Convocation: 17-Mar-12

Its been a while since I really put in some time and effort for creating a post and one of the events that I really wanna go all out to describing is my Convocation at IMT cos its the first time I am ever going on stage to receive a degree.
The run up to the whole event is kind of a cross between boredom and extreme activity as my exams got over on 4th and I had practically nothing to do before 17th and hence instead of being beset with boredom, I went on a trip to Vaishno Devi which nearly got my health screwed up with the altitude sickness rendering me immobile for 3 4 days after the whole fiasco.
Anyways, the most awaited day,the 17th of March 2012 arrived and somehow I was unprepared for anything that followed. The day began quite late as what was to follow was a lot of frenzied activity. I went and collected the robe along with Nimesh around 10 30 am from the designated room and this followed by an insane amount of Bhasad “ Slang for useless banter. The ‘Nerd” gang comprising of me, Mukul, Nishant, Karan and Kaustuk all decided to reach the convocation hall by 3 15pm to avoid being thrown out and so by 2 30pm, I began getting ready followed by photo session with friends.
The ceremony began at 4 with an invocation to lord Ganesh followed by our director Bibek Banerjee reading out the annual report while also delving on the theme of Business 2.0, basically he was reading from the introduction I wrote for the newsletter. LOL. This was followed by a speech from Kamal Nath, President, IMT and Union Minister for Urban Development and a relatively short one by Mr Pranab Mukherjee. Both were so dreary and boring, they made the 40 mins between them feel like whole of eternity.
This was then followed by the most awaited segment of the whole event and that is being handed the degree. Names were called out indicating that we were to collect our degrees and we moved in a single file to go on stage and get them. When my turn came, I shook hands with the director and Kamal Nath but I had to reach out and grab the hands of Pranab Mukherjee. Back in place, we waited for a more mins before the ceremony ended and we threw our hats in the air. I threw mine up, the hat landed somewhere ahead but somebody else’s landed on me. By 8 30, we returned the robes followed by a decent dinner and some more photos.
Farewells, promises to meet again and stay in touch were mouthed more often than breathing I would say for that one hour post dinner. Mukul was the first one among my friends to leave right after dinner which is when I realized how much I had bonded with all my other friends and somehow probably I had assumed that everyone would be there all the time.
It was time for m to begin packing my stuff as well and so by 12 30, I had completed my packing. Siddharth Singh aka Boxer had booked the cab for 3 30am. The last 3 hours in college was spent catching up with juniors, or the neo seniors as I would say, some more bhasad and then a sweet simple sendoff. And on that day, my 21 month association with the college came to an end but my lifelong association with my friends continues

The First month of the year

The first month of the year is kinda unnaturally hard on me with couple of ailments and disasters striking me in rapid succession but have been off by a multitude of good events thanks to my buddy P6 for the Thanjavur trip and my parents for the Goa trip . so in case u r wondering why i am missing in action from the blog scene, here is a small recap of the various things i have been doing or things r doing to me

Jan 1: Rain

Jan2: Ankle sprain

Jan3: Limp

Jan4: Peace

Jan5: Rest

Jan6: Friend dearest

Jan7:Yo Goa

Jan8: Ho Ho Goa

Jan9: Yii boredom

Jan10: Yo Thanjavur

Jan11: Heya Thanjavur, Mannargudi and Thiruvallur

Jan12: Heya Kumbakonam, Darasuram and Thiruvaiyur

Jan13: Thyagaraj Samaradhane

Jan14: Illayaraja Aradhane

Jan15: Sankey Tank

Jan16: Yo SAP

Jan17: Heya Delhi: Achchoo

Jan18: Throat infection

Jan19: Diet of Azithromycin, Crocin and Saridon

Jan20: Classes and Tiredness

 

An actual and truly complete log of what I have been doing the whole time

Till next post

Nik

31-Dec-2011 and 1-Jan-2012–> Unbelievable

ok so how does 2 days take precedence over a blog titl…thats cos i think the dates are important and there is no title for this post. This is just some recollections i have of the 2 days

31-Dec-2012.

Woke up at 4 pm after deciding a lot of plans and quashing most if not all of them for that extra sleep time and then got up in time for some timepass and Uzumaki Naruto episodes. Had some tea and samosas and spent some more time. Dinner was decent as we were served Sarson ka saag and Makke ki roti. The highlight of the dinner was the desserts which was supposedly chocolate shots which unfortunately were not as gr8 as we were promised but nonetheless.

The real fun started post 10pm when the dance floor opened in the most loved place in IMT: the amphitheater. From then on it was a gr8 time with superb music and friends coming together and making merry on the occasion. Lots of snacks and beverages ( non alcoholic) later, we started the count down to the new year and we were treated to some superb fireworks show by SAC and wishes went round and finally I decided it was time to get back to my room and more often than not it turns out I am mistaken and as usual, I met up with friends i started chatting with and ended up in my room by 4am and finally sleep ensued.

1-Jan-2012

Got up royally at 2 30pm and after wasting a lot of time, i did something useful. Took out the trash but it accumulated again as i cleaned my cupboard…arghhhh..Me and Nimesh decided to GIP mall for some timepass and also dine at Vaango which seems like one of the places in North India which serves decent South Indian food…a haven in rough weather…when we left college at 6pm, it was just drizzing ever so lightly and since the weather was cloudy we didnt think too much as it had stayed the same almost the whole day…5 kms into the trip, it drizzled a bit and we took a break for some Shikanji as also to seek refuge from the drizzle…we reach GIP by 7pm and after a couple of trips around the mall and buying some arbit business card holders, decided to hog at Vaango…the moment we stepped out, we saw it was drizzling like crazy and we headed into the mall and straight to Mad over donuts where we hogged a couple of donuts and a cappucino…We then crossed the street to get to Vaango where we had Idli Vada Sambhar ..yum and some Neer Dosa with Gunpowder and Oil..(Gunpowder = Chutney Powder) …And this is when we got into major trouble…it was raining cats and dogs outside..We had to wait a little…it was 9 30pm by the time we started back and 3 kms into the drive back we were soaked completely…we took couple of breaks, once near a factory and second time near a housing scoiety where we warmed our hands with the fire and finally drove back in nearly 50m visibility condition…a hot bath and amazing food at DLP to satisfactorily end the day…just cant express enough…

Till next post

Nik

Once in a while, along comes a day

When there are lot of things to keep you engaged throughout the day and somehow make u feel satisfied at the end of the day and one such day at IMT was 24th Dec 2011.

The day began with 2 exams being scheduled, Marketing of Services and Business process Reengineering. Though the names sound big and difficult study material, it was fairly simpler and wasn’t all that of a botheration as both papers were global in nature and nothign specifically touchy about them to warrant anxieties and do serious study…

The main attraction lied in what followed these exams, namely Don 2- The movie and Pizza Hut. The tickets were booked and we, Me, Mukul, Karan and kaustuk, were raring to go post exams. i was a little too subdued and tired after the exam ordeal but nonetheless excited to go to the movies. we were at the theater at 4 and the movie was not supposed to start off until 4 30 and the security guard wouldnt allow us inside until 4 20pm. the logic beats me however the standoff stood. At 4 20 we made into the hall armed with 2 large pepsi glasses and 1 tub of popcorn out of which the popcorn and 1 pepsi was meant for me and 1 pepsi for karan.

The movie began with a nice action sequence and a started off pretty well. then came the bulging middle of the movie which started creating boredom and was not the typical don style movie as expected. the action sequences were enjoyable and so was the dialogues but the storyline was weak despite having many twists and turns but the end was superb. And credit Kaustuk to sleep through this movie even though the 2 hrs 15m movie did indeed feel like it was 2 yrs 3 months sort in stretches but stilll.

Post this movie came the dinner part and we headed to Pizza hut after debating whether we should have food at KFC or at Pizza hut and then we decided to head for the obvious. At Pizza Hut, we were actually greeted with warmth and since the usual hustle bustle was missing, we also enjoyed some gr8 service not to mention the gr8 food which is a given when it comes to PH. Since there were some 15 new flavors on account of PH completing 15 years in India, we decided to go for the full scale menu and not skimp out as usual on weekday specials. We ordered Mushroom Corn Masala and Chicken Achari and Both of them tasted superb. We finished our dinner at around 8 45pm and we were back in the coop by 9pm.

Having spent a gr8 day amidst good things and friends, I can say that it has by far been one of the best days i have lived not spent in IMT.

Till next post

Nik

11K in ’11–> 20-11-2011

Yay. Finally a landmark milestone on a numerically exciting and also marks my first blog from the class. A Big Thank You for all my blog viewers for the support. Till next post.

Nik

Diwali Special

Before i begin writing stuff, let me set the context that i am in college and not at home. Also stuck with me here is Nimesh as both of us did not get tickets to go home. So here we r stuck in college without anywhere to go n diwali time. so we had fun our own way.

Day began early for me. I wanted to go jogging and so went to wake Nimesh up n he was sleeping so soundly, he didn’t wake up even when i was about to break the door down. Anyways cancelling the plan to jog, i went for good ole breakfast assuming there would Boiled eggs n Omelet only to find to my dismay that there would be none. .

After a sumptuous breakfast of Aloo Toast n Cornflakes, i went back to doing what i do best….sleeping. Nothing like sleep on full stomach . I was woken up by Nimesh at 11 30 and we were to set out for a long day ahead. So i was all set by 12 30pm and then the day kicked into hyper mode.

Our first stop was to collect F1 tickets which i could not get as i would have been in bangalore. We reached the designated place by 3 15 but not before losing our way and making a 10kms detour as we were set off on a wild goose chase by an auto driver. So somehow we made it after a lot of asking for directions.We collected the tickets and we planned to head to GIP to park his bike but unfortunately it was closed and we parked somewhere. In between all this, we managed to down 2 pizzas, one pasta and a bottle of Coke at Domino’s.

Next stop was Akshardham temple which was on our agenda for long and today was the ‘muhurat’ for it. we dropped off his bike at Sector 18 n then took the metro to the temple. At the temple, we were subject to innumerable restrictions of not allowing mobile phones and security checks much more than even airports. When we entered the temple, it was a different scenario altogether. the temple is marvelous with intricate stonework and lot of fine details throughout. After a good time spent at the temple, we came out at 6 15pm. We then took the metro back to Sector 18, the bike ride to college.

Pandit Shudh Bhojanalay for some Dal tadka and butter roti for dinner as mess was closed due to festival. A back to back TV episode watching session of Dexter to wind up my day. So a gr8 day all in all. Sleep ensues n tomorrow awaits its own chance.

Nik

Mahindra War Room 2011 – The Experience of a Lifetime

We came Runners up in the Campus round of Mahindra War room 2011 from IMT Ghaziabad but what mattered most is the journey than even the evaluation.

The Launch of the competition happened on Aug 4th for IMT Ghaziabad. I attended the launch event with Nimesh and Shelly. Last year we registered but did not submit our entries and my team was hodge podge with my room mate Nishant and 2 others. This time around, we were determined to crack it as War room is a premier B School event and u get 2 chances at max to crack it. Once in your first year and then again 2nd year.

We were caught with many other events and hence by the time we actually began our preparation for this event it was already mid September and now it was time to get our act together. Our chosen sector was Mahindra Solar.  We started in full gusto and maintained the same till the very end. Our effort must have taken us through 40 reports on solar, 170 patents filed in US, contacting solar installation provider and an Industry expert to get various inputs on solar tech. Calculations and other information were checked and cross referenced multiple times and in various simulations runs. We burnt midnight oil on no end for the month. Unbelievable amount of data crunching and stacking of information went into the making of presentation.

We got to know we were shortlisted on 18th Oct around 2 30pm. I was sleeping and Nimesh came to my room to wake me up with a kick. Nervousness and panic kicked in in full blast. We were to assemble for the evaluation at 6 30pm. The event slated to begin at 7 pm got underway at 8pm and then on it was listening to others’ ppt with full concentration. Other teams were The Boxing Club, A team named desire and Quadrarjuna besides our own Gangreen. We were the second team to go on the floor.

The ppt went like a blur. Nimesh went first, I was second and then Shelly followed by nimesh but unfortunately we were caught short of time but we managed to get in a lot of data before we were done. A Team named desire was next and they did a great job and the Boxing club was the last one and they were good. After a strenuous ppt and a even more tense waiting tim, we were eventually declared runners up with A team named Desire winning the campus round. Utmost satisfaction and contentment on having made it so far was writ large on our faces. not to mention the cheque of 15K which we ll be receiving shortly. A great and worthwhile journey to the campus round is all i can say.

Till next post.

Nik

Quotes from the movie Revolver(2005)

One of the most stunning movies i have seen is Revolver, starring Jason Statham and directed by Guy Ritchie. the movie was not a box office success despite the storyline. I watched the movie yesterday night and probably for the nth time but this time the quotes started to make more sense and kept me engaged for a long time.The quotes from the movie are published below. I would prefer you rather watch it and see how it unfolds contextually and the meaning reveal not so subtly.

The movie opens with four quotes. I’ve been Googling a bit trying to find them, but I can’t seem to find a single web page with all them together, so here they are:

“The greatest enemy will hide in the last place you would ever look.”

—Julius Caesar 75 BC

“The only way to get smarter is by playing a smarter opponent.”

—Fundamentals of Chess 1883

“First rule of business, protect your investment.”

—Etiquette of the Banker 1775

“There is no avoiding war, it can only be postponed to the advantage of your enemy.”

—Niccolo Machiavelli 1502

Later on in the movie, near the end, these two additional quotes appear:

“The only real enemy to have ever existed, is an eternal one.”

—The Road to Suicide, pg 1, line 1

“Your friends are close, but your enemy is closer.”

—The Road to Suicide, pg 1, line 2

Mind you, these are the official black background quotes (or aphorisms if you prefer) that appear throughout the flick. There are plenty of other great lines said by the characters. In particular is this gem, spoken by Mr. Green:

“One thing I’ve learned in the last seven years: in every game and con there’s always an opponent, and there’s always a victim. The trick is to know when you’re the latter, so you can become the former.”

watch it with an open mind and enjoy the movie. Till next post

Nik

Nexus One

I was pretty much set on buying this phone no matter what, the moment i set my eyes on it on the web and my wish finally came true on 20th Sept when i finally was able to cradle it in my hands which had been sent from the UK by one of my closest friend Amit Behera, a person to whom i look up to for many things, be it professional or personal.

Coming back to Nexus one, it is exactly how it is on the web and has all the features it claims and more. a 3.7″ screen, Snapdragon proc and decent RAM is run of the mill but what makes it better, all android updates get pushed to my baby first and then to others…Muahahahaa….Full access to the Android market and no blockages by individual manufacturer. HTC manufactured means Quality is a given. Battery life is really decent at 5 hrs wifi and 20 without and at my usage easily last a day and a half. Regular updates to android means no waiting for manufacturer to approve…in fact the software got upgraded to 2.3.4 the second i switched it on…..Heart burn to Galaxy S II…Now i check my email and twitter updates via mobile, tweet and use twitpic instantly. Gmail syncs automatically with my regular mail. Ultimate animations and notifications to keep track. to rack it all up is a 1 yr comprehensive warranty which is hope ll never use.

The only quirk i found was lack of FM which can be a bummer some times but does not affect me much.

Till next post

Nik

Off Schedule

off late, there has been a big change in my schedule mostly with respect to my days at IMT. Ever since, i have returned from my internship and also a single room for myself for second year has substantially altered all the things that i never thought would change. To sum it all up:

1. a deviation from the academic rigor has lead to me sleeping most of the time and also wasting as much as possible when i am not asleep to other activities like chat and games and cannot be exaggerated enough.

2. Movies are a break from the resort this college has become. I watch a gr8 deal of movies at the theatre but often at low rates though morning shows and week days.

3. Partying which is an integral part of the culture also has undergone major change in terms of the way or the occasion it is done. This too with both sides of my room prone for partying a lot and on worthless occasions such as completion of term exams.

4. Sleep has inverted with me sleeping in the morning and staying awake in the night.

5. My novel collection is growing by leaps and bounds as i have begun reading a lot and must have spent nearly 2 grand on purchasing alone.

6. Most importantly, my activity spread has widened with me participating regularly in many competitions with 2 friends which i consider a welcome break from the mundane. . This is a real boon as i have gotten better with analyzing alternatives and  innovating.

Till next post.

Nik