ABG Big in my life
Aditya Birla Group is an Indian multinational conglomerate with operations in more than 35 nations which is no small feat. In my lifetime culminating into 21 years, I have seen the brands of this conglomerate weave themselves into the Indian society as household names. And like most Indians, Aditya Birla Group has played a kaleidoscopic range of roles in my life.
I can never forget the day I went to buy my first shirt. It was from ‘The Linen Club.’ I looked at the store with awe and wonder when I stepped in for the first time. The staff was polite and courteous. It felt like a rite of passage: marking my transformation from a child to a young adolescent.
It was ABG’s Freshwrapp which kept my mother’s love alive in a tiffin box. The smell of fresh, home cooked food as soon as the lunchbox opened is a memory etched in my heart. I belong to the quaint town of Sultanpur, my family and I used to go to Lucknow for shopping. It was there that I got acquainted with the concept of multi – brand stores like Pantaloons. We use to spend the whole day in the store buying a variety of products, from perfumes to watches and clothes. The concept of getting the best of all brands under a single roof never ceased to amaze me.
When the need to look formal arose, Van Heusen never failed to miss the mark. I was clad in my first ever suit there. As I looked cluelessly around the store, a fine salesperson helped me pick out the best colours and made sure the fit was just right. It truly made me ‘evolve that day.’
This story of mine would be incomplete without the mention of TV shows I watched with family. No Indian can claim to not remember the deep voice of Amitabh Bachchan as he spoke to ‘Computer Mahashay’ and left the whole nation with bated breath as he created suspense about the right answer. I am talking of Kaun Banega Crorepati which was primarily sponsored by ‘Idea.’ I believe that life as an Indian would have been amiss without the presence of Amitabh Bachchan on screen as he took everyone’s brains for a joyride. Hence, it is not hard to see the impact of this fine conglomerate in the life of any Indian, much less the impact on my life because brands come and go, but it is the memories they create which live on forever.
How I faced challenges and overcame that in my life
Challenges and hardships are the attributes which shape a naive child into a strong adult. It is how an individual overcomes these challenges which defines him as an adult. One has to face a variety of problems during a lifetime. There are two life changing experiences I had which I as I look back, really built my character and views in life.
First, I remember an incident about the time when I was in class IX and about to be promoted to class X. In my school, the student council majorly consisted of class X students. I, being one of the meritorious students in the class, applied and really wanted to be inducted into the prestigious council. I worked day and night towards making this a reality, but for some reason I was not selected. I felt dejected and deprived.
Not willing to lose face, I used the intensity of my emotions and channeled it towards my preparation for the upcoming final exams. My hard work paid off and I was ranked second in Class IX. Moreover, I topped my school in the Problem-Solving Assessment. I realized my potential in academics and persevered. So much so, that I graduated Class X with a perfect CGPA of 10. I understood the importance of hard work and how sometimes, even in the face of failure, you need to push through so life can lead you to better things.
Second, one of the toughest phases of my life was getting admission in a good college after class XII. I scored a decent 93.6% with Commerce in my boards. But the general cutoffs of colleges in DU were around 97%. So I knew I had no chance of clearing cut offs of any good college. So, I gave DU JAT. It is the admission test for select professional courses in the field of Commerce offered by DU. I cleared the test and was called for the personal interview and group discussion. I gave my best and felt like I rose to the occasion. But on the result day I got a dismal rank of 1101. With this rank I could not expect to get into the colleges of my preference. But I was sure that I did well in my GD- PI. So I mailed the admission office regarding the same. After two days my rank was updated to 340, and was told that my marks for GD were not added earlier. It was after this that I got admitted into SGTB Khalsa College, that too on the day of my Birthday. I learned how to not lose faith in the face of adversity. I learned to trust my instincts.