In 1994, when we graduated as the fifth batch, the Penta batch, the world outside our residential campus was just beginning to shift. India was opening up its economy. Liberalization was in motion, bringing opportunity, uncertainty, and the promise of a larger stage. We did not quite know it then, but the seeds planted on campus were preparing us for more than careers. They were preparing us for life in all its complexity.
Our college friendships were shaped not only in classrooms, but also in corridors, late-night conversations, shared food, shared dreams, and the quiet understanding of growing up together. These bonds were not incidental. They were formative. They gave us a taste of community, resilience, and ambition that would carry us through the decades ahead.
Since then, we have ridden many waves. We have experienced the highs of a booming tech industry and faced the challenges of recessions and resets. Some of us became founders, CEOs, and business leaders. We built lives in cities across the world. We married, loved deeply, raised families, and some of us have faced the pain of losing loved ones far too soon. We have gone through divorces, celebrated long partnerships, welcomed grandchildren, and grieved for classmates who are no longer with us.
Yet here we are. Still curious. Still learning. Still reaching for new horizons.
Today, as we witness the rise of Generative AI and new technologies, it is clear the horizon continues to expand. It always has. What once felt like the future has become the past, and what lies ahead remains thrilling and uncertain.
Some of us feel we are just getting started, with fresh energy and a sense of new purpose. Others are thinking about winding down, reflecting, giving back, or simply savoring what has been built. Both are valid. Both are beautiful.
This magazine captures a glimpse of these journeys, each one unique yet connected by a shared beginning. As we turn its pages, let us remember that the horizon is not a destination. It is a direction. And together, we continue to move forward.
Here is to evolving. Here is to friendship. Here is to the Penta spirit.
