The drudgeries of life
Sunday, October 10, 2010
The winds of change...
The last week has seen me at my happiest best... till now, I had forgotten what happiness was all about, especially since August, courtesy some people and certain circumstances...
How we invent illusions to keep ourselves entertained despite the nagging feeling that something's amiss is admirable!
Starting last Wednesday, everything is back on track... on the fast track, if you like! :)
Thursday was extra special... a brand new addition in my life! You're here to stay, I know... a post dedicated to you, and she who you replaced coming up ;)
On Friday, I could afford to say TGIF despite all the little glitches...
Saturday? Whatta super duper day! Nothing like witnessing awesomeness from up close, and being able to appreciate it from a (very very) close range!
Add to that: being on TV for the entire Table Tennis Men's Team Gold Match events, especially since the damsels from the English team chose to sit bang one row in front of us... so much for us supporting Singapore!! Kinda got a crush on Jo ;)
Next up, IMT... I'll never ever outgrow this place :)
Signed in as 08FT-051... room number A-41...
A few TT matches (inspired by what we witnessed earlier in the day, no doubt!), bahut dinon baad :D
Snacks @ DLP...
Lovely party @ A-39, previously Khemka's room, now Lalit's room... then hanging out at the Guitar Point :)
The intense badminton matches at 4 AM... still got the old flair, thank goodness! Damn I love this game.
The walk around the beautiful campus... the bhasad, Aa gale lag jaa (:p), the injured toe and what not!
Ungodly hour fillers at Nescafe *yummy*
Pleasant insomnia!This place is jinxed... you'll always shirk sleep when here :))
Oh well! Just when I thought that the day wouldn't end, it did... slept a wonderful dreamless sleep akin to the good ol' days!
Now to utilize Sunday to the max: watching some awesome Badminton matches @ Siri Fort \m/
Need to get back to IMT soon with my new companion... unfnished business beckons ;)
Have a happy weekend, folks!
P.S.: Happy birthday, Dipika... it felt really nice talking to you after ages! Miss the Mafia gang so very much... hold on for a while, I'm headed there soon ;)
Labels: Badminton, Beginnings, CWG, Friends, IMT, Nostalgia, Table Tennis, Weekends
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Then and now...
01 February, 2008
I had just walked out of my SCMHRD personal interview after delivering an awesome performance at the International Convention Center, SB Road, Pune, when my phone rang. It was Mumma.
She informed me that IMT-G had sent my call letter... My interview was scheduled for the 16th of February, but at Indore :x
I told Mumma that I would not appear for it... who's going to travel to Indore for just a GDPI?!
And I purged it from my thought process... or so I thought.
My mind kept vacillating.
30 March, 2008
While playing Quake3 at a gaming parlor in Koregaon Park, Pune, Rishabh suggested that we check the IMT Ghaziabad results which were supposed to be declared today...
His apprehension and anxiety to check the results were justified: He had almost touched a 98 percentile in CAT, and his GDPI had gone well!
"You're going to IMT Ghaziabad, buddy", I assured him!
I, on the other hand, had no hope for converting my IMT-G call... I had a messed up percentile, a little short of 97, and I had had the worst GDPI experience at the hands of the IMT Nagpur faculty who presided over the IMT-G process at Indore.
They had challenged me to rank colleges like NMIMS, IMT-G, SIBM and IMT Nagpur on a scale of 1 to 4, and I had honestly assigned the last spot to Nagpur. That ended the interview right there... on a very sour note, I must add.
As I said, I had zilch expectations!
Plus I was enjoying my life at Infy and Pune... I had even planned to move in with Manjeet; my visa was stamped and by the year end I'd be off to NJ!
No, even if by sheer misfortune I get a call from IMT-G, I decided that I'll not join the program...
2 minutes later, I got the shock of my life when I discovered a "CONGRATULATIONS!!" message on the results screen... I was being offered a seat in the PGDM - Full Time program at IMT-G!!! :O
I logged off, and logged in again to recheck... maybe some error in the computer's cookies!
BAM again! "IMT-G PGDM - Full Time program" screamed the screen!
And I felt dizzy.
Rishabh who was expecting a convert, and rightly so, didn't get it. But I, the black sheep, did :(
Totally clueless now as to which path to take at this fork in the road of life, I called up my parents...
Talking to them, I realized that I could never let go of IMT-G... it was now or never!
Anyway letting go of things you have in hand is so very difficult...
11 March, 2010
Almost 2 years later, while scribbling crap in the last exam of my MBA life, I couldn't stop my mind from wandering.
What if I hadn't gotten through to IMT-G?
What if I had stuck to my whim and not gone to Indore for the GDPI?
What if I had chosen not to go to IMT-G despite my final selection?
I can tell now for sure that I'd have lost a lot, I'd have not enjoyed some of the best moments of my life, I'd have never met some of the best friends that life offered me, I'd have never felt so young all over again :)
After studying the concept of opportunity cost, I know that the opportunity cost when I opted for this program was high. It still is.
But opportunity cost is a flawed concept. It only measures the earnings from lost opportunities that one has missed out on. How come it never takes into account the learnings that one has gained, the experiences one has garnered, and the life that one has lived instead?!
Intangible things are of little significance in today's materialistic world...
Anyway, what an apt way to end this leg of the journey: It started with lots of conflicts and consequent negotiations 2 years back, and it ended today with an exam on Conflict & Negotiation :)
Life travels full circle, yes it does!
Time now to contemplate the upcoming fork in the road...
Wish me luck, folks!
Party time :D
Labels: Conflict, Fork, IMT, Life, Negotiation, Nostalgia, Opportunity cost
Saturday, March 06, 2010
Around the campus in one day!
How come exam times tend to be the free-est days?!
This time round I'm appearing for the final exams for the final time in my life... hopefully :P
Roamed around the campus today afternoon with a camera in my hand, and clicked pics at every nook and corner of IMT!
I've seen the campus so many times, but today was the first time in 22 months that I had a good look at it :)
It's like this: If you travel around a city on a bike or a car, chances are that you fail to take in the little details of the place... hop aboard a cycle rickshaw and you observe each and everything properly!
So for once, I was in no rush... I took my own time to observe and capture the beauty of the place ♥
Have kept some spots on hold for night photography!
What astounded me was the degree of parallelism on campus... almost as if Stanley Kubrick designed the layout of the campus, just like his parallel universe, and he decided to place sets of things in parallel! B)
A few glimpses:
That beautiful tree outside A-lobby!
One of my favorite spots on campus... The stretch from the amphi to the library
These leaves were once nice and green...
The criss-cross effect!
Standing in sequence :)
Lazing around on the lush green lawns of IMT is such a pleasure!
The collage for the Farewell... good job, juniors :)
Each bike has got to have a number... Mine is kaidi err bike number 122 :P
IMT - The view from the outside ♥
The room where B1 came into existence... :)
Parallel windows of the library... as seen from the Acad block!
Everything is in parallel... outside Nescafe!
Stepping stones to the classrooms :P
You can never get bored walking down this path ♥
Faces galore! :)
Striking a unique, and crazy pose at the Amphi!
Oh well! There are many more pics... these were just a few samples ;)
Will upload them somewhere else, sometime later...
Had a lovely evening too... prepared for the first of the final exams with an awesome party :P
Damn I never want MBA to end!!!! :)
Anyway hoping that a dear friend rocks in the MICAT exam tomorrow! *fingers and toes crossed*
I'm going to rock in my Retail Marketing exam for sure.. especially with it being an open-book exam and 2 cases studies being expected ;)
Have a great Sabbath day, folks! Bonne nuit!
Thursday, March 04, 2010
All in a day's work :)
I had told a dear friend that if today's day ends, I'd shout out loudly, "Wow! I survived!!!" :D
Not only did I survive, but today was such a memorable day for various reasons! :)
Yesterday ended when it seemed that it would go on forever... at 8 AM today morning!
Glass after glass of drinks, such a lot of dancing, not to mention the emotions - the smiles, the laughs, the tears, the hugs, the frenzy!
Long day ahead... I had to submit the Retail Marketing final project by today 5 PM; also, we had the Teachers' Thanksgiving scheduled from 4 PM to 6 PM; I had my final MHRM (measurement in HRM) project presentation at 6 PM (bang after the Thanksgiving!). Also had to rehearse for the skit (an integral part of the Thanksgiving) at 12 noon!
Yes, long day indeed!
Anyway best thing about today was that it was an Anniversary of sorts! And what a romantic start to the day!
Bon anniversaire, mademoiselle ♥
I got into bed but sleep evaded me!
At 12, Vijay woke me up for the rehearsals... that BP breath refused to let go of me :P
Rehearsals were fine... we're actually going ahead with the skit!!!
Despite the lead character having to back out at the last moment, Ankur was such a sport to fill in at the last moment! Admire him like anything B)
Then came the narrator's backing out... Sanjay sir took up the job, despite having such a lot of compering workload! You rock, sirji!
I multitasked a bit during the rehearsals, and managed to finish up my part of the Retail Marketing project! :D
Back in the room at 2 PM, I tried to study for my 6 PM presentation, and skimmed through some documents!
Before I knew it, it was 3:30 PM!!
Got ready and left for the Teachers' Thanksgiving!
The guys were hard at work there...
As soon as the clock struck 4 PM, the faculty started streaming in, as did many B1ers!!
We had profs who had taught us way back in trimester 1, to profs who're teaching us now, in trimester 6! Even our placements coordinator was present :)
Soon, our Director arrived and we started the show...
I can describe the sequence of events detail-by-detail but that'd take ages... the next 2 hours were the best Teachers' Day experience ever!
The compering was awesome, kudos to Pushkar and Sanjay sir!
The skit was fantabulous... yours truly had the honor of being in the play with some of the finest actors on campus B)
Mughal-e-azam Reloaded was a major success!!!!!!
Sanjay sir's brilliant compering had no comparison ;)
Ankur as Akbar, and Vijay as Birbal stole the show... everyone else did a sexy job!
The mimicry was excellent... the teachers loved watching the avatars of themselves or of their colleagues :P
The tokens of appreciation distribution ceremony came next.
And then each of the professors spoke about us, B1... praised us up, rather! :)
Even the Director spent a long time speaking good words about us :)
Shucks! I got the goosebumps seeing the professors so happy, and talking about B1 so fondly :)
Yep! B1 is a brand!!! ♥
Next up, the sexy power point presentation that Vikas had prepared! Too good B)
Then, after 2.5 hours of awesomeness, we bid a final farewell to our teachers! It was such a neat farewell!
Who knows we might've just started a trend of sorts ;)
The following is a group picture of those who make up Brand B1 (taken just after the successful conclusion of the event):
B1 Rocks!!!
The Thanksgiving function winded up at 6:40... I was 30 minutes late for the MHRM class!!
Made a mad rush for the classroom!
On entering I discovered that my groupies had started the presentation without me... so I joined in!
Ankira informed me that the next section would be mine to speak on... and I went like "Whaaaat?! I haven't even seen the ppt :(
Oh well! The next slide came and I started doling out bullshit... thank God! I can talk on anything and everything B)
So, interspersing my talk with the same sentences in Active and Passive Voice, and quoting examples of Infosys, I finished my job to perfection! LoL! :P
Our group ended the presentation on a high note, and for the first time, the prof asked the class to clap for the good work we had done ;)
Woohoo!!!
Anyway, back to the room now! Totally exhausted!
Visited the rooms of many friends, and collected pics of the Thanksgiving ceremony plus yesterday's farewell party :)
The videos of the play are awesomeeee!! Watched the same time and again with different group of friends....
Yippeee! Now for a freeeeeeee Friday! TGIF!!
Off to sleep now! Will upload pics tomorrow and publish the links :)
In a very very senti mood too!
Love,
Steve
Labels: B1, Farewells, IMT, Long day, Mughal-e-Azam, Skit, Teacher, Thanksgiving
Farewell time.. again
Starting 5 PM yesterday, we, the IMT students, batch of 2008-10 had our farewell!
People say "Well begun is half done"... I beg to disagree! It is more like "Well ended is fully done" :)
And there couldn't have been a better ending (albeit the formal, on the records ending :p)!
The batch of 2009-11 did a fantabulous job, and most of us were left in tears when it ended :'(
Talk about the end of the end!!
What a night! Everyone dressed up to kill! The ladies were looking sexy, the guys looking dashing!
It was almost as if people were poking you and saying, "Bugger, you took us for granted all this long... we're much different that how you thought we were!"
B1 as usual rocked the night! I never realized how much I'd come to love these 60 people... they'd become a part of my daily life (despite my bunking so many lectures :p).
And while hugging so many of them tonight, sobbing, and comforting each other, I realized that a bunch of people can't get more closer to you in less than 21 months!
Clicked truckloads of pics! Woohoo! Got to collect the pics clicked by 5 other friends too... then to publicize it all :P
Have a final project submission today, and also another final project presentation!
Also have a crucial role in a skit that we've planned (and rehearsed for) for our esteemed faculty :) The dialogue in Sindhi seems to be my biggest nemesis as of now :D
Plus now I'm on a highhh!
Yippee! My last chance of many to successfully wrap up everything before calling it a day... Hail MBAs and hail IMT!
Busy busy day! More later....
Sunday, February 28, 2010
B1
IDs 08FT-001 to 08FT-060, plus 08FT-186 to anyone else might be just another set of roll numbers belonging to a handful of IMT students...
But we know better!
Neither are these numbers "just another set of roll numbers" nor do they belong to a "handful" of IMT students... we're more than a handful :D
These IDs belong to a plethora of personalities who were tagged as B1, and who chose to BE ONE... :)
Be it studies, sports, debates, partying, traveling, inter bschool competitions, placements, etc etc., B1 rocked at it all!
Grapevine has it that we're nicknamed as IIMA amongst the different student groups of the batch... aptly so B)
The past 20 months have been nothing less than a roller-coaster ride for B1ers - we had our share of ups and downs (very few of the latter though ;) ), but we stuck together through them all... and piece by piece, we built the B1 Brand!
And B1 Nite on 26th February, 2010, was the best way to consummate this journey with a bunch of really special people :)
Superb execution of the plan, awesome venue, brilliant presentations, sexy innovative and kickass awards (:D), lovely videos, perfectly captured moments of "historical significance" (:P), the painstaking task of gathering the minutest of details, the memorable gifts, lip-smacking stuff on the menu, perfect ambiance, the tempo, etc etc etc.
The hard work that must've gone into making this event such a grand success is more than apparent! Marvelous job by the organizers!!
Finally, my heartfelt thanks to each and every B1er for making B1 Nite one of the most wonderful and memorable parties of my life!!
On a nostalgic note, it's funny how I dreaded those initial lectures when each and every prof that entered the class asked for an introduction from each and every B1er... now I'd give anything to go back to those classes!
All said and done, B1 ROCKKKSSS!!!!!
A few glimpses of our night, B1 Night (26th February, 2010)
Thursday, February 25, 2010
Frenzy!!!
After a long, long time, we, the original gang partied together... thanks to Anchit for making it happen :)
Maybe some of us just had 1 odd KF strong (others didn't have anything), but the atmosphere was enough to give one a high!
Great run-up to tomorrow's "Be One" night... a great way to close the Marketing group "B1" chapter of our lives :)
If the 60 people in B1 were special for different reasons, there's a subgroup (a prof. told us recently that subgroups should be avoided, but what the heck!) that'll always be extra special!
That subgroup is MY GANG: Anchit, Biren Chandu, Manish, Rusti, Sid (and I of course) being the core members B)
After eons, we guys partied like we always do! Same old bakar, same photography sessions (Manish and I were the best dressed and well groomed, as usual :P), same sentiyaps and chutiyaps :)
Despite all the hurdles and stuff, planning something special, very special, for March end... hope it works out! *fingers and toes crossed*
As I've already mentioned, Friday night is B1 Night!
Gotta admit I'm shit scared of the "Be One" Awards... considering my public displays of stupidity on more than one occasion, I might be the favorite bakra of the night :P
Thank God it's Friday tomorrow! Whole day free!
Wishing for a couple of things to fall into place, and to start making some sense, then life would be so much simple! But then what fun is life minus these twists and turns :)
Hope I'm able to complete the jigsaw puzzle that my life is, before the pieces get lost...
Anyone keen on watching Karthik Calling Karthik?
Tuesday, February 09, 2010
That time of the year...
The campus just took a shower.
The trees are drenched and water is still dripping off their leaves...
The usually occupied basketball court is deserted and flooded.
The library never looked more beautiful with its fragmented reflection in the myriad waterholes that now dot the cricket ground!
Those two green benches seated comfortably on the grass, facing each other, illustrate the frozen moments shared by the people previously occupying them...
Jango's muted barks can be heard in the distance.
A well blended mixture of music, bhasad and silence emanates from the various lobbies.
Just a stroll around the beautiful campus, and the mind is filled with flashbacks... wasn't it only yesterday when I set foot in IMT?!
It's hard not to start missing this place already...
The trees are drenched and water is still dripping off their leaves...
The usually occupied basketball court is deserted and flooded.
The library never looked more beautiful with its fragmented reflection in the myriad waterholes that now dot the cricket ground!
Those two green benches seated comfortably on the grass, facing each other, illustrate the frozen moments shared by the people previously occupying them...
Jango's muted barks can be heard in the distance.
A well blended mixture of music, bhasad and silence emanates from the various lobbies.
Just a stroll around the beautiful campus, and the mind is filled with flashbacks... wasn't it only yesterday when I set foot in IMT?!
It's hard not to start missing this place already...
