Part A
I had heard about the bandra-worli sea link so much since the last couple of years. But never got an
opportunity to visit. I had never been to Mumbai before. It was not more than 400 kms from my
home but never had I thought of visiting the closest metro city to me.
I was preparing for my MBA exams. I cleared my cat exam and was called to Mumbai by one of the
leading business schools of India for the GDPI round. As much as my career was down the line, I
couldn’t stop myself from brimming with joy on the thought of visiting Mumbai.
And one fine morning, there I was in the midst of a fast-paced life, jam packed local trains, roads
clogged with traffic, and my body drenched in sweat. But, amidst all this was the little boy in my
heart excited, enthusiastic about visiting the Bandra-Worli Sea link which I had heard so much about.
It was getting darker and I somehow managed to reach the Bandra-Worli Sea link. And there I was
standing in awe, seeing the gigantic beautiful structure. It was as fascinating as it could get. I had
seen nothing like this in my whole life. With automobiles zooming through the roads putting tons
and tons of load and pressure on the bridge, I wondered how an architecture so pleasing to the eye
could survive that load. And then I saw the big board stating that 0.1 metric tons of Aditya Birla
Ultratech cement went into the construction of that mammoth structure that stood in front of me.
I wondered…Could anyone trust a cement brand with their lives???
And that had one of the greatest impacts on my life!
Part B
It was a cool friday evening. I was sitting at my desk in my office waiting for the clock the clock to
cross the 7pm mark. It was a pretty hectic day for me as it was more than 10 hours now since I was
sitting in the office. But the excitement of a “FRIYAY” evening was enough to compensate for the
rough day I had. I was supposed to catch a bus for my hometown in a couple of hours as my sister’s
marriage was due in a month and the preparations were in full swing. (I used to travel home on
weekends since the last three months to assist my parents in the preparation).
As I packed all my stuff and was about to leave, my VOIP rang. It was pretty unusual, I had a really
bad vibe about this. My manager, who was on a vacation had called to tell me that I have to fill in for
the night shift on behalf of a colleague of mine. I was furious. But he threatened to cancel my leave
that I had applied for my sister’s wedding. There I stood, helpless, powerless, and in utter despair. It
was not about having to do the night shift, nor about missing on a fun weekend at home, but all
about the situation I was in where I was easily blackmailed, and I could do nothing about it.
That day I came to know about the importance of power and position. And if one needs to survive,
then you have to get ahead before anyone else does. I couldn’t leave my job as I had to support
myself financially. But I could definitely do better. But how do I manage to move ahead with a job
consuming 14 hours a day of my life????
But someone has truly said…when there’s a will…there’s a way!!!! I consider myself extremely lucky
about what happened to me that day. Gave me a reality check and forced me into self-realization.
Three years since that incident now, and I have landed in IIM Raipur, one of the premier business
schools in India, aspiring to be a future leader.
#IIMRaipur #ABGLPWooMe