This is how it started......

A cliché that all you people have been repeatedly hearing-This is my first blog. I had been wishing to write one from long time. Finally, the day has beckoned...

I am doing B.Tech, 3^rd year in Bits-pilani. From my first year, I always aspired to do an enterprising internship that would match my career interests. So as intended, I applied to many prestigious institutes like IISc, E4SI, ISB, IIIT, IIM A and also a few start up companies. And a day arrived when I was left with much disappointment for I was deprived of a positive reply from everyone. But much to my amusement and surprise, I received 2 mails the same night, one from Anil Gupta Sir, (IIM A) blessing me with an opportunity to do a social internship in Andhra Pradesh villages with a motive to uplift the grass root innovators (www.sristi.org) and he said I can also include my friends in this great initiative. The other one was from a start up firm named Daily Dump which was ready to provide an internship with a stipend of Rs.6000 and the task was to market their products in the nearby villages.

Now I had to choose…

My friends and my mind said, “Teju, enough of social service till now. Concentrate on your career.” Whereas my heart said, “Teju com’n working in villages where the real and exotic India lies, uplifting grass root innovators sounds like a more exciting job than marketing some mundane products. And as Sir was willing to allow my friends to partner me in my social initiative, I sensed an amazing chance for our juniors to get well acquainted with the knowhow of the social conscience and this experience would help them in understanding the villagers and the way to go about dealing with them.

Akash(President, Nirmaan) and my friend, Bala Phani Chand appreciated my idea and encouraged me. Somehow I managed to convince 13 of my juniors and friends for the internship with the help of many. But the dismal thing was the fact that I was the only girl among them. As the project was conceived by me, I had to start even though my father was not interested to send. The day before I called my intermediate friend, Meraj and mentioned about the internship and she said she would love to join me. Thanks Meraj, this journey would not have been possible without your wonderful company :) Thus started the odyssey….