I’ve never felt so helpless in my entire life. Now, one might think this isn’t that big of a challenge. But imagine you’re stuck with something you don’t like, or where you are going, you want to do something in life, something that makes you happy, independent, and free in mind, especially when you went with the flow your entire life but never made any conscious serious choices, and are suddenly expected to get married just because you broke even your age and are the eldest in the family, for the sake of this society to not question your parents!
Who am I? Just another typical south Indian girl who was once expected to get married as soon as she got her three year job anniversary mail from her employer. Why? She’s all grown up now and just because she knew how to debug a computer program, her parents thought she’d be able to debug her life and load it with responsibilities when all she has ever wanted to do was to settle when she’s ready.
Though my mom believed in my convincing skills, she never liked the fact that I wanted to study for two more years when all she’s expecting is for me to open an account in Bharat Matrimony and talk to those guys who definitely deserved better than me at that point in time.
That didn’t seem right to me, not the fact that I have to get married but the fact that I’m not in control of my own life. Be it my career or my marriage. Just because someone has XX chromosomes doesn’t change their desire or the ambition to grow or to do something that’s self-actualizing.
It wasn’t an easy phase for me to convince my family on my two years MBA stint and it still isn’t easy, I’ll never blame them for any of those differences because they’ve grown up different and I was different but I’m sure I’ll make them proud someday.
MBA is one of the best decisions I’ve ever made in my entire life and something that made me realize that marketing is all about empathy which has the power to change many perceptions.
So yes, always, create a voice for yourself.
And ABGL, I still remember my first ever interview back in college, when we were asked to buy formals to be allowed to sit for the interview. It was 9:00 PM and in a place like Visakhapatnam, no store welcomes you past 9:30 PM. I, with my draining hope and ever so frustrated father who’s stuck with his daughter’s job interview shopping, roaming on those roads looking for every shop that’s in our vicinity only turning their backs to our disappointment.
That was when you came into my life when I almost gave up, when I was in an age where every little thing mattered and clearly seemed important, I bought my first formal dress from pantaloons, where the store managers were kind enough to keep it open till 10.00PM, the dress which was lucky enough to fetch me a job where I had worked for three years. It never disappointed me. It never did and never will. :)
