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Unusual Choices


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EDUCREATION PUBLISHING

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Printed in India


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Unusual Choices

Kapil Dabur

EDUCREATION PUBLISHING (Since 2011)

www.educreation.in


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Unusual Choices

1

W My eyes lit up as I saw the cheque from Mr.

Sanjeev.

It wrote four lakh rupees in favor of our

company.

Finally, there was something to cheer for,

I felt elated beyond imagination, excited as

never before. I could see hope, light and warmth all

bundled together. We would survive to see another

Sunrise. I felt what a poor, indebted farmer feels

when he sees the first few drops of rain fall on his

parched land after years of drought. I experienced

the same joy that those drops would bring to him,

that earthy smell of hope, and I bowed to the

almighty.

It was as if a gentle breeze was blowing in my

face, trying to assure me, ‘Don’t worry, All is well’.

Back to 2012, that’s a good twenty months

back, when a handsome six digit amount was

credited in my account every month. It took me a

while to reconcile to the fact that I really wanted

those days to come back.

01


Kapil Dabur

2

Our decisions take us to new, unknown vistas.

We gain more experience as days and weeks pass

by. Well, this is our Ego’s way of scolding us that

we should have listened to it earlier.

What did you achieve by listening to your

heart?

Did I miss something by following what my

heart told me?

There was a lot going for me at that time. I was

still leveraging my IIM degree in the so called

corporate rat race. Seven years into it, and nonstop

podium finishes, race after race. It was like Usain

bolt winning the 100m race, then the 200m one,

then the 400 m, finally he stops and addresses the

skies, ‘See you in the next Championship!”

P


Unusual Choices

3

W It was 8:30 p.m. and I realized that I was the only

person left on the floor. Everyone else had left for

home. Even Ajay, the star performer from

marketing had left.

In the dark, meritocratic world of Corporate,

the ‘rising stars’ come first and leave last, that’s a

pre-condition to be in the ‘A- listers.

My blackberry rang, ‘WIFE.’

‘Hi,’ I smiled, ‘Hello sweetheart, what are you

doing?’

‘Well, I am waiting for my hubby to come

home. Did you forget that you have to go to Baroda

tomorrow, and I have to go visit Dr. Mani in the

evening? I hope you remember that the therapy stuff

starts next week?’

Not many people in my life can make me smile

even in the worst of times. Radha, my beloved wife,

is the only one who can do it today. The only other

person, my lovely sister Sneha, well God needed

her more than I did, so he called her up there.

02


Kapil Dabur

4

‘I am leaving sweetheart, just giving finishing

touches to the presentation for tomorrow. Lalit had

asked me to spice it up a bit. He wants the new

CEO to have a good impression about the Retail

team. You know the Retail team means the boss,

Mr. Lalit.’ I said at my sarcastic best.

‘That’s fine, but I am really hungry, I didn’t

take my lunch and I am feeling very down since

morning. I think my BP is low again,’ she said and

hung up.

‘That’s it,’ I told myself.

‘Come an hour early tomorrow, but to make

her wait day after day like this, and that too in such

delicate mental and physical state is just not done’.

I packed up and started for the elevator. My

mind was busy summarizing the tasks for

tomorrow. It included my tour to Baroda, depositing

EMI cheques for our houses in Noida and Delhi,

reviewing business plan for all zones and most

important of all, visiting Dr. Mani’s clinic.

Soon, my mind was busy scheduling these

tasks, so that I could reach home in time to take her

to Dr. Mani. It was like laying down a city map,

identifying, marking and connecting targets to find

the shortest possible route. Mission accomplished!

This was Management by Objectives simplified

for the layman.

Radha and I were living a charmed life for the

last four years. There were weekend parties, first

day first show movies, endless shopping and what

not. We had almost every single joy that money

could buy.


Unusual Choices

5

But slowly all of that started losing meaning.

Nothing is more important than holding your

child in your hand. And that’s what Radha and I

were badly missing in our life.

It hurt Radha the most. There was not a single

day when someone didn’t spoke to her regarding

this.

There was a new story every day, ‘You know

Radha beta, Pammi Aunty‘s daughter Meena, she

gave birth to twins yesterday,’ to ‘I am the only one

in my group of Satsangi who does not have a

grandchild till now,’ to Radha’s neighbor telling her

about how she enjoys playing with her two year old

son.

I had already fought with two of my aunts;

actually I had threatened them if they ever called

her on this topic again. I wondered why people

around us worry more about what’s happening in

other’s life, and not worry about the shit in their

own life. Is it because their life is more screwed

than that of other people around? Is poking into

other’s life an escape from this stigma?

Driving at nine in the night on SG highway is

an awesome experience. A long road guarded by

rows of lush green trees on the sides, restaurants

and modern retail stores dotting the service lanes,

their lights adding glitz to the otherwise dull gravel.

It was like an oasis in the sprawling concrete jungle.

As I reached home, I saw Radha standing in the

balcony of her 14th

floor apartment, waving to me

like a six year old.


Kapil Dabur

6

What would I do without her? I thought as I

parked my car and entered the elevator.

‘What took you so long Rahul? I have already

made your travel kit for tomorrow. And let me tell

you something very interesting,’ she said dragging

me to the dining table.

‘Radha, a glass of water first,’ I said as she

started with her non-stop daily update.

We spent the next hour talking over dinner,

discussing how to handle the session with Dr. Mani

tomorrow.

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Unusual Choices

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W I woke up at 6:00 a.m. next day and hurried to

freshen up. My office car was about to reach my

place. ‘Radha get up now, prepare my breakfast

fast,’ I shrugged her as I left the bed.

Another half an hour and I was on the

expressway to Baroda. It was my tour of choice not

only because the team was delivering results there,

but also because I loved travelling on this highway.

Non-stop, traffic free road for over hundred miles,

where driving below sixty miles an hour is a

cardinal sin!

I reached Baroda office in an hour and half. I

was greeted by Meena, store operations head and

Mohan, Retail head for Baroda hub. It was the top

performing hub in the region and all because of the

passion that Mohan had for his work. While he was

sandwiched between a dumb Boss, Mayank and

even dumb reportees, Meena right at the top, he still

managed to deliver results, month after month.

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Kapil Dabur

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‘Sir, let’s go to the market. I’ll show you the

changes that I have done in stores,’ Meena said

almost dragging me from Mayank’s office.

This will be fun, I wondered as I waved to

Mayank and moved out.

We spent the whole day moving from one store

to another. Mohan and Meena kept telling me about

the challenges they see in the way I wanted to run

stores. In response, I kept moving from one

suggestion to another. It is one thing to draft

policies sitting in your office, and far different to

make people see the value they bring to the table.

Finally, I resorted to, ‘It has to be done as per the

policy guys, no questions asked.’ The discussion

ended there.

The review finally ended at 5:30 p.m. in the

evening. ‘We need to be improve our C-sat scores

Meena, and, I am increasing the store targets from

next month.’ I dropped the final bomb for the day,

finished my job and left for Ahmadabad.

Doctor’s appointment was at 8:30 p.m. and I

didn’t want to be late. Dr. Mani had already scolded

us for coming late last time and I didn’t want a

repeat this time.

Radha would be furious if it happened again, I

thought as I looked at my watch. ‘Mahesh, I need to

reach home before 8 p.m., so please speed up.’

Mahesh was the driver of my official car and had

been with me for two months now. He sensed my

urgency, as both of us had started to understand

each other a lot better now.


Unusual Choices

9

I hurriedly called Radha as I reached home, ‘I

have reached dear. Please come down with car keys.

We will leave for Doctor from here itself.’

Surprise,

‘Why didn’t you tell me that you are about to

reach? I have not even dressed up till now. I was

waiting for your call dear.’ She replied, sounding

really worried about her dress code.

Will she ever come out of this well dressed up

syndrome?

We were going to a doctor in a benign locality

where you need a lamp to find someone to comment

on your dress code. I thought as I took the lift to our

floor.

She was still doing her hair as I entered the

house.

‘Sorry honey, I will be ready in two minutes,’

she apologized nodding her head sideways.

She looked stunning in red salwar suit, her long

hair rippled as she accessorized to the core. I

couldn’t but control to pack a kiss on her lips.

I was fighting hard not to fall asleep after a

long, tiring day. I poured some chilled coke in a

glass and crashed on the sofa.

‘What will Dr. Mani say Rahul? Our minor

procedure has failed thrice now. Even if we

discount the one done at Delhi last year, it’s still

two failures in four months.’

She said as past events started playing in my

mind, one slide after another. It was a period that I

wish were deleted from our lives. It was few months


Kapil Dabur

10

back at Delhi when Radha and I had taken the first

step to change our destiny.

P


Unusual Choices

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