A Day In The Life: Anurag Saha
A DAY IN THE LIFE
InVenture is excited to introduce our “A Day In the Life” series, which gives first-hand and personal insight into what InVenture Fellows experience while they work on-the-ground with our entrepreneurs and NGO/MFI partners.
Read about Anurag’s “first time eagerness” below as he navigates his way to Madurantakam, Tamil Nadu, India and meets with InVenture micro-entrepreneur, Lakshmi!
MEET INVENTURE FELLOW: ANURAG
InVenture Fellow: Anurag Saha, Portfolio Management
Education: Junior studying Information Technology at the
National Institute of Technology in Durgapur
Location: Madurantakam, Tamil Nadu, India
InVenture NGO Partner: Association of Sustainable Community Development
(ASSCOD)
Timeline: Summer 2011
My name is Anurag, a junior pursuing my Bachelor of Technology in Information Technology from National Institute of Technology, Durgapur. I am an avid reader and a big fan of Jeffrey Archer and John Grisham. I love listening to music especially The Beatles and Pink Floyd. I am a football aficionado and a die-hard Manchester United fan. I am also an active debater and quizzer. My other interests include entrepreneurship, history, especially political history, traveling. I also consider myself a big movie buff. This summer, I am working with InVenture as a Portfolio Management Fellow.
“First Timer’s Eagerness” to Madurantakam, Tamil Nadu, India
I reach the airport a good two and a half hours in advance, ”first timer’s eagerness” or something like that. I have this weird feeling my luggage is going to be more than the allowed 20 kilograms. Yeah, I worry about everything. That’s my favourite pastime. I have a big sigh of relief when the woman at the check-in counter hands me my boarding pass and tells me its only 14 kgs. I go back to the gate to say bye to my parents who are probably more scared than I am. I find it a little strange that my parents still worry so much about me given the fact that I have been in a boarding school and stayed in hostels since as far as I can remember. But then I guess that’s what makes them parents. They worry too, which seems sort of a family favourite, “worrying”. The security check goes off smoothly. As I sit in the departure lounge, I chance upon a friend. Feels good to see a known face in the midst of so many unknown ones. I am taken to the plane in a bus along with all the other passengers. I can’t remember the last time I was so excited about something!
I get on the plane. I am looking for my seat when the air hostess turns up beside me and helps me find it. Yeah, she is cute, in case you were wondering. She smiles as I take my window seat. I am on a cloud even before the plane has taken off. Then I remember that’s her job. Heck, the smile still counts. I listen to the announcements carefully and watch the cabin crew showing us how to put on our oxygen masks et-cetera, so intently that the gentleman on my side can’t help but ask with a smirk “first time eh?” I start looking out of the window trying not to look too eager. As much I try I can’t suppress a smile as the flight takes off. I can’t really hear much as the noise increases. I don’t eat anything the entire journey. Being the miser that I am, I am too scared about the prices. The in-flight Jet Airways magazine is a wonderful read. I discover the origins and existence of many rare Indian musical and dance forms.
Madurantakam, Tamil Nadu, India (shaded dark orange) 
We cross the ocean just prior to landing. The view is splendid. I start worrying as soon as I land as to whether my luggage has arrived as safely as me. Thankfully it did. I call up the head of the local NGO that is helping the company I am interning with, with the field work. Mr.Loganathan tells me his staff should be there outside the airport with a placard saying “ASSCOD”, short for the Association of Sustainable Community Development, the name of the NGO. I still think having my name there would have made more sense.
Thankfully, I find Mr.Muttu easily enough and along with my co-intern, Ankit, we proceed to the field office. Mr.Muttu speaks fluent English, a sigh of relief again. We stop for lunch at a hotel along the highway. The place is filled with local people who seem to be thoroughly enjoying the food. I have been warned to expect some sour stuff in every dish and I decide to play it safe. I order a vegetable biryani. I notice there are very few non-vegetable restaurants here. The simple task of placing an order can get really tough if both sides involved have no idea what the other is saying. We get Mr.Muttu to place our order. He ends up arguing with the waiter, I have no clue about the cause. My biryani arrives along with some sour stuff, probably raita. I decide to ignore it. Ankit is complaining about how these people don’t put salt while making the chapattis or something.
An hour’s drive later we reach Madhurantakam, our final location. Later we prepare to “hunt” for dinner, quite literally. We find a bus going to Karunguzhi, where he assures me there is a good eatery. By the time we get the conductor to understand where we want to get down we are two stops ahead already. We get down and after walking twenty minutes in the opposite direction finally locate the hotel. The masala dosa costs Rs. 45.41. I am not kidding. We decide to have that and coffee. I ask the waiter how much the coffee cost. He replies “five minutes” and walks away. I have no idea how to react. Halfway through our meal the waiter gets us our bill and tells us there are people waiting. I am not sure whether I should leave without finishing my food. I decide to eat in peace as I didn’t really understand much of what the waiter was shouting anyway.
Meeting InVenture Micro-Entrepreneur, Lakshmi
The first micro-entrepreneur that we meet was Mrs. Lakshmi, who owns an AMUL ice cream agency. We were staying in Madhurantakam and her agency was located in the vicinity of Vandavasi. Mr.Loganathan, the head of ASSCOD, took us there in a car and after visiting the ASSCOD field office we went to visit Mrs. Lakshmi. We were welcomed warmly and she answered all our questions patiently. Mr. Loganathan acted as the translator. It was our first meeting with any of the entrepreneurs and I was pleased that it had passed off without a hitch. She had a stable business and needed the investment to expand her business to areas that she could not, due to her financial limitations. It was very satisfying to know that InVenture was investing in her, and in turn, improving her standard of living and that I was a part of this process, albeit in a small way.
-Anurag
