Shafi Parambil never bought tiffin from any eatery nor did he pack lunch from home during his college days. Instead he loved to eat whatever was affectionately stored inside the tiny boxes his friends willingly shared with him. This battery of friends enabled him to taste the fruits of victory in the union election in Government Sanskrit College, Pattambi, as a BBA student. He made history by winning the most coveted general secretary post in a Kerala Students Union ticket, breaking the 32-year dominion of the opposition party — Students Federation of India. The 28-year-old, who is an MLA from Palakkad, Kerala, feels his political success is due to the support he garnered during his college days. “I identified that the biggest strength I posses is to communicate and mingle with people quickly. This enabled me to create a circle of friends beyond politics inside the campus,” says Parambil.
He was always surrounded by friends in college. Most of his leisure time was spent watching movies as a group. “I saw films that were high on entertainment. While I am not adamant that all movies carry a message, they must either have an aesthetic value or be entertaining,” he says.
As he was active in politics even in his college life, Parambil didn’t have much time for other things. A strict adherence to his mother’s rules helped Parambil make his campus life useful. “I never gave anyone a chance to ask ‘why he is so?’, not even my teachers.” He claims he never ragged freshers. Instead, he explains, “Ours was a politically sensitive campus. So we never teased or bullied juniors. We welcomed them with sweets, roses and by singing songs. We spent time with them by dining together. This helped us establish a good rapport with them,” he says.
But the popular politician initially created a negative impression among the students as a result of an arrest and subsequent imprisonment. “Though I didn’t indulge in any atrocities, I was put behind the bars. When I got a chance, I explained to my friends what really happened and cleared the bad image.”
An avid fan of cricket and a self-taught bowler, Parambil hoped to become a cricketer at a very young age. “At college, we played cricket just for the sake of playing. We didn’t have any professional approach,” he says. He was the vice-caption of Government Sanskrit College’s cricket team.
Parambil was an eloquent speaker and bagged several prizes at various competitions in school. Things took a different turn when he stepped into college. Rather than becoming a performer, he wanted to be a leader. He was found in the organising team in college. He was desperate to impress on everyone his leadership abilities. He also endured he reflected this character in his appearance too. “When I joined Government Sanskrit College, I was spotted inside the campus wearing casuals. But after six months, I switched over to a complete white attire as politicians are identified by this costume,” he says. But this didn’t last long as a well-stitched uniform (green shirt and black trousers) was awaiting him at West Fort Higher Education trust where he did his MBA.
— meera.manu@newindianexpress.com
