Break ke Baad...

I know its been a long time since I posted last and its totally inexcusable that my dear readers(multiple??) have been left left in peace for this long... And just when you begin to feel that its over, that you are free, (bang!!) you groan as it hits you in the face (or inbox), kind of like the third Transformers movie really!!

So what has kept me away from my computer and blogger account for so long?? Lot of things actually, studies (read earlier posts for more on that), marriage (contact me for more on that!!) and my job (don't get me started on that!!), not necessarily in that order...So, this blog should be "fun" and long - winded right? Touching upon a wonderful love story (yes, it was a love marriage and no, there were no DDLJ type running after the train sequences - in fact, our parents were almost boringly non-filmi about it), breezy cheerful times spent in college and of course, the quest for "work-life balance" at office, right?? Well, you are wrong...for several reasons...

One, because no matter how I spin it, my love story just doesn't seem interesting enough to be put on paper. You would assume that when a Malayali guy met a Marathi girl, fall in love and they decide to get married, go through the process of meeting each other's families, and do the whole marriage run-around bit, there would be a lot of melodrama and masala stuff to jot down. And you would be wrong. Or maybe, I was just brought up on too much of Bollywood, and you know how much of that is real. Anyways, the most interesting spin on our relationship that I can come up with, is to call it a very watered down version of "Two States". What, that sounds boring you say?? Well, there you go!!

Second (my college life), well, frankly, while there were moments about it that I'd like to relive, the truth is that it is a thing of the past and a phase that I had to go through. Now that that is done, the only reminders that I have of it are 3 letters against my name (MBA is what I meant!), a wonderful wife (Disclaimer to readers: any adjective applied when talking about my wife / marriage may or may not be an act of free will) and of course, friendships and memories to last a lifetime... So do I really miss my B-school days? Yes and no. But for now, suffice to say, that I don't see myself straying down the nostalgia road for some time...

And, of course, work-life balance (or the elusive search for it)... Well, I've have had enough of giving an earful to anyone who, unwittingly, asks me about it, so I'll refrain from spreading the same on cyberspace as well. Besides, all that negative energy is better bottled up inside. Sort of, an anti-Freudian (or Jung-ian) way of handling emotions, don't you think??

Which leaves me with a distinct lack of topics to write about. And that, in fact, is the saddest thing. The world is simply burning up with issues, and India, as always, seems to be a hotbed of them. Be it corruption, national security, India's ever-present competition (really?) with China, our rampant inflation, lack of governance, an out-of-touch and clueless bureaucracy and so on and so further. Aren't all these issues worth my time?

Perhaps, some day, later on, I'll pen down something on these lines. Those "golden words" will have to wait. For now, there are clothes to wash, groceries to buy and an awesome wife (read earlier disclaimer) to spend time with. National issues will have to wait. Right now, am just happy that am writing again...

Of Friends and Frolic, Studies and Committees - Life @ XIMB

Its been a long, long hiatus from the world of blogging, indeed even writing. My excuse(s)? The usual.. Work, assignments, studies (ha ha) and exams... I won't even claim that this list is anything different from what you must be hearing from your friends, who have just decided that they have time enough to catch up with you now.

But truth be told, it was hectic. If the first term was "chillaxed", then the second and third terms were anything but. With 8 subjects per term (junta who have heard this bit before may just skip to the next para), countless quizzes, totally unrelated subjects (how you can relate Employment Relations and Company Law is beyond me!!) and any number of assignments and projects, some things just skipped my mind. Don't get angry...Let me just tell you that certain unimportant things like baths, shaving and clean dressing were also on the list of things skipped...

So what exactly were the high points of my MBA journey so far? Read on...

Of Friends

One of the things that certainly comes out in any book that you read about an MBA is the fact that "MBA is not about grades, but about the friends and experiences that make up the two years you spend here". I can vouch for both of the above and am sure three - quarters of the batch can even vouch for the absurdity of grades by the end of the third term.

To say that I had a lot of fun would be an understatement. Amazing times spent discussing inane issues late in to the night over the long mess table, discussing crushes, "bases" and other sensitive stuff, late night walks to clear the head before another sleep inducing study session for tomorrow's exam, impromptu trips, last minute dinner (coffee) plans, all nighters which never stayed on track, suffering mass sleep deprivation (only made sufferable by the fact that no one seemed to be able to stay awake in class), last minute Googling for terms "certain to be in the exam" ( because you never paid any attention in class - as a result of conditions mentioned above)...

and Frolic...

Without a doubt the high point was the Chilika trip, planned gloriously one day in advance, we managed to have a lot of fun, inspite of the fact that we saw no Dolphins, nothing resembling a "crazy Crab", lost a lot of money (ok, I did) buying fake Oriya handicrafts that are right now gathering dust in my little hostel room, did not even get a room in Puri for us to change (not even a bathroom!!) and had to take bath there in absolute pitch darkness. But three cheers to the organisers (myself and Mundra, earning the glorious epiteth "Chandra - Mundra") because we got a bus and hmmm, well little else...Oh yes, great memories and some wonderful pics as well..

The Puri trip I have covered in great detail...The JLTs lost a little bit of their "zing" as their numbers piled on, only being revived towards the end with the Farewell and post - Convo JLTs... The music got a bit repetitive, the drunken antics were not as fun any more but we had a great time watching the principal drunks getting their groove on... Chief among those who made all JLTs a fun experience was the Tall, Dark and Handsome Mr. Pondy (don't get any ideas, he's called that way since he comes from the French Quarter of South India), with his initial refusal to partake any drinks towards the beginning of any JLT (any party) and culminating in wild gyrations and something now famously called "The Towel Dance".... Of course numerous other fun incidents occured during JLTs and block parties but not everything can be disclosed at a forum as public as this (if a couple of readers can be considered public!!)

....Of Studies...

Ya, well that happened as well...For more on that, read earlier paras and other blogs related to XIMB...

....And Committees

Life in XIMB would not be complete without its usual set of committees, starting from the omni present, the all - powerful Placecom (especially powerful with the recession as it is), the Alumni Comm (yes, the Placecom does need help at times), Illuminatix (Media cell - also in charge of defaming innocent boys and gals and saddling them with the reputation of carrying on illicit relationships) and IRC (hmm...ya, they bring cute French and Spanish gals on campus) and of course various other interest communities (no offence, but who wants to hear about XIMAHR anyways???Psst..tats the HR society for XIMB)....

Well, confronted by this bewildering array of choices, your truly decided that it was finally time to skip all the formality (Placecom with its suits and hard nosed approach), the creatives (Illu) and frankly, the obscure (IRC) and opted for the committee with the tagline as the "Most Fun Committee on Campus" (AluComm)...Close to six months of fun later, it was time to select a new committee and a new co-ordinator...There were only two candidates in that race and one of those, ominously enough for the committee was me...Come election day and I had to give a speech to a crowd, urging them to select me...Never had I stood for an election and here was Nishith Sahu, the soon to be former Alumni Coordinator, urging my batchmates to bring on the questions...Somehow I swallowed my tension, spoke something along prepared thoughts, rambled on about "synergy" between committees...and then stopped, again after thanking the outgoing committee for the umpteenth time...

Thankfully, the questions were light, the audience seemingly under the influence or under the wrong impression but whatever it was, by the time the votes were counted, I had emerged the winner...I gulped and managed to look confident, yet at the same time non - jubilant, I think I was searching for the perfect composed, take-it-in-your-stride look.. Whether I succeeded in that, only my friends can tell me...

So, what happened after that "momentous" victory? Well, things got a bit more hectic..As a committee, we preached the benefits of JIT approach, with deadlines taking priority only when we could see it fast approaching (after all, why worry about something that was two months away??)... There were fun times, with the night outs for finalising the Yearbook design, only to discover a big goof up that required us to bunk classes and work all over again on the same design over the whole of next afternoon....

Anyways, with the end of a gruelling 3 and a half hour Financial Management exam, presided over by the SOB (Sweet Old Bani) Banikant Mishra, and a one hour batchmeet convened by Fr. Joseph, we came to the end of the third year and in turn, the first year as well..

Now, a two month internship awaits, where we will be able to apply our "learnings" over the last year into solving "real - life" issues for our company.... So, anyone at all, facing real - life issues at CTS can look forward to my immediate help...

PGP1's day Out in Puri

I am finding it difficult to concentrate on writing this post since at this very moment, I am shoveling out sand from inside my ears, thinking how to remove the tons of sand that has managed to find its way into my short's pockets and scratching my head from all the sand in it. But all this with a smile on my face. Now before I get into the details of how all such foreign objects found their way into places they have no right of being, let me just go out and wish everyone "A Very Happy Friendship Day" and then tell you how I and my batchmates of PGP 1, decided to celebrate Friendship Day.

A trip to Puri and Konark was on the cards for the past week, but it was over the week, that something planned as a road trip for biking enthusiasts, turned into something akin to a class trip. At the end of all the various excel sheet updating, sending and resending, the innumerous email reminders, the disclaimers (sometimes called "love letters") that the reps collected, the final number attending the trip came to around 89, a full three - fourths of the class.

The itenerary called for us to start from campus at 0300 hrs and like all management students who have learned their punctuality lessons well, we managed to start on the dot of 0400 hrs. Added to that was the fact that one of the guys had slept in, which meant that he had to be called and one bus had to be delayed by a few more minutes. Our initial plan was to catch the sunrise at Chandrabhaga beach, but since the sun god had not been informed of the lateness of plans on our part, we somehow contrived to miss it. We arrived at the beach at close to 0545, by which time the sky was as light as if it were 7 AM. Needless to say, I have never been on a beach that early in the morning.



Having frolicked a bit on the Konark beach, we made our way to the absolutely stupendous Sun temple there. To call it a temple would be a bit of a stretch since no Puja has taken place there since the mid 1500's or so, according to Wiki Uncle. But to call it an architectural masterpiece would not be a stretch but an absolute necessity. Add to that, the wonderful park and settings surrounding the place, and you have a picture perfect setting for a historical monument. The exterior of the temple is wonderfully preserved, considering that it has been subject to the ravages of both time and human domination. The detailing is still awe - inspiring, raising evocative and sensous images of dancers, kings, warriors and even the Kamasutra. What is even more amazing is the entire orientation of the entrance of the temple. As described by our "in-a-huge-rush" guide, the entrance is oriented so that no matter what the season and the angle of the sun's rays, it would always fall on to the entrance and from there, was concentrated onto the forehead of the icon placed in the altar. Such magnificent thought and achievement of perfection indeed!





From Konark we made the journey to Puri, to visit the famous Jagannath temple, dedicated to Lord Krishna, the site where the famous Rath Yatra emanates every year. I must say that though I entered the temple with high expectations, there were certain aspects of the sacred abode that left me a little bit underwhelmed. It was here that local experience came in to good use with a series of dire warnings given to us by the localites, all of which served us in good stead. Stuff like never linger around on your own, stay with the group, do not talk to a priest without a Oriya speaker present and so on. The eagerness of the priests to sell you a puja or a "prasad" of one sort or the other, somehow rankled within me. The temple itself was somewhat crowded but nothing like a Sabarimala or a Guruvayur temple. But somehow, unlike the two mentioned examples, within the temple compound, the atmosphere seemed to me to be less about devotion and more about commercialism. Perhaps, it is just a matter of my lack of understanding of the local culture and history of the region.

But it was serious stuff, moving around the temple, constantly looking around to make sure that you are part of a group and, more importantly, that your group did have a Oriya speaker in it. Definitely, a change from our earlier stop at the Sun temple, where things were light and frothy. The Puri temple visit also involved a lot of hopping around, as most of us were unaccustomed to walking around barefoot on hot paved stones. The upshot being that, before we knew it, an hour had passed and we were on the way out of the temple and on to the road.

And then it was on to the beach. We hit the beach after lunch at around 1330 hrs, when the weather was sufficiently cool and the beach not so hot. The guys devised an impromptu game involving a football and the use of any body part to bring the ball under control, which may include such drastic acts like jumping on top of the ball and staying on there, even when five different people were kicking at you from all sides. Of course, this was all done with the constant hammering of the waves on our backsides. Footing was lost and regained constantly, people went under the water repeatedly, only to come up instantly and get back on to their feet and instantly go shouting and hunting for the ball. It was pandemonium, with the ball flying helter - skelter, people not involved in the game (people who cared more for their lives than in catching some football kicked around by crazy MBA students) scrambling to avoid the mad rush towards the ball in their midst, water spraying all around, people slipping and pushed around by the relentless waves - it was, as I said, total pandemonium.




Two and a half hours later, wearied by the constant battering of the waves, soaked to the bone by the sea and the rain, and with atleast half a kilo of salt and sand deposited on my body, I finally called it quits and emerged from the sea and onto the beach. A couple more hours after that, the last person had exited the beach and we were all ready to leave for the hostel. It was a weary, tired but cheerful group that entered the bus and a sleepy lot that exited it, when the bus passed the gates proclaiming, "Xavier Institute of Management, Bhubaneswar".

The adventure had come to an end. But what a wonderful time we all had.

And so I come to the point I started off with. Yes, my body has collected enough sand which will require at least three baths to get rid off. Yes, i think my hearing is slightly affected with all the water that has entered my ears. Yes, I ran out of shampoo cleansing my hair.

But yes, I don't mind any of this, for I had a ball of a time.

PGP 1 rocks. Lets do it again sometime soon.





P. S: A special word for the hard work put in by the organisers, the Reps, the CulSecs and Siddharth. Not to mention, all our Oriya batchmates who acted as knowledgeable guides during the tour of the Puri temple.