IIM Shillong - My Family | Sayali Gadkari

Just like every MBA aspirant daydreams of getting into an IIM while preparing for CAT, I too wished to somehow get into an IIM. And it seemed like dream come true when I received that ‘Congratulations Mail’ from IIM Shillong. That news rushed adrenaline in me mainly because of two reasons – one being I will be a part of the prestigious IIM Family and other being the ‘Campus in Clouds’.

I contacted few seniors from the senior batch, to get as much information I can about the institute along with browsing and reading everything I can and finally the day arrived when I boarded the plane to Guwahati. Shillong as has been mentioned many times as the home of clouds and you can realize it the moment you step in Meghalaya. And so from here my IIM Shillong Journey started –

Shillong had given my imagination wings to fly. Since I had gone through many pictures and articles about IIM Shillong, I had imagined that there will be flowers to welcome me, a breeze to direct me, trees to impart words of wisdom and rains to keep me alive in this ‘Campus In Clouds’.  And when I entered in the Campus, there were not flowers but our seniors who waited to welcome us. It is my first residential course, and therefore I dreaded for this moment. Anxious, I stepped out of the cab and went to one of them to enquire where to lead. But to my surprise, they not only leaded me, they also carried my luggage and helped me out throughout the registration process. I have seen seniors helping out juniors but it made me feel like home the moment I stepped in the campus. And from then on, there has never been a day, that any of our senior batch has denied to help us.

It’s not even a month in this campus, and it already feels like a home to me. Our seniors made sure that we get acquainted with the culture here and also enlightened us with their valuable ‘words of wisdom’. They have taken every effort to make us comfortable since they know living in Shillong is very different from the rest of the country. Of course, the schedule and pressure is new to us and at times we find it very difficult to cope up, but we have our batch mates, seniors, professors and even the administration to back and support us throughout. They motivate us, direct us and even scold us at our faults. They encourage us to test our limits and believe in the immense potential we hold. Their efforts and belief has made us individuals from different backgrounds, different geographical areas into a family. They have made us fall in love with the city, campus, culture and vigor here. We know we have to face challenges ahead but with an environment like this, we can face anything that comes our way.

There is a lot to experience and learn, since it’s the beginning, but we have learnt the most valuable learning and that is to support each other through everything since we are nothing without peer support and learning here. We are now the face of IIM Shillong and not just individuals. Yes, it’s not just a student driven campus, but a family. They are the key people who are preparing us for the challenges we will face in the future.

And as the days pass, IIM Shillong is just as I imagined, we have seniors in the form of flowers to prepare us to welcome new challenges, in the form of breeze to direct and guide us, in the form of trees to make us wise and share their experiences and finally they are the rain that makes sure we stay energetic and alive in this ‘Campus in Clouds’.

Which ABG company would you want to work for and why?

I would like to work in Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail Limited, since I feel that fashion is one of those industries which will never fall apart. People will always want to buy clothes and look for brands. I personally love to shop different types of apparels. I believe this industry will provide dynamic work and will have different challenges every time since it is directly connected to the demand, choice and preference of customers which may change very frequently. I have always wanted to work in such an industry where we can directly connect, interact and understand customers. Therefore, if given a choice I would choose to work for Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail Limited.