I would now like to share the story of one of my friends named Jagadeesh(name changed). He joined engineering after finishing his vocational group in his higher secondary school. He received CM reward for the best performance in his higher secondary school. He joined engineering which was his parents wish. We both turned out to be friends right from the beginning of our college days. Even though he was a brilliant boy in his school days, his choice of subject in his higher secondary, his Tamil medium background and our college environment made him score low in his monthly tests.

His repeated low scores in the tests made him feel more uncomfortable to sit in the classes. Within a few days he absconded from the college and the hostel. We day scholars thought that he was in the hostel and the hostlers thought that he should have gone to his native place. We were aware of this incident only when his parents came to see him after few days and found their boy missing. Later he mentioned that he wished to discontinue from his engineering studies as he was finding it very tough, but again the lecturers and his parents somehow convinced  and made him to stay back. He took to go with the choice of his parents and continue studying for the happiness of theirs.

He somehow completed his engineering studies with lot of struggles and was able to make a score of 70% marks. Then came the placements, he never was able to get through any interviews, then he decided to join as a lecturer. During our days, lecturer was the lowest paid jobs for engineers and the people who could not find an apt job for themselves could easily fetch a job in an engineering college as the number of engineering colleges in Coimbatore were more in number. He felt sick to join as a lecturer for the same reason. Finally he got a job as a lecturer in a rural self financing college and served there for a period of three years.

It was only during this stage his parents decided to get him married to a girl who was his relative; this was also against his wish. After his marriage we lost touch with him for the next one year. One fine day morning I received a call from a new number, picked up my cell to find who it was and to my surprise I came to know that it was my friend Jagadeesh. He mentioned that he and his wife got separated as both of them were not interested in the marriage, he also mentioned that he wished not to drag his life anymore. I however convinced him and we both met on the same day. I came to know that his marriage life turned out to be a hell and he had to quit from his job because of the repeated problems he faced with his wife.  I was unable to listen to the stories of my friend. He mentioned that the girl with whom he got married had an affair and it continued even after their marriage. His eyes was filled with tears when he mentioned that she never liked him for even 1% and it was only for the compulsion of her parents she nodded to marry him.

Now he is working as a labourer in a banyan factory, the continuous troubles that he had in his life made him an addict to liquor and discontinue his post graduation which is now the essential for an assistant professor as per the AICTE norms. If his parents had just listened to his thoughts his career would have been successful or if at least they had listened to him during his marriage proposal, they could have saved their son from all the troubles.