#3 The Penultimate Day at Work

Thursday, January 3rd, 2019

Thane, Maharashtra

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Before the final day at work tomorrow, I write on three things I will miss most - lifestyle, food and more importantly, people.

So, it was business as usual in the office. I was running early so decided to walk the last one kilometer of my journey. Sauntering to my office was an altogether different feel. I had successfully 'survived' the entire month in the extremely fast-paced life of Mumbai, or rather precisely, Thane and Navi Mumbai. To be very honest, I did not just survived but rather enjoyed the life and my time here in the last month. Just 30 days back, I was with my maternal uncle and his friend at a restaurant getting excited over joining the internship and here I was, strolling for last but one time. Surprisingly, I didn't have much trouble in finding the newly moved office location and I settled in and got to my business very quickly.

मिसळ पाव (misaḷ pav)

Barely 90 minutes would have passed that I decided to take my usual brunch break. I had मिसळ पाव (misaḷ pav) for, I guess, the gazillionth time this month. I just love it so much and also I know, I won't find it anywhere else and specially not in Chennai that I want to satisfy my मिसळ पाव craving for the next six month. For those who are uninitiated (read the following wiki definition), Misal pav is a popular dish from Maharashtra, India. It consists of misal and pav. The final dish is topped with potato-chiwda mix, "farsan" or "sev", onions, lemon and coriander. It is usually served with bread or rolls toasted with butter and buttermilk or curd and papad.

I usually have my lunch or any other meal alone. Mind you, there are more than 30 food courts, each serving different kind of food, from Maharashtrian, Gujarati, South Indian, North Indian to Chinese, Korean, Lebanese, and Continental. Although the most popular food item in each of these canteen remains their "Diet Platter"; people are very health conscious and always make sure to take part in some kind of sports or work-out in the fitness centers in the RCP (Reliance Corporate Park) campus. I have tried food almost everywhere, I guess, except in Building 1 where my new office is. The food court in Building 1 is basically a high-profile business class restaurant not meant for blokes like me. Personally, the food court in Building 2 is the best, followed by Building 6 and there's just one non-vegetarian food court in Building 23, 2nd floor. So if you are a regular non-vegetarian, RCP is not recommended for you or else walk/cycle/shuttle all the way to Building 23 and have your food there.

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My colleagues are really awesome. Kiran Choudhary Sir leads our Data Science Team and I want a boss like him all my life. He is no-nonsense when it comes to work but very chill during celebrations and office parties. As an intern, I had very limited opportunities to talk to him but he was always very keen to hear from me and always treated me well and not the casual way interns are generally subjected to. Pankaj Kokate Sir and Anand Sir are the senior members of the team. My interaction with them has been very limited but both of them were very kind and receptive of me. Pankaj Sir, in fact, first met me in my first "Learning Session" where he gave a presentation on Six Sigma. Next, Sulochana is probably the next Indra Nooyi in making. She leads by example, and it is really amazing to observe her work ethics. They seem to be like of a company veteran and not of someone who is just 2 years into her first job. She is also very organized in her work. She is a pretty strong personality and in the initial few days, I was more scared of approaching her in her cubicle than Kiran Sir in his cabin. But once I got to know her better, she turned out to be the most helpful person and someone from whom I have learnt the most. I would go to her with my smallest of doubt and she would never turn her back on me despite being one of the most busiest employee at RCP. Arivarasu is a very cool guy and the first person with whom I became very comfortable, in fact right from day 1. He is from Tamil Nadu. I know I am a Maharashtrian but having lived close to three years in Chennai, I could break ice with him very easily. We became professional friends very quickly and I always tend to pick his brain on whatever he is doing and he is always ready to help. Ankur is a consultant at Reliance who probably knows more nitty-gritty of his job than anyone else. He is very highly skilled and proficient at his job and he was the man-to-go whenever I needed data or permissions. Bishrut is the funny guy of the team. He complements Sulochana very well who is just all-work in her approach. People miss him when he's not around. That said, he is as good in his work as anyone else. I hope to remain in touch with everyone.

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I am all set for tomorrow and I know it has only been one month but I had already grown attached to this place and it will be a tough goodbye to say.

Cheers,

S