Season's Greetings and the Year's Review

A Happy Diwali and Id and a Prosperous New Year to all.

The last year has been one of the more interesting ones of my life. The last New Year was around November 15, I think, and I was all set to give the CAT (Nov. 21) and completely unprepared for my engineering semester 7 exams (Nov. 18 - 30). I cracked one and messed the other. Christmas brought happy tidings of interview calls from the IIMs. I gave more exams and got more calls. Had a great time in two outstation trips - one to Ahmedabad in February, where I did not enjoy the bricks and concrete in the IIM-A campus; the other to Calcutta in March, where I enjoyed the trams, the Metro, the bridges across the Hoogly and the Victoria Memorial, and also enjoyed my visit to IIM-C and its lake-studded campus.

In April, after a rather alarming number of rejects and waitlists, IIMA (WIMWI as I was to call her soon) admitted me. I also learnt where many of my friends would head to in the US. After the last round of exams in electronics in May and June (I was rather worried that I would fail the exams and would be thrown out of IIMA after results were declared), I enjoyed a short 15 day vacation bidding farewell to friends and family.

Headed for Ahmedabad on June 22. Soon got into the habit of sleeping at 3 and getting up at 8 (in fact I think I used to get up at 7:30 in the first month). Also got into the habit of reading regularly before class, a drastic change from my earlier practice of buying the textbook 12-16 hours before the midterm. Made some friends.

In July, I learnt that I had passed engineering (with rather flattering marks at that), and would after all be allowed to stay in WIMWI. By then I had also fallen in love with the bricks in WIMWI, though the concrete in the new campus still does not make the cut.

Enjoyed a week of intense work, competition and happiness during T-Nite in August. Learnt much about my classmates and made more friends.

A terrible dengue (or whatever that illness was) 'epidemic' struck down Section D particularly hard. Going to SAL Hospital and watching my friends in misery is something I hope to never have to do again.

Term 1 ended, and I was through what is often described as one of the most demanding periods of one's life, though I found engineering (especially subjects like Digital Signal Processing) far more unwieldy. Still, the 40+ quizzes were memorable!

A short vacation in Bombay ended with a rather close call while catching the train to WIMWI. But we (Chhedi was with me) managed to make it in time, and of course, since we made it in time, the train had to be half an hour late! The next day, it was time for term 2 to begin.

New subjects, new professors...some great, some good, some not-so-good. In any case, studies were being pushed to the periphery. Chatting on LKP (our beautiful lawn opposite the library) or in CT (our canteen) and DBabbing became more common pursuits. I upped my sleeping hours to 6-7 a day, and cut my studying to 1-2/3 classes a day.

And thus endeth the year - a rather great year. Hope that this year is even better, and I am pretty confident that it will be.

Miserable day...for no reason at all

After two nights with rather little sleep (5 hours in all), I struggled to wake up today at 9, having slept at 1 yesterday. After finally rousing myself to proper consciousness, I woke my neighbour Chhedi and we both trudged off to attend a company presentation at 10 am. This was the 13th presentation I was attending in the last 15 days. Luckily this one was rather short and we were free before 11.

I had some food at CT and walked back to my dorm. Then I stayed in my room for pretty much the entire day, only going out for lunch at 2. I had forms to fill, but they were not very long. Yet I did nothing notable throughout the day. Went for dinner at 8 and finished more portions of a form. Had to give a placement related test at 10. Then went for Dhamki's birthday at midnight. Finally, a group meet at CT was convened to review our progress on a 10-page presentation due in 12 hours time - as is usual with us now, we had not even begun. I strolled back to D-18, amidst rather chilly winds, and the sounds of crackers bursting everywhere except in the vicinity of WIMWI's facchas.

Now here I am, typing into this blog, while my group mates work on the report...

...A miserable day indeed. Things are increasingly turning similar to my engineering days. I have begun wasting time like there is an unlimited supply. This time instead of the TV, it is the internet. Instead of concentrating on important things like reading good books (that's something that has to begin know - I cannot risk waiting until second year), writing and talking to friends, writing mildly interesting essays or even making good presentations, I have regressed back to reading and rereading websites till their words add no further knowledge - and then reading them again.

The 50th post

Last week, during our 4th dance class session, the instructor said, "Thank God, your future depends on your brains, and not your bodies!" For around half of the 20-strong class, moving the hips is simply impossible. And the other steps are pretty ungainly too. I have improved much in the four sessions, but I have only reached the level of "unambigiously bad" from the level of "Please shoot me, shoot me now." Additionally, the exercise, especially the crunches, can get rather painful. We will resume after Diwali, this time to learn dancing in pairs. That will be a whole new nightmare, though I'm sure there will be many delightful moments too. I'll try to click some photos.

The 50th post deserves a better entry, but it is 4:00 am and since I have plenty of things to do before sleeping (if I do sleep at all), I will stop now.

Winter cometh

Ahmedabad has become colder in the last ten days or so. The nights have become distinctly prickly for someone like me who prefers a cauldron to a freezer any day. I wonder how cold winter shall be in WIMWI, as I look forward to crossing the 30-days-outside-Bombay mark.

With winter come the summer placements and life becomes really hectic. Plus, my goofing around has increased manifold too. So here I am, typing into this blog at 5:30 am, hoping to catch 2 hours of sleep before going to class, where I'll naturally sleep some more.

Insight, WIMWI's disguised marketing research fair, was held on Sunday. This is an annual fair, where localites are invited to have some fun while becoming unwitting guinea pigs for marketing research being done for various companies. Much to my chagrin, I was not part of any team which managed to bag an Insight project, though there were 16 on offer. So I had to content myself with taking part as a guest, watching a movie quiz and participating in one of the research games. It was good fun still.


On Sunday too, TAS gave us a preplacement talk (For those not in the know, TAS is the managerial cadre of the Tata group from where many of the senior managers are selected). For various reasons, I cannot get into the details of our placement process on this blog. But I will mention TAS. For some years now, the Tata group of companies has enthralled me. It is because of many factors, the most important being the sense of history associated with the group, the values it embodies and the breadth of job opportunities in the group. I was a bit apprehensive about the presentation, lest a bad show sully my impression of the organisation. Luckily the presentation was very good, and TAS remains my favourite company. Atleast for the summer process, where I should be willing to experiment (my primary interests lie in the financial sector). Of course, who knows what I'll choose on the actual day (if I do manage to get into TAS, plus one or more other firms).

6 days, no post!

So goes AC multiple times on most days on DBabble (our online Notice Board/Messaging software). Everytime no one has posted anything for an hour or so, we get a post which simply says, "1 hour, no post!" Or since such one hour gaps are a rare occasion on our section NB, with an average of 150-200 posts every day, we also get messages like "23 minutes, no post!" And people have now taken to playing written antakshari on long threads on the NB. All arbit stuff, all day long. But all rather fun too!

Second term is academically as exacting as the first term in terms of the work we are expected to put in. In fact, due to the presentations we have to make for Spoken Business Communication and Marketing and weekly submissions and homework to do in IGP and Accounts, the workload could even be a bit greater. The difference is that most of us have stopped putting in the expected effort. I for one have more friends and friendly interactions than I did through most of the first term. My studies have suffered a bit of course, but it is well worth it!

This has been an unprecendented week in a way. Due to extraordinary circumstances, from Monday to Thursday, every morning I've had only two classes instead of the usual three. Of course, most of these have been compensated by evening and afternoon sessions, but there still is some relief when one can get up at 9:30 on a Monday morning or go back to one's room by 11:45 on Wednesday.

Another unusual occurence is that I've joined a dance class. I am always going to have two left feet, but if I don't improve I will still enjoy myself. I'm returning to my own fun-loving style (obviously my idea of fun is not the same as that of others), of my engineering days. My attachment to WIMWI and WIMWIans has gone up tremendously in the last month. For the first time since coming here, I am actually thinking about going to a trip during a vacation with people from here rather than go to Bombay. Not that it will happen (I miss my niece Vrisha too much and still love dear Bombay), but just that such a thought could occur is startling.

Shakespeare

I have begun refreshing my knowledge of all the many interests I have listed in my CV. I was going through Shakespeare's plays and suddenly I realised what I had missed by coming to WIMWI (though I have gained a great deal too). Only six months ago, I was going through one play every month and was halfway through the canon. Now I am reduced to reading lines on the computer screen. It's all my fault only of course, as I think WIMWI's library does have Shakespeare.

What a masterful writer!

Some lines I could enjoy for eternity :

How we recognise faults in those whom we like and choose to cherish them...

My mistress' eyes are nothing like the sun;
Coral is far more red than her lips' red;
If snow be white, why then her breasts are dun;
If hairs be wires, black wires grow on her head.
I have seen roses damask'd, red and white,
But no such roses see I in her cheeks;
And in some perfumes is there more delight
Than in the breath that from my mistress reeks.
I love to hear her speak, yet well I know
That music hath a far more pleasing sound;
And yet, by heaven, I think my love as rare
As any she belied with false compare.

(Sonnet 130)

A rousing invocation of the glories to be won on a battlefield...

And Crispin Crispian shall ne'er go by,
From this day to the ending of the world,
But we in it shall be remember'd;
We few, we happy few, we band of brothers;
For he to-day that sheds his blood with me
Shall be my brother; be he ne'er so vile,
This day shall gentle his condition:
And gentlemen in England now a-bed
Shall think themselves accursed they were not here,
And hold their manhoods cheap whiles any speaks
That fought with us upon Saint Crispin's day.

(Henry V, Henry V, 4.3.40-70)

Amongst the darkest words I have ever read...

The raven himself is hoarse
That croaks the fatal entrance of Duncan
Under my battlements. Come, you spirits
That tend on mortal thoughts, unsex me here,
And fill me from the crown to the toe top-full
Of direst cruelty! make thick my blood;
Stop up the access and passage to remorse,
That no compunctious visitings of nature
Shake my fell purpose, nor keep peace between
The effect and it! Come to my woman's breasts,
And take my milk for gall, you murdering ministers,
Wherever in your sightless substances
You wait on nature's mischief! Come, thick night,
And pall thee in the dunnest smoke of hell,
That my keen knife see not the wound it makes,
Nor heaven peep through the blanket of the dark,
To cry 'Hold, hold!'

(Lady Macbeth, Macbeth, 1.5.42-58)

Festivities

Yesterday night, a garba and dandiya event was organised in WIMWI. It was a colourful affair at the LKP, with both students and staff turning up, as well as some faculty and some from MICA and NID. The band could have been better, but the atmosphere was quite festive. I was there for a short period only - from 11:30 to 1, I think. And I couldn't properly remember all the steps I'd learnt in my visit to NID, and hence I did not dance much. The high levels of crowding did not help much either.


Life in general has also taken an upswing for me. It's becoming a fun stay with playing badminton, and dancing and eating out taking priority over all mugging. I can't wait for the celebration of Diwali, perhaps on the terrace of D18.

Ankit was in WIMWI on Wednesday. He did not stay long, but we manged to take a round of the campus. He was surprised to see the empty campus. I'm now very used to it, but I think this campus is much quieter than most other colleges. Students here tend to stay in their rooms or dorms. Walk about 500 m from one end of the campus to the other, especially in late evening, and you may see only a dozen or two persons on the way. Ankit was also not impressed with the brick buildings. It was my reaction too, when I came here in February for my interview. Now I just love this place and its bricks.

Happy Sunday

More fun in WIMWI.

I experienced my first dorm treat yesterday. Bino, a PGP 4, visited us and treated us to lunch at Sankalp, a nice South Indian restaurant (a PGP4 is someone who graduated in 2004, PGP3 is
one who graduated in 2005, etc. I am currently a PGP1, of course and will graduate in 2007). I was also pleasantly surprised to learn that he stays in the 4 Bungalows area, barely a 10-minute drive from my home in Bombay. It's nice that we develop such strong attachments to WIMWI as well as our dorms and sections. I imagine it will be really great to visit campus two years later and treat future D-18ers or watch the T-Nite then. Just like I still enjoy visiting my school from time to time.

In the evening Section D added yet an another title to our growing list of victories. The arena this time was volleyball. Yet again we met with old friends from Section C. The match was quite competitive. In the first set however, few supporters from either side came. In a rather mellow atmosphere, we took an early lead and maintained it through the set to win it 25-20 (or thereabouts). Our team was in good form (whereas during the first round game against Section B, we were not at our best and struggled to win in 3 sets). Kaka was serving really well and TOEFL was brilliant at the net. The others - BV, Nitesh, Pankaj and Prostee, were playing well too.

We took an early lead in the second set too and were leading around 12-10. But by then many supporters for Section C came over and they outnumbered us 25 to 10 or so. Plus they resorted to some rather unnecessary 'sledging'. Our team came under pressure and we surrendered our lead and then the set 20-25.

Realising our precarious situation, reinforcements were called. Calls were made to the section junta and Lizzy posted a message on DBabble imploring others to turn up and cheer our team. Even the drum, rarely used after T-Nite, was called up for duty. Soon after the third set had begun, a sizeable crowd had gathered to support our team. Tempos and claps and drumbeats frenzied up the atmosphere. We too resorted to some crude tactics, particularly targetting their server, who had lost his nerves after playing brilliantly in the previous set. From 6-6, Section D raced to a 19-12 lead. C clawed back but we always remained in the lead. At 24-23 there was an element of uncertainty, but a perfect spike from TOEFL right in the centre of Section C's court settled all doubts. D Company had completed a hat-trick of sports victories. It was great game by both sides with brilliant rallies and smashes and despearate saves, though I would have preferred less heckling by the supporters on both ends. Badminton is next, and I am sure we'll give our best efforts there too.

Ended the day with a round of badminton again. Technically I was participating in the selection for the class team. I and Luca were paired against TOEFL and Kaka. We fought tooth-and-nail, but ended up losing 1-11 :) Still, my performance makes me feel I am a strong claimant for a postion in the team ;)

A good weekend at last

It's been a great weekend so far. There was a class on Saturday afternoon, but there were no readings for the class. No company presentations over the weekend either.

I had a nice time at the NID garba yesterday. This was the first time I had been to a garba, despite living in Bombay for 21 years. There were almost as many WIMWIans there as people from NID, with a sprinkling of MICAns. No prizes for who the worst dancers were. WIMWI may be the best B-School in Asia, but dancing and similar arts are not our core competence (I do not want to discount notable exceptions of course, but the average level is quite clear)! Still I enjoyed the two hours there and even learnt a few steps - just enough to participate, though I completely embarrassed myself.


After coming back we spent some time in the lawns of WIMWI playing antakshari (Technically the game is called 'Rapid' I guess. It involves picking up a word from the existing song and beginning the song with it).

Tonight there was a joyous celebration of Thoku's birthday. His birthday was actually a month ago and we had celebrated it in his hospital room, but we felt a fitting celebration was due. Everyone in the section was anxious that Thoku get fitting rewards for his contributions in the class. And the rousing round of bumps he received confirmed the need for a grand celebration!

I next played badminton. Poor Arnab from Section B, whom I was paired with. He played quite well, but I am so bad that we ended up losing both our doubles' games!

The Anti-Robin Hood

I was going to write about the lovely time I had at the garba dance at NID tonight, but that can wait for another day. I just finished reading a piece by Shekhar Gupta in the Indian Express "Our poor little rich." (Read it here). It is actually a standard argument raised by him and likeminded people time and again. But the message is still worth remembering.

The manner in which the rich of this country have perverted all institutions and policies to their own ends is sometimes beyond belief. Subsidies are extended on many goods with little or no economic or social rationale - goods like LPG, petrol, electricity, fertilizers, higher education, etc. The LPG subsidy in particular, is the equivalent of the Rowlatt Acts and the Salt Act during British rule - symbolising starkly a government which is not "for" the people. The precious resources of the state are wasted in supporting bloated bureaucracies, subsidising the rich, bailing out inefficient public sector firms and designing anti-poverty schemes which mostly divert money into the hands of the privileged classes. Imagine if these resources had been utilised in building roads and other public infrastructure, expanding and improving primary education and providing health care to all.

The current UPA government has been a big disappointment. I was very happy to see the back of the BJP last May, but the performance of the Manmohan government has been painfully pathetic. Barring the commendable introduction of the VAT, there have been few measures taken to advance economic reforms in the country. The high growth rates are mostly the result of reforms initiated by the NDA government. Future growth will undoubtedly require further reforms. Nor have there been any notable achievements on the social front. In foreign affairs, a good buildup has been made on the performance of the previous government, though. Chargesheeted ministers like Laloo have been an eyesore for those seeking higher standards of public officials. And the Supreme Court's verdict declaring the Bihar assembly dissolution unconstitutional has been a major smack on the government's face. I only hope that just like Vajpayee really took charge only in the last 2-3 years of his tenure, Singh will be able to do the same.

Of exams in Bombay and arbit classes in WIMWI

With resume-making for summer placements out of the way and my passing the NCFM exam last week, there is again time to write and read for pleasure.

My trip to Bombay was quite eventful. Prostee, Chhedi, Moti and I reached Borivali at 5:30-6 am on Friday. We then took a taxi thinking it would cost no more than 160 bucks. In spite of a perfectly clear road and no signals, the fare came to be 260. I think now that we were conned by an 'engineered' meter. We went to my house, where my parents were absent. They were in Ahmedabad visiting some temples in the vicinity. After reading for some hours, we left for the NSE building in Bandra-Kurla Complex at 9:30. The exam began at 11:30, and though we were apprehensive because of our sketchy preparations, we all managed to clear the exam quite comfortably (The NCFM exams are conducted by NSE to provide certification for financial intermediaries. We took the Derivatives Module, which is a prerequisite for trading at an NSE terminal. Of course, I took the exam to have something to show on my CV). We drove next to my college, where I left my friends who went to Juhu beach. I met Jay and Ankit in college, and also a few professors and juniors. I was rather surprised that even 5-6 juniors recognised me. But it was fun disbursing gyaan about the CAT anyway :)

Then the trio proceeded to Fame and Westside in Andheri where I joined them at 5:20. I later met Devesh and chatted with him for a few minutes after he came out of his office which happens to be exactly opposite Westside. We were forced to rush for our train which was scheduled to leave Dadar at 7:48. We reached the place about 8 minutes before time. Unfortunately the train was delayed by almost half an hour. After interesting discussions in the train, we were back in WIMWI by 6:30 on Saturday. We has missed three classes and a QM quiz.

Life is back to routine. Our subjects this term are not as interesting as those in the last term. The equivalent of ID last term is Inter Group Porcesses (IGP). This has been a surprisingly good subject. I have enjoyed the classes and have had a good time introspecting my difficulties in dealing with groups. Marketing is another new subject this term. Unfortunately we do not have a good professor. She may or may not have adequate knowkedge of the subject, but she has no control over the class. Hence, people just spew garbage out during the discussion and she appreciates all the arbit comments. Things have come to such a pass that people can come without reading the case and still participate in class without fear of being caught out by the professor. Today we were discussing a case about the marketing of solar cookers in
Gujarat and someone said, "Maam, we should export the cookers to Africa!" Imagine what would have happened to such a contributor in last term's HR class!