Sunday, January 23, 2011

Two decades

So we're into 2011.

A few days back I realised that its been two decades since 1991. That is a very long time. Besides the fact that India kickstarted its liberalisation process since 1991 and its architect was Dr.Manmohan Singh, our current Prime Minister and then Finance Minister with the PV Narasimha Rao Government, I was thinking about how life has changed personally for me over these 20 years.

In 1991 I was 14, had entered teens and life has dramatically changed for me since then. Middle of 1992 saw the advent of Cable / Satellite television at where I lived. Many will remember the 1992 cricket world cup and 'Star TV' as it was known in its original avatar. Zee TV started about six months later with a few hours of programming in Hindi. Remember Saanp seedhi...and Mohan Kapoor anyone.

A few reminisences from that era are "The Wonder Years", "Allo...allo", "I dream of Jennie", "Tara", "Antakshari"....

The decade of 1990 - 2000 was very important formative years for me as a person. I wrote my SSC exams in 1993 and HSC Exams in 1995. Later part of 1996 saw me securing a seat at MS University in Mechanical Engineering. The trials & tribulations of growing up. From 1996 - 1999 the 4 years of college were again years of immense learning in which I got to making some very close friends and growing up a person. You could say they were the defining years of my adulthood.

It was in 1998-99 that I also secured my first job with L&T thru' Campus selection and then joined L&T in July 1999....i clearly remember the date as well it was 12th July and the end of innocence.

2000 saw me getting my first mobile phone, mitsubishi trium handset and outgoing rates were 16 rupees a minute and incoming was 12 rupees a minute. Would anyone believe this now ?

I also got introduced at college to the Computer. We had Intel 386 processors....windows 3.1, DOS, autocad...this was in the 1997-98.

Diamond doesn't get polished without friction nor a man without trials. Hmm hope you understand what I mean.

1999 - 2002 was another era. Years with closest friends, fun and years of gay abandon. Happiness I never knew existed before that time or anytime later in my life.

2001 I got engaged and got married in 2002. End of the era of bachelorhood.

2002 was another beginning as well, end of this year saw me making a big mistake....which thankfully life gave an opportunity later to come out of. My younger daughter Khushi was born in 2003 and life was never the same again.

2003 - 2005 were years of plain hard work...no smartness there. donkey's work.

In 2005 I returned to Baroda and to L&T. 2005 - 2010 have been the years of learning professionally. Younger daughter Kanak was born in January 2009. Bought my first own house in 2010.

Mid of 2010 was also the year I accepted a deputation to Korea with family.

I am now 34.

Looking back, only one word to describe my journey...Wow. A special thanks to all from the bottom of my heart to those who were with me during this time and also for things they did or did not do.