Being woken at an unearthly hour in the morning to find out that I had been shortlisted for an interview with Mahindra & Mahindra, and managing to convert that interview, is one of the most fortunate things to have happened to me in the last year. I had been told that the internship would be demanding and it would be necessary to go that extra mile. This point merely served to further spark my intrigue. The first week, however, had me entirely convinced that these two months held good things in store.
As I got ready for day 1 of the internship, I prepared myself for a typical induction process. What I did not expect was the effort that had gone into making those first few days meaningful for us. For the company, we weren't just students here for an internship, but young professionals with the potential to add value.
This belief of theirs was highlighted during the entire induction process, with all the people at the top taking out time to come interact with us, which also included the revered Dr. Pawan Goenka and Mr. Anand Mahindra himself. The openness and ease with which they spoke to us and answered all our questions was humbling, to say the least, and the passion in each one of them reassured us all that we had indeed taken the right first step in our professional careers.
After three days of getting acquainted with the various businesses, followed by ice-breaker sessions and a day-long creativity workshop, we were taken to our respective departments and introduced to our project guides. I braced myself for any initial awkwardness that might crop up, but these notions were instantly dispelled. The entire introduction was smooth and effortless, and I realised that I’d gotten a great team to work with.
It is also worth mentioning the amount of diversity across our batch of 35 interns. Each one of us seems to have been hand-picked with a lot of care, and it has been great getting to know one another. From meeting a psychology major, an aspiring author, and an ex-colleague, to even discovering fellow Beatles’ fans, the first week was indeed an eventful one for me.
I realise now that the internship offer was an invitation to be part of a legacy – one that I’m certain will stay with me even after these two months are but a distant memory.