“The Ultimate Measure of a Man Is Not Where He Stands in Moments of Comfort and Convenience, But Where He Stands at Times of Challenge and Controversy.” - Martin Luther King, Jr.
The zeal to always step out of my comfort zone and face new challenges has helped me push my boundaries and grow into the person I am today. This attitude towards life and willingness to face new challenges wasn’t familiar to me up until recent years. But certain realizations in life, during the third year of my under-graduation, made me ruminate the decisions I needed to make for me to shine as a person. It’s during that time when one of my friends suggested me to join a social organization to expand my horizons and to explore new things in life. I have never been more grateful.
The social organization I joined, worked for the cause of food shortage and food wastage. We provided food for children and old people who couldn’t fend for themselves. I was amazed at first to see the dedication people had towards the cause. How some people, as young as nineteen years old, had the competency and maturity to handle a national level organization while simultaneously acing at their education. This is where I started taking initiatives and shouldered more responsibilities. This particular phase of my life was the ascent to my learning curve. I had the opportunity to represent my organization on various fronts and meet one of the best people. From being an introvert who could hardly express himself to a person who could lead a team, I have come a long way.
Now talking about how Aditya Birla Group has impacted me. It is improbable to not talk about any of the ABG products since I have always been surrounded by them throughout my life. Being a fashionista, I love to keep up with the latest trends and ABG brands make a large part of my wardrobe. But I would here talk about something that’s more appealing to me and that is the socially responsible aspect of ABG.
For over 50 years now, the ABG has engaged in impactful, welfare-driven activities in India and globally. The ABG works in 5,000 villages, reaching out to 7.5 million people annually. Over 60 per cent of these people live below the poverty line and belong to marginalized and vulnerable sections of society. ABG has actively contributed to the social and economic development of the communities in which they operate. In doing so they’ve had constantly striven to build a better, sustainable way of life for the weaker sections of society and raise the country's human development index.
The evolution of ABG with time to keep up with the fast-paced, versatile, constantly evolving markets of the present day while still being able to actively give back to the society is a symbol of its genuineness, impact-driven attitude and is one of the reasons why Aditya Birla Group is big in my life.