Imagine the country, our life, our surroundings without high raised skyscrapers, communication towers, and the famously famous “zoozoos”. Or for that matter, have you ever noticed people on a Monday morning rushing to work wearing formal shirts with a prominent “stag” symbol or a “VH” on it? Aditya Birla Group has made an impact in my life by providing me with the best of clothing brands to shop from. Be it Pantaloons, Allen Solly, or Lifestyle, ABG focuses on providing apparels for men, women and children. The “everyday” middle class earning member in a family can afford to buy a branded item from stores for affordable rates. Keeping aside the clothing line, let me talk about Vodaphone which turned out to be a savior for the “tech-gen” by not only offering great internet and talk time plans, but also brought a smile on our face through their effective advertising, touching lives of people through stories. “Zoo-Zoo” tee-shirts became college fashion trends and I envied the little boy followed by his best friend – the pug. Lastly, I’ve grown up watching “UltraTech” cement ads. Thanks to the metals, copper and cement we have tall buildings beautifying Mumbai, Pune and many other cities all over India.
Aditya Birla, as a whole has created a world in itself. It has expanded in India in the financial, telecommunication, fashion, textile, cement, etc. sectors. I hope that ABG moves forward into the FMCG sector as well.
In 2015, during my under-graduation course, I was back home during my summer vacation. At the time of this period, I had a variety of activities to choose from to keep myself occupied, but what struck me the most was “schooling or training” students. A family friend of mine told me that I would have to teach kids between 7-10 years old and I remember thinking “that would be easy”. Little did I know that my two months at Shanti School would be the biggest and most impactful life changing experience in my life. I taught bead making, shape making and block building for one of the special students. He seemed to be as lost as I was, but eventually, he got used to having me around. Children with Autism and DOWN syndrome maybe stigmatized right from birth, but they end up teaching the “mentally-stable” society a lot more. On my last day with my little 7-year old student at Shanti school, I received the best gift from him which was – “bye mama”. Those few days spent at Shanti turned out to be the best reverse learning days of my life.
- Challenges and lessons learnt and how I overcame it –
- Never assume that things would be easy.
- Patience will lead to success.
- True friendship exists, but unfortunately only “special” kids experience it without a façade.
- Express and don’t judge.
- Value your family and friends.
- Be thankful.
- Don’t run after materialistic things to keep you happy, find your happiness in small things.
- Learn something new
- Take risks and be fearless.