Many of you may be wondering the origins of my username on Instagram as well as my blogspot username and why it is the way it is. People have had their guesses but none of them even come close to why I chose that unique a name. Yes, some have come really close - but why do I really need that to mean something? Here's the big break-up that you've all been waiting for.
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| The Dark Knight portrayed by Christian Bale |
2011 - I was pursuing my Bachelors degree in Electronics and Communication Engineering at NITK, one of India's best public universities. It was my first time away from home, and my usual surroundings and well, pretty much everything - living the independent life all on my own at the age of 17. It was a scary new world to start with - to put it differently and correctly, I was afraid and was in fear - afraid that I would not be able to live up to the expectations of people around me since I thought at the time that I had a reputation to maintain. One fine day, I watched The Dark Knight and I got hitched to the idea of the Batman and how I could relate to him - a superhero who had channeled his fear for bats into sharing his dread with others looking to corrupt his city who thereby overcame his odds to save the day both for himself and the city of Gotham. It was pure, raw and satisfying to watch since my idea of superheros was really all about having super human strength and having meta-human powers, and yet, he was the most human and believable superhero you could really relate to.
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| The 4D Gang - Shashank, Avinash, JP Sree Gowtham, Bharat Subramanian, Bejesh, Nithin Kamath, Shreyas, Shamanth, Arjun Raghunath and myself - part of the BBA |
My real transformation to understand my fears and to do something about it really happened in 2012 - my sophomore year. I understood that only I was in-charge of my life and that no one could change that; neither could I have control to change other people's lives. Most of friends in my undergrad know that I was a part of the Back-Bench Association of my class and it used to be a little difficult to focus all the way from the back - I had always been someone who was keen to sit close to the black-board and concentrate well and to sudden have that drift in mindset was difficult. Sitting at the back gave me a whole new perspective of me as well as of those around me (well, they were some of the best minds in the country for a reason)- I could selectively understand what the lecturer was trying to convey and also selectively channel my thoughts on the subject and learn it differently in a way that I could relate to. And I quickly made notes to myself about that. That really helped, not just me, but also my fellow back-benchers who also relied on my notes for a few extra bits of info that I had jotted down. There was also mutual respect and appreciation from my lecturers and my friends when I decided to not sit for campus placements (for a backup option) since I had already decided that I wanted to pursue my Masters. I was taking a risk, but I did not want to be responsible for others missing out on an opportunity that they could have had, had I pursued for a job at that age. I also respect a lot of others too who followed my suite and gave everyone a fair opportunity at cracking what was probably rightfully theirs. Thus, most of them said that I was their Dark Knight - a silent guardian and their watchful protector whom they adored.
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| Stephen Amell as Oliver Queen, AKA Green Arrow |
Most people could only adhere to this aspect to my username. At the time, my roll call was 11EC14. Life at NITK shaped me into what I am today. Hence, I was tdk14 (abbreviated for 'The Dark Knight'). So how did Archer get appended to my username? I was into Archery from a very young age - really, all Olympic sports intrigued me - but there was something about Archery. Arjun, the brave warrior from Mahabharatha (India's ancient epic) himself was considered as one of the best in the business at that age. Oliver Queen - the Green Arrow from DC Comics - who also has similar stories in line with the Batman was an interesting character whom I could relate to. He had his own missions - to honor his father's and best friend's memories and save the city that was bleeding through corruption, bloodshed and violence - and the hard work and sacrifices that he had to endure to achieve them. Thinking about what all my parents have done for me, I think my username containing the word 'Archer' really refers to them and their sacrifices in bringing me up to who I am today.
And finally, The Trojan. Many of you may not know this - I really wanted to pursue my Masters at UCLA - this was really my dream college at the time since they had one of the finest professors who was researching low power VLSI Design - Behzad Razavi - my area of interest. But as destiny may have it, I got a reject from UCLA and an acceptance from their arch-rival USC and the very first day I had gotten to LA, I had been to Westwood and gave them the finger - cementing myself as a Trojan for life. Life at USC taught me a lot of life lessons that I hadn't garnered along the way in my undergrad years - rejection, failures, assignments/ homeworks, cracking exams, trying to be your best amid all those bright minds and also, to compete at the highest level for jobs in a very cut-throat world. USC taught me how to be humble and accept things as they were and take things as they came. We are in-charge of our own destiny and we get to shape it the way we want it to. I've already iterated that the most important lesson that I've learnt from USC is to NEVER GIVE UP and to always keep FIGHTING ON! That lesson is what makes me call myself a proud Trojan every time.
So, there you go - my username - deciphered in it's raw form. All these aspects have defined my personality today and I'd be nothing without carrying forward these thoughts and life lessons. Hope this inspires some of you guys who may get to read this blog post completely - and even if there is 1 guy who is motivated by this - I'd consider myself a lucky man! Thanks for reading through.
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