A helping hand – form Mahindra Pride School – at the right moment gave Durgadas the momentum he needed to enter a new world

“A dream is not what you see in sleep, a dream is something which doesn't let you sleep,” this quote by Dr APJ Abdul Kalam aptly described the situation that Durgadas Pawar, a resident of a Pune suburb, found himself in a few years back.

Durgadas belonged to a family of five which was sustaining on a single income of INR 7,000 a month, which was hardly enough to ensure two square meals. Dreams were a luxury the young man couldn’t afford.

But dreams give wings to one’s aspirations, and for Durgadas, they fuelled his passion. He dreamt of being an engineer and earning a steady income to provide for his family. With the help of a scholarship, he secured an admission in a diploma course in engineering. And thus began his journey of achieving his dream.

However, his impoverished family couldn’t afford the books he needed for the course. Durgadas’s father tried his best to get a loan from his boss. He saw his father pleading to his boss for a few hundred rupees for his books but unfortunately, he was turned down.

That incident touched Durgadas’s heart. Walking away from his father's workplace, he decided that he would not ask his father for money, but instead become self-reliant.

Displaying an enormous sense of responsibility, Durgadas took up a job as a security guard to augment the family income. He would attend college in the day and work as a security guard at night. After a few months of this arduous routine, Durgadas secured a full-time job as a sales assistant at a retail outlet. After life’s harsh realities, he had given up on his dream of becoming an engineer.

Luckily, his life changed for the better soon. At his new workplace, he learnt about Mahindra Pride School (MPS) from a friend and went to meet MPS director Raj Iyer. Raj counselled Durgadas into giving him and the MPS team just three months of his life, with the assurance that he would not regret it.

Durgadas completed his training in ITES (Information Technology Enabled Services) at MPS and went on to land a dream job with Mphasis, an IT services company. In his 5-year stint at Mphasis, he steadily climbed the corporate ladder, getting quick promotions and handsome raises.

Soon after, Durgadas joined WNS, a global business process management company, as Senior Associate. Here too, he is regularly rewarded for his good work and was also promoted to Assistant Manager — Work Force Management (WFM), with a salary package of INR 8.77 lakhs per annum. Currently, he is part of a 5-member team responsible for operational and governance reporting for a leading insurance company. International travel was a new and exciting experience as he recently took his first international trip to WNS Philippines.

While he has risen in the corporate ranks, Durgadas has never forgotten the efforts and sacrifices made by his parents. With his first salary, he bought gold for his mother and got their home renovated. He has supported the education of his younger brother who is currently working at a Mahindra Two-Wheeler dealership, as well as his younger sister, who works with Tanishq, a leading jewellery company.

Married and a father of two, Durgadas has seen his fortunes rise. He has invested in two homes and bought a four-wheeler for the family. His mother Lakshmi gets teary-eyed when she recalls the past: “There was a time when I used to work as a labourer under other people, today people are working under my son. Though he comes from limited means, he has never let that come in his way. His achievement makes me very proud!”

With all the financial goals met, Durgadas’s next big goal is to be a good role model for his children. On the work front, he aims to be the head of the central team.

With immense gratitude, Durgadas attributes all the good tidings in his life to his stint at the Mahindra Pride School. He says, “When I return home and see my father reading the newspaper and my mother relaxing, I see my dreams fulfilled.”

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