Since Ashley Tellis is being talked about so much, I will share a small story. In 2014, I was a nobody-- I still am a nobody-- but as a 22-year old I managed to get my first article published in The Diplomat. It was on Modi's forthcoming visit to Japan. 1/6

I sent that article to Ashley Tellis. He replied. I didn't expect him to. He praised the article and expressed the hope that India-Japan relations take off-- they did. I met Ashley later in Delhi. He was warm again, and he remembered our email exchange. 2/5

I don't know about others, but I have a great admiration for those big names in academia and think tanks who still reply to young researchers. NOT EVERYONE DOES. Ashley Tellis is one who does. Pratap Bhanu Mehta similarly replied to a cold email from me in 2013. 3/5

My current PhD advisor replied to my cold email in 2015. Regardless of whether you agree or disagree with their political positions, I have come to appreciate their genuine commitment to encourage and mentor the next generation of scholars. 4/5

I have been lucky to have guides and mentors like Pratap Bhanu Mehta, Srinath Raghavan, Niranjan Rajadhyaksha, and Vipin Narang who are committed to mentoring the next generation. They also allow their mentees the freedom and space to disagree with them. 5/6

I haven't worked with Ashley Tellis directly but I've been told that he has a similar commitment to mentoring and giving the freedom to his younger colleagues. That's all. I haven't tweeted much in recent times. But thought this is important. 6/6