A Tribute to our beloved Murthy Sir

“A minimally trained lay therapist who exercises a great capacity to love will achieve psychotherapeutic results that equal those of the very best psychiatrists”- M. Scott Peck

Some say when a great soul passes away, he leaves his footprints behind. Wg Cdr Peruvamba Ramakrishna Narayana Murthy VSM (Retd), well known by the name Murthy sir, was one such great soul who will always continue to live among us through our work. His contribution to the field of mental health is truly inspiring.

Born and raised in Bangalore, he graduated from Law and joined the Indian army in 1964. He received 2 awards while in service, one being Vishist Seva medal (1973).  After his retirement, he became the Chief Trainer and Managing Director of GM Academy for Leadership Skills Private Limited, Bangalore. In 1982, he was trained as counsellor at Sanjivini Society for Mental Health at New Delhi.

Rich counselling experience of more than 30 years with places like Sanjivini at New Delhi, Helping Hand, Vishwas and Sneha at Bangalore and Seva at Hyderabad was apparent when one would hear him speak. He was instrumental in setting up of Sneha Counselling Center and Vishwas Counselling Center in Bangalore as well as  Seva in Hyderabad to name a few. All these societies provide free and confidential counselling services to the community.

He was an international trainer in Organization Development and HR. He trained and mentored many NGOs including Swasti, Shikshan and FAME ACADEMY. Those who had attended any of his workshops would have benefitted from the immense knowledge he transferred from his varied experiences including but not limited to discipline of the armed forces, dynamics of the corporate sector and the sensitivity of the mental health field.

The counselling skills courses/workshops for different groups at all levels for different companies and organizations were always rated very high by the participants. 

His conviction, belief and true nature is apparent from what he used to say- "every person, no matter how emotionally down they are, possess sufficient positive energy to recover and get hold of his/her life". This speaks volumes of his approach to offer barefoot counselling services. He was always of the belief that we, as counsellors, need to help identify and channelize those energies to build resilience. 

Despite having many decades of rich experience in the field, Murthy Sir would still meticulously plan out every session with utmost diligence. His sessions were always skill oriented with full of humour. He was ahead of his time and was extremely in tune with younger generations’ thinking process.  He has trained over 350 people in barefoot counselling at FAME ACADEMY alone. This speaks volume of his legacy being carried forward.

He was always looked upon as role model and many in the field sought him for advice. Mrs. Vani Raipet, from Fame Academy says, “A great friend, guide, mentor and a role model for me and all of us to emulate! If I bring on to the plate 50% of his training skills, I would consider myself worthy to be a trainer.” Mrs. Uma Hrishikesh, Secretary, SERPA and special educator says, “He was one of the most genuine, warm and empathetic human beings I have interacted with. He was that someone who really cares about people, mental health and well-being. He was very witty and could pick up on the subtle nuances of a conversation and respond appropriately and empathetically.”

We, the mental-health professionals will always look back at your philosophies Murthy sir! At the hour of ignorance your kind words and in-depth teachings will guide us further to achieve what you have aspired for. We will feel the loss of the enlightened soul but will use his spirit to move forward to make the goal of positive mental health a reality!     

                                                            serpakarnataka@gmail.com