On the eve of the new year, I look back at the year that was and quite an eventful year it was, at least from my perspective.
January : The year begun with the CAT results right in the first week of January. Now, as most of my friends know, that I had written CAT just for the heck of it without any preparation. I still vividly remember the day of the CAT results. Me and Puneet had gone to give the monthly rent to our landlords. On our way back (which was a 15 minute walk), as we had nothing better to do, we started calling up people asking about their results. But I had no answer for them when I was asked for the same. And since the CAT website gets choked on the day of the results, I had to wait for a couple of hours after reaching home to get to know the results. I was very surprised with the results (99.98 was not what I had expected).
February-March : Then came the spate of interviews for all the IIMs (Thankfully it was only the IIMs as I had written no other exam and not applied to any other college). The only sad part for me was that I had to shorten my long hair :( .Luckily, I had a very good manager, so, I could tell him exactly what was going on.
The most memorable of the interviews was the IIMC interview. That was a long story in itself. (Click to read IIMC Interview and Convocation Trip).
April : I was due to visit Neta, one of my best friends, who resided in Pune on the day when the results were ultimately declared (after many many delays in the result announcement). Before getting on the flight, I only knew about 2 results (IIMA, which I didn't get through and one of the L,I,K which I got through but but didn't matter as I had decided to join only A,B or C). Hence, I was not too happy getting on the flight. But as soon as I landed, I was flooded with calls from my freinds informing me that I got through all IIMs except A. That was a very happy moment for me. So, that trip was memorable to me for one more reason (the other being the ultimate fun I had with Neta and Kholu, which Neta might not have liked too much because he was our target all the time for all the Jokes :P).
April-May :Ohhhh, how did I ever forget IPL, the rush and excitement of a cricket match in the time of a football match. It was so successful that movie theaters at those times suffered huge losses. It did not matter to us (me and Puneet who are cricket maniacs), that Bangalore did not win any match we had gone to see at the stadium. And we provided Bangalore with huge number of opportunities. We saw Bangalore hammered single handedly by McCullum in the opener, to them throwing away a match from winning position against Chennai. But once you are in the stadium, you simply don't care. It did not for me especially as I supported the Delhi Daredevils. But IPL was the best thig to happen as it provided us something to do in the evenings - either at the stadiums or at home watching it on TV.
June : The most important decision during this time was to decide between IIMB and IIMC. Different people gave me different perspectives. And as someone rightly says,"The More you think about it, the more confused you become". Ultimately, it came down to a impulse decision which I still feel was the right decision. This month also signified my resignation from my job, which was a very amicable affair and my trip to Mumbai for my cousin Rajiv's wedding with Shreya. Marriages are always fun affairs with the entire family getting an excuse for getting together. I enjoyed to the hilt with all my cousins. The fact that I got along well with Shreya added to my delight :)
July : This signified my entry into the much revered IIM-Bangalore. Everyone around me was telling me that people aspire to be there and I got it on a silver platter without much hard work. The first week of the time here at IIM would be something I would never forget in my entire life. An elaborate prank that is customary to the IIMs is played by the seniors where all the new students are made to work so hard that many people simply start bucking under pressure or become defiant to all the workload. I simply believed that this was something that was expected of IIM students as everyone told me how hectic MBA life is. Most of July was spent adjusting to the MBA lifestyle, although it did not need much adjusting.
August : Come August, it was time for the Inter-IIM sports meet, Samhar played annually between IIMB and IIMC. And one of the things I liked the most about coming back to campus was the opportunity to play volleyball again. IIMB decimated IIMC with a scoreline of 15-2 with me and my team contributing to that scoreline with a win in volleyball. I was singled out for hooting by the opposing team because I was playing Libero and hence wore a different colour jersey. Little did they know that the level of hooting was nothing compared to what I had endured in Spardha, Udghosh or even the inter-hostels while playing in IT-BHU.
September : Most of September was spent working on project submissions etc. That was the most uneventful month of the year for me.
October : Most of October was spent attending company PPTs and resume and form submissions for the summer placement process. None of us liked attending those PPTs but everyone understood the importance of attending them. My birthday also falls in October, and a memorable birthday it was. (Birthday Celebration).There was little time left for other activities in October.
November - Mid December : November brought about the much awaited summers process. Long story short,it was exciting and I got through into Citibank Markets (Interview Experience). Then started the month-long inter-section sports meet, whichI enjoyed a lot. Not only because of the playing, but also because of all the politics people played and all the controversies involved. I was required to play the mediator in many cases (I wont elaborate onthis).Although Section-D had little chance of winning, but I still appreciate the enthusiasm that the junta showed and came to participate in huge numbers. According to me,participating and giving your best effort is the thing that is most important.
December end : It had nothing but the customary end of termexaminations and some days of long sleeping hours after the term-end at home :)
I am very happy that I had a very eventful 2008 and look forward to 2009 with expectations of surpassing it, as far as eventfulness is concerned. This would be my last opportunity before I am lost in the monotonous job life in 2010.
So Thank You 2008 for all the memories and 2009, SURPRISE ME.
Wednesday, December 31, 2008
Saturday, December 13, 2008
How life turns
I am writing this blog sitting in the Airport lounge at Bengaluru. The last week had been quite eventful for me, both academically as well as non-academically with a plethora of quizzes and submissions on the academic side. On the non-academic side, I was involved in the organization of the inter-section sports meet and also some work for the section website to be designed.
One of our batchmates, Vishwa got married this Monday. Since it was a weekday none of us had been able to attend that but almost 20-25 of us had planned to go for the reception today. The train was to leave at 6am in the morning from the Bangalore City station. So, the plan was to leave at 4.30 from the campus. Some of us decided that it would be impossible to get up at 4.30 once we sleep so - a night out it was. We were playing '29', one of the most popular card games.
Then at 2.30, I get a call from my brother in Delhi. A call at this time could mean only one of the two things - either my number has been dialed by mistake (which happens very often as my name is the first in many people's phone books) or it had to be some very urgent news.
When I picked it up, I heard my brother's voice, so the first possibility was ruled out. He then informed me that our grandfather had passed away. Was I surprised? Maybe not, since he was already above 90 years of age and had not been in best of health for some time now. I immediately booked my ticket on the first flight out. Within 2 hours I reached the airport and was sitting in the lounge when I wanted to tell these things to someone but no one I know is awake at 5am. So, the blog came about.
Life has a strange way of showing the irony in life. I was to be a part of a celebration today and life turned me away and instead gave me the sad news. My mood changed from celebratory to mourning.
For as long as I remember, I had seen almost no change in his appearance. i can never forget those sessions of Rummie I sometimes had with him or his interest in cricket matches and all kinds of news. lately, he had not been keeping well health wise. He had a long and healthy life of over 90 years and I think passing away in his sleep was something that is better.
The airport display screen is showing now that my flight is ready for boarding.
Today I would pay my last respects to him.
Goodbye Grandpa!!!!
One of our batchmates, Vishwa got married this Monday. Since it was a weekday none of us had been able to attend that but almost 20-25 of us had planned to go for the reception today. The train was to leave at 6am in the morning from the Bangalore City station. So, the plan was to leave at 4.30 from the campus. Some of us decided that it would be impossible to get up at 4.30 once we sleep so - a night out it was. We were playing '29', one of the most popular card games.
Then at 2.30, I get a call from my brother in Delhi. A call at this time could mean only one of the two things - either my number has been dialed by mistake (which happens very often as my name is the first in many people's phone books) or it had to be some very urgent news.
When I picked it up, I heard my brother's voice, so the first possibility was ruled out. He then informed me that our grandfather had passed away. Was I surprised? Maybe not, since he was already above 90 years of age and had not been in best of health for some time now. I immediately booked my ticket on the first flight out. Within 2 hours I reached the airport and was sitting in the lounge when I wanted to tell these things to someone but no one I know is awake at 5am. So, the blog came about.
Life has a strange way of showing the irony in life. I was to be a part of a celebration today and life turned me away and instead gave me the sad news. My mood changed from celebratory to mourning.
For as long as I remember, I had seen almost no change in his appearance. i can never forget those sessions of Rummie I sometimes had with him or his interest in cricket matches and all kinds of news. lately, he had not been keeping well health wise. He had a long and healthy life of over 90 years and I think passing away in his sleep was something that is better.
The airport display screen is showing now that my flight is ready for boarding.
Today I would pay my last respects to him.
Goodbye Grandpa!!!!
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Political Reaction to the Mumbai Attacks - Pathetic
Many newspapers touted it as the 9/11 of India, the others calling it Mayhem in Mumbai, last week saw one of the most gruesome terrorist attacks in India in the financial capital of the country. The attack was probably aimed at creating panic and showing the country that the terrorists can strike anywhere they wanted.
This was also the time when the so-called leaders of this country had to prove their mettle. This article is aimed at looking into how the great leaders of this country fared this test.
The usual chain of events after any blasts or attacks consist of the leaders of this country especially the leaders in the government coming out and issuing statements condemning the attacks. But looking at the frequency that it has started happening nowadays, I wonder sometimes whether the clips being shown on the television are live or recorded from the previous attacks.
The reality was not too different this time around. As soon as the news of the attacks spread, everyone came out condemning the attacks. I saw a glimmer of hope when the PM and the leader of the opposition decided to tour Mumbai together to show solidarity. But I should have known that it sounded too good to be true. When both these leaders were trying to show solidarity, both the parties were working behind the scenes to print ads in newspapers blaming each other for the happenings. One blamed the other party by telling that its soft on terror and the other trying to get back by comparing it with the Kandahar episode.
The would community came out issuing statements such as, "Such forms of terrorism are unacceptable". Can someone please tell me, what kinds of terrorism are acceptable? The ones which US practised in Afghnistan and Iraq?
The time when the leaders of the state were supposed to be coming out in the open to calm down the people, we never saw any appearance from any state leader on TV. Instead, we heard stories that the CM is regularly updating the leader of the Congress party about the chain of events. My simple question is, "Is the CM answerable to the masses or the leader of the party? " (to whom he should not be once he is holding a constitutional office).
The home minister of the state makes a remark that such "small" incidents happen. They would only understand the massiveness of the attacks if someone from their families are also the victims in one of these attacks. No attack is small for a family who loses a loved one.
All this was taking place when our security forces and the other services like the fire services were working round the clock to defeat the terrorists and minimize the damage. I salute them from the bottom of my heart for all that they have done for the country.
The stories don't end here. After the attacks, the CM goes to survey the damage in the Taj Hotel. Guess who all accompany him to the site - his son Riteish and Ram Gopal Verma. Was it some kind of a joke. What the hell were they doing there and did the CM really think that they were the most important people to be included in the survey party. If that is what he thought, we really need to think what kind of people we elect.
One of the martyrs of the attacks was Major Sandeep Unnikrishnan of the NSG. Although his family lived in Karnataka, he was a Keralite. The CM of Karnataka visited him as soon as the news of the martyrdom reached him. The CM of Kerala initially didn't even bother to visit his family and after media criticism, he decided to visit the place in the evening. Not surprisingly, the father of the soldier became emotional and refused to accept his condolences.
What the CM said next was shocking. He said, "It was for Sandeep I had gone, otherwise even a DOG wouldn’t have visited them. I never expected this." Such people should be publically paraded and beaten up on the streets. To top it, he even refused to tender an apology for the statement made. God save the country from the communists. This should be an eye-opener for the people who vote for them.
So, in retrospect, the politicians failed miserably on all fronts. In such cases, the politicians in India have a lot to learn from their western counterparts. Whatever differences they might have, they come out solidly as one voice when such incidents threatening the fiber of the country take place. When can we see Indian politicians maturing. Is it just me or am I just wishing for too much. I hope that our politicians realize that the basic aim of a democracy is not to divide people and come to power, but it is to provide good governance to people, especially in testing times.
I would end with this quote that I read in some article recently. This was given by Sir Winston Churchill, about politicians of India which was delivered on the eve of India's independence. He said, "Power will go to the hands of rascals, rogues and
freebooters. All Indian leaders will be of low caliber and men of straw. They will have sweet tongues and silly hearts. They will fight among themselves for power and India will be lost in political squabbles."
Sadly, I see all this coming true right in front of my eyes.
This was also the time when the so-called leaders of this country had to prove their mettle. This article is aimed at looking into how the great leaders of this country fared this test.
The usual chain of events after any blasts or attacks consist of the leaders of this country especially the leaders in the government coming out and issuing statements condemning the attacks. But looking at the frequency that it has started happening nowadays, I wonder sometimes whether the clips being shown on the television are live or recorded from the previous attacks.
The reality was not too different this time around. As soon as the news of the attacks spread, everyone came out condemning the attacks. I saw a glimmer of hope when the PM and the leader of the opposition decided to tour Mumbai together to show solidarity. But I should have known that it sounded too good to be true. When both these leaders were trying to show solidarity, both the parties were working behind the scenes to print ads in newspapers blaming each other for the happenings. One blamed the other party by telling that its soft on terror and the other trying to get back by comparing it with the Kandahar episode.
The would community came out issuing statements such as, "Such forms of terrorism are unacceptable". Can someone please tell me, what kinds of terrorism are acceptable? The ones which US practised in Afghnistan and Iraq?
The time when the leaders of the state were supposed to be coming out in the open to calm down the people, we never saw any appearance from any state leader on TV. Instead, we heard stories that the CM is regularly updating the leader of the Congress party about the chain of events. My simple question is, "Is the CM answerable to the masses or the leader of the party? " (to whom he should not be once he is holding a constitutional office).
The home minister of the state makes a remark that such "small" incidents happen. They would only understand the massiveness of the attacks if someone from their families are also the victims in one of these attacks. No attack is small for a family who loses a loved one.
All this was taking place when our security forces and the other services like the fire services were working round the clock to defeat the terrorists and minimize the damage. I salute them from the bottom of my heart for all that they have done for the country.
The stories don't end here. After the attacks, the CM goes to survey the damage in the Taj Hotel. Guess who all accompany him to the site - his son Riteish and Ram Gopal Verma. Was it some kind of a joke. What the hell were they doing there and did the CM really think that they were the most important people to be included in the survey party. If that is what he thought, we really need to think what kind of people we elect.
One of the martyrs of the attacks was Major Sandeep Unnikrishnan of the NSG. Although his family lived in Karnataka, he was a Keralite. The CM of Karnataka visited him as soon as the news of the martyrdom reached him. The CM of Kerala initially didn't even bother to visit his family and after media criticism, he decided to visit the place in the evening. Not surprisingly, the father of the soldier became emotional and refused to accept his condolences.
What the CM said next was shocking. He said, "It was for Sandeep I had gone, otherwise even a DOG wouldn’t have visited them. I never expected this." Such people should be publically paraded and beaten up on the streets. To top it, he even refused to tender an apology for the statement made. God save the country from the communists. This should be an eye-opener for the people who vote for them.
So, in retrospect, the politicians failed miserably on all fronts. In such cases, the politicians in India have a lot to learn from their western counterparts. Whatever differences they might have, they come out solidly as one voice when such incidents threatening the fiber of the country take place. When can we see Indian politicians maturing. Is it just me or am I just wishing for too much. I hope that our politicians realize that the basic aim of a democracy is not to divide people and come to power, but it is to provide good governance to people, especially in testing times.
I would end with this quote that I read in some article recently. This was given by Sir Winston Churchill, about politicians of India which was delivered on the eve of India's independence. He said, "Power will go to the hands of rascals, rogues and
freebooters. All Indian leaders will be of low caliber and men of straw. They will have sweet tongues and silly hearts. They will fight among themselves for power and India will be lost in political squabbles."
Sadly, I see all this coming true right in front of my eyes.
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
The Interview
Well, I am not going to post a End-term review of the placement process as I won't have much to say. Bottom line, the placecom of IIM-Bangalore rocks and they got all of us placed in four and a half days in very difficult times.
I am posting my interview experience in Citi where I finally am going for my summer internship. We reached the MDC(the place where all of it takes place) at 8 am and me and my good friend Tauseef were the first ones to be called by the trackers (something we had never expected :P).
I had no idea which company I had been called in for. Since its all a dynamic process, you are sent to the place where you have a shortlist and the interview panel is free. To my surprise, I was waiting there for interviews in three companies. First, I attended a group discussion by a firm the status of which was irrelevant after my next interview.
A night before, I had looked at the options available and decided that the Markets division (which includes trading and all) of any bank would be the best option for me. That would be either Citi, HSBC or ICICI. I was very glad that I had been shortlisted for the Markets division of Citi. I was probably the 3rd or 4th person to interview. The placecom arranges for company write-ups outside for the students so that they know at least the bare minimum about the firm they interview for.
Then I heard the voice on the Walkie-Talkie - "Abhijit Raja is clear to be sent into Citi - CMK". I saw the HR waiting outside the room for me. I recognized him from the Pre-placement talk that had taken place about a month back.
He was extra nice to me outside, which made me realize that they planned to screw me inside.
He started talking in hindi as we were going inside.
There was a 3rd guy in there who was supposed to be a senior guy from the markets division. I would refer to himas MS(markets Senior)
HR : To Raja saab, kaisa chal raha hai?
Me : Bas badhiya
HR : To Banaras me padhe ho aap. Pehalwan ki lassi to pee hi hogi.
Me : Haan, wo to hamari favourite jagah thi.
HR : Aur wahan ki aur koi mithai?
Me : Haan, laung lata kasie bhoolein.
HR to MS (start conversing with each other) : Aapko pata haiye pehalwaan ka naam kasie pada........... blah blah (they talk for 30 seconds)
(By this time I see a sheet of paper consisting the names of the shortlisted people on the table - I realize that there are only 8 people and I have to grab this opportunity)
MS : Ok now, we'll start the cliched way, Tell me about yourself.
Me (whatever I had prepared) : Blah Blah....... good in acads, good at sports, leadership........ done well in my work........ good analytical skills, good academic performance in Quantitative and Financial Accounting.
(MS was looking intently for a point to pick on)
MS : So, you had good grades in Financialaccounting. So, what ratios would you look into before investing in a company
Me : The Return on Equity, Return on Investment., P/E Ratios
MS : For the liqudity, what ratios would you use?
Me : The Quick Ratio and the Cash Flow statements.
MS : No, No...... there is something else. I thought you were supposed to be good in Financial accounting
(With this statement I realized that this was supposed to be a stress interview, so I decided I'll smile at them even if they slap me)
Me : Yes sir, I think I am good but I know as much as has been taught to me. I am not able to recollect any other ratio as of now.
HR : OK, your form mentions you did your summer internship in National Highways in your engineering days.
Me : Yes Sir.
MS : So tell me now, how many kilometers of highways are under construction which are under NHAI and what is the percentage of completion.
Me : Sir, the major projects of NAHI currently are the Golden Quadrilateral and the North-South and East-West Corridors.
MS : Don't give me verbose answers, you told me that you have good analytical skills. Give me figures.
Me : Sir according to me the Golden Quadrilateral project is about 8000 km in length and the North-South and East-West corridors together about 6000 kms and last time I checked, it had been about 70% complete.
MS (Not convinced): OK, do you know what all machines are used in highway construction and what part of the total project cost do they form.
Me : (Listed down the machines) Sir, I was not allowed to go into the financial information of the project as I was an engineering summer intern. But my guess would be not more than 10% as most of the machines and equipment are leased.
(moving on to the next one)
HR : I've heard that you have blogged on some issues that have been published on CNN-IBN site. Can you tell me more about it.
Me (not expecting this question) : Yes, I have four blogs there. One on caste reservation, one on the state of infrastructure in Bangalore (and as always happens in interviews, I forgot the other two) and ...... and........ Sorry, I can't remember the other two.
HR : Doesn't matter. Tell me about what are your views on the caste reservation issue.
Me : I think that I dont support it in the current state but I am more in favour of a model that takes into account various factors including economic factors, place of origin etc. This was one of the models suggested by Dr. Yogendra yadav.
HR : (with a wicked smile) Oh Dr. Yogendra Yadav. You know his main work is to predict elections and he was wrong in 5 of the last 6. You form your opinions based on the work of such incompetant people.
Me : I don't think his failure in predicting elections is in any way related to his model which I feel is much better than what is currently present.
HR : What research did you do before writing that article. Do you know about the Sachar commission, do you know the full recommendations of the Mandal commission???
Me : Sorry sir, I dont know them in great detail but this was an opinion and I still stand by what I wrote that there are many ways that can be better then the current form of implementing the reservations.
HR/MS : So why do you want to join Citi
Me : Blah blah - Big company, opportunities...........
The group has an Indian CEO which shows the meritocratic nature of the group and shows that anyone can rise to the top. Even in the PPT last month, it was told that the first step to rectify a mistake is to admit it and Citi was one of the first firms to admit the mistake in the global crisis which I feel is a very big thing.
HR : So Abhijit, thank you and from the next time take the opinion of poeple who are good and not who fail 5 out of 6 times
Me : Sure sir (giving a very wide smile)
Then I was waiting anxiously as all other people went in and came out with the same level of hatred for the HR guy. As all the interviews were over, one of the Placecom members called me to the Placement room. As soon as I reached there, he told me that Citi wants to make an offer to me and asked me whether I would accept it.
My simple answer : "OBVIOUSLY"
Then, I went with him to the HR guy, wehre he was standing smiling at me.
HR : So Raja saab, milte hai aapse summer me. Thoda kha peekar aao yaar, itne patle ho, khhon kaise chhosenge tumhara.
Me : Aap pehalwaan ki lassi ka intezaam kara do, sehat apne aap ban jayegi
Then he signed the sheet and I heard the most sweetest sound: "Abhijit Raja is out of the placement process."
Although it was a relief for me, I knew that my friends need my support as they had done for me up to that point. The icing on the cake was that another of my friends had got through into Citi Consumer. The only thing I wish for now is for Citi to survive till and go there for summers and confirm its doomed status :P
I am posting my interview experience in Citi where I finally am going for my summer internship. We reached the MDC(the place where all of it takes place) at 8 am and me and my good friend Tauseef were the first ones to be called by the trackers (something we had never expected :P).
I had no idea which company I had been called in for. Since its all a dynamic process, you are sent to the place where you have a shortlist and the interview panel is free. To my surprise, I was waiting there for interviews in three companies. First, I attended a group discussion by a firm the status of which was irrelevant after my next interview.
A night before, I had looked at the options available and decided that the Markets division (which includes trading and all) of any bank would be the best option for me. That would be either Citi, HSBC or ICICI. I was very glad that I had been shortlisted for the Markets division of Citi. I was probably the 3rd or 4th person to interview. The placecom arranges for company write-ups outside for the students so that they know at least the bare minimum about the firm they interview for.
Then I heard the voice on the Walkie-Talkie - "Abhijit Raja is clear to be sent into Citi - CMK". I saw the HR waiting outside the room for me. I recognized him from the Pre-placement talk that had taken place about a month back.
He was extra nice to me outside, which made me realize that they planned to screw me inside.
He started talking in hindi as we were going inside.
There was a 3rd guy in there who was supposed to be a senior guy from the markets division. I would refer to himas MS(markets Senior)
HR : To Raja saab, kaisa chal raha hai?
Me : Bas badhiya
HR : To Banaras me padhe ho aap. Pehalwan ki lassi to pee hi hogi.
Me : Haan, wo to hamari favourite jagah thi.
HR : Aur wahan ki aur koi mithai?
Me : Haan, laung lata kasie bhoolein.
HR to MS (start conversing with each other) : Aapko pata haiye pehalwaan ka naam kasie pada........... blah blah (they talk for 30 seconds)
(By this time I see a sheet of paper consisting the names of the shortlisted people on the table - I realize that there are only 8 people and I have to grab this opportunity)
MS : Ok now, we'll start the cliched way, Tell me about yourself.
Me (whatever I had prepared) : Blah Blah....... good in acads, good at sports, leadership........ done well in my work........ good analytical skills, good academic performance in Quantitative and Financial Accounting.
(MS was looking intently for a point to pick on)
MS : So, you had good grades in Financialaccounting. So, what ratios would you look into before investing in a company
Me : The Return on Equity, Return on Investment., P/E Ratios
MS : For the liqudity, what ratios would you use?
Me : The Quick Ratio and the Cash Flow statements.
MS : No, No...... there is something else. I thought you were supposed to be good in Financial accounting
(With this statement I realized that this was supposed to be a stress interview, so I decided I'll smile at them even if they slap me)
Me : Yes sir, I think I am good but I know as much as has been taught to me. I am not able to recollect any other ratio as of now.
HR : OK, your form mentions you did your summer internship in National Highways in your engineering days.
Me : Yes Sir.
MS : So tell me now, how many kilometers of highways are under construction which are under NHAI and what is the percentage of completion.
Me : Sir, the major projects of NAHI currently are the Golden Quadrilateral and the North-South and East-West Corridors.
MS : Don't give me verbose answers, you told me that you have good analytical skills. Give me figures.
Me : Sir according to me the Golden Quadrilateral project is about 8000 km in length and the North-South and East-West corridors together about 6000 kms and last time I checked, it had been about 70% complete.
MS (Not convinced): OK, do you know what all machines are used in highway construction and what part of the total project cost do they form.
Me : (Listed down the machines) Sir, I was not allowed to go into the financial information of the project as I was an engineering summer intern. But my guess would be not more than 10% as most of the machines and equipment are leased.
(moving on to the next one)
HR : I've heard that you have blogged on some issues that have been published on CNN-IBN site. Can you tell me more about it.
Me (not expecting this question) : Yes, I have four blogs there. One on caste reservation, one on the state of infrastructure in Bangalore (and as always happens in interviews, I forgot the other two) and ...... and........ Sorry, I can't remember the other two.
HR : Doesn't matter. Tell me about what are your views on the caste reservation issue.
Me : I think that I dont support it in the current state but I am more in favour of a model that takes into account various factors including economic factors, place of origin etc. This was one of the models suggested by Dr. Yogendra yadav.
HR : (with a wicked smile) Oh Dr. Yogendra Yadav. You know his main work is to predict elections and he was wrong in 5 of the last 6. You form your opinions based on the work of such incompetant people.
Me : I don't think his failure in predicting elections is in any way related to his model which I feel is much better than what is currently present.
HR : What research did you do before writing that article. Do you know about the Sachar commission, do you know the full recommendations of the Mandal commission???
Me : Sorry sir, I dont know them in great detail but this was an opinion and I still stand by what I wrote that there are many ways that can be better then the current form of implementing the reservations.
HR/MS : So why do you want to join Citi
Me : Blah blah - Big company, opportunities...........
The group has an Indian CEO which shows the meritocratic nature of the group and shows that anyone can rise to the top. Even in the PPT last month, it was told that the first step to rectify a mistake is to admit it and Citi was one of the first firms to admit the mistake in the global crisis which I feel is a very big thing.
HR : So Abhijit, thank you and from the next time take the opinion of poeple who are good and not who fail 5 out of 6 times
Me : Sure sir (giving a very wide smile)
Then I was waiting anxiously as all other people went in and came out with the same level of hatred for the HR guy. As all the interviews were over, one of the Placecom members called me to the Placement room. As soon as I reached there, he told me that Citi wants to make an offer to me and asked me whether I would accept it.
My simple answer : "OBVIOUSLY"
Then, I went with him to the HR guy, wehre he was standing smiling at me.
HR : So Raja saab, milte hai aapse summer me. Thoda kha peekar aao yaar, itne patle ho, khhon kaise chhosenge tumhara.
Me : Aap pehalwaan ki lassi ka intezaam kara do, sehat apne aap ban jayegi
Then he signed the sheet and I heard the most sweetest sound: "Abhijit Raja is out of the placement process."
Although it was a relief for me, I knew that my friends need my support as they had done for me up to that point. The icing on the cake was that another of my friends had got through into Citi Consumer. The only thing I wish for now is for Citi to survive till and go there for summers and confirm its doomed status :P
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Placements Mid-Term Review
P.S. I am not going to mention any figures or names of companies in this post
For the past two days I have witnessed such variety of emotions that it can form a plot for a soap opera - Happiness, Relief, Despair, Sadness, Disappointment, Sarcasm and what not. The first day saw frantic activity all around with people rushing for interviews left, right and center. Some obvious candidates were waiting to get picked by the top firms. Many were lucky enough to get through and many were not. I saw some very deserving people being left behind and some not so deserving people getting through. I think thats life and we should be ready to deal with it.
I think this is the time when a person's true character is revealed, not by the kind of job he/she gets, but by the way people conduct themselves both in case of failure as well as after success. This is also the time when one requires true strength of character as I feel this process teaches you to deal with failures. Some people are able to do it, some simply aren't.
This process has also shown how different minds function differently when subjected to stress. A simple thing like an offer for help from some people with job offers to others may look like a helpful one to some and a chest-beating one to the others. Although even I believe that not all the gestures are genuine but thats no reason to become overly sarcastic and look at everyone with suspicion.
I have seen people going that extra yard to help others out, maybe sometimes even working harder than the candidates. Many people have helped out in the entire process from the second day onwards. For me, I just wait for some good news to trickle in, may not be for me, may be for someone else. But thats me, I get happy for others and I think that is what defines me and that is what should define most people.
The selection procedures leave a lot to be desired. There is a lot of subjectivity in the entire process where some parameters not related to a person's ability become important. Although most people who would have gone through a placement process would understand this, I would not like to elaborate on this. Some of the processes would seem to be illogical even to the layman but they take place. As the wise people say "The Customer is always right", the firms being the customers in this case buying into recruiting the students.
Have I been a victim of the process? Not Exactly. Thinking further I would say 'Maybe and maybe not', but I take everything in my stride because if this is the way the world functions, then its upto us to learn to deal with it rather than cribbing about how the system is unfair.
I would say that it is a very tiring process, but its more about mental toughness. I am still cheerful and hopeful as always and hope to get an internship offer shortly :)
Congrats to all people with offers, Best of luck to all people to get offers over the next couple of days. Enjoy the process and remain cheerful, energetic & confident.
CHEERS!!!!!!
And a request once again to comment and encourage this novice blogger :)
For the past two days I have witnessed such variety of emotions that it can form a plot for a soap opera - Happiness, Relief, Despair, Sadness, Disappointment, Sarcasm and what not. The first day saw frantic activity all around with people rushing for interviews left, right and center. Some obvious candidates were waiting to get picked by the top firms. Many were lucky enough to get through and many were not. I saw some very deserving people being left behind and some not so deserving people getting through. I think thats life and we should be ready to deal with it.
I think this is the time when a person's true character is revealed, not by the kind of job he/she gets, but by the way people conduct themselves both in case of failure as well as after success. This is also the time when one requires true strength of character as I feel this process teaches you to deal with failures. Some people are able to do it, some simply aren't.
This process has also shown how different minds function differently when subjected to stress. A simple thing like an offer for help from some people with job offers to others may look like a helpful one to some and a chest-beating one to the others. Although even I believe that not all the gestures are genuine but thats no reason to become overly sarcastic and look at everyone with suspicion.
I have seen people going that extra yard to help others out, maybe sometimes even working harder than the candidates. Many people have helped out in the entire process from the second day onwards. For me, I just wait for some good news to trickle in, may not be for me, may be for someone else. But thats me, I get happy for others and I think that is what defines me and that is what should define most people.
The selection procedures leave a lot to be desired. There is a lot of subjectivity in the entire process where some parameters not related to a person's ability become important. Although most people who would have gone through a placement process would understand this, I would not like to elaborate on this. Some of the processes would seem to be illogical even to the layman but they take place. As the wise people say "The Customer is always right", the firms being the customers in this case buying into recruiting the students.
Have I been a victim of the process? Not Exactly. Thinking further I would say 'Maybe and maybe not', but I take everything in my stride because if this is the way the world functions, then its upto us to learn to deal with it rather than cribbing about how the system is unfair.
I would say that it is a very tiring process, but its more about mental toughness. I am still cheerful and hopeful as always and hope to get an internship offer shortly :)
Congrats to all people with offers, Best of luck to all people to get offers over the next couple of days. Enjoy the process and remain cheerful, energetic & confident.
CHEERS!!!!!!
And a request once again to comment and encourage this novice blogger :)
Sunday, November 9, 2008
Placements Stereotypes - The Herd Mentality
As the summer internship process draws near and I see more and more tense faces near me, which surprisingly have become even more tense after getting a shortlist. I am not going to dwell into how people should cope with it a I have already covered that in my last post.
I was just talking to one of the Exchange Students the other day and he was amazed by the fact that there are only two focus areas for the students in IIM-Bangalore - Finance or Consulting. He told me that he understood the reason why it was because they paid well but was it the correct way to build your career. According to him, its just running after money. Maybe, that is the reason that one requires to have a decent amount of work-experience before coming for a degree in management. They have a pretty good idea about what they want to do in life. There is a logic behind the best B-Schools in the world taking in people with a decent amount of experience. For many like me, a summer internship is an opportunity to test the waters. So, it may not matter to me which field I go into.
The summers process, for many, essentially also becomes a process to build their reputation among their peers (though that may not hold for everyone) rather than following their dreams. Many of my peers I have talked to have an immense interest in Marketing (which is not supposed to be the best job on campus), but they go after consults or I-banks because of the Pseude-Factor. People don't have the courage to follow their dreams as they think too much about what the people would think.
People need to realize that money may not be the most important thing in life - at least thats true for me. After passing out from this prestigious institute, everyone is bound to get attractive salaries and according to me, there is a limit above which it would not matter to me. There is so much spending that you can do in your life.
I met a couple of my seniors who have decided that they want to do Marketing in their life and have no qualms about accepting that. I envy such people who have the vision for their lives so clear in their minds. I hope that I too am able to have such clarity about what I want to do. Everyone has an idea, but very few are so clear. Such people break the stereotypes about the best people going to the best I-Bank or the best Consult. They prove that the best are those who follow their dreams and not those who get the best salaries. I do not intend to say that people may not have genuine interest in finance or consulting, but what I mean is not everyone who goes into these fields have an interest. Its upto the individual to realize the path for their lives.
Now deviating from the topic, one paragraph about the process itself, the Placement Committee raised a couple of very important points yesterday that although each and every one needs to work hard towards achieving a good internship, one has to remember that it is "JUST A SUMMER INTERNSHIP", just 2 months in a company, nothing more, nothing less. We have to spend the next year and a half with our batch mates, so its a time to be united and achieve the best results in times that are not so good. Many seniors told me that the summer internship process leads to such strong friendships with people that you would never have even talked to. So, I would treat it as such an opportunity, making friends. I am sure I would be helping out people during the process and hope others realize the same and help each other out.
Again wising everyone all the best.
P.S. Those who are still nervous, read Thakur's Fundas, download from DC (for the IIMB Junta) and please comment on the post for encouragement if you like the post or even otherwise :)
I was just talking to one of the Exchange Students the other day and he was amazed by the fact that there are only two focus areas for the students in IIM-Bangalore - Finance or Consulting. He told me that he understood the reason why it was because they paid well but was it the correct way to build your career. According to him, its just running after money. Maybe, that is the reason that one requires to have a decent amount of work-experience before coming for a degree in management. They have a pretty good idea about what they want to do in life. There is a logic behind the best B-Schools in the world taking in people with a decent amount of experience. For many like me, a summer internship is an opportunity to test the waters. So, it may not matter to me which field I go into.
The summers process, for many, essentially also becomes a process to build their reputation among their peers (though that may not hold for everyone) rather than following their dreams. Many of my peers I have talked to have an immense interest in Marketing (which is not supposed to be the best job on campus), but they go after consults or I-banks because of the Pseude-Factor. People don't have the courage to follow their dreams as they think too much about what the people would think.
People need to realize that money may not be the most important thing in life - at least thats true for me. After passing out from this prestigious institute, everyone is bound to get attractive salaries and according to me, there is a limit above which it would not matter to me. There is so much spending that you can do in your life.
I met a couple of my seniors who have decided that they want to do Marketing in their life and have no qualms about accepting that. I envy such people who have the vision for their lives so clear in their minds. I hope that I too am able to have such clarity about what I want to do. Everyone has an idea, but very few are so clear. Such people break the stereotypes about the best people going to the best I-Bank or the best Consult. They prove that the best are those who follow their dreams and not those who get the best salaries. I do not intend to say that people may not have genuine interest in finance or consulting, but what I mean is not everyone who goes into these fields have an interest. Its upto the individual to realize the path for their lives.
Now deviating from the topic, one paragraph about the process itself, the Placement Committee raised a couple of very important points yesterday that although each and every one needs to work hard towards achieving a good internship, one has to remember that it is "JUST A SUMMER INTERNSHIP", just 2 months in a company, nothing more, nothing less. We have to spend the next year and a half with our batch mates, so its a time to be united and achieve the best results in times that are not so good. Many seniors told me that the summer internship process leads to such strong friendships with people that you would never have even talked to. So, I would treat it as such an opportunity, making friends. I am sure I would be helping out people during the process and hope others realize the same and help each other out.
Again wising everyone all the best.
P.S. Those who are still nervous, read Thakur's Fundas, download from DC (for the IIMB Junta) and please comment on the post for encouragement if you like the post or even otherwise :)
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Summer Intern - BIG DEAL ????
P.S. A Kinda serious post
Well, the Summer placement fever has gripped IIM-Bangalore. Its that time of the year for the first year guys when they get supposedly take a step towards their final career.
Most of the shortlisting process is based on what one has achieved over his/her past life. So, looking at the kind of people I am with I think everyone deserves what they are getting. Do I hope for a shortlist - Well I certainly do but I am not going to base my life's happiness over it. Its a phase of life and thats what I am taking it as. If I am lucky, I would get one, and then it would be upto me to clear the interviews. I have seen people getting into deep depression modes (not very explicit) over the difference between their huge expectations and the meager returns. Such situations do lead to periods of self-doubt, which is faced by even the greatest of people. Your strength is defined by how well you are able to pull yourself out of it. What I would like to advise people is that such situations come and go - learn to deal with it. The most important thing is life is to be happy.
Today, I had lunch with my IT-BHU seniors in IIM-Bangalore and I heard about many successful seniors of ours who were working in most sought after companies after getting non-day zero summer interns. Its all about keeping your cool and working hard (which I think need to start doing :P). So, I believe that one can always do that and even if one does not manage to get a decent final placement, whats the big deal. Its a huge world out there with NUMEROUS opportunities. We are supposed to be the best in the country - if we want, there's nothing we cant achieve.
But one thing I dread the most is what some people tell me, that people start judging each other by the shortlists and the summers they get. I really hope that does not happen to me or my friends. I believe that a summer internship is not the way to judge a person and if a person's attitude does change due to such a reason, then maybe I would be better off without his/her company.
The 4-5 months I have spent here in IIM-Bangalore have been very memorable and I hope that the next year and a half also remains similar. I have been blessed with being in a section that is supposed to be chilled out and friendly. When I look at the other sections, I am really happy to be in Section-D (No offense to the other sections, You guys just work hard). I have been blessed to be in the company of so many good people who have become such good friends over the past few days. I hope to make more such friends in the time remaining here.
So, wishing everyone all the best for their summers. CHILL OUT and BE HAPPY
Cheers!!!!!
Well, the Summer placement fever has gripped IIM-Bangalore. Its that time of the year for the first year guys when they get supposedly take a step towards their final career.
Most of the shortlisting process is based on what one has achieved over his/her past life. So, looking at the kind of people I am with I think everyone deserves what they are getting. Do I hope for a shortlist - Well I certainly do but I am not going to base my life's happiness over it. Its a phase of life and thats what I am taking it as. If I am lucky, I would get one, and then it would be upto me to clear the interviews. I have seen people getting into deep depression modes (not very explicit) over the difference between their huge expectations and the meager returns. Such situations do lead to periods of self-doubt, which is faced by even the greatest of people. Your strength is defined by how well you are able to pull yourself out of it. What I would like to advise people is that such situations come and go - learn to deal with it. The most important thing is life is to be happy.
Today, I had lunch with my IT-BHU seniors in IIM-Bangalore and I heard about many successful seniors of ours who were working in most sought after companies after getting non-day zero summer interns. Its all about keeping your cool and working hard (which I think need to start doing :P). So, I believe that one can always do that and even if one does not manage to get a decent final placement, whats the big deal. Its a huge world out there with NUMEROUS opportunities. We are supposed to be the best in the country - if we want, there's nothing we cant achieve.
But one thing I dread the most is what some people tell me, that people start judging each other by the shortlists and the summers they get. I really hope that does not happen to me or my friends. I believe that a summer internship is not the way to judge a person and if a person's attitude does change due to such a reason, then maybe I would be better off without his/her company.
The 4-5 months I have spent here in IIM-Bangalore have been very memorable and I hope that the next year and a half also remains similar. I have been blessed with being in a section that is supposed to be chilled out and friendly. When I look at the other sections, I am really happy to be in Section-D (No offense to the other sections, You guys just work hard). I have been blessed to be in the company of so many good people who have become such good friends over the past few days. I hope to make more such friends in the time remaining here.
So, wishing everyone all the best for their summers. CHILL OUT and BE HAPPY
Cheers!!!!!
Saturday, October 25, 2008
Life in a MBA!!!!
After all the hoopla surrounding my last blog post (mainly due to the Papparazzi here :P), I am finally onto writing my next blog.
First, let me clarify one thing, this is not a crib post. I know that management is a path I have chosen, so I would have to accept the downside as I would love to enjoy the benefits.
Over the past few weeks, I have realized that how a hectic lifestyle feels like. After having some great professors in the last trimester, I have felt the wrath of "oh-not-so-good" professors with the first CorpFin prof being an exception. Whats worse is the fact they are more strict. so, along with the hectic life, we have to be prepared for every week submissions and any time quizzes (so no bunks too).
Then there are the company presentations where the companies blabber about themselves for 30 mins to an hour (and I have realized that every company is the best place to work in) followed by the same set of questions asked by the junta:
1. What are the locations you are recruiting for?
2. How well can you move across functions/divisions?
3. How is the financial crisis affecting your company?
4. What do you look for in a candidate?
5. What are your future plans for India?
I think due to visiting the campuses, the companies must now have a pretty much mugged-up answer for each of these questions.
So here's a typical day for me:
Morning - Wakeup and go to class
Afternoon - Fill up some SOP to be submitted by the evening
Evening - Attend the PPTs
Nights - Fill up the forms and apply for companies
The most important takeaways from the last month.
1. I have realized that, even if I am woken up from my sleep, I can get into formals within 5 minutes and be ready for a presentation.
2. Even if I am woken up from sleep, I can put in a question to the people presenting (doesn't matter if I have no idea what it is about - its all GLOBE)
3. I can answer the forms with all the globe questions in 5-10 minutes.
Now, I have started enjoying being so busy in my life. I think now what will I do with all the free time I'll get after the summers process is over. It would be like a giant hole in my calender.
Wearing those formals for the PPTs and the presentations gives you a feeling that you are going to do something important. The companies make us realize that we all have the potential to be the important people of tomorrow, shaping the organizations future. Why else would a top global firm spend so much of money to fly down people from around the globe just to speak to a handful of students not even 6 months into their MBA program. It is because they realize the potential of India's best.
P.S. To all my friends doing MBA, Chill out guys, enjoy your 2 years here as you would have a lot of time to remain busy your whole life. Cheers!!!!!!
First, let me clarify one thing, this is not a crib post. I know that management is a path I have chosen, so I would have to accept the downside as I would love to enjoy the benefits.
Over the past few weeks, I have realized that how a hectic lifestyle feels like. After having some great professors in the last trimester, I have felt the wrath of "oh-not-so-good" professors with the first CorpFin prof being an exception. Whats worse is the fact they are more strict. so, along with the hectic life, we have to be prepared for every week submissions and any time quizzes (so no bunks too).
Then there are the company presentations where the companies blabber about themselves for 30 mins to an hour (and I have realized that every company is the best place to work in) followed by the same set of questions asked by the junta:
1. What are the locations you are recruiting for?
2. How well can you move across functions/divisions?
3. How is the financial crisis affecting your company?
4. What do you look for in a candidate?
5. What are your future plans for India?
I think due to visiting the campuses, the companies must now have a pretty much mugged-up answer for each of these questions.
So here's a typical day for me:
Morning - Wakeup and go to class
Afternoon - Fill up some SOP to be submitted by the evening
Evening - Attend the PPTs
Nights - Fill up the forms and apply for companies
The most important takeaways from the last month.
1. I have realized that, even if I am woken up from my sleep, I can get into formals within 5 minutes and be ready for a presentation.
2. Even if I am woken up from sleep, I can put in a question to the people presenting (doesn't matter if I have no idea what it is about - its all GLOBE)
3. I can answer the forms with all the globe questions in 5-10 minutes.
Now, I have started enjoying being so busy in my life. I think now what will I do with all the free time I'll get after the summers process is over. It would be like a giant hole in my calender.
Wearing those formals for the PPTs and the presentations gives you a feeling that you are going to do something important. The companies make us realize that we all have the potential to be the important people of tomorrow, shaping the organizations future. Why else would a top global firm spend so much of money to fly down people from around the globe just to speak to a handful of students not even 6 months into their MBA program. It is because they realize the potential of India's best.
P.S. To all my friends doing MBA, Chill out guys, enjoy your 2 years here as you would have a lot of time to remain busy your whole life. Cheers!!!!!!
Thursday, October 16, 2008
My Birthday!!!!
Well, another year passes by and I am an year older. What does a birthday signify? According to me its like any other day, the only difference being that a lot of people call you up to wish you to remind you that there are a lot of people that care about you. Birthdays had been specially enjoyable for me in college (IT-BHU) as one could afford to miss classes there at will. During my job, I had forgotten all the fun I had during my birthday at college - the bumps, the crowd ready to congratulate you and the long night outs after the "beating a person up" ceremony was over. The day I arrived in IIMB, I had a look at the way birthdays were celebrated here and liked it a lot. Looking at the fact that I was at the forefront of the hooshing (thats what they call GPL or bumps out here), I had earned quite a bit of fame and when I started featuring on orkut in the upcoming birthdays list, people left no stone unturned in reminding me that I would be killed on 13th night.
In other people's birthdays, people tried to pick me up for hooshing as well but I survived on most occasions. But on 12th night, when the same people tried to have some practice before the main session, I ran and stumbled on the concrete tsepak court scraping my knees and elbows quite badly. My friends were then nice enought to get me bandages but then when I was lying on my bed, they decided to play a practical joke. They took my laptop and stated messaging people that I was seriously injured and then a plethora of people rushed to my room with bandages and what not. I was bit embarrassed that so many people had turned up but was also happy that I had so many friends that cared for me(pata hai thoda senti maar raha hun, Adjust maadi).
Then the D-Day came. Well, just a few hours prior to that, the great IIMB tradition of making a B'Day mail was completed and I have nothing to comment on the B'Day mail. But I have to say, it one of the best b'day mails created ever and all the credit and blame go to my friends Yagnesh, Tauseef, Manish and Nishant (P.S. I will deal with you later :P). Then even though I was injured, I was hooshed a lot (till the time a couple of people had mercy on me and asked the crowd to stop), but I feel that had i been completely fit, the hooshing could have gone on for hours at a stretch.
After that all the people were ready with buckets filled with water to pour on me and they had put all sort of detergents and harpic in the water but due to my injuries most of it was thankfully not poured on me. I then had to lie and roll on the puddle of mud created as a result of all the water. The Cultural Committee here arranges for cakes on all birthdays, not to eat but for it to be smeared all across the face of the birthday boy/gal (and not slices, but the entire cake as shown in Hindi movies in cake fight scenes). So, I had that done too and final task for me was to do the traditional pole dance around the tree there. All this leads to the person requiring to take a bath at that ungodly hour (for which I had to go through hell as pouring water on injuries is not a nice feeling). I came back after the bath and treated some people who still had time in these hectic era and we chatted for a couple of hours.The birthday as such was very uneventful with the entire day taken up by Classes in the morning, repondin to phone calls and chat messages in the afternoon, the Deutsche Post PPT in the evening and the Operations Case in the night. But I did manage to slide in a home-delivery dinner in the packed schedule of mine.
Even though life has changed, I really enjoyed celebrating my birthday in a campus once again, it is an awesome feeling as compared to when you are working. I know I have just one more to go in campus (assuming I am able to clear in 2 years), but you bet i will enjoy every moment that I have here.
P.S. Some confidential details have been withheld due to important reasons. Anyone in possession of such information, be kind enough not to post it.
Thursday, August 28, 2008
The Olympic Dream
I have always been a sports freak and liked watching all sports, even those other than cricket. The problem has always been that the other sports don't have the media coverage one would like. Some years back, there was at least hockey, but even that has disappeared out of sight. So, it was kind of refreshing to watch the Olympics and I particularly liked the media coverage it got.
India - expectedly for me and unexpectedly for many of my friends improved its tally significantly over the previous editions. But is that enough, 3 medals for a country of a billion people. I don't think its enough, but its certainly an improvement and India should build on the success of these Olympics to become a nation with a decent haul of medals over the next couple of decades.
The best part about the current haul of three medals was that all the three medals came in different disciplines. So, now at least there can be three different disciplines in the government's radar for development. There have always been about 5-6 disciplines in which India had a realistic chance. Apart from Shooting,Wrestling and Boxing where we won medals, we came close in Badminton and Tennis too. Though the Archers failed to impress, they have the potential.
The role of the government is very important now. It should not forget the achievements of the medal winners. IT can use this opportunity to push for better popularity of non-cricket sports in the country. The country's sportspeople need to be treated well. India can do a lot better if the government provides better facilities and just support the talent India has.
I am in IIM-Bangalore and I had in my batch Kutraleeshwaran, who at the age of 13 swam across 6 channels and is a Guinness record holder. But he left swimming as there wasn't proper infrastructure in the country and the government didn't support him when he required it. He had offers from other counties to use their training facilities provided he represented them in the Olympics. If the other countries can see such talent why can't India? He refused and concentrated on his academics and India lost a potential sporting Icon.
I myself have seen small 4-5 year old children performing acrobatics at traffic signals in Delhi and Bangalore. Such children should be groomed from a young age as they can be future gymnasts. This is what China does best and look at their medals tally. If I could spot such children just in a couple of cities, I can't even begin to imagine the kind of talent that can be hidden across the Indian landscape. Its just a matter of spotting it and nurturing it.
A couple of private companies have come ahead to support non-traditional sports. I hope this trend continues. Its just that sports has to be made a viable profession in India. For that everyone's role is very important, from the government and private companies who need to build infrastructure and support the talent to the people who genuinely need to respect its sportspeople and not just start to memorize their names once every four years.
I have great hope in the current scenario and sincerely hope that this time we definitely don't miss out and see a bag of medals by 2020 or 2024 when I hope that India would be hosting an Olympics of its own.
India - expectedly for me and unexpectedly for many of my friends improved its tally significantly over the previous editions. But is that enough, 3 medals for a country of a billion people. I don't think its enough, but its certainly an improvement and India should build on the success of these Olympics to become a nation with a decent haul of medals over the next couple of decades.
The best part about the current haul of three medals was that all the three medals came in different disciplines. So, now at least there can be three different disciplines in the government's radar for development. There have always been about 5-6 disciplines in which India had a realistic chance. Apart from Shooting,Wrestling and Boxing where we won medals, we came close in Badminton and Tennis too. Though the Archers failed to impress, they have the potential.
The role of the government is very important now. It should not forget the achievements of the medal winners. IT can use this opportunity to push for better popularity of non-cricket sports in the country. The country's sportspeople need to be treated well. India can do a lot better if the government provides better facilities and just support the talent India has.
I am in IIM-Bangalore and I had in my batch Kutraleeshwaran, who at the age of 13 swam across 6 channels and is a Guinness record holder. But he left swimming as there wasn't proper infrastructure in the country and the government didn't support him when he required it. He had offers from other counties to use their training facilities provided he represented them in the Olympics. If the other countries can see such talent why can't India? He refused and concentrated on his academics and India lost a potential sporting Icon.
I myself have seen small 4-5 year old children performing acrobatics at traffic signals in Delhi and Bangalore. Such children should be groomed from a young age as they can be future gymnasts. This is what China does best and look at their medals tally. If I could spot such children just in a couple of cities, I can't even begin to imagine the kind of talent that can be hidden across the Indian landscape. Its just a matter of spotting it and nurturing it.
A couple of private companies have come ahead to support non-traditional sports. I hope this trend continues. Its just that sports has to be made a viable profession in India. For that everyone's role is very important, from the government and private companies who need to build infrastructure and support the talent to the people who genuinely need to respect its sportspeople and not just start to memorize their names once every four years.
I have great hope in the current scenario and sincerely hope that this time we definitely don't miss out and see a bag of medals by 2020 or 2024 when I hope that India would be hosting an Olympics of its own.
Saturday, August 23, 2008
Phoonk - The disaster
SPOILER WARNING!!! But I Think you would be better off reading this rahter than watching the movie
Today I went to meet my friends and we decided to watch Phoonk - Directed by the great RGV. The expectations were high as the promos seemed to be nice and the last horror movie he made was decent enough (Bhoot). We got into the hall 10 minutes late - thanks to a delay on my part.
As we entered the movie hall, we came to know that the main protagonist in the film (apart from the child actor) is a big-time contractor and has a couple who works with him. The wife's only job was to act in a spastic manner and give out a shrieking and loud laugh once every few seconds. It irritated me so much that I felt someone should go into the frame and shut her mouth up.
The hero's family had all kinds of people - the atheist hero, the god-fearing wife, the superstitious mother and a couple of kids. The whole problem began when the hero finds about the fraud that the couple are doing.So he humiliates them in a party and fires them. So, the couple decides to take revenge through black magic. They choose the daughter of the hero as the one to do the black magic on. The girl then gradually starts acting weird and the acting by the girl child is probably the only thing to watch for in the entire film.
The entire first half was filled with scenes where the camera focuses on small household items and then there are sudden sounds just to startle the audience. Someone tell RGV that horror movies are more than just startling people. I'll give the example of a couple of scenes -
1. The hero hears a sound when asleep, gets out of his room and is stratled looking at his own reflection in the mirror. Supposedly complementing the scene is a very loud background score. And the best part is that all of that turns out to be a dream.
2. (this is the most hillarious part) The house maid wakes up and sees the old lady of the house sitting in the hallway. She then blames the maid for all that was happening. She then picks up a lemon and takes it towards the maid. In this scene her hand starts to extend like the elastic man of fantastic four. Even the Ramsays used better ideas in their horror scenes. RGV, spare us please. And most predictably this too turns out to be a dream.
The second half sees the entry of the psychiatrist. Then a couple of scenes that follow remind you of scenes that may be called a mix of Bhoot and the Exorcist. Even when the girl starts levitating, the father refuses to believe the supernatural and the doctor is still giving rave jargons that start from Dissociated Personality Disorder, goes on to Psychological Dissociated Personality Disorder and ends as a case where the girl child has undergone some trauma and would take time to recover.
During this time the old lady of the house brings in a 'Tantric' who when being kicked out of the house shouts dialogues like 'Your daughter will die' and 'Dont be an Idiot' in the most uncomfortable English. This scene was particulary interesting to me. (that maybe because I was looking for reasons to laugh as this movie was certainly not scaring me)
By this time, the hero, having a change of heart starts believing in the supernatural and brings in a tantric of his own called 'Manja' (in Hindi that what we call the string used to fly kites). And 'Manja' ends the our agony by finishing off the black magic couple (he kills off the tantric witch by making a fan fall on her that cuts off her head). The hero then reaches back to his daughter and the credit for curing the child is taken by the psychiatrist. (maybe she was an MBA, giving the most weirdest of fundaes and gets away with it :P)
The only thing that benefited me was that now my bottom Five movie list has been updated. Now, Phoonk is a jewel in the crown of that list. And I think my friends need to thank me for making them miss the first 10 minutes as it saved them 10 extra minutes of pure torture.
What I would suggest is to see this movie on your system whenever it becomes available and watch it with the same fervour as you watched Gunda and the movies of that genre. You'll seriously enjoy it then.
Today I went to meet my friends and we decided to watch Phoonk - Directed by the great RGV. The expectations were high as the promos seemed to be nice and the last horror movie he made was decent enough (Bhoot). We got into the hall 10 minutes late - thanks to a delay on my part.
As we entered the movie hall, we came to know that the main protagonist in the film (apart from the child actor) is a big-time contractor and has a couple who works with him. The wife's only job was to act in a spastic manner and give out a shrieking and loud laugh once every few seconds. It irritated me so much that I felt someone should go into the frame and shut her mouth up.
The hero's family had all kinds of people - the atheist hero, the god-fearing wife, the superstitious mother and a couple of kids. The whole problem began when the hero finds about the fraud that the couple are doing.So he humiliates them in a party and fires them. So, the couple decides to take revenge through black magic. They choose the daughter of the hero as the one to do the black magic on. The girl then gradually starts acting weird and the acting by the girl child is probably the only thing to watch for in the entire film.
The entire first half was filled with scenes where the camera focuses on small household items and then there are sudden sounds just to startle the audience. Someone tell RGV that horror movies are more than just startling people. I'll give the example of a couple of scenes -
1. The hero hears a sound when asleep, gets out of his room and is stratled looking at his own reflection in the mirror. Supposedly complementing the scene is a very loud background score. And the best part is that all of that turns out to be a dream.
2. (this is the most hillarious part) The house maid wakes up and sees the old lady of the house sitting in the hallway. She then blames the maid for all that was happening. She then picks up a lemon and takes it towards the maid. In this scene her hand starts to extend like the elastic man of fantastic four. Even the Ramsays used better ideas in their horror scenes. RGV, spare us please. And most predictably this too turns out to be a dream.
The second half sees the entry of the psychiatrist. Then a couple of scenes that follow remind you of scenes that may be called a mix of Bhoot and the Exorcist. Even when the girl starts levitating, the father refuses to believe the supernatural and the doctor is still giving rave jargons that start from Dissociated Personality Disorder, goes on to Psychological Dissociated Personality Disorder and ends as a case where the girl child has undergone some trauma and would take time to recover.
During this time the old lady of the house brings in a 'Tantric' who when being kicked out of the house shouts dialogues like 'Your daughter will die' and 'Dont be an Idiot' in the most uncomfortable English. This scene was particulary interesting to me. (that maybe because I was looking for reasons to laugh as this movie was certainly not scaring me)
By this time, the hero, having a change of heart starts believing in the supernatural and brings in a tantric of his own called 'Manja' (in Hindi that what we call the string used to fly kites). And 'Manja' ends the our agony by finishing off the black magic couple (he kills off the tantric witch by making a fan fall on her that cuts off her head). The hero then reaches back to his daughter and the credit for curing the child is taken by the psychiatrist. (maybe she was an MBA, giving the most weirdest of fundaes and gets away with it :P)
The only thing that benefited me was that now my bottom Five movie list has been updated. Now, Phoonk is a jewel in the crown of that list. And I think my friends need to thank me for making them miss the first 10 minutes as it saved them 10 extra minutes of pure torture.
What I would suggest is to see this movie on your system whenever it becomes available and watch it with the same fervour as you watched Gunda and the movies of that genre. You'll seriously enjoy it then.
Wednesday, August 20, 2008
Lingo - Part II
After my last post, many people reminded me of a lot I had left out. So here comes part II of the lingo
Globe - Anything and everything under the sun. It is never pertaining to anything specific and the same answer may be applicable to more than one question. Its the thing you never need to prepare for, i.e. it is just 'phattebaazi'
Geela - It is the term given to people who go ga-ga over any and every girl (really sorry if I offend anyone :P). These people go that extra mile to be in the good books of girls and never refuse any request that may come their way from that side.
Hoosh - It is the way IIMB people celebrate the success or share the happiness of others. It is a ceremony that is common across campuses all over the country and may be known as GPL or Bumps elsewhere.
L^2 - An IIMB specific term. Its the place where all the 'future managers and leaders'(its what we are told to everywhere) like to celebrate. It is the spot where everything from the famous L^2 parties to the hooshing sessions take place. In short - IT ROCKS
RG - Its the phenomenon that that plagues the entire student section. This is the thing that leads to the crab effect - i.e. if you cant go up, pull the others down. RG is Relative Grading. But honestly speaking, I havn't seen too much its effect yet and hope I dont see it anytime soon.
Macha - This is what people call each other around here. A typical south Indian way of calling people. Its like we call people 'yaar' in the north.
I guess I am not missing out on anything now. I think now that I've started writing again, you can hear from me more often. Cheers!!!!!!
Globe - Anything and everything under the sun. It is never pertaining to anything specific and the same answer may be applicable to more than one question. Its the thing you never need to prepare for, i.e. it is just 'phattebaazi'
Geela - It is the term given to people who go ga-ga over any and every girl (really sorry if I offend anyone :P). These people go that extra mile to be in the good books of girls and never refuse any request that may come their way from that side.
Hoosh - It is the way IIMB people celebrate the success or share the happiness of others. It is a ceremony that is common across campuses all over the country and may be known as GPL or Bumps elsewhere.
L^2 - An IIMB specific term. Its the place where all the 'future managers and leaders'(its what we are told to everywhere) like to celebrate. It is the spot where everything from the famous L^2 parties to the hooshing sessions take place. In short - IT ROCKS
RG - Its the phenomenon that that plagues the entire student section. This is the thing that leads to the crab effect - i.e. if you cant go up, pull the others down. RG is Relative Grading. But honestly speaking, I havn't seen too much its effect yet and hope I dont see it anytime soon.
Macha - This is what people call each other around here. A typical south Indian way of calling people. Its like we call people 'yaar' in the north.
I guess I am not missing out on anything now. I think now that I've started writing again, you can hear from me more often. Cheers!!!!!!
Wednesday, July 16, 2008
Lingo
I am finally writing after a break of a couple of months. Life has been a bit hectic here at IIMB, hectic but fun. There is so much happening around here that you rarely get time. No, its not all about the academics.
Now there are a few commonly used words here which have become a part of our day to day lives. So, here comes the IIM-Lingo:
CP - Short for class participation, noting too great
ACP - Arbit CP, i.e when a person is asked to speak or has the urge to speak in class without any valid points, so, it ends up being a conglomerate of 6-7 sentences stitched together which ultimately has little or no meaning in the context of what is taking place in the class.
DCP - Desperate CP, takes place when a person desperately wants to speak in class and takes even the slightest of opportunities or a break in the prof sentence to start speaking. The typical characteristic of people having this unique quality is the consistency of the number of times they speak in class.
Footage - It is the term given for the people who want to be visible in the eyes of the prof as well as the class. CP,ACP and DCP may be tools for the same. It may also consist of doing weird stuff in class like wise-cracks, or being caught sleeping (although almost no one is caught sleeping, that is an art most people have mastered or the profs simply dont care)
Placecom - A group of sadistic people who take pleasure in the fact that they can make people work hard, harder than any subject makes any student work. Characterized by their in-born dislike of white spaces on paper (not due to environmental reason though).
NC - Night Canteen, the lifeline of the institute along with Athicas. Serves nocturnal creatures like us and helps s to survive the late nights.
DML - The official full form is Director's merit list, and it is a kind of taunt that people have to suffer if they get even above average marks in any single subject. To get rid of this stigma, people have to perform considerable badly the next time.
This is all I can think of currently. I will definitely come up with my analysis of the 1st trimester courses pretty soon. So, wait for it.
Now there are a few commonly used words here which have become a part of our day to day lives. So, here comes the IIM-Lingo:
CP - Short for class participation, noting too great
ACP - Arbit CP, i.e when a person is asked to speak or has the urge to speak in class without any valid points, so, it ends up being a conglomerate of 6-7 sentences stitched together which ultimately has little or no meaning in the context of what is taking place in the class.
DCP - Desperate CP, takes place when a person desperately wants to speak in class and takes even the slightest of opportunities or a break in the prof sentence to start speaking. The typical characteristic of people having this unique quality is the consistency of the number of times they speak in class.
Footage - It is the term given for the people who want to be visible in the eyes of the prof as well as the class. CP,ACP and DCP may be tools for the same. It may also consist of doing weird stuff in class like wise-cracks, or being caught sleeping (although almost no one is caught sleeping, that is an art most people have mastered or the profs simply dont care)
Placecom - A group of sadistic people who take pleasure in the fact that they can make people work hard, harder than any subject makes any student work. Characterized by their in-born dislike of white spaces on paper (not due to environmental reason though).
NC - Night Canteen, the lifeline of the institute along with Athicas. Serves nocturnal creatures like us and helps s to survive the late nights.
DML - The official full form is Director's merit list, and it is a kind of taunt that people have to suffer if they get even above average marks in any single subject. To get rid of this stigma, people have to perform considerable badly the next time.
This is all I can think of currently. I will definitely come up with my analysis of the 1st trimester courses pretty soon. So, wait for it.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
The last week in office
Last week was a hectic one for me. Returning from Mumbai from my cousin's marriage, I had to complete all the formalities of exiting from the company in a span of five days - right from giving my resignation to getting my relieving letter. It wasn't too much of trouble because I had the support of my manager and my lead who were nice enough to help me complete the formalities smoothly.
I was able to complete all the formalities in time by Friday and the best part was the exit interview I had in which I again spoke out all the things which I had been saying all year round. It just feels nice to have things off your chest once in a while.
I really liked the part where my team officially gifted mt a watch and my project team (i.e only Raju and Abhinand) gifted me a parker pen set. It was really nice and I really felt very good. Apart from the time I was busy completing the formalities, most of my time in the week was spent chatting with office friends. Even on the final day, we had a sort of photo session for memories sake. I have really made some very good friends in my one year in office.
After I left office for the final time, I had a sort of a hollow feeling.I knew I was leaving for something that would take me to a better place in the future. It was not the 'I am officially berozgaar>' or 'Suck ya office guys' kinds of feeling. Maybe it was because I had really enjoyed my life in my company. Every place has some positives and some negatives. I feel that you should take the negatives in your stride constantly trying whatever you can to improve them but not become too whiny. You've always got to enjoy the positives you get and that I eel is the key to a happy life.
Now as I sit at my home doing literally nothing except meeting a couple of college friends one day, I feel that I need to have something to do because even a week of having nothing to do is very boring. I am sure the IIM-Bangalore people would never let me have that feeling for the next two years but I am really sure that its going to be one hell of a journey that I will enjoy to the fullest.
I would write a couple of things on some issues next as there is nothing else going on in my life. The next personal post would be after I get to IIM. Till then enjoy my views on IMPORTANT NATIONAL ISSUES NEXT.
Cheers!!!!!!!
I was able to complete all the formalities in time by Friday and the best part was the exit interview I had in which I again spoke out all the things which I had been saying all year round. It just feels nice to have things off your chest once in a while.
I really liked the part where my team officially gifted mt a watch and my project team (i.e only Raju and Abhinand) gifted me a parker pen set. It was really nice and I really felt very good. Apart from the time I was busy completing the formalities, most of my time in the week was spent chatting with office friends. Even on the final day, we had a sort of photo session for memories sake. I have really made some very good friends in my one year in office.
After I left office for the final time, I had a sort of a hollow feeling.I knew I was leaving for something that would take me to a better place in the future. It was not the 'I am officially berozgaar>' or 'Suck ya office guys' kinds of feeling. Maybe it was because I had really enjoyed my life in my company. Every place has some positives and some negatives. I feel that you should take the negatives in your stride constantly trying whatever you can to improve them but not become too whiny. You've always got to enjoy the positives you get and that I eel is the key to a happy life.
Now as I sit at my home doing literally nothing except meeting a couple of college friends one day, I feel that I need to have something to do because even a week of having nothing to do is very boring. I am sure the IIM-Bangalore people would never let me have that feeling for the next two years but I am really sure that its going to be one hell of a journey that I will enjoy to the fullest.
I would write a couple of things on some issues next as there is nothing else going on in my life. The next personal post would be after I get to IIM. Till then enjoy my views on IMPORTANT NATIONAL ISSUES NEXT.
Cheers!!!!!!!
Monday, June 9, 2008
The Fuel Price Hike - A different perspective
For the last week, the fuel price hike has been a keenly debated issue. There have been reports of the Oil Companies incurring daily losses to the tune of Rs.600 crores and that if they were not aided soon, they would become bankrupt in some months as they would have no cash to buy petroleum.
I agree that the duties and the taxes imposed on petroleum products are too high at about 52%(including excise and sales tax) but it is not that the rates in India are the highest in the world. Places like Turkey and Norway sell petrol at about Rs112/liter.
According to me a vehicle is a luxury and not a necessity. So, if a person is able to afford a vehicle, that person should be ready to bear the expenses to run his vehicle i.e. the fuel costs. So, I feel there should be no subsidy in fuel prices for the private vehicle owners.
But for that to take place, the government needs to strengthen the public transport system and provide the country with world class facilities. People who are willing to let go of their personal vehicles for public transport should feel the worth for it just like in the case of Delhi metro. The fuel subsidies should only lie for the public transport vehicles and the commercial goods carrying vehicles(because the goods transfer affects the prices of all the commodities and indirectly the inflation).
This would help the country on many levels. First, the traffic on the clogged roads of the cities in India would go down. The public transport system which is in shambles in most cities would be strengthened. Things like car-pooling and use of public transport which has been advised by the traffic police for generations would pick-up. The private vehicles operating as taxis would need to get an official taxi number plate to be able to run viably. The reduced number of vehicles on the road and the much improved public transport system would also help in curbing pollution and also help the global warming situation.
Another aspect is the subsidies on cooking gas. Most of the poor people do not use LPG cooking gas. They rely more on kerosene. So, here too I feel that there should be no subsidy in the LPG prices and the kerosene prices need to remain subsidized so that the economically backward sections of people are not affected.
I feel that the demanding in a cut in sales tax and excise duties would not be a very fruitful experience for a country like India where the government revenues depend a lot on the fuel sales. If India has to keep up the fast growth it has achieved over the past decade, it requires all the revenues for the various projects so that the growth can be sustained. Therefore, I am not in favor of such moves.
I know that most of the people especially those from the middle class to which I belong too would not agree with my view. They would again think that it is the middle class which has to suffer again. But I still stand by my views because I feel that it is the cream which is taking all the benefits of the subsidies and not the people who really require it.
I agree that the duties and the taxes imposed on petroleum products are too high at about 52%(including excise and sales tax) but it is not that the rates in India are the highest in the world. Places like Turkey and Norway sell petrol at about Rs112/liter.
According to me a vehicle is a luxury and not a necessity. So, if a person is able to afford a vehicle, that person should be ready to bear the expenses to run his vehicle i.e. the fuel costs. So, I feel there should be no subsidy in fuel prices for the private vehicle owners.
But for that to take place, the government needs to strengthen the public transport system and provide the country with world class facilities. People who are willing to let go of their personal vehicles for public transport should feel the worth for it just like in the case of Delhi metro. The fuel subsidies should only lie for the public transport vehicles and the commercial goods carrying vehicles(because the goods transfer affects the prices of all the commodities and indirectly the inflation).
This would help the country on many levels. First, the traffic on the clogged roads of the cities in India would go down. The public transport system which is in shambles in most cities would be strengthened. Things like car-pooling and use of public transport which has been advised by the traffic police for generations would pick-up. The private vehicles operating as taxis would need to get an official taxi number plate to be able to run viably. The reduced number of vehicles on the road and the much improved public transport system would also help in curbing pollution and also help the global warming situation.
Another aspect is the subsidies on cooking gas. Most of the poor people do not use LPG cooking gas. They rely more on kerosene. So, here too I feel that there should be no subsidy in the LPG prices and the kerosene prices need to remain subsidized so that the economically backward sections of people are not affected.
I feel that the demanding in a cut in sales tax and excise duties would not be a very fruitful experience for a country like India where the government revenues depend a lot on the fuel sales. If India has to keep up the fast growth it has achieved over the past decade, it requires all the revenues for the various projects so that the growth can be sustained. Therefore, I am not in favor of such moves.
I know that most of the people especially those from the middle class to which I belong too would not agree with my view. They would again think that it is the middle class which has to suffer again. But I still stand by my views because I feel that it is the cream which is taking all the benefits of the subsidies and not the people who really require it.
Sunday, June 1, 2008
Gosh!! Is it one year already
It was a nice evening. It had just stopped raining. There was a cool breeze blowing across and I could just see the sun about to set at the horizon. I was in a very contemplating mood as I was thinking about the question my friend Paras posted on our group's googlegroup about how the past one year in the jobs has been and my first reaction to that post was "Shit, is that already that long".
Most of the replies others posted could be summarised as 'Life Sucks' and 'I hate my job'. All the people wrote that they miss college and they miss friends but I guess that was college and everybody needs to realize that job is a completely different piece of cake. This is the harsh reality of this world. You have to suck it up and move on.
Actually, even for me, life has not been like I had imagined it to be. But again, I never had a clear vision of how it should have been. The only thing I had in mind was that I wanted to something I really enjoyed but is there any 'job' in this world I would enjoy doing. Is there such a job for me? Probably Not.
I've spent the majority of last year staring for long hours at the computer screen. There's not much to write about when you are in a software company. Working for long hours when there is a project deadline and having no work at all during the other times is a very common thing. When it becomes too frustrating, the only way to vent out your anger is criticizing the software industry and how its is turning humans into robots or the HR policies of the company over the multiple coffee sessions(I guess in a public sector firm that would convert to criticizing the government and the laid-back attitude of the public sector).
I speak for myself when I say that I am a very lazy person inherently and any kind of job would be a hardship for me. Whatever amount of time I would work would be for money to secure my present and future (any maybe my future family). I just don't believe in a work that I would enjoy. But I know that I would have to constantly give my best if I want to be really successful and that is what I would aim to do in my career.
What I believe is that job would always be a part of my life. So, if I want to enjoy my life, I would have to keep all me my near and dear ones close to me as they are really the people who make your lives worth living. So, friends, keep the bonds of your friendship strong as this is what you would really cherish in the long run.
Most of the replies others posted could be summarised as 'Life Sucks' and 'I hate my job'. All the people wrote that they miss college and they miss friends but I guess that was college and everybody needs to realize that job is a completely different piece of cake. This is the harsh reality of this world. You have to suck it up and move on.
Actually, even for me, life has not been like I had imagined it to be. But again, I never had a clear vision of how it should have been. The only thing I had in mind was that I wanted to something I really enjoyed but is there any 'job' in this world I would enjoy doing. Is there such a job for me? Probably Not.
I've spent the majority of last year staring for long hours at the computer screen. There's not much to write about when you are in a software company. Working for long hours when there is a project deadline and having no work at all during the other times is a very common thing. When it becomes too frustrating, the only way to vent out your anger is criticizing the software industry and how its is turning humans into robots or the HR policies of the company over the multiple coffee sessions(I guess in a public sector firm that would convert to criticizing the government and the laid-back attitude of the public sector).
I speak for myself when I say that I am a very lazy person inherently and any kind of job would be a hardship for me. Whatever amount of time I would work would be for money to secure my present and future (any maybe my future family). I just don't believe in a work that I would enjoy. But I know that I would have to constantly give my best if I want to be really successful and that is what I would aim to do in my career.
What I believe is that job would always be a part of my life. So, if I want to enjoy my life, I would have to keep all me my near and dear ones close to me as they are really the people who make your lives worth living. So, friends, keep the bonds of your friendship strong as this is what you would really cherish in the long run.
Friday, May 30, 2008
Caste Cloud over India
All over the news channels, there have been only three bits of news for the past one week - The IPL (for obvious reasons), the Aarushi murder case (don't know how a murder case can be made so sensational in a country where hundreds of people are killed daily) and the Gujjar Crisis. The third one was according to me the most important one.
Even if you read just a tad bit, its difficult not to run into articles about the caste equations and the reservation policies in the country. Just my luck or maybe some unintentional blog searches, I just happened to hit a number of blogs with some people's views on this issue.
The Supreme court judgment on the OBC quotas in the educational institutes raised a very valid and important question. It said that in the past 60 years of reservations, the number of castes in the reserved category has increased manifold. So, does that mean India is getting more backward. I think someone should ask this question to the government which claims that under its rule, India is progressing. If this is the definition of progress, then the country is better off being backward.
And I realized one thing, that this issue is affecting everyone, no one is ready to step up to have an open and intellectual discussion on the issue. I just a read sarcastic joke in some random blog:
A Question paper in an Exam
For General Category : Answer All Questions
For OBC : Answer any 3 questions
For SC : Read the questions
For ST : Thank You for coming
Others joke around by saying that there should be 100% reservation.
The important thing is not whether these jokes are good or bad, the issue is whether anyone is ready to do anything to improve the situation.
The situation is turning so bad that the Gujjar community just for the sake of reservation is ready to hold the country to ransom by blocking roads and railway lines hence cutting off the supplies to an area.
The youth of this country is trying to fight back through forums like the Youth for Equality. Any person ,even the most staunch supporter of reservations, if coming with an open mind would have difficulty in answering the questions posed by them.
You might have guessed by now that I am totally anti-reservation and pro-merit. The point I would like to raise is that ultimately all the people need to compete in the world, the problem facing an engineer or a doctor would not solve itself easily just because that person is from a deprived sections of the society so to say.
The reservation policy that was brought about by the great visionary Dr.Ambedkar had intended to dissolve the caste barriers in the country, rather it has widened the cracks in the society. Dr. Ambedkar would have been deeply saddened if he saw that the step he had proposed to break the barriers in the society has divided it further.
The government is just cover its failure of providing basic education to the people by providing sops in the form of reservations. It always shys away from the question of primary and secondary education system in the country. Enough people in the deprived classes of the country are not even able to complete their basic schooling. The important thing is not to alleviate just a handful of people in the backward communities, its about uplifting entire communities. That can only be done if the lower levels of education are strengthened rather than breeding mediocrity in higher education.
If the situation doesn't improve, then the agitations of the present Gujjar agitation kind would become a common scene across India.
Now, I am totally for the upliftment of society and the backward classes but I am not in favor of the method being adopted to do the same. The injustice caused to some classes a hundred years ago should not be the reason of them getting an unfair advantage now.
I have a lot of friends from different sections of the society. And I guess all of them know that this is not against anyone in particular. I never saw who is from which section before befriending them. This is the thinking of the progressive new generation of India and I think this is what should be encouraged rather than trying to divide the new generation.
Its the moral responsibility (if the politicians understand this word) of the leaders of this country try and remove the barriers in society rather than deepening them. This can only be done by awareness and education which the government has put on a back-burner for a long long time. I sincerely hope that a miracle takes place and the country truly and inclusively progresses.
Even if you read just a tad bit, its difficult not to run into articles about the caste equations and the reservation policies in the country. Just my luck or maybe some unintentional blog searches, I just happened to hit a number of blogs with some people's views on this issue.
The Supreme court judgment on the OBC quotas in the educational institutes raised a very valid and important question. It said that in the past 60 years of reservations, the number of castes in the reserved category has increased manifold. So, does that mean India is getting more backward. I think someone should ask this question to the government which claims that under its rule, India is progressing. If this is the definition of progress, then the country is better off being backward.
And I realized one thing, that this issue is affecting everyone, no one is ready to step up to have an open and intellectual discussion on the issue. I just a read sarcastic joke in some random blog:
A Question paper in an Exam
For General Category : Answer All Questions
For OBC : Answer any 3 questions
For SC : Read the questions
For ST : Thank You for coming
Others joke around by saying that there should be 100% reservation.
The important thing is not whether these jokes are good or bad, the issue is whether anyone is ready to do anything to improve the situation.
The situation is turning so bad that the Gujjar community just for the sake of reservation is ready to hold the country to ransom by blocking roads and railway lines hence cutting off the supplies to an area.
The youth of this country is trying to fight back through forums like the Youth for Equality. Any person ,even the most staunch supporter of reservations, if coming with an open mind would have difficulty in answering the questions posed by them.
You might have guessed by now that I am totally anti-reservation and pro-merit. The point I would like to raise is that ultimately all the people need to compete in the world, the problem facing an engineer or a doctor would not solve itself easily just because that person is from a deprived sections of the society so to say.
The reservation policy that was brought about by the great visionary Dr.Ambedkar had intended to dissolve the caste barriers in the country, rather it has widened the cracks in the society. Dr. Ambedkar would have been deeply saddened if he saw that the step he had proposed to break the barriers in the society has divided it further.
The government is just cover its failure of providing basic education to the people by providing sops in the form of reservations. It always shys away from the question of primary and secondary education system in the country. Enough people in the deprived classes of the country are not even able to complete their basic schooling. The important thing is not to alleviate just a handful of people in the backward communities, its about uplifting entire communities. That can only be done if the lower levels of education are strengthened rather than breeding mediocrity in higher education.
If the situation doesn't improve, then the agitations of the present Gujjar agitation kind would become a common scene across India.
Now, I am totally for the upliftment of society and the backward classes but I am not in favor of the method being adopted to do the same. The injustice caused to some classes a hundred years ago should not be the reason of them getting an unfair advantage now.
I have a lot of friends from different sections of the society. And I guess all of them know that this is not against anyone in particular. I never saw who is from which section before befriending them. This is the thinking of the progressive new generation of India and I think this is what should be encouraged rather than trying to divide the new generation.
Its the moral responsibility (if the politicians understand this word) of the leaders of this country try and remove the barriers in society rather than deepening them. This can only be done by awareness and education which the government has put on a back-burner for a long long time. I sincerely hope that a miracle takes place and the country truly and inclusively progresses.
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Rudderless Life
As I prepare to enter another phase in my life, sometimes I look back and see at what I have done till now. Did I ever have a direction where I wanted to go or did I just do what the others around me were doing.
Going for IIT-JEE was one such thing I had done as all of my friends were doing the same. There is always a lack of knowledge for the students as to their career choices when they are in school. The situation isn't too much better in colleges either. At least here in India, people generally tend to follow the crowd rather than make informed and well thought out decisions.
Even I was the same, having no idea what I wanted to do, I also followed the crowd and prepared for IIT. Though I didn't crack the exam, I performed well enough to get into IT-BHU. When I was in college I always felt that even though I had achieved something, I still didn't know whether that was what I wanted to become.
Then came another bit of information, that it doesn't matter what you studied in your graduation, everyone (at least the majority) goes into the software field. It was also a popular choice because it saved you from the rigors of the field job and also supposedly paid you well. So, a software job it was for me too(but I really feel that if you don't want to pursue higher studies, then getting into software field for a non-CS engineer is a BIG mistake).
Even though my decisions were always dependent on what the others were doing, but I always wanted to do the things better than everyone else around me.
At the time of placements I was lucky enough to have four job offers. Now I had to choose. Since I knew that the top two choices for me were paying me about the same, I decided to go for a job that would make me stand out i.e go for a company that recruits 3-4 people rather than 30. So, I finally joined Fair Isaac.
Again, since most of the people around me wanted to go for an MBA in the near future, so even I tried for the same. I had decided that if I were to do an MBA, it would only be from IIM-ABC or FMS (I always had a fascination for FMS being from Delhi). This may have been because I knew that I can achieve it or because I wanted to prove that I could compete with the best.
Personally I believe, most of the people from my college don't have the confidence to wait for a couple of years as all of them have felt the failure of just missing out on the IITs and are maybe satisfied with something below the best. That is one thing everyone should try to overcome - being satisfied with what you achieve. According to me, its all about confidence and self-belief. Everyone in IT-BHU has a good aptitude to crack the exam and everyone has the capability to achieve the best.
If just doing an MBA was my aim, then I could have got through a top-10 ranked B-School last year only, because i had a decent percentile. But this time, I did not want to compromise. So, I planned to wait for two years. But due to parental pressure, I gave the CAT exam, and luckily I cracked it with an amazingly high 99.98%le and got calls from all IIMs and converted all the calls except Ahemdabad.
Although, I don't know whether i would make all the right choices while I would be there in IIMB, but one thing is for sure, I would never regret any decision I have ever made in my life. Making mistakes is a part of life and you need to learn from them rather than ruing your decisions all your life.
I still don't know what I want to do in life. I am still as rudderless as i was before, but I know one thing for sure, I would certainly enjoy the journey as I have up to now.
Going for IIT-JEE was one such thing I had done as all of my friends were doing the same. There is always a lack of knowledge for the students as to their career choices when they are in school. The situation isn't too much better in colleges either. At least here in India, people generally tend to follow the crowd rather than make informed and well thought out decisions.
Even I was the same, having no idea what I wanted to do, I also followed the crowd and prepared for IIT. Though I didn't crack the exam, I performed well enough to get into IT-BHU. When I was in college I always felt that even though I had achieved something, I still didn't know whether that was what I wanted to become.
Then came another bit of information, that it doesn't matter what you studied in your graduation, everyone (at least the majority) goes into the software field. It was also a popular choice because it saved you from the rigors of the field job and also supposedly paid you well. So, a software job it was for me too(but I really feel that if you don't want to pursue higher studies, then getting into software field for a non-CS engineer is a BIG mistake).
Even though my decisions were always dependent on what the others were doing, but I always wanted to do the things better than everyone else around me.
At the time of placements I was lucky enough to have four job offers. Now I had to choose. Since I knew that the top two choices for me were paying me about the same, I decided to go for a job that would make me stand out i.e go for a company that recruits 3-4 people rather than 30. So, I finally joined Fair Isaac.
Again, since most of the people around me wanted to go for an MBA in the near future, so even I tried for the same. I had decided that if I were to do an MBA, it would only be from IIM-ABC or FMS (I always had a fascination for FMS being from Delhi). This may have been because I knew that I can achieve it or because I wanted to prove that I could compete with the best.
Personally I believe, most of the people from my college don't have the confidence to wait for a couple of years as all of them have felt the failure of just missing out on the IITs and are maybe satisfied with something below the best. That is one thing everyone should try to overcome - being satisfied with what you achieve. According to me, its all about confidence and self-belief. Everyone in IT-BHU has a good aptitude to crack the exam and everyone has the capability to achieve the best.
If just doing an MBA was my aim, then I could have got through a top-10 ranked B-School last year only, because i had a decent percentile. But this time, I did not want to compromise. So, I planned to wait for two years. But due to parental pressure, I gave the CAT exam, and luckily I cracked it with an amazingly high 99.98%le and got calls from all IIMs and converted all the calls except Ahemdabad.
Although, I don't know whether i would make all the right choices while I would be there in IIMB, but one thing is for sure, I would never regret any decision I have ever made in my life. Making mistakes is a part of life and you need to learn from them rather than ruing your decisions all your life.
I still don't know what I want to do in life. I am still as rudderless as i was before, but I know one thing for sure, I would certainly enjoy the journey as I have up to now.
Monday, May 19, 2008
Is this the Silicon Valley of India
Since the days when Infosys and Wipro became brand names, there is only one thing we have been hearing - Bangalore is the Silicon Valley of India. But is is really so?
For starters, Bangalore does provide a huge number of employment opportunities to people. Such is the boom in the software sector. And Bangalore lies at the heart of that boom. Although I am not too sure of the figures but my guess would be that a major share of the software revenue in India comes from Bangalore.
The all-year round pleasant weather of Bangalore has also been a factor which has helped to attract a huge number of multinational software firms to set up their bases here.
But that is where the good news ends. There are a HUGE number of problems crippling the city.
Ever since the software industry has grown in the city, there has been a complete lack of vision by the city developers/government to upgrade the infrastructure that would be required by the city to cope up with the pressure of its astronomical growth. This is where the planners in the NCR and Maharashtra have done their bit or have been lucky enough by having Gurgaon/Noida and Navi Mumbai at their disposals respectively so that the city infrastructure isn't crippled any further.
This era coinciding with the politically most unstable period in Karnataka hasn't helped the cause of the city either. There has been no political will in developing Bangalore as it just contributed less than 10% of the seats o the state legislature.
The present situation of roads in the city is very bad right from the quality of roads to its capacity to handle the amount of traffic. At peak hours it can take any person up to an hour to cover just a couple of kilometers. Even the public transport system is in shambles with very few number of buses coupled with auto-rickshaws being the only modes of transport available. And here too over-charging of passengers and refusing to go to a particular location has become rampant. Even the construction of the metro rail has come of more as an afterthought.
Bangalore was a city where power-cuts were unheard of but nowadays a number of areas face regular power cuts. The demand for power in the city has grown exponentially but the supply has remained constant and if anything is not done soon enough, Bangalore would soon face a huge power-crunch.
Now, everyone must be thinking I am bashing the city too much. But there's a long way to go if Bangalore is really to become Silicon Valley.
The infrastructure needs to be improved. A number of satellite towns need to be developed so that any further growth which takes place does not put any additional pressure on the already overused resources of the city. The companies must be given incentives to setup at the outskirts/suburbs.
The public transport system which is in shambles needs to be overhauled. People must be given alternatives to travel in their private vehicles.
Although saying all this seems to be too simplistic, but tough situations needs measures to be taken and I sincerely hope that the next government does take those measures so that Bangalore becomes a truly World-class city.
For starters, Bangalore does provide a huge number of employment opportunities to people. Such is the boom in the software sector. And Bangalore lies at the heart of that boom. Although I am not too sure of the figures but my guess would be that a major share of the software revenue in India comes from Bangalore.
The all-year round pleasant weather of Bangalore has also been a factor which has helped to attract a huge number of multinational software firms to set up their bases here.
But that is where the good news ends. There are a HUGE number of problems crippling the city.
Ever since the software industry has grown in the city, there has been a complete lack of vision by the city developers/government to upgrade the infrastructure that would be required by the city to cope up with the pressure of its astronomical growth. This is where the planners in the NCR and Maharashtra have done their bit or have been lucky enough by having Gurgaon/Noida and Navi Mumbai at their disposals respectively so that the city infrastructure isn't crippled any further.
This era coinciding with the politically most unstable period in Karnataka hasn't helped the cause of the city either. There has been no political will in developing Bangalore as it just contributed less than 10% of the seats o the state legislature.
The present situation of roads in the city is very bad right from the quality of roads to its capacity to handle the amount of traffic. At peak hours it can take any person up to an hour to cover just a couple of kilometers. Even the public transport system is in shambles with very few number of buses coupled with auto-rickshaws being the only modes of transport available. And here too over-charging of passengers and refusing to go to a particular location has become rampant. Even the construction of the metro rail has come of more as an afterthought.
Bangalore was a city where power-cuts were unheard of but nowadays a number of areas face regular power cuts. The demand for power in the city has grown exponentially but the supply has remained constant and if anything is not done soon enough, Bangalore would soon face a huge power-crunch.
Now, everyone must be thinking I am bashing the city too much. But there's a long way to go if Bangalore is really to become Silicon Valley.
The infrastructure needs to be improved. A number of satellite towns need to be developed so that any further growth which takes place does not put any additional pressure on the already overused resources of the city. The companies must be given incentives to setup at the outskirts/suburbs.
The public transport system which is in shambles needs to be overhauled. People must be given alternatives to travel in their private vehicles.
Although saying all this seems to be too simplistic, but tough situations needs measures to be taken and I sincerely hope that the next government does take those measures so that Bangalore becomes a truly World-class city.
Wednesday, May 14, 2008
College Memoirs Part II - The First Year
All the years you are in your school, only one thing is fed into your mind, that after school, going to IITs is what the brilliant people do. So, even I became a part of this rat race. I worked my ass off during the last two years of my school for that elusive dream of clearing the IIT-JEE.
My exams went well and I expected a 3-figure rank. IIT-Delhi, the institute of my dreams was looking more within reach now. But lightning struck on the day of the results. I was really disappointed to see a 4-figure rank and that too with three being the first digit. The only thing we ere taught at Vidyamandir was that you should take everything in your stride and never be tense in any situation. But that day I couldn't control my emotions and anyone could see the disappointment etched on my face.
I had never even contemplated joining any institute other than IIT-Delhi. But now I had to look for alternatives. And there stood my IT-BHU. I started gathering more information about IT-BHU because according to the trends of the preceding years , I had realized that I only had a realistic chance of making it here. What I heard about the institute was encouraging. People told me its the unofficial IIT and that the standards there are almost the same as IITs. Even at the councelling, one of the IIT-D professors told me to prefer IT-BHU over IITG. Although these claims of IT-BHU being academically equal to the IITs need much debating but I dare say that the things I learnt here, I could never have done in an IIT. IT-BHU made me a more complete person and this may have been the best decision of my life.
When I entered the institute for the first time it was a gloomy day giving the institute a far older look than it already is (and it is about 90 years old). The hostels and buildings resembling those spooky villas in horror stories. It looked more of a heritage site than a university where supposedly more than 15 thousand students stay and study.
Since the name IIT was so revered all around, I had expected state of the art technology and the infrastructure comparable to the best in the world. But alas, I was to be disappointed. When I got to my hostel, I had expected decent rooms as shown in the movies. But the rooms were tooooooooo small and the icing on the cake was that in the first year, two people had to share that room which I thought was small for even one person.
Next was the day of orientation and registration. The Swatantrata Bhavan where the orientation was held didn't disappoint me. Our registration was to be held in one of those ED(Drawing) rooms. I had expected modern classrooms but those rooms resembled the classrooms and courts shown in pre-independence era movies like Bhagat Singh. Even the classes were not very impressive either. It may also be due to the fact that after preparing for JEE each and every person expects to start learning Rocket Science on the first day itself.
But I had the will to let go of all such expectations and begin the journey in IT-BHU. Everything thereafter went uphill for me. The first year especially was a roller coaster ride.
Each and every one of us was so afraid of getting ragged that we went to bed at sharp 10 in the night and followed the famous dress code of Shirt and Trousers religiously for the first few weeks. All the students would go to class in huge groups resembling a the supporters of a political leader. Since all of us were afraid of getting ragged all of us used to assemble in one room (more than 10 in that dungeon) and do BC(hostelers would understand this term) i.e talk and have fun for long hours. This is the time when the foundation was laid for some amazing friendships.
Even though everyone tried to avoid getting ragged, all of us invariably ended up getting ragged. The ragging session ranged from seniors coming down from the first floor just to have some plain fun to the organized ragging when all the first year students go to the senior's hostel where everything from stripping to abusing goes. That feeling is particularly not a very good one but once that is over, you feel that you have broken all the shackles. People undergo a revolutionary change especially the shy introverts.
Then started out outdoor times. Then onwards this is what my daily routine was: getting up, attending classes(yaa we did in the first year), going to play volleyball(which became such an important part of my college life) and taking out our cycles and going out to explore the university campus at night. The campus was huge (it is the one of the largest in Asia), so it took us some while to get hold of the routes inside the university.
There were a lot of memories attached with our first year: the movies we used to watch at night in the common room, the hooting of other teams in all out inter-college events - be it sports or cultural, or the way everyone used to make ED sheets the whole night just a day before the submissions.
One thing we got to learn was that studying a lot did not lead to being the topper in class. So, most of us took exams more as a ritual rather than a means of survival. That was the really the reason we enjoyed the first year as much as we did.
The amount of fun all of us had in the first year may only be rivaled by the final year. The friendships I formed then were the strongest I had ever formed in my life. The transformation of many people from being protected children at home to being independent young men was amazing. At least for me, the first year was the one which taught me the most and one which I would never forget my entire life. It made me a more complete person.
My exams went well and I expected a 3-figure rank. IIT-Delhi, the institute of my dreams was looking more within reach now. But lightning struck on the day of the results. I was really disappointed to see a 4-figure rank and that too with three being the first digit. The only thing we ere taught at Vidyamandir was that you should take everything in your stride and never be tense in any situation. But that day I couldn't control my emotions and anyone could see the disappointment etched on my face.
I had never even contemplated joining any institute other than IIT-Delhi. But now I had to look for alternatives. And there stood my IT-BHU. I started gathering more information about IT-BHU because according to the trends of the preceding years , I had realized that I only had a realistic chance of making it here. What I heard about the institute was encouraging. People told me its the unofficial IIT and that the standards there are almost the same as IITs. Even at the councelling, one of the IIT-D professors told me to prefer IT-BHU over IITG. Although these claims of IT-BHU being academically equal to the IITs need much debating but I dare say that the things I learnt here, I could never have done in an IIT. IT-BHU made me a more complete person and this may have been the best decision of my life.
When I entered the institute for the first time it was a gloomy day giving the institute a far older look than it already is (and it is about 90 years old). The hostels and buildings resembling those spooky villas in horror stories. It looked more of a heritage site than a university where supposedly more than 15 thousand students stay and study.
Since the name IIT was so revered all around, I had expected state of the art technology and the infrastructure comparable to the best in the world. But alas, I was to be disappointed. When I got to my hostel, I had expected decent rooms as shown in the movies. But the rooms were tooooooooo small and the icing on the cake was that in the first year, two people had to share that room which I thought was small for even one person.
Next was the day of orientation and registration. The Swatantrata Bhavan where the orientation was held didn't disappoint me. Our registration was to be held in one of those ED(Drawing) rooms. I had expected modern classrooms but those rooms resembled the classrooms and courts shown in pre-independence era movies like Bhagat Singh. Even the classes were not very impressive either. It may also be due to the fact that after preparing for JEE each and every person expects to start learning Rocket Science on the first day itself.
But I had the will to let go of all such expectations and begin the journey in IT-BHU. Everything thereafter went uphill for me. The first year especially was a roller coaster ride.
Each and every one of us was so afraid of getting ragged that we went to bed at sharp 10 in the night and followed the famous dress code of Shirt and Trousers religiously for the first few weeks. All the students would go to class in huge groups resembling a the supporters of a political leader. Since all of us were afraid of getting ragged all of us used to assemble in one room (more than 10 in that dungeon) and do BC(hostelers would understand this term) i.e talk and have fun for long hours. This is the time when the foundation was laid for some amazing friendships.
Even though everyone tried to avoid getting ragged, all of us invariably ended up getting ragged. The ragging session ranged from seniors coming down from the first floor just to have some plain fun to the organized ragging when all the first year students go to the senior's hostel where everything from stripping to abusing goes. That feeling is particularly not a very good one but once that is over, you feel that you have broken all the shackles. People undergo a revolutionary change especially the shy introverts.
Then started out outdoor times. Then onwards this is what my daily routine was: getting up, attending classes(yaa we did in the first year), going to play volleyball(which became such an important part of my college life) and taking out our cycles and going out to explore the university campus at night. The campus was huge (it is the one of the largest in Asia), so it took us some while to get hold of the routes inside the university.
There were a lot of memories attached with our first year: the movies we used to watch at night in the common room, the hooting of other teams in all out inter-college events - be it sports or cultural, or the way everyone used to make ED sheets the whole night just a day before the submissions.
One thing we got to learn was that studying a lot did not lead to being the topper in class. So, most of us took exams more as a ritual rather than a means of survival. That was the really the reason we enjoyed the first year as much as we did.
The amount of fun all of us had in the first year may only be rivaled by the final year. The friendships I formed then were the strongest I had ever formed in my life. The transformation of many people from being protected children at home to being independent young men was amazing. At least for me, the first year was the one which taught me the most and one which I would never forget my entire life. It made me a more complete person.
Sunday, May 11, 2008
College Memoirs - Part I (Placements)
Now, since I am still so hung up on college, I'll write some posts about the most memorable things for me in college which would include some incidents, volleyball, the BC at LC, the computer games we played(read AOE), the videos we made etc. So, gear up, there would be 4-5 parts to this.
In this post I'll concentrate on our placement times. According to me it was the most interesting time of our college life. It may not have been the best for all but it had all the ingredients - joy, sorrow, despair, sense of achievement, under-achievement, good luck ,bad luck and what not.
It all starts with all the people going through the puzzle books like Shakuntala Devi and Summers just to prepare for the written exams of Infosys (though I still feel people in IT deserve a lot more than Infosys, its just that they get satisfied too easily in most cases).
As soon as you reach back to college in the final year, you can almost sense that anticipation and tension in the air. There's almost a month to spend in college before the actual placements start. The attendance in the classes fall a lot below the already abysmal levels. Then comes the times of the announcement of the companies visiting. The TPRs going to the TPO trying desperately to get more companies to open for their batch.
Then comes the filling up of the forms and the meetings in the hostel discussing about the companies and their requirements. Then comes the D-Day when the written exams are held. The selfless friendships come to the fore here when people sit in the exams just to get their friends through the written exams(this may seem unethical but what the hell!!!!). Then begins the wait for the shortlist. You see the same faces who are selfless enough to wait in the TPO for the results while the other guys are preparing for the final phase of the process. I did make some very good friendships there.
Once the shortlist comes out, then begins the frantic search for White Shirt, Black Pant and the Institute Tie. Its an amazing sight watching the people waiting for their interviews to get done with which sometimes stretched to 2-3am in the morning or began at 6 am in the morning. The actual interview may be only 5 minutes long but the wait might be more than a couple of hours.
Just after the results are declared, came my favorite part, the job bumps. Even though being the TPR , I was the person who was given bumps almost every second day. It gave me a sense of satisfaction that I have contributed, maybe not in a major way but in my own small way. The better the job, the worse the person was beaten black and blue. It was just a way to show our happiness or maybe just a way to show our jealousy although no one would like to accept that). There were people who I feel that deserved a lot more than they got. But I think thats life, sometimes you under-achieve sometimes you get what you deserve. Its just about keeping your foot on the Pedal. Ultimately, everyone gets what he deserves. For some it comes early, for some a bit late.
I would conclude by quoting some famous quotes used especially during the placement times:
"Arre yaar CV kaise banaye, batao zara?"
"Meri weakness kya hai batao........... teri hobby bata, mujhe bhi likhni hai"
"Abe form jama kar diye?"
"Maine PPT attend nahi kara, kya karti hai ye comapny?"
"Saale tu PPT me nahi aaya, free T-Shirt de rahe the."
"4-5 log exam hall me jaldi pahunch jaana, sab apne log saath me baithne chaiye. Writtem me sabka hona chaiye"
"A,B aur C shorlist ho gaye hain, inko jaldi TPO bhejo."
"X aur Y ki lagi hai job, sab chappal tayar rakho hostel me." and after reaching the hostel "Maaaaaarrrrrooo, bachne nahi chaiye"
(frustration) "Abe yaar ab 5 comapny me nahi hua hai, ab baithne ka koi fayada nahi hai"
(endurance) "Ye meri 10th company hai, isme to ho hi jaayega"
(desparation) "Meri dream job lagwa do"
It then all ends with all the people giving their job parties to their closest friends. Generally those party become those senti types because all the people start realizing that in a very short time, everyone has to go their separate ways leaving four years of friendship behind. I think and sincerely hope that these friendships I formed here would stand the test of time overcoming all the distances.
Finally I would like to say, I'll never forget those times
Wednesday, May 7, 2008
An interesting and important day
As mentioned by me in my previous post, God planned to test my decision to attend my Convocation by scheduling my IIM-Kolkata interview on the afternoon of 13th March when my Convocation was scheduled on 14th morning.
As soon as I had this information, I decided to find ways to get to Banaras in time as there was no direct flight to Varanasi from Bangalore. So, after a lot of research , I concluded that there were just a couple of ways to reach for the convocation in time. I had to catch a flight to Kolkata (one was at 5.45 and another at 7.15) but that would have depended on whether i would be free by that time or not. Then, from Kolkata, there were 2 trains to Mughal Sarai (30kms from Banaras), one at 10pm and another at 11.30. So, I booked tickets for both the trains and didn't book my flight tickets taking a huge risk with the fares. I thought that I would catch the earliest available flight according to the time I get free.
So, on the D-Day, I arrived at the spot for the interview an hour early. And contrary to other IIMs, IIM-Kolkata had put up the list of the candidates and the panels they would be in. As luck would have it, my name was 7th out of 9 people on that panel. I hoped that they would call the candidates in random order as was done in IIM-Indore. I thought that after the Case Study got over, I would stay back and request the panel to take my interview early.
So, the time arrived and all the members in my panel went in for the Case Study. There were four people present, two Professors of IIMC and 2 alumni. It was something about an employee who was working for a company, left it , joined a rival company where he worked for 4 years. He came back to his original company and was offered a higher post than his former peers which lead to a discord. It was a nice discussion where everyone made some valid points and everyone was given a minute to summarize at the end.
After the Case study, the panel asked us to come in the order mentioned on the list (i thought that was it). Then they asked us if we had any queries. I thought this is my chance. I told them that I had my convocation the next day and that I would be very grateful if my interview was conducted earlier than scheduled. The panelist told me,"We don't have any problems. If you can convince the other members to swap places with you, then well and good. That would also show your persuasive skills and if you are able to come in for the interview by the second slot, I'll not take your interview and will directly select you."
I had to get my form attested, so I couldn't go in at the first place. All the other panel members understood my problem, so ultimately everyone was nice enough to allow me to go in before them. I went into the room at the second slot.
As soon as I went in, the professor was shocked or at least acting shocked. Here's how our initial conversation went about:
P1(Prof 1): So, You've come. According to what I said, I should not take your interview and select you directly.
(i gave a smile)
P1: What do you think I should do?
Me: Sir, its all up to you.
P1: Do you think its fair?
Me: Sir, if that statement was made seriously, then I think its totally fair.
P1: Do you think its fair to the other candidates?
Me: No, not at all.
P1: So, if you were in my position, what would you have done?
Me: Sir, I would prefer if you take my interview.
(I knew at that point that this was the thing that would have made or ruined my interview)
Now the interview started (mostly only the alumni and P1 asked the questions ,the second professor was observing rather than asking the questions.
A(I don't remember who asked what so, A means one of the alumni): So, attending your convocation is more important than your interview here
Me: No Sir, it was a request from my side because I would have preferred to attend the convocation. If you would not have agreed , then I would definitely have stayed back for the interview and missed the convocation.
P1: So, tell me what have you contributed to the society?
Me: Nothing till now.
P1: Do you plan to do anything in the future?
Me: Sir, my family contributes for our village in Tamil Nadu, so will I may help them in that in the future.
P1: (here comes the Raj Thackeray issue) So, you live here and work in Bangalore and will contribute to your native place. I think that is what Raj Thackeray was talking about.
Me: Sir, I would help my family in that because, I would have guidance from them. In the future, I may also support local charities but that would be thinking too far ahead.
(there was some discussion on this issue in which I also mentioned that I am a Tamilian, born and brought up in Delhi, studied in Varanasi and working in Bangalore just to show my diverse background)
Some discussion on my work - About Credit Bureaus, Credit Scoring and what all should be done to improve the situation in India. (did well in those parts)
It was more of a discussion than an interview. I came out very happy.
Just before the interview, I had called up my friend in office asking her to book the flight tickets for the flight at 5.45. After the interview, I rushed to the office to get the tickets. As, I was collecting the tickets from her, surprisingly one of my college friends Vaibhav Jain aka Jaini came along smiling as if I was dating her on the streets. Luckily, he had a vehicle with him and dropped me to the airport.
My other friends(Puneet,Moti,Faisal,Baba and Tyson) were to catch a flight to Kolkata at 3.30 which was via Chennai. So, they were schedules to reach Kolkata about 75 minutes before me. Their flight was delayed by an hour. I caught the flight and when I reached Kolkata, I found out that their flight had not arrived yet. One of my friends working in Kolkata, Kapil had come to receive me. We caught a taxi to Howrah Railway station. He got down near his home and i continued to the station. We crossed the famous Howrah bridge which is located just outside the station and it does look AWESOME. I managed to catch the train with my friends. We had a blast during the entire journey rekindling old memories.
When we reached Mughal Sarai, Faisal's Local Guardian had come to pick us up with 2 vehicles for transportation to the college. As we were just about to enter the highway, a truck hit our vehicle and ripped the rear-left part. There wasn't much harm done as both the vehicles were at a very slow speed.
We waited there for some minutes to make the traffic police understand the situation and left for the heaven on earth - IT,BHU.
In this entire day, I realized that, I had taken the help of many of my friends and I take credit for making such friendships. I would like to thank all my friends who helped me that day and all the other friends who were with me on the journey that day. It is because of all of them that the day was so memorable for me.
P.S. - I also cracked the interview and got a final admission offer from IIM-Kolkata. So, for me the day was just perfect.
Tuesday, April 29, 2008
Convocation Trip
Ever since I left the realm of BHU, I always had a deep urge to go back there whenever I got an opportunity. So, it was pretty much decided from my side that come what may, I'll be attending the convocation.
But God always likes to test your decisions. So, he decided to keep my interview for IIM-Kolkata in the afternoon of the 13th of March, just a day before the convocation which was scheduled on the 14th. Now, the IIM interview and the journey to BHU was a separate experience in itself which I'll definitely post later.
As we were entering Varanasi, the four years that I had spent there came rushing back to me - the chaos on the streets of the city, the bad and over-crowded roads, any vehicle carrying at least 2 times its capacity and a lot more. As soon as we entered the gates of BHU, it was a completely different picture as expected - the quiet roads, the greenery all around and the hostels in yellow and red resembling old palaces. The view of our very own VT(Vishwanath Temple) from a distance brought back fond memories.
I got down at Raman hostel to dump my baggage. Meeting old friends and my juniors was very nice. Me and Neta got ready immediately and left for our favourite Hangout spot in college the Limbdi Corner or as it is famously known LC. Nostalgia filled me when i saw the same old people working there. I was even happier when all of them recognized us and told us how it was never the same without our group sitting there all year round. It may have been something they say to everyone but it sure does make you feel nice. Our juniors had kept our convocation robes ready for us so that we could drop straight into the ceremony.
We went for the ceremony and realized that a very large number had turned up (about 70-80 considering the fact that we just had one week's notice and also the fact that only 20-30 people had turned up from our senior batch last year). The ceremony was nothing too special but I must tell you that when you get that degree in your hand on the stage it surely is a proud feeling. Everyone was happy with the fact that no one can take it away from them now because frankly speaking none of us had worked too hard for it. All of us were reaping the benefits of the hard work we put in during the years of preparation for JEE. After the ceremony I met a couple of Professors I really wanted to. The ceremony could not be over without the traditional throwing up of the hats. Somehow, I really was fascinated by those scenes and once you are a part of it, your fascination is truly justified. It is one of the best feelings in the world.
I had a great urge to go o the volleyball court and just play a couple of sets. I really had very fond memories of that place and to my delight, it was my friends who took the initiative to go to the volleyball court. Though we didn't play even near to the levels we achieved in our times, but we enjoyed nevertheless.
All of us planned to visit the places where most of our college life was spent (no not the college department :D) but the famous Dhaba, the world famous ghats of Varanasi and Shivala. We had a GREAT time sitting there and just talking about our memories and what everyone had done after getting out. Although all of us were partying and laughing around, everyone was filled up with emotions. I know I totally was. Without an iota of a doubt the four years in college were the best years in my life. None of us slept for more than a couple of hours each day we were there. We did not want to miss even a single moment.
I must say, the IT culture where there is junior-senior bonding is one of the best things. We never faced a problem during our entire stay. We also fulfilled our duty by treating our juniors to a nice lunch. Since it was also the Holi season, we also played Holi with them (though not the original Banaras style with mud etc. as all of us were leaving the day when holi was being played). I don't think there would be a single soul in college who would not have criticized the Hostel Mess food but as you get away from college to the real world , you really understand the importance of that food. Even I had a couple of my meals in the hostel mess and even without saying anything, the Mess Maharaj brought out food in the same way that I used to like (frying the veggies to the same level and my favorite in mess the Rasam).
Slowly came the time to leave again. One by one people started leaving and everyone's heart became heavy. The same old memories of last year came back to haunt us. Finally came our time to leave. We left for the Cantt Railway station. We were about 10 people who were catching the same train. As we sat down in the train, a feeling swept across me "How can all this be over so soon? I had been waiting for this for the entire year". As the train slowly started chugging off the platform, I realized that I am leaving Heaven behind me.
Friday, January 4, 2008
My First Blog - Coorg Trip
Hey, this is the first time I'm blogging......... just to see what all the hoopla is about.
We had a long weekend for the new year assuming that you take the 31st off, which was a working day. So some of my friends had come down from their respective cities. The New year also gave everyone a reason to meet. Although a lot of my friends live in Bangalore ,most of us rarely meet owing to office on weekdays and laziness in the weekends. So, what we decided was to go to Coorg on the Weekend, i.e on 29th and 30th. Paras had come down from Chennai, so had Nishant from Delhi and Tyson was right here in Bangalore(although he lives very far off from my place). Even my brother who is in the IMA had his vacations. So I had him fly down to Bangalore too. So, finally we were 6 people, the 4 people I mentioned, me (of course) and Puneet (my roommate).
The journey was loooooooooonnnnggggggg. It took us about 7 hours to reach Madikeri - The Capital of Coorg. By the time we reached , it was already 5.30 p.m.When we reached the hotel, we learnt that the online booking we had made was no good and the hotel offered no home stay as we expected. So instead they offered to refund half our money in exchange for a stay at a hotel room. We agreed. So, then we set out on foot to explore the city.
There wasn't much to see in the city , so we took our dinner and spent the night playing '29'.
The next morning we set out to see the tourist spots of Coorg. It included a temple(i am forgetting the name). Next we went to Raja's seat (a viewing point) where we took a ride on a toy train and took some snaps as all tourists do.Now next on our list was the Madikeri Fort which was more of an office rather than a fort. It had a temple and a functioning prison. All these three spots we covered in about an hour's time as there was nothing really to see. Next we were awaiting eagerly for Abbey falls. But that too turned out to be a disappointment as we were not allowed to go near the water. Instead we had to watch the waterfall from a bridge there. So, by 11.30 we were done with the tourist spots in Coorg. We asked our driver to take us to Harangi Dam. He insisted on going to a Raj-Rajeshwari temple. So, we agreed and that temple was down in a valley 6 kms away. While me Paras and Nishant went inside the temple, Puneet started exploring and found a minuscule waterfall on the backside of the temple. So, all of us trekked a bit(I trekked barefoot as I took off my shoes for the temple) and came to that spot. It was really the best part of the trip up to that time.
Our next stop was Harangi dam some 35 kms away.It took us about an hour to reach there. When we reached, we were told that the dam itself was closed for tourists an year back. But the view of the river Cauvery was magnificent. So, we started walking along the banks. We, found a fisherman who was patiently waiting for his catch of the day. We noticed a crab near the bank in the water. We pointed it out to him and he caught it with his bare hands. All of us were excited at this as it was a new sight for all of us. We took the pics and then left for Brindavan Garens near Mysore. Our driver was driving outrageously at 120-140 kmph on a road not more than 4 lane in width. We , finally reached the place at about 5.30 pm and immediately we went to the top of the Krishnarajasagar Dam because it is closed as light fades away in the evening. Then we rested for sometime in the gardens. But little did we know that the most exciting part of our trip was yet to begin.
When we got out of the place and went to the parking area (at about 7 pm), our vehicle and the driver were nowhere to be found. Since the parking area was huge, we split up and started searching for the vehicle. The driver wasn't even picking up the phone. After about three quarters of an hour, the driver picked up his phone and said ,"Sir, the vehicle has met with an accident and I'm coming in some other vehicle to pick you up in 10 minutes". It didn't come as a total surprise to us that the vehicle had met with an accident. The driver arrived in another 20 minutes with the same damaged vehicle. It was a sight - the bumper damaged completely from the right side , the headlight smashed and the front glass pane having a few cracks. There was another person with the driver inside the vehicle. We didn't bother to ask about him as we were very tired and desperate to get back to Bangalore. As we got inside the vehicle, the driver stopped nearby twice for a couple of minutes to get something fixed. We didn't mind that either. At the second stop the second person got down. That was barely 2-3 kms from Brindavan Gardens. Then when he started driving again , the vehicle started swaying towards the right end of the road. We were pretty lucky that no vehicles were coming from the opposite direction at that moment. We made him stop and asked him to wash his face as we thought that he was feeling sleepy. Then we started again , and the vehicle started swaying towards the left end now. We shouted and made him stop again. Then we felt that there was something wrong. We asked him to step out of the vehicle. He was barely able to stand on his feet , he was so drunk. Luckily there was a petrol pump just 50m from where we were. So, we took the keys from him and parked the vehicle there. Then, somehow we put the driver to sleep. We called up the owner of the travel agency and told him the case. The big moron that he was, he wanted to talk to the driver. We tried to explain to him the difficulty with which we put him to sleep but he was adamant and we had to wake him up. We were also trying to make some arrangement for the travel back to Bangalore. But the driver now wanted us to travel with him to Bangalore as he feared that he would lose his job. It was his job or our lives - so we chose our life. Somehow Nishant managed to get some contact of a travel agent in Mysore and we got a Sumo which reached that place in an hour. As soon as the Sumo arrived, the driver started to ask for his payment of the trip. We were in no mood to do so as he had not completed the journey which he was supposed to do and furthermore endangered our lives. So, as we were starting to move, he started abusing us in his native tongue. So,just to cover for the fuel charges ,we gave him some money and gave him the keys for the vehicle back requesting him not to drive till the morning.
We reached back at 4 in the morning and went to sleep straightaway. It was a memorable trip not because Coorg was an awesome place to visit but because of the incident right at the end of the trip.
Its not the things that go according to plan that you remember but the things that go terribly wrong.
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