Aditya Birla Group has emerged over the years as one brand that has touched at least some or the other aspect of an individual residing in this nation and probably abroad too. The variety ranges from
‘Birla Balwan’ in Fertilizers for agriculture to producing
‘Epoxy resins’ in entire ASEAN countries and from ‘Cement
’ to dressing India via ‘
Pantaloons,’ ‘Allen Solly’ & many more. Knowingly or unknowingly people have been associated with Aditya Birla Group, and its contributions have touched the very essence of this country.
Back in 2015, the school for which I was volunteering in my hometown of Darbhanga, Bihar, faced an earthquake which had impacted Nepal and Northern India heavily. The building of the school was still under construction, and during the earthquake, it suffered severe damages. The roof and frontal wall of 3 adjoining classrooms were heavily impacted. The 8.0 magnitude tremor left us scared as well as in shock. That event left entire of the school authority and myself in utter shock. We were lucky enough that no such damage to human life was caused.
But the challenge left in front of us at that point of time was that what if any such thing happens again in future at some point of time and, maybe then we won’t be that lucky. At that point, we decided to deploy our trust in UltraTech Cement for further construction related activities. And till this date, we are proud of our decision taken that we were not ready to compromise, no matter what. There are a few instances where you know that you can trust someone and that is the trust what Aditya Birla Group has made over the course of time. And till this date, Aditya Birla Group has influenced every aspect of my life, from fashion to investments, but the incident of April 2015 and the decision what we took afterward retains a big part in my life.
Life is full of challenges, and it's all about how one overcomes it and what learning it brings altogether out of it. There are challenges every day, and the onus is on the individual how to cope and emerge out of it successfully.
I, a Marine Engineer, had to face a certain situation when I was hit by a dilemma, fear, and doubt at the same time. When I was set to join my first vessel as a Junior Engineer, I was very anxious as well as excited at the same time. Within two days of my joining, my vessel was cruising through the periphery of the eye of the storm, and the weather became very rough. Put together the new environment of the sea, work location, and the hostile weather outside, I felt like trapped and having no idea what to do. The next coming port was 28 days away, and I had no clue how I was going to continue if I have selected this field as my future.
The coming days were not easy at all. New people, new work environment, and the weather didn’t improve either. Things weren’t adding up as per my perception of how my sailing career would start. Then my seniors and co-workers on-board told me that it is normal for someone to feel that way at that point of time. They stood by me and made me realize that I must not overthink. This would be a phase, and as I was new, it would take a bit time to adjust. They helped me grow in a team and taught me the value of teamwork. I realized that people do bond over time, be it of any nationality. It was not easy at first, but the camaraderie that developed helped me learn more, evolve more, and be a better individual. And I slowly realized that each and every tough situation gets solved gradually, but all we need to do is stay calm and never give up.
Later I wished to explore more growth for my career, and I wanted to learn more nuances of being a good manager, so I decided to join IIM Visakhapatnam for the same. As of today, prior to joining to IIM Visakhapatnam, I have sailed on board four container ships and sailed around the globe over around 17 months and I carry along with me the valuable experiences and learnings I garnered across my sailing career.