ABG is big. ABG touches lives of 7.5 million people; it has lifted thousands out of poverty in Brazil, the Philippines, Thailand, and in a few more countries; it has 56 schools, 20 hospitals, and works in 5000 villages across the world; it operates in 35 countries, leads in sectors it operates in, and is a $44.3 bn company. All this makes ABG big in the lives of millions of people. However, I’d argue that this doesn’t make ABG big. In fact, I’d argue that ABG is small. Smallest even. So, let me talk about the bigger things in life and particularly my life.
My life has been quite ordinary, and I can’t thank god enough for that! Like everyone, I have a home where I feel safe. I possibly have the most understanding and supporting parents. I say this because, they even stood with me when I got suspended and almost expelled twice from my university, while pursuing my Bachelor’s degree (that’s a story for another time but in short, I stood up for what I believed in, they believed in me and eventually the university did hear). I also have a great elder brother who picks up a greater share of responsibility at home, allowing me to be free to pursue my dreams. And how can I not tell you about my dog! Panzer is a beautiful dog just like all other happy dogs. So yeah, God has been grateful!
My ordinary life started to change about a year and a half ago. Work took my brother to another city, 1516 Km far. Parents suddenly became older in my head. They were now battling diseases that accompany actual old age. Earlier my brother was here to take care of them but now they could only count on me. Therefore, it was my turn to be possibly the most understanding and supportive son. Panzer wasn’t as young either and got diagnosed with incurable Hip Dysplasia. Over the past one and a half year, I realised what growing up is. I have realised it’s not about how many birthdays you have had rather, how many your parents have had. You don’t grow up when you age, you do when your parents grow old.
With increased responsibilities and a non-maths background, I thought of giving up my MBA dream. My mother’s dislocation of the shoulder, just a couple of months before CAT, only solidified my fears. But I decided to not give up on my dream. I decided to take 2 years from my own life for this dream. It was however clear, that if I did join a B-school then it had to be a Tier-1 school not far from home, not far from Delhi. This reduced my target to only 3 B-schools. MDI, Gurgaon was the first choice and it took more than my own will to be here. It took the support of parents, friends, and well a little support from ABG! We have the tendency to ignore and to not thank small and little things. However, small can be great too. Small is the difference between a 97, 98 and a 99 percentile in CAT.
So, I made a very simple plan - Study and get into MDI, Gurgaon. This seemed easy without an independent practice of law, old age of parents, health issues of parents and of the dog. From court visits to occasional but numerous hospital visits, to grocery shopping, to becoming an unpaid personal shopper of my brother on his visits to Delhi (how can someone buy that many clothes! And that frequently!) and finding time to learn maths for CAT – I had to do it all.
I have always believed that God doesn’t test us without giving us the strength and means to sail through. I made a single tweak in how I operated. I started making optimal and practical choices, without realising, that more often than not it meant choosing ABG. I, being a diabetic, had to first take care of my own health before I could take care of my family, so I started with weight management and took health insurance from Aditya Birla Capital. I couldn’t have hopped from one shop to the other for grocery and vegetables every day, so I started shopping at More store. And remember my brother? Well, he couldn’t say no to a Pantaloons’ Gift Card, and I didn’t ever again have to hop from one store to the other in Delhi heat. Now that I am here in MDI, Gurgaon it is Vodaphone-Idea which allows me to call my parents as often as I can, and it is Vodaphone-Idea which lets me see panzer on a video call.
While writing this article I wondered, if choosing of ABG was a mere coincidence or if I have been surrounded by it always? I realised, that ABG has been there. It has been enabling me for a long time and it does it in a non-intrusive way. It has always worked in the backend, allowing me to meet the small challenges of my ordinary life. It was always my mother who made lip-smacking food. It was my father who upon his retirement, built our new house and told me that “you and I may leave this house after a few years, but a house must be constructed for at least 100 years.” It was I, who called my parents from work to check if they were doing okay at home. ABG didn’t play any major role in any of these however, it was Freshwrapp, which allowed me to carry that delicious food to school, college and then to work. It was my decision to switch to Idea after being frustrated with frequent call drops, but it was the strong network of Idea that enabled me to reach my parents at home. My house could have been built using any cement, but my father chose Ultratech Cement. My father was putting all his life savings in this house and ABG gave him peace of mind. He could be sure, that his house will be safe for at least 100 years.
Therefore, in my opinion, ABG isn’t big because it is big in size, rather because it is small, and it fits everywhere. Being small may sound like an oxymoron here, but it isn’t. Small may be unnoticed. Small may be unappreciated. But small is not unimportant and ABG proves it every day. ABG has been part of my life in smaller ways and that makes it big in my life. ABG has always been in the background, making a lot of difference. It has allowed me and has given me strength to meet the challenges head-on. ABG enables a lot of us to do more every day. It enables us to become bigger in our lives. Had I not decided to write this article, ABG would have continued to be this big part of my life and would have remained unnoticed. So, I wouldn’t be wrong if I say, that God is in the details or it could be ABG!
