As people, we go through a lot during our life. We study, get jobs and move to new places. Get new friends, get dumped by girlfriends and try to stand back up. Only a select few of us are lucky to do it with some loved ones. Rest all go through these changes mostly by themselves. Through the past decade, I thought that I am in situations where everything has changed and I don’t have anything in common with the past. But recently, I went down on the modern-day memory lane i.e. Google Photos for Aam Aadmi like me(no endorsement for Kejriwal intended 😉). What I found out was rather surprising. My most important moments and experiences were bound by one other thread apart from my father’s assurance and mother’s blessings. It was Aditya Birla Group in the form of myriads of products.

The first major step in my life was going to a place that colors your life and simultaneously kills your taste buds(mess and tiffin food 😒), i.e. an engineering college, that too a government one. That was the first time I was living out on my own. It was inevitable to not be homesick often. The most helping thing during that time was an Idea number flashing on my mobile screen in an incoming call. The call was my mother’s enquiring about my food and is everything alright(I lied in response to both questions 😉).

I stumbled through my engineering and ran into the demon called placement season. I attended the campus drives with sparkles in my eyes and a Van Heusen shirt on my back. That was the only formal shirt I owned which saw multiple selection rounds and placement offers. This is an image of me trying to look like James Bond and spectacularly failing.

So, like most engineers, I also went to work in IT in IBM. I had my training in Bangalore. The happiness was two-fold. First was moving to Bangalore, the city people raved about in the small town from where I belong. And the second was getting a joining bonus. I moved into a bathroom sized place most people recognize as PGs. I felt like I should order something for myself. My first gift to myself. I ordered a dark washed super skinny Van Heusen jeans for myself. I was proud to own it, partly because I got it and partly because it looked cool and fit me like a glove. I own it to this day and it takes me back to my first month of freedom. You can see me rocking the jeans in post-shower mandatory gym selfie (also because we didn’t have full-length mirrors as bachelors).

Then my training ended. And I got a project in Kolkata. Another major step, the kind people add as life events on Facebook. Thankfully I reached Kolkata closer to winter. I exchanged one of my leather jackets for an Allen Solly one and rocked it as much as I can. I can post the pic, but it’s a really bad one. So Nooooooo.

After a year in Kolkata, I decided to move to Bangalore. It was a whole new feel, but the reassuring part was that I had a few friends here. After settling down for a while, I met those friends, rocking an Indus Route blue kurta and a hipster charm.

After coming to Bangalore, I started gaining more interest in fashion. Not to brag, but I am often on point with my choices. I started to experiment more with my clothes. The first thing I got was a knee ripped carrot fit jeans from Abof. I particularly liked it and I am still wearing it as I write this article in IIMU’s mountain surrounded scenic campus.

One brand that I own the most till this date is Skult. It was exclusively sold on Abof and I just loved the athleisure genre and the way it fit me like a tailor-made product. I own most clothes from this brand bought from Abof.

But it was time for me to take the next step in my career. So, I decided to pursue an MBA. After getting a good outcome in CAT and going through all the admission processes for IIMs and XLRI, I left my job. I was spent by that time and needed a vacation badly. So, I decided to go to Chikkamaguru near Bangalore. I enjoyed the scenic beauty wearing the Skult thumbhole tee (I inspired more girls than guys to get the same 😅).

Then came I time I was eagerly waiting for. I got an admit from IIM Udaipur. The first two things that hit my mind was completing the admission processes and getting new semiformal shoes. As it turned out, the ones I absolutely loved were these tan Van Heusen shoes.

I know the article has too many photos, but the photos speak for themselves. I am a very choosy fellow when it comes to fashion. And I always end up owning Aditya Birla Group fashion brands. The pictures tell the story of almost a decade of my life, and Aditya Birla has always taken the steps with me (like the Pug from old Vodafone/Hutch advertisement). This can be turned into an album titled Me and Aditya Birla Group. If you don’t believe Aditya Birla Group has touched my life, my credit card statements would like to see you.

AbhiFromIIMU

Album title - Aditya Birla Group and me - Abhishek Pandey, IIM U