Part 2 - The Corporate Life Begins
November 12, 2024 – The Onboarding Day
The big day had arrived. The first step into corporate life. The first job. The first paycheck incoming. Everything was set—except my formal clothes.
See, I had ironed them before packing, but thanks to the oh-so-gentle handling of my luggage during the journey, my clothes looked like they had been through a wrestling match. No big deal, I thought. I'll just iron them in the morning.
Then Chennai decided to welcome me with a thunderstorm.
Heavy rain. No electricity. No iron. No crisp formals. I had two options—
- Wear my wrinkled shirt and look like I just rolled out of bed.
- Wear a polo T-shirt and pretend I made a conscious fashion choice.
I went with option two.
We—me, Raj, Tushar, and Aditya—booked a cab and reached the company campus, and guess what? Everyone was wearing formal shirts. I, on the other hand, looked like I had just walked in from a casual weekend brunch. Awkward.
HRs verified our original documents to process our RFID-enabled ID cards. (Which, by the way, we received the next day.) The onboarding sessions stretched till 2 PM, and then—finally—lunch break.
Finding More Maharashtrians
During lunch, we met more people from Maharashtra—Om, Akash, Shraddha, Vaishnavi, and Mayuri. The Marathi connection was real. Until then, I hadn’t realized how comforting it was to meet people who spoke your language in a completely new city. It finally felt less lonely.
The Office Routine & A Weekend Escape
Office hours? A solid 10-hour shift—8:30 AM to 6:30 PM. The company provided a shuttle, but there was a catch: we had to walk 1.5 km every morning to reach the bus stop.
The only bright side? Unlimited coffee, milk, green tea, and lemon tea in the office.
By the end of the first week, we decided we deserved a break. Destination? Kovalam Beach.
For the first time in my life, I felt the sea breeze, the sand under my feet, and the waves crashing against me. We went full tourist mode—played in the water, threw wet sand at each other, and took a million photos and videos.
I had prawns again. (Tried them once in engineering, but Chennai prawns hit differently.)
Since we had no backup plan for our wet clothes, we had to buy a polythene bag. I had also specifically bought a white shirt just to wear on beaches, and that day, my dream came true. (That same shirt? Became my go-to for every beach visit after that.)
Cab Rides & Chennai’s “Outsider Tax”
From the beach, we booked a cab to Vivera Mall to buy some essentials. Halfway through the ride, two of us started shifting uncomfortably in their seats. At first, they tried to hold it in, but soon, desperation took over.
"Boss, stop the car!" one of them blurted out.
The driver, without asking a single question, pulled over to the side of the road. And in a moment of unexpected solidarity, the driver stepped out and joined them.
So there they were—two of my friends and our cab driver—lined up by the roadside, answering nature’s call like it was some unspoken ritual of brotherhood.
After a short break, we continued our ride and reached the mall. That's when the cab driver suddenly demanded ₹50 extra.
The traidition here is, if you look like an outsider, autos and cabs will squeeze extra money out of you.
After shopping, we found a restaurant serving Maharashtrian food. Finally, chapatis after so many days. Pure bliss.
Losing Things & Learning Lessons
Back at the PG, after showering, we realized something—Tushar's spectacles and my sunglasses were missing.
Checked the bags, checked the pockets—gone. Most likely lost at the beach.
RIP.
Tushar had to wait 2-3 days for his new specs. The guy could barely see.
Corporate Training & The "Workplace Etiquette" Poster
Initial training sessions were common for everyone. One of them was a Behavioral Skills session, where we were divided into teams and given a topic to make a poster on.
Ours? "Workplace Etiquette."
They gave us color pens and sheets, and of course, I took over the stickman drawings. (Because clearly, I’m a Picasso when it comes to doodles.)
The First Salary Account: Feeling Like a VIP
Opening a salary account felt like a milestone. Just the thought of seeing the message “Your salary has been credited” was enough to make me excited.
I chose ICICI Bank. They gave me a debit card, a chequebook, and a net banking ID on the spot. No waiting, no hassle. I walked out of there feeling like a VIP.
Meeting Another Fazil
When domain assignments came in, we were grouped into cohorts. That’s when I met another Fazil(he's a localite).
It was only the second time in my life I had met someone with the same name. (The first one? A guy who used to rent the first floor of my home.)
Weird coincidence.
Roommates Leave Chennai
By the last week of November, Siddharth and Sanket had completed their training. Their time in Chennai was up. They packed their bags, said their goodbyes, and left the PG.
The room suddenly felt emptier, quieter. It was strange how quickly we had settled into a routine together, and now, just like that, they were gone.
It felt a little sad. They were good guys.
But this was just the beginning. People would come and go. That’s how this new phase of life worked.
I had to get used to it.
On the other hand, I was missing my college friends a lot, they really made my college days better.
The November Cyclone – No Power, No Water, No Hope
End of November, Cyclone Fengal hit. It was a disaster.
Every company declared Work From Home. The night was horrible. Winds were so strong, they shook the windows. We kept them shut and just prayed for it to end.
Our phones died. No entertainment, no distractions.
We ended up playing UNO to kill time.
That’s when it hit me—we are so addicted to screens that we feel lost without them. Every few minutes, out of pure habit, we would reach for our phones only to remember they were dead.
Just silence, conversations, and the realization that we barely knew how to pass time without a screen in front of us.
It felt strange at first. But then, something unexpected happened—we actually talked more, laughed more, and for the first time in a long time, our minds weren’t occupied by endless notifications.
Maybe losing power for a while wasn’t the worst thing after all.
Sunday morning, still no electricity. The water tanks were empty because of no electricity.
We filled buckets from the underground reserve and carried them to our rooms—only for the electricity to come back 5 minutes later.
Classic.
New guy Joins The Gang
After lunch that day, we saw Swarnil standing under the PG building with all his luggage. Swarnil, Shraddha, and I used to sit together in the office. Shraddha and I were in the same section of the cohort, while Swarnil was in the same domain but assigned to a different section.
We helped him shift, and just like that, he became part of the gang. (He and Raj became roommates living across Aditya and Tushar's room)
The Gang Parts Ways (Sort Of)
Once our domains were assigned, we had to split into different rooms. The gang wasn’t together anymore, but we still met during lunch breaks and went home together.
We knew this was coming. But it still sucked.
A Newborn & A Sweet Celebration
A few days later, Raj’s niece was born. They named her Amita.
To celebrate, Raj brought Kaju Katli to the office and shared it with everyone. (Honestly, that was the best part of the day.)
Surviving & Thriving
By now, we had all started making new friends in our respective domains - because, well, we had to.
Training was about to get serious, and we needed allies to survive it.
New faces, new struggles, new lessons.
Corporate life had truly begun.
👍
ReplyDeleteAll the best for corporate life my dear classmate
ReplyDeleteThank you classmate!
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