Captain Shashank Shandilya

I was in the final year of my B. Tech and always wanted to have my startup. So along with some friends I tried analyzing the situation and realized that it was not possible back in 2012 to have a startup. Since I was in my final year, I tried for placements as well, and I got one too-I was placed in Tech Mahindra. One of my friends wanted to join the army.He asked me to join him for the SSB, so I got into SSB through technical entry. The fun part in this tale was, I got selected in the army and he couldn’t get through. I did not see this coming but when I saw my name on the list I was happy and excited. I went for training at OTA Chennai. It was tough, however it prepared me well-mentally and physically to face complicated situations in future. After a year of training, I was posted in Kupwara, Kashmir in Army Signals Corps. I told my family about my posting. But since none of them are in the army, it was not easy for my mother to take it in-she was tensed, I had to comfort her with a white lie saying that it would be a desk job which does not require going to battlegrounds or any anti-terror operations. Soon I reported in my battalion and I found that the working environment was far different from the civilian life. As soon as I entered the unit, it was a whole different vibe and aura. The situation in Kashmir is well known to all of us. When we get out from the Unit’s Gate, a slogan-“Savdhaan..aaj muqabla hoga“, always moved our passive and relaxed mind into action and made us monitor the situations every now and then. I was part of MCSS project of the Indian army which used to provide handsets to army headquarters. Earlier we had only landlines, we kept all of them connected and it turned out to be a major project when Kashmir was flooded. All the networks and modes of communication went off, but our network worked and helped lot of people. This feeling was indescribable which was invaluable for me. I was deployed in Kupwara for three years altogether. Then I was offered the department of Military Intelligence. But in late 2017, I was declared unfit for major duties as I had some asthmatic problems. So, I decided to retire and explore the corporate world. I know it was a huge change but I was willing to do this. In army, there are no weekends- we have to work on Saturdays and Sundays as well. As I entered the corporate world, I used to work on Saturdays also. It took me a while to get adapted in this environment but I worked hard.  The Army had taught me how to adapt to situations easily and how to learn new things. You can take a person out of the army but you cannot take the army out of him, it is immensely true, atleast in my case. The soft skills learnt in The Army helped me in the corporate world as well. Currently I am enjoying my work, I love what I do. People ask me-“Do you miss your Army days? “, to which I say-“No, I don’t miss those days, I recall and re-live them and feel proud of myself. My philosophy is simple- Enjoy the present, be proud of what you have done in the past, and motivate yourself to do amazing things in future which will make you proud one day.”

Total Work Experience : Corporate – 5 Years (Blackstone , Investment Bank)

Army : 6 Years