FIPDes Story: Unbelievable Journey… Is it really ending?

While working in an in vitro study, even a micro litre of extra addition of reagents can change the results completely… And so is in the life…FIPDes seems to be appeared in my life just like that one drop which changed the results, but positively in this case… On one of the pleasant evening, after submitting the Master Thesis as I sit back on the coast in Portici, looking at those waves and thinking about how this FIPDes experience changed my perspective towards life… I did not realize when I did actually transformed into more open-minded, bold, confident and optimistic person. Now, I have newer approach, a more holistic one towards life.

Landing of Boeing-777 (Mumbai- Paris) seems like yesterday… I still remember how nervous I was… Spending 20 years in a small town in India and then suddenly in Paris… I was in a complete state of shock until FIPDes week… FIPDes consortium welcomed us very kindly and it really helped to boost my confidence… Paris semester initially felt like a stressful one, but it made me a ‘Multitasker’. Living in Ireland helped me to ‘live in the moment’. Italy in the initial half was very exciting. Food, Napolitana people, beaches, culture and the university campus fascinated me to no end… But it started to become equally scarier in the later half as it was soon the hotspot for COVID-19. I was so stressed that I even thought of going back to India. Paola, encouraged and helped me in building the walls of positivity around me in these hard time… This situation helped me in getting that ability of ‘Facing the Situation Smartly’ than running away. Today after two years everything seems to be very easy (travelling, socializing, adapting to different cultures, etc.) Deep introspection gave me realization that ‘I am really a better version of me’. Not just professionally but also as a human being!

FIPDes family will be missed just like my family back home!

Thank You for everything!

Tushar Kulkarni, India, Cohort 8

- Updated September 2020 -