The discipline that came from looking after his body and health spilled over into academics and co-curricular activities, which helped Rajat Prabhakar overcome all odds and achieve his goals
Rajat Prabhakar hails from a humble background from Chandigarh. The son of a police officer, and affectionately called Rajjo by his friends, he is a fitness freak who visits the gymnasium regularly. He completed his Masters in marketing from a well-known college and today walks into the corporate world with Aditya Birla Retail Limited as the team leader. He is working on a project in marketing in Karnataka, and is posted at Bengaluru. His advice to juniors waiting in the pipeline for campus placement is prepare well for the interview, erase any negative approach, and things will fall into place.
Rajat completed his schooling from Manav Mangal High School and his graduation from Government College of Commerce and Business Administration in Chandigarh. His two elder sisters taught him the values of life, which boosted his confidence. Like any other kid in school, Rajat was fun loving and very fond of eating, and that was the reason he had put on extra weight. He participated in sports and was nominated the prefect of the school. He secured 59.89% in SSC and managed to get into Commerce. Thanks to his parents who always supported him, he went on to improve his performance in graduation with 68%. He had put on 100 kgs and people used to talk about him, but that did not hinder him as he took up centre-stage in public speaking and performing on the stage. There was a time when he was intimidated due to his obesity, but at the back of his mind, he was sure that one day he would silence his critics. He took interest in politics and his leadership qualities saw him being elected as the general secretary in college. And it was here at the age of 17 that he started working out because he realised that health is very important in life. The focus, dedication, discipline, patience and perseverance he learned in working out helped him to perform well in other areas of life.
Life at the professional college was tough, but he was prepared and it was his workingout regimen, which helped him face all hurdles. However, one has to sacrifice to gain something and so he skipped festivals and preferred the gymnasium and studied alone in his hostel room. That was why he had no backlog in his studies, and this brought about changes in him, which were positive. His role as discipline coordinator at his college was the toughest and as a council member, he had to face a lot of resistance from the juniors. There were teachers who were more like friends, which was the turning point in his life. And one among them was Subina Sayal who played a major role in boosting his confidence levels.
Rajat with his college friendsRajat got the nod from ABRL (Aditya Birla Retail Limited) and is currently posted in Bengaluru and working on a project in marketing in Karnataka. It was not perks but job satisfaction that was on the top of the list for him. Learning was all about giving back to the company which had trusted him. ”Never go for the package as the priority criteria but go for the role and future growth opportunities the company is providing. Be a learner in the initial years and gain as much as you can from the first company,” says Rajat who had one of the lengthiest campus placement processes, which went up to 13 hours, and five rounds of campus screening—aptitude, case study, creative round and personal interview. “Yes it was one of the most sought after processes in the college, the reason being the company came exclusively to our college, and it was offering an above average package,” said Rajat. Rajat wanted to get into this company because he always wanted to be in the retail sector and ABRL is a major in retailing. He was the only male among the six candidates who got selected. “Think positively about achieving something, everything falls into place and you reach that place without much of hardship,” he says.
His only fear about placement was of getting a company from a sector outside his line of interest, though he was confident of being placed. “People still ask me how I prepared for the aptitude test or group discussion, and about my fears while entering the interview room. Till date my answer has not changed—you can’t learn how to speak in a single day, but keep learning things every day. One question every interviewer asks, ‘Tell me about yourself and what are your strengths and weaknesses?’ This is it, grab the opportunity and speak as much as you can about yourself, tell them about your interests, hobbies and strengths, and by doing this, you have already turned the tables on your side.”
He had appeared for three companies. At the time of getting placed, Rajat was waiting for the result of another company where he was shortlisted. So for him the placement season went very smoothly. Although he is of the opinion that his mettle was not tested much during the placement process, it was tested a lot more before that. “During my induction period, during college functions and especially when I was the discipline coordinator of the college, I was a very short tempered guy, and being a Punjabi, tended to take decisions impulsively. But I think the grooming process that I have gone through has transformed me from an angry, impatient and impulsive guy to a humble and calm person.”
"Never go for the package as the priority criteria but go for the role and future growth opportunities the company is providing. Be a learner in the initial years and gain as much as you can from the first company"
For him, life is all about living in the present. Take life as a gift, a blessing and an opportunity to do bigger and more challenging things. “We youth, take a lot of risks and chances, but one thing I cannot do is take chances with my life. Life is short, live in the present and be thankful for even small moments and things that life gives us,” says Rajat.
By Joe Williams
