The Aditya Birla Group – An Unrecognized part of my Life | Avik Basu, IIM Kashipur

Road to IIM

The road to a IIM is never easy. There are sacrifices, sleepless nights, uncountable mocks and most importantly a never give up attitude. After successfully cracking CAT and getting calls from some of the top B-Schools of the country the battle was half won, but it was not fully conquered. It was 14th February, 2019 -  the day of my CAP interview. I was very excited as it was my first MBA interview. I got ready, put on my best white shirt and tie. My interview centre was Novotel, Kolkata that was around 10 kilometres from my home, so I decided to travel there by my bike. The weather was very pleasant as it rained last night and there was slush and puddles on the road. On my way, suddenly a bus overtook me with speed and splashed me with deep puddle. I pressed the brake and stood on the roadside with awe and shocked, unable to figure out what to do next. My white shirt had lost its enticement. Luckily, I found a Pantaloons showroom nearby and I went there. The representatives there were so friendly that they predicted my situation as soon as I entered their store. They suggested me to use the washroom first and by that time they brought a nice white Peter England shirt for me. I tried that and it was a perfect fit. I left the store with a smile on my face. I entered the interview centre, put on the Van Heusen suit over it and gave one of the best interviews of my life. Luckily I got selected and today I am a student of IIM Kashipur. That day, it didn’t mean much, but now when I look back to this day, I feel grateful to Aditya Birla Group for making such an excellent retail store like Pantaloons and giving birth to brands like Van Heusen, Allen Solly, Peter England and Louis Philippe. These brands do not only create products but also add value to our lives.

Always Believe in Yourself

According to Vince Lombardi, an American football coach, “Winners never quit and quitters never win”.  We all face difficult times in our lives but the thing that distinguishes a winner from a loser is whether they are learning from those mistakes or not. People who crumble on those tough situations never enjoys the fruit of glory. For this, my philosophy of life has always been, “Tough time doesn’t last long, but tough people do”. One of the incidents that had impacted me the most was the demise of my grandmother just before my ISC boards exam. I, being the only child of my parent was the greatest light of hope for her. Since childhood, when my parents were out for work, I was left at home with my grandmother and naturally I developed this feeling of attachment and belonging for her. So, when she left us, it was a feeling of remorse, pain and void in my life. It was tough for me to walk past this situation. There was a huge gloomy cloud resting over our place, and I was expected to act maturely and need to get back to my usual routine considering the fact that my board exam was knocking at the door. Initially it was very tough for me. I had never handled so much pressure before. Slowly I started losing the sense of desire. I distanced myself from family, friends and slowly dived into depression. It was not much time left for boards, when I realized that I was not doing any good to me. I read Gita, I started following various inspirational people like Swami Vivekananda and tried to find out the meaning and purpose of life. Every day I started putting positive efforts to frame myself and distanced myself from all the negative developments. Slowly and steadily I got back to the normal self via regular mediation. I gained back my old self, the old ambitious and careerist self. I realized life stops for no one and whenever I used to feel down, I remember my grandmother’s words, “Always Believe in Yourself”. I gave my boards exam and I passed it with flying colours. I was ranked among the top 3 in my district and I was felicitated from various organizations and agencies. I would like to end this article by extend my vote of support to everyone who has ever faced or is facing tough times in their life. Fate is something that can’t be changed. You have to accept it and move on. Everything that comes our way has a purpose, either they break you or they make you. So never give up and never lose hope. I hope wherever my grandmother is right now, she is very happy seeing me where I am today.