Interview with Sudhir Sahni: It Is My Strong Belief That One Needs to Follow One’s Passion, Put in One’s Best in Whatever Work or Profession One Takes Up
I was fortunate enough to ‘discover’ PRADAN after almost a year of searching for the right cause and organization in the development sector that would appeal to my heart and head. PRADAN works with remote, rural communities in Central and Eastern India, helping them come out of intergenerational poverty and realize a better future and lives for themselves.
1. Tell us about your upbringing, background & journey.
I was fortunate enough to be able to tackle my academics front with relative ease. Being the youngest among three brothers, I never faced any performance pressure from my parents.
I thus managed to spend enough time on sports and extracurricular activities during my school and college days, and even when I went to IIM Ahmedabad. My father being in the army we always had access to various sports and club facilities.
However, the one thing that seemed to interest me the most was helping my friends and peers with their studies and work. So even as I stood second in my class (for a couple of years) and my classmates pushed me to “beat the topper”, I was happier helping out classmates, who became friends for life, who were lying at the bottom of the class.
This trend continued across my school and college days, and has been my ‘calling’ even during my work years – I get greater pleasure in delivering good quality output working with the “underdogs” rather than with the “best in class”. This interest also manifested itself in my helping many people grow and realize their potential at work, even if it meant they’re leaving my work teams and work locations.