmers, animals, milk production and our country is worth commendable. He discusses even the controversies and criticisms(on him) by ministers/competitors openly which shows that he has no intentions of hiding even his shortcomings. He also discusses at one point of time that he was a bit of autocratic too. Last few pages of the books are very emotional as Verghese Kurien starts giving his final takes on few things and you realize that he's leaving us in few pages. He clearly expresses the amount of respect he has for his seniors and the people who allowed him to work his way. Reading the moments of Tribhuvandas Patel's death in the end made me weep. A very motivational book and only one of its kind. I give it 4.75*/5.

[Ankur Chaudhary · Rating 5 out of 5]

Most inspiring Indian autobiography - a must-read!

It was in 1954, Amul's new plant was to be inaugurated in Gujarat and Mr Nehru was to inaugurate it next day.
PMO sent a key requirement, few fresh red rosebuds have to be there before the inauguration so that Mr Nehru can pose for the press in his typical attire.

Finding a rosebud was a challenge in the rural area of Anand and keeping it fresh until the next day was another challenge. So HE arranged some fresh rosebuds and kept them in the milk fridge.

This book has so many such interesting stories of a man who took a train to Anand from Delhi with a plan to return next week but stayed there forever.

This is the story of Verghese Kurian, the men who created the most loved brand of India AMUL.

An inspiring story, a must-read book.

“I too had a dream”, is an autobiography of Mr Verghese Kurian, the man who started the started the Amul.

Very interesting read

[Prakhar Prateek · Rating 5 out of 5]

Verghese Kurien (26 November 1921 – 9 September 2012), known as the "Father of the White Revolution" in India, was a social entrepreneur whose "billion-litre idea" a.k.a Operation Flood.

"I CAME TO ANAND A LONG TIME AGO, NOT BECAUSE I WANTED TO COME HERE but because I was compelled to. I was under a contract with the Government of India, which had paid for my education in the US. I was an engineer who was primarily interested in physics and metallurgy but studied dairy engineering under duress. Then I was forced to go to Anand to join the government’s research creamery, and when I later joined the cooperatives of dairy farmers, I was not really trained in this field."

He did his best to live a life of glamour yet ended up working for poor and powerless farmers when he realized true satisfaction and happiness lies not in serving yourself but others.

"I was city-bred with no affiliations with rural India. I had a commendable academic record but no particular knowledge of farmers or agriculture."

He has held the following positions over the years:-
1. Manager and then the General Manager of the Kaira District Cooperative Milk Producers Union Ltd (popularly known as ‘Amul’)
2. Founder Chairman-cum-Managing Director of the Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation (GCMMF)
3. Elected Chairman of GCMMF
4. Chairman of the National Cooperative Dairy Federation of India Ltd (NCDFI)
5. Chairman of the National Cooperative Dairy Federation of India Ltd
(NCDFI)
5. Chairman of the Institute of Rural Management (IRMA)
6. Chairman of Delhi Milk Scheme(DMS)

He competed with Polson (a major diary brand back then), Nestle' (an international giant in the dairy industry) and Glaxo (a major corporation in baby food) and managed to score a victory for the farmer's cooperative. He often faced opposition from the state governments, ministers and bureaucrats whose objective was making India milk self-sufficient.

"Unfortunately, as things stand today, many Indian cooperatives do not function efficiently because they have been made official, bureaucratised, politicised and therefore, they have been effectively neutralised."

He is not afraid to hold even the most powerful people of India responsible when required and also gives praise generously when due.

"The IAS officer is basically an aya-ram gaya-ram. He is transferred at regular intervals and it is almost impossible for him to show commitment when he knows he is going to be transferred in a short span of time. I have never understood how, for instance, the Agriculture Secretary can be a person who does not know agriculture. Somebody who passed some competitive examination thirty-five years ago, is today suddenly placed in this post, when until yesterday he was, perhaps, the Law Secretary, and the day before that he was the Defence Secretary. What a strange system this is of administering the country. I am convinced that the IAS, in its present form, will have to be abolished sooner or later. There is no other solution."

"Fortunately for us, within our bureaucracy, there are a number of people – men and women – who are dedicated, patriotic and able. They are committed and principled people. I can never forget that many of these bureaucrats rallied to my support, going out of their way to give me a
helping hand whenever I needed it."

He interacted with multiple prime ministers (including Jawaharlal Nehru, Lal Bahadur Shastri, Indira Gandhi, Rajiv Gandhi, Atal Bihari Bajpayee) and other dignitaries( Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed and Dr Rajendra prasad former presidents). He put in positions of power in favour of other bureaucrats and politicians in many instrumental bodies over the years.

"Our cooperative law is still archaic. The bureaucrats and politicians dominate it; it has no honoured place for professional managers to function in. Once such impediments are removed, once we can inject professional management into cooperatives, and we can depoliticise them to the extent possible, only then will cooperatives flourish the way they ought to."

He was impressed by the cooperative structure, and had read about its success in the dairy industry in New Zealand, Denmark and Holland(100% cooperative ownership) and West Germany(95% ownership). Even in the heart of capitalism USA, 85% of the dairy industry was cooperative. This system excluded didn't allow the middlemen to exploit both the consumers and the producers.

He expanded the cooperatives offering from milk to powdered milk, butter, baby food and much more during his time.

The ASP(Advertisement Sales and Promotion company) created the famous Amul mascot the mischievous, little endearing girl which still remains one of the most recognized brands in India.

He managed to use the food aid in the form of milk given by the European Union to generate demand and create an organizational structure to supply the indigenous milk producing farmers. These aids often end up depressing the market as they destroy the existing competition and making the country more dependent on imports.

The story of this movement has been beautifully enacted in cinema in the movie Manthan, which was directed by Shyam Bengal and many famous actors of the time acted in it such as Smita Patil, Naseeruddin Shah, Amrish Puri, etc.

It also entered into the vegetable oil market and created a well-known brand DHARA and in doing so he had to take on powerful TELIA RAJAS(Oil Kings). He tried to expand this strategy in electricity distribution but failed when was not supported by the government. If his strategy was implemented then it would have eliminated the theft of electricity to much extent.

He also assisted in the development of the cooperative structure in neighbouring states such as Sri Lanka and Pakistan at the request of their government.

He received many prestigious awards for his work such as:-
1. Ramon Magsaysay Award for Community Leadership
2. Padma Bhushan
3. Padma Vibhusan
4. Dr Paulos Mar Gregorios award(even though he was an atheist)
5. Wateler peace Prize of the Carnegie foundation
6. World Food Prize

"While we can take some pride in the fact that our fellow Indians can meet any challenge and achieve success in highly competitive fields abroad, we must also feel a great sadness that all of that talent – talent that was nurtured at the cost of our own country, since all our academic institutions of excellence are heavily subsidised – is being placed at the disposal of others
and not our own country, which so desperately needs it."

This personally strengthens my own belief that I should stay in India and work for the betterment of the weakest and most vulnerable individuals instead of living a luxurious life abroad.

And finally, I'll let the numbers speak for themselves. From around 15,000 members, he took the member strength to about 600,000 members. From about 110 lakh kg milk procurement to 2,539 lakh kg milk procurement. In the year of 2003-04, the milk collection was 1.81 billion litres. One can imagine the magnitude of his contribution.

[Anbukarasan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Autobiography is inspiring.

Could see fight with govt officials. Dealing MNC. Giving right advise and taking bold decisions.

One who is mad doing good things, everyone get the benefits.

[Raghu Nathan · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is about the revolution in milk production in India brought about by Dr. Verghese Kurien, who devoted a lifetime to pursue his dream of empowering the poor farmers of India. It wasn't a dream of his as he started out his professional life but he was drawn into making it his life's work after watching a group of farmers in Gujarat forming a milk cooperative under the leadership of a local farmer Tribhuvandas Patel. Kurien was impressed by the integrity and commitment by Patel and his vision of transforming the lives of milk producers in Anand, Gujarat. Kurien joined them and as they say, the rest is history. The Anand pattern of milk cooperatives were so successful that the government of India asked Kurien to replicate the model all the states of India. Thus the National Dairy Development Board was set up and Kurien led it much of his life replicating the 'Anand model' across India successfully and also setting up the Gujarat Cooperative Milk Marketing Federation to market the products of the cooperatives. Along the way, Kurien had to battle corrupt bureaucrats and ministers as well as seemingly well-meaning detractors on the Left as well as Right. However, his brilliant accomplishments as an incorruptible technocrat and manager garnered him great support from the upper echelons of India's political leadership. Leaders like Nehru, Mrs.Indira Gandhi and C.Subramanian were all right behind him making it possible for him to pursue the goals of improving India's farmers' lives. The book is full of interesting anecdotes regarding his mission. It is also interesting to note that the Anand model could succeed in India because the political elite ultimately was acting in the interests of its people and not in the interests of the Australian and New Zealand dairy industries. In contrast, it emerges that both in Pakistan and Sri Lanka, he could not make much headway because the elites in those nations were representing the interests of foreign dairy industries rather than their own farmers.
The book is engagingly written and easily readable. It will make much more impact on people who grew up in the lower rungs of Indian society in the 1960s because they would know how dismal the milk situation in India was at that time. I am one of them!
Another great feature of the work of Kurien and his team was that all this revolution was accomplished peacefully and non-violently. The cooperatives were a model of collective pooling of energy and vision. The die-hard communists can take a lesson from this rather than blindly look up to the collectivisation disasters of Stalin and Mao.
A book on which time is well worth spent reading.

[Divya Pal · Rating 3 out of 5]

Is there such a thing as autohagiobiography? Well, this is one. Kurien’s life seems to been a relentless battle with obdurate, otiose, obtuse, obstructive bureaucrats and venal politicians.

[Parth Agrawal · Rating 5 out of 5]

"For one who believes, there's no explanation necessary; For one who doesn't, none is enough."

With this indomitable belief, Dr. Kurien has revolutionized the whole rural sector of our country by empowering the villagers and bringing them together to create one of the biggest profitable cooperative union in the world namely- Kaira District Co-operative Milk Producers' Union, commonly known as AMUL. The book talks extensively about the co-operative structure, its wherewithal and how in every developing nation it is a better to work towards a co-operative goal rather than a corporative goal.

An epitome of nationalism, Dr. Kurien defended the co-operative model with fervor to match and claimed that in the DNA of co-operative, lies only one point agenda and that is- empowerment and betterment of the livelihood of farmers by organizing their efforts through professional help. He always corrected people by clarifying that he has never been the owner of AMUL, in-fact he is an employee of farmers who have appointed him for professional consultancy and management advice. Skirmishes that he had with multinational companies such as Nestle, representative of New Zealand dairy board and bureaucrats and politicians of our country provides us an insight on how to deal with obstructions coming in your way and how to deal with it.

All the decisions that he took and oversaw the efficient execution himself, wouldn't have been possible without considerable political and bureaucratic backing. His healthy relations with more than 4 Prime Ministers, Finance, Agriculture, Commerce and Home Ministers paved the way for the grand success which AMUL is today. The book also painted a somewhat rosy picture of our political and bureaucratic structure and makes you believe that people like TT Krishnamachari, C. Rajgopalachari existed and supported the villagers and ensured that this scheme meant for their upliftment won't go down the drains.

In toto, all those out there tired of their mundane lives and miss purpose in it, it'll be a refreshing read and an awesome inspiration.

[Sundar · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fascinating read about how an initially-unwilling Kurien drove the success of the co-operative movement and white revolution. Great to know about his backer Tribhuvandas Patel as well as a number of others behind Amul, the greatest success of co-operation in India. Kurien's account is so honest that we do get a view of his idiosyncrasies and stubbornness. It is quite evident that without the stubbornness, it is nearly impossible to run a successful organisation braving the Indian bureaucracy. Sad to read the postscript where Kurien laments how the organisations that he built are being driven away from the co-operative principles. This book has a number of lessons for anyone who wants to see and drive social movements.

[Dr Kashmira Gohil · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dr. Verghese Kurien, who started a white revolution as cooperative milk movement popularly known as 'Amul' in Anand, Gujarat & 'operation flood' in India to benefit rural population as well as farmers in India. As he fight the bureaucracy in the system & rampant curruption, to find his ways so that milk farmers also get profited apart from country as import of milk & dairy products can be prevented because of the sufficient production in India itself. Amul is a big brand in India now. I liked reading his biography.

[Arun Pandiyan · Rating 5 out of 5]

When Jawaharlal Nehru inaugurated India’s first modern dairy plant in Kaira, he embraced Dr. Verghese Kurian and said, “Kurien, I’m so glad that our country has people like you – people who will go ahead and achieve even that seems unachievable.” When Verghese Kurien started his career in 1949, he was least interested in topics of dairy science and management and presumably would have no idea about his path to glory in next five decades. Compelled to work for a cooperative dairy after availing an educational scholarship from Indian government, the young and righteous man from Calicut, Kerala went on to build India’s first modern dairy plant, multiple cooperative dairies across India and established the Amul brand. From this biography, one can understand that, Dr. Verghese Kurien was a man of moral uprightness and values, who never yielded to the wicked capitalism and devoted his entire life to the service and welfare of the Indian dairy farmers.

This book narrates the humble beginnings of Dr. Kurien, from a Syrian Christian community of Kerala who later went on to secure his two graduate degrees from Loyola College and Guindy Engineering College from erstwhile Madras. On his return to India, as a contractual repayment of educational loan which he availed to pursue his education in United States, he was posted as an employee in Kaira district milk cooperative society, against his will. Deeply uninterested in the subject of milk and management and as someone who pursued his education on physics and metallurgy, Dr. Kurien with insurmountable guilt of not doing anything constructive and productive, repeatedly applied for resignation. But, understanding the dairy farmer’s plight and the corporate’s plunder of milk from the farmers, Dr. Kurien finally took up the challenge of reforming the system. The first few chapters of the book gave deep insights on the Indian dairy farming under British colonialism and the intriguing tale of Sardar Vallabhai Patel organising the dairy farmers into a cooperative society under the leadership of Tribhuvandas Krishibhai Patel.

The role of Dr. Verghese Kurien in implementing the ‘Operation Flood’ in order to make India self-sufficient in milk production received accolades from global community whereby he was conferred with prestigious awards such as Ramon Magsaysay, World Food Prize, Padma Bhushan and Padma Vibhushan. Indeed, Dr. Kurien built the country’s self-sufficiency in milk and milk products, but what is often overlooked is the fact that he also spearheaded the movement to make India self-sufficient in oil production and his impeccable and historic structural reforms in Delhi Milk Scheme. When India was importing the milk powder from other European countries, Dr. Kurien challenged the conventional scientific norms and became the first person to process milk powder from Buffalo milk. He came in direct conflict with multinational players like Nestle when they belittled him saying that ‘natives of India should not have the desire to make condensed milk’; he furiously challenged them that he would do it. After two years of struggle, when he processed the condensed milk from buffalo milk for the first time ever, he also made sure the imports from Nestle were cut down to send a message that the natives can give back as good as they get. When India was importing butter from multiple countries, he went on to manufacture Amul butter with its own flavour. When India was importing the baby foods and formulas from other countries, he was the first person to synthesize baby foods with help of CFTRI. He had one mission in his life and that was to uplift the dairy farmers and to bring upon effective changes which serve everyone in society, rather than changes which feed the corporate greed and middleman’s pockets.

Dr. Kurien was an influential, powerful, straight forward and a no-nonsense-person, who made many enemies out of bureaucrats, politicians and lobbyists from different corporate companies, but his reform and service mindedness which yielded substantial results in whatever he touched was well understood by every Prime Minister be it Jawaharlal Nehru or Rajiv Gandhi, who placed unconditional trust and support for his work. He went on to build the National Dairy Development Board (NDDB) without any help from the Indian government, managing all the expenses from the cooperative funds, after a prolonged delay for a meagre amount of Rs. 30,000 from different ministries. Though he found comfort and support from different Prime Ministers, he had utmost detest and contempt for the Indian bureaucracy. In this book, he had even advocated for abolishing such age old system in which an engineering graduate who has no knowledge on ground level issues makes elite policies on agriculture and economy, which benefits only himself and the rest of elites. When Dr. Kurien saw that the IIMs were only training the students for the corporate world, he founded the Institute of Rural Management Anand (IRMA) to train the youth specifically in rural management and to strengthen the commitment towards rural development. Though he had publicly denounced religion and claimed himself as an atheist on several occasions, he also moved extremely well with many other religious and spiritual leaders, especially the RSS head Golwalkar and Shankaracharya, having rational discussion with them in support of cow slaughter explaining them how it is an financial bane to farmers to keep feeding cows which do not producing anything and to look after them till they die.

After Independence, the noblest task those days was to contribute in whatever way one could towards building an India of our dreams – a nation where people would be free from hunger and poverty and a nation that eventually be counted among the foremost nations of the world. Dr. Kurien firmly believed that the true development of a nation means the development of its women and men and only an economic freedom can uplift these millions. He toiled hard for fifty years setting up cooperatives for dairy, oil and vegetables while simultaneously building institutions and democratic structures to strengthen the rural development. As a man who was highly skeptical of multinationals and corporates, he believed that only cooperatives can unite the working class irrespective of their caste, creed, sex, religion and language.

I would recommend this book for anyone who wants to understand the multifaceted personality of a profoundly inspiring character whose contributions paved way for the ‘Milk Revolution’.

[Sree Manasa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Autobiographies have the reputation of being the embellished versions of life stories of popular people. I too expected that this book would nicely present in words the various stages of Dr. Kurien's life. But no; this book is anything but that. Dr. Kurien through this book holds the idea of co-operative at centrality and explains how powerful and effective it is in changing the lives of common people especially Indian farmers. The personal story is narrated inconspicuously in the background.

The books speaks about the political drama, bureaucratic tussles, manipulations by the multinationals along with tireless efforts of people with utmost levels of personal integrity behind the inspiring success tales of Amul, later Operation Flood. From being a net importer of milk, India became self-sufficient in milk in 1975 and is now the world's largest milk producer. For many people, this seemed incredulous- How did a thing like this happen in a 'country like India’? The book answers this question.

At an individual level, I found Dr. Kurien as a tenacious personality who had no qualms in calling spade a spade. He might seem little arrogant at few places but nevertheless a person who is patriotic to his core and genuinely believed in the strengths of people.

My biggest take away from the book is this: A person who has but one good idea and holds it with utmost conviction, perseveres in the face of adversity is bound to bring a positive change, both for himself and people around him.
Read it- you'll find the book interesting, informative and inspiring all at once!

[Yuvashri · Rating 5 out of 5]

Humbled to have witnessed the journey of an extraordinary man along with the astounding journey of India's self sufficiency in milk and its byproducts. One gets to know the various fallacies of the interference of governments in businesses and bureaucratic methodologies. People are the ends, not the means, to achieve any long term vision and this book is the very example of that.

This one raised in me an interest to know more about Indian Businesses and History.

[Asif · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the best autobiographies I’ve read recently. It tells the story of Amul’s journey to global recognition and Operation Flood, which revolutionised the diary industry. The author navigated through corrupt bureaucracy and political systems, all while following an unconventional cooperative method.

[Revati Bargale · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is one of a kind, the man of perseverance, commitment; with a strong command, he was clear in his head to help the dairy farmers and empower them. In spite of difficulty and corruption in the governance he made it happen. A strong headed, honest and a great leader. My only purpose to read this book was to read the great man, Dr. Verghese Kurien
Amaze leadership!

[Durgesh Deep · Rating 4 out of 5]

Verghese kurien, known as Father of white revolution or Milkman of India, was one of the gems of India. This is an excellent book on making of Amul & on 'Operation flood'.

[Mahendran Jayavel · Rating 5 out of 5]

'I too had a dream' by Dr. Verghese Kurien, the positive story of Kurien, who, like so many other Indian graduates, ends up in a job unrelated to his studies, takes up the challenges unsuspecting of the fact that he could become the father of the Indian white revolution. I have been fond of brand 'Amul' and in fact recently I helped my wife's uncle open an Amul Preferred Outlet in my home town, Incidentally, this is the first book I bought and read in my new Kindle Voyage.

While the positive side of how Kurien, a metallurgy/physics grad went on to become a dairy man filled me with a feeling of awe, the very first thing I liked about Kurien, he's an atheist, an autocrat (benevolent for the greater good), a non-vegetarian Syrian Christian from Kerala, who ironically became the father of Indian White Revolution.

I was able to relate to Kurien almost all along when he spoke of his dreary days filled with bitter social experiences. One such thing is to know the fact that like me and many others, Kurien too had to endure the pains of social stigmas such as the discrimination against non-vegetarians, Muslims and Christians who are even today by and large considered a NO-NO when it comes to renting a house in most part of this country. We, as a society, have been reduced to such a pathetic state that values such as pluralism, mutual trust and respect, religious tolerance, etc are no more relevant to common men. It's enchanting to think that India as a country will have or having its renaissance sooner or later and that it will unload itself of its heavy religion/race/caste luggage and walk the path of rationalism, but truly it's far away.

Though Dairy engineering did not figure anywhere in Kurien's scheme of things, it's quite astounding to see how dedication in whatever you do could definitely result in miracles. All along , I could see two things that he has been fighting, it's the bureaucracy and politics. More than skill, resources and time, you also need people's power to succeed in any project such as Operation Flood. Kurien was fortunate to have that kind of support from different quarters, from Tribhuvandas to Maniben, from Jawaharlal Nehru to Indira and Rajiv Gandhi.

While Amul, NDDB, IRMA are all children of the 'problem of success' of an ideology called 'Cooperatives', it's also imperative that the quality of success vastly depends more on the people behind it and the people in it. I felt some heartburns here and there to see the indifference of this country and society towards Maniben Patel, the daughter of Vallabhai Patel, the indifference of JRD Tata who refused to loan managers for Operation Flood etc. Ironically Ratan Tata has written the 'Foreword' for this book.

Kurien's life and work at Anand are indeed quintessential takeaways for entrepreneurs. However, I am rather skeptical if all common/budding entrepreneurs may get the kind of backing that Kurien had directly and indirectly by virtue of being born in a family with links all the way up to India's Union Cabinet. Nevertheless, I also believe that anybody with Kurien's integrity, purpose, and values can walk the path of glory with no need for any sort of nepotism and undue favors.

Good book. Worth the time spent in reading the life of one of the great visionaries who fought corporate, political and bureaucratic structures to build one of India's great success stories, the 'AMUL'.

[Alokita · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book made me realize why we need to read more autobiographies. Getting a glimpse into what life is about for people we admire and how they themself look at their efforts and achievements.
Some takeaways from the book in my personal opinion:
1. Everyone is dealt a different hand of cards. Getting a good one won't ensure that things go smoothly let alone success. Mr. Kurien came from an accomplished background, but that did not mean he got everything he wanted, including a career of his choice. But he worked hard in all the fields he jumped into.
2. Career changes happen to the best of the lot. But if you have the will to learn and will to implement then you are sure to succeed at any place. From being an engineer at a multinational company to being the administrator of a failing dairy. It takes confidence and vision to start again, succeed again.
3. Thinking that you can accomplish things all on your own is a fallacy. It is a joint effort, from people at the bottom and at the top. The Amul cooperative could rise to the top because there were politicians, leaders, and farmers who trusted the vision of dairy independence of India at a time when India was struggling for food security and made changes to help it prosper.
4. Marketing is more important than what people give credit to it for. The appropriate level of economies of scale is difficult to achieve without widening the reach of a product to more public.
5. Institutes are as good as the people at the helm of it. While comparing the fate of cooperatives of Maharashtra and Gujarat, Mr. Kurien observed that the problem is not that politicians are at the helm of such cooperatives but the fact that once these politicians get the helm, they begin to use the cooperatives for political gain instead of using their political will to improve the cooperative.
6. Bureaucracy sucks most of the time, but knowing the right person at the right time makes the job much easier.

[ANISHIA GOPI · Rating 5 out of 5]

This year I intentionally made a decision to read the biographies of Indian leaders and business personalities. And for that reason, Verghese Kurian's story was one of the bold picks. A true patriot, a businessman with a mission to serve rural farmers of India, a visionary who believed true economical progress lies in the hands of rural India and who focussed all his efforts to empower, and uplift the rural population by giving them ownership in large scale milk production, Amul man, milkman above all a great leader who challenged all the status quo. Remind you this was an era of Independent India where the country was awaiting for radical growth and Verghese Kurian was a true patriot with a bigger mission.
India recently celebrated 75 years of Independence and is at the golden age of radical growth. I must say that I can see a lot of young and old leaders in the front run possess leadership qualities that are very similar to Verghese Kurian. So his legacy is still alive in a way.....

[Arun · Rating 4 out of 5]

A delightful book. To read the amazing story of Indian dairy industry narrated by the man who played the most significant role in it was quite insightful. Dr Kurien was clear on his motives and he never compromised with them, no matter how tough a stand he had to take. His retorts to politicians, bureaucrats and representatives of MNCs and other nations clearly show how confident he was about what he was doing. His narration also significantly emphasizes on the power of people and how fruitful it can be for development if more freedom is given to people. While being a severe critic of bureaucracy Dr Kurien also candidly appreciated those bureaucrats and politicians who understood his cause and went out of the way to make things work.

It was very fortunate for India to have Dr Kurien and to get him placed at Anand due to certain unexpected quirks of fate. What happened after that constitutes a part of modern Indian history that makes every Indian proud.

[Ajay Sambhriya · Rating 5 out of 5]

|𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘨𝘦𝘥𝘺 𝘰𝘧 𝘐𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘢 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘦 𝘧𝘳𝘦𝘲𝘶𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘭𝘺 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘯𝘰 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘐𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘢𝘯𝘴, 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘐𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘢𝘯 𝘦𝘧𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘐𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘢𝘯 𝘴𝘶𝘤𝘤𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘴.

[Divya Sornaraja · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was one of the most exciting books I’ve read this year relating a fair bit to recent history of Independent India. Throughout this book, you come across most of the iconic prime ministers of India, the political scenario back in the early India days, and also some of the British India bureaucrats and systems in place.

This book sort of felt like a time-traveling capsule taking you through incredible journey of how a new nation was so very well built on its own with the intellectuals and administrators taking the lead. When I read about exchange programs sponsored for learning to come back to New India and serve/build the nation, it was thoroughly exciting. It’s fair to say that this man, through the raging fire of a passion at his heart and soul literally transformed India’s Diary market, a self-sufficient(not anymore?) world’s largest producer by innovating technology & process of cooperatives leading the charge.

The transformation story of increasing the rural income by a double digit, bringing the power back to the people, and the sheer scale and spirit of all the project could do is just invariably inspiring and mind blowing. It may not have been just one man to have got the industry and the nation’s respect this far, but this man’s sheer stubborn no-bullshit nature and weeding out the corrupted/useless did put a dent into the bureaucracy that usually wins.

It blew my mind reading through the ingenious idea of Operation Flood by selling the donated Dairy products. Further, Dr.Kurien’s words feels so true in so many layers as he looks at every term or office or ideology by its first definition and not the perverted evolved ones. That very perspective, am sure, must have made him the most powerful man of his times devoid of fear.

Although I was incredibly in love with the author, his passion, spirit and all the truth, he is a Nationalist by definition and his mentioned ideologies of a protectionist closed economy may not help nations today but is definitely worth thinking about.

It’s good to be stern and unyielding, but the best outcomes can also come from an empathy and the smart/sharp non-rebellious mind that can find a way through the mess without having to clash or fight all the way through. Sun Tzu may not make sense to this Great Indian, but he truly does inspire me and I sure will recommend to all the young Indians with a note exclaiming - “What a man! What an Indian!” Salute.

[Bhavya Jain · Rating 5 out of 5]

I too had a dream is a memoir about Dr. Verghese Kurien from the part of his life when he is exploring life to leading "The White Revolution" in India.

Dr. Verghese Kurien is one of the few great personalities from India who were so patriotic and full of integrity that they put their personal interest behind their nation.

It all starts with Kurien going to the US to study Dairy Engineering on a government scholarship but all he did study mainly was metallurgy and nuclear physics. But since he pursued this degree at government expense and had a pact with the same, he was posted as a Dairy Engineer in a small place called Anand in Gujarat state.

Where he came in contact with Tribhuvandas and several other people who were poor farmers from the same place. He was quite sure that he will never work with farmers and in the dairy field but destiny had something else planned for him.

He offered a helping hand to Tribhuvandas at the milk cooperative after he was released from his job and willingly or unwillingly he joined the milk cooperative and the rest is history.

This book tells about how Dr. Verghese Kurien with the help of Tribhuvandas and hundreds of farmers outperforms a private dairy named Polson.

What I liked the most about this book is the character development of Dr. Kurien, and how he went from a worry less fellow to working with the government of India and several other countries for the greater good.

He really was the epitome of selfless attitude and integrity who put the poor farmers' and nations' pride before his own and his family's.

This is a must-read book for everyone, there are not a lot of such personalities that resemble Dr. Kurien and as youth and the future of India, we mustn't forget them and even apply them to our lives to make them better.

Definitely a 5-star read. :)

[Utkarsh Sankhla · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I first heard of this title, and nothing else at all - I thought this was going to be one of those trashy masala novels that mixed love, cringe, titillation and good old fashioned sacrifices (not the cannibal kind, mind you). It just seemed like that - maybe the unoriginal title did me in.

But wise people say, never judge a book too heavily by its title. And they are right. I finished this book within a day because it was a fascinating story - of grit, patriotism, business smarts, Indian corporate history and a peek into the personality of the orchestrator of Operation Flood.

Dr. Kuriens autobigraphy was delightful, inspiring and extremely educational. It is true that we as a country don't celebrate our successes as much as we should - this book plays a small part in changing that. Now, everytime I buy an Amul product (and definitely not Mother Dairy), I will see it with completely different eyes. Institutions are built not by money, but by the efforts of ordinary men and women like us, who pick on extraordinary challenges.

What I liked: The anecdotes, Dr Kurien's sharp tongue and the feeling of having experienced (even if just via a book) a transformation of India post independence. Also, loved how Dr Kurien also criticized the direction that his baby of sorts (NDDB) has taken in the last few years.

What I didn't like: This was one of my rare 5/5 reviews.

[Sandeep Bhat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dr Kurien,the man behind the success of Amul, is one of the biggest believer of power of people. Written in an autobiographical format, I too had a dream is evolution of Mr Kurien from a brash young man to a stubborn workaholic. The book talks in detail about how he ended up in Anand, role played by Tribhuvandas Patel, Kaira cooperative of Farmers and his endless brushes with bureaucrats and politicians. The founding stories of NDDB and IRMA are really inspiring. From ensuring a milk products import country to become a self sufficient milk surplus country, Amul is a tremendous marketing and supply chain miracle. With one of the very few cooperatives surviving the capitalist world, the book is a witness to never giving up attitude of Mr Kurien and his team. Especially interesting are the sections dedicated to launch of Operation Flood, brush with Nestle and the tug of war with Mumbai and Delhi milk scheme.

[Swati Agrawal · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book was on my to-read list for a really long time.. Somehow never managed to get my hands on it.. And I am glad I finally picked it up..
This life-story of Dr. Kurien, of Amul and the dreams of thousands of farmers is beautiful. No flowery language or attempt to please anyone. It is motivating. Dr. Kurien didn't shy away from criticizing the bureaucracy, which always tried to get in his way, creating one obstacle after another.
Its all about being passionate about your dream and actually working towards realizing it.
It covers so much, its hard to list them all here. You have to read this. Highly recommended!

[Niklesh Phabiani · Rating 5 out of 5]

Growing up in the 90's, I was fortunate to have good quality and more than enough quantity of every dairy product I desired. Little did I know that it was due to the wonderful efforts and hard work of the cooperative at Anand. The book presents a great account of how the cooperative evolved over time, and ultimately made India a self-sufficient country in the dairy industry.