Lucknow, July 11 -- From being lifelong learners to mentors in multiple fields, some octogenarians continue to pursue excellence while inspiring younger generations. On the occasion of Guru Purnima on Thursday, Hindustan Times spoke to two such individuals. Anil Rastogi (82), a former scientist at the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research-Central Drug Research Institute (CSIR-CDRI), also followed his passion for theatre. On Thursday, his contributions were celebrated by students from both science and the performing arts. "I worked on both my passion-theatre-and my profession-scientific research-simultaneously," said Rastogi. "After retirement, I shifted my complete focus to theatre." He credits Rajeshwar Bacchan, an employee at the Transport Office, for inspiring his theatre journey. "He taught me the nuances of acting and encouraged me to move in that direction. Other theatre artists like Urmil Kumar Thapaliyal, Raj Bisaria, and Suryamohan Kulshrestha also shaped my journey." Though Rastogi never directed plays, he has mentored many young theatre artists, especially in voice modulation-a skill he honed while working in radio. He is currently working on his 99th play. Similarly, Prof Roop Rekha Verma (82), former Vice Chancellor of Lucknow University, said retirement was not a sudden shift for her, as she had always been involved in social issues alongside her academic work. "Retirement becomes difficult only if one has nothing to pursue beyond their profession," she said. "I had always engaged in writing, public speaking, and groundwork on social issues. So, after stepping down from institutional responsibilities, I felt relieved that I could now devote more time to social work-even though it reduced my time for academic writing." Though she writes less now, Prof Verma believes society urgently needs more people to engage in ground-level work, even if it means stepping away from other pursuits....