Good bye 2011, Welcome 2012!
2011 was the most happening year for me in the last twenty years. Many things happened during the course of the year when I laughed and I cried - sometimes both at the same time! At times, I also cringed with fear. But, there is one thing that I am proud of - I never lost hope. One of my friends from high school told me this famous saying many moons ago - “When the going gets tough, the tough gets going”. This helped me throughout 2011.
There were so many things happened in my life in 2011. I launched my first multi-player prediction game Khelocricket and it was well received by thousands of people (Techcrunch post.). It is quite satisfying to see when people love your product. I had never worked so hard - I spent early mornings, nights and weekends working on Khelocricket - my roommates and friends can attest to that since I talked to them about Khelocricket only.
I spent five years of my life at Kosmix - joined this fledgling startup in the summer of 2006 (just few weeks after graduating from Stanford). On 18th April 2011, we got acquired by Walmart for $300m+. I achieved what every Stanford student dreams of - work in an early stage startup and take the company to IPO or through acquisition. Kosmix was my family in the US, away from my family in India. I am proud of what my team at Kosmix achieved. It was a BIG roller coaster ride but I must say it was LOT of fun. Everybody should experience this. It will make them a better person.
There were few other things that happened in 2011 that only my close friends know about. I may write about them some other time.
However, there is one thing that I waited for 28 years and I achieved on 2nd April 2011. It was the day India won the cricket world cup. I still remember my emotions when MS Dhoni hit the final six to win the finals against Sri Lanka. I laughed, shouted and cried! I couldn’t believe what was happening. I was at a friend’s house and everybody was hugging each other! We were standing few centimeters away from the TV to watch the awards ceremony as if we couldn’t see the TV from the sofa. It was surreal. It was unreal! Another dream came true in 2011.
2011 was a special year indeed. I am confident that 2012 will be another great year. I welcome 2012 with open arms. Let’s see what is there in the new year. I am ready to explore the new world! It will be lot of fun! Join me in my adventure.
