Chapter 9 – One Year Job Assignment in Kanpur & Mirzapur City : India (2000-2001)

After a couple of weeks, I received his mail saying that by train come to Mirzapur and rest we’ll talk over here, so I ask about staying, and he said not to worry about it, everything will be done.

My Life Experience in Kanpur & Mirzapur

I just took my suitcase and purchase the ticket to Delhi via Mirzapur by train without giving thought and was thinking that there will be someone who was going to pick me up from the station, so there was a driver me, I feel good by seeing him and the driver straight-way drop me at the hotel by saying that he will come back to pick me up for office at 9 am. Mirzapur seems like a small village kind of place and I went with him to the office, the office was huge enough with many employees. The driver said to go and talk with the boss, I said ok but was very nervous from within, as was not good at speaking English at that time.

The moment I opened the door he greets me nicely by my name and asks me to go inside and start work, for now, later we’ll discuss the salary, and he will be paying me on a daily basis for now. He said that I can stay in a hotel and can have my breakfast and dinner over there, while lunch will be done at the office and his staff people will help me out with that. For a month he asks me to work like this only and by the end of the month some solution we will find out how he needs me to be placed in work.

I worked with full of enthusiasm as whatever project they used to give me, I use to complete it. I made a few friends as well and sometimes I use to hang out with them, while a bit of a political environment was there but then thought that politics were everywhere not to give a lot of attention to that stuff.

Slowly 20-25 days fly away, and my boss said that I have to go to Kanpur as over there was a requirement for a person like me, while I have already contacted the project manager over there and he will prepare your contract and explain everything to me including to staying and all. He paid my monthly salary based on per day 500 INR which was an aggregate of 15000 INR for a month, I was happy that at least a good amount I had earned for that time, later on, we will see.

You can say that this was a new starting phase of my life, working with a new project at the corporate level that was also out of state. This was till Mirzapur only as it plays a significant role in my life, so further I will explain Kanpur in my next chapter.

My Life in Kanpur

A new life of mine was about to start in Kanpur, from the station I went directly to the office and the office was of a standard class, while there were aged persons who were about to retire working on the project. Everyone greeted me nicely and he helped me to stay in the hotel and ask me to come office on a daily basis. I met my boss over there, he greets me in a nice way and seems like a good person, he made me sign the contract which shows my salary was 14,000 INR/month.

I became very happy by knowing that at the time my salary was 6,000 INR/month approx., while for now, I will be earning 14,000 INR per month, thrice of my past earning in Dehradun. My position was a software consultant and that was a moment for me and was feeling really good. My boss said that for a week they will provide me with accommodation but in between that time I need to search for a new place for myself and in searching staff members will help me out. I agreed and team members help me out with that, so whenever I use to go to check rented rooms, I use to feel like I am going to stay over there means now who was going to cook for me, and to do all the household work, as I never lived alone without my family. So a weird feeling was felt by me.

My Experience as Paying Guest in Kanpur

Anyways days were changed, now I use to move in the car along with my team members and my last day of checked-out was there. One of my aged colleagues said that he has a friend who stays with his wife and they have aged people having a big house and their children don’t stay with them. So let us talk to them, as they might keep you as paying guest so I agreed and we went to meet the couple. The home was big enough, the watchman was there, and cars, etc. just seeing me they agreed for me to stay as a paying guest with them, I ask them for rental charges and they roughly said approximately 3000 INR/month, and ask me to do breakfast and dinner with them as my lunch will be in office.

I was really happy at that moment as it feels like I got a family, they were providing me with food and other facilities such as washing clothes will be done by their servant, so I was stress-free about this particular thing but another side was panic that they won’t tell me to go in any way later on. It makes me feel like I am adopted by a family as all of sudden everything happens so smoothly. I said to uncle aunty that I have to go to Dehradun for taking my stuff along with me and will be back in a week, they agreed with that but somewhere in my mind, thought was going on that what if they change their mind when I return back after a week. I went to Dehradun for a week, and when I return back to Kanpur, I straightway went to their house as they told me that my room will be ready after a week.

When I reach over there, they warmly welcome me and my room was also ready. It was a huge room along with a spacious washroom and everything, so I kept my all stuff in the room and they ask me to do lunch with them. The bond was getting closer just like my own uncle Aunty or can say, family, we use to spend a good time together after I am done with my office work and Aunty used to take care of mine in all possible manner just like her child. It feels like my home only, along with my professional personal life was getting smoother for that particular time. It makes me feel like I am living a good standard of life.

Time was flying and with that, my relationship with an uncle, and aunty was getting closer they use to call me their child and started including me in their family functions too, in short, they never made me feel homesick. All I can say is that God makes the way for a person who takes the risk. Work was going well and 6months went away, while in between that 6 months of the time period I and my uncle with whom I use to stay, we both went to Dehradun and met my family members. I learned car driving over there as they possess a car and I use to attend the parties as it was a high profile job and lots of government employees used to attend that and that helps me to build networks as well.

For six to seven months life was going well, then the project manager of Kanpur got to change and another foreign person came to his place. The behavior of a new project manager was not good enough to be tolerated, maybe because of few political planning and plotting, so I started feeling that he was not happy with a few employees over here and will not renew their contract for next year, I am sure I was one amongst that few employees as he notices that I don’t have much work pressure, so based on that he will remove me. After the new project manager came I started losing my interest in work and was not enjoying it. The day arrives that he denied renewing my contract for next year and this notice was given to me prior to a year. So I agreed and try to save a good amount of money which was approximately eighty thousand rupees including all my other expenses by the end of the year.

Now, I was thinking that what next this, after leaving my job, I did not go back to my home and used to talk with my uncle Aunty regarding this. They told me that I can stay with them for a month but in the end, I have to find a job for myself. I don’t want to go back to Dehradun nor want to go for Delhi and still, my mind was not ready for out of the country, people use to console me rather than help me out. I did a month of Java course certification at Kanpur and was confident that I will work out something at least and used to hang out with my friends.

One of my friends from Kanpur said that his brother lives in Bangalore, so do one thing go and meet him once for a few days, so I agreed and went to Bangalore for 2-3 days, my friend’s brother help me to explore the place and I was liking that place and I told him that will be back after a month and plan out what exactly I want to do, while I will find the job as well. I came back to Kanpur to finish my Java course and after completing it I again went back to Bangalore in a month. Now here the Kanpur phase got over and was taking away lots of unforgettable memories with me. My lovely journey with uncle aunty was above to over from this. This was the end of my Kanpur chapter and my Bangalore life I will let you know in my next chapter.

To get growth in life one has to keep moving!

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Written by Ajay Kumar
An Indian Living in Bangkok, Thailand. By profession, I am an e-Business Consultant & Entrepreneur. My Hobbies are Traveling & Living a Healthy Lifestyle. Ask me any question on my Instagram