Aditya Birla Group is one of the biggest Multinational Corporations in the world. It has played a role in my life since I was a sixteen.

There is a time that comes in every boy’s life, when he grows up and his preferences change. When I was at the early stages of my teenage years, I used to wear t-shirts all the time and everywhere I went, like the most of us. So, one day, I was at a mall and I saw my father enter a Louis Philippe showroom. I stood outside the showroom and stared at the mannequins wearing fancy shirts with the sleeves folded. One of them caught my eye and I went inside and gazed at that shirt. My father saw me, came closer and asked me to get it. I was ecstatic and immediately picked my size and rushed for the trial room. That’s how my first steps of growing up started, with Aditya Birla Group.

Later on, during my CA articleship , I gifted my father shirts from companies such as Peter England, Louis Philippe and also gifted my mother ethnic wear from Pantaloons with the stipend I received. Aditya Birla Group is the first company that comes to my mind when I am looking for apparel for myself or I am gifting to someone. Their choice of impeccable material and trendy styles show us how much they value customer wants and satisfaction.

Perseverance is key

A morning in January, I was sleeping under a quilt and was woken by the sudden jolt of my father shaking me. I got up and he exclaimed “You slept too late, results are out!” I sprang out of bed and indeed, results were out. I opened the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India page and logged into my account and there I was my result, passed in group I, but failed in group II. This was the first time I had academically failed. I was upset, not knowing how it happened. My father was my teacher and my guide and he advised me to keep going, and so I did. I tried again and failed. Even though I couldn’t pass, I was not short on optimism and I knew I could do it and I tried again. This time there was some good news, I had an exemption in Accounts, but I failed to reach the overall score, yet again. Feeling dejected and exasperated, I shut down my computer and sat in the corner of the bed, thinking what to do next. Before this, I had never thought of any other career options, but maybe it was time to reconsider?

A few days passed as I sulked and then started looking at alternate career options. I could do M.Com and enhance my knowledge about finance, but it would be too narrow. Then MBA came to mind and it made perfect sense. I could use the knowledge of finance that I had gained over all these years and then combine it with the management-oriented course and the scope would be limitless. I started my preparation but didn’t factor in that the course is totally different from what I’ve been studying. It had Quants, with which I had cut-off ties after class 12 and the dreaded LRDI. Knowing full well that I had almost no other options, I started preparing. I had my CA articleship going on, something which I didn’t want to discontinue as I was gaining valuable experience in my field, but it affected my preparation time. I started when there were only 3.5 months left and I could barely study 2-3 hours a day.

The D-Day came and I was extremely nervous. Thrice I have seen failed in my report card, that can practically demoralize any aspirant. I gave the exam with one notion in mind, I want to study in a premier institute. Fast forward 2 months, my father barged into my room to wake me up, only to see I am already up and entering the CAT website. This time I had done it. My parents were proud and I was free. Free and elated.

As I sit in the hostel room of the famed GR-1 hostel of the beautiful XIMB campus and type this, I know I have made it to one of the premier institutes of the country. Failure is a way to learn and perseverance will take one further than he could ever imagine.

#ABGLP #ABGWOOME #XIMB #ABGWOOMESEASON-2

Avik Mukherjee

Growing up with ABG - Avik Mukherjee,XIMB