Anand Gudimetla Oral History Project by Seshikanth Gudimetla

My First Actual Job in India

1386603 — 2025-01-09 13:35:15 UTC

" I used to be an auditor in India", I had just graduated from college at Osmania University and gained a bachelor's in business. I wanted to immediately get a job and try to gain a new experience in the world. I went back to my parent's house to save money and find a local job in my city. My younger brother is in Germany to study, while my older brother is also staying at home for a little while and helping me find a job. With such heavy competition present, I was worried about my future, my chances of getting a job, and the stress I was giving to my parents. Eventually, my search came to an end when I finally found a small start-up company in need of an auditor. I started my resume and contacted the company for an interview, this was my first time going to an interview, and in addition to my nervousness and anxiety, the 100-degree temperature made me sweat bullets. The interview went fine, and I immediately got the job. You should have seen me, I was running back to my house, with so much enthusiasm to tell my parents and brother. My shift began the next week, and the pressure and schedule given to me were overwhelming, but after getting used to it, it was smooth sailing from there. I still remember my brother congratulating me " i'm very proud of you", I still remember that to this day. My reputation within the company grew, and I managed to befriend many co-workers of mine(still in contact with most of them) and gained a lot of support and trust to help run the finances the company possesses. I worked there for 3 years, and I constantly proved myself, by finding mistakes or new ideas to help the company improve its finances. Fortunately, I found another job in America, but it was at the same time my manager offered me a promotion, not wasting a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity I sadly rejected his offer and went to America. Without my prior experience back in India, I would have struggled greatly. I will always be thankful for my manager and co-workers.

Failed Baker

1386603 — 2025-01-09 23:11:28 UTC

"Oh my god that is bitter". I wanted to surprise my wife and both of my sons, by creating my first homemade cake. While everybody was at a birthday party, I stayed home and told everyone that I couldn't come because of work. I watched a YouTube video, that showed how to create a basic chocolate cake. I first watched the video, to see if I had all the ingredients. I gathered everything up and started to watch and copy the steps that were shown on the video, an hour had passed, and I took the cake out of the oven, and let it cool until all three of them came back home. I didn't want to eat the first piece of cake, because I wanted to eat with my family. They finally came and with excitement, I showed them the cake that I had made. They all ate it, then my younger son immediately spat it out and turned to me." Why is it so bitter Nanna", I went to the cake and also ate it, he was right the taste was way too bitter and a tiny bit salty. My wife asked me what container I used to put in the sugar, "the yellow one", I said. She started to laugh hysterically, including my oldest son, "That's salt, the sugar is in the blue container!" said my wife. From that day onward, I was not allowed to bake, to this day I still get teased.

My Passion Behind Cricket

1386603 — 2025-01-09 23:38:21 UTC

"No way you got a six, how did you hit that?" Still to this day, I have a huge passion for cricket. This started when I was at least 5 years old, my dad bought a new but old TV, and my family was the only family at that time in the surrounding neighborhood to own a TV, so both of my brothers' friends and my friends usually came to my house to watch anything. One day my brother put on a local cricket match on the TV, and at that time, being a 5-year-old kid, I was curious about what was happening. When I first laid my eyes upon the game, I was enveloped by the sounds, movement, and the rush of excitement that was shown when something major happened. At that moment, I wanted to play the game as much as I could with my friends. One of my friends owned a cricket set, so we started playing. From that day forward, I practiced with my friends, in some instances, we also played in the rain. The most memorable moment was when I hit a 6 which is one of the highest points that can be earned, and the ball accidentally broke one of my windows. I wasn't allowed to play for a whole month outside because of that. This passion of mine came to college. When I was in college, I joined a college team and won many tournaments. Before giving up anything always remember "practice makes man perfect".

Dangerous Album and The Significance

1386603 — 2025-01-10 00:03:18 UTC

"Micheal Jackson just came out, listen to this", I was in college when the new Dangerous Album by Micheal Jackson came out. In India, the name Micheal Jackson was well known, even remote villages heard of the name Micheal Jackson. When I woke up my college roommates were talking about Micheal Jackson, out of curiosity I asked "What about Micheal Jackson". " The new album just released we have to listen to it," one of my good-time friends said. As a big Micheal Jackson fan I immediately wanted to listen to the album, so we turned on the radio to our local music network, and the first song that was playing was "Black and White", not the best song, but it was one of the first songs that I have ever heard in the album. On that day the whole campus was filled with Micheal Jackson music, imagine a mini Micheal Jackson concert being held and now imagine that being almost every day for the next week or so. Disregarding the album Micheal Jackson was the first connection I have ever gotten when it comes to Westernized music, so this played a big part to my music taste. Whenever I go to a college party, I always hear at least 5 Micheal Jackson songs playing and the rest being Indian music. Sadly, alongside the majority of India, I was devastated when Micheal Jackson sadly passed away in 2009.

Timeless Possession

1386603 — 2025-01-10 01:04:55 UTC

"Thank you so much, Dad, I will always treasure this." I was still in high school; I was planning to start studying for my college entrance exams that are local to my city. My father saw me study day and night and always supported my struggles along the way, he stayed up with me on some nights and bought me snacks and soda that could help me soothe my mind whenever studying. One day my father wanted to show his support to me, by giving me a Parker Fountain pen and mechanical pencil set. "You could use these to help you study." When he gave me these items, I started to use and bring them wherever I went. Finally, when I started to enter exam halls for entrance exams, I used both the pen and pencil. Eventually, I got into a college, so starting from that day, I cherished both objects and kept them as a good luck charm. Whenever I got the chance, I always used them. Sadly I left the pencil back in India, but I brought the fountain pen with me to America. Recently I have passed this pen to my oldest son, so he could also use it for his studies.

First Plane Trip

1386603 — 2025-01-10 01:33:00 UTC

"Why is it shaking so much!" The same day after my oldest son was born( May 29, 2007), I received mail in front of my doorstep, it was addressed to me, and it said that my Visa was approved and I was able to go to the United States. I told my wife and my parents, about the big move to America. I wanted to go to America first, so I could find an apartment and get settled, so it could be safe to finally allow my wife and son to come to America as well. My move began around October, I bought the tickets to Houston, Texas from Gandhi International Airport in Hyderabad. Once I got to the Airport, I said my goodbyes and went into the airport. Because this was my first flight ever, I came to the airport 3 hours in advance, and thank god that I did. The wait time to check in my suitcases and get my tickets was approximately an hour long while the security check took another hour. Before I finally got on the airplane, I wanted to eat all the Indian food that I could consume quickly before I went to America. The airline that I took was Air India, and I didn't have a single good experience during the boarding process and on the flight. This was very stressful for me because I didn't know what to do or how to respond to such problems that were caused by the airline staff. Once on the flight, I was nervous to be honest, because this was my first time in an airplane, in addition to being by myself and not knowing anyone. Once the flight was in the air, I was still pretty tense, because of the long flight duration and how there was tons of turbulence throughout the whole flight. The majority of the experience was me being scared while the other part was kinda enjoying the trip. Once landed in Texas, I was hit with such a shock, because this was a new environment that I had stepped onto, and also there was a connection flight I had to get on to quickly. Now disregarding the trip, I was scared for my wife and child because they also had to go in the same route to reach me, and it was also their first time as well.

My Best Friend and Day One

1386603 — 2025-01-10 01:43:53 UTC

" I hope you have a great time in America", those are the last words that were said to me by one of my longtime friends. He was one of the first friends I have ever made, I met him during my time in elementary school. He was one of the smartest people I know, this was because he went to IIT, which is one of the most renowned universities in all of India (This was an IVY). Before he went to college, he tutored me, and had been my day one, so I saw him as another brother. I looked up to him because he was always there for me and always helped me whenever I was in need. His kind nature further pushed me to greater heights. Due to him being one more year older than me, he usually gave me tips and tricks when it came to problems, in addition, he also taught me many other activities that eventually I taught to my children. Even though we were in different colleges, we always talked with each other, and whenever we came back for a break, we always hung out for hours and came back home very late. With both of us now having families and a different life, it has been a while since I hung out with him. My best memory with him was riding motorcycles across the whole city and visiting every store we saw along the way. In addition, he was the person who first taught me how to ride a motorcycle. His blue Honda motorcycle was the very first motorcycle that I had ever ridden when first learning, and with that influence, I persuaded my dad to buy me the same one.

Quote

1386603 — 2025-01-10 01:45:57 UTC

The Hunger to win must not die. The appetite has to remain big

-Kapil Dev

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Audio Recording Of My Dad

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First Camel Ride

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