For someone who has lived in one city, one house all her
life, a six month internship period felt like the perfect time to fly the nest.
A period long enough to feel a sense of independence with a thesis waiting back
at home, this was a tailor-made opportunity to get away, and Bangalore seemed
like the dream destination. This is not just the first time that I’d be living
away from home but also the first time I’d be working in an office (Luckily
Sandarbh isn’t exactly your typical, formal office environment). All of this
left me with a weird giddy feeling composed of excitement, nervousness and the
tiniest bit of uncertainty about the next couple of months.
With me being what one could lovingly refer to as an
organized mess, my concerned parents decided that one of them should certainly
accompany me from Delhi to Bangalore. All the while, discussions about
responsibility, time management, work-life balance and health had become an
everyday phenomena.
Finally, the day had arrived and so with packed bags and a
heavy heart I said my goodbyes and made my way to the airport. A not so short
and extremely eventful flight later I found myself in Bangalore in the wee
hours of the morning. The journey itself is a story for another time but I’d
finally made it to the destination.
My first day in Bangalore had two main agendas – To settle
into my PG and to visit Sandarbh to get acquainted to the office space.
Luggage in hand my father and I headed to meet the lady who
runs the PG – Nalini Ma’am. The short conversation that we had with her was all
about the rules and the setup of the PG. There was talk of curfew, protocol and
of course more about responsibility. In a nutshell the conversation was mostly
about the things I needed to learn. Things like cooking and cleaning that I
used to take for granted at home, as well as things like being completely
self-reliant (or atleast as self-reliant as one can be when breakfast and
dinner is organized for you). Post the conversation, setting up didn’t take
very long and we were on to the next portion of the day’s to-do list.
Just 10 minutes away from the rule-crazed PG lay Sandarbh
and I walked into a space that felt efficient yet comfortable. Ananya’s green
hair against the backdrop of an equally green landscape made me feel rather
welcome. Ananya and Leena quickly headed off for a meeting while Sai sat us
down to tell us more about the office. Quickly I realized Sai didn’t care much
for the rules and rigidity that are commonly imposed on young, malleable minds
like my own. He wouldn’t let me call him Sir and openly spoke about how I could
negotiate my way into ( or out of ) work. According to him, rules weren’t meant
to be broken but could certainly be bent. He was as chill as the workspace in
terms of how much or what kind of work we wanted to take on but made it very
clear once we committed to something we had to deliver without fail. He put
great emphasis on the value for one’s time as well as respecting other people’s
time. Habits that we’d picked up in college like not finishing work on
time or submitting late had to be unlearnt. Clearly he was a rebel in his own
way (in his college days as well as now as an architect dealing with clients)
and hopefully he’ll make rebels out of all 13 of us interns too. I for one wouldn’t
mind breaking or bending a few rules here and there for the right reasons.
As I went to bed that night, my mind was racing with
thoughts of the conversations that had taken place during the day. On one front
there was so much to learn, on the other I had to unlearn and then learn again.
With all these simultaneous processes of learning and unlearning in the next
six months, hopefully I will cease to be an organized mess or at the very least
become more responsible and less clumsy. I don’t know if I’ll end up becoming
the best version of myself but I’m certain that I’ll go back as a better model
of me.
-Mannat
-Mannat
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