IIT + IIM= I

Being just one of the multitude who have degrees from both of the Indian institutes, yet being considered elite just because of the game of proportion that works only in the unique and humongous crucible called India, yes, let me just elaborate on how I feel life differs at IIT and IIMs. Stating the obvious: professors in IIM are well off. They visit Europe on a regular basis, they have big cars with drivers and they dress well. But they have smaller offices sans any laboratory, smaller office desks and much smaller egoes. They love to treat students as their friends, also as facebook friends, they joke with students attend their marriages and occasionally also call them in their own. They appreciate the elimination of distance. They like to be friendly and close. The culture of IIMs is aggrandisement: that is to make everything bigger and better. Therefore, everyone enhances the self respect of each other and everyone feels as a future CEO. Every idea is not just an idea, it is the next big thing. How does it matter if most of them are actually wrapping the soap in black colored foil instead of a white one or renaming stayfree as livefree. They come after segmenting and sub segmenting the target segment and then letting thoughts fly to again arrive at the target segment. And hasn’t it been all about presentation since times immemorial…even Mahabharatha is an intra family dispute for a couple of villages. Let’s now hop into the IITs. The ideas in vogue are brilliant. Be it machine learning, or making rechargeable batteries or designing the new electric wheel chair. But heart is where the hurt lies. Big egos and less than affable personalities. It percolates from the top to the students and to administration workers. Unending hassles , undue flexing of muscles at every opportunity and the tale just goes on…till the grind cuts through your ego and diminishes your spirit. The question is, does doing both mean tying the ends so that life comes full circle? May be, life does come to a full circle , but the radius diminishes to arrive to a point , that is right on oneself. Anything outside is either redundant or out of focus.

B to B

Drifting through the lanes of life, never have I been as baniya as in the last couple of years: Be it in staying among thorough baniyas, or valuing investment options or perhaps, engaging the right brain much more than the left. An unintended consequence of it all is the absence of rant in this public diary. But, why am I again putting up new posters in a decaying wall? So that I can test whether writer’s block really exists. Also to explore the contrast between a bong and a baniya. A baniya is a B2B player, B2B as is commonly used which is Business to Business. A bong is also a B2B player, but B2B here referring to Business to Baniya. A baniya thrives in confusion . A bong faced with confusion creates a flutter, takes the next shuttle out of it into a place he strives to make more beautiful. A baniya thrives on calculations. A bong has clairvoyance but concedes to his emotions and lets go of all calculations. A baniya thrives,but for each other . A bong is a convivial chatterbox priding himself on being impartial. A baniya knows calling a spade a spade is a bad idea really, when learning Chinese, French, German and MBA talk is so easy though not cheap. A bong understands but can’t internalise. So what makes a baniya tick and a bong speak? May be, partly nature but also nurture. Have I changed? May be….

IN(E)ternally Dumb

Nandan Nilekani recently said in an interview, an Indian will soon be identified with three numbers: his bank account number, his mobile phone number and the UID It is a natural corollary of the today’s situation, where we and are obsessions are getting increasingly digitalised. With the globalisation and digitalisation of the world , different hues : Violet, Indigo, Blue, Red ; are all mixing to form a mundane white .With the monotonity and homogeneity of the technological cloud that wraps around the world , we are fast losing our intrinsic strands of heritage and becoming that shirt –trouser jeans clad global citizen. Perhaps, global citizen is just a euphemism for the confusion that lurks in the souls today, the confusion of one’s unique identity ,of where does one belong really? Studying engineering, I was supposed to have carved a niche for myself in the educational domain. But I have been decapitated to a situation where I can only interview in companies where analytical skills are tasted. In today’s parlance, I want to become a manager(really?). Similarly born and brought up in different parts of India, and stayed and studied and worked abroad, I am not very sure, which part of the world can I claim myself to be a proud ambassador of! The confusion and loss of my identity has led to a blurr, where I feel I have lost touch with myself. Not very sure of goals and desires and ambitions , ihas been almost impossible to find out what I can live without . When I try to hear the inner voice, I can only hear the clatter of keyboards. In the face of the universal blitzkrieg today, orphaned from my past, I feel alone. Sadly, I am not the only one.

The travesty of governance

It was the summer of 2004. The feel good factor was ubiquitous. Staying in the country side and not insulated within the glitz of a metro, I could feel the fruits of progress percolating to the lower realms of the society. With India shining, my future looked bright too. Then the wheels of democracy turned around and it was time for the national elections. I anticipated a hot contest and was confident irrespective of who comes to power, the progress is going to continue. As the UPA stomped into power, its punchline of socially inclusive growth sounded more like a rhetoric. The party which rode on the fresh faces to impress the populace, passed the power buttons as well, as the keys of the treasury to the old vultures. I felt disconnected and was skeptical as the government was enjoying itself in the sop party, an extravagance paid with tax payer's money and with the return gift of strengthening the vote banks. The worst was yet to come. As I like thousands of my peers was slogging day and day night to grab a seat at the venerated IITs , the government was contemplating doling out the seats for free- supposedly for the struggles the grandfathers of these lucky 21st century silver spoon in a mouth born princes and princesses. I wish I had such an awesome inheritance!

Congress got lucky second time around too and it doesnt need a German shepherd to figure out the stink of opportunism wafting out of the corridors of power today.
As Kalmadi and co played games with the common wealth, lets not forget he continues to hold both, the reins of the Organising Committee and the congress ticket. The rhetoric of the high handed Madam and the erudite scholar too immersed in his economics tomes to catch hold of the wrong doers is louder but emptier. The recent days have exposed the fear lurking behind the veneer of virtue- the fear to be probed. The government is accountable to its people and its shameful for any democracy if the government after brazenly denying any scope for transparency resorts to a knife fight against the opposition.
It seems the ad campaign of Fair (with an Italian tan, it is even better!) and Lovely(Oh! so innocent man!) seems to be too shrewdly designed to dissuade the junta. But, As more than 1 billion people keep on struggling to make their ends meet, those with with the means,seem to have got the kitty at the ends . As sans onion. Indian gourmet seems bland, governance in India definitely rots! With India's progress losing steam, the Sun also doesnt seem to shine on my career as brightly as it used to b.....

must read

please read the follwoing article .....

http://www.newyorker.com/online/blogs/stevecoll/2009/01/letter-from-the.html

is facebook rocking?

No more ranting about a city few people have anything to deal with. No more blog posts copiously spiced with IIT to make the write up bland. For that matter, no more convoluted articles with rich vocabulary to hide the poverty of my ideas. No more depressive talk too. Let us get talking. Let us talk about Facebook.
I joined Facebook a year ago, and literally have not looked back since then. From the number of friends to the comments to everything else, everything has multiplied in leaps and bounds. I would like to believe my life is indeed richer. Decision making is just so easy. Put the doubt in my mind on the wall and friends from across the world will rack their brains to put up witty repartees and show me the way. Put a few pics and I have comments galore. I know I am not that pretty looking gal under whose pic there will be 51 comments, but certainly i can expect at least 5 comments. If nokia is connecting people, Facebook is connecting crowds. I am in touch with hordes and hordes of people, with that gal whom i had crush on when i was in class 12 who i know is headed off to Mumbai now, thanks to Facebook, or that friend of mine who i always grudge for making me at the butt end of endless scolding of the teacher, with whom only facebook brought me face to face. Thanks to Facebook, there r no rumours, there r only conviction, why, isn’t it only I who posted that i m in a relationship and it is complicated. After all, which relationship isn’t complicated, but who cares to think deeper , the writing is on the “wall”....but an essay writing spree recently made me introspect. No more my ideas are as clear they were before; i just have clear images of what Facebook thinks of my future. Neither do i know myself as well as i knew before, i just am more aware about what my friends think of me. May be in the quest to be connected i have lost touch with myself.Zukerburg! Nokia? Or anyone of my 100 facebook friends? Will anyone please help?

Kopenhaven!!!

Copenhagen, after Genva, Paris, Rome and New Delhi was the fifth capital city that I visited.
Capital cities, the microcosm of a country and thumping with power and money, have always fascinated me.
I would rather spend a week in a capital trying to assimilate the excitement than loiter around
in some obscure village or dart across the country from one end to other.

But even among the capital cities, Copenhagen stands out as the the most cool and picturesque city that I have ever visited.
There is a touch of class in the city, and that too unaccompanied by the aura of exclusivity
reserved for a select few in cities like New Delhi and Paris. Even the queen's palace is so accessible,
who wouldnot feel like a king in such a place!

We started the day with a climb to the top of the Church of Our Saviour , sat by the harbour ,
gazed at the clear
blue sea and windmills at a distance.

we strutted along stroget, wistfully glancing at hugo boss and the amani showrooms, and had lunch at burger king.
we cheered the participants on a marathon and Gosh! it seemed that entire denmark was out here to run.
We cautiously walked upto Christiania and soon came back.

It was a cool, serene day in a very beautiful city.