I am from a nondescript small town in Jharkhand named Chandrapura, trying to fulfill small town dreams. Born into a Bengali middle class family, there was always a constant pressure to study and perform well. “Beta engineer banega” thing happened to me as well and engineering was something that was glamorized in that era. So during my entire childhood, I had restrictions on spending time outside home. So the most prominent source of entertainment as they say was ‘the idiot box’ alias television. Bollywood movies, cartoons, WWE and most importantly cricket was pervasive throughout my childhood. But in between all these, there was one thing, parts of which forever stayed in brain. They are ‘Advertisements’. Some old advertisements become integral part of our growing up. They stoke nostalgia on coming to contact even today. One such Ad was of Ultratech Cement. But why? It showed a successful person in a big firm trying to build something big. Finally came “The Engineer’s choice”. That gave a thumping ecstatic feeling from deep inside. So that remains a fond memory even today.
Growing up grandparents had a big impact on me. I used to spend my summer holidays at Kolkata with my grandparents. That again remains the most joyous part of my childhood. In a Bengali family we have a festival named ‘Jamai Soshti’. It is a festival where a girl’s parents perform rituals for the well being of their daughter’s husband. So this was basically a function for my dad by my grandparents. And at evening, we all family members have a feast together. So also part of this is exchange of gifts. Now here comes the interesting part. My grandparents never gave any direct gifts to my dad. They always used to give him money and then said “ Ekta Peter England kine niyo”, meaning “Buy one Peter England shirt for yourself”. That way Peter England became the first apparel brand name I came to know. In the following years going to Pantaloons and buying apparel ranging from Van Heusen to Louis Philippe became a regular affair. But even today I consider myself lucky to have my maternal grandparents alive and “Ekta Peter England kine niyo” remains intact.
School life is acknowledged as the best part of life. But why so ? Formative learning, Amazing teachers , big flashy classrooms? I believe the answer is friends. The first interactions that we have outside home have a huge bearing on our personality. I always had a large circle of friends. Around the time when I was in class 8 or 9, the principal mode of communication was SMS. My dad used to own a Nokia 5220. I was elated when my Dad bought it. I did not play games much or listened to Music. I had just one idea for the ‘Idea’ Sim card. SMS Packs. Yes they were cheap and I somehow managed to convince my dad for SMS Packs. I remember being unhappy when TRAI reduced the daily SMS limit to 100. But still Idea had the best network and pricing. Only at a very later stage of my life I read an article how my college alumnus Mr Himanshu Kapania spearheaded Idea’s focus on small towns and villages. I will forever be indebted to Idea for those moments of little joys when the home screen read “1 message received”.
Well “Beta Engineer Banega” led me to BIT Mesra. 4 years of life that completely changed my outlook towards me, the world and everything in between. Everything that I did during my engineering days has become an integral part of who I am. Incidentally something I would always wait for was going home. Ranchi to Chandrapura was a 3 hour journey by train. I used to try to get the much coveted window seat. Every time the train was near to entering Muri station, it used to slow down. The unique sight outside was of red sands, pebbles and stones and one big plant with towers and yellow lights wounded around it. I was elucidated by my fellow passenger once that it was Hindalco Industries. As it happened, I was part of an industrial trip to Muri plant as part of the delegation that went from chemical engineering department. My close friends from college got placed in Hindalco and I keep hearing stories from them about life in Renukoot, that’s where they are posted in another Hindalco plant. But the most prominent memory remains of the slow train chugging along the tracks, red sands and the red sky. Evening at its best and the pleasant thought “ 2 more hours to see my Mom”.
My life at BIT Mesra was some academics, lot of extra-curricular activities and a steep learning curve. Some instant motivation lead me one day to order Economic Times to my room in 2
nd year. 3 days into that decision, I wanted to go back to Times Of India. But somehow I cajoled my mind into trying a bit more. In the next 3-4 years Economic Times became something that was constant throughout, even on days when I missed breakfast because of waking up late. And thus started my interest in finance and business. That lead me to do courses on Equity research , NISM certifications and CFA Level 1. It required a ton of effort to read through 10 subjects of CFA for an engineer who did not know the difference between Income statement and Balance sheet. So fund management is something that appeals a lot to me and Aditya Birla Capital comes as one of my dream places to work. Hoping to hone my finance and general management skills during the course of 2 years of MBA and land up someday balancing portfolios for Aditya Birla Capital. As I said in beginning, trying to fulfill small town dreams and expecting Aditya Birla group to remain a constant companion as it has always been.