Credits - Satyam Mishra, B.Tech, Mechanical Engineering 2025

⁠Where was your third-year summer internship? Domain, Company and City

I interned at ITC, (Location : Bangalore) in FMCG domain.

⁠Can you tell us about the work you were assigned during your internship? What were your responsibilities?

The task assigned to me was to increase the melting point of ITC’s premium range of chocolates, Fabelle, by a significant amount, while preserving its richness in taste and texture. This was a task the company had been trying to achieve for a long time but were unable to achieve a good result. I had to go through a plethora of research papers to find out about what techniques and researches have already been conducted in this field and where we can make certain tweaks in our method to bring out the best result. Not being from a chemistry background,I had to brush up some organic chemistry principles and reactions of biomolecules used in the chocolate industry. As I got a clearer understanding of the problem, I worked my way through by using two mutually exclusive methods on which I worked parallelly. One of which involved choosing the optimal combination of acids to increase the melting under the constraints of quality, taste, texture, and cost. I performed experiments with the optimal combinations obtained and achieved the target. The second method involved molecular simulations of the chocolate molecule. It was my first time working on molecular simulations, but this is where I realized that the biggest perk of being an IITian in the IIT community itself. I contacted some of the seniors who had worked in this field before, via LinkedIn and presented the idea to get a better understanding of the know-how of the software. Finally on the last day, I presented my first solution where the target was attained and also the simulations which ITC could use as another topic to research on and increase the melting point further.

Describe a typical day at your internship. How were your interactions on a daily basis?

I had fixed work hours, needed to clock in at 8:45 AM and end my day around 5:30 PM. During this, I had to study a couple of research papers, hands-on experiment with various mixtures and ideas to test out their performance, interact with my seniors with proper inferences and log in to my day’s work. Interactions with mentors were daily, often multiple times in a day.

Any skills or tools you felt were essential for your internship?

Presentation, delivery and communication. All the other tools, or so to say, can be learnt during the internship. I was able to understand and develop molecular simulations using various softwares like GROMACS, CHARMM-GUI etc, during my stay.

What is something you didn’t know would be a relevant skill to have but helped you in your internship, or what was a skill you were surprised to figure out you needed for your internship?

Not really surprised by anything. I had multiple interactions with seniors before the internship, and I feel I was well equipped with necessary skills.

How was your transition to the city, accommodation, food, and transportation?

I was stationed in Bangalore, staying in a decent guest-house. Lunch was offered at the office, whereas all the other meals were provided at the guest house. Transportation, surprisingly, was also not an issue since my workplace was just a 5 minute walk from the guest house.

How is the work culture like at the company? Were there any inspirational people you met?

At ITC, simply put, it’s a purely work oriented setup. It’s a result-driven company which wants you to be at your best. For anyone who loves a challenging atmosphere, this is an ideal setup.

Any advice for people going to work in the same company?

It’s a great opportunity, make the best of it. One of the best internship experiences where you actually learn and more importantly, do something real. It doesn’t come for placements so having a great internship is the only way to ensure your way in, don’t let it slip :)