‘Mindset is critical for today's students’: DRDO's K. Rajalakshmi Menon | THE WEEK Education Conclave 2026

For young Indians chasing ambitious dreams, resilience is not a buzzword; it is a necessity.

That was the message from K. Rajalakshmi Menon, director general of aeronautical systems at the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), at THE WEEK Education Conclave 2026 in New Delhi.

She spoke about perseverance, setbacks and the determination required to build world-class technology for the nation. Her own journey is a lesson in adaptability. She began with physics, pursued a master's degree in computer science and eventually found herself at DRDO, working in areas far removed from her original academic training.

"Resilience is needed from the start of life," she said, recalling how things did not always go according to plan. "After Class 12, I did not get what I wanted. But I kept fighting and took the best opportunity available."

That mindset, she believes, is critical for today's students. Careers are rarely linear and success often comes from making the most of unexpected opportunities rather than waiting for perfect circumstances.

At DRDO, she found an organisation that offered both opportunity and challenge in equal measure. The stakes are exceptionally high. Scientists are not simply developing products; they are building systems that could one day be relied upon in matters of national security.

"Work without fear," she said, describing the attitude young people must cultivate.

She knows what it means to step outside a comfort zone. Despite coming from a computer science background, she was assigned responsibility for integrating radar systems on an aircraft — a task that demanded expertise far beyond her formal training.

Instead of resisting the challenge, she embraced it.

For Menon, resilience is not just about personal determination. It is also about creating environments where people are unafraid to acknowledge mistakes. "Teams should report anomalies without fear," she said.

That culture of openness is especially important in complex scientific programmes where identifying problems early can make the difference between success and failure.

She pointed to the legacy of A.P.J. Abdul Kalam as an example. According to her, Kalam never chased success as an end in itself. His focus was always on serving the nation, and success followed as a consequence of that commitment.

The reality of defence research leaves little room for mediocrity. "The services need the best," she said. "In a war, there is no runner-up. Either you win or you lose."

That pressure has shaped some of India's most important indigenous defence programmes, including the Tejas Light Combat Aircraft and the much-discussed Kaveri Engine Programme.

Speaking about Tejas, Menon said that adversity often becomes a source of strength. Whenever critical technologies are denied to India, Indian scientists respond with greater determination and innovation.

The Kaveri engine project, frequently cited as an example of a programme that faced repeated hurdles, offered another lesson. "We have heard so much about failures," she said. "But we kept working hard."

For her, the story of Kaveri is not simply about an engine. It is about persistence, learning and refusing to abandon a difficult goal. Every setback became a lesson that helped strengthen future capabilities. Perhaps, her most powerful observation was that successful scientific programmes are ultimately about people.

"We built the people who built the system," she said.