On the loose: Tears for fears

The case for the occasional meltdown

K Sivan, ISRO, ISRO chief, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, K Sivan PM Modi, PM Modi, Narendra Modi, K Sivan Narendra Modi, K Sivan crying, Chandrayaan-2, Chandrayaan-2 mission, Chandrayaan-2 Moon mission, Opinions, Indian Express — **TV GRAB** Bengaluru: Prime Minister Narendra Modi consoles ISRO Chairman K Sivan as he got emotional after the Vikram lander connection was lost during soft landing of Chandrayaan 2. (PTI)

IT WAS, undoubtedly, a traumatic moment for everyone watching when ISRO chief K Sivan wept inconsolably, buried against the Prime Minister’s shoulders. It was not the time to dwell, cynically, on questions of politically-motivated PR stunts, but to wonder at the sheer audacity of this unassuming scientist’s dream. One would have to be an evil sort of person to grudge him a few tears after the Vikram lander lost contact, the anticlimax too difficult to bear in the immediate aftermath. Though the world is largely in agreement that crying is a normal response to tough situations, Sivan’s open distress was viewed with some surprise because a display of intense emotion is still unusual in India.