Love triumphs all

“We both enrolled for our PhD just two weeks apart in the same department and like most Bollywood blockbuster love stories, started out by hating each other’s guts. However, during these little encounters, we realized that there was way too much we had in common like, 80’s music, Disney, Marvel, TV shows and silly jokes. Soon we turned frenemies and then, before we knew it, we were a couple; a couple in a toxic setup.

My supervisor despised Samvit mostly because he used to be quite vocal against various department policies. From restricting laboratory access to banning our tea breaks, he tried everything to ensure we weren’t spending even a second together. On the contrary, Samvit’s supervisor was more supportive and protected him from any slander. Things improved once we started publishing papers though.

Despite all the drama, unbeknownst to the interfering parties, our relationship grew. We got to know each other better, found time to spend together, hang out with friends, play sports or even plan academic events together. We always had this special connection: there are so many pictures where we’ve been totally distracted among ourselves while everyone else was posing for the camera. But yes, one of our defining moments was when, after a long day at work, I would go to Samvit’s place and he’d make chai, pick up his guitar and we’d jam over chai and biscuits. To me, that was it!