13 years ago, I got my first mobile. The SIM that I have been using since then is Idea. The Idea introduced me to a whole new world of connectivity. I remember how we used to have a landline at home and for connecting a call, we first had to call an exchange center which would forward our call to our destination. If it was your day, the call would connect in 15 minutes, otherwise, it could even take up to an hour too and it looked perfectly normal then. And as we know, today's internet is tomorrow's dial-up connection. ABG made it possible by introducing Idea cellular. This was neither the beginning nor the end. Right from independence ABG has ventured into many sectors and made the life of people easier than the day before. Let it be cement, metal or apparel, ABG has made a difference in every sector that it has stepped in.
My story doesn’t end here. After I cleared my higher secondary examinations, I applied to various shipping companies for sponsorship. After clearing the online assessment tests, it was time to prepare for interviews and dress the way I had never done before. As Tom Ford said, “Dressing well is a form of good manners”. I walked in a Peter England showroom in Pune and bought myself formal shirt and trousers for the upcoming interviews.
As Sophia Parveen quoted -
"When we wear clothes, we wear confidence which enlightens our personality and gives a spark to our attitude"
I attended interviews with two of the biggest offers that I had and converted both of them. Finally did my pre-sea training with one of them and joined Merchant Navy as a deck cadet.
“Obstacles are those frightful things you see when you take your eyes off your goal”
-Henry Ford
A little retrospect of what I wanted to do in my life. When I was a kid there used to be an advertisement on television, in that there were few kids who said "I want to be an architect", "I want to be a Doctor", similarly there was a kid who used to be in a naval uniform with a binocular in his hand and he used to say "I want to be a Sailor" and this is how I got attracted to Merchant Navy.
With each passing day got more and more interested in ships, seas, and started research as to how to get into Merchant Navy. After I cleared Higher secondary examinations from Pune, everyone in my friend circle was talking about engineering, medicine, law. My parents had planned the same for me too, however, I had other plans. Of course, there was resistance to everything I put forward to join Merchant Navy, my obstinance and determination kept the hopes alive and finally I could join Navy.
“Chase it, do whatever you want to do, because life is short and no one will do it for you”
I joined my first ship in April 2012 as a Deck cadet. It was a proud moment for me as I knew I was doing something substantial.
As the famous quote by Efthimios Mitropoulos goes
“Without international shipping, half the world would freeze and the other half would starve…”.
Life out at sea is wonderful, you get to travel a lot. But this doesn't come for free. Every single day on board a ship is different from the previous day. We can't predict what is there in the store for me tomorrow.
Soon cleared competency examinations in 2015 and became a Navigating Officer. Navigated Very Large Ore Carriers across oceans. I have seen pretty days where everything goes normal as planned, have seen terrific days with 8 meters of waves, personal accidents, fire on the ship and also an incident where we chased away pirates near Somalia. Hurdles are there in the path so that we can jump too, not just walk. I am very fortunate to have travelled to 18 countries. Life is full of adventures; however, growth stops after becoming captain and also there's no family life. I sailed on a total of 6 ships before I made up my mind to continue something that I left incomplete, and that was to complete my studies.
“You have only one life, make the most of it”
-Louis Sachar
And this is how I appeared for cat and presently pursuing my MBA.
“Every day is a new beginning, Let’s start afresh and do our bid,
Let's move ahead with the society and make it Big as ABG did”
