The dilemma

It has been four years since I left India, almost exactly the same time that I last wrote on my blog. Oh boy, its just so good to be back here. Just going through my last IIM-A posts still gives me goosebumps! I still didnt finish the pending last post on the convocation…it will come hopefully soon, few years late :)

And as I return from yet another trip to the homeland, one of the numerous I have taken in these past years, I reckon it is a good time to reflect. Though I must admit, waking up at 4 am to take this flight, after having covered 3 cities in 5 days, and sitting next to wailing kids as always – my powers to reckon intelligently will somehow take a beating. But sometimes it's better to listen to the heart than go by logic, which was ample clear when I saw the sheer joy on my mom's face in Lucknow, a trip born less out of practical feasibility and more of pure emotions.

India has changed a lot since my days in Ahmedabad, and with every visit, the change becomes more evident. For good or for worse, is something I am yet to figure out. I read the Indian newspapers online everyday before I even touch the Singaporean ones, and  still every trip back home makes me realize I am out of sync with the realities of everyday living in the country. So when I am told that a multiplex movie now costs more than 200 bucks and that a decent meal for two is in excess of 500, I am unsure if I shoud treat this as a sign of failing governance or of India waking up to a globalized world where purchasing power is rising as quickly as the population.

Some things have not changed though – and rather unfortunately. The other day I saw a well suited man speaking in crisp English to his smartly dressed wife at Hazratgunj in Lucknow throw the large sheet of paper on the pavement next to a new garden after his bhelpuri was finished. I felt like quietly picking it up in front of him and putitng it in the bin which was located quite close – that I didn't do it is probably my only regret from this trip. But then civic sense has not always been our education system's strength – physics and math are far more important to become a successful human in India. Or for that matter – when my dad told me that he had to unwillingly pay 'extra' for the first time in his life to get a electricity meter installed in his newly built house post retirement, I asked him what happened to his principles. I could see his tone reeking of regret, and in a slighly choked voice he said he would have to wait for at least 2 months and run from pillar to post to get the job done otherwise. Why should a 66 year old retired air force officer be tortured like this for a basic amenity if he refuses to warm the pockets of the babus, is one of the questions I am taking back with me on this flight. There were many more incidents that saddened and angered me at the same time – people jumping queues everywhere, politeness being a forgotten word in the dictionary of India Shining, the importance of  'I only, let others in the socitety go to hell' -  and I wonder if all this is a natural by-product of a developing nation whose middle class has suddenly woken up to the alluring prospects of a new lucrative life.

All is not lost surely – the fact that I still get a lump in my throat everytime I depart the country's shores can vouch for that. When I saw the kids on my flight to Lucknow who would probably have never seen the inside of an AC compartment in our trains, gallop around excitingly in their slippers discovering the wonders of a modern day jet – and often annoying the otherwise sophisticated fellow frequent flyers – I smiled quietly to myself. This was a sign of changing times, a change for the good of society. Or when I met the young maid in our new house in Lucknow who smiled and chatted with me as if she has been with us since ages, enquiring about my well being and asking me to bring her bhabhi the next time I come home – I was left wondering that despite her poor living conditions, she is facing the world with a charming smile and envious energy, and may just be more happy in her own little world than some of us who appear to have everything except peace of heart and mind.

And so I am not surprised when I and my better half debate nearly everyday whether we should shift back to India or not. And I know that when I reach home a few hours later, this is once again going to be the first topic of discussion. Now, I consider myself being gifted with a fairly decent amount of intelligence. And so I know when my friends tell me that Singapore is ages ahead of India when it comes to safety, security, professionalism, cleanliness, greenery, health, education, public transport, and the list is endless, that they are absolutely spot on. No logic can challenge that. And on top of that, its proximity to India unlike US/Europe ensures that I can easily visit my family almost anytime that I want. After all, if I shift to Mumbai/B'lore, my frequency of home visits may almost be the same. I know they are right, and I know I owe myself, my wife and my future kids a good and convenient life.

Then why is it that I even think of going back to India? What is it exactly about my roots or my homeland that I actually miss? Is it the feeling that I am running away from the system than trying my bit to change it, or that I owe my family and my society something back?  And there I struggle again, unsure of the answer. I dont know if and when I will convince myself to return – IIM grads are taught to think rationally and practically – but then there was no course on campus that taught me that sometimes, your heart may win the battle against your mind – and it may just be the right direction that you were missing in your life.

Till then…bon voyage!

Chaos 2008

The sixth term was always going to be special for me. Two things about which I was passionate about all during my second year were to be materialized in this term. Sangharsh was the first to take place and though ended in a disappointment, gave me memories that will last for more than a lifetime. And then came the other….for which I had probably worked the hardest in IIMA and which was destined to leave me extremely satisfied and joyous, with memories that were to become my friends for life.
Chaos is the annual cultural festival of IIMA and as a fachcha, I was a team member in the last year’s edition. This year, I didn’t want to be in the organizer’s team for both Confluence (our biz fest) and Chaos since that would have meant my entire second year being taken up by these two activities. Confluence was a much well oiled machine and had been running smoothly, while Chaos, though successful, was still not the perfect fest one hoped for and therein lay the challenge for me. I decided to skip conflu and focus all my energies on Chaos, to play my bit in making Chaos a much more successful and smoother event for the future generations of WIMWIans.
ToTo was the Chaos secy and I was given charge of my fav portfolio, the PR team. Something even more special happened as well. This year, unlike last year, ToTo decided to have a 3 member core team from amongst the heads of all the sub-teams. This core team was supposed to manage all the numerous other teams and act as interface to ToTo, since it was tough for him to micromanage everything himself. And to my delight, I was chosen to be one of the 3 core team members, and hence responsible for not only PR, but effectively the entire Chaos, along with my other core team members. I was delighted since this meant additional responsibility and made me feel much closer to the event that had got me extremely passionate….and so began the long but exciting journey of preparation for what would be my last big event at IIMA.

The PR team was responsible for mainly two huge activities – Passes and Publicity. Passes involved all stuff right from the pricing to pass policies to the actual sale, while publicity incorporated everything from outdoor publicity to media coverage. It was going to be an extremely arduous but critical task and I had the support of 4 tuchchas and 10 fachchas in my team. Strategies were starting to get formulated from November. We aspired for a huge crowd as well as financial success, to ensure not only that this Chaos goes down as the biggest ever, but also that the future events are free from financial constraints. This made all pass related decisions extremely critical and we had to ensure that we get everything right from pricing to actual sales in order to achieve our expected results. It was pretty much like a real sales and marketing experience, with a huge amount of money at stake.
The next two months ensured that I was up late nights and my bike was put to maximum use as I went about planning and implementing strategies with the help of my entire team. I made many new contacts in the process in different places. McDonalds, My FM, CCD…..I had made friends with managers of various outlets in the city who were involved with Chaos. My negotiation skills were put to great tests as we went about dealing the terms and conditions with the partners. At the same time, we were almost done with the list of artistes that were going to perform during the 4 nights of Chaos and based on that, the pricing and the sales strategy was almost finalized. Till dec end, things were very smooth and Chaos preps were just another one of the many activities I kept myself busy with. However, come Jan and things started to heat up, and I started sensing how close the event was and automatically, my entire energy was channelized in just one direction, I had only one aim in mind and everything else blacked out in front of that….we had to ensure that this is the best Chaos this institute has ever seen.

All the on-ground work and implementation of various plans started in jan. The partners and venues for pass sales were finalized and so were the deals with other publicity partners. The posters and other publicity material were printed and I must say, the creatives team had indeed done a very good work with them. My otherwise neatly kept room was turned upside down the day printed passes arrived. There were nearly 25000 passes of different formats depending on the performance day as well as the class. All these were kept in my room since that’s the only way I could have kept track of where each pass was going. The floor of my room was full of stacks of passes and crossing my room from the door to the balcony became a game of hop and jump ! But these passes were not yet ready for sale. In order to keep a track, each pass had to be numbered according to a specific series. Furthermore, to prevent counterfeiting, each pass had to undergo certain security steps we had decided on. All this meant dedicated manual labour and for the next 2-3 days, many fachchas from diff teams came over to my dorm, spread all the stuff in the TV room and got down to work. It was a sight to remember. The big room was filled with passes, pens, glues and what not, with 10-12 people sitting on the floor in the form of mini assembly lines, making each pass fit enough to go out to market. Just a week before Chaos, all passes were ready and I had planned out the sale in such a structure that at any instant, I would know which pass no. was sold at which location by which fachcha and at what date.
I had decided that this time, I will record every detail in such a way that the next Chaos team can make coherent conclusions from this data and hence take future decisions. Thus, every pass sale and every publicity related event was carefully planned and recorded so that meaningful conclusions could be drawn any moment. CCD was one of our main pass distribution outlets and each fachcha was made incharge of one outlet. He would give passes to the outlet, keep track of the sales at his outlet and get me back all the cash and remaining passes from that outlet in the end. Apart from this, the team was also selling passes through various other avenues including malls. And yes, just like last year, we again distributed Chaos fliers through newspapers – which essentially implied being at the newspaper distribution vendors at 3 in the night to ensure that the work is done effectively. Even though most of this work was coordinated by my other teammates, I still had to make a couple of visits at 3 am to ensure everything was going smooth.

3-4 days to go and preps were in full swing….pass sale was picking up, slowly but surely….radio had started advertising the event…banners and hoardings were up…all the other Chaos teams were almost ready for the event to start, construction of the stage had started at the LKP and I had not slept for, I forgot how many nights !
And then, like a jolt out of the blue, something happened that sucked the wind out of us. I vividly remember that fateful night 2-3 days before Chaos. I was riding my bike with a teammate behind me, both of us braving the chilly Jan night winds on the highway. My hands were virtually frozen as I drove faster to ensure we reach Nirma Univ quickly – we were going there to sell passes at their canteen during dinner time. I was initially not supposed to go due to the huge amount of work I had on campus, but due to unavailability of a vehicle, I ended up riding my bike. Just as we reached our destination, my phone rang. Since I was parking the bike, I asked my teammate to pick it up. As I saw his face change colours, I sensed something was not right. “Chaos has been cancelled due to the death of a family member of one of our profs !” As the words came out of his mouth, I felt my grip on the bike weakening. My mind was numb and I didn’t know how to react. On one hand my heart went out to professor and his family…and on the other images of months of hard work and sleepless nights flashed through my minds…and then I started thinking about the future and all the contracts we had made and all the passes we had sold and….”Vinz, there is an emergency batch meet at 9. We have to leave immediately.” His words jolted me out of my thoughts. Rarely had so many thoughts entered my mind at the same time and I knew I had to shake them all off and rush back to campus.
I don’t think I would have driven my bike faster ever. The chill in the wind was of no consequence now. My mind was too occupied to be bothered by anything else and I drove in a pseudo trance till I reached campus. I bolted to the RJM where the meet was to take place. As I entered, I saw ToTo, grim and worried. I had a brief chat with him and he updated me on the situation. For the next hour, there were discussions and debates in the auditorium, with all of us trying to reach some sort of consensus as to what our future course of action should be. It was finally decided that we will have a talk with the relevant authorities to see if there is still some way to conduct the event at a later date in a condensed version. Till then, Chaos had been postponed indefinitely.

As I walked out of RJM, I was overwhelmed with emotion. Chaos had become my baby and I could sense the helplessness of seeing it slip away from my hands, unable to protect it. For the next couple of days, millions of meetings took place, trying to give this problem a practical solution. And then it happened. We were told that we can conduct the event next weekend instead of the scheduled one, and that instead of 4 days, it will now be reduced to 3 days. The Chaos team had an emergency meeting that night and we briefed everyone about the situation. We were all glad that the event was back on track but at the same time, we knew its going to be even tougher challenge coz we had to undo a lot of things we had done earlier and then redo them differently. Rebooking the artistes, renegotiating the sponsorship contracts, handling the passes for which the refund process had already started and printing the publicity material/passes again with the new dates were just some of the problems that needed immediate attention.
We four, the core team and ToTo, met up after the meeting to chalk out the plan for the next 7 days. We braced ourselves up for the sleepless nights that were to follow but we all had one thing in common – the zeal and passion to make Chaos a hit despite the setback it had suffered. The next week was as tough as it could get, but I enjoyed each and every moment of it. Somehow I was bestowed with infinite energy when it came to Chaos and I knew that I will be at my best till the very last night of Chaos.
Everything was executed as planned and as the D-day approached, the pass sales picked up, motivating us even further to give it everything we had. One day before Chaos, the sales counter at the main gate started to witness long queues and that’s when we knew we have hit the jackpot. I was very sure that we are in for a bumper sale and our dream of seeing a houseful Chaos is closer to fulfillment. My name was mentioned as the contact point on every publicity material that went out in the city including the newspaper ads. As a result, my phone did not stop ringing for last 2 days and I knew that’s how it’s going to be till Chaos ends. It was maddening but I ensured I remain polite with everyone and welcome them to the event.

Come D-day, 1st Feb and there was a buzz of excitement all around the campus. By the evening, huge queues had already formed at the LKP entrance. Fachchas were busy selling tickets at the main gate which was so crowded that IIM guards had to be called in to maintain order and security. I had also taken charge of the security along with the security team heads and I was shuttling between the main gate and the LKP to ensure things were smooth at both ends. It was a scene of high voltage activity with our walkie-talkies crackling every other minute. After regular intervals, there will be some high pitched voice informing us about some incident that needs immediate attention. One of us would reply that we are close to the scene and will attend to it and then rush to that spot. I had allocated duties of fahchas to sell tickets at the main gate during all 3 nights in such a way that everyone got to witness at least some portion of the show and have some fun. We had to ensure that there’s no security breach since the crowd was only increasing in intensity. At the same time, there was some seriously huge cash being collected at the main gate ticket counter and I had to ensure that there’s safety on that front as well. But my fachchas were a great help and for all 3 days of Chaos, they ensured that they handled the ticket sale responsibility well since I got busy in other stuff like security and sorting out any urgent incident.
Fuzon was the main band to perform on the first night and they indeed mesmerized the crowd with their hits such as ‘tere bina’ and ‘aankhon ke sagar’. Later that night, it was time for the rock competition in the auditorium which lasted almost the entire night! And oh boy, I had never expected it to be such a huge hit. We were completely sold out and even then there was a huge queue for people to buy tickets somehow. It looked like a scene straight out of a movie theatre playing a much anticipated film for the first time. I managed the security at the auditorium for some time but was so exhausted by 3 am that I went back to my room and crashed, with a hope to get at least some sleep before the bigger days to come.The second day was reserved for Dance competitions and the fashion show, which were as usual dominated again by NID. NID has been a consistent achiever at these two events at Chaos for the past few years and this year was no different. The night also saw the music video launch of Gaurav Dahaonkar’s, an IIMA alumni, first ever music album.
And then to culminate Chaos came the biggest night of all, the one that entire Ahmedabad had been waiting for. We knew this was the night that will determine how big a success Chaos actually becomes. The queue that evening got longer and longer and the rush at the tickets counter was unprecedented. I had to send extra fachchas to open up another desk to ensure smooth sale of passes. I had never seen such a huge crowd on campus. Thousands of people flocked the otherwise serene LKP lawns. As far as the eye could see, there were people and more people, all of them waiting anxiously for the stage to erupt. I was going crazy trying to handle the events at the main gate as well as LKP but the enthusiasm and excitement was too high for me to get tired. And while I was on my way to the LKP, I heard a huge uproar and shrieks of thousands of fans and I knew the moment has finally arrived. All our months of hard work boiled down to this one artist who we knew will rock this event. The lights went dim, a guitar came to life and there he was…singing as melodiously as one ever could…..KK was on stage and it looked as if entire city was on the LKP ! We had taken great pains to get KK to perform at Chaos despite the rescheduling of the event. But we knew that he is a super performer and he alone can turn the tide of Chaos. And that’s exactly what happened.
For the next couple of hours, KK mesmerized the audience with his phenomenal energy, stamina, charisma and melody….every song that he sang was a huge hit with the crowd. I was initially not present when the show started. But after some time, I heard bambu’s voice crackle on my walkie-talkie – “Vinz come in…plz leave all work now and come to the front of the stage…entire chaos team is there to enjoy KK and only u r missing” ! I smiled and headed for the LKP. As I reached the front of the stage, right next to where KK was singing, I saw the entire Chaos team distributed on the two sides of the stage, singing and dancing ! As soon as I reached there, bamboo snatched my walkie and kept it in his bag, signaling me to stop work finally now and enjoy the fruits of success :)
For the next hour or so, we sang and danced as if there was no tomorrow. KK had truly rocked Chaos and by the time he left, we were all over the moon, knowing that this was a grand success. ToTo went on stage at the end of it all, thanked everyone and called the entire Chaos team up on the stage. We all jumped up with joy and thanked the audience….the smiles on our face telling the entire story. We were all like kids who have been suddenly given a great birthday gift….this was the gift we all had been waiting for since long.

As the crowd dispersed and the team got into the infinite photo sessions and media interviews, I and bamboo looked at each other and smiled. We both have had a tiresome past few months in ensuring that Chaos ends in no less spectacular way than this. We have had countless discussions and debates during countless sleepless nights….he was the logi incharge and he knew he had done a great job as well. ToTo was ecstatic as expected….and deservedly so ! We had not only witnessed one of the grandest Chaos ever, but were successful financially as well to secure the future of Chaos.
I could not sleep that night even though my legs felt like a log. After the euphoria had subsided, the mind began to put the pieces together…..the huge expectations, financial constraints, months of hard labour, the near end of Chaos even before it began, the mind boggling crowd…..and the bonds of friendships that I secured – the past few months seemed like a fairytale !

Its been almost one year now, but the thrill is as fresh as it was that night. I can still hear the din of the crowd, I can still see the happiness in ToTo’s eyes, I can still feel the chill in the air that touched me as I stood alone at LKP after the show…….As I look longingly at the Chaos poster I had saved with me, somewhere deep inside I yearn…yearn for time to rewind…rewind to those days of immortal bliss...those days whose memories will light up my day and moisten my eyes at the same time all my life….

Sangharsh 2008

Of the many threads that united most of the wimwians over the past two years, sports had certainly been one of the strongest. What started way back at the end of first term and built up in energy for the next one year was finally going to come alive again at the start of our final term….. Sangharsh 2008 was here to electrify the batch after we all were back from our holidays. For the uninitiated, Sangharsh is the annual IIMA vs IIMB sports meet whose inaugural edition was won by IIMA at home ground and the second edition was now going to take place in B’lore in the early part of jan.
After our emphatic win last time, Sangharsh had already become close to our hearts and we had been practicing quite decently for the past few days. Agreed, it was not at all an organized practice with a proper plan but even then, we used to keep on playing almost all the sports regularly and barring few sports, most of the players were in decent form in their respective games. I was, once again, part of the badminton and cricket teams. I wanted to try for TT as well as I knew I can make it to the team, but just like last time, I thought I better stick to two sports n give it my best shot there.
Few days before Sangharsh, I had gone to FMS in a sports meet and had won the silver medal in Badminton there. That success had given me some morale boost as I practiced baddy at the IMDC courts on campus. However, its an open court and hence we couldn’t really get some serious practice done. The baddy team had all fachchas except me and Guru. We did hire an indoor court few days before our trip to B’lore and I was quite satisfied with whatever preparation we could muster. SoDo, the other singles player in the team apart from me, was in great touch and though I used beat him earlier in singles, lately he had started beating me in closely fought games and was peaking at the right time.
Cricket practice was much better and organized this time compared to last year. This sportscom, of which I was a member as well, ensured that nets and mats were laid out in time on our college ground so that we could get some serious practice done. But we lacked match practice and little did we know that this would actually turn out to be our nemesis later on.
On a typical day, I would finish my classes and then head out to the cricket ground by 4 pm. Oh boy, what a beautiful time that used to be. Lush green grass and a shining red ball in my hand…..an exciting combination! I would bowl my heart out for as long as I can and then just sit on the green grass n have a light chat with everyone. After dark, I would head out to the baddy court to play some singles with SoDo and by the time I was off the court, I was a dead man physically, but super charged up mentally. Sweating it out hard on the baddy court was the most relaxing thing for me….funny, I know, but that’s how it was!
Similar practice was on for football as well; but I was worried about other sports where we hardly practiced. All we sportscom members would sit late nights to work out the modalities of organizing the trip and then discuss the progress of our practice in diff sports. It felt so good to be back in the thick of action of something so exciting and we all looked forward to retaining the trophy with great anticipation.

As we left campus for the airport, quite a lot of junta had turned up to bid us goodbye and cheer for us. Atom, one of our beloved sportscom members, broke open a coconut in front of the bus, to wish us luck :) As the wheels of the bus turned, so did the knob on my i-pod. I have a habit of gaining inspiration from music and this time was no different. As others chatted around me in the bus, I silently looked out of the window, the music in my ears reminding me of the hard work I had put in to prepare for this event. An year long wait had come to an end and now was the time to make everyone proud. I said a silent prayer for the entire contingent and joined others in their conversations.

It was dark when we reached the IIMB campus and as expected, there were posters and slogans everywhere welcoming us with a smirk! I loved it….these guys have revenge on their minds and will go all out to snatch the trophy from us. I knew that instant that it was going to be an exciting affair and a tough one for us to beat this blood thirsty opponent on its own ground.

Badminton was going to be the first event right after dinner and hence I hardly ate anything. The players reached the court in time and to our dismay, we realized that it is way too slippery. The IIMB guys also admitted the same but that was a constraint under which we had to play and we accepted it sportingly. The draws were going to be crucial. We knew they had a national level player in their team and our hope was to avoid him playing me in the singles as that would have implied wasting my match since I was expected to win my singles against anyone apart from him. It would have been ideal for us had he played our weakest player.
But sports are not played on ifs and buts. Sports are played on courage, a willingness to take on any challenge and hence I didn’t want all these permutations to distract me. If I am a good sportsman, I should be prepared to play anyone and fight till the end. I guess god took my attitude a bit too seriously, giving me a chance to implement all my sports philosophies :) And so with Murphy’s law playing its part, the draw ensured that it was me who got slotted to play that nationals player in singles. But honestly speaking, I was glad after few initial anxieties. I was the captain of the team and I knew I have the courage to take on the very best opponent and not letting someone else in my team get sacrificed. It was the time to grab the bull by its horns and sweat it out to result in an upset win.
As I stepped on the court, my mind was struggling to keep calm. On one side I heard the loud cheers of my support group, rooting for the player who had got them victory exactly one year back….on the other side I was the target of sledges of the opponent’s camp, booing the player who had handed them defeat exactly one year back. I tried hard to shake away all these distractions from my head and concentrate on the task at hand. It was tough. He was playing a flawless game and I was on the backfoot right from the first point. I tried hard to cope up, trying to make him run around the court, but he proved to be one step better at every instant and within a short time the first game was over….As I took a break to cool off my head, scenes from the past flashed in front of my eyes….I saw how I won my singles in the last Sangharsh, I saw how my seniors carried me on their shoulders after the victory, I saw flashes of brilliance that I knew I am capable of …..and as I entered back into the arena that had become the first battleground of Sangharsh 2008, I began to believe a lot more in myself and vowed to die sweating it out before I give up. My game did improve and I felt more relaxed. But my unforced errors continued and even though I was stretching him much more now and getting back into my usual rhythm, he was playing equally well, responding to all my drops and placements with panache. I did win a couple of very good rallies and though they boosted my morale, I started to realize that it’s not long before the inevitable happens.
As I left the court, after being handed a straight games defeat, I was furious with myself. I dropped my racket on the ground and just stood there, my head bowed down lest anyone sees the tears from my eyes dripping on the floor in the pretext of sweat. I was numb….an year of hard work washed away in half an hour of misery. I didn’t know whether to be sad or angry….I knew I am a much better player than what I did out there, I knew I could have stretched him much much more to give myself more chances, I knew that the reason I lost was because I made just too many unforced errors and though I don’t dispute his talent at all, I gave away the match due to my own silly mistakes and may be my over eagerness to play excellently. It’s a bad feeling…it eats you from inside….when you know you frittered away the match due to your own idiotic mistakes when you are capable of much more.
But I guess that’s what sports is all about…. to peak at the right time and to seize your moment. I did neither and hence paid the price. The silver medal won last month was a pale memory now… Sangharsh was far more crucial and I will never be able to forget the reversal of fortunes from my great victory on the courts of Sardar patel stadium Ahmedabad to the idiotic defeat in the first Sangharsh event at IIMB.
We lost baddy that night, SoDo’s lone singles victory going in vain. But we knew we had the firepower to hit back in the other sports….after all, Sangharsh had just begun and there were 11 more sports to go. Football, Snooker, TT & Tennis were the sports we were very sure of winning and we knew that by the end of the day, we will be back in the reckoning to defend our trophy successfully. But I guess it just wasn’t meant to be our year this time. Our football team suffered a shock defeat, once again falling prey to their own follies. We lost very narrowly in Snooker, despite the brilliance of Anubhav and the same fate followed in Tennis, despite the greatness of Shetty’s grit and talent. Two of our champion players won their matches but the team still lost….Snooker and Tennis defeats were the turning points of the tournament. By now, IIMB was in full flow and having pulled out two upset victories, they knew their task was much simpler now. We did make a good comeback when our TT team romped home with a convincing thrashing of the opponents and our volley team, lead by the ever dependable and skillful Gendy, pulled off a well fought victory in front of a boisterous crowd. With Chess also in our bag, by the evening, things started looking bright and we knew if we can just pull off a couple of more good wins, we will be on our way to our dream. Thowball was a very close affair and I give full marks to our girls team which, without any practice, played extremely well till the end but ran out of luck. With Basketball, Swimming and Cricket remaining for the final day, we knew that it was only a miracle now that could save us. Our basky team fought hard but without any success and our cricket team got beaten comprehensively.......IIMB had taken there revenge and beaten IIMA 9-4 to claim Sangharsh 2008.

Sitting in the bus looking out of the window, I could see nothing of the B’lore traffic zip past me….all I could see were glimpses of the past two days flashing by my eyes – Sitting alongside the tennis court rooting for Shetty and his men till it got dark, Clapping hard in appreciation of Anubhav’s masterful game on the green table, Watching guru pot some impossible looking shots and missing out some innocuous simple ones, Shouting for Gendy and his team at the top of our voice on every spike that he hit, Cheering hard for our girls throwball team trying to match the vociferous support that the home team enjoyed and advising the girls as though we were throwball gold medalists….. and Admiring the lovely speech that Adrian, our sports captain, gave at the closing ceremony that moved everyone present irrespective of the college he was from…..

Sports is a great leveler, it teaches you never to give up and makes you humble at the same time….but Sangharsh is much more than that. It’s a bond that we all have shared for two years…..Its the victory shrieks we have shouted together….Its the dismay n disappointment we have felt together…..but at the end of it all, its an emotion which we will never be able to express, an emotion that will manifest itself into action on the ground every single year, an emotion that will always bind all we wimwians where each one of us will stand by each other holding hands…. in times of trials… and in times of triumphs…!

Acumen Part II

After the exhilarating regional round, we had a break of few days before the national finals. Topics were given to us much before the event so as to ensure top quality debating and the entire evening was going to be telecasted as a TV episode. We were slotted to face IIFT in the semi-finals and the other semis was between IIMB and IIMC. Now IIFT were the defending national champions and hence we knew that our task is going to be cut out. But in a way it pumped us even more and we relished the challenge thrown at us. We had to speak ‘against’ the topic, “India’s demographic dividend is nothing but marketing hype”. We did lots of research and analysis in the days building up to the event and even though me and Maclo were in diff cities (our vacations had started), we still worked together over the net to ensure that we are well prepared. It was a tough but interesting topic and had a huge scope for throwing a lot of facts and figures that could be used to take either stand on the topic. Come D-Day and both of us felt very confident about the thoroughness of our preparation.
As we reached one of the grandest hotels in Mumbai, the venue for the event, we realized just how big this thing is! The eminent crowd consisting of senior managers from the two sponsor companies, cameras and wires spread all around and Harsha Bhogale again at his wittiest best…….I surprisingly remained quite calm amidst all this excitement. I knew I couldn’t afford to get overawed by the occasion and had to be relaxed.
The moment finally arrived and as usual, Maclo started the proceedings. It was always this ways. He would be the first one to speak and I will do the other half and the conclusion. I really dunno why we stuck to this pattern. Guess we just didn’t want to change luck ! As the debate went on, it became extremely interesting and I actually started enjoying myself out there. Both teams were thoroughly prepared with all facts n figures on their fingertips ! The great thing was that we both referred to the same Goldman Sachs report and used it to arrive at contrasting conclusions, giving the report our own interpretations. And neither was wrong…..It was just how you back it up! After the gripping 12 minutes, it was time for Q&As and boy, what a grueling session that was. Judges went hammer n tongs at both teams but I feel me and Maclo handled the questions better n with more confidence. The good thing was that we both spoke almost equally unlike our competitors where one person answered most of the questions. It was a sight to see…..both me and Maclo were working like a well oiled machine….discussing the answer with each other comfortably and then automatically one of us would step up to answer without any hitches. I loved the way we complemented each other.
After the second semi-final was over, which was, as expected, another keenly fought affair, it was time for the results……I had always been quite confident about the results being in our favour in the regional round, but now, I knew it was anybody’s game…..I knew it was a genuinely very very closely fought battle and was actually glad that am not one of the judges. And then it happened. We had achieved the unimaginable……we defied all odds to beat the defending champions and enter the grand national final! Oh boy, what a thrill that was….me n Maclo hugged each other, still coming to terms with the magnitude of our success! We knew just how tough this battle was and were elated at our achievement :) We were to face IIMC in the finals.

We were to speak ‘for’ the topic “India’s business leaders should take over the political leadership”. It was a relatively simpler topic than the last one, where we didn’t need as many figures n data. We prepared decently enough and I was much more relaxed this time compared to the semis. I felt good about the topic and was keen to go up there n carry on our good form. And as if the grandness of the event was not enough already, a pleasant surprise came our way in the form of the chief guest of the evening…..none other than John Abraham! I didn’t know that he’s an MBA as well and the entire place was electrified due to his presence.
We had to keep a cool mind as this was our last hurdle…we didn’t want anything to faze us. We had come a long way and were determined to leave this place as winners. Maclo started as usual, and started well as usual :) The debate went on to become very lively indeed as this was a topic where every audience member had an opinion about, unlike the last one which was much more technical in nature. The judges questions were sharp and we had to be crisp n lucid in our responses. But we did well and I again felt that we handled the Q&A better than the opposition.
At the end of it all, Harsha Bhogale had to admit that the semis and finals were by far the highest level of debating he has seen…that compliment itself was a victory for all of us! After an agonizing wait, which saw the quizzes being played out, it was finally the time for declaring the debate national champions…….oh man, I cant remember when was I last so anxious and nervous. That’s the thing with me. I will be a statue of calmness and confidence when it’s the time to perform. But when its results time, I start getting the jitters…but I guess its coz I know I hv given my best already and can afford to be nervous now :) Anyways, coming back to the moment……my fingers had started aching a bit now that I had them crossed for over an hour! There was a silence just before announcing the runners-up name, which got filled with shouts of IIMC from somewhere behind in the audience. It felt good to know that some people thought we had done better and deserved to win. And then came the moment of truth……….

As me and Maclo went up on the stage to collect the runners-up prizes from John and other judges, I found it a bit tough to hide the disappointment on my face. But astonishingly, as we came back to Maclo’s family in the audience, my mind started realizing how big our prize is nevertheless and my heart slowly but surely started feeling more content than before. And when people from the audience came up personally to tell us how good we were, I knew that I had nothing to be disappointed about….We had made our insti proud!

“Dude, we have come a long way from that lazy evening on campus”, Maclo’s words had never been so soothing before. As he stood there smiling at me, his family admiring the prizes he had won, I smiled back at him. A smile of satisfaction, a smile of triumph, a smile thanking him for being with me in this journey, a smile that proved that the past two months have left us only richer in experience, a smile that said it all…….

Few years down the line all this will look so inconsequential in the larger scheme of life, Acumen might just be forgotten as yet another one of my experiences during the years at IIMA……but I know somewhere deep inside, the thrill of those days will never cease to put a smile on my lips, probably the same smile that me and Mohit Sadani shared that night of December 2007 at ITC Grand Central, Mumbai…far away from the red brick walls of home….

Acumen 2007

It was a lazy evening when instead of being on the streets of ahmedabad on my bike, I was passing my not so precious time on dbabble, chatting away to glory. The now so familiar beep of a new msg on dbab informed me that the trials for BT Acumen, India’s largest national B-School quiz n debate competition are gonna be help at 10 pm in CR 4. To admit honestly, I had never heard of acumen before even though I later found out how big the annual event was. But, being ever ready for any extra currics, ( as long as its not a case study competiton :) ), and specially one that involved public speaking, my fav, I decided to give it a try. As it is, I didn’t have much to do that night except of course playing cricket n watching a movie !
So I landed at CR 4 and as expected, there were a bunch of studs of IIMA, waiting to be a part of the team that was to be selected to represent the institute this year for debate. Glancing around the room I realized that with such heavyweights around, I might just be wasting my time here. “But well, now that I am here, I might as well give it my best shot”, the words traveled instantly from my brain to the tongue as I saw Maclo stride into the room. Maclo was this stud McKinsey dude who had never ever debated before in life and came that night with the sole intention of giving me company since I didn’t have any partner to go with. It was a team of two that was to be selected and from the 15-16 odd candidates, it was decided that from the 8 teams, top 2 candidates will be selected irrespective of which team they belonged to. And so began the trials…..each team of 2 given a topic and after a min one guy spoke for the motion and the other against it. When our turn came, I saw Maclo instantly spring into action, chalking down points that would build our arguments. I never doubted his intellect n sharpness, neither his speaking style. But he had never debated before and hence wasn’t sure if this is his cup of tea. Anyways, just like me, he didn’t have much lined up that night I suppose (hello…..placecommer with no work…hahaha) and hence he turned up to give me a partner so that at least I could try out. But I always knew that he’s a great speaker irrespective of his past debate credentials and hence was confident of our chances. We worked well…he gave a lot of inputs on the arguments and I structured all of it and the way we need to present n speak. We spoke well, but so did the other 7 teams!
Results were announced pretty quickly and I really didn’t expect anything looking at the standard of the competition…the very best of IIMA were there. But then it happened. I was stunned for few seconds when they announced that I had topped with the max points…and not only this, Maclo was next to follow – which implied that me and Maclo were the debate team from IIMA at this year’s Acumen! Oh boy, my happiness knew no bounds….It was the first time at IIMA where I had truly achieved something very significant by beating top competition...and it was public speaking again that did it, something close to my heart since my school days. Maclo was ecstatic as well, though displaying much less emotions than me, still not very convinced that he spoke so well despite his virtually zilch past record in debating. One can say that it was a grand Debate Debut for him ! Little did we know that the coming few days would bring us even more excitement…

Next step was the West Zone regional rounds. Each zone had a regional round that would throw up one team which would be representing that zone in the national finals. The entire process was to take a couple of months. Both of us headed to Mumbai where the west zone regional was to take place over a period of two days at Wellingkar institute of management. We arrived quite early and all we saw all around were teams all decked up in suits, from all over the western part of India, some nervous, some confident, and some having fun. It was a grand event for sure. There was a buzz everywhere, no dearth of media and the sponsors’ presence was felt all over the walls and corridors. In a nut shell, it was an exciting n happening place to be in. We were given badges with our insti names on them. The IIM-A tag did raise a few eyes - easy enough to unnerve you if u start feeling the burden of expectation but also sure to boost your morale if you are thinking clearly in your head. I don’t know about Maclo but I kind of enjoyed the attention and was even more determined to prove our worth as was expected out of us. We couldn’t let our brand down so early in the competition.
With about 30 odd teams, by the end of the day, 4 teams were to be selected to fight out the semis and finals the next day. The topics were already given to us and we had done our homework. But we only got to know whether we are speaking for or against the motion on the spot itself. These qualifiers were help in 4-5 diff classrooms, judged by eminent personalities from the India Today group and the Aditya Birla group. We both spoke well, and barring a couple of points that we thought we missed, I was quite satisfied with our performance. The results were out by the afternoon and yes, we had made it to the semis :) We were both glad n relaxed. We at least wont have to face the ignominy of going back to college having been shown the door in the first round itself. Now was time for some serious business and for the first time, we seriously started to think about winning the zone. Till now, we never saw long term. We just thought we will give it our best n have a good time. But now apart from enjoying the event, we started wanting to create some history here for our insti. And the best part is, we believed in ourselves ! We spent the remaining day preparing for the semis topic. We were to face IRMA in the semis and we knew from now, nothing will be easy.

The next day, the auditorium was jam packed, with various colleges making an official visit with their teachers to witness the finale. But if you think that it was our debating that brought them all there, well, think again. The crowd puller of the day was none other than the witty n ever smiling host of Acumen, Harsha Bhogale! He has been with Acumen for 2-3 years now and was going to be our companion on stage for the whole day. Ours was the first semi-final. When Harsha announced our names and that of our insti, and when I started my trip to the stage with the beats of some dhinchak music blaring our of the speakers, I felt so proud…..proud of being there to represent my IIMA…proud of being on stage in front of TV cameras and a huge audience….and proud of not letting Maclo down. Once I was up there, I knew I had a job to do and was eager to blast off. Harsha made a witty good natured remark on my name – another one of the times in my life when I have been so thankful to my parents for giving me this name :) We spoke ‘for’ the topic, “An MBA is the most over hyped academic qualification in India today” – what an irony, isn’t it ! After all 4 people from both teams had spoken for 3 minutes each, each team could ask the other two questions, which was then followed by any no. of questions from the judges seated in the audience. So it was going to be a long fought battle for sure. We did well at the end of it and specially with the Q&As and I left the stage feeling satisfied. Results were announced after lunch and as Harsha spoke out our names as the finalists, I gave a hi-five to Maclo and we knew we are just a step away now!

Now comes the best part! We were to face Wellingkar, the host team, in the final. Not only did we have to be ready to witness huge support for the home team, there was another coincidence! Maclo’s girl friend (and now his fiancée), who was all along helping us and rooting for us, is from Wellingkar itself :) Oh man, poor girl..divided between loyalties for her boy friend and her college !
We prepared well for the finals, even though we just had a short span of couple of hours to do so. But I knew that more imp than anything was to keep our nerves. I knew by experience that at this stage, it’s a lot to do with the way you answer and argue, apart from just the content of your arguments. And hence we both paid special attention to this aspect. And as I stepped once again on the now familiar stage, the blood in my veins flew at breakneck speed and the only thing on my mind was to emerge victorious as that was the only way to quiet the boisterous support the home team was enjoying. We spoke ‘against’ the topic “Soft skills, and not technical proficiency, are what separates the great managers from the good ones”. It was a tough side to take on the issue n we knew we had an arduous task at hand….But as the debate went on, my confidence grew every minute. And by the time it came to Q&As, I think we were in a state of mind where nothing could faze us. The questions were tricky and twisted and demanded some quick thinking backed up by sound logic. I was so much drowned into the action that after discussing the answers with Maclo for few seconds, I only ended up answering most of them, though we had decided we will split it up. But he gave me a thumbs up to go ahead with every answer and his confidence in me pumped me up further.

After the exhausting grilling, we were off the stage, holding our breath for the final results. For the next hour, I was on the edge of my seat. Maclo was much more relaxed than me….may be it was her presence or just that he’s very calm by nature, I don’t know. But I couldn’t relax till the moment when it finally happened. As I walked down the aisle to the stage, the thunderous applause finding its way from my ears to my heart, I looked for Maclo to accompany me….and that moment I realized how much it meant to him as well….He was already ahead of me waiting to climb the stage and collect the winners’ prizes.

And as I stood there posing for the cameras with Maclo and acknowledging the warm appreciation by the jam packed auditorium, my mom and dad watched on the TV the news about how IIMA has emerged as the West Zone Champions….

From the lazy evening on campus that day to the happening centre stage of a grand event, it had been an unexpected but rewarding journey. And even though we knew that the Nationals is our next step, we thought nothing about it. That night was ours to savour. And when congrats messages by our batch mates started pouring in on dbabble, I knew that I had played my small part in making my college proud… something that will always remain close to my heart.

Not to forget the new ties of friendship that I forged with Maclo….I was sure these days would be the topic of our reminiscence when we catch up with each other over a drink 10 years down the line…

The 5th Term

The last term had clearly been the best in terms of lack of academic rigour….and that followed by Shodh Yatra was the icing on the cake ! Having experienced the bliss of being a tuchcha, I was all set to continue enjoying life to the fullest in the next term as well. But I also ensured that I do not lose focus on the quality of courses that I chose. And hence I took up an interesting set of subjects that I thought I would love studying, apart from, of course, the fact that they should fit into the time table nicely so as not to interfere in my blissful activites of tuchchadom :)

I took five courses and an independent project : International Business Dispute and Resolution (Yep, u learn that too in MBA!), Legal Aspects of Business (No no, I don’t intend to be a lawyer..its a compulsory subject), Managerial Communication, Merger Acquisitions and Corporate Restructuring & Philosophical Foundations of Management (yeah, you read it right !). The project was on Negotiation in Movies J

I am still so proud of the kind of subjects I took…Hahaha ! IBDR was taken by a prof about whom I had heard so much that I couldn’t help signing up for the course. And trust me, I had no regrets. He was clearly one of the best profs of IIMA when it comes to teaching style and humour ! He was very particular in making sure we all were up to date with our current affairs and GK. Our classes would begin by discussin some of the headlines of the day and his sharp and witty take on those. He would often show us some youtube videos of some great ads etc; he was a big movie buff and lots of his examples somehow traced their way back to some 70s hindi movie :). The best part was that the quizzes and exams were newspaper articles which we had to interpret and analyze given the theory that we studied in the class! And the classes were all court cases between fighting companies over legal/political/personal issues! IBDR classes were fun and I had decided that I will again take the same prof’s courses in the next term as well. It was a diff coincidence altogether that I again got to interact a lot with him during Chaos, about which I will write later.
MC was a big value add. A short course on communication, which I initially thought I don’t need, but was proved so wrong when I went through it! Another excellent prof, with a brilliant teaching style! No theory at all. Only action! In every class, student will speak in front of everyone , sometimes impromptu, other times some prepared articles. The audience will then rate the speaker on a scale of ten and all those ratings would determine the final grade of the student! The prof has nothing to do with the grading:) And trust me, there were hardly any biases involved coz grades were the last things on our minds! The course was so inspiring that we all loved every bit of it. Two biz presentations in the end that were video recorded cleared small chinks in our armory and everyone ended the course feeling much more confident about ourselves. MC was clearly one of the best and most valuable courses I have done in the two years at IIMA.
PFM was a great experience as well. The course dealt with philosophers and their ideologies and even though lot of times I hadn’t the slightest clue about whats happening in the class, I still loved it. That’s coz arguably the two best profs of IIMA took the course. Prof Ajay Pandey and Prof Seb Morris! I was bowled over by their intellect! PFM classes got the most creative and intellectual juices flow out of them. Their depth in fields as diverse as Biology to History to Maths to Physics to Arts was stunning. I was amazed as to how could someone know so much. And on top of that, the classes were nothing but discussions between us n them. Mind u, when I say us, I don’t mean I :) I was almost always a mute spectator! But couple of guys in the class were very learned on the subject and they led the discussions. Nevertheless, a very unique course indeed!

So academically, the term was a bit more hectic than the last one, also coz I had taken MACR, which I knew involved quite a bit of finance to which I will need to devote extra time! But it was worth it coz I got to learn a lot from the course.

But the term was not an acads term at all! So what was the highlight of the term? What kept all tuchchas at IIMA busy in the 5th term? Well, one answer – Business Competitions! Yep, u got it right…almost every B-School conducts a Biz Fest during this period. These fests consists of various case contests, biz games, quizzes, trading games and so on….The interesting thing I realized during this time was that people took part in all these contests with diff motives! Some of them did it to boost their CVs for placements – a lot of awards in diff biz contests at prestigious B-Schools surely add weight to ur CV; Others did it coz of the monetary benefits – all the contests do offer some hefty prizes; and finally the rest did it coz they didn’t hv much else to do on campus :)

Honestly speaking, I didn’t know which category I fell into. Actually, initially I didn’t even want to take part in any contest. I wanted to stay clear coz I knew it would involve a lot of work and I was somehow in no mood to work a lot in my tuchchadom days! I thought lemme know enjoy n hv fun and do bit of acds and that’s all! In fact, that was one of the reasons I didn’t even join the organizing team of Confluence this year, despite many requests coming my way to do so. However, I slowly realized that its good if I do take part in at least few of these contests – both for my CV as well as for doing something intellectual rather than just sitting around n watching movies!

And so I ended up joining a team. The funda is that before the season, teams of 4-5 are formed and the team then takes part in all the contests during the entire term in diff fests! And the most prestigious of all the events was of course the one at the most premier institute – our very own Confluence! I slowly realized that people were very serious about the winning the Award of Excellence at Confluence, an award given to the best team that gathers most points across diff events! And even though my team indeed had some very stud people, we were somehow not very enthu abt the award. We just wanted to participate and win as much as we could. Simple.

And thus began the great B-School contests fever of the 5th term! Cases after cases, quizzes after quizzes! It was kind of fun sometimes, and seemed like a huge burden at other times. With everyone sharing work, it never got overbearing. But it certainly kept us busy the entire term.

Confluence was good fun. This year I was not in the organizing team and that gave me an opportunity to participate in lots of events. And we actually did win a couple of prizes to our delight, even though we didn’t expect to with out not so diligent efforts :) The four days of Confluence were pretty much like the last year. Diff faces but similar structure. A welcome break for all of us when the campus was buzzing with people from all over the country, when we at times wont find place to sit in our very own CT! But it was so satisfying to see that the event was a huge hit as usual – and I was so happy for the organizing team coz I had gone thru the effort it takes to make this a success and knew the joy of seeing it all unfold so nicely….Well done Dola, the Conflu Coord, and the entire team, who worked their hearts out for months together for these 4 days of success!

As for me, well, to tell the truth, I did feel a bit left out. I have always been into the heart of all activities at IIMA and was feeling weird not being a part of Conflu team….being on the other side was not really something that excited me. I wanted to be in the thick of action, working days n nights n then feeling proud to play my role in this grand event….but I knew that as the clock ticks away, my time is gonna come near, where I will be right back into action…Chaos was not very far away :)

But that didn’t mean that I had a sedate term. Apart from all the contests I took part in and won, there was something very special that happened to me and that unexpected success will perhaps be one of my biggest ever in life…I will write about it in my next entry…but this term would essentially be remembered for the rush of enthusiasm and diligence it infused into the otherwise laid back tuchcha life, all thanks to the frenzy of biz contests!

Apart from that, life was rocking….Badminton, Late night cricket, movies, exploring ahmd, mess food and all the craziness in the dorms….some things never change !

Shodh Yatra

One of the reasons why this institute stands on a pedestal so higher than others is the uniqueness and ingenuity in its course curriculum and methodology of its implementation. This was instantly ratified the moment I joined and heard about this course called Shodh Yatra. Here was a course so different from the rest that its hard not to catch the fantasy of anyone.

This course takes place in the term break between the fourth and fifth terms. A group of 30 odd students are taken on a week long trek to diff places in India every year by Prof Anil Gupta. The prof is a renowned for his social work and runs his own NGOs as well. The intent of the course is to sensitize the students to the harsh realities of our country and to come with some creative solutions after having brainstorming discussions. This year, the destination was Sikkim and I was ready to bid any no. of points to book the course for me :)

To be honest, the primary reason that motivated me to sign up for this course was the fact that it would provide me an opportunity to go on a good trek to a beautiful place with my friends and have fun.

There were two more big reasons which convinced me of sacrificing my chance to go home in the holidays and instead opt for this course. The first was that I wanted to spend some quality time with myself. The first year had been extremely hectic and I realized that I was so engrossed in daily routine and pursuits and trying to maintain my social relations that I was starting to lose track of time and in the process, distancing myself from my heartfelt aspirations and feelings. I needed some peaceful time with myself and introspect on what have I been doing and how I need to go ahead in my life, clearly prioritizing my needs and time. The second reason was that I realized this would be a unique opportunity for me to get close to the rustic life of the hills and put myself in the shoes of those who have not been so lucky in life as I.

We all met at the Delhi airport, armed with our rucksacks and sleeping bags, and the enthusiasm on our faces was for everyone to see. The flight to Bagdogra was 3hr 45 min long as it went via Guwahati, making it the longest I have ever flown at a stretch. But it was a most entertaining journey, with all of us playing various games on board, much to the chagrin of the flight attendants! We hired taxis to take us to SMIT, an engg college which was supposed to be our base camp from where we would start our ascent.

We climbed around 20 odd kms every day for the next 5 days. We would take the jungle routes and the all the other paths that cut across the beautiful step farms and mountains but avoid the road as much as possible. Our luggage and food supplies were carried by two vehicles. We all would start together in the mornings, we climbing through the trek trails while the cars took the road. By lunch time, the vehicles would have stopped at a mid way place and cooked food for us. We would reach hungry and tired, quickly eat the food, rest for 10 min and then move on. The tiredness, hunger and the serene surroundings made that break a great moment to look forward to. On our way, we would stop by to meet farmers, workers, school kids and talk to all of them, understanding their work, life and culture. Our trek for the day would end by late evening, when we would reach a small village, where we hired a couple of rooms in a local school. We would clean the rooms and then set our sleeping bags on the floor, ready in a moment for the night ahead. Post dinner, we used to have some meaningful discussions with the prof about whatever we learnt throughout the day and discuss some innovative solutions to the problems these villagers faced. And then the next day, the same routine would continue.

SY is not an easy course to take. I have been a sportsman since long and hence was confident about my abilities to complete the trek without any problems. But honestly speaking, at the beginning, I wasn’t sure if all the members in our group will be able to do the same. Climbing 20 kms everyday through the treacherous trekking trails was an arduous task. I remember how in the night, being the thinnest in the group, I would walk on the legs of my pals to act as the official massager of the group! We were quite tired of the same food that we had everyday but the options in the villages in the night were not too great and hence the foodies in the group had a tough time ! The places where stayed in the night were just the bare minimum. Two rooms in a village school and that’s it. There were couple of toilets but u can imagine the plight with 30 people wanting to use them every morning ! And last but not the least, the constant threat of leeches! Nearly half of us fell victim to those blood suckers so much so that it slowly was no big deal for us as were always ready with salt in our pockets! The crux is that it was physically a pretty tough course. You must be prepared to rough it out.

But what still made it probably the best course for most of us? The same usual IIMA spirit! I was simply amazed on the very first day itself when we had to climb the longest through the toughest possible route. I remember at one place, we had to hang with the support of a root in order to cross a chasm. One slip of hand and we would have been hurling down the mountain! By the time we reached our school, it was dark with no street lights and no torches. But the camaraderie and team spirit left me amazed. We all kept on helping each other, singing songs, motivating each other all the while. There were lots of girls who surprised all of us with their stamina and spirit. It was tough for them and we could see that. But never for a second did they give up and continued their march in great spirit. Everyone used to get exhausted at the end of the day. But the fun we had on the way and in the night before sleeping was what that made the trip so worthwhile J I remember one of the schools we stayed at had wooden rooms with no electricity! And it was pouring cats and dogs in the night. What fun it was! The sound of raindrops on the wood, with all of us cuddled in our sleeping bags, chatting and having fun as the candle night burnt its way out….

The other great thing abt the trip was that we made a lot of new friends. Not everyone of us knew every other person in the group very well since we were from diff sections in the first year. But during the daily treks, we would often split in smaller groups and chat along the way, thus getting to know each other much better. I came to know that TJ is a sports freak and very warm and caring at heart, that Vidya is a very sweet girl who will do anything for her friends and that bakarr is an extremely down to earth guy, notwithstanding the big I-Banks that queue up for him during placements. We all would talk and giggle when the lights would go out in the night, rush to get salt when there was a leech attack and keep motivating others during those arduous climbs.

The trekking period was actually awesome for me. Walk in the absolute beautiful serene surroundings of Sikkim with friends, sharing ur feelings with them, stopping by to chat with the locals, offering candies to the kids and clicking snaps with them….it was blissful ! In the nights, we would sneak out to the local market to get something good to eat. And we would end being the biggest consumers of “Wai-Wai” noodles, a specialty in that area !

The last day held a surprise for us. At the end of the trek, we checked into a govt guest house and sleeping on beds in a proper place was a welcome break :) After lunch, the prof handed us the surprise. We were all to scatter away individually in the village and pick up a spot for ourselves. We were then supposed to remain silent for nearly 4 hours and introspect on our trip and our lives. For me, it was a great time! I ventured out on the outskirts of the village and found a spot, perched up high on the mountain, overlooking beautiful valleys. It was such a peaceful place with nice chilly winds blowing on my face that I could for the first time understand how our saints could meditate in the peace of the Himalayas. But this little exercise of our group turned out to be a fuuny and eccentric happening for the villagers! They simply couldn’t fathom what these bunch of people are doing, scattered all around and not talking at all for 4 full hours ! few kids came and tried to talk to me as well…..I just gave them some biscuits and chips and after some time, did talk to them at the end of my “maun vrat”.

The final night at SMIT was a formal affair with couple of ministers in the Sikkim Govt cabinet coming down to meet us. We first made a small presentation to them about our observations over the past week and some recommendations from whatever knowledge we gained. This was followed by dinner where we got to interact with them personally, learning much more about the govt’s perspective on the issues we brought up.

Just when we thought there couldn’t possibly be any more excitement in store for us, we were given a rude awakening during our way back to the airport. One of our taxis had a head-on collision with another vehicle on a narrow road having mountain and valley on its either sides. Luckily for us, we escaped with minor bruises but the other vehicle had its windscreen shattered and couple of seriously injured people! What a shock it was for us. We were all shaken but were quick to recover and thank our stars!

Shodh Yatra was clearly one of the best things that happened to me during my tenure at IIM-A. I am ever so thankful to the institute for hosting a course like this. A great trek through the pristine beauty of Sikkim, with the pure river teesta on one hand and the gorgeous mountains on the other, , roughing it out in adverse conditions, making new friends, having great fun together and getting a chance to get close with the lives of the locals…….I could not have asked for more ! The bonds that I forged during the trip have only strengthened since then. With a brilliantly designed Shodh yatra T-Shirt as a memento, the memories of the experience and the ties with my friends are sure to live inside me for years to come.