Raipur runs on aloo bonda and there's a thela outside my office that keeps me alive through the shift. Add their green chutney and suddenly the night is bearable. Chhattisgarh's street food is criminally underrated, I said what I said.

Nobody warned me that 'corporate casual' is a trap. I wore my best shirt on day one and everyone else was in tees. Small-town kid learning that fitting in costs confidence, not money.

Night shift does strange things — the whole city sleeps and I'm awake solving strangers' problems. Around 4am I look out the window and miss the sound of my mother grinding spices at dawn. Homesickness hits hardest when the headset comes off.

My first salary came and I cried a little, not going to lie. Sent half home, opened a small RD, and kept just enough for one plate of chilla as celebration. First person in my family to earn from a computer — that plate tasted like the whole village.

mute button saved me

First week on the floor, a customer shouted for ten minutes and I forgot the mute button even exists. My team lead just smiled and said everyone freezes once. Now I mute, breathe, and answer like a human — turns out the job is 20% skill and 80% not panicking.