In our list of India's Best 50 - the 50 Most Employable Students from the Class of 2021-23, we feature MBA students who have walked that extra mile and done that little more to stand out! One of those featured in today's story, Varsha Priyadarshini, has shown an incredible amount of passion to achieve her true potential. Read on and find out how her story!
The following are Varsha Priyadarshini’s set of responses to a questionnaire floated amongst MBA graduates to determine the top 50 Most Employable MBA Graduates of the Class of 2023. Amongst the massive number of entries and responses being evaluated, Varsha's story and profile stood out. Here's her story in her own words.
Name an instance where you wanted something and went out of your comfort zone to achieve it OR Tell us the biggest risk you have taken so far in your life.
I used to lead a very unhealthy lifestyle before 2019. I was under the impression that making my career should have my full focus and everything I did was oriented accordingly, be it academics or taking up projects and internships or participating in various events and leading teams. I used to weigh 80 kgs at the time, had very unhealthy eating patterns and was averse to physical exercise of any sort. Soon I realised that ignoring my health was going to be detrimental in the long run. I went outside my comfort zone and started my weight loss journey following a proper exercise routine and diet. It was a very difficult path which demanded extreme discipline and will power. But treading that path has changed my life. Today I have lost 23 kgs, maintain all body vitals in the normal range, exercise daily and eat healthy along with giving my best to pivot my career and doing my bit for the society. It has been an immense challenge to get out of my comfort zone and still maintaining that discipline till today, but I am much more positive, happy and confident individual because of this instance.
When was the last time someone relied on you? OR What did you do which was purely for someone else - a truly selfless act?
Being a responsible and kind citizen has always been important to me. Be it helping a stranger cross the road, taking care of stray animals, volunteering for social causes or just being a kind friend, these small things have created a great impact and helped me feel human. A truly selfless act that I wish to share is of when India was hit by Covid-19 second wave. It was a dark time for many families of the nation and the world, and I wanted to do my bit, however small or big. With the assistance of my family, I prepared around 50-60 plates of hygienic, nutritious and home made meals and distributed it with the help of a local NGO amongst the underprivileged stricken by Covid-19. I continued this everyday for a month during a time when people secluded themselves even from close ones. This act still makes me very proud of my efforts and gives me the satisfaction of helping someone in need.
Tell us about a time when you disagreed with an opinion/idea/decision. What did you do about it?
During my stint in 2019 at Secure Meters Limited where I was working as a Firmware Developer, I was part of a team that was in charge of a large product that was to be released in two weeks. I was updating the firmware codes when we discovered many errors in the skeleton code, which would need rewriting the code and cause the product's release to be delayed. My co-workers wanted to push the release date back, but I thought it would reflect poorly on the company. I was determined to conduct simulations, and after much back engineering, I was able to pinpoint the specific problem that caused the release to be delayed. Finally, we were able to deliver our product to our consumers on time.
What is the one thing you can claim to have some level of expertise or depth of knowledge in - it could be anything - a subject, a sport, a hobby, a venture, an initiative that has led you to do deep work in that field?
I have always been passionate about dancing and hence I would like to highlight two things, that go hand in hand, dance and choreography. I have been pursuing both as hobbies since as long as I can remember. I started by being introduced to the classical dance form, Odissi, at the age of six. Since then I continued my training for eleven years and have also cleared the Visharad examination by Pracheen Kala Kendra. As I grew up, I started exploring more forms including Rabindra Sangeet, Kathak, Chhau and Bharatnatyam. Later, I also completed a 2 year training in Salsa and took few workshops on Hip Hop. Keeping up with this passion has been difficult, specially with MBA, but I keep taking out pockets of time to connect with what I love. Dance has helped me be confident, expressive and to be customer centric as the audience matters a lot for any artist. It also serves as an escape window to leave the troubles of the real world and achieve calm and peace during hardships.
If 10 Million Dollars (approximately INR 75 Crores) is given to you to use it any way you deem fit what would you do with this corpus?
If I receive 10 million dollars, I wish to make the world a better place with it. I would use the money to fuel five different purposes. First, I would keep 20% of the amount as a corpus to start my venture in the food tech business, bringing different cultures together. Second, I would invest another 20% into money making assets for my parents' health and comfort, as I would be nothing today without their sacrifices. Third, the next 20% would go for awareness and building infrastructure for specially abled children. They are often misunderstood and their needs are not catered to. Most families don't even realise their child is special and ignore their actions as simply being naughty or foolish. Fourth, I would like to take the responsibility of the education of five children from schooling to higher education. This would help those children become able and in turn help others in the future. Fifth, I would invest the last 20% of the amount for helping set up medical services in remote areas, where people still suffer and die due to lack of right medical assistance.
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As per government tax payers' data and our assessment, only about 6,00,000 Indian taxpayers earn an annual 'salaried' income of INR 30 lacs or above. And only 11,00,000 Indian taxpayers earn a 'total' income of INR 30 lacs or more.
Have you ever considered how much time it would take for you to be amongst these top 0.5% earners in India?
Find out here!