Nothing comes our way easy especially when one wants to realize their distant dream. Samrat Mukhopadhyay also saw a dream of pursuing an integrated course at one of the coveted colleges for higher studies i.e. Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore.
Now a professor at IISER Mohali, Mukhopadhyay credits the institute for changing his life. But getting into the university wasn’t easy for him 25 years ago when email and the internet weren’t a thing and it took people days to reach Bengaluru because air travel was unimaginable even for the wealthy.
Narrating his fascinating story of how he managed to attend his life-altering interview, he took to Twitter. In the lengthy thread, he took us along in his journey which made us feel the anxiety, nervousness, thrill and happiness he experienced back in the day.
He wrote:
25 years ago: June 1997. I was selected for the highly competitive & coveted integrated PhD (MS + PhD) program at the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) Bangalore. My life changed forever. Whatever little I have done, I owe it to IISc. I narrate a fascinating story. Read on (1/n) pic.twitter.com/laYimkZpCQ
— Samrat Mukhopadhyay (@SamratLabMohali) June 7, 2022
He decided to take a chance on his aspirations and wrote the entrance exam in early May of 1997.
I wrote the entrance exam that was held in early May at many centers across India including in Calcutta (now Kolkata). My exam went quite well and I was certain of getting shortlisted for the on-campus interview that was scheduled to be held from June 16 – 18, 1997 (3/n).
— Samrat Mukhopadhyay (@SamratLabMohali) June 7, 2022
Since he was confident about getting shortlisted for the on-campus interview, he booked his train tickets from Howrah (Kolkata) to Bangalore. And mind you, this wasn’t a direct train.
He would have to reach Madras from Howrah and then Madras to Bangalore on another train which would take him 36 hours in total.
But there was a problem. I was waiting for the interview call letter that didn’t arrive even on June 13 when I was supposed to travel. I was very frustrated. My exam had gone so well and I was perplexed, clueless, upset, and disappointed. I canceled the train reservations (5/n).
— Samrat Mukhopadhyay (@SamratLabMohali) June 7, 2022
Despite all the preparations, his interview letter didn’t arrive till June 13th, the day when he was supposed to embark on the journey. Heartbroken by it, he cancels the tickets.
Our doorbell rang at ~ 11 AM (June 16). I opened the door – a postman handed over a letter – I looked at it – it was from IISc Bangalore – my interview call letter. I thanked him. There must have been a postal delay. And I was even more disappointed to receive the letter (7/n).
— Samrat Mukhopadhyay (@SamratLabMohali) June 7, 2022
But miraculously, he received the call letter on June 16th due to a postal delay. Now, there were only two days left to the interview that was scheduled for June 18 at 9:00 am.
Knowing that he had 45 hours in hand and it would take him 36 hours to reach Bangalore, he started packing his bags.
I had got just 2 hours to catch the train (Coromandel Express) from Howrah Station. I immediately decided to make the best of this opportunity. My parents were at their respective offices. My grandma and sister became very tense to see that I started packing to leave (9/n).
— Samrat Mukhopadhyay (@SamratLabMohali) June 7, 2022
But what about the tickets? He had already canceled it. But as luck favors the brave, his train got delayed by 3 hours and he got some time in hand to make the arrangements.
The train got delayed by 3 hours and I got a chance to organize things. I spoke with officials and showed them my interview letter and my canceled reservations. Finally, after looking at all the documents, I was assured of a seat up to Madras (11/n).
— Samrat Mukhopadhyay (@SamratLabMohali) June 7, 2022
Finally, he was in. The next hurdle was finding a way to reach Bangalore as his connecting train had already departed before he could arrive in Madras.
Now another problem. Coromandel Express was delayed by several hours and I missed the Bangalore connection. Madras-Bangalore Mail had already left. I was going from pillar to post to find out how to travel to Bangalore. There was a severe storm and a power blackout (13/n).
— Samrat Mukhopadhyay (@SamratLabMohali) June 7, 2022
But since this was meant to be, he hopped, skipped, and jumped his way to the city of his dreams.
But the train didn’t start for several hours because of the rain and the blackout. It was ~ 1 AM and now I started panicking about whether I’d be able to reach Bangalore before my interview. Finally, the rain stopped, power was back, and the train started to move (15/n).
— Samrat Mukhopadhyay (@SamratLabMohali) June 7, 2022
He reached Bangalore at 8:30 am. Just half an hour left to his interview.
Finally, I reached Bangalore Station at ~ 8:30 AM and rushed into an auto-rickshaw (my first ride in this😀). The driver started driving too fast seeing me in haste. I was frightened and told him to drive slowly. I didn’t want to meet with an accident on my way to IISc (17/n).
— Samrat Mukhopadhyay (@SamratLabMohali) June 7, 2022
And sharp at 9:00 am, he entered the interview waiting room with his luggage and a heart beating faster than ever.
I entered the IISc campus (gorgeous campus but no time to enjoy). I had to sprint with my backpack and suitcase to reach the Organic Chemistry building and entered the interview waiting room at ~ 9 AM. Immediately, my name was called and I rushed into the committee room (19/n).
— Samrat Mukhopadhyay (@SamratLabMohali) June 7, 2022
Things went well. And despite his call letter arriving two weeks late, he managed to crack it.
Some members tried to find out the problem. Then I narrated the story of how I got there. Uday Maitra (who would be my PhD advisor later) looked at the postmark on the letter and saw and told other panelists that the letter was at the wrong post office for over 2 weeks (21/n).
— Samrat Mukhopadhyay (@SamratLabMohali) June 7, 2022
Here he was, ecstatic but content at heart.
My life changed 25 years ago. I don’t know what I’d have done had I not made it to IISc. Whatever I have done in my life, I owe it to IISc. I couldn’t have asked for a better PhD advisor, a better environment, or a better PhD (with papers in Angewandte Chemie, JACS, etc.) END
— Samrat Mukhopadhyay (@SamratLabMohali) June 7, 2022
This is what he had to say to the youngsters of today.
PS. Younger colleagues/students:
This was a pre-email pre-internet era. Air travel was almost unimaginable even for the well-off. In fact, I didn’t know there was an airport in Bangalore 😁. After this incident, IISc started telegram call letters the following year (1998).— Samrat Mukhopadhyay (@SamratLabMohali) June 7, 2022
His story of hope, commitment, and the determination to do everything and more in order to reach the top is just inspiring. Very well deserved!