PART – A
Aditya Birla Group has been ever present in the life and minds of the Indian consumer. From UltraTech Cement which is used in road construction to Peter England which is used to cover the shed of a shoe shine shop and the whiny child of a weary mother alike, ABG has always been there. ABG’s well known Idea network started in 1995 and quickly reached the two million subscriber mark as early as 2004.
Incidentally it was also the first network I used as a child. Imagine the joy of a 13-year-old who receives his first portable communication device and it has the Idea name on the sim card. Looking at that name filled me with hope and wonder. Hope that now I would be able to call my friends wherever they were (as long as I paid the STD & ISD rates of course) and wonder at the almost crystal-clear sound quality (except during rains). Even after I outgrew my first phone, I still used an Idea sim. I had developed a loyalty towards the brand due to the excellent customer service and stellar communication quality. Idea also had very fast data speeds which every adolescent craves. I also garnered the jealousy of my rivals and the admiration of my comrades when I pulled out my Idea sim in front of them.
This loyalty continued through to adulthood and even after the merger with the Vodafone group in 2018, I prefer using a sim with Idea written on it.
PART – B
A low metabolism coupled with a genetic predisposition to sweet cravings, obesity was almost another milestone in my development. The taunts of my “near and dear ones” didn’t help. It only served to further fuel my depression and self-loathing. Diets only served to cause me to crave food and binge eat after a week of self-control. Boiled vegetables and salads were my nightmares while pizza and ice cream haunted my dreams, their soft, cute voices calling out to me. Then I moved away for my studies and the unhealthiness continued. Only this time, there was no one to stop/warn me. I ballooned. At the 100 kg mark, I felt defeated.
I finally returned home to find my father bedridden, unable to walk without help. Diabetes had taken him down. This was a turning point for me. I decided that I wouldn’t go down the same path.
I had never actually set foot in a gym in my life. But now I did. Weight training was hard and painful at first. But soon I began to love and crave the pain. A healthy diet and a strict workout regimen made the difference. There was a lot of support from my family. Some friends were lost but more were gained.
It took me 8 months. 8 months of blood, sweat and tears. The result? 26 kg of fat lost and around 18 kg of muscle gain. It was a hard road and it seemed almost impossible to start. But from the summit the sun shone bright.
#NMIMSMumbai #ABGLPWooMe