I consider the mentor-mentee relationship as something special; something that is based on trust and rooted in the former ensuring the professional growth of the latter, expecting nothing in return.

A harsh and unacknowledged truth drives scientific research in our country – the suffering mental health of research scholars and the discouragement of their intellectual development. Research scholars are often treated as the human resource component of the ‘research machinery’, fueling publications for their supervisors.

Since mentoring is a social enterprise,  requiring very personal investments of time and effort, and with serious expectation (by the mentor) of a response (from the mentee, and vice versa), this goes outside the ambit of a codified behaviour that can be put into simple rules such as the mentor should do this this and this, the mentee should do this and this, and then all will be well.

The process of honing the capabilities of research scholars necessitates a balance between sensitivity to cultural background and a professional distance; this is not always an easy balance to obtain.

In this article, I will explore the nature of mentor-mentee relationships commonly observed in the industry. I will explore several aspects of mentor-mentee relationships and discuss some of the objectives for establishing a mutually enriching mentor-mentee relationship. I will conclude the article by briefly discussing the importance of some of the soft-skill attributes that all of us need to be aware of for the optimal success of the relationship.

Does the mentor wish to mentor? Does the student who is to be mentored wish for a mentor? This is the central question which seems to be ignored.

Interpersonal relationship is the basis of a mentee-mentor relationship, and hence there can only be broad guidelines, but not rule-books, on how to nurture the same.