“The Birla Group” has been a name my generation has grown up with. All we heard of was, how these Indian entrepreneurs started from scratch and now have a global outreach. Being one of the biggest conglomerates of India, Aditya Birla Group has been inevitable in the life of every Indian, be it their fashion brands, their cement ventures, their Telecom Services etc. This group has been able to maintain one of the most diversified business portfolios that very few groups have been able to deliver, especially in India. As far as my life is concerned, ABG has been etched big time. Their fashion brand Van Huesen was one where I bought my dad a shirt with my first pay cheque. I remember they were offering 30% discount and that’s how I could afford it because I knew I had to get the best for my dad and nothing could beat Van Huesen. At that point in time, I was unaware of what it meant for my dad and for me, for that matter. Only when I reached home, placed the packet in his hands, I still remember the moment, he opened the packet, saw it was a VH shirt, looked back at me, all furious and said, “Who asked you to buy such an expensive shirt? I don’t need it, I have enough shirts.” I said, “Dad, It’s from my stipend and they were offering a 30% discount”, with teary eyes because I expected him to be happy and hug me tight when he saw the gift and not react like he just did. He looked me in the eye and said, “Beta, I am the happiest dad today, I got anguished because I didn’t realize my kid was grown so much now. I didn’t realize it until today.” We hugged. I never felt more accomplished in all the 22 years of my life. Thank you Van Huesen, ABG for filling the most life possible, in that moment.
One of my biggest challenges in life was when I drifted apart from home for my education. I’ve had bigger and more serious challenges post that, but that one incident has made an indelible mark on my heart. The first time I was out of home, with no way out to go back, it was like a battlefield where there was no other choice but to fight, no other way out but to deal with it. Being in an engineering college, the rigorous curriculum and a hostel life, where no one cared if you fell ill or if you failed a test or you had been starving, it took a toll on me. My grades fell, I gained weight, lost appetite, developed disruptive sleep patterns and the worst part being, I couldn’t tell my mom about it else she would fret, which was the last thing I wanted. Later did I realize that I was developing signs of depression and that there was no one to rescue. It was only me that could help myself. I don’t exactly know what made me come out of the phase, but I did. It took several years to combat the feeling but I take pride in being able to do it.