Blogging at 120 kmph

Here I am, on my way home in an awesome LHB coach of the Shatabdi Express, being pestered by a bunch of bratty young kids on the seat ahead of me, wondering why God never thought of putting a mute button on humans when he created them! But hell, I’m going home, thats what matters!! After 3 gruelling months at WIMWI, these 3 days are going to provide some much-needed respite from the manic life there.

(1/6)^th an MBA, (1/3)^rd a PGP1 survivor.......been quite a ride so far. Slot 2 went surprisingly decently, although subjects like Marketing did take their toll. Group work was in full flow as we were preparing either a presentation or an assignment almost every night. Ultimately it came down to a point where we just decided to assign each person in the group an assignment or project and let them do it! An important learning from this slot though, especially after the exams, is the art of globing! For those unfamiliar with this highly essential concept for MBA grads, globing is the art of writing any arbitrary rubbish as an answer in the most elaborate way possible. This is especially applicable when you either have absolutely no clue of what the question demands but don’t want to show that to your evaluator, or have an idea of what to write but have too much space to fill! In fact, I just realized what I’m writing right now is pretty close to globing! Anyway, things have been pretty routine once T-nite got over........companies have been coming down to give talks in preparation for summer placements. At the end of each talk, we get free food (Pizza Hut if we’re lucky, samosa if we’re not!) and a souvenir (again a T-shirt if we’re lucky, nothing if we’re not!). A lotta fun times too though during this slot......the all-night Mafia/Dumb-charades at LKP, the dorm dinners, some of the fun exercises during IGP classes......great ways to relieve all the stress one goes through. Exams were quite a revelation of how sucky life can get at times. I just couldn’t stop thinking of how to compensate for subjects like Financial Markets whose papers I screwed up like never before. Oh well, I suppose it’s best to keep the golden words of Chulbul Pandey (from Dabangg) in mind: “There eej alwayj a first time, and there eej alwayj a next time”!!!

It’s gonna be quite a hefty challenge balancing acads, placement talks and placement preparations during the third slot......tuchchas are gonna go into overdrive with their “Muggo Fachchon Muggo” chants I suppose!! But, at the same time, I’m sure they’re going to be our mentors and guiding forces during the next two months in the lead-up to summer placements. They’ve already shown tremendous amount of support and encouragement, and have shared invaluable insights especially while we were making our CVs. That’s how amazing the culture out here is – you look out for each other, share in the happiness and lend more than just a helping hand in times of difficulty without any hesitation whatsoever.

Darn these kids are really getting on my nerves now......can’t think straight......I suppose I’ll have to save the rest for later......best thing to do now is put on my headphones and watch a movie! Anyways, until the next.....cheers..!

Charge of the EchchadharEEs!!

Holy cow...! 1 month? Has it been that long since my last blog post?? Wow, and that makes it two months since I set foot here in D15R21.......Slot 1 whizzed past, and now I'm praying slot 2 does too! Marketing, FM (not the Mirchi kind....rather Financial Markets) and PS (Probability n Stats) have already begun to eat into our heads. One major relief would be that, by the end of next weekend, we can say good riddance to WAC at least till the start of the next year!

Slot 1 exams were not as bad as I thought, though now the effects of relative grading remain to be seen. I was ecstatic about my PS paper for exactly 43 minutes after it got over, after which I was duly made to realize that I had screwed up. Trust me, you screw exams and quizzes over again and again here, so when you're this close to having finally cracked one, only to find out you've screwed up yet again......makes you feel sick to your stomach! All in all, it was quite evident that slot 1 was just the first look teaser.........leading up to slot 2 which would be the trailer, and slot 3 the feature film! The worst is yet to come......and the tuchchas are smacking their lips in delight with each passing day...!!

The last 1 week was all about one thing and one thing only - T-NITE!! The baap of all inter-section competitions, T-Nite gives one fachcha section bragging rights over the others for the rest of the year. Spread over a period of 4 nights, the competition brings out the best in the fachchas creatively, from dances to musical performances to poster-making and even a daily newsletter where each section rips the others apart! This year, it was the turn of Aatank, Bawaal, Cobras, Dang-e-baaz, EchchadharEEs and....well whatever PGPX called themselves.... to set the stage on fire from 5th to 8th August! 4 nights - Pub Run, Mess Nite, RJM Nite 1, RJM Nite 2 - of amazing fun and sheer awesomeness! Every night, we had to put up something new.....new themes, new costumes, new ideas, new events.....coming up with them sure was a mighty challenge, but we were all up to the task!

We EchchadharEEs had begun to make our presence felt in WIMWI way before talk about T-Nite had even begun. Our tempo shouts a few weeks before T-Nite made everyone on campus - tuchchas, fachchas, and even some bewildered campus staff - sit up and take notice. Enthu was on an unprecedented high, and despite not having any past history or proper section tuchchas, nothing was gonna stop us. A few tuchchas ultimately volunteered to mentor us, and their presence and encouragement only seemed to spur us on! Finally, as T-nite arrived, section E was decked up and ready to fight. As it turned out, history was created on those 4 nights, as event after event, the EchchadharEEs blew everyone away and were by far the most consistent section. Our dancers enthralled the audiences, our fashion show (FashP) was without a shadow of a doubt the highlight of T-Nite on the whole, some of us including me rocked the stage with our music performances, the newsletter and creatives team was on over-drive ensuring the EchchadharEEs looked good.......section E was on a roll.

Going into the final RJM Nite, we were well and truly on top, and the T-Nite trophy was within sniffing distance. Time for the grand finale - and what a way to end too!! The dances, the class act, the random and CR acts, the group songs......we well and truly ended with a bang, to rapturous applause and shouts of "Awesome!" from the crowd. Our adopted section tuchchas were mighty proud, and we were even more! The hard work and efforts had definitely paid off, and the announcement of the winners was turning out to be a mere formality.

The formality was completed 2 days later, as it was made official that Section E had created history. A T-Nite win on debut, and the EchchadharEEs had immersed themselves in WIMWI folklore for generations to come. Batch after batch after batch here at WIMWI will soon hear of the awesome EchchadharEEs of the batch of 2012 who stormed to a T-Nite victory in the year of their inception.

More than the win, T-Nite was memorable for one thing - the way our section bonded together. We all now know each other like never before, and each night has just brought all 86 of us closer together. The amount of fun we had.....trashing our classrooms, taking pics, practicing, performing, shouting, screaming.....it really was quite incredible. And even though I was down with viral fever throughout the T-Nite period, the enthu my class showed made me forget about my fever everytime I stepped into the classroom and was in their company.

Oh well......fun's over now for quite some time now I suppose.....back to the grind.....back to marketing strategies, sampling and hypothesis testing, NPVs, and what not......hope to update this space soon again......anyway, until the next....cheers..!

P.S: Saw "The Expendables" last night......let me sum it up by describing one scene: A wall of fire separates our heroes from a chopper which they need to destroy on the other side, so what do they do? This dude picks up this huge, heavy rocket, launches it into the air towards the chopper.....and our man Stallone fires some bullets at it......said rocket explodes, bye-bye chopper!! If you want more of this, watch the film... :P

KhuJLi..!

Yeah that's right....that's my dorm name. We had the solemn dorm-naming ceremony yesterday night, after the initial hoax naming where I was given the name "LoLita". Somehow LoLita created a bit of a spark which I liked, but KhuJLi would catch up too I'm sure. However, I must clarify that the name has nothing to do with the literal meaning of the word or its direct implications! The ceremony was a lot of fun though, thanks to the dorm tuchchas, especially our dorm maa! Quite a few interesting names were given to the other fachchas...."Zigolo, Chhin-Chan, PoomPu, 3Some" etc. Some of the names are surely gonna be a rage out here.

It's been a pretty chill ride so far, although I'm sure this is the last day of that journey. We've only had 1 quiz so far in almost 15 days of classes, so I expect the coming week to be loaded with quizzes, probably beginning with FARA tomorrow, so gotta get to mugging soon! Club and committee interviews are also in full flow, and will carry on through the week I suppose. I sure hope I get into one at least, given the intense competition among 400 odd fachchas! The prestige associated with getting into these clubs is enormous, and can do wonders for one's skills and self-confidence, apart from of course adding to one's CV.

Procrastination levels reach new heights on weekends, at least for now. It does tend to get a tad worrying at times, and we sometimes wonder whether we're relaxing a bit too much, but then that age-old Indian "chhod yaar, chalta hai" attitude manages to come to the fore. That being said, from this weekend, quizzes are always going to be at the back of our minds so there's motivation enough to get some serious work done at least through the latter half of Sundays.

Saw "Knight and Day" yesterday.....decided it wasn't worth writing a review about! It's been a while since I saw such a stupid movie, even though it was decently entertaining in the first half. Cameron Diaz is old, Tom Cruise is way too old! I think its about time they started considering parental roles..! Anyway, the most-awaited movie finally arrives next week - Inception! If the movie is even half as good as its trailer, then we're in for a real treat. Christopher Nolan (of Dark Knight fame) in that sense rarely disappoints, and I'm sure he won't this time either.

Well, I suppose that's about it for now.....will try to update this space as regularly as "WIMWI-ly" possible! Until the next....cheers...

A memorable and eye-opening week...

The events of the last one week, particularly over the last 3 days, have truly been incredible and have served as an invaluable eye-opener. I struggle to remember when was the last time I learnt so many useful lessons in life in such a short span of time. It's been a period where I have had the privilege of witnessing first hand why IIM-A is what it is....the no. 1 management institute in the country, the land of Gods, the most awesome campus to live and learn in, and being in the presence of the most helpful and loving bunch of "tuchchas" anywhere, anytime. In obedience of the sanctity of this institute and my duties as a WIMWIan, I won't reveal any of the events that transpired on campus over the last few days.....but all I'll say is that, I'm in awe of this place and it's inhabitants! Professionalism takes on a whole new meaning out here.

Classes began on Friday, and so we were introduced to the case method of studying. One thing's for sure...this method ensures you don't laze around. Preparation is everything out here.....u don't come to a class prepared -> u would have no idea what's being discussed -> u can't take part in the discussion -> you're screwed. Each case contains a situation that requires a person or an organisation to make a decision. Invariably, the prof. begins the session simply by saying "What should xxx do?"; there's no summarising the case or dwelling upon the facts, so if you haven't read it, you're nowhere. That also leads up to the dreaded concept of "cold-calls", where if you aren't prepared for a case, and a prof. points to you and asks for your opinion.....well...u get the idea! There's only one thing to note: tolerance for any kind of academic indiscipline is non-negotiable and ZERO (in fact I would say it strays into negative territory!).

This weekend would be our first WAC submission....a phenomenon unique and made notoriously famous by IIM-A! It's going to be quite an experience staying up all Friday night and preparing the WAC report. Although I would try my best to avoid that situation during the week, I'm fairly certain I would eventually succumb to the customary rituals of WIMWI...everyone does! Let's see how it goes. Anyway, that's it for now....rest later....cheers..

A short, sweet and warm welcome...

It seems here at WIMWI, even though you're strapped for time, days especially in the first year just zip past. For me, classes haven't even started, but today sure has flown past before I even knew it. I finally got a chance to play TT.....had to trudge all the way to the new campus to get access to a TT table.......in that way, the guys in the new campus have access to all the fun....TT tables, pool tables, foosball.....whether they get time for all that or not is another issue! But 40 minutes of TT really took its toll on me, and I realized that if I were to stay up long enough and clock enough time on cases, sports unfortunately need to take a major backseat. Hopefully, the first lesson I learn out here in WIMWI is time management!

A nice nap in the afternoon (boy I sure will miss those!) was followed by the official welcome address by our Director and introduction of all the programme Chairpersons. Some familiar faces and names came up, and it was good to see some of the profs have a witty side to them.....hope to see more of the same in the classroom. Later in the night was an introduction to the Student Activities Committee or SAC. They gave us the requisite gyan on life at IIMA, most of which we already knew anyway thanks to our highly active Google group. An entertaining Q&A session ended the round of ceremonies for the day.

Orientation begins tomorrow.....quite a packed day it is too. Until the next, cheers...

WIMWI - First impressions....

A tingling feeling ran through my body as I entered the gates of the "Well-known Institute of Management in Western India" (WIMWI) a.k.a IIM, Ahmedabad a.k.a my home for the next 2 years. I couldn't believe it......the day had finally arrived, here I am! The sheer grandeur emanating from the red brick walls that constitute the marvellous architecture in the campus reminded me of the enormity of what I'm about to venture into. As I stepped out of the cab, the Harvard steps loomed in front of me......something that until now I had only seen pictures of. Greenery everywhere......but even at 8.45 a.m, one thing kept coming up in my mind.....damn it's hot! And why is the air so still.....can't there even be a breeze of like 0.01 m/s??! Is that too much to ask for??

Dorm 15, Room 21. That's where I've checked into. First time in a hostel, yet suddenly I didn't feel alien.....in fact I felt quite at home. The room is in many ways similar to my room at home (except for one notable omission....an AC!). One thing's for sure.....IIM Ahmedabad definitely has it's own unique ways of reminding you why it's right up there at the top.....be it the magnificent Louis Kahn Plaza, the Harvard Steps, the subway connecting the two campuses lined with pictures and clippings, the characteristic WIMWI dorm architecture with the two huge round holes in the middle (looks like a mega-size speaker case with the actual speakers removed!) etc.

Some pics:

That's my dorm....dorm 15

The famed Harvard Steps

LKP...magnificent!

Am yet to venture into the mess, so can't comment on d food yet. Revisited Pakwan with my parents....food there is as delicious as ever! Some shopping done....a look around the campus....yeah that was pretty much my day today. Registration tomorrow. Shall post more later. Cheers...

Let the games begin...

Once in 4 years, comes an event that captivates......an event that spawns hysteria through the globe.........an event that adults and children alike sit up and watch with their hearts in their mouths.......an event that unites generations, cultures, traditions and peoples.....an event that gives boyfriends/husbands the sole and undisputed authority over access to the remote control.......and 4 years on since Fabio Cannavaro lifted the Jules Rimet trophy aloft in joy and ecstasy at the Olympic Stadium in Berlin, the 2010 edition of the FIFA World Cup is finally here!!

The favourites tag this time around is firmly rooted on the men from Spain, with the Argentines, Brazilians, Germans and English following behind. The reigning champs, the Italians, seem to have few backers, with many citing an aging squad as the reason for not backing them. They may want to look back at the 2006 World Cup, where a supposedly "aging" French team beat Brazil during a remarkable run to the finals. They may also want to note that both England and Brazil, two of the favourites to lift the trophy this time, have average ages higher than that of the Italians (28.7 and 28.6 respectively, compared to 28.2). Discount the Italians once again at your own peril!

I will be religiously supporting Spain. With a midfield boasting the likes of Xavi, Iniesta, Fabregas, Alonso, Busquets, Pedro etc. and an attack led by Villa and Torres, how can one not enjoy and be mesmerised by the style and panache in their game! If my predictions come true, it'll be semis line-up of France vs Netherlands and Argentina vs Spain, with the Dutch and the Spanish clashing in the mega-final. Viva la Español!!!

Another 7 days to go before I leave for WIMWI, and it's slowly beginning to dawn on me that I am going to experience something completely new - a new environment where the stakes are higher than ever before. I'm just hoping that I'm at least psychologically prepared to handle it. A combination of excitement and nervousness is flowing through my body right now, as I begin preparations to leave the place I've called "home" for the last 10 years. One thing for sure.....it'll be great fun to watch the World Cup with a huge bunch of football fans (provided I get the time to watch matches)!!! :P

Anyway, I suppose my next post will be from within the red brick walls of WIMWI....so cheers!

P.S: For those confused by the term "WIMWI", it stands for "Well-known Institute of Management in Western India".....a.k.a Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad!

Raajneeti - Politics and more....

Rating - 3.5/5

With a star-studded cast including the likes of Ranbir Kapoor, Katrina Kaif, Ajay Devgn, Arjun Rampal, Manoj Bajpai etc. and a fine story-teller in Prakash Jha, Raajneeti was undoubtedly one of the most awaited movies of the year. As the title suggests, the film is about politics, and the sacrifices and immorality that supposedly go with it. Through his tale of treachery and deceit within a family that has been in power in the unnamed state for years together, Jha portrays the ugly face of Indian politics and leaves you with one simple message: Politics is a dirty game, and reality bites!

The movie revolves around 3 brothers - Virendra (Bajpai), Prithvi (Rampal) and Samar (Ranbir) whose father, after suffering a heart attack, hands over his post of President of the Rashtravadi Party to his brother. Confused?? Well, one spends the first 15 minutes of the movie simply trying to catch up with who exactly each character is, as they are all hastily introduced in the narrative. While Virendra and Prithvi are well-established in the political scene, Samar, who's about to complete his Ph.D in "(something) (something) (something) in Victorian poetry", returns from the U.S and soon gets embroiled in his murky family affairs. As the movie progresses, the inferences to the Mahabharata and the Hollywood masterpiece The Godfather become evident. Virendra plays the quintessential Duryodhana and believes he is the rightful heir to his father's throne in the Party. Assisted by Dalit leader Sooraj Kumar (Devgn), he manages to grab control of the Party, and we now have two rival factions - one headed by Virendra, and one by Prithvi. Virendra grossly under-estimates the shrewd and cunning Samar, who leaves his life and the girl he loves in the U.S behind and stands by his brother Prithvi. Somehow, he goes from a Literature student-about-to-turn-teacher to a scheming, sly aide to Prithvi. What follows is a political bloodbath on the election trail, as each faction tries to outdo the other to grab the highest seat of power in the State. Mayhem ensues, as the battle becomes personal and vengeance takes centre-stage. Relationships are compromised in the greater interest of politics, money and power. Eventually, as the dust settles after 3 hours, one wonders - was there a "hero" at all in this movie?

The movie works - through its story and its performances. Though, I must admit I was very disappointed with Ranbir Kapoor. The more I saw him in this movie, the more I was reminded of Abhishek Bachchan in Sarkar - expressionless, emotionless and monotonous. For example, even as the people dearest to him are dying, he looks confused rather than distraught. His character is pretty obviously built based on a combination of Arjuna from Mahabharata and Michael Coreleone from The Godfather. While I'm sure many people will go on to rave about his acting, I feel this was the dullest and most disappointing performance of his career so far. By far, the stand-out actor in this movie has to be Arjun Rampal. After Rock On, big things were expected of him, and he finally delivers a stellar performance again. He plays the role of the young, hot-headed politician with ease. Manoj Bajpai has the "more-negative" role in this movie, and he does complete justice to his selection for the role. Nana Patekar plays the Krishna-like Brij Gopal, who pulls the strings in the background and allows the brothers to bathe in the limelight of the political scene. The veteran rarely disappoints in such movies, and he does not here either. Katrina Kaif clearly shows that she has worked on her Hindi tremendously. As Indu, the daughter of a rich industrialist who is later forced to join politics ala a certain Mrs. G, Katrina shows that she ain't just hot - she's one of the better actresses in our film industry today as well, displaying all the requisite emotions with grace. Rest of the cast performs extremely well too. Songs are thankfully interspersed in the background in certain scenes, or else the already lengthy movie would've been unbearably long!

Now, coming to what I did not like about the movie - the message it conveys. Raajneeti clearly shows Indian politics to be a corrupt, murky, dirty and treacherous affair with people involved in betrayal, backstabbing and would go as far as murder to grab power. While this may be the ugly truth to an extent, I do not feel it needs to be shown so blatantly. Today, Indian politics is in a period of transition, with young leaders like Rahul Gandhi, Omar Abdullah, Sachin Pilot etc. stepping up to galvanize the Indian youth and try and get them to join politics and attempt to clean up the system. In such a scenario, a movie like Raajneeti will only serve to discourage people from joining political parties. Prakash Jha could easily have put a more positive spin on this movie by focussing more on Indu's eventual rise as a leader, or Sooraj's role as a Dalit leader, instead of the family feud and all the bloodshed. All in all, Raajneeti is indeed a powerful movie with a compelling story, but unlike the Rang De Basantis and the Taare Zameen Pars we have encountered in the past, you do not leave the cinema hall with a message you would wanna take home and be inspired by.

A year-long nightmare at Anfield - a case study

Disclaimer: In the interest of preserving the decency and sanctity of this blog, following guidelines may be observed for this post:
1. The well-known 4-letter expletive beginning with the letter "f" will hereby be replaced by the word "duck".
2. Any 4-letter word referring to garbage or human excreta will hereby be replaced by the word "clap".


Objectives of case:
1. To analyse Liverpool Football Club's ducked up 2009-10 season and the underlying causes for them ducking it up.
2. To perform a SWOT assessment of the club for the 2010-11 season.
3. To outline a true LFC fan's expectations for the club leading up to the start of the new season.


Introduction
Liverpool F.C is a professional football club based in the city of Liverpool, England. Founded in 1892, it is widely known to be the most awesome football club with the most awesome fans in the world (the Kop). It has produced some of the best players to have ever graced a football pitch on this planet, right from the likes of Alan Hansen, Kenny Dalglish and Ian Rush to Steven Gerrard, Michael Owen and Robbie Fowler. The club plays its home matches at the Anfield stadium in Liverpool. Amongst it's laurels are 18 first division league titles, 7 FA cup titles and 8 European titles. Liverpool F.C is also widely remembered for producing the most awesome football match in history, when they came from 3-0 behind to beat AC Milan of Italy in the 2005 UEFA Champions League final on penalties.

The 2009-10 disaster
The 2009-10 season has turned out to be a massive blot in LFC's illustrious history. Having finished 2nd in the Premier League the previous season, big things were expected of the club in the lead-up to the new season. But a combination of poor management and players playing like clap has led to LFC completely ducking things up. A brief summary of the significant events over the year for the club is listed below:

1. Pre-season shocker: Troubles began even before the league began, as Liverpool notched up just 2 wins out of 8 in pre-season. The writing seemed to be on the wall when the gaffer, Rafa Benitez, described that piece-of-clap midfielder Lucas Leiva as the best performer in pre-season. One wonders whether he was referring to his on-field performances or off-field :P
2. Aquilani for Alonso: Arguably Liverpool's best player in the 2008-09 season, Xabi Alonso, was sold off to Los Galacticos a.k.a Real Madrid a.k.a Clappiest club ever, and who do we get in his place? Walking wounded Alberto Aquilani for 20 million quid, who, according to Rafa, was not really an Alonso-type player. Well then why the duck do u need that injured prick, u nincompoop??
2. Duck-all start: When you lose two of the first three games of your season, you know you're ducked. However, some pride was restored after we thrashed Hull 6-1 and beat the Mancunians (thats Manchester United, an obscure club in North-West England) 2-0 at home like always.
3. Champions League Chumps: 2 wins out of 6, that too laboured wins over some Hungarian newcomers, saw the Reds unceremoniously exit from Europe's elite club competition.
4. Reading writes our FA Cup fate: On paper, one match should've been enough to see off lower division side Reading, but noooooo.....Liverpool's season is supposed to be ducked up isn't it? So the Reds lose the tie over two legs in extra-time and crash out of the FA cup. Oh, and sometime before this, they managed to get knocked out of the Carling Cup as well.
5. Club up for sale: Ah, finally those two stupid Yanks who own the club, Tom Hicks and George Gillet, do the sensible thing and put the club up for sale. The duo who left the club in 350 million pounds worth of debt brought nothing but catastrophe to the club ever since they took over. The only real piece of good news all season.
6. Europa League saving grace?: After being dumped out of the Champions League, Liverpool entered the Europa League, Europe's second tier competition. All hopes of a trophy rested on this competition, and for a while the Reds seemed to show some of that European magic, overturning first leg deficits to convincingly get past Lille and Benfica. Alas, as I earlier said, Liverpool's season is supposed to be ducked up isn't it? So they again lose in extra-time on away goals to Athletico Madrid in the semi-finals, and that's the end of that for the Reds.

Reasons for ducking up

1. Lack of quality: Apart from Gerrard, Torres, Reina and Carragher, Liverpool had completely duck-all players. There was no depth in the squad, and with Gerrard having the worst season of his life and Torres injured half the time, Liverpool had to rely on the likes of Ngog and Kuyt to produce the goals. Yeah, right!
2. Questionable management: There were too many occasions where decisions and tactics employed by Rafa Benitez were questionable to say the least. Whether it was the team formation with Lucas and Mascherano together in midfield, buying an injured Aquilani (how he passed the medical is beyond me) and then refusing to give him opportunities to play when fit, substituting Torres at critical junctures leaving even the skipper visibly flummoxed.......list goes on and on.....and sadly it's now high time that Rafa is replaced.
3. Stupid Yanks: Owner bad Americans.....no give money......no buy players.....no new stadium.....no success....

SWOT assessment


Strengths: Liverpool's key players, including the likes of Gerrard, Torres, Reina, Carragher, Benayoun etc. It is imperative that we keep hold of such players, even though most of them had pretty clappy seasons. Torres needs to go through a whole season without too many fitness worries. Also, the fans......the Kop's the club's biggest strength....YNWA!

Weaknesses: Bunch of duck-all players led by the likes of Lucas, Babel, Insua and Ngog. Seriously, I can't stop talking about how full of clap they are! No creativity in midfield, no worthy strike partner for Torres (Gerrard's better off in midfield), manager trusting the wrong players and making the wrong decisions. All the clap needs to be offloaded and new faces brought in. The youth academy needs to be looked into, as it's been a while since any major players have come through (Insua's clap, so not counted).

Opportunities: With the club being put up for sale, there is a chance for freshening up at the Boardroom level. An owner willing to invest massively in the club is the need of the hour, 'cos with a club like Liverpool, intelligent investing with a long term ambition will definitely yield good returns. Also, a new manager with a different style and perspective of the game is required, and his vision should be backed up with sufficient funding and resources.

Threats: Keeping the best players in the squad will be a tough task, now that the team has not qualified for the Champions League. Also, whether a large enough investment to overhaul the rest of the squad will be available is debatable. It's clear that money is available with the likes of Tottenham and Manchester City, and it's now upto the new owners, whoever they may be, to help Liverpool keep up the pace.

Expectations for 2010-11: An LFC fan's perspective

1. An owner with a vision and financial resources to back that vision. Look at Liverpool as a FOOTBALL CLUB and not a ducking business investment.
2. An astute manager who can create a tactically sound unit and get the best out of his players. I'd love to see someone like Martin O'Neill at the club.
3. Take out the trash, bring in some quality. Priorities: (a) a good left-back (b) cover at right-back for Glen Johnson (c) creative midfielder, I always felt Liverpool missed out on Wesley Sneijder last year when he was available, they need someone like him (d) decent wingers....crossing into the box has been atrocious this season, we need people like Milner, Ashley Young or David Silva (e) Strike partner for Torres.....Darren Bent is a name that comes to mind, scoring 20+ goals for teams like Charlton and Sunderland is no joke, and he has consistently proved himself in the Premier League.
4. Re-opening of plans and resumption of work on the new stadium at Stanley Park.....vital for increased revenue generation over the long term.
5. Consistency in performances.....positive and clinical football....leading to trophies.....we need silverware to restore confidence!

Conclusion
In summary, new owners -> money -> new manager -> quality players -> consistency -> success. Period.

The Return of Tony Stark

Not too many movies have been worth writing about this year. I last wrote about My Name is Khan primarily due to the controversy surrounding SRK and Mumbai, and the irony of the situation vis-a-vis the theme of the film. It really has been a disappointing year thus far for movie-lovers, but that drought has finally been broken - and we warmly welcome back Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark a.k.a the IRON MAN.

The sequel to the 2008 blockbuster was highly anticipated and built-up to be the adrenaline-filled entertainer of the year. Whether it truly does live up to that billing is debatable, but there is no doubt about one fact - the movie rockkkkkkss! High-octane action, memorable lines, mind-blowing visual effects, a chick named Scarlet......the movie has it all, and is a worthy sequel to the first member of the proposed trilogy. Tony Stark is back - and as cocky and arrogant as ever. The mega-billionaire refuses to share his technology with the US military, claiming it would be at least 5 years before anyone comes even close to replicating what he has created. While Tony basks in his own glory, Ivan Vanko (Mickey Rourke), a physicist and son of Anton Vanko, a former Soviet scientist, successfully recreates the arc-reactor that powers Tony's Iron Man suit. He is out for revenge on the Stark family after Tony's father Howard was indirectly responsible for his father being banished to Siberia. He proceeds to attack Tony in Monaco, but is captured. He is later broken out, and strikes a deal with Tony's rival, Justin Hammer. Hammer enlists Ivan's help to replicate the Iron Man, but Ivan secretly uses Hammer's resources to carry out his own hidden agenda. All this leads to a fantastic showdown between Ivan and Tony in the climax, with some exhilarating sequences powering the adrenaline rush inside you.

Robert Downey Jr. yet again steals the show, rendering a performance with flair and panache, just as you'd expect him to. He brings out the cocky and egoistic nature of Tony Stark's character effortlessly, yet providing subtle human touches in between when needed. Gwyneth Paltrow as Pepper Potts, Tony's assistant and later CEO of Stark Industries, is elegant as ever. Scarlett Johansson as Natalie Rushman provides the visual treat for the guys (and maybe some girls too? ;)), and you just cannot take your eyes off her when she's on screen! The sequence where she battles a bunch of agents in the corridoor reminds one of certain sequences from The Matrix. I was surprised by how little Mickey Rourke had to do in the film, and expected his role to be much longer. Though he emaculately portrayed the negative role as required, he hardly had any lines to say, and a man with the kind of talent he possesses (anyone who has watched The Wrestler would vouch for that) definitely deserved a lot more. The rest of the cast did justice to their parts, and contributed to one helluva movie.

The movie has its fair share of memorable lines too - I doubt anyone would ever forget Tony Stark pompously declaring "I have successfully privatized world peace!" for a long time! The movie may seem a bit more mindless, at least compared to the first part, but then hey, it's science fiction.....and when you have RDJ and Scarlett J on screen, who gives a fck?? Just sit back and enjoy....! 4/5 for me.....you'll definitely get your money's worth!

From one tweet to mayhem..

On 12th April, 2010, among the millions and millions of "tweets" being sent all around the world, there was one particular tweet from a certain Lalit Modi that caught the eye. He, for his own reasons, decided to reveal the names of the stakeholders lof the Kochi IPL franchise on a public domain for the world to see. All it took was that one tweet from Modi to open up Pandora's box and gradually unearth what could turn out to be one of the biggest and ugliest scams this country has seen. The black hole now known popularly as "IPL-gate" soon started sucking in filmstars, politicians, businessmen, sportspersons, administrators....it spared none. Sharks in the media too were out for blood and a piece of the action, and, as I type this, one victim has already been claimed - Shashi Tharoor, former minister and one of the finest orators our country has seen.

Make no mistake about it, no one here is right, and no one is wrong. It's just a question of determining the lesser of two evils. IPL Commissioner Lalit Modi thought he had produced a master-stroke by tweeting the names of the Kochi franchise stakeholders to resolve a potential conflict of interest, but little would he have known that it would backfire on him so badly. He is now on the verge of being ousted from the IPL governing council, and thrown out of the very enterprise he was responsible for conceptualising and conceiving. Yes, one may say that the idea isn't exactly original - similarities may be drawn with football leagues around the world and the (now bankrupt) Indian Cricket League (ICL), but one cannot argue that no brand has been built up and established in as short a span of time as IPL. The amount of money involved in the IPL is astounding, and at times even scary. When one is talking about thousands of crores of rupees exchanging hands, disparities and discrepancies are inevitable as one can easily tend to get carried away. And with Lalit being at the centre of all these dealings, it wouldn't be surprising to see him taking advantage of a number of such situations. There's always a line, and it's now upto the government and Income-Tax officials to see if that line has been crossed.

Coming to Shashi Tharoor, I must admit I was deeply disheartened to hear the kind of excuses he was offering, when it was blatantly clear what he was trying to do. I used to admire the man, and was always in awe of him whenever I heard him give a speech. Claiming that he was merely a "mentor" to the Kochi consortium is nothing short of farcical, given that his "partner" Sunanda Pushkar was given such a substantial stake as free equity. Who is this Sunanda Pushkar anyway? Well, apparently she's involved in multiple businesses. Apart from running a spa in Dubai, she holds an executive's post with an infrastructure company owned by the Emirate government. She has previously worked at an IT firm in Toronto and a travel agency in Dubai. The big question is: Is it mere co-incidence that she also happens to be involved in a relationship with Shashi Tharoor? There seems to be no real reason why she of all people was gifted that sweat equity if Mr. Tharoor had nothing to do with it. The bottom line is that Tharoor has abused his power as a minister to get a personal favour done; it doesn't matter whether he directly profits from it or not. As such, he was really left with no choice but to resign from his post.

The number of public figures being dragged into this just seems to increase day by day, with the likes of Praful Patel and Sharad Pawar also being added to the list. The ways in which power is being abused is extremely disturbing - the latest revelation being that of a commercial Air India flight from Delhi to Mumbai making an unscheduled stop in Jaipur to pick up the Mumbai Indians team. I mean, seriously, who do these people think they are to play around with the common man? It just gets murkier and murkier with each passing day, and the IPL's functioning and brand value may have sustained irreparable damage over the past few weeks.

Lesson to be learnt from all this: watch what you tweet, 'cos it may just come back to bite you in the a** someday!!

Life....wassup...blah..

So much has been on my mind in the last few days, what with the IIM-Calcutta selection and everything, that I've been trying to think too fast.....and it's been scaring me to be quite honest. So I just decided to block it all out and distract myself for the time-being.....I've got 2 months to deal with it all and I'll take it one step at a time. I had the perfect distraction too: five seasons of 24!! What a show, edge of the seat stuff literally!! I watched the 3rd season in 1.5 days flat I think! Now in the middle of the 5th....! It's one of the few shows I've seen that actually makes me feel involved and in the middle of it all. It's not a series where I really admire any particular character or in awe of anyone, like Michael Scofield in Prison Break or Barney Stintson in HIMYM. Not even Jack Bauer....honestly, I'm not a big fan of his character, even though he ends up as the hero at the end of each day. He makes questionable choices and relies too much on instinct, which is sometimes surreal and hard to believe. What clicks for 24 is its fast-paced, high adrenaline action that grips you to the core, with each episode ending on an extreme cliffhanger. And I'm looking forward to much much more in the days to come..!

I'm missing the guyz at office tremendously.....those 20 months I spent there were the best of my life, and its taken a while to adjust to this new self-enforced break before my MBA. Thankfully, I bought my new HP Pavilion dv6-2159 laptop immediately, and its kept me busy :) The timing of my departure and the co-incidental shifting of offices for Su, Mark n Jidda seem to have brought a massive change to batch 3, as we move further and further apart.......I just hope those of you in Mumbai will keep meeting up and keep batch 3 alive....just 'cos you're in different offices doesn't mean y'all should never meet, so keep doing that.

Priorities have changed since the IIMC result.....unfortunately, I need to get back into study mode and prepare to compete with the best in the country in a couple of months time! It's a whole new ball-game now...and the prospect of having to mix it up with the creme de la creme seems both intimidating, yet exciting. I'm still waiting for my IIM-A result, and should I get that, its probably going to be the biggest decision of my life: A or C? I'm inclining towards A at the moment - about 52-48. Still need to speak to a few more people before I decide though....

Lots been happening in India and the rest of the world as well.....ash clouds (might as well be the name of a cloud computing firm started by Aishwarya Rai Bachchan) in Europe, Twittergate between Tharoor and Modi, IPL, Greek crisis, Sania-Shoaib saga etc etc etc. One piece of news I read today brought a huge smile to my face: fiiiinalllly, to the relief of thousands of fans across the world, Liverpool's American owners Tom Hicks and George Gillet Jr. have decided to sell the club and leave. And good riddance at that! Those two fools have taken the club into turmoil, resulting in our soon-to-be poorest finish in at least 5 years in the Premier League and loss of a Champions League spot. Their mismanagement and decisions have cost the club dearly, and they have dumped over $400 million of debt on the club. Although there have been quite a few tactical mistakes made by Rafa Benitez this season, I am definitely not of the opinion that he is to blame for the club's debacle this season; his hands were quite clearly tied. Lack of funds led to lack of quality on the pitch, and that coupled with Gerrard having his worst season ever and Torres out most of the time through injury has seen the club go from one disappointment to the other. Hopefully, the new owner(s) will bring in more room for optimism through greater support for the manager and funds to buy creative and quality players, especially in midfield.

That's it for now....back to 24! :)

Six days of madness - part 6

Day 6: April 1, 2010
Call: IIM Lucknow

Ok, now, I was in no mood for this GDPI....quite simply because of what lay ahead after I would be done with it - FREEDOM!! At least temporarily......this being the last of the GDPIs, and the previous day having been my last day at work, I would be free and relaxed at home with not too much to do for 2 months!! I was soo looking forward to that....so all I could think of was, get it over with quickly..!

Of course, it did help that it was scheduled in the morning, and I was second in line for the interview. But first, the pressing matter of an essay and a GD - both on the same topic: "In a socialist country like India, salaries of private executives should be capped.." (again don't really rem the exact words, but along those lines). Nice topic....wrote well.....GD was also very good....discussed how India isn't exactly socialist but a mixed economy after 1991....talked about competition in private sector, how it's boosting the Indian economy, and how salaries play an important role....capping isn't the solution, but more emphasis should be given on equitable distribution of wealth in an organisation......more tax incentives for donating to charity etc.........good stuff, but we soon ran out of points, and thankfully one person concluded in time just as we ran out!!

Interview time: two panelists P1, P2, both male, both faculty. P2 started glancing through my certificates while P1 began the questioning

P1: So tell me about yourself..
Me: For one last time..
P1: So what exactly does your work at Wipro entail?
Me: Told..
P1: You seem to be doing well in your job...why the switch to MBA?
Me: Blah..
P1: Hmm....Electronics and Telecom eh....how is this industry doing in India?
Me: Mentioned how telecom is the fastest growing sector in India....Bharti-Zain deal etc..
P1: What are your views on the deal?
Me: Told..
P1: Do you think Sunil Mittal has done the right thing by going through with this deal?
Me: Told how he wanted to build Bharti-Airtel as a global brand etc.
P1: But there are so many critics slamming the deal..
Me: Said how those critics were looking at short-term, Sunil Mittal had a long-term plan...
P1: (seemed satisfied) So why IIM-Lucknow, Arvind?
Me: Standard answer.....told about student culture, industry exposure, all-round development..
P1: But you find those in pretty much all the major B-schools isn't it?
Me: Told every B-school is different....e.g IIMC places high emphasis on academics....IIML is more inclusive development...blah blah....somehow he seemed satisfied with it!

He then looked at P2, to ask whether he had any questions...
P2: I don't see your marksheets among these certificates, Arvind....do you have them?
Me: Oh yes, sir (handed them over)
P2: (goes through it) So tell me about some of your achievements..
Me: mentioned leadership stuff, my USP..
P2: Do you have any achievements at State or National level?
Me: mentioned all-India 3rd rank in National Cyber Olympiad....also mentioned International Theatre Festival....
P2: (nodded, looks at P1, who nods as well) Ok, Arvind, I think that's about it....thank you..
Me: Thank you, Sirs..!

And.....done!!! FREEDOM!!! RELIEF!!! It's all over..! The same kind of relief I felt after I completed my engineering swept through me! Oh, the joy!! And it ended on a good note as well....that was by far the best interview among the four IIMs. Anyway, I didn't care, 'cos I had survived.......six days of madness, and I came through it unscathed! Time to finish some formalities in office, then go home and sleeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeep!!

Six days of madness - part 5

Day 5: March 30, 2010
Call: SP Jain Institute of Management and Research, Mumbai

I had to drag myself out of bed at 6.30 a.m to get ready for my SP Jain interview, after an exhausting day earlier. This was going to be an interesting one, since there was no GD, no essay - but two rounds of group interviews (two if you clear round 1 i.e). And, traditionally, no technical questions asked, so I fancied my chances here slightly. As I reached the institute campus, I was instantly disappointed - it was hardly even a campus, just one building, not very impressive. The campus is actually shared with the likes of Bhavan's college and SP CoE. Anyway, after registering inside, we were asked to complete a psychometric test - a bunch of statements about ourselves that we had to strongly agree, agree, disagree or strongly disagree with. This was to play a part in the second round of interviews, if we made it there i.e! We were then called for our first round of interview.

There were 7 members in our group for the first round, and 4 panelists (two faculty, a head of Marketing at Kingfisher Airlines, and an executive from Tata group). This was a very general interview round. It started off with each one of us giving the standard "tell-me-about-yourself" answer, followed by one unique strength or characteristic about us. I mentioned my leadership/organisational experiences and how I could become an effective leader. We were then given a situation where we were to get sponsors for the Force India Formula1 team, and were asked how we would go about selling the team and the sport to the sponsors. We mentioned various USPs including the idea of India on the world stage, the "Green" concept, using promotional events to increase the popularity of the sport etc. Quite decent, overall. And that was it for the first round.

Four members from our group, including me, were selected for the second round. The groups were then shuffled and different panels allocated for the second round. This time, there were 6 members in my group, and 2 panelists, both faculty. We once again introduced ourselves in the oh-so-familiar way. We were then asked one dream that we possessed, apart from our MBA and our career after that. People gave varied answers, from wanting to play for Manchester United, to doing something novel in education, lots of stuff. I said I wanted to buy Liverpool Football Club sometime in the future :). One of the panelists asked me about someone already wanting to buy it, and I nodded, speaking about Anil Ambani and his reported interest in the club. The next sequence of questions was based on our psychometric test. The panelists picked out one statement from our psychometric forms and grilled each one of us on it. Here's how mine went:

Panelists P1, P2 and Me
P2: So, "I always worry about my shortcomings" - you strongly disagree. Would you like to elaborate?
Me: Obliged....told how I instead work on them to improve them so they wouldn't be shortcomings anymore...etc..
P2: Tell me one thing....why do you work on your shortcomings when you could instead work on your strengths?
Me: Blah..
P1: Ok let's consider this situation....there are two children, one weak in Maths and Science and good at Arts.....the other good at Maths and Science but weak at Arts.....what would you advise them to do, work on their strength or their weakness?
Me: Said I'd ask the children what they wanted to do and what really interested them....if the child who's weak in Arts has an interest in it, I'd advise him to work hard at it rather than telling him you can't be an artist 'cos you're weak at it...etc etc
P2: But isn't a lot of talent in our country being wasted because they're doing things they're naturally not skilled in?
Me: Some more blah...
P1: But we'd see a lot more success if people were encouraged to focus on what they're good at, isnt it?
Me: (idea!) Sir, have you read Andre Agassi's autobiography?
P1: No...why?
Me: If you read even the first page of his book, sir, you'll notice he says "I hate tennis....have always hated it and will continue to hate it".....he talks about how he was forced into tennis by his father, made to attend a rigorous, hellish tennis camp just because he seemed to possess a natural penchant for it......he never wanted to play tennis, and was never happy with it......he may seem a huge tennis star and highly successful to us, but if you ask him, he would never say he is successful, quite simply because it wasnt something he wanted to do......(i don't remember what else I said exactly, but continued along this line.......simply put, I had never ever given a more convincing answer in my life...and don't think I ever will!!! Once I was done, both panelists were speechless....dumbstruck......they had no answer......they set out to take my case, but ended up having their own cases taken! The expressions on their faces gave me immense pleasure, and that one moment completely made up for all the horrors I endured in the interviews before this one!!)

They rounded off by asking how I had worked at my shortcomings and how I had improved them......I gave an example of how I wasn't really good at marketing and didn't do a very good job of getting sponsors for our college festival in my initial years (blabbered, but convincingly enough!) and then how I improved on it. We were each then asked to compare ourselves with an animal.....I said cheetah, 'cos I'm a quick learner and adapt quickly to situations (again, blabbered!) And that was it.......for the first time, I walked out of an interview room with a smile on my face! This was quite good.....and I knew one thing.....I had either clinched it, or guaranteed myself a rejection.....depends on how sporting the panelists were!!

Six days of madness - part 4

Day 4 : March 29, 2010
Call: IIM-Ahmedabad

6.00 am....Ahmedabad Railway Station...I step off the Gujarat Mail, and say to myself, "Into the hands of fate!". The moment that I had both eagerly anticipated and dreaded at the same time was finally here. After having a quick bite at a local restaurant which was fortunately open, given the time, I took a rick to the IIMA campus. I realized how early I was when I found the campus completely deserted. It was a good one hour before another candidate sauntered in. And then, on cue, they all started streaming in. It was good to see a few familiar faces from the IIMC GDPIs as well. Soon, bang on time at 8.45 am, we were led into our respective rooms for the essay and PI (no GD here). Again, a pretty thought-provoking topic for the essay: "Are Gandhian principles relevant in society today?" I was able to ramble on and fill the required space within the allotted 10 minutes, and was relieved - stage one done, now for the big stage two. Second in line for the interview this time around.....and before I knew it, I was called in....

Panelists: P1 (male), P2 (female)

P1: So tell us about yourself, Arvind..
Me: Here we go again...
P1: (smug expression) Ah, an electronics engineer... (looks at P2 and smiles, I was like "what on earth was that??")
P2: Can you tell me about the latest TRAI guidelines?
Me: (whaaa??!) Ma'm, do u mean regarding the 3G spectrum auction?
P2: Yes, what are the criteria set for the auction?
Me: (Oh flip, God help me....time to think on my feet) Told whatever sounded logical....turnover, infrastructure etc..
P2: What else? What do they require in infrastructure?
Me: (and the torture begins..) blabbered about cell sites, coverage, equipment....
P2: So what exactly are the requirements?
Me: Sorry, not aware of the exact requirements...
P2: Any other criteria?
Me: Not that I'm aware of...
P1: What do you know about 4G?
Me: Told whatever I knew..
P1: So 4G seems to be better right?
Me: Yes, sir
P1: Then why all this haggling over 3G...why don't we go in for 4G directly?
Me: More blabbering about upgradation capability, bandwidth requirements and any shit that came in my head..!
P1: Do you know any countries that have implemented 4G?
Me: had read something about it being implemented in some Scandinavian countries, Japan...mentioned that...
P1: Ok....( went through my essay).....so why do u think Gandhian principles are still followed?
Me: Told....stumbled a bit in between but caught myself...
P1: What about all these Maoists and all?
Me: Said how they are using the wrong means to state their point....how they won't succeed...etc..
P1: Do you think Narendra Modi follows Gandhian values?
Me: (was about to say hell no! but then realized this is Ahmedabad!!!) Stated both sides of the issue....took diplomatic approach...

Then came the humdinger....P2 gave me a probability question to solve.....whaat?? Firstly I hate probability....and that's what I get in probably the most important interview of my life! Took couple of minutes to think about it....then she asked me to solve it on the blackboard that was there in the room....I somehow put forward a solution....don't know whether it was right or wrong, their expressions didn't convey anything either.....but that was all. I was stunned as I left the room......what on earth was that?! Where did probability come from?!!! Nowhere in my application had I mentioned anything about probability.....and its not like I got bad marks in any probability-related subject either! But then, IIM-A is IIM-A, expect the unexpected, I suppose! And that was as unexpected as it got....! Anyway, I was relieved it was over at least!

I glanced at the time in my watch: 9.30 am...wow that was fast! And I got a flight back to Mumbai at 6.15 pm......lots of time to kill, question is how?! I wasn't really interested in seeing the city....so after hanging around and chatting with other candidates for some time, I ventured out with another friend, whose interview was before mine, and who was staying in a hotel with his family. After freshening up a bit in his room, I decided to spend my time in a cyber-cafe somewhere preparing for SP Jain the next day. Spent a couple of hours there....then headed to a restaurant nearby for what turned out to be the best, yummiest meal I had had outside home for aaaaages!! A typical Gujarati thali.....with kadhi, all those Gujarati dishes whose names I can't remember....and best of all, aamras!! Oh man, the aamras!! I had like 5 cups I think! And they just keep coming and re-filling your plates.....they keep coming! As much as you want......I finish off one cup of aamras....immediately that guy comes and asks me "Sir, ras?"....and I hold out my cup with glee! After a really heavy, sumptuous, full-on paisa vasool lunch, I did some more net-surfing, before heading to the airport and taking a flight back home. A weird interview, but the lunch made my day!!! :)

Six days of madness - part 3

Day 3 : 27th March, 2010
Call: Management Development Institute (MDI), Gurgaon

It was an early Saturday morning trip back to Dadar yet again for me, and all I could think of was, let's just finish this off asap and get home. With the IIM-A interview edging closer, it was beginning to occupy my mind more and more. Thankfully, this time, I was first in line for the interview! Some people would rather not have their interview first up, but in my case, it was exactly what I wanted. Of course, before the interview, there was the not-so-small matter of a GD to complete. The person who was supposed to be 2nd hadn't turned up, so the seat next to me was empty. I felt a bit isolated 'cos of that, and wanted to make sure I began the GD in order to blend in easily. The topic was a good one: " Our roads and cities are crowded and polluted enough, we don't need small cars like the Nano". And fortunately, I did indeed begin the GD and put in some good points. Another healthy discussion, I was glad at least all my GDs were panning out well.

Interview time, and I thought since I was first up I should be done pretty quickly, but they made me wait almost 20 minutes before calling me in! Talk about frustration!! Anyway, here goes...

Panelists: P1 (female faculty), P2 (male faculty)

P2: So tell me about yourself, Arvind.
Me: Same ol' stuff...
P2: Wipro, eh? Wipro always seems to be in the news for the wrong reasons....fraud, the World Bank situation.....why are you working for such a company?
Me: (umm...duh...! It's not like I had a choice, they acquired our previous company!!!!) Blabbered some stuff about Wipro's growth, values.....
P2: Do you think Wipro is an ethical company?
Me: Told....mentioned a recent example from work where the management displayed ethics..
P2: What about the World Bank situation with Wipro...what can u tell me about that?
Me: (Damn, what exactly was it, was quite a long time back!) Fumbled through it..
P2: But what exactly happened?
Me: Fumbled again....made the mistake of mentioning the term "insider trading" in between..
P2: Insider trading? What's that?
Me: Gave a very vague description....
P2: Arvind, do you know you're not quite being precise with your answers?
Me: (%$$@!!@#$....!!) Sorry, sir, will surely improve from here on in...
P2: Ok tell me about this whole global economic downturn....where did it begin? And be precise, this time..
Me: (smiled, ah this I knew) Told about real estate situation in US...sub-prime...banks collapsing...blah blah..
P2: All right.....tell me, Arvind, have you heard of Robin Hood?
Me: Yes, sir
P2: Was he real?
Me: He is believed to be, sir, as there are many references and memorials in Nottingham in his memory....but there is no hard evidence.....
P2: Ok, what did he do?
Me: told about robbing from rich, giving to poor..
P2: Do you think what he did was right?
Me: Said no, explained..
P2: But he was helping the poor and doing a good deed right?
Me: Told about how poor should earn their money, not just have it handed to them....rich also have earned their money....etc etc..
P2: Ok, now suppose you were to justify what Robin Hood did....what would you say? Give me the counter-view...
Me: Told..

P2 then finally says something, describes a situation where I had to assume I had a chance to win a huge deal with a client for Wipro, but it involved a pay-off to the client....ethics stuff basically...I said I wouldn't go for it....against my principles, company's values etc etc.....they tried to grill me on it but I stood firm...

P1: Ok, Arvind, so what newspapers do you read?
Me: Told TOI, Economic Times...
P1: What do you read in TOI?
Me: mentioned main headlines...city news, editorial, sports etc..
P1: All right, describe the editorial page for me
Me: Described....some cross-questioning on that as well...

And that was it....! Didn't start off too well, but a pretty strong ending.....felt quite good about it....anyway, the big daddy next up, IIM-Ahmedabad!!

Six days of madness - part 2

Day 2: March 26, 2010
Call: IIM-Kozhikode

3 days after a horrific start to my GDPI marathon, I returned to the scene of the disaster - this time to face the gang from down south, Kozhikode. As I mentioned in my previous post, I knew things could only get better - so I was kinda upbeat. This time, an essay was added into the mix, and with quite a humdinger of a topic too - "Fools and fanatics are always so sure of themselves, but wise people are always full of doubts." That's IIM for you.....weird, yet thought-provoking! Filled up 1.5 pages somehow....wrote about the way people are perceived in society, how people are only branded fools 'cos they go against norms established in society etc etc......was sufficiently happy with my effort. On to the GD....topic: a long paragraph, basically about conservation of water, how it is misused, farmers suffering etc. Nice topic to discuss......the first thing that came to my mind was the pipeline bursts in Mumbai the previous day. I brought that point up, and a few others.....I must admit that my group was excellent and very knowledgeable....came up with some amazing facts.....one person even brought up the point that just a few days earlier, the world celebrated "World Water Day".....wow, never knew that! All in all, a healthy discussion, well-structured with some very good points.....panel seemed to be satisfied.

Interview time....I was 6th in line, so a long wait...not helped by the fact that the panel was spending almost half an hour with every candidate!

Panelists P1 (very young guy, probably a recent alumnus), P2 (long beard, looked like a sadhu! Later came to know that he was in fact very religious), P3 (faculty most probably)

P3: So, Arvind, tell me about yourself very briefly
Me: Gave standard well-rehearsed answer......mentioned how initially I was in Citi and later our company was acquired by Wipro...
P3: Ok, so the company is the same, only the parent organization is different, right?
Me: That's right, sir
P3: All right, so tell me what are the differences you've found between Citi and Wipro
Me: In any specific aspects, sir?
P3: Everything....ok, I'll mention them one by one.....lets start with work environment..
Me: Blah...
P3: Policies, salary structure...
Me: Blah..
P3: HR
Me: Blah..
P3: Management
Me: Blah..
P3: Training, career scope...
Me: Blah..
P3: If you were to continue working for Wipro for another 5 years, would you continue in your current project or shift?
Me: had already written about this in the Personal Data form, repeated the same...
P3: What's the turnover of your organization?
Me: Told..
P3: Profit?
Me: Told..
Then focus shifted to P1..
P1: What's the GDP of our country?
Me: about $1.2 trillion..
P1: If our currency depreciates....i.e suppose right now from around 45 rs. to the $, it goes to say 49.....will our GDP change?
Me: told about how it depends on balance of trade....exports will bring in more money, but imports will be costlier....blah blah...
P1: No, tell me straight....will the GDP change or not?
Me: Not really sure, sir.
P1: Ok....tell me what's the area of Mumbai? (This guy was just shooting questions like a robot...no transition from one question to the other or anything!)
Me: I can tell you the area of Navi Mumbai, sir, that's where I'm from (wry smile on my face)
P1: (Smiled as well) But they're right next to each other right? You must be coming to Mumbai pretty often I'm sure.....come on, give me an estimated figure.
Me: (thought for a few secs) About 800 sq. km, Sir (later came to know its closer to 600)
P1: How did you arrive at that number?
Me: Told how I took the Western and Eastern Express Highways as reference.....assumed a rectangle for simplicity of calculations.....explained calculations..
P1: (seemed satisfied) Ok, tell me how to design an analog circuit using K-maps.
Me: (knew he asked this to some people before me as well, no one knew, and I had no idea either nor could I quickly find out from anywhere) Sorry, sir, I don't really remember K-maps.
P1: Ok....what is reverse breakdown voltage?
Me: (ah, thank God, an acad question whose answer i knew!) Told..
P1: Applications?
Me: Told..
Now onto P2, who was a mere spectator all this while..
P2: So, Arvind, tell me something about your parents.
Me: Told..
P2: Tell me something about Cuddalore (my father's native place, had mentioned that)
Me: Gave some gyan....mentioned about tsunami, mainly a fishing community
P2: So how many families were affected there by the tsunami?
Me: About 1200...(later came to know that was way too low, it was more like 30000!!)
All three looked at each other.....decided that was all, thanked me, I thanked them and left.

As I walked out the interview room, and began telling the other applicants about my interview, it struck me like a thunderbolt....I could imagine the huge tubelight lighting up above me...."Analog circuit using K-map?? Holy crap, K-maps are used for digital circuits, not analog circuits!!!!" Felt like banging my head against a brick wall....that one answer could've clinched it for me, given that no one else knew the answer! Oh well, I just walked out shaking my head in disbelief at how Murphy's law always seems to play a crucial role in my life..!

Six days of madness - part 1

Day 1 : 23 March, 2010
Call: IIM-Calcutta

This was it. All the weeks of preparation.....scouring the net for any little piece of information I could get my hands on that may help me with my interviews....asking people for any engineering notes they may have lying around....payoff time had arrived. As I stepped out of the cab in front of the Institute of Hotel Management in Dadar, and looked at all the other candidates streaming into the campus in their suits and what not, the enormity of the situation began to engulf me. I walked into the waiting area.....candidates engrossed in reading The Economic Times, others discussing the latest repo rate hikes......wow.....I began to wonder, what am I even doing here?! How did all this happen?!! I soon found myself in a conversation with some of my fellow aspirants......a couple of 100 %ilers, 99.98, 99.95.....intimidating, what? They'd already gotten into GD mode and were discussing the way calls had been meted out randomly by the IIMs...

Onto the actual GD then.....topic: "It's more important to make an impact than to be true to oneself". Typical topic for an MBA aspirant.....on came the monologues about ethics, values, business norms....even Mahatma Gandhi and the Gita found their way in there somewhere. I chipped in with some decent points.....cited the example of the movie Rann....was satisfied with the overall GD and my contribution as well. Then came 20 of the most torturous minutes of my life: the PI.

3 panelists P1, P2, P3....and Me, the unfortunate victim...

P1: So, Arvind, what are you currently doing?
Me: Describe work....maybe got a bit too technical in the process..
P1: Arvind, do u honestly expect us to understand everything u just said??
Me: Sorry sir.....tried to simplify the description...
P2: So what are these logs? (Mentioned our job involves monitoring and review of Unix logs..)
Me: Explained
P1: Have you heard of PL-SQL?
Me: Yes, sir, but don't know much about it
P1: But u just mentioned you work involves databases (I did actually, mistake!)
Me: (Damn you, Ari..watch what u say!) Yes we do work on some databases but at a very superficial level....not proper DBMS as such...
P1: Ok, do you know anything about event-driven programming?
Me: (whaa?!) Sorry sir, not really into the programming side
P2: But would you like to get into programming if you were given the choice of shifting from your current proj?
Me: Depends on the job profile.....would see if it would fit my interests....blah blah...
P2: So then tell me what's the difference between a programmer's role and your role?
Me: Blabbered some gyan...mentioned creativity, higher expectations, deadlines etc.
P2: So you wouldn't mind a programmer's role then?
Me: If the profile is right for me, then no, I wouldn't mind.......but at this moment, that's not the path I wish to follow....I'd like to move towards a management role (pheww...thank God i got that in!)
P2: Hmm ok......so you mentioned something about core values during the GD.....what are your core values?
Me: Told somethin about integrity...
P2: Integrity....that's a powerful word.....care to elaborate?
Me: Gave an example from work which in my opinion demonstrated integrity on my part..
P2: That's not integrity....that's just being helpful to your colleagues...
Me: attempted to justify...
P2: What exactly according to you is integrity??
Me: Told about believing and abiding by a set of values...
P2: But you just said your value is integrity....
Me: (freak, now what) Fumbled....basically went around in circles...P3 points that out....thankfully they decide to move on...
P1: So what other calls have u got?
Me: Told...L,A,K
P1: Ok so between A and C, u'd choose?
Me: (tried diplomatic approach) well i'd love to be faced with that choice....both are extremely good.....i'd probably have to interact with a few more students and alumni before making a decision...
P1: No, you need to make a decision now....which are u going to choose?
Me: (ok, now try the honest, upfront approach) Sir, as it stands, honestly, I'd mostly choose IIMA.....
P1: Why?
Me: Said some stuff about peers, student culture etc.
P1: Well, from what I've heard, somehow the companies seem to give the better packages to IIMC students.....why do u think that happens?
Me: Sir, package is secondary....what's important is the overall learning experience...blah blah..
P1: No I'm just stating a fact.....I just want to know from your side why u think that happens....what are these companies looking for in students?
Me: Blah about domain knowledge, experience etc.
P1: Do they need only academic knowledge or overall skills as well?
Me: Knowledge specific to job profile is important but significant emphasis on all-round skills...
P1: So if these companies recruit the best students....and IIMC has the best packages and placement figures....isn't IIMC the best B-school?
Me: (oh man, trapped!) Again take the "placement is only one aspect....overall experience" route....and again thankfully they changed topic...
P1: Watched the match yesterday?
Me: Yes, sir
P1: So u didn't prepare for this interview then?
Me: I made sure I completed my preparation before the match
P2: Oh, good, you're completely prepared then?
Me: (Sheepishly) To the best of my abilities, sir
P3: How did you prepare anyway?
Me: Mentioned PG, previous experiences, went through my work details, acads etc.
P3: Great, so you're pretty much prepared for everything.....but what if I ask you something you haven't prepared?
Me: (smiled) I'll give it my best shot, Sir
P3: OK.....give this your best shot....what is India's foreign policy towards Uzbekistan?
Me: I'm sorry, sir, not really aware...
P3: Fine.....what about towards Pakistan?
Me: mentioned Indo-Pak relation fundas..
P3: No, no, you're just talking about the political aspect of it.....i want foreign policy...
Me: (wtf?!!) tried to connect the two....
P3: Foreign policy is something different.....do u know what exactly our foreign policy for Pakistan is?
Me: (no use beating around the bush again) Afraid not, sir...

That was it......they thanked me, I thanked them....I walked out in a daze. I was quite like a deer caught in the headlights there.....couldn't have asked for a worse start to the round of interviews. The panelists set a trap out, and I nicely obliged them by falling right into it. Lesson learnt: watch what you say!! IIMK coming up next....and I know things can only get better from here on in...

Before and After

Before:

Date: 26-Feb-2010

Time: 9.30 p.m

Immediate future plans:

1. Look forward to an awesome SAG trip to Alibaug during the weekend.

2. Collect all documents for US tourist visa interview on March 8th and prepare for the same.

3. Enjoy my last month at work by relaxing and chilling out. For a change, NO STUDIES.

4. Complete joining formalities for SIBM, Pune and prepare for the pre-induction course from April 1, 2010

5. Last but not the least, prepare for my most awaited event of the year - my first overseas trip to California in April 2010!!

6. Join SIBM, Pune in June 2010 and finally pursue my MBA

After:

Date: March 7, 2010

Time: 4 p.m

Immediate future plans:

1. CAT 99.9 %ile, interview calls from IIMs, study for GDPI, study for GDPI, study for GDPI, study for GDPI .............. spend the whole damn month studying.

2. US trip in jeopardy, Visa interview tomorrow now taken a backseat, somehow finish it off and try to get the visa.

3. SIBM-P right at the bottom of the pecking order now.

It just took one click of a button to turn my whole life around. And as i stared at my CAT scorecard, I was momentarily frozen, paralysed in shock and disbelief. A normal, sane person would jump for joy when he/she sees "99.9 percentile" as their overall score in CAT and an interview call letter from IIM Ahmedabad to boot. But somehow, for those few minutes that followed, I was anything but sane. My immediate reaction was dismay and I cursed my luck - "F*****************ckkkkk, there goes my US trip!! Back to studies now!" The chance of a lifetime - a month long vacation in California - crumbled right before my eyes. Then, slowly, the realization dawned upon me - that I had been blessed with another chance, a different kind of opportunity, one that over 2 lakh people in this country craved for. A chance to pursue my MBA from my dream destination - IIM-Ahmedabad! A chance to be among the elite! Wow!! That makes this interview day probably the biggest day of my life. Talk about pressure!

Well, its back to studies now. Not quite in the conventional sense of the term, but I gotta prepare some topics from engineering, which pretty much amounts to studying. It's gonna be a jam-packed March 2010 ahead......so i'll catch ya guyz in April...rest later...wish me luck! :)

My Name is Khan....and I AM a Mumbaiikar!

Strange, isn't it....the aim of MNIK was to show the world that the words "Muslim" and "terrorist" aren't synonymous, but the lead-up to the film has all been about SRK trying to prove that he is a true citizen of India and Mumbai, forget terrorism! Little had he known that one small yet slightly naive comment could jeopardize his movie so deeply. But luckily for him, his fans have not let him down, and the film has managed to connect with the audiences in spite of its oh-so-familiar theme.

One thing you will notice as you sit through the 2 hr 40 min journey known as "My Name is Khan", is that this isn't exactly the same Karan Johar brand of cinema that we are used to seeing - no extravagant settings and costumes, no pot-pourri of song and dance, no irritating over-acting by cast, no emotional attyachar (not that much anyway...climax is debatable). But Karan does tend to go overboard with his story-telling and screenplay, and that is definitely evident in the second half of MNIK. The whole Georgia angle with him wading through waist-deep water to reach "maama Jennie and funny-hair Joel" was really over the top in my opinion. And then when Joel shouts "Maama, look!!" and the camera pans behind him, I was hoping that there would be a huge tidal wave ala 2012 ala Day After Tomorrow coming at them, but alas, this is Karan Johar's movie, not Roland Emmerich's! In the climax, the movie should've ended once he gets stabbed - they could've done without the last 10-15 minutes. I was also disappointed at the length of Vinay Pathak's role.....he is too good an actor to have such an itsy-bitsy portion in the movie.

Having said all this, the movie isn't actually all that bad, and does well especially in the acting department. Shah Rukh does go back to his restrained style of acting we've seen in films like Chak De and Swades. He doesn't overdo the autism portion of his character, although he did leave me a little confused as to how people with Asperger's syndrome actually behave - I've seen only one other character on television with the same disorder, and that's Jerry Espenson on Boston Legal, and his behaviour is pretty different from Rizwan Khan! But I suppose even with the disorder, each has his/her own personality. Kajol is graceful and refreshing, and the chemistry between the two leads works well, as it was expected to. Tanay Chheda plays the role of young Rizwan superbly, and is yet another example of the acting talent that India's next generation possesses.The remainder of the supporting cast including Jimmy Shergill, Sonya Jehan, Parveen Dabas etc. play their parts more than satisfactorily. The musical trio of Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy haven't had much to do in this movie, but the two songs and the background score blend in well with the theme of the movie and have the required effects on the audience.

Who knows....given the current situation in Mumbai, maybe SRK's next project will be about a paan-chewing, Hindi-speaking guy who travels from Ambernath to Bandra (Matoshree) on foot to tell Mr. Balasaheb Thackeray/Mr. Raj Thackeray: "My name is Yadav, and I AM a Mumbaiikar"!!! Until the next, cheers...

Preparing for change..

That rare but truly desirable feeling.....relief....feels good, doesn't it? An emotion that grabs all yours troubles and anxieties and tears 'em to shreads. A feeling that brings with it hope for more goodness to follow. Something that clears all those cobwebs in your , brings a smile to your face and gives you sound sleep at night. Some would imagine that my first emotion upon receiving the news of my selection into SIBM would be sheer delight and ecstacy, but somehow only one emotion swept through me: relief! Relief 'cos of the fact that I can finally accomplish what I had set out to achieve 3 years ago: complete my MBA from a prestigious B-school. Relief 'cos of the fact that I can finally move on from a job that honestly was taking me nowhere but down the depths of mediocrity and monotony. And relief that I will finally get a chance to explore and realize my true potential and abilities.

18 odd months after embarking on a new phase of my life, it begins all over again. One chapter closed, another about to be written. It's time for me to prepare for yet another major change. The first step for me is arranging for funds to finance my MBA, and that has introduced me to the ominous world of "loans". All about the fine print, baby - that's what I've realized after checking out websites of pretty much every bank that exists in the country, calling half of them and visiting half of those I called! Things seem so rosy when you first come across them, until you've seen the bigger picture, when you realize how screwed you are! Whether its the requirement of collateral, interest rates, co-applicants age, loan amount....one by one I've had to cross almost every bank off! SBI does seem to have a favourable scheme for SIBM students, so I hope to get it done there. SIBM has put us in quite a spot though, giving us less than 15 days to cough up 3.25 lacs for the first installment - not that it can't be done, but it sure puts those less privileged souls in a pickle (thanking my lucky stars I'm not one of them!). I'm sure they have their reasons though, so I ain't complaining....

Hmm...also need to consider my specialization options carefully....finance would obviously be my first choice....second is what has put me in a quandry. (a) Operations management is something I find interesting at the outset, but not having a background in it is what bothers me a little 'cos I have no idea how good I'll be at it (b) HR is kind of a default choice for people if not finance, esp. at SIBM...so I wanna avoid going down that road (c) Marketing....well lotta people have figured me out to be a marketing guy in the future, except for one - me! Somehow I can't see myself in marketing....have no interest in it, so am ruling it out for now. It's gonna be a toss-up between Operations and HR, but I think I'll mostly go for the former.

Anyway...rest later....time for some Seinfeld (need to finish 7 seasons of Seinfeld and 5 seasons of 24 before April!!)....

The SIBM Pune experience

Well, that's one GD/PI done and dusted. Things went along pretty much as I had expected them to, having read numerous posts and experiences on PG. All in the hands of the good Lord above now.....

Waking up to a chilly morning in Pune, I reached the old SIBM campus on SB marg at 7.30. Buses were arranged to take us to the Lavale campus, and we arrived there by 8.15. The campus is simply stunning, nested in the middle of a bunch of hills with spectacular views, amazing weather and state-of-the-art infrastructure. Guided ably by members of the Aspirant Relations team (who did a splendid job of organizing and co-ordinating the whole process!!), we were asked to go to one room where we first arranged all required docs (call letter, SNAP scorecard, original SNAP admit card, work-ex letter if applicable, degree certi/latest sem marksheet, 10th n 12th marksheets). We then proceeded for registration and taken to another room where we met our group co-ordinator Reuben (great guy, really helpful). The session started at 9.20 with a bunch of general instructions and a presentation. Each group was then asked to proceed for whatever they had first (GD/GT/PI). After some snacks, our group had GD first.

The GD panel consisted of two people, one of whom was Col. Brijkrishnan (sorry if I got his name wrong!), apparently one of the most popular and witty profs in the institute......and we could clearly see why. A really jolly and cheerful guy, he made us feel at ease straight away....although he did put Neha (the only girl in our group...in fact very few girls seemed to have been called...wassup wid that?!) on the spot, asking her if she had to choose between SIBM and SCMHRD, which would she choose (a tough ques to answer given that he was a part of faculty in both institutes!!). Our GD topic was a really good one: "Should military training be made compulsory for India's youth?" Lots of points to put forward....I was all ready to set the GD in motion and just started opening my mouth to speak, and Abhinav beat me to it by a fraction of a second!! From there on it was a mad race where each was trying to take the lead and put their point across, and I struggled in the beginning to get an opening to speak. I finally got some points across though. At the end, after about 12-15 min, we were each asked to answer a common question by the panel. Overall, it was a healthy discussion....was veering towards a fish market in between (why do they call it a fish market....aren't vegetable markets equally noisy?? :P) but we kept it in control....we concentrated on the aspect of instilling discipline, all our points were valid and we didn't digress to much from the topic (although someone brought up obesity in our country....what??) . The panel seemed to be satisfied as well.

Next up were the interviews.....and damn, I was last in line in my group! After an agonizing wait, I headed to the interview room, where I was pleasantly surprised to see Akshay, a senior of mine from college, as the student co-ordinator for the interviews! Chatted a bit about college while waiting for the previous candidate to finish his interview......really helped calm me down (thanks, buddy!). I was then called in for my turn. Panel consisted of one lady (L) and two men (M1 and M2), forgot to find out who they were......anyways, here's how it went:

M1: So Arvind, you're from Navi Mumbai?

Me: Yes, Sir (wide smile on my face)....born and brought up there....have seen it grow and develop from virtually nothing!

M1: Wonderful.....and u're working in Wipro?

Me: Yes, sir......told him about how it was first Citi Technology Services, then Wipro took over..etc..

M1: asked about job profile

Me: explained....tried to keep it simple..

M1: So why do you want to leave your job for this?

Me: talked about how my long-term goals were different....and while i'm currently doing well in my job, the direction it was taking me wasnt aligned with my goals..

L: So Arvind, tell me your views about positive energy.

Me: (?? probably got it from my annexure somewhere) talked in general about positive vibes, optimism...its influence on people around us.....blabbered in general....mentioned Obama in between...

M2: Do you think the entire Obama election was overhyped and a political gimmick?

Me: (Yes! They took the Obama cue....exactly what I needed...politics...right down my alley!!) explained my views on Obama....how him being African-American isn't as important as his dynamism and his qualities.....how he's just the kind of leader the US needs in these times...blah blah...

M1: Do you feel India has a leader like Obama?

Me: talked about Rahul Gandhi..

M1: But Rahul Gandhi seems to be just moving along with the Gandhi name, doesnt he?

Me: No, sir...i really believe he has the potential and qualities needed to be an inspirational leader....blah blah...

M2: Have you voted in elections previously?

Me: Yes, sir....voted in both the recent national and state elections..

M2: What do you think about the right to vote? Should it be made compulsory?

Me: Definitely sir....justified myself..

Panel tried to sway me, talked about unscrupulous elements in society, people who dont pay taxes...why should they vote.....but I held firm and talked with conviction......they seemed pleased and satisfied. That was about it. Went on for around 10 min I think. Nothing about MBA, SIBM etc.....was a very general and interesting interview....and politics is something I can keep talking about.....so I'd like to think it went off well...

Time: 12 pm. Only group task left.....I thought "wow, this'll be over much earlier than expected!"....how wrong I was......we got our GT call after an hour!! As soon as we entered the room for the GT, we realized the intentions of the panel and the co-ordinators: to scare the crap outta us!! They spoke rudely and forcefully, leaving us all looking at each other incredulously! We were first each asked to choose a shape among a circle, a Z, a triangle n a square, and draw it on the sheet provided to us. That was followed by a psychometric test, which consisted on statements about ourselves which we had to agree or disagree with. We then had our actual group task. We were divided into two sub-groups and given cardboard, newspapers, 4 straws, cellotape, scissors n a ruler, and were asked to make a structure that would be 15 inches high and would support a football on top. The cardboard should not be tampered with or damaged in any way. Ah....a familiar task from PG posts....we were given 3 min.....started pitching in ideas.....time was zipping past....decided to connect two straws together as pillars and form a conical kind of structure on top to support the football using the cardboard as base.....wasn't quite working out....time running out....wtf.....do something....time up!! Screwed. We had hardly gotten started!!! Saw the other group's structure......what the f!! They had just folded the cardboard into a cylindrical form and put the football on top! I thought we weren't allowed to do that!! One guy from the panel grilled them....asked about whose decision it was to make something like that....one guy said collective decision....panel member furious.....he was like "you've been coached to say that, havnt u? which classes did u join? Don't give me that nonsense! etc etc"....complete firing....then he moved to our group.....asked about what happened...we told we had come up with the idea but couldnt quite implement....told us about sub-dividing tasks instead of everyone focusing on one thing.....gave a bit of a lecture....and that was that! It was a stress-test primarily....I'm sure we weren't expected to complete the task, only our effort was seen.....but still, I'm hoping that the fact that we couldn't even get a skeleton of our structure in place doesn't play on our marks too much!!

We were then asked to fill feedback forms.....and we were done for the day! The whole thing was over by 1.45. Got a bus back to Pune at 2. Everything went off quite smoothly, all the student co-ordinators were fantastic.....special thanks to Reuben...dude, u rock! Thanks to all my group members as well....u guys were wonderful, had a lovely time....