After graduating from college, Feroz worked as an IT trainer at a school in his home state of Kerala. His work was stress-free and he was living with his parents, but, according to Feroz, "it made my dad unsatisfied." Feroz explained that his father, the president of a local bank, considered his job very important and was disappointed to see his son in such an insignificant job. When one of his father's clients said he needed someone to manage his company's branch in Guangzhou, his father immediately thought of Feroz and said to the client, "I can recommend someone you can absolutely trust."

大学毕业后，迈克在家乡印度喀拉拉邦（Kerala）的一所学校做IT培训师，工作没有压力，和父母住在一起也衣食无忧，“但这样的状态让我爸爸很看不过去”。迈克说，他的父亲是当地一家银行的行长，是一个把工作看得很重要的人，看到儿子如此懒散，他十分不满。当父亲一个客户说想要找一个放心的人管理他在广州的分公司时，迈克的父亲马上想到了自己的儿子，他告诉客户：“我向你推荐一个人，这个人你绝对可以放心。”

Feroz did not understand his father at first; he had never intended to leave home, let alone go to a country about which he knew nothing. But eventually Feroz listened to his father and came to China.

父亲的决定，迈克一开始很不理解，他从来没有离开家的打算，何况是去一个自己一点都不了解的国家。最后，迈克还是听父亲的话来到中国。

Lost at first

初来乍到，似是人在囧途

Speaking about his first trip to China, Feroz recalled with a smile that he felt like he was in a real-life version of one of his favorite Chinese films, Lost on Journey. He knew nothing about China at the time, even though he had loved watching Chinese movies since he was a child. He used to watch martial arts movies, which gave him the impression that all Chinese people practiced martial arts and were constantly flying all over the place. "Before leaving home, my mother kept telling me, 'Don't go out at night, and be safe.'"

说到自己刚到中国时的情景，迈克非常幽默地说，那就是他最喜欢的一部中国电影《人在囧途》的现实版。迈克说，他对当时的中国并没有太多的概念，虽然他从小就喜欢看中国电影。看的都是武打片，印象里中国人都会武术，会飞来飞去。“来之前妈妈一直叮嘱我，‘晚上不要出门，要注意安全。’”

Because of the language barrier, Feroz even had problems finding a meal during his first month in China. After several weeks of nothing but McDonald's and KFC, he was almost hospitalized, so he forced himself to go to a local restaurant and learn to order food. "At first, I looked at what other people were eating and asked for the same dish. When talking about money, I basically relied on a calculator to see the price and then bargained with the seller." Later, he slowly learned to speak some simple Chinese and adapted to local life.

因为语言不通，到中国的第一个月，迈克连吃饭都成问题。一个月的麦当劳加肯德基，差一点让他住院，也逼得他不得不主动走进餐厅，学着点菜。“刚开始是看别人吃什么，就要一份一样的，谈价格，基本都靠计算器按出价格，再和对方讨价还价。” 后来，他慢慢学会了讲一些简单的中文，也适应了当地的生活。

From big city to small city

从大城市到小城市

The choice to move to Wuyi had a lot to do with Hu Zhen, Feroz's current boss. Soon after arriving in Guangzhou, Feroz became a close acquaintance of Hu Zhen, thanks to their business relations. In 2005, Hu switched careers, undertaking a new business in gardening tools, and invited Feroz to join him. At first, Feroz did not want to move to Wuyi. He felt that life in small cities was not as convenient as it was in big cities. With this in mind, Hu set up a company branch in Ningbo, which was more appealing to Feroz. While there, a client came to negotiate and brought along a friend to translate - a graduate of Peking University. The translator, Li Xiaoqiong, later became Feroz's wife.

来到武义，跟现在的老板胡震有很大的关系。刚到广州不久，迈克因为业务关系和胡震成了哥们。2005年，胡震改行做园林工具，邀请迈克加入。一开始，迈克并不太想来武义，觉得小城市不像大城市那样生活便利。考虑到迈克的顾虑，胡震在宁波设立了分公司。在宁波生活工作期间，一次一位客户来谈业务时，带了一位朋友来做翻译，这位北大毕业的翻译李晓琼后来成了迈克的妻子。

In order to make communication easier, Feroz brought his wife to Jinhua in 2006. When he first came to Wuyi, he felt like life was still a bit inconvenient. After a while, though, he found that Wuyi was pleasantly quiet, and the locals were very friendly. "No one has ever been rude to me here," said Feroz. He decided to make downtown Jinhua his home and commuted between the two cities daily.

为了沟通方便，2006年迈克带着妻子来到金华。刚来武义时，他还是觉得有点不方便。不过一段时间下来，他发现武义虽小，但十分安静，这里的人都非常友好。“在这里，我从来没遇到过任何对我不礼貌的人或事。” 迈克说，他把家安在了金华市区，基本上每天两点一线。

Life both in downtown Jinhua and Wuyi was not as frenetic as in Guangzhou, but not as slow as in his hometown, which turned out to be a happy medium for him.

金华市区、武义的生活节奏不像广州那么快，但也没有家乡那么慢，对他来说正合适。

No matter how busy he is with work, in the evenings Feroz finds time to be with his wife and children. On weekends, he usually meets with friends to go to the park, hike the surrounding mountains, or just hang out at home. "The Indian food I make is delicious, and everyone likes it."

平时工作再忙，晚上迈克都会抽出时间陪妻子和孩子，周末他经常约上朋友去逛公园、爬山或到家里聚会。“我做的印度菜很好吃，大家都很喜欢。”

Special thanks to his family

获得 “西湖友谊奖”，特别感谢家人

In recent years, the company has gradually transitioned from original equipment manufacturing to creating a unique brand and researching and developing new products. Along with his expertise in marketing, Feroz exerts his own strengths in product development that come, in part, from having studied mechanical engineering in college. The hedge scissors his team developed were awarded the China Red Dot Design Award.

这些年企业逐步进入转型期，从代工到创立自己的品牌、研发新产品，发展稳健。大学里学习机械工程的迈克，不仅在营销方面业绩突出，在产品研发上也发挥出自己的强项。他带领团队研发的绿篱剪，获得过中国设计红点奖。

In 2015, Feroz was awarded the provincial-level West Lake Friendship Award thanks to his expertise and outstanding contributions in the industry. Feroz said that he is very grateful to his father. If his father had not pushed him out of his comfort zone, he would not have achieved any of this. He is even more grateful to his wife for giving up her career in Ningbo and coming to Wuyi with him. "I have a happy family in a foreign country."

因为在行业内的突出表现，2015年，迈克被浙江省政府授予 “西湖友谊奖”。迈克说，他特别感谢父亲，要不是父亲当年把他从舒适圈里赶出来，他不会有这样的成绩，他更感谢妻子，放弃在宁波的事业来武义陪伴他，让他在异国他乡拥有了美满的家庭。

(Photo by Sheng Zan and Feroz Basheer, text by Sheng Zan, translated by Marco Lovisetto, edited by Kendra Fiddler)

本文为节选

来源：iJinhua