A hazy memory of little me being woken by the revving of trucks still lies in the coffers of my mind. I remember that cement bags were being unloaded from the trucks for the construction of our future home. I also remember the word Ultratech on them, mildly hidden underneath a layer of grey dust. That is how long ABG has been with me. It has sheltered me from the scorching heat, the violent storms and the chilling cold. It has been the canvas on which I first painted and also the corner where I hid afterwards. It has been a wicket for the cricket I played and also the backrest where I leaned on afterwards. It still decorates the background of every photograph of every house party we had and still stands firm to go through all this again. ABG, in a way, has been part of my home, my family, my best memories and also my worst failures; always there to provide shelter and always the place where I can go back to.
From Engineering to Art to IIM Ranchi
In this world, that rightly expects the youth to be idealist, it hard to say that you are a Kantian. I know I am not alone in this, but I am one of the few for who is willing to state the truth; because for me values matter more than expectations and what is right in front me matters more than any overarching goal (typical of a Kantian). But, life doesn’t discriminate. For it, everyone is the same and everyone deserves challenges. The biggest one of mine, was the place that I was born in. A village far excluded from the world with a outdated culture as immovable as a mountain. I spent 17 years of my life in that stillness and when I got out I found myself lagging behind an ocean of city dwellers who had everything figured out. Here, I believe, being a Kantian helped me. ‘It is what it is’; I said to myself and started from there and then. During my undergraduate degree I participated in everything I could get my hands on. I joined a dance group, the arts club and a basketball team; won gaming tournaments, became coordinator of arts club, organized events and, at the same time, managed to complete my degree with respectable score. During that same period I also developed a passion of mine (painting and drawing) entirely on my own. It became my future profession. In 3rd year I was skilled enough that I started selling my paintings and designing tattoos for customers. I came from the other side of my undergraduate degree as a person capable of standing on his own two feet, as an artist who makes this world a beautiful place, but, in the end, still a Kantian.
