ADITYA BIRLA GROUP: Apple of my eye - Mansi Kapoor, NMIMS, Mumbai

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Part - A
ABG touches millions in the world. It is unlikely that you have never used a product, or travelled on a road or visited a site where ABG has not contributed in some way. Its presence in your life is massive. In at least 250 words or more, tell us ‘Why Aditya Birla Group is big in your life’.   Without business, society cannot grow and without people business cannot exist. The beauty of a smooth business is that it touches people without them knowing the innumerable efforts being put into it to give purpose to the venture. Aditya Birla Group is a stellar example of how business impacts peoples’ day to day life positively.  With a mission to deliver superior value to its customers, shareholders, employees and society at large, time and again this group has proven that it is BIG in everyone’s life. The impact of Aditya Birla’s Group in my life started as soon as my school time breakfast, when I could not eat that steamy mom made sandwiches within 5 minutes and was getting late for school. Hindalco’s Freshwrapp was a godsent; wrap, grab and run. It still remains an integral part of my life, preserving both the value of food and its convenience of use. Adolescence came with its own excitements of birthday parties and a zeal to put on the best outfit. With multiple formats and multiple brands, Pantaloons was the place to go. Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail Limited, being the largest fashion network has always been my buddy in resolving my fashion choices. People, India’s first fashion youth brand, saved my pocket money in college days to rock those weekend parties. Aditya Birla Group has not just been about me, it has been with me in my brother’s wedding shopping, let alone planning for his birthday surprise gifts. It has removed the misconception from my mind that it is very tough to shop for the men in the house, owing to a very limited variety available in the market. Brands like Van Heusen, Allen Solly and Peter England, have proven time and again that ranges of both price and products is not a distant wish. You have it, when you want it. And now, when I sit back to think and plan for my most preserved dream, to have my own house, I know that Aditya Birla Group will be with me again. UltraTech Cement one of the leading cement companies in India, will be the one stop destination to form the building blocks of my dream. So its not just about apparels, not just about telecom or FMCG, Aditya Birla Group is one of the largest conglomerate which is touching lives and expanding social capital spanning across 34 countries. Hence it justifies its tagline- Taking India to the World.

        Part - B
At the core of the ABGLP program are people who drive to make an impact, irrespective of what challenges they face. Tell us, in at least 250 words, ‘How you overcame challenges to achieve your ambitions in life so far’.      

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As an informal saying goes, Experience is like a comb that life gives you when you’re bald! The biggest problem people are facing today is hoping for a world without problems. This is an impossible goal; thankfully, else it would lead to a boring life without character. Challenges help us grow and shape our lives. The beauty of problems is that they grow as we grow up; or maybe it’s a perception because a 10- year old will prove it to you that he getting a C grade in his class test is the biggest challenge in his life, and you want to tell him that it cannot be scarier than paying back your home loan! The first challenge I faced in my life was in Class X boards. Just a day before my History exam, I got infected with measles and it was horrific. High fever, big scars all over me, I was skeptical if I would be even allowed to appear in the examination, let alone studying for that. By sheer fortune, around midnight (before the exam), my friend called to inform that the exam has been postponed to next week due to some political reasons! Unbelievable as it may sound, I managed to study for the entire week, recovered to some extent and excelled in that subject with 90% marks! Undoubtedly, luck played its part in this incident, but it came with a very serious WARNING - Never leave things for the last minute. Had I not been prepared I would not have managed even in that grace week, especially in a subject like History and ultimately I would’ve crafted a different story. Since then I have always worked with this principle to at least avoid challenges, if not overcome them. So now, all I look for is a blessing that’s not in disguise! If one encounter was not enough, I faced another test (read challenge) in my professional journey. At a time when I was aspiring for an onsite opportunity and working hard for it, due to some issues, my visa clearance was taking time. Days were getting wasted and I started feeling a pause in my learning – the vacuum created in this wait was a challenge of a different level. Post various sessions of self-realization, I took in, when things don’t go your way, step back to see the other picture, maybe there is something better in store for you.  I started preparing for MBA entrances and burnt the midnight oil to get a call from NMIMS! My colleague (who had applied for Visa for the same onsite program) cleared this project and called me one day to ask: “You don’t know what wonders this onsite would have done to your CV!? You should have waited and tried again…” My only reply was, “Had I got my Visa on time, I would have missed getting an admission in one of the best B-schools in the country!” J So, I welcome every such challenge in future with open arms, not only to shape myself for the best but also for the worse…. Bring it on, Dear Zindagi!  #NMIMSMumbai  #ABGLPWooMe