0 days to go... its all over

Convocation day.

It felt so formal, so awe inspiring, yet so distant.

Brijmohan Lal Munjal gave us a very down to earth convocation address, filled with anecdotes from his life. From the reaction of people sitting around me, I got the feeling that people didn't appreciate it as much as they should have. However, I thought it was brilliant. Insights from his life, examples of how he went about handling problems in life. To me, these were worth much more than some foreign rich dude coming over to give us motherhood about the Indian economy, and how we should make a difference to the world.

The afternoon began with a formal lunch with parents, faculty, invitees and the board of governors. After that, the batch went on to take our photograph.

The board of governors walked in. One man stood tall. Sunil Bharti Mittal, Founder, Bharti Telecom, and the father of the Indian telecom revolution. The man came and took his seat humbly among the other governors. It was a humbling experience, to be in the same frame as he was, to be in the same institute that he governed.

The photograph was being taken, the batch settled down, with great difficulty. After the photograph was taken, the photographer came up looking at the students and said, "Teek hai, abhi hum faculty ke photo kheenchenge, abhi aap sab log..." (Now we're going to take pictures of the faculty, you all can now...)

The students echoed in one voice, "kat lein?" (Hindi slang for, "get lost?")

Every student in the gathering was clapping, the faculty was laughing, and the board of governors gave a wide smile too.

It was a moment which would remain frozen in time. It was a moment that told me that this batch, the class of 2006, IIM Lucknow, would not succumb to an occasion. This batch would not remain silent when it felt like saying something, just because a Munjal or a Mittal was in the picture. This batch meant irreverence, because freedom is what we had learnt here in two years.

Good luck my friends. Our time here is over, but we really do have miles to go before we sleep.

Go on. Make a difference. Don't stick to boring jobs because they pay well. Follow your dreams, have lots of fun, get married, have children, keep a dog, wait for it to have children, and so on.

This blog has been a good friend to me. A friend who didn't say anything back, but listened patiently while I rambled on. I hope it didn't pain you too much.

Thank you all for reading. Good luck. Bye.

1 day to go...

The night 3.4 rocked

3.4 is the IIML band. Legend goes that the concept of a band was thought upon by two guys who were walking to IIML from the Sitapur Road. By the time they reached the campus, the concept was ready. In memory of that road on which they thought up the band, it was named 3.4, the distance that it takes from campus to the Sitapur Road.

Ive seen them perform over the past two years, on different occasions. They usually organize a show on Manfest, and also once a term, when they feel like it.

The early few shows used to be held in Samanjasya, the indoor auditorium, but after a while, the outdoor show bug bit them, and most of their shows were held in an outdoor auditorium.

An immensely talented bunch of individuals, it has always been fun to sit through these shows, for the sheer stage presence of many people in the band, coupled with the talent of some others.

3.4 scheduled a show tonight, one night before convocation.

When we walked in with our parents, we expected a show that was a lot like their others, a mishmash of bollywood numbers, own compositions, and some drama on stage.

As they began with a few sedate numbers, I sat back on my chair, knowing that it was going to be just another 3.4 show, an enjoyable experience, but nothing to write home about.

When Harish walked in to sing "Aadat" by "Jal", I had no idea what I would be witnessing. Absolutely perfect rendition, complete with the lyrics and modulations that make a fantastic song, Harish blew me over.

Soon, the show was taking a pace never witnessed before, with a buoyant audience on the verge of leaving IIML, two comperes who kept the crowd dancing to their tunes. One brilliant song followed another, with Manasi, Ramki, Harish and of course, the keyboard by Anand Bhan leading the way.

The crowd on its feet, and asking for more, 3.4 settled into one of its own compositions, the "Liril song". Now this is a number which combines "Dil ko.." from "Rehna hai tere dil mein", with the liril advertisement. A stroke of genius by our senior batch, it has been finding its way to most of our shows till then. However, it was never the same again, because a senior, Krishna, used to render it in his own special way. He was a classical singer by training, and used to use his high pitch and modulations to give life to this song.

As Harish and Arnab began singing the Liril song, I realised just why this 3.4 show was going to be a very different experience. They gave it all they had, with a wonderful rapport between them, and Anand Bhan hitting the keyboard with his usual panache.

As the "Liril Song" reached a cresendo, I was transported to a time when Krishna was singing this song, and I was just into IIML. I was standing in the last row, booing and cheering quite randomly to the beats of the songs.

I was younger, and had two years ahead of me at IIML. Studies were a priority, high paying jobs were the in-thing, and MANAC (Management accounting) was the mantra of the day. I had just got in, from South India, into one of the premier management institutes in the world. Stars in my eyes, hope hitting the skies, full of belief and commitment. I was so different. I thought I knew so much, I thought I could have the world, and I did not know what failure meant.

IIML had changed me so fundamentally, so drastically, that I could no longer identify with the guy who had walked into these hallowed portals.

The song got over. Harish walked off the stage. It was not Krishna anymore. It was a new generation. It was time for the old to move over. One more day, and I would no longer belong here.

2 days to go...

The night IIML went hungry

Last night, after a luxurious Holi sleep, I woke up at 7 PM, all hungry and ready to attack the mess for my favorite Aloo curry with Aloo paratha and Aloo rice. (basically, Aloo)

I got online to check mail, and I realized, much to my horror, that every single eatery on campus was closed. The mess, the Canteen (fauji's), Nescafe, Pepsi stall (whatever that is called), everything!

I mean, I knew it was a "holi"-day, but this came as a shocker to a hungry soul. I also walked from room to room, realizing that either parents were in town, or the students had taken off to the city to get a bite. Now travelling in the city was also not easy, with colors all over, and most transport insensitive to the calls of a poor and hungry IIML-ite.

Finally, I ordered in from Southern spice, which btw was inundated with orders and hence had to deliver only at 10 o clock, by which time I had almost died with hunger, just two days before convocation.

Heart warming tales about Southern Spice Lucknow. Apparently, a student who had gone to find something to eat, saw that the restaurant was closed. He met the owner and found out that it was closed for today. However, the owner asked him if he was from IIML. When he said yes, the owner let him in from the back door and gave him food. As a marketing student, we learn about how such support in crisis makes us a LOYAL customer for life. Also, orders were placed from campus, and Southern Spice opened its shutters for one institute and its hungry students.

Of course, the food was cold and it arrived only at 10 PM, but if not for it, I shudder to think of how the students' would have managed last night.

Sometimes, I think this batch, PGP20, has got to be the most eventful batch in the history of IIM Lucknow. Almost everything under the sun (good and bad, passionate and hateful) has taken place in our two years here. Maybe this was the perfect finish.

3 days to go...

As my previous post suggested, I was dozing off to sleep when I was woken up by the sounds of loud drums beating outside my room. I went to the window, half dressed, and good ol' council was waiting there, asking me to come down for celebrations.

Now, how could I refuse?

I walked with a large part of hostle 11 (most awakened by this racket) who walked together, past the football field, past nescafe, into the vast expanse of the Commercial plaza.

The first look at commercial plaza, A burst of colors. Colors everywhere, Bhaang (both the intoxicating and the childrens version), sweets, snacks, and of course, guys and girls deep in celebrations. Some people were so unrecognizable, that some almost got beaten up while being misunderstood for ruffians who wandered into the IIM campus.

The fountain in IIML, that famous fountain that works only for two weeks in a year, mysteriously the week of the convocation and the Manfest week, was an odd mix of pink and dark green. My first thought at looking at this strange color was, "Mera wala green!"

Most of this water was filled with members of the IIML community, a lot of them being children of faculty and staff of the institute. The guys seemed in a very savage mood, tearing at each others shirts, and throwing at others what remains of theirs.

Of course, within ten minutes, I found myself in the pool.

The faculty joined us in the celebrations, and we went around coloring them and wishing them a wonderful year ahead.

Seldom in life would we witness such amazing bonding within any community. Lets just hope we feel so strongly about each other even years after passing out. This community should make us proud, keep us together, and be the toast of the nation. Good luck guys.

Sale of the year: I will be selling off a Alcom Nostalgia T shirt, colored pink, blue, green and yellow. Only one copy available. $24.00 only. Hurry, offer valid only until t shirt washed.

4 days to go...

A trip to Banaras rounded off my series of trips for these two years. Whirlwind trip of two days, I happened to meet so many people there, that I began to get worried campus would be devoid of students.

By the way, holi celebrations have been announced on campus. With convocation in three days, you can be assured of pictures of pink students in black robes receiving certificates from the PGP Chairman for successful completion of a PGP degree at IIM Lucknow.

Update: In a unique strategy, the cultural secretary has hired drummers to beat drums as loud as they possibly can outside my room. I was planning to sleep off holi. Tsk, what can a man do with this racket outside his room.

Later people, its time to party!

5 days to go...

Interesting stories emerge when students talk about their parents' reaction when they announced where they got a job.

One student tells me:

Me: Ma, I got a job.
Ma: Oh thats great. Where?
Me: PriceWaterHouse Coopers ma.
Ma: What water?
Me: PriceWaterhouse ma. Its a good company.
Ma: Oh, why didn't you join a good bank like ICICI? Didn't you make it?

Of course, regulars on the corporate circuit would know that PwC is one of the most coveted jobs on campus, and PwC on your CV can truly throw open many new great options.

Another student reports:
Me: Ma, I got a job.
Ma: Oh thats great. Where?
Me: Ernst and Young ma.
Ma: Oh, but isn't that a tax audit firm?
Me: Yes ma, but they do consulting as well.
Ma: How much do they pay you?
Me: Seven lakhs ma.
Ma: What?? Why? Could'nt you get a better paying job?

Of course, regulars on the corporate circuit would know that E&Y offers money with no hidden costs, and you could actually end up taking a lot more than people with much higher CTCs.

Tsk tsk, does it matter? As long as "Ma" thinks that you are not earning enough, you aren't!

6 days to go...

Upon waking up again at an unearthly hour (3 o clock), I realised that these would be the last six days of my life when I would be allowed to wake up so late in the morning, and yet enjoy a complete waking day (18 hours).

Did that make me sad? I don't know. I guess everyone has to move on, at some time or the other. Maybe the next phase of my life will be more fun.

By the way, during dinner, suddenly noises of wild cheering could be heard from nearby hostels. Investigation revealed that the greatest one day international ever was being played, as I was enjoying my biryani. I went back, and caught the last few moments.

It was true. History was truly created. And it was fun watching it with people from campus. Maybe I will never again see so many crazy cricket fans in the same common room, rooting for one foreign side, against another foreign side, yet feeling like they were rooting for their own country.

7 days to go...

I walked into the mess at 4.30 in the evening, right after waking up, hoping to get a bite. The food was unusually good, and I over-ate.

I walked out from the mess, wondering where to go. I found myself wandering towards the classroom block, for the first time since the placements. I walked past the PGP block, that place where I had such wonderful experiences. The Pandal was just being set up in the convocation ground, and I walked past it.

I opened the door of the library, and walked in wondering why I was there. The place was so silent, you could hear a newspaper rustling in the corner, where someone was reading it. I walked past them, and noticed that the library was almost empty.

I walked into the books section, and looked at a series of tables, all empty and beautifully set, like waiting for someone to come and sit on them. Those beautifully designed chairs, well set tables, and the wonderful lighting, it all seemed so familiar. The silence was overwhelming, and the slight buzz of the air conditioner seemed to break the silence occasionally.

I blinked.

All of a sudden, I could see the place full of students, buzzing with noise.All the chairs were either occupied, or had books on the table, an indication that some study group had gone for a cup of coffee. In one corner, three students were poring over one book, with one student trying to explain something to them very animatedly. It seemed like accounting. Beside them, in the two seater table, one student had taken off his spectacles and laid them on the table. He had another chair pulled up, and he was resting his feet on it. He had a book on his stomach, and he was dozing away. I walked towards him. A little before I could get there, six students were sitting at a table and whispering loudly, right in front of the "Maintain Silence" board. One of the students, a nerdish looking, poorly dressed guy was doodling away in his book. I looked at him intently, knowing there was something familiar about him.

It was me. In August 2004.

I smiled, and turned around. It was time to leave.

8 days to go...

The movers are here.

The council has been kind enough to arrange three different movers, to let us leave comfortably. However, these are not the only movers around. It is often noticed that a Government vehicle would be packing stuff for a student, in good ol' babu ishtyle.

People are also leaving campus, for whiter pastures (the mountains), to have a bit of fun before the parents get in.

I also hear rumors that the college band, 3.4, is planning another one of its gigs. Now lets see if that happens.

Over and out...

9 days to go...

Its all over

Yes, 100% placements achieved, another batch of IIM Lucknow has now been given jobs, and their first entry into the corporate world. How far will they go? Only time will tell.

The last few hours of placements were nerve-racking, as many people were sitting on the lawns, near the tents, waiting to hear that the placements were finally over.

The announcement was finally made, at 12 O clock at night, after the last company left the campus. The campus was an uproar, and the drums were brought in, and the beats began..

Placement Chairman addressed the batch, and thanked everyone for their cooperation. Champagne was uncorked, and everyone in Placecom was drenched. Then the drums began beating, and everyone went dancing till the mess.

Then, the shower began. The dear juniors had drums full of water, waiting to drench us all. Everyone dancing.. loud music of the drums, and everyone drenched. Some guy took off his shirt, and ripped off someone else's. The trend began, and within fifteen minutes, all the guys were topless. With nothing to do with the shirts, they began throwing it all over, and mostly at the girls, who were also drenched and throwing shirts back as soon as they caught them.

Dancing, singing, rubbing (open to interpretations), and the likes, the post placement euphoria lasted an hour. After that, the drummers led the batch out of the mess, through the football field, into the baddy court (party hall with professional DJ and speakers and of course, drinks).

The party itself began at 2 AM, and the dancing and the revelry went on till 6 in the morning, until the sun was up. By that time, everyone was so tired, specially after the exhausting placement process and the phenomenal party, that everyone retired to their rooms to sleep.

A wonderful end to two years here at IIM Lucknow. A night I would not forget for a very long time.

Good luck y'all. A new journey is just about to begin.

10 days to go...

Brilliant slot 2 results, once again.
The job is almost done, with some unlucky people still in the process. For more information, however, please keep reading Economic Times. :)

The thought in this blog post is: Liason your way to a job.

One particular student, popularly known as "Paid", had liaisoned for a company last year, and in a casual conversation, the HR mentioned to him that he would give him a job this year.

Interestingly, this year, in the interview, he was asked, "Do you remember us?"
The student replies, tongue in cheek, "Yes, and I also remember what you promised me."

He made the job, for reasons more than his competency in the nuances of selling sugared water.

The thought for the day is:

Jobs lured John Sculley, an executive with Pepsi-Cola, to serve as Apple's CEO, challenging him, "Do you want to spend the rest of your life selling sugared water, or do you want a chance to change the world?" Paid, are you reading?

11 days to go...

Slot 1 was a bumper harvest. 191 offers from around 30 companies. Absolutely smashing. A lot of people were very happy, since the salaries have gone up this year, and one particular software services company from the southern region of this country decided to rain jobs. I won't talk more, will let the official results come out in the media. Btw, for information about lateral placements, look here.

Results were released at 2 AM, to a classroom full of students, who were waiting for the whole day for this half hour. It is a scene to be seen, so many students, clearly the future of corporate India, waiting to be placed, and knowing that some of the highest pays and the best futures await them, and the direction would be chartered in the next few minutes.

I would carry that one hour with me for a long long time. A more interesting phenomenon took place, when the sign-outs began. The students began to sign out, and the wait lists began moving, bringing moments of joy, anxiety and pleasure to so many people. I'd like to take this moment, to express heartfelt happiness for one particular genius, who almost didn't make it. He did, in a waiting list, to a phenomenal job, and justice was finally done. A relief to me, and Im sure, to a large part of the batch.

The beautiful part is, most people still in the process are in mostly because they want FMCG and similar jobs that come only in Slot 2. It looks like most people are going to land up in jobs that they will enjoy, a rarity in the cattle market that placement season usually is. :)

12 days to go...

As I write this, slot 1 is almost done, and the results should be out in less than three hours.

The season has been phenomenal, and placements are sure to break all records. But its not going to be an easy night.
Happy nights for few, who have a career in front of them...
Nervous nights for those who have given slot 1 a skip because of greener pastures in slot 2...
Lonely nights for those who were expecting a job in slot 1, and didn't get it...
Dejected nights for those who know they had no chance in this slot...

God bless all of us. Its times like this when the institute comes together for one another. I hope we don't fail each other at this time of need. I hope this spirit never dies in the students' of IIML.

13 days to go...

Its begun.. Day 1 of slot 1.
With only five companies yesterday, the tension was in the air, but well under control.
Only a class full of students, but at the end of the day, down to a handful.

The process has still not begun in full flow. The mess has not shifted to the placement site, and a lot of the batch still is disconnected with the process.

As I write this, Im half an hour late to report, and I just find out I have another 2 hours to sleep because my company is late to report. Brilliant!

14 days to go...

GTalk status messages are so easy to update, that one glance at them and you know the mood on campus.

take a look:

"Edgy"
"Its the final countdown"
"102 degrees fever"
"The end is near"
"Gaand mara behnc*&d, sorry, just preparing for FMCG interview"
"Housing, food, education allowance, will they give a liquor allowance?"
"Mumble Mumble"

The paranoia is setting in. Lets just hope everyone gets what they want.

15 days to go...

Yes ladies and gentlemen, the countdown has slowly begun.. 6 days to the next insti party!
By the way, Slot 0 has started. Good luck IIML, lets hope you make us proud!
A lot of slot 1 shortlists are out, and at last count, we are awaiting about 9 more shortlists from slot 1. These are good times, these are bad times.

Rumor has it that six women from IIML were at Lakme Hazratganj at the same time preparing for placements! Tsk tsk, and I thought Kotler would do the trick! All the long locks on guys, french beards, stubbles and earrings have taken a vacation, and everyone has cut himself to size for placement season, to fit into the niche that the company is looking for.

As one junior placecom member began in his speech to the junior batch when they mass-bunked a placement dry run, "The economy is booming, its upto you to create history!" Quite an irrelevant quote, but I really felt like using it!

16 days to go...

Further delays in this post.. but not my fault, mostly blogger's.

The PCom batch meet happened last night, amidst much fanfare. The Placement Chairman made his maiden speech to the batch, telling us to take medical examinations before the job interviews, just in case "we don't have something that is required for the job". And then he corrected himself, thankfully, to saying that we should check if "we have something that they don't want". He has recently become legendary for such errors, and it was enjoyable to sit through them. I just realized I'm really going to miss all this!

Junior PCom made an entry, with a series of contradictions. However, considering that it was their first time addressing a senior batch, it was quite understandable. Good luck to them! More shortlists are in, more heartbreaks are in (some due to the placement process, some otherwise). I hear one particular prominent software services company made 28 offers in IIMK! They are coming to L, but for a profile one level higher than that at K. Unfortunately, I have a shortlist in this company. Will it be back-to-Chennai for me? Will I get stuck up in the company I came here to escape? To find out more, please keep watching this space.

Yesterday I filled up a form by a life insurance player from the ICICI stable, with began operations in India as a joint venture with Prudential. There was a 108 page psychometric test going on, a pain by any standards. One funny post on blondie by someone after taking this test said:

"WHO AM I... My hearty feelings to all those who gave *&* online test... Goshhh...."

Update: Shocker! A prominent bank has the exact same 108 page psychometric test! 108 pages!