There Comes Another Engineer

After leaving the office, I had called a friend. We were roommates and batchmates during engineering. Since we both lived in the same city, we often spoke.

He picked up the call and said, “The plumber is here, I’ll call you later,” before disconnecting.

After a while, he called back and, without listening to anything, started talking about the plumber.

That plumber used to work at his company, which is why my friend had called him. But he hadn’t been seen in the office for a few days, so my friend asked him about it.

The plumber began explaining. He was speaking in Hindi.

“Sir, I had a fight with my manager. I was asking for a night shift, but he refused. He told me, ‘If you don’t want to work in the day shift, quit the job.’ So, I left the job.”

He said this so casually that my friend was stunned—and I was, too, when I heard it.

My friend asked him more questions, and the plumber continued—

“Sir, I was getting a salary of rupees 26,000 there, and I had to stay there all day. Now, I take 7-8 calls a day and easily earn rupees 4,000-5,000. I provide night services too. I don’t take less than rupees 500 per visit. On days when I have personal work, I just turn off my phone. My wife works at a nearby hospital and earns 20,000. Together, we make over a lakh without paying any taxes. We have two kids; both study in an English-medium school. I always wanted to do this, but I had to take a job for the sake of marriage.”

My friend narrated this whole thing in one breath.

It’s not that he is struggling financially—he holds a high position in a major software company, has spent a few years abroad, owns a flat, a car, everything. I also earn decently at my job.

But without explicitly saying it, we both understood what the other was thinking.

After my 10th grade, my father had suggested that I do a fridge/AC repair course during the vacation. My mother, however, strongly opposed it, saying, “Why are you saying such things? Instead of making him a doctor or engineer, you’re suggesting this?” And the topic ended there.

Later, I became an engineer, did my MBA, struggled a bit like everyone else, and now, I’m well-settled.

The point isn’t that I became an engineer while he remained a mere plumber.

The real point is that he is his own boss, while my friend and I are employees. Like many engineers—except a few exceptions—we are still employees. The difference lies only in salary, level, company status, and amenities.

But what we lack is the freedom that the plumber has, the ability to live life on his own terms. And that realization deeply unsettled both of us.

It made me wonder—has our education become a limitation in our thinking? If we hadn’t studied so much, would we have also become plumbers, electricians, or something similar?

Our parents educated us based on what they knew and saw around them. But now that we understand a little more, why are we still following the same path?

What is bothering us? That a plumber earns as much or more than us? That he can take time off whenever he wants? That he doesn’t even have to pay taxes?

Our mindset hasn’t changed yet. Even today, no one would want their child to become a plumber.

And I think that is the real issue.