Updates

Well, haven't got an opportunity to write something here in a long long time. Life has been really hectic. One of the major developments though, has been the summer placement process getting over last week.

Before going for the term break after 1st term, most people were just aware of the fact that summers (as in summer placements) were approaching. A few had already begun preparations in real earnest but some like me are habituated to leave things for the last moment. Well, not exactly the last moment, but having started way too late, I definitely would have been a lot more satisfied with my preparations had I started early. Just to give you an idea of what I am talking about, I did spend around 25-30 hours preparing my CV, which is the average around here.

But as they say, all's well that ends well. I got the job I wanted. The crib I now have from life is whether or not I'll get the much vaunted PPO (Pre-Placement Offer). I'll be interning at General Atlantic Partners in Mumbai. It's a private equity firm and for someone interested in finance, I think I can safely say its one of the happening sectors today. More so since it was a day 0 offer I got the rest of the placement days to relax. A mini vacation if you will. At IIMA, trust me that is a luxury!

I wanted to put up photos of the day 0 placement process. Thanks to the lack of a camera phone, I wouldn't be. I still might though, if the placement committee here would be kind enough to share a few photos with the batch. I did see a photographer hanging around the place on all placement days. Why I am talking about the photos is because they are interesting!

One thing that really strikes one and makes one proud to be associated with IIMA is the extreme degree of professionalism reflected in any and everything. Be it in the placement of pens on the table, while setting up the interview rooms at night for the recruiters for the next day or be it something like interacting with the top firms worldwide, the way it has been conducted by the placement committee and the student body in general here has been exemplary. It is things like these I guess, which creates the bond between oneself and WIMWI.

On the same note, it is really amusing to read articles on the placement process in other reputed B-schools in the country. I wouldn't name any school but having read an article or two, its great fun to realize that such behaviour is ultimately driven from the insecurity created by brand IIMA. I probably sound like I am boasting, but whatever I say has a substantiative backing. Ultimately, the biggest parameter to measure our brand value is just a simple observation - IIMA never compares itself with anyone, whether directly or indirectly. And the others do it, again and again. Please read press reports on placement processes in other well known B-schools in the country and you'll realize what I am talking about. Those schools are good, no two ways about it, but when you come down to showing yourself to be better by simply showing others down and talking about what makes you happy, I believe there couldn't be a bigger sign of your inferiority complex.

Anyhow, I was a little amused as I said, and just wanted to use this medium to talk about this phenomena. It's 1-30 AM and I'll hit the sack now.

Greed

The point is, ladies and gentleman, that greed, for lack of a better word, is
good. Greed is right, greed works. Greed clarifies, cuts through, and captures
the essence of the evolutionary spirit. Greed, in all of its forms; greed for
life, for money, for love, knowledge has marked the upward surge of mankind

~ Wall Street

And I agree.

What Was the CEO of Merrill Lynch Doing While ML Was Writing off $8.4 Billion?

On a golf course. Golfing. By himself.

His golf scores revealed something more interesting about him. Read further on here.

Missing Something. Don't Know What.

I-Banking; Money

Words of wisdom from a 'rockstar' trader, whose talk I attended today.

"With higher salaries, we might get a bigger TV, a bigger house......but not everything gets bigger in life"

One of the most amazing company PPTs I attended so far. I sure am glad, I belong to this place!

Rightly said - Branded for Life

Gujarat - Holocaust

Hard to believe these people live a few kilometers from where I live. Words do not come to my mind. See this video.

For when constraints seem insurmountable, you get more energy

I Was Reborn Today

If There Was A God...

...Here's his chance to prove his existence

I am really hungry and have nothing to eat. Please o God, give me something to eat! and a little more time to blog in higher detail...!

What I thought was a relatively better day...

...in terms of time, has left me more squeezed for it than ever!

Man I hate it!!!

Real Pleasure

At a Dorm 20 meet -

The chimp: I always thought the pleasure you have when you finally pee after holding on to it for a long time is equal to orgasm. I was wrong, peeing is better, since you have to work harder to hold it...!

And I....have no words...

I've Fallen off the Cliff...

...And I hope to God he makes me fly

One Thing You Didn't Know About IIMA

Something for that matter which even I didn't know.

IIMA is one HELL of a dating joint! I mean at the parking or the LKP or some other secluded corner of the campus, you see the local Amdavadi couples together. I am pretty sure they tell their folks that they're going for CAT coaching classes and come here instead. For 'inspiration' I guess!

Infact I see this one couple at the parking stand, near the ever-present Rambhai (more on him later, he deserves a full post), every evening. And I mean, every evening. The guy is sitting on his motorbike and the girl is sitting on a chair nearby or the reverse arrangement. Boring but definitely cost-effective and also hats off to the guy's patience for being able to chat with the girl everyday for atleast 2-3 hours. I always wonder where that couple finds the topics to talk on everyday.

From the IIMA perspective, I guess its a contribution to the society, saving those young lovelorn couples their pocket money...;)

That's LKP (Louis Kahn Plaza) by the way


Beautiful, isn't it? Don't blame those couples for coming here! Sometimes when things aren't going good, which is most of the times for me, sitting here at night makes it all worth it. Makes you feel like a WIMWIan, an ossum and a godly feeling indeed!

India Today

Source: CNN-IBN

15 August, 2007

A habit, developed over the past twenty-two years has now been ingrained deeply into my system. I am late again.

I'm a day late but on Independence Day, when I am old enough to understand a lot of things, here's a humble dedication from me to our nation and to the brave men and women who fought for my freedom to abuse/make proud my nation. I don't know what adjectives I should use to describe it. To some its a nation worth dying for, to some its just a place they were born in and where they pass their time before they get the US/UK/Canadian visa. Personally speaking I don't know if I'll ever face a situation when I need to die for it, even if I do, I don't know if I'll do it. Neither do I know if I'll ever leave this land permanently.

I do however like, even love this country. The reasons for the same though, might or might not exist.

Moving on, a few lines from a man who according to BBC made the sun set on the empire.

I believe that the civilisation into which India has evolved is not to be beaten in the world. Nothing can equal the seeds sown by our ancestry.
Rome went; Greece shared the same fate;
the might of the Pharaohs was broken;
Japan has become westernised; of China nothing can be said;
but India is still,somehow or other, sound at the foundation
~ Mahatma Gandhi


In the words of Mohammed Iqbal -
Yunan Mishra Roma, sab mit gaye jahan se,
Ab tak magar hai baaki, naam-o-nishan hamara

Kuch baat hai ki hasti, mitti nahi hamari,
Sadio raha hai dushman daur-e-jahan hamara

Happy Independence Day

The Notice Everyone Dreads

IIMA

August 10, 2007

To : PGPI, MANAC I Students

From : MANAC I Instructors

Please note that there will be a short MANAC I Quiz today (Friday, 10.8.2007) at 2.30 p.m. in respective classrooms.

Thanks.

On His Wedding Night

Prof RaviC is writing the case solution on the blackboard and looks at a guy who's studying his casemat (case material) instead of looking at the blackboard for the solution.

Prof. RaviC: You're like the idiot who wants to watch a blue movie on his wedding night!

I don't think I need to describe the class reaction now!

I haven't had the privilege to be taught by this amazing guy but he's well known in IIMA circles for his witty remarks. I hope I too get to sit in his class next year!

WIMWI - Decoded

What 2T a.k.a. Vamsee, a friend and my dorm-mate (is that a word?) had to say on WIMWI, an introduction to life in WIMWI.

"I am really tempted to write a full fledged blog here, considering that this will be my first post since entering the hallowed portals of IIM A. But alas, with the mid-terms around the corner, it would be too much of a risk. But since I have managed the miracle of completing my WAC assignment before time (three hours to go!!!), I will take the liberty to put up a post.

Here is a list of some common jargons used here in WIMWI. Disclaimers, since it is not an original work. None the less, it makes a pretty interesting read. I promise there is a lot to follow, for which this will work as a reference guide. Take them at the face value now, explanations will follow in due course of time. I am off to enjoy the famous WAC run(See below) now...

Arbit (adj.: origin:: local); short for arbitrary .meaning nothing in particular and everything in general.

Assignment (n: origin:: James Bond Movies); PC lab has computer paper; groups have to meet; the Profs have to give something in order to take something; hence ass-ignments; gives rise to Newton's nth law - "thickness of the report shall be directly proportional to the weightage of the assignment".

Blackbooks (n: origin:: IIM A); collectors' items; consists of old question papers which are the saviours during quizzes, midterms and endterms; question-able methods of cracking the scene. "

Bumps (n: origin:: A'bad Municipal Corporation); if it's your birthday or in case you crack the scene , then you have had it - no ifs and butts.

Case mat (n: origin:: Case Unit); IN CASE YOU ARE FOUND WITHOUT IT IN CLASS , THEN YOUR CASE IS VERY WEAK. BT THE WAY THE UPPER CASE IS INCIDENTAL

CCCF (n: origin:: IIM A); acronym for 'Conceptual Clarity and Contextual Familiarity'; for cccf on what that means see cccf.

Chai (n: origin:: obscure); the underlying fillosophy of WIMWIans; the forum for countless discussions over countless cups; the non-alcoholic spirit of IIM-A life. Has strong associations with mess , NR and Rambhai's

CHAOS (n: origin:: Biblical (almost), IIM-A); describes the state of an WIMWIian two hours prior to any submission or presentation. Also IIM-A's organised (???) annual extravaganza.

Cogging (n: origin:: Arthur Hailey); Collaborative Operations on Getting Good Insights for Necessary Grades; on-line teaching aids for turning the wheels of one's life . Strictly prohibited in WIMWI.

Combo (n: origin:: Phantom Comics); IIM-A equivalent of Jungle Olympics; never ending source of fun, entertainment and activity in the second term, when battles are fought on an mental and physical plane; an outlet for action and interaction.

Convocation (n: origin:: Nalanda); the day when IIM-A life turns full circle; 180 degrees are handed over on this day.

Corpo Dinner (n: origin:: IIM-A), one more resultant)of mess grub; around 25 Indians go out in English suits to an American place, have Mexican and Chinese food and go Dutch; a truly global affair.

CP (n: origin:: Harvard); Acronym for 'Class Participation'; IIM's vocal support to the cause of socialism, often accompanied by its offshoots like Arbit CP, Challenge CP, RCP, ACP etc.

CR (n: origin:: Sholay); acronym for 'Class Representative'; generally jobless except for rescheduling classes, making farewell speeches, postponing assignments and making a fool of him(her)self in the Talent Nite.

Cribbing (n:: Oliver Twist); Continuous Ranting and Industrious Brow Beating Inevitably for Necessary Grades.

D-l, D-2 & D-ll (origin:: Louis Kahn); short for Dorm-1, Dorm-2 and Dorm-11; residences for non-males and non- resident males.

Day Zero (n: origin:: Algeber-wai mulublai); the day of reckoning for the best; genesis for some ;armageddon for any.

Diro (n: origin:: English); Big Chief of IIM-A; a figurehead who can't figure out where we are heading.

Dorm (n: origin:: Louis Kahn); they exist from 1 to 23; the epicentre of all activity in IIM-A; also residences for WIMWIans.

Dorm Rep (n: origin:: IIM-A); Chief of the dorm; arranges for dinners, dunkings, T-shirts and other common dorm inventory

Dunking (origin:: Niagara fn!!s) ; IIMA's answer to the patriot missiles ; long range aqueous projectiles aimed at an unsuspecting passerby providing source of immense gratification; this ritual for no perceivable reason, has a distinctive sexual bias.

Endterm (origin :'The Crusaders'}; the magnum opus of the coterie of professors, an epic battle fought by valiant students to stay afloat, which puts other occurrences like the Mahahharata and the Ramayana to shame; used in conjunction with other torture instruments like midterms and quizzes.

Exhibit (origin:: showbiz); Unnecessary, but necessary portion of anything attached to its end; an integral part of WAC reports and PPTs.

'F'(origin:: ancient Greek); the most dreaded grade in non-academic circles; also happens to be the sixth letter of the alphabet.

Fachchas ( origin: obfciirc); all new entrants to the realms of Louis Kahn, Vastrapur, the case method, corpodom and MANAC quizzes.

FPM ( origin: 11M A); fully paid mazaa; a four year transform which involves a fully subsidized vacation with a universal pastime called research; fine fellows they become.

Fraud (origin: RaviC, mind u, only the word, not what it stands for) to beautifully elaborate and then succinctly encapsulate first grade BS, applies to many assignments, and unfortunately, some courses as well

Garba ( origin: Gujjuland); a rollicking local dance form; an occasion for honing one'? skills in tertiary activities like dancing, bird-watching; a time when IIM A comes to NID, NIFT and CEPT.

Group Meeting (origin: Harvard); necessary part of the curriculum; when WIMWIans sit or stand or lie down and discuss solutions tor unstructured problems and dilemmas in life; in other words , the day's juice is collated, arranged and prepared ready for dispatch to community at large the next day.

Harvard Dinner (origin: IIM A); the soup that we land ourselves in on Friday nights; a solemn acknowledgment of where we derive our 'bread and butter' from;

IIM-B (origin: Indian Govt.); never heard of such a place, cccf invited. Also called Not So Well Known Institute of Management In Southern India.

IIM-C (origin: Indian Govt.); never heard of such a place, cccf invited. Also called Not So Well Known Institute of Management In Eastern India.

Juice (n: origin: IIM-A): WIMWI's own edition of the British, Hindi and vernacular tabloids put together in torture chambers called classrooms for public consumption and reprieve; no wonder Hitler didn't like the 'juice'.

Junta (origin: 1930s, Spain); we, the people, the mob, any number of guys and gals from one to infinity generally present anywhere.

KLMDC (origin:Gujjuland); Kinda' Lodge for Misled Delegations from Companies, a paid vacation for middle level managers in an amiable ambiance; for those who can't afford golf courses, crash courses are the in-thing; a classic case of mutual value addition.

Leli (origin IIM-A); ancient war cry of the masses; occurs when unwitting individual(s) have been taken (in) by a revenge seeking mob. (see tempo shout and zigzag).

LKP (origin: Louis Kahn); IIM-A equivalent of the red square; venue for convo, afternoon snoozes, photograph sessions, inaugs, rock-nites .....

LSD (origin: 'TheBeatles); stands originally for' Literary and Symposium Desk' but literally the symposium part is non-existent.

MAD Club (origin: IIM-A); stands for Movie A Day; but often Xceeds one's XXpectations.

Management (origin: Gujjuland); what one tells the auto driver when you want to get to IIM-A; not to be confused with anything else.

Marketing (origin: Indus Valley Civilisation); if it's not finance it must be; governed by four P's, especially during placement - Please Pardon Poor Percentages; also the name of torture instrument used by PO, Vyas and Jain Baba.

MF (origin: IIM-A); stands for Marketing Fair christened 'Insight'; where the companies use WIMWIans as guinea pigs for trying out new ideas and the WIMWIans use local junta as guinea pigs to try out their fledging skills and all the junta not doing serious work enjoy themselves immensely.

Midterms (origin: 'The Crusades'); See endterms.

NID (origin: 'Govt. Of India'); Place forming a mutual admiration society with WIMWI. They admire the , way our campus is built and we admire the way they are.

CT (origin: local); Where WIMWIans mortally wounded in the mess, retreat in the night to assuage grumbling tummies.

Nightout (origin: 'The Owl and the Pussy Cat'); doing something you should have done earlier, at a time when you should be doing what you did earlier, (see WAC).

Open Book (origin: smug Profs); Kind of exam in which cogging from a book is allowed, but in which you can't figure out which chapter. Or if you know the chapter you must have brought the wrong book. If nothing else you've come to the wrong classroom. See cogging.

Operations (origin:World War II); nothing medical There is a rumour that it used to be a substitute for Finance and Marketing, but you shouldn't believe everything you hear.

Pantry (origin: Louis Kahn); A. small room in every dorm. Some of these actually contain Ossum food.

PGP (origin: PGP office); Presently Grilled Prisoners. (See endterms, midterms, quiz, assignments).

Postpone (origin: Mojo); Something that is done to assignments, classes, quizzes on pretexts like Talent Nite, LAN crashes and a general attack of lethargy.

PPO (origin: P&G); Stands for 'Placement Panic Over' or 'Persistence Pays, OK?'.

PPT (origin: Placement Office); Stands for 'Please Pay "Ttention'. Sadly, very few comply and the rest pay up 250 bucks each.

Quiz (origin: Charles Daley); Like any other you have seen. Puzzling questions, limited time, makes you wish you knew more and of course the quizmaster's decisions final.

R.As (n: origin: 'The Mahabharta'; Lord Ganesha being the first one); People holding the key to a good GPA and must hence be kept in good humour. Attendance, CP and exam marks are in their hands. Behold them in awe and handle them with care (see GPA, CP, cribbing).

Rambhai (origin: Gujjuland); One man institution outside WIMWI who could teach a course or Wo if he had time (see marketing, chai).

Rem (origin: 'the Bible', 'The Second Coming'); Replay in slow motion for those who missed action the first time round.

RG (origin: The autobiography of Daintier Benz); I know what it means but why should I tell you ?

SAC-C (origin: The Chancellor of Exchequer); WIMWIan equivalent of President, Pope and CEO rolled into one. In short a position in which you can sac, see?(see WIMWI).

Soapbox (origin: Hyde Park, London); Place where some people go to speak and rest go to have fun.

Tucchas (Origin: Paradise Regained by Milton); the Gods in WIMWI

Ramp (origin: Stanford Univ. USA); Architectural marvel for foreigners and NID-ians to gawk at and for WIMWIans to climb, (see NID). Now notorious for parties

Summers (origin: Revolution of the earth round She sun);Hot season in preparation for which people wear blazers and ties .

Systems (origin: Mckinsey's 7 S model); Like Operations a rumoured alternative to Finance and Marketing. Most WIMWIans don't believe this to be true. (see operations, marketing, finance).

Talent Nite (origin: local); High point of the first term. An elaborate exercise to get to know almost everyone in your section and to see your CR make a fool of himself, (see CR).

Tempo Shout (origin: The Paleolithic Age; origin: of spoken tongue); tribal war whoop emitted by groups of WIMWIans, apparently without any provocation, rhyme or reason (see Leli, zigzag-zigzag).

Tower Lawns (origin: Louis Kahn); used by WIMWIans for playing football and hockey, general junta for lazing on and cows for grazing on.

Vastrapur (origin: unknown); Small unimportant village in a small unimportant town in Western India.

Vet (origin: Blue Cross); The medical man about town. Short for 'veteran doctor' - contrary to popular opinion. Met when you report a stomach upset , the main symptoms of which are over-sleeping and inability to attend classes.

WAC run (origin: local); strange ritual held nine times a year in which WIMWIans remain awake all Friday night and start running madly at 04:25 PM on the next day. (see Nightout).

Welcome Night (origin: local); Traditional event to see how well a PGP 1 can sing when two hundred PGP 2s are yelling.

WIMWI (origin: the professors used this to signify IIMA without using the name IIMA in case studies in the 1970s); Well known Institute of Management in Western India.

Wing (origin: Louis Kahn); View of the campus from the wrong side of the LKP.

Work-ex (origin: Newton's Third Lam); After which some people come here for a two year break.

Zigzag-zigzag (origin: Tempo Shout); Description of the path to success and future glory from here. Part of tempo shout, no doubt for that reason, (see Leli, tempo shout)."

Dorm 20

The fucchas of D20, rechristened.

4pLay

That, ladies and gentlemen is my name from now on. In other words, I've been rechristened as

4pLay - The Sex God

This is another WIMWI tradition, one of the famous ones I guess - Dorm Naming. An example - the Vindi you hear in M.S. Vindi Banga (a well known alumnus of IIMA), is his dorm name. The first thing people do when talking to IIMA students or alumni is ask their dorm name. So it is quite well known. There are 26 dorms in all over here and every dorm has secret rituals and traditions for dorm naming. No one outside the dorm is aware of these.

Here are all the dorm names in Dorm 20 - Dorm of Sex Gods...


This board though, hardly tells you the story. There have been worse names than these. A few examples are - Sussu Singh, Potty Singh, Landesh Singh, Blojo, Blomie, Brasak etc. Then we have some nice ones too, but then nice is boring!...;)