Joining the National Defence Academy was Harshan's dream. When he failed in the NDA interview, he was shattered.
Though he was ashamed and unhappy, he obeyed his father and took the engineering entrance examination. He succeeded with flying colours. But even as he studied to be an engineer, his mind was elsewhere.
Without telling his father, he applied again to the NDA. He broke the news to his father only after he was selected. But his father would not let him join the defence academy.
"I told him to complete engineering and then join the army," says Radhakrishnan Nair. "But he was insistent. I even requested a wing commander to persuade him to complete his engineering degree. After talking with Harshan for an hour, the officer told me, 'If you want your son to be happy, let him join the NDA.' So, I agreed."
Image: Harshan, in front, training to be a paratrooper
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