Growing up in Beed, Maharashtra, as the son of a farmer, I witnessed firsthand the challenges faced by our farming community. My early years were shaped by the values of resilience, hard work, and a deep respect for the land.

Farming is a livelihood deeply intertwined with uncertainty from unpredictable weather to pest outbreaks and limited resources. Today, as a chemical engineer at SRF, I find profound meaning in the work we do synthesising specialty chemicals that support crop protection and empower farmers to overcome these very challenges.

Every visit home brings a quiet moment of reflection and pride. I always make it a point to stop by my childhood friend Uddhav More’s agrochemical shop. Sitting there, surrounded by shelves lined with bottles containing ingredients I helped create, I’m reminded that these aren’t just products, they’re a bridge between my roots and my profession, between science and soil.

That moment always grounds me. It reminds me that our work goes far beyond labs, reactors, or plant floors. It reaches the very fields I grew up around, supporting the backbone of our nation, our farmers.

This is what purpose feels like: when your work comes full circle and touches lives in the most personal, meaningful way.

Friends often asked, “Three decades in the same company… kya raaz hai?” Gen Z was even more curious: “How did you stick around so long, Uncle?” My answer was always simple - “You need to work in SRF to feel SRF.” What kept me here were three pillars: a strong value system, a systemic approach, and most importantly, a passionate and committed team. The power of collective strength was reflected in every milestone we achieved together.

My journey began as a GET at the CEAT tyre cord plant, later acquired by SRF. From there, it was a path filled with defining moments - our bold TQM journey challenging the Deming Award, restoring machine health at the Rayong plant, and leading expansion projects in Gummidipoondi and Manali. Each step was powered by a team that brought creativity, resilience, and pride to their work.

I remember the extruder breakdown that lasted 21 days. Not once did we lose hope. We tried, failed, tried again - and succeeded. That experience taught me that perseverance truly pays off. There was joy in the little things too - a samosa and chai during long shutdowns, the energy in Kaizen presentations, the slogans, the posters, and the cultural programs. Names like Sabhapati, Rajesh, Riyaz, Rakshpal, Manoj, V K Bhatia, Yameen, Tej Bhan, Rajveer, S N Rathore, Khun Bird, Khun Lersak, Khun Tik, Rai Sahab Yadav, Velu, Hari Babu, Ashok, Santosh, Vikas and Jagdish will always stay close to my heart.

And one name I must mention - G P Kastkar. An operator, no longer with us, but forever my role model. His work area sparkled with pride, and his home reflected the true spirit of 5S - orderly, clean, and inspiring.

Over these 30+ years, I’ve lived through highs and lows, learned lessons no management school could teach, and had the privilege of working with a team that made every moment meaningful.

At SRF, growth is a way of life. From training to cross-functional exposure, the company has always empowered individuals to explore and evolve and I’m grateful to have experienced that firsthand.

I joined SRF 32 years ago as a secretary at the headquarters. With curiosity and determination, I stepped into logistics, a space that challenged and inspired me. My move to the Indore plant marked a turning point. For the past 18 years, I’ve led a team of 22, managing logistics across five units.

My journey has also taken me global, supporting operations in South Africa and Thailand, and ensuring raw material despatches to Hungary. Each experience has been rewarding and enriching.

To me, logistics is about keeping promises. Whether it’s resolving queries or ensuring timely deliveries, I see myself as part of SRF’s marketing engine, driving customer satisfaction.

Over the years, I’ve overseen the despatch of over 1,80,000 MT of polyester film and 30,000 MT of polyester chips. But beyond the numbers, it’s the learning, growth, and purpose that define my journey.

SRF has been more than a workplace — it’s been a place of transformation and pride.

When one of my colleagues asked, “When is the big night?”

All I could reply was, “Don't remind me of it”.

Why do I say so? There hasn't been a single day in my journey of more than three decades at SRF when I dreaded coming to work. Working at SRF has fulfilled as many of my career and life ambitions as any other job I could imagine.

It is an undeniable fact that every one of us will have our time to part ways. Now is my time to bid farewell to all. As I am heading towards the end of my 35-year journey at SRF, mine is an All-Time Pride story!

I am thankful to God for giving me the opportunity to work in THE BEST COMPANY where values are lived every day right from the top management to the new joiners. I am proud to say that I have not only been working in a company, which is business-savvy but at the same time is responsible and kind.

Every day, I feel that my hard work and perseverance has been well recognised and rewarded. My reporting manager and team leaders always gave me the freedom to put forth my views. I have spent each day at SRF with the will and energy to learn new things, stabilising the system, suggesting improvements and hand-holding juniors on how to work with ease and earn respect.

Nothing succeeds like success and SRF has been a wonderful success story to tell. Every company has its highs and lows. However, to remain stable in a difficult environment and staying true to the values is not easy for any company. At SRF, I have never seen retrenchment when the economy was down, delayed salary when there was a cash crunch, disrespect to junior staff, hasty implementation of projects to meet deadlines, such kind of things never happen in our company.

I am sure that all of you will experience the same sense of gratitude and respect that I enjoyed in this company. I will be reminiscing each day of my retired life about the wonderful time I have spent at SRF.

I believe SRF will continue to grow and prosper and I trust that all of you will be happy and fulfilled here.

I experienced my first moment of pride even before I officially joined SRF. Just like most newcomers, I had doubts about the work culture and my growth prospects in the new company.

As I was leaving the building after my second round of interview, the security guard at the gate, a complete stranger who I consider my friend and advisor today, enquired about my interview. He seemed to have read my mind and advised me that if selected, I should join the organisation without any apprehension as SRF is a wonderful organisation that takes care of the well-being of all employees.

A positive reinforcement from a company worker gave me the confidence that this was the right career move for me. Eight months on, I still feel indebted to him. As they say, employees are the biggest brand ambassadors for an organisation and Mr. Sunil at the SRF security office is one amongst many such brand ambassadors at SRF!

Having returned to India after more than a decade, I was very apprehensive about the work culture here. As anticipated, I shifted a few jobs, until I found the right place for myself.

My journey with SRF began in the year 2015. I feel fortunate to have been surrounded by supportive colleagues during my initial days in the organisation, which made my induction process easier. What surprised me the most was that every person I met had only good things to say about the Company. It reassured me of my decision of taking up a job here.

Since the beginning, SRF provided me a platform to grow. I believe that my credentials were taken into consideration and I was handheld into taking on greater responsibilities. What is also worth mentioning is, SRF is equally sensitive and concerned about extracurricular activities as it is for its work ethics. It is only at SRF that for the first time in my life, I performed on stage and felt very confident. Every morning I wake up feeling happy to come to work. I believe this is a very important aspect of one's life and I would like to extend my gratitude to SRF.

It was a moment of pride for Avinash (Grover) and me when our fellow colleagues from TTB – Rayong called us for technical assistance while upgrading a machine at their plant.

The TTB – Rayong team had decided to start one of the winder machines in the spinning section, which was lying idle for a long period and put it to profitable use. The machine required massive upgradation of the system. The optimisation process involved replacement of old drives with Sinamics drives and also use PLC (Programmable Logic Controller) in place of the old relay logic. During the upgradation process, the team was stuck in establishing communication between the Sinamics drives and PLC.

Avinash and I were called over for help. We worked as a team and were finally able to resolve the issue after rigorous configuration work on the machine. In the next three days, the machine was up-and-running and we started production.

It was a wonderful moment for us when we received appreciation for our hard work from the TTB – R Plant Head, who said that we exhibited excellent problem-solving skills. We were also applauded by the management of PFB, both at Rayong and from the Head Office in India.

For us, SRF has always been a place where we could find new challenges and improve not only our technical skills further but also our people skills. At SRF, we have a culture of teamwork and communication that encourages knowledge-sharing across units and businesses.