One event, one turn of a page, one moment of a response, one chance taken can turn your life upside down. And sometimes it turns the right side up.
This is the story of Rajpreet, a boy accustomed to a life of constant travelling as a result of his father’s occupation as a Navy officer. He grew up to be an extroverted, hard working, high-achieving student & an active sportsman. Nothing could dim his energy. He loved going around India, settling in new places, making new friends but his goal was to have a simple life, settled in a definite place with a government job.
Until a gloomy misconception of society came knocking
What to do when you reach high school? You are supposed to choose the science stream against your whims if you really want to live up to the expectations. So he did.
That’s when it happened.
His grades dropped, he lost his zest for life. One bad decision turned to another. He chose to do a bachelor’s degree in Physics, Chemistry and Math from a mediocre college, a college where after one year he had to drop out as it was going shut off due to its bad reputation.
Things were only getting worse, tangling.
He then made a choice for himself by himself. Given his financial background, he opted to pursue a degree in Airlines and Hotel Management (ATHM) at Chandigarh University, where he even got a scholarship for being from army background. After a while he felt like he was back at square one because the course was nothing like he imagined. Back home, his mother was hospitalized for a combination of illness, excessive mental stress and depression; leaving him in a state of despair.
He was going to drop out the second time.
He poured his heart out to a professor, who was kind and supportive. He motivated him to keep going and confidently said that he could be placed in a good hotel after graduation. Rajpreet found some mental stability in his words and continued.
Until one visit that changed the landscape
It was on a random afternoon when he accompanied his friend to the OIR who had some query, but that day, it was him who went home with inspiration. He was presented with an internship program to Walt Disney, Florida. OIR told him that he was a good candidate. He applied but didn’t think he would make it. It was too impossible, too unreal, too far-fetched.
How would he get through the Disney interview? How would he arrange the funds? How would he even get through the US Embassy interview?
And then it began- the untangling
Because despite all the ‘ifs’ and ‘what ifs’, he got through and truly landed amidst his greatest dream. Those 3 months of working at Disney brought back the life in him that he thought was long lost. All of a sudden, he was making so many plans, meeting so many people, doing so many things and it was not enough. He woke with vigour, went to sleep with a joyous heart. 3 months went in a blink, he had lived all his life in them.
And that was not the end
After his return, he won the chance to go to Disney again for a year as a Guest Relations host and Cultural Representative, an opportunity which is given to only 3 students across all of India every year.
And this is just a beginning
He is now more than determined to not give up. He has come back from his USA journey and now wants to stay in India for his mother. He has a changed mindset and he plans to do wonders in his own space.