Wish I was Rancho...but I was Raju!

"Dono taange tudawa ke apne pairon pe khada hona seekha hai" - Raju Rastogi        

In the?last edition, you read the story of younger me. A family friend who had absolutely no significance in my life suddenly was the biggest driver of change in my life. (If you haven't read the first edition, STOP...click on the link above and skim through to make sense of the story going forward).

I was suddenly a guy with a mission in mind. Bade Guptaji has added enough fuel to the fire which the PSU Uncle has ignited. My Grandfather's words did not let me sleep for a few nights. The words kept reverberating in SLOW-MO!

"Baniyaaa kaaaa betaaaa bahhhut kuuuuch karrrrr saktaaaa haiiiiii"

But the big question haunting me now was how do I take things forward. Who will tell me what to do next? I come from a community that values business skills highly. If you are a person with a 4-foot X 4-foot shop in Bada Bazar (people from Kolkata will know this place), you are treated like a tycoon.

It doesn't matter what you are selling. You are a business owner and not a Naukar doing some unsafe private Naukri!!!

And here I am gearing up for a corporate life with absolutely no guidance. But the turn of events was about to happen. My Class X results were quite decent with a great score in Physics, Chemistry, and Maths. My family got excited and Grand Mother remarked!

"Take up Science. In our family, all are Arts or Commerce people. If you fail in Class XI, come back to Commerce, someone will teach you and you can do B.Com later"

I was not sure if that statement showed her confidence in me or a lack of it!!! As saying a no wasn't a choice anymore, I started scouting for admission in Science. I was fortunate to get a seat at the St. Xavier's College, Kolkata. Suddenly, I was transported from a protected school environment to a college environment.

But this was no ordinary college. I was waiting to get the biggest culture shock of my life - swag all around me!

I was surrounded by some very smart looking people. All were speaking "farratedar angrezi". This was my first encounter with a Jesuit environment. Looking at all the people around me, I wanted to be like "Rancho" of the movie "3 idiots" - smart, outspoken, bold. But later, I realized that I was like "Raju Rastogi" - average, reticent, fearful.

These two years were the first turnaround period of my life. I was part of a college where Aditya Vikram Birla, Shashi Tharoor, Lakshmi Mittal, Sanjiv Goenka, Sourav Ganguly, Leander Paes, and many other dignitaries have studied.

What followed after this was a roller coaster ride. Many failures and some successes.

I was the Raju Rastogi who started with a vision to become Rancho but ended up becoming the Raju Rastogi who was able to stand up with two broken legs.

Struggle and success have been part of my growth story. Today, I take pride in who I am rather than trying to become someone else. Looking backward, the dots surely connect...more of my struggles and growth in the next edition!

My takeaway - A donkey can see the horse and may wish to run like it. A horse can see a donkey and may wish to carry a heavy load like it. Both will fail miserably when they try to do this. But if they realize who they are and play to their strengths both will be successful. Realizing who you are matters for your success. Be Authentic!