“Teach your children how to dream”, are the golden words of Bharat Ratna, Dr. Kalam, and it inspires every youth in the country. In a business world today, we all strive to become better professionals, better managers, and this comes from our every day “dream” for that goal in life. This story is something similar, with a hint of life in it, which we often escape living.
Kallada Volvo double axle skidded to a halt kerb side pavement of Ettimadai with a double swing on its hydraulic brakes. I was woken up from my deep slumber by my parents and stood on the pavement rubbing my sleepy eyes to get a clear view of where was I? Had I come to the Northern or Southern part of India, I asked myself. No sooner had I started wondering about the place I was bundled into a rickety rickshaw trotting on a rugged track to Amrita’s Campus. From my crouching perch I could see the misty mountains of Anamalai shrouded in the veil of dew washed clouds wrapped around the ASB campus. The gated doors of the Campus zoomed in with uniformed security personnel in a businesslike manner with their near military precision checking and screening all entrants as if we are entering into an army cantonment. My father was busy talking to the Dean of ASB who was guiding us right from the moment we boarded the bus from Hyderabad which I felt was something unusual, as I have never ever come across a Dean or a Principal of an institution wherever I studied to be so concerned about a candidate who is coming to join college.
A thousand mile journey starts with a single step and I took my first step to Amrita School of Business. The scent of Mango blooms mixed with the smell of Neem plumes, I could feel the nip in the air and a chill crept up my spine. What life is going to be…I still don’t know. Every day is a new day and not mundane what I had experienced in other academic institutions. It is almost a semester old story now, and everything around is familiar and sacrosanct. Something that is meshed into part and parcel of my individuality. Whether it is the long winding cobble stoned path from hostel to class rooms decorated with yellow trumpets or the aloe vera shrubs tucked under the trees. The morning prayer, work schedules or even group assignments, along with extra-curriculars, all have weaved together in my daily life at Amrita.
This was not what I thought about a B-School. The thought of joining a B-School used to give jitters at first, but after spending quality time around here, and the then informal discussions about the college from Amrita’s Alumni’s, I felt a positive vibe to join Amrita. There was something about Amrita that pulled me towards it. Playing with numbers was not my cup of tea, but with the faculty and students living in the same campus made learning easy. I was reminded of the ancient Gurukula system of education, but only contemporary in today’s time. The relationship with B-School no longer dictates my early percept about MBA. It is a course which prepares you to understand the business challenges in a secure environment, with lots of discussion and skill development thereafter.
Next year by this time I will be waiting in the Corporate Training building like my seniors, and going thorough another set of roller-coaster ride. The word ‘Interview’, which sends a chill down the spine, is eased with expert training and peer mentoring. Here at ASB we are taught work life balance through a 2 year long course in Self Awareness and Personal Growth that presents us with various life situations and experiential pedagogy. No matter how water tight our schedule may be it enables us to think and act responsibly. AMRITA’s motto is “Education for Life” and it reflects in the day-to-day challenges we all come across.
The vision of Dr. Kalam, still holds true to me, and I’ll practice every day to live up to his vision with large influence from my to-be Alma Mater, Amrita. – The Dream Merchant.
Note: This is a sponsored article and has NOT been written by the PaGaLGuY Editorial Team. It is intended from an informational perspective only and it is upto the readers to research and verify the claims and judgements in the article before reaching a conclusion.