Street Talk: 'I am what I am because my father believed in me'

His father's belief in him and support for all his major decisions altered life's course for Balakrishna Gopinath.
Had his father not supported him in his decision that changed his career path, he would have been working as a lecturer in his hometown Calicut in the Indian state of Kerala.
"It's not something I didn't like, but I wanted to do more," says the Dubai-based Balakrishna. "I was studying for my masters at a community college and was expected to join the same college as a lecturer, but instead I got a job as a pharmaceutical representative."
Balakrishna's extended family was against this decision. His father, however, encouraged him to take up the job.
Today, Balakrishna is the head of operations for transport services in GEMS group and has been associated with the company for the past 18 years.
Though his father is no more, Balakrishna remembers him as the man who gave his son a chance to grow.
"My later father was an open-minded person. He always encouraged me to do as I pleased and said that if anything ever went wrong, he was always there for me," says Balakrishna.
Moving to the UAE 20 years ago was one such major decision, Balakrishna says. It gave him a chance to grow. "We have a better quality of life and my children have better exposure."
Living in the UAE has also given him choices to seek opportunities elsewhere along with comfort, safety and a sense of security.
"My two daughters came to the UAE when they were very young but I was able to send them to Canada along with my wife. Today they are Canadian citizens but are back in the UAE after completing their studies."
Balakrishna also has a piece of advice for the younger generation.
Though exposure for children in today's world is higher, levels of imagination are low. "This is because they are no longer reading," he says. "If you read, for example, about a murder, you imagine how it is done ... there is a lot of mental visualisation, but if you are watching it on TV or the Internet, there is no scope for imagination."
He also says children of his generation were dependent on parents. "This is a good thing and a bad thing.
"Due to over exposure of information, children are taking decisions by themselves and becoming too independent, though mentally they are still not mature enough to handle all this information."
Interviewed by Asma Ali Zain
asmaalizain@khaleejtimes.com
Street Talk is a weekly column to get a glimpse of people's lives in the UAE

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