A few days ago, our Sales Officer from Udupi resigned within two weeks of joining, stating that working 8 hours a day was not feasible for him. Today, I met Mr. Mahalingeshwara Bhat, Area Sales Manager at Jyothy Labs Ltd., in the Mangaluru market. Our meeting lasted barely five minutes, but his story was inspiring and left me with a great deal of wisdom—enough to write this post.

Mr. Bhat is now 55, past the official retirement age at his company. Despite that, he has maintained his fitness and continues to work actively in the market after travelling an hour from Puttur. Fieldwork—walking, talking, and selling—is physically demanding, yet he embraces it with enthusiasm.

Jyothy Labs is now a billion-dollar blue-chip company, but when Mr. Bhat joined in 1990, it was a small and modest firm. He started with a monthly salary of ₹1,000. His father was a humble cook, and Mr. Bhat’s story is one of loyalty and mutual growth—he and the company grew together.

He served the company for over 32 years, proudly representing its brand wherever he went. Friends affectionately called him “Ujala Bhatru.” Today, it’s rare to see employees associate themselves so closely with their company or wear uniforms outside work without hesitation.

In the early 2000s, he was entrusted with setting up the Gujarat market. He recruited and trained the sales team, appointed super stockists and distributors—all far from his native place. He hardly got to visit his family and even missed seeing his newborn son for a couple of months. Still, he felt proud of the opportunity and the responsibility. He says the company took him places—both literally and figuratively. In contrast, today’s employees often feel that travelling beyond their office is outside their scope of work.

During the 2002 Gujarat riots, he was confined to a lodge for three days without food. Eventually, the lodge owner brought him homemade food. Yet, Mr. Bhat never blamed the company for what happened. He understood that it was an external situation, beyond anyone’s control—a perspective many lack today.

He has grown slowly and steadily within the same organisation, finding contentment along the way. True happiness lies in being content with what we have. He must have seen younger colleagues, with engineering or MBA degrees from prestigious institutes, surpass him in salary or position. He must have seen peers jump companies for faster growth and worked under various types of bosses. Yet, he remained grounded and loyal.

He continues to feel grateful to the company for providing him with a livelihood and opportunities for growth. He rightly believes that his success came from the consistent effort he put into the business.

While we may not expect today’s generation to work exactly like those before them, it’s still valuable to observe and reflect on how things were done in the past.

Disclosure –
Murali M, Operations Head, is his wife’s younger brother.
Tharanatha S, ASM, reported to him 10 years ago while working at Jyothy Labs.