Recap Year 2025

This is going to be another long post as I try to write down my personal recap of 2025.

Looking back, January 2025 feels like it belongs to the last century. Right now, it feels like a long, long time ago in my mind—even though it was just twelve months ago—compared to the whole quarter-century that has passed so quietly.

January – March

The Brutal Beginning

The year started with a marathon on the first weekend, involving a quick trip to Chennai and back. On the work front, things were looking grim. My management line was a mess, and it had been in the making for a while. Each week and every Monday was a drag. Mentally, I was in really bad shape, but somehow running and having another marathon in February kept me going.

Looking back, I really don’t know how I survived January. It was brutal. It’s a shame that the so-called “System” and the long trainings of Human Resources just don’t do anything when you have the wrong boss at the top.

February started with the Jaipur Marathon. I flew there on Friday evening. The run started at 3:00 AM on Sunday, and same day late night I reached back home. Most of that trip is already documented in my blog.

On the work front, the “Super Boss” made a trip from London to India, and I had to do that whole “dance” again with HR and my manager. He was the one who made my life miserable for reasons unknown to me, other than perhaps the fact that I had been with the organization for a long time.

April – June

The Breaking Point - The Exit

March, April, and May were very similar. On the work and personal fronts, nothing much was happening. I tried my best to stay sane by running as much as I could, but it wasn’t helping much. I complained to HR, but they never even replied to my email. But the same person in the office corridor said a warm hello and apologized that she had not replied to the mail yet. By May, it was certain: my employment was coming to an end.

I had drafted another email to fight back, but I decided to take advice from a friend whom I consider my “North Pole” during difficult times. He asked me a simple question: “What happens if, instead of honoring your email, HR just terminates you?”

I realized I had no support from a system that talks about high morals but rarely acts on them. He suggested that instead of fighting a losing battle, I should accept their narrative of “failure” for a moment, ask for time, and see if they were actually willing to give it. I dropped the email and waited.

June 10th is a day I still remember vividly. Within 30 seconds of the meeting, they gave me two options: continue the “dance” of a Performance Improvement Plan (PIP) or take a severance package and move out in the next 48 hours. Before they could even finish the sentence, I opted for the second. There was nothing more for me to do there.

It was a heartbreaking experience after almost 25 years, but it happens to the best of us. There is no emotional bond in corporate life. I feel sorry for those who perpetuate these toxic environments; they aren’t improving the company’s performance or its talent—they are just exercising power.

June 12th was my last day, I handed over my laptop without even sending a goodbye mail to my colleagues. As I was going back home that afternoon, I realized my loss was a small thing in the grand scheme of the world; news broke that an Air India flight from Ahmedabad to London had been lost shortly after takeoff. I realized that if life and serendipity had a plan for me, I just had to go with it.

July – September

Just keep running

I expedited my job search, talking to more people than I can count—some I hadn’t spoken to in 20 years. It was nice connecting back, hearing how life had treated them over the last two and a half decades. I kept applying, meeting with rejections or, more often, silence.

But amidst the struggle, I got lucky. I got a break at a beautiful place in August.

While the job hunt was ongoing, I traveled in July for the Pachmarhi Marathon to check Madhya Pradesh off my list. It was a great trip where I reconnected with college friends and alumni.

Then came the Hyderabad Marathon. This was my 10th year running this event, and I was running as an official Pacer. Hyderabad will always remain close to my heart because the job confirmation came while I was at the Expo that Saturday. I was incredibly grateful.

Visited Siliguri for a week, spent some time with my mother, and for the first time, regularly ran inside the North Bengal University campus and met up with two young runners.

Also made a quick trip to Tirupati with a super-comfortable KSRTC Volvo; the best part was a grateful darshan. Post-darshan, I rushed to Kanchipuram from Tirupati to meet up with my college buddy Murthy. Murthy landed in Chennai almost the same time i reached Tirupati from Tirumala. We visited few famous temples Kachipuram. It was an exciting 36 hours on the road, traveling by no-frills public state transport buses. Pics are here

September was special as we celebrated the 50th birthday of Pamela with friends and family. Last week of Sept 7 1st week of Oct, we took a quick trip to Udupi with my brother’s family—a great break before starting new work.

October – December

Real Low

Life felt normal again until the last week of October changed everything. A friend who shared the same name as me walked into the hospital feeling chest discomfort. Within a couple of hours, he was no longer with us. I still can’t process it. He was just a month short to celebrate his 50th birthday, life is real cruel only sometimes good things happens in random. The image of his young son performing the last rites flashes in my mind constantly.

Despite the grief, I had a marathon planned in Kashmir on November 2nd. I flew to Srinagar and completed the run. To close out the year, I finished the Raipur Marathon to cover Chhattisgarh.

I am also very happy for Anupamdaa running his first half Marathon and Kolkata 25K, one of the major races in India. Was just a phone call and WhatsApp buddy for Anupamdaa, this was his hard work and feels good to share something I love.