A trip to a nearby Resort.....

A month had gone by since my arrival here at Burass and I had started to fit into a rural lifestyle. But, one day my Manager called and handed over to me an Invitation for "all expenses paid 2 weeks stay" at a nearby Resort. Though I had been making plans for a trip to Gurgaon for the same purpose yet it didn't matter much as I had been waiting for such opportunity to relax and enjoy the company of other such tourists. So on the 9th of January, I packed my Bags and headed towards the State Bank of Patiala Infotech Academy. I was amongst the first few people to arrive and so got the luxury of getting a two-sharing room. Here I must add that I earned that right of luxury as I struggled for almost 10 mins fighting with the lock. For a moment, I started to question my abilities. "Ayan tu ek taala nahi khol sakta toh aage toh....", well I mean life throws at us lots of major challenges and we cannot afford to surrender to such trivial issues. Just as I opened the door, my roommate also came. I greeted him and thought that someone had said it correctly.."Luck happens when preparation meets opportunity"- someone prepares and someone else gets the opportunity. Nevertheless, atleast I had met someone of my age after a while even though our thoughts and actions were totally opposite. Newton's Law doesn't apply here though and thank God for that. 

Being a sports freak, I headed towards the Badminton Court but found no one interested in a game or two. Rest of the Gang were busy socializing with each other and I started socializing with the Security Guards in their Cabin. For a couple of days, people viewed me as some sort of Alien I guess and a few of them still do I suppose. All work and no play had made Ayan a dull boy. But, gradually people started flocking to the Badminton Court and after a point it became difficult to even manage two consecutive games for the demand had outstripped the supply. Cricket was something I had been looking forward to playing and soon I discovered that a few other people shared similar sentiments. Classes...oops ....ok let me make it clear that the Resort was a Training Centre and we had gathered for our our induction training. But the facilities made it look like as if we were on vacation in some Resort. Do read between the lines as I said this keeping in mind the hardships being faced by some of us at our current place of posting.

Classes were going one well especially things were fine as I could gather sitting in the last row. I don't mean that I was sleeping. Infact I spoke, I used the ink and I clicked on the mouse as well. On a serious note, we had some good learning sessions with the faculty.

Lohri was also celebrated in the campus. Dance is such an integral part of Punjabi culture and it was in its full glory here as some of them showed their best moves. I, as usual, applauded from sidelines. Everybody dances then there won't be anyone to appreciate. Actually, I had my feet rooted to the ground.

Food was good. I have head much worse than that. Infact, I must say that the Canteen Guys took decent care of us. Not everyone can be pleased and so no complaints. There would be people who even wondered at the quantity that I carried on my plate.Yes, I was hungry Guys.

Internet Cafe was initially out of order but then was made available for us to work on our projects. There was lot of research work done at www.facebook.com for this purpose. Library was either not accessible or was not accessed by us. I am not too sure what was the actual reason. As for me, I don't enter Libraries as I am at my loudest best there. My friends from the College days would vouch for that.

Talking about the project, well yeah we were divided into groups and were asked to present on various topics. I was the leader for one of the groups. It was amusing to note the kind of seriousness with which teams were preparing. Fair enough, most of them had not been involved in such occasions before in their life. So the formal announcement made them a bit jittery. Some of us had been part of such exercises a zillion times in our Management institutes and so we took it easy. Yeah, the important differentiating factor is the group camaraderie as here we hardly knew each other. So the practice sessions were necessary. Those sessions were also helpful to break the ice though in few cases the hammer broke but not the ice. The formal presentations were made. We fought over it, we laughed over it BUT most importantly, we ENJOYED each other's company. I got nostalgic while doing the Report for the project as we used to work similarly at College. But, blogging has helped my thought-process as I compiled the report like a blog. The words just flowed. My teammates would have resorted to a Coup if I had failed to get the report ready on time. (We were just an hour late.) The presentation of our Group was well appreciated but the winners were the worthy winners.

Everyone left but I remained as I had an important business at Dhobi Ghat to be taken care of. One of my colleagues, Pranati also stayed back for the same. We had a good time at Omaxe. He departed in the evening leaving me with the TV. Monday morning, I had to leave for the fear of being thrown out.

Lots of moments were captured on camera(nothing indecent), lots of friend requests were made and lots of numbers were exchanged. Hopefully, the new Network remains Strong and Healthy.

PUNJAB FOR DUMMIES...

One month of my stay in Punjab has really given me some interesting insights which I would like to share with you Guys. Prior to that Punjab has always been a part of our conversations rather jokes. The last one I heard is as follows:

One day a Sardarji goes to a Punjabi Scholar with a question which had been troubling him for quite a while….

Sardarji: “Scholar Ji aap toh itne educated hain phir yeh bataaaiyen na ki saare jokes hum Punjabi o pe hi kyun banta hain??”

…..now the Scholar was at a loss of words and so he said that he would ask the same to Pesident Bush as the Americans know all.

The Scholar asked the same question to the President who in turn asked a question to the Scholar…”In my House, three of us live….my wife, my child and can you tell me who is the third????”

The Scholar couldn’t answer and so President said- “Its Simple, the third person is Me”.

The Scholar came back and met the same Sardarji. He then asked the same question-

….”In my House, three of us live….my wife, my child and can you tell me who is the third????”

Now, the Sardarji was clueless and so he asked for the solution. The Scholar very confidently answered…”Its Simple, the third person is Bush of course!!!!”.

Just to make my intentions clear, I do not intend to offend any of my Punjabi friends and I am sure they will take it positively for Punjabis are the most simple and fun-loving people. I have utmost respect for them and their feelings.

There are a few elements inherent to this place which are very amusing and interesting from my point of view.

Its far more easier to remember people here by name than by their faces. Because, one just needs to add a “Singh” to the first name if the person happens to be a Male or a “Kaur” if female. Believe me you will not go wrong in almost 80% cases. But the same funda would fail you in Bengal where there is a Chatterjee, a Banerjee, a Mukherjee, a Bhattacharjee, then a Chakraborty followed by thousand other surnames. Faces in Punjab are pretty confusing especially of the older lot. All seem alike. If Moustache rules South than the Beard certainly rules Punjab. I have still not paid last month’s rent as I am not able to find the landlord who is around 85 years old. I don’t find time to go to his house and seem to miss him in the crowd. Kindly note that the total population of the village would comprise of 40% Senior Citizens and another 10% who look like Senior Citizens. By the way, my Landlord’s name is Milkha Singh. He has not been to any Olympics but somehow manages to open the big gate from outside even though I keep it bolted from inside and appear at the door to start a conversation. In the last 36 days, he has sent his son to the US five times already, has built this house thrice and hosted a minister twice. I try to avoid him so that his son doesn’t get affected by acute jetlag and he himself doesn’t get broke given the inflationary pressure on the economy. That is the story of every house here. One son is in the States and he sends enough dollars back home so as to build a fortune based on the Exchange Rate. Ancestral Land has always been there and so has been the monetary benefits of the Dowry system. Besides, Power and Water are being given as freebies by the Government here.

I have been pretty bad with languages I must say. I failed to learn Khasi in 22 years and Telegu in 5 years but amazingly, I find myself at ease with this language. I have already picked up the most prominent part of the colloquial Punjabi and that happens to be a single word…”Bh@*&%$#”. The rest is just a mix of Hindi (which I already know) and authentic Punjabi. So it won’t take much time I guess. For now I just nod my head and show my teeth as a definite cover for my ignorance and definitely a false display of my understanding.

Another important thing to know about Punjab and Punjabis is the obsession with “Ji” so much so that they tend to take it as an insult if you don’t use a “Ji” at least ten times in a sentence. For them, “Raja Ji Bh@*&%$# hain” is fine BUT “ Raja Bhagwan hain” is not. I am trying to squeeze in as many JIs as possible. May be this as a practice is more prominent here in the village but still its also existent in the urban settlements nevertheless.

Coming to food, Punjab is known as much for its “Makke Di Roti n Sarson Da Saag” as also for its “Shudh Dudh n Ghee”. Have tried some Ghee but have not dared to try milk for 100% purity is hazardous to a stomach which has over the years got accustomed to all sorts of crap. Sarson Da Saag is wonderful but I cannot say the same for Makke Di Roti though. Its just plain OK. I have been to Ludhiana, Amritsar and Chandigarh and have tried non-vegetarian at quite a few places. Mutton hasn’t been that great, Chicken was Ok, Biryani was DISMAL and yet to find decent Chinese though the Chinese food at Chopsticks in Chandigarh was comparatively the best value for money experience that I had in Punjab in terms of non-vegetarian cuisine.

My weekend trips to the three cities along the under-repair Grand Trunk Road allows me to put in a word or two about these places. One interesting fact is that every major city in Punjab has a road called as “Mall Road” and predominantly that happens to be the most upscale commercial hub. Firstly, Amritsar is historically the most important city in Punjab. It has lot to offer to a tourist- Wagah Border, Golden Temple, Jalliwanwala Bagh, Ram Tirth and Vaishno Devi Temple. Most importantly, its less expensive. The kind of room for which I paid just Rs.250 cost me Rs.1200 in Chandigarh. Amritsar is trying hard to upgrade its look into a more upscale one but at this stage it has a long way to go. Next, Ludhiana is the industrial hub and expectedly full of dust and dirt. It should be renamed as “Dhuliana”. There is nothing to see here unless someone enjoys “industrial tourism”. Lastly, Chandigarh, as everyone knows, is a planned city but accolades must be given to somebody (will explain the cause of confusion) for keeping the City clean and well maintained. Here, I cannot help but draw a parallel between Chandigarh and Babri Masjid site. The Logic???....well both of these are existing in confusion. Whereas the confusion is more in case of Chandigarh, the complications are far greater in case of Babri Masjid site. Babri Masjid is disputed while Chadigarh is free of any such dispute. But just think of it- Chandigarh is the Capital of Punjab; Chandigarh is the Capital of Haryana and Chandigarh is also an Union Territory. However, Chandigarh is the most vibrant city in Punjab and is full of Youth and Beauty. I wonder why the Guys there have a major problem finding matrimonial alliance. I guess the reason would be that the Beautiful Girls are looking for a better match like….

From Inches & Feet to Debit & Credit….My First Week as a Banker.

On the 3^rd day of December 2010, my transition from a Visual Merchandiser into a Banker was initiated as I entered through the door of the designated branch of the Bank in a village called BURASS. I am saying so because the first thing that I noticed about this branch was its Header which was a Backlit Board of size 24x3 ft (approx.). The VM in me was still at work I guess. However, for all the readers and especially those people who might someday find themselves in this part of the world, let me straightway highlight the most important thing about this village and that is its name. Yeah it’s spelt as B-U-R-A-S-S but pronounced as B-R-A-S-S. Not pronouncing it as it is supposed to be could mean another 25 odd Kms extra and of course your wallet would be lighter by a Rs.500 note as I experienced. I am proud of our Banking sector that it has reached remotest of places which are beyond even Google Search Engine (forget GOD). Anyways, I managed to reach the place safe and in good shape.

I was wearing formals after a year thanks to a strange unwritten mandate whereby every employee is supposed to wear only Levi’s. I always believe actual confidence in stead of just show of confidence in the brand is the key to the success. For a Brand as great as Levi’s, there should not be any forced ideologies. Tolerance should be the way forward. If the employees don’t experience competing products, how would they value their own product? People would anyways wear Levi’s as it is the best in the business. I really enjoyed putting on a pair of Levi’s and going to work. “Enjoying the product” is crucial and that happens when you choose the product with absolute freedom. I know I am deviating from the subject but kya karein “Gyaan baatne ki aadat jo hain!!!”.

Well coming back to the dress code in the bank, I was a bit apprehensive as to whether I would be looking fine in formals (that included a borrowed belt as well…thanks Adi) or not. But when I entered the premises, I found myself overdressed. Every employee present there was least bothered about what they were wearing (perhaps ignorant of the fact that I am a NIFTian..hehe!!!) and more interested in getting the task at hand completed. I have not yet taken out the two trousers and a shirt that I had purchased for this new job.

Another thing going through my mind was the “Sir” culture prevalent in Sarkari Jobs and which is not that close to my heart as I always found “the first name culture” helps in building better relationships. However, the moment I entered, I was greeted by an elderly Gentleman who addressed me as “Beta”. The least one can do then is address the person as “Sir” as ‘Uncle” would be too un-professional. He is the Manager of the Branch. A very soft spoken and jovial person as I could understand from the interaction. He assured me that he would teach me every trick of the trade before my next posting and then introduced me to the rest of the employees. All in all, we are seven people manning the Branch.

My first task was to fill up the withdrawl forms and pay-in-slips as customers here are mostly illiterate. Customers would come and say “Katwaana hain” and that meant he/she wanted to withdraw some amount. (“Jamaa karwana hain” means “To Deposit”). One customer came and told me “Pachaas katwaana hain”. I was surprised and confirmed with him again and then proceeded to fill up the form thinking that may be he needs only fifty bucks and anyways there is no ATM anywhere close by. He took the form and presented it to cash till, the Cashier was surprised but still honoured the document by handing over a Rs.50 note to the customer. The customer was shocked and kept looking at us for a minute or so and then told us in a desperate tone that he needed Rs.50000 urgently for personal need. Before any one could raise a finger at me, other customers sprang to my defence saying that I had duly confirmed it with the customer. All of us (including the concerned customer) had a good laugh when we realized that “Pachaas katwaane ka matlab tha Pachaas hazaar katwaana”. I filled up another form for Rs.49,950 and then the customer went back home once he was satisfied with the amount. I am still struggling to get a grip over the language except the B***C*** part which has gained universal popularity.

Next I was helping people open new Accounts with the Bank and in the enthusiasm of helping people save their hard earned money, I had allowed an illiterate to be a witness to another illiterate’s Account. Luckily, I was corrected by the Deputy Manager in time. It is also funny to note that the people are more concerned about their photo on the Passbook than the Passbook or the account statement. They literally plead for their photo to be pasted on the Passbook.

Banking processes are slow in nature due to the hell lot of paperwork involved but somewhere it is impossible to cut down on the paperwork as documentary evidence is absolutely required to fight any unwanted financial or legal hassles. That is why, one has to be very alert while doing the work and hence a cup of tea is a must every hour.

My real mentor here is the Deputy Manager who is taking me through all the day to day tasks. He is ready to explain things over and over again and incase of mistakes, he points out the implications and the correct way of doing things in a very structured yet simple manner. He took me through the End of Day procedure where all the Data is transferred to a secure location. This reminded me of my days at Pantaloons where the Closing duty was loathed by everyone. Thankfully, End of Day here happens at 5 PM and not 12 AM.

I have not been able to do much on the system as yet as there is no additional one available and others can’t let me work on theirs due to the long queue of customers. But still I have learnt a few common day-to-day operations on my own.

My first Sunday here was a working day for us. Strangely, work increases automatically whenever I am around. Looking forward to this Sunday which hopefully would be in Ludhiana.

The first week was easy but things will be different next week onwards as I start assuming more responsibilities. The best part about this week was that my father sounded very happy for he can easily explain my job to friends and relatives now. He did ask me if there are any terrorists around. I told him terrorists also won’t risk coming here. There is a great chance that they might fall asleep due to boredom and get caught. My mother is more concerned about rice being absent from the diet. I told her that I am not bothered about rice at the moment. At least, Pappu has agreed to make rotis for this poor soul. Long Live Pappu….

However, it feels nice when almost every passer-by greets you as “Manager Saab”. It makes you feel that you are very important to these people. Because of limited education, they often put full faith in the decision-making of the bankers. It is a great motivation to become a Good Banker.

Note: Please read the previous post to somewhat acquaint yourself with the village where I am currently posted at.

Actor is the Same…the Set has Changed.....a Village called BURASS

If you read my next post, some of you would be painting a picture of the village called BURASS in your mind. It is located somewhere in the Fatehgarh Sahib district of Punjab. Let me pen down a few key indicators about this village as I have experienced in the first week.

1. The nearest ATM is nearly 13 KMs. away. I might have been able to save for a Car at least in the last two years had I been faced with such a situation in Hyderabad.
2. Have survived for a week with Rs.73 in pocket and in fact have opened a new Account with the Bank as well but waiting for the weekend so that I can withdraw some money from the existing accounts and put the same into the new account. Till then zero balance is fine.
3. The nearest Cyber Café is next to the nearest ATM. (Facebook updates are being affected through my mobile).
4. It’s damn cold out here but I love winters. However, I need to buy some woolens immediately.
5. It requires lots of guts and motivation to take bath with freezing cold water and that too at 7 O’clock in the morning. There is no Geyser and I don’t have an Immersion Rod. This is No.1 on my weekend Shopping List.
6. There is no Dhobi in the village. So, I have started washing the clothes myself but then what’s the use. There is no way to iron the formal clothes as well unless I think of buying an iron.
7. No breakfast available. Lunch and Dinner at “Pappu da Dhaba”. Dinner by 6.45 PM. (It fees like I am on a train…). Menu is simple… Roti and Sabzi with an occasional Omelet depending on Pappu’s mood.
8. Chicken, Meat and Fish are unheard of…looks like so. Or may be God had taken my Doc’s advice too seriously.
9. The monthly rent for the house is Rs.700 (quite a change from the Rs.7500 rent of the last house in Hyderabad). Anyways, the house is guarded by high walls on all sides. There is a provision for 6 tenants to co-exist. Currently, I am the only one there. The rest of the house is in darkness as is the approach road to the house. Hence, I finally decided to by a torch.
10. The last Bus into the village from the nearest town is at 4.30 PM and hence there is no chance of going out of the village after working hours (Yeah post 4.30…it’s referred to as “after working hours”).
11. Have not seen a beautiful girl since I left Chandigarh. Had been to Sector 17 that day and really felt good (so much to see….I mean so many stores and in fact the first store that I entered was Levi’s….as I told the VM in me wanted to check out the newest campaign on Curve ID). I wish the Desi version of “A Simple Life” was being shot here. The village would have been lit up. Oh by the way, electricity is not a problem here and thanks God for that).
12. No English or Hindi Newspapers to read. Cable is available but TV is not.

I have decided to spend every weekend away from the village. I don’t know what I will do and where I will go. For a start, today I am off to Ludhiana (to watch a movie and of course buy some woolens), next weekend I would be in Chandigarh and the one after that in Amritsar perhaps. The schedule might change depending on the training schedule which might come any moment.

However, I am enjoying the long brisk walks after office hours everyday on the nicely laid roads (thanks to Prime Minister’s Sadak Yojana) through the fields breathing in the fresh cold air that rejuvenates both the body and mind. The thrill and excitement of Pace is not there but Peace is certainly here. The best part is that everyone in the village recognizes and greets me. People are very friendly and caring here. All said and done, hoping for a quick move out of this place though.

TALE OF RETAIL.....My Experience!!!!

As I suddenly find myself bidding adieu to RETAIL, I feel like dedicating a few lines to this one word which completely enveloped my life in the last two and half years. I come from a small town where people are very fashion forward but retail is mostly unorganised. It was only five years back when I looked at this word seriously. I saw this Notification from NIFT and then read some articles on "Retail Boom" in the Economic Times(can't believe that I used to read that paper word by word....now I can't even risk reading one article). Fashion Week was a big hit and India all of a sudden emerged as Retail hotspot for all kinds of Brands. I too managed my way into NIFT where the daily doses on Retail further strengthened our believe in a career in retail. "India's organised retail was only 3%"....this was the start and end to all discussions on Campus it seemed. All sorts of subjects were introduced- Buying amd Merchandising, Customer Relationship Management and Visual Merchandising to name a few. Initially the names were bouncers for a Commerce Graduate who only new his Accounts and Economics. Infact, these are still bouncers for all of us as we struggle to master these on a daily basis and yet find that the TARGET is mostly beyond us even if it is by Re.1.

After two years at NIFT, I found myself in Big Bazaar as a Management Trainee along with other 41 poor souls. We started our training and suddenly Sundays were no longer holidays. I had to choose Monday as an off. First day's duty was at the Customer Service Desk where you try to convince people with all kinds of funda and return back home with lots of leg pain, a bit of headache and a few new "words" that you learnt from some customer. Gradually, we were taken through all the functions and the departments for "Parikrama". Next monster was the Store Opening and Closing. For openings I had to be there by 6 O'Clock in the morning and follow all the protocols of the process which was exhaustive. The Closing bit was tougher for a bachelor living away from home....No Dinner, Autowallahs charging for flight tickets and dogs awaiting in the Galli. But then I mastered this process and the "Chowkidar" in Pantaloons would endorse that. I settled in and then was unsettled with the dual responsibility of an MT and as well as a VM. From that day onwards "Night Out" meant working all through the night locked from outside and without AC, if I may add. Till that day, "Night Out" would be something on the lines of that popular show being aired on NDTV 24x7 at 11.30 P.M. There was an ocassion when I did night-out as a VM and then continued the next day only to find myself doing Stock-take as an MT. Was too tired to go home and sleep. I just walked into the nearest theatre and slept for 3 hours. Came back to the store...this time as a VM. One fine day, I had a sudden change in profile and found myself in an Office setup. That was the best time that I had in that organisation. But, the honeymoon period was cut short as all the MTs had their final confirmation reviews scheduled after the Exchange Offer. With the end of the Campaign, most of the MTs were unfortunately(or fortunately for them....don't know) were shown the door. MTs are Most Tortured any ways and so no hard feelings. But we had the best reality check possible coming out fresh from College. We learnt a lot more than what was there in the Induction Manual.

Anyways, I was confirmed and asked to join Pantaloons as VM. They knew that any body passing out from NIFT could be either a designer or a visual merchandiser. Spent almost an year there. I was "at home" in Pantaloons, atleast I spent the maximum time there so what if I was not in Pyjamas. Two of my hobbies as a child were photography and travelling and my job as a VM allowed me to do plenty of that but not exactly the way I intended it to be. I was not clicking pics of scenic places nor was I clicking pics of beautiful models... I was capturing in the frame "clothes sans the models". Nevertheless had a nice time with a few of my colleagues and that was what kept me going. By nature, I hate being indoors and I was feeling claustophobic.

A call from Levi's came to my rescue and the opportunity to manage multiple stores without spending nights like a prostitute was a fantastic opportunity. The Brand name and exposure ofcourse were there. I joined the Levi's team as a VM for AP thinking that Change would do good to me and allow me to start thinking again. I must say I enjoyed my time at Levi's irrespective of a few negatives (life otherwise would be so mundane) in terms of execution goof-ups, communication gaps, differing ideas and lack of elbow-room. This was so because of the healthy vibes within the team which was a big motivating factor. Oh I must mention here that my love for travelling was tested to the core here. Would have liked to travel a bit more comfortably but what the heck...seeing new places itself is very refreshing.

However, the journey was cut short and I am done with my stint in Retail. Good and Bad moments, positive and negative environment, achievements and failures, opportunities to learn and opportunities to share, easy and tough customers, a few nice people to work with....that was my tale of Retail.

Before I signoff, I would like to put down 5 general observations that stood out from my experience in Retail. Those would be:

1> The best thing to happen due to Retail Boom is that toilets are available every 5 steps and hence there is a marked decrease in the "wet walls"!!!!

2> Cheap Labour is easily available and Donkeys take home peanuts.

3> If you don't achieve targets, you don't get incentives. If you achieve, you get incentives first and then get punished later on as often the targets are not based on the micro and macro environment but whatever is there in that excel file.

4> VM has gained importance but only decorative importance. Things will improve as soon as people stop fiddling with it. Too many cooks spoils the broth.

5> Customers can't be taken for a ride any longer. "*Conditions Apply" won't apply after a point. There are too many options at the Customer's disposal. "Innovative products that solve problems" and "Benefits with no Riders" are going to be the key drivers. Afterall, Quality and Service are taken for granted now.

Do share your take on Retail based on your experience...Bye!!!

Ground for Transformation....

Yesterday night I just happened to find some CDs which had stored in them the memories from my College days back in Shillong. For a moment I was nostalgic but that is when I realized the impact that those years had in my transformation. I would of course give credit to my School and school teachers for being the initial source of all the values n whatever virtues that are there in me. However, transformation in me happened at St.Edmund's College. Past is just not a bag of memories but often a bag of lost learnings, forgotten achievements and lost inspirations.

If I can recollect correctly, I had applied to this institute for Commerce after my 10th Board and infact ran the risk of going back to my school for Science if I would have been rejected. This was so because this idiot did not apply anywhere else. For once this idiot's hunch paid off and I became an Edmundian. So here I was in the class at 7 AM with a notebook, a bit of sleep in my eyes, a handful of English words to speak and lots of nerve as this was an Institute of Irish Brothers. I had come from a very good school with good learnings but the only issue was that of the 12 years spent there, English was a language only to be written well and not practiced verbally (Don't misunderstand me but both the students and the teachers had a far better interaction levels with Bengali as a medium of instruction as the Vernacular System was still with all of them).However, that was not the only issue that I had. The bigger monster was that four letter word "GIRL"(What where you guys thinking????). I know you can almost visualize an image of a poor chap wishing to speak to all the beautiful girls but not able to because his English and the unfortunate NO GIRLS SYSTEM of his school were proving to be the major roadblocks. Somehow, I made two friends (Arup and Ankur) and we were surviving.

Then came the big occasion...the College Week (rather College Month). Cricket team was formed and I was not there because I was not able to gel with those people. But how could have I stayed away from Cricket then???? One fine day when the team was practicing, I just walked towards the only person I knew quite well in the team and asked him to let me bowl some deliveries. He agreed and the next moment I was in the team. Before you all start repenting that you have missed out on somebody of Akram's pedigree, let me clarify that it was more like "Andhon ki nagri mein Kaana Raja". Right on that pitch, my transformation started. I began hanging out with these guys for lure of more cricket and started making more and more friends. This led to me joining almost every second competition in College Week. I did not care whether I made a fool of myself in front of others but only thing I knew I was having the best time of my life. Infact, I still remember that I had a casual opportunity to coach the Girls' team before their match as well. It’s a different story though that they won the Cup and we Boys' didn't even make the semifinals. A great Coach need not be a Great Player I guess...hehehehe. Dronacharya Awards were not conferred on me that year though. However, what I won was the confidence to converse with people (and most importantly with Girls) and Converse in ENGLISH.

I had a great opportunity to speak in English as a child as well as most of my friends were from Missionary schools but at that point I did not see the importance of all these. My School was a Safe Zone for me but now I pat myself on my back when I think of the two best decisions that I have taken in my life: 1. To join the great institute called ST.Edmund's and 2. To play cricket of course irrespective of the skill levels.

Communication classes, reading, writing, watching English movies (that was one excuse to see some GOOD stuff on screen) and Commentary with TV on Mute were part of the effort on my part but when you don't know the next words being uttered by another person, that is when you improvise. THAT IS WHEN YOU LEARN......

I always felt that I could write well but while speaking I needed time to translate a sentence first but by that time the other person would lose interest in conversing with me. However, after a couple of years in that institute I started being much more vocal in the class. Thanks to Late Conrad Sir for the interactive sessions that he encouraged in the class. All those debates and discussions (which often stretched to the level of ridiculous sparring of words) in the class helped me learn better and made me understand the value of knowledge gathering and sharing. My teachers in NIFT would vouch for the fact that they knew that every time they came to the class, they had to answer at least one of my questions. I was infact quite optimistic this time that the SONY guys would choose me to host KBC 3. But it was not to be. May be this time I will be a Crorepati by answering questions.

Anyways, I would leave you guys rolling on the floor by putting down the first English sentence that I started speaking (infact repeating like a parrot) when I was a child and that was "WHAT IS TELL?"......I have come a long way but yet it feels like as if the journey has just begun!!!!!

NIFT....time for F5, isn't it?????

On my last visit to NIFT, I interacted with the newest Batch of students and they had quite a few questions which I now realise were infact the same ones that we had when we joined this institute. I always admired the infrastructure at NIFT Hyderabad and things have become better now. But my concern is not NIFT Hyderabad but the brand called "NIFT".

NIFT, a decade ago was a big brand name in the apparel industry and it had a kind of aura around it. NIFTians were the most sought after breed of new age professionals in this sector. The irony is dat in the age of extensive media exposure, NIFT has lost some of its sheen for sure. Its true that there is an Act by Parliament which puts NIFT right up there with IITs and IIMs. But the people who matter failed to act on the act. Sadly, it is viewed as a Cashcow for milking more and more money but the Cow is getting weaker. However, not much ground has been lost and I can see some efforts being made to get it to the level where it deserves to be. One area that I would like to address here is that NIFT is the premier institute for Fashion in India(along with NID) and is seen as an Institute at par with IIMs, IITs and AIIMS. But, the ground reality is different. Compare the offers that students of these institutes get in Placements. IIMs and IITs are able to attract fat packages.Somewhere, there is a great disconnect between the industry and our Institute. This is primarily because the NIFT ALUMNI network is not half as good as dat of IIMs and IITs. It is the Alumni which is the Bridge between an Institute and the Industry and if the Bridge is not taken care of then there won't be any long term benefit that the Institute can derive out of educating each and every Alumni. Many students do not get the desired result out of the time spent here and then develop negative vibes about the institute and then those vibes spread across. Agreed that the student is as much responsible for his fate as is the Institute but I guess the time has come to set things in order so that henceforth the students get the best of offers. For this, I am putting forward these 10 points:

1. Regular Alumni Meets and building a wide network so that the good word spreads far and across. Especially, the students of the first 10 batches would be now in positions where they can play a key role in placements and projects. It should not be the case that these students are remembered only when the new students require jobs but they should be invited into councils at each Centre for the betterment of that particular Centre.

2. There should be effort on spreading the awareness about the various courses offered at NIFT as I have seen most people having a notion that anybody who comes out of NIFT is a designer. That is why, the Fashion Management Students have not got that what they expect out of the PG Course.

3. The selection procedure must be much more watertight to ensure that only genuinely interested students join this course.

4. The projects appraisal should leave no scope for mediocrity or dupllicity in the work. There should be a system in place where the Faculty Guide gets a constant feedback from the Organisation where the student is doing his/her project or internship. The scores should that feedback seriously along with the Jury Presentation.

5. There should be strategic tie-ups with organisations so that students can get involved in projects round the year. This would build a relationship which might translate into pre-placement offers. This is very important as often placements suffer the wrath of recession.

6. Consutancy projects should be taken up and the students should be active part of that.

7. For PG Course, the 2-year term should be a rigorous(ofcourse the students would find ways to enjoy) and inculcate the discipline which they can carry into the industry. When the so-called "NIFTIAN ATTITUDE" wd be backed by the DISCIPLINE, everyone else will shut up.

8. There has to be a minimum threshold level in place for the participating organisations.

9. The Coursework should be regularly updated to be in sync with the pace of the industry.

10. WE STUDENTS SHOULD LEAVE NO STONE UNTURNED TO ENCASH THE OPPORTUNITY THAT WE GET BEING PART OF NIFT.

Sincerely, I feel that I should have done somethings better and somethings should have been better.However, we cannot discount the Brand name of "NIFT" that is already there. The idea behind all that I have written is just to put it across to all of you that is about time that we(the Institute, the faculty, Alumni and the Students) work together to take the brand called "NIFT" to a level which would make it the most important 4 alphabets in a Student's CV.