For a seasoned lawyer like Sridhar Gorthi, Founder and Managing Partner of law firm Trilegal, learning from the law of nature has been a humbling experience. A few years ago, Gorthi acquired some land in Raigad district of Maharashtra, with plans of building a fruit orchard. But, he soon realised the land was not suited for an orchard. "The land was very flat and hard-packed. When I asked, I was told that this land had been historically used to grow paddy. The area received plenty of rain and the conditions were ideal for paddy farming."
It was then that Gorthi realised he had approached farming with the urban notion that the best use of land was to grow fruits or cash crops, without considering what local farmers had been doing for generations and why. And soon, he and his wife were drawn towards understanding the nitty-gritties of paddy farming.
This is his third season of planting, and Gorthi admits it is now more an education than a hobby. Families of local farmers take care of his land, but Gorthi makes special efforts to be there during the crop season.
"It is a very enriching and rewarding experience," he adds. His biggest lesson from farming is humility. There are also other takeaways for businesses - skill and success in one area do not automatically translate into another. Also, while foraying into a new area, listen to those with more experience in that particular sector.