Stepping Back, Moving Forward: A Season of Reset
2025 was a phase of stepping back. I walked away from my PhD program, spent time reflecting, and slowly started building Edge Robotics Studio. It wasn’t a year of rushing forward it was more about slowing down, understanding myself, and figuring out what I truly wanted to do. I also spent a lot of time with my family, something I hadn’t done properly in years. Along the way, I started letting go of certain responsibilities and allowed myself to take a break from everything. There was no clear plan, just space to think, reset, and begin again in a different way.
As 2026 started, that phase didn’t end it continued, but with a slight shift. This time, it was about stepping out of my comfort zone and trying to move forward with what I had started building something of my own. And that’s how the year began.
Returning to Familiar Ground
At the start of January 2026, I moved back to Gandhinagar, a place that holds an important part of my journey. It’s where I once began my PhD, and also where I chose to walk away from it. Coming back this time felt different, not as a student, but as someone who had already gone through that phase and come out of it with a different perspective. Most of the month was spent reconnecting with old friends, familiar places, and also with myself. At the same time, I was quietly looking for new opportunities and trying to settle back into the same environment, but with a changed mindset. There was something comforting about it, being around people and places I already knew made things feel a little more stable. January ended on a quieter note, as I took a short break from the city and went back to my village, spending a few days with my family. It was simple, but necessary, a small pause before continuing again.
Reconnecting with My Roots
February was mostly about connecting with people who could help me build Edge Robotics Studio. That search led me back to my old college makerspace, one of my favorite places where I had spent time during my PhD program while doing my TA duties. Going back there felt natural. To reconnect with old friends and to use the makerspace for my own creative work, I started an internship at MakerBhavan, which gave me a space to work, think, and slowly get back into building again. During February, I also visited my graduation college to meet some potential contributors for Edge Robotics Studio, and it felt really good to return to these places after such a long time. There was a sense of familiarity, but also a new purpose behind being there. February ended with a feeling of hope and positive energy. Toward the end of the month, I visited my parents as they are now living by themselves, and spending time with them was simple, but important.
Taking the First Steps
March started with me moving to a place near my college, where the makerspace is located. It was a good decision because it allowed me to invest more time in building Edge Robotics Studio, and being closer to the makerspace made it easier to stay consistent and focused on my work. At the same time, it was a little difficult, as I was leaving behind my old city life and friends. Even though I still meet them occasionally on weekends when I visit the city, it’s not the same as before, but this shift felt necessary. March was also the month when I started my first project under Edge Robotics Studio, the Edge AI Manipulator, which was a small but important step toward actually building something real, not just thinking about it. Toward the end of the month, I had to make another tough decision and chose to move away from the makerspace to invest more focused time into building Edge Robotics Studio in my own way.
A New Direction
April started with me spending some time in Gandhinagar to complete a few formalities. Since I moved away from MakerBhavan, I started spending more time with myself, reconnecting with some old friends, and planning my next steps for building Edge Robotics Studio. During this time, I was also looking for places that could offer a similar environment to a makerspace, but with a stronger focus on helping people solve real-life problems. I reached out to a few such places and asked for opportunities, received some positive responses, and started evaluating which direction would be right for me and for the future of Edge Robotics Studio. After spending a few days in Gandhinagar, I moved back to my village. It has been a slower phase again, and I’m enjoying being back, spending time with my family, and taking this time to recharge before the next step. Along with this, I revisited the mission and vision of Edge Robotics Studio, made some changes, and started taking steps to align my work with that direction.
During April, I also connected with Vigyan Ashram in Pabal, known as one of the early rural innovation centers and a pioneering makerspace initiative in India, and I received a positive response to my request. April ended with me traveling to Pabal and starting to explore the kind of projects they are building and how they work closely with the community. I’m planning to begin my fellowship at Vigyan Ashram, and for now, I’m just letting things unfold. Let’s see how it goes until the next blog, bye bye.