Gopa Vasanth
Like every year, 2024 brought its share of challenges and triumphs. The initial half of the year was particularly tough. While I focused on studying and earning certifications, it was also a time of learning to cope with difficult situations, navigating emotional setbacks for the first time, and losing people I never thought I’d have to let go of—especially close friends. Despite these hardships, I stayed committed to Open Source, traveling, and my regular work.
I’m deeply grateful to my incredible UG friends, especially Sreejith for always cheering me on, guiding me, and motivating me to move in the right direction, especially during the tough times. With their support, I slowly emerged from that challenging phase and shifted my focus to self-improvement and career growth.
This year also marked some incredible milestones: I traveled to four international countries - Estonia 🇪🇪, Latvia 🇱🇻, Lithuania 🇱🇹, and Finland 🇫🇮, Also explored four new states in India 🇮🇳 - Assam, Meghalaya, Orissa and Madhyapradesh. Here’s a list of my accomplishments and key moments from 2024. Through the ups and downs, 2024 proved to be a year of resilience, growth, and discovery, entering into a new chapter in my life.
January - March
- Kicked off the year with a campus tour at Cisco, courtesy of Sreejith!
- I had a fantastic exchange of knowledge with university colleagues about OpenSource, GSoC, and Wikimedia! 🌟 Their insights brightened my day with happiness. 🎉 Check out the post on X.
- One wicket down in my friend’s circle – Radh got married in Palakkad. 💍
- Spoke at the Wikimedia Technology Training 2024 (26th Feb) and shared my insights. Twitter link.
- Delivered a talk on the VideoCutTool along with Soham Datta during the Wikimedia Tech Safari (10th Feb). Check out the architecture here.
- Presented the tool we built - OSM at the SAP Dkom DemoJam and made it to the qualifiers!
- Continued progressing through the Kubernetes CKA course.
- Started diving into System Design with the book System Design Interview: An Insider’s Guide by Alex Xu.
- Faced a deep personal loss—my beloved grandmother, who always believed in my potential, passed away. 💔
- Installed a Wall of Fame at home, my favorite addition to the space. 📸✨
- Met my mentor, Vipin Sir, at Amrita, Bangalore! After years, he made my day by calling me, and we caught up over lunch.
- Participated in Wishathon March 2024 and built DabFix with Soham. Check out the tool here and the outcomes here.
- Had dinner and reconnected with Ashutosh, an inspiring senior and accomplished security expert. It felt great to catch up after 4 years since our undergrad days!
April - June
- Switched projects from SAP SuccessFactors to the SAP Central Business Configuration. Thanks to Puneeth, Lakshmi for all the support!
- Reunited with UG friends Santoosh (tech guru from the US), Vinay Babu (the business geek), and several others. We spent an amazing day together in Bangalore.
- Went on my first trek in Bangalore to Makali Durga with my cousin and UG friends, followed by some thrilling bike rides. 🏞️🏍️
- Sadly, we lost our beloved volkswagen car due to a natural calamity. 😞
- Presented the tool OSM we have built as a team at SAP’s Dkom and DemoJam, two prestigious events!
- Visited Jammalamadugu for its famous local festival, Rathotsavam, with my cousins.
- Built Year in Review at WMHack 2024 in Tallinn, Estonia, along with Varun and Parthiv.
- Traveled to the most peaceful country, Finland (Helsinki), and explored the beautiful Baltic countries—Latvia and Lithuania—with my travel buddies. ✈️
- Delivered a session on Wikimedia tech areas and PAWS at the Cloud Native Community Groups event. Event details.
- Had a memorable day in Bangalore catching up with my childhood MBBS friend.
- Achieved a small milestone by completing my Kubernetes CKA certification. 🎉
- Won gold in the Internal SAP Badminton Tournament with my partner Gokul! 🏆
July - September
- Earned the AWS Cloud Practitioner Certification 🎓✨.
- Reunited with my UG buddies MK, Bhanu, and Ani—some of my closest friends. We had a great time catching up!
- Organized an Indic Wikimedia Mini-Hackathon in Guwahati alongside the Indic MediaWiki Developers User Group (IMDUG).
- Ticked off a major bucket-list item by visiting the stunning Meghalaya with friends. We explored Cherrapunji, Dawki, and Shillong—absolutely beautiful!🏞️🌿
- Represented IMDUG at IndiaFOSS 4.0, showcasing the powerful software behind Wikipedia—MediaWiki. We also hosted the fun WikiGame at the event.
- Learned Ansible and Terraform in DevOps and completed a minor project for hands-on experience.
- Started mentoring on Topmate and was thrilled to earn the Top 5% Badge in just a few weeks! 🏅
- Took a memorable trip to Nandi Hills with friends from SAP, a long time on my wishlist since I moved to Bangalore. 🚗✨
- Delivered a talk on the tech ecosystem of Wikimedia projects at WikiClub Tech.
- Had an unexpected and wonderful day in Bangalore with my childhood friend from Pondicherry—a moment I’ll always cherish!
October - December
- Celebrated Dussehra in Dhone with all my relatives. It was heartwarming to reconnect and strengthen our bonds. Post. 🎉❤️
- Attended the 3rd Wikimedia Technology Summit (WTS 2024) at the Hyatt in Hyderabad, where we presented our UG annual plan.
- Organized a mini-hackathon alongside Abhijeet Patro, resulting in the creation of the initial version of the Translate Tagger tool!
- Launched the Indic MW Technical Forum Telegram group to connect and collaborate with the community.
- Delivered a MediaWiki training session at SATI, Vidisha - Madhya Pradesh! 🎤
- Explored vibrant streets of Indore, including Sarafa Bazar, Rajwada Palace, and Chappan Street as well as the charming city of Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh. Special thanks to Suyash Ji for hosting a lovely dinner at his home in Bhopal!
- Attended the Train-the-Trainer (TTT) program in Bhubaneswar, Odisha, and enjoyed some great local sightseeing, thanks to Sailesh!
- Celebrated the wedding of my dearest Bava - Shannu in Jammalamadugu.
- Bidding farewell to SAP! 🙌 Huge thanks to Ankriti, JK, and Narayan for making my last days truly memorable ❤️🎉
- 💼 Started my journey with American Express (Amex) in Bangalore!
- Had an amazing day bonding with my new Amex colleagues at the beautiful Odyssey Resort, Bengaluru.
- Led a national-level Wikimedia technical hackathon in Bhubaneswar.
- Thanks to my friend Manideep for staying along with me, making me smile every day, and cooking the most amazing homemade food! 😋
- Wrapped up the year with an unforgettable road trip to Mysore with my Wiki friends—so much fun and great memories along the way!
2024 was a year of healing, growth, and cherished experiences. From travels to new milestones and heartfelt connections, it was truly a journey of learning and joy. Here’s to embracing 2025 with an open heart, doing what brings me happiness, and excelling in my new role at Amex. Wishing you all peace and harmony in the years ahead. Happy New Year 2025! ❤️