Since i began blogging some years ago, I haven't really made an effort to make my posts very reader friendly in terms of the lay out.
That was more out of the belief that trying to structure it stems the flow of words and thought and a little bit out of the fact that i was too lazy to proof read or check the lay out once i had hit the publish button. And for a long time my page has been one of the most unkempt sites in blogosphere, but now on I'm making an effort to structure them better.
Tell me if i succeed.
This ad for Krackjack, seems to have taken a leaf out of ITC's Bingo campaign, which i think has latched on to 'Stupidity' as its recall value for the different spots.
What was it about trying to do 'namaste' with one hand and then discovering that it is better done with two.
One is yet to come to terms with the idea that a non sensical theme can be chosen to occupy some mindspace. And more importantly, is the brand benefiting from this, as in, is it reflected in the sales. Is there a positive connotation the TG gives to Bingo and now Krackjack with such pudding head messages.
And while I am at it, I do have a new and nice work to share. The first ever Lee commercial made in india is now on air, and I must say the new kids on the block (Happy) did make me smile. This is one ad that could match any international work on story board, quality of execution, and universal appeal. And it will definitely come true on the brief: "Revive the desirability and freshness in Lee"
I must say, we've come a long way with 'the jeans that built america'
December 2, 2007
December 1, 2007
in Action
i just noticed, number of posts this year is abysmally low and am not surprised as not alot of happy stuff happened for me to share with all of you.
but now CHIN UP! soldier! :P
as a lot of things happen to me and the stuff i manage to do to myself... one is making a conscious attempt at bringing to focus (and to this blog) some serious stuff about topics, issues and news about life and business in India.
And beginning today, the page will bear a fresher look and most definitely, more regular and interesting reads.
P.S. The credit for this new found enthu goes to one very inspiring friend of mine... Thank you Roop
but now CHIN UP! soldier! :P
as a lot of things happen to me and the stuff i manage to do to myself... one is making a conscious attempt at bringing to focus (and to this blog) some serious stuff about topics, issues and news about life and business in India.
And beginning today, the page will bear a fresher look and most definitely, more regular and interesting reads.
P.S. The credit for this new found enthu goes to one very inspiring friend of mine... Thank you Roop
August 6, 2007
A Hitchhikers (and a north indian's) guide to Chennai
This post is the first account of my daily life in chennai, and I also wish it to serve as any north Indian’s survival kit in this city.
It’s been 2 months since I landed in this city, for the second time. I was here exactly a year back while I was working on my summer project for the Auto Major.
Though the last stint was a small one, it was enough for me to grasp some of the city and its ways.
My first 3 weeks in the city, I was under the impression that I was here only for the product training and post that I will be sent back to Bombay.
But it soon appeared that my stay here was going to a matter of months, not weeks.
So while I was supposedly going to go back in 3 weeks, I donned my touristy cap (turban, actually :P) and went sight seeing to all the places that appeared on the
tourist guide I purchased as soon as I was here.
On my list were: The San Thome Basilica Church on Santhome beach, Fort St. George, Pondy Bazaar, Elliott’s beach etc.
And pretty soon these were done.
And now, when I am almost living here, weekends pass in a breeze. Thanks to most online lists of places to hang out, which I have already exhausted.
I live in Nungambakkam which is in the heart of the city and every single place mentioned on any of those lists is accessible from here.
So for u dudes and dudettes who do have the misfortune of being thrown out of your homes in the Hindi heartland and housed in this southern city, these are the places you can really have a nice time and at least try to get over ghar ki yaad.
Of all the places I have been to so far, there is this quaint cafe which is very very inconspicuous and takes some time locating it. The name is very apt and endearing: Amethyst.
The place is in Gopalapuram on one Parvathi Road.
This place is an old colonial bungalow that has been converted to a cafe.
First of all, this is a very new concept to me. I now come to understand that cafe's like this aren’t few in this city and elsewhere
Still, the place is very charming. And you have tables laid out in the lush green courtyard as well as the verandah and the sitting room which has spartan yet comfortable furniture. The food is on the expensive side, heck, the experience is worth everything.
You have to go to this place if you have time on your hands, and you'll love spending an evening at this place, alone or with good company. Brilliant for soft conversations, although there are sometimes some ruckus making irritating college kids, trying to make a bandra 'mocha' out of this one too.
While i am at it, I will clarify what I mean by 'Bandra Mocha'.
One, I love Bandra the place. Everything about it, but the Mocha outlet there.
Two, I like the concept of mocha, and hang out there often, but each outlet I have been to, has a separate character and of all of them, I patronize the Juhu one.
You may or may not agree with me, but I find everything about Bandra mocha very irritating and most of all the wannabe funky 'yo-dudes and dudettes' trying to make a fashion show at a coffee shop.
In comparison, Juhu is more inviting, people, sophisticated yet relaxed.
Ok, now, Hangout number 2 in chennai.
Mocha! What else. This is a very different mocha than the ones you would have been to elsewhere, not that either is similar, but this one takes off on a different tangent altogether, belonging to the same class of bungalow converted coffee shops. And this one too is in the funky league, the music is loud and it is difficult to have a conversation inside of the edifice.
But the seating in the courtyard is comfy, and do not be surprised if you see people lain on the couches and sofas. The food is what you would expect at Mocha. Not very filling and a little over priced. But then it’s not really the food you're paying for.
And it just struck that I should mention, this list is not really exhaustive and definitely not in any order of preference.
Next on the list, and my favourite, is Zara-Tapas Bar on the lines of a Spanish tavern. Simply the best crowd in chennai, well priced menu (not really cheap, but then I am in love with this place, so kindly adjust) and great cocktails and food.
Zara has an in-house DJ who plays peppy but not heavy music. The mix is eclectic and really sets the mood. The bouncers are tough and still not mean. I don't have feminine company very often, yet a couple o kind words and requests will get me a nice table.
Though I will go on to talk about more pubs and discs, I would want you to know that this is still one of the best watering holes in the city and comes close to what we have to come to expect in Mumbai.
Next I will share a list of places which you can go to if all that you're dying for is a drink at some place and just guys, and the crowd be damned.
These are places which come very near to our Irla watering holes viz. Asiad and Harish Bars
1. Bamboo Bar at Savera hotel, no DJ no nothing, some arbit music, very smoky, all liquors, not very expensive.
2. High Time at GRT grand very similar to Bamboo bar, only that it will also have some firangs who are housed in the hotel itself.
3. Bikes & Barrels at GRT again, apparently this place is very popular amongst the chennai crowd, but what was irritating was that they have two separate areas. 1 for those who're housed in the hotel and or couple entry, and the 2nd area for all other random ppl which then is filled with despo boys clamoring over the balcony to have a peek at the firang chicks on the lower ground. The music isn’t much to talk about either.
4. The Leather Bar. I am sure many will argue that it is blasphemous to include this place in this list, but I am sorry. Just coz the place is in a 5 star hotel does not give you the right to overcharge for a place which is clearly nothing but kitsch. The bar is dying for more space and more than 300 plus for a small old monk is hideous. The crowd though is good, but that shouldn’t be the reason for you to get there.
Of the places I did enjoy, Diesel has to be on the list. Diesel is at the other end of G N Chetty road, right next to pondy bazaar in the same building which houses Momo's, a brilliant oriental cuisine restaurant.
Diesel is one of those peppy places you used to love hanging out in with your college buddies. The DJ is one young chappie and he so loves playing all our college anthems, sprinkled with some jhinchak bollywood numbers.
Tons and tons of awesome cocktails and shooters. Of the ones i tried, I really liked 'AK - 47' made from Irish cream, scotch and kahlua. The food is nice too.
Speed is in hotel Grand Orient near Thousand lights, and is easily one of the 'easy' places to hang out, decent lighting, nice music, good crowd, and no stag entry on weekends, decently priced stuff and a dance floor. Yes there are very few dance floors in chennai. I am not a dancy dancy person myself, but still u feel like shaking a leg once in a while and it is just the place to do out without shelling out a bomb.
More coming soon
Keep watching this space
It’s been 2 months since I landed in this city, for the second time. I was here exactly a year back while I was working on my summer project for the Auto Major.
Though the last stint was a small one, it was enough for me to grasp some of the city and its ways.
My first 3 weeks in the city, I was under the impression that I was here only for the product training and post that I will be sent back to Bombay.
But it soon appeared that my stay here was going to a matter of months, not weeks.
So while I was supposedly going to go back in 3 weeks, I donned my touristy cap (turban, actually :P) and went sight seeing to all the places that appeared on the
tourist guide I purchased as soon as I was here.
On my list were: The San Thome Basilica Church on Santhome beach, Fort St. George, Pondy Bazaar, Elliott’s beach etc.
And pretty soon these were done.
And now, when I am almost living here, weekends pass in a breeze. Thanks to most online lists of places to hang out, which I have already exhausted.
I live in Nungambakkam which is in the heart of the city and every single place mentioned on any of those lists is accessible from here.
So for u dudes and dudettes who do have the misfortune of being thrown out of your homes in the Hindi heartland and housed in this southern city, these are the places you can really have a nice time and at least try to get over ghar ki yaad.
Of all the places I have been to so far, there is this quaint cafe which is very very inconspicuous and takes some time locating it. The name is very apt and endearing: Amethyst.
The place is in Gopalapuram on one Parvathi Road.
This place is an old colonial bungalow that has been converted to a cafe.
First of all, this is a very new concept to me. I now come to understand that cafe's like this aren’t few in this city and elsewhere
Still, the place is very charming. And you have tables laid out in the lush green courtyard as well as the verandah and the sitting room which has spartan yet comfortable furniture. The food is on the expensive side, heck, the experience is worth everything.
You have to go to this place if you have time on your hands, and you'll love spending an evening at this place, alone or with good company. Brilliant for soft conversations, although there are sometimes some ruckus making irritating college kids, trying to make a bandra 'mocha' out of this one too.
While i am at it, I will clarify what I mean by 'Bandra Mocha'.
One, I love Bandra the place. Everything about it, but the Mocha outlet there.
Two, I like the concept of mocha, and hang out there often, but each outlet I have been to, has a separate character and of all of them, I patronize the Juhu one.
You may or may not agree with me, but I find everything about Bandra mocha very irritating and most of all the wannabe funky 'yo-dudes and dudettes' trying to make a fashion show at a coffee shop.
In comparison, Juhu is more inviting, people, sophisticated yet relaxed.
Ok, now, Hangout number 2 in chennai.
Mocha! What else. This is a very different mocha than the ones you would have been to elsewhere, not that either is similar, but this one takes off on a different tangent altogether, belonging to the same class of bungalow converted coffee shops. And this one too is in the funky league, the music is loud and it is difficult to have a conversation inside of the edifice.
But the seating in the courtyard is comfy, and do not be surprised if you see people lain on the couches and sofas. The food is what you would expect at Mocha. Not very filling and a little over priced. But then it’s not really the food you're paying for.
And it just struck that I should mention, this list is not really exhaustive and definitely not in any order of preference.
Next on the list, and my favourite, is Zara-Tapas Bar on the lines of a Spanish tavern. Simply the best crowd in chennai, well priced menu (not really cheap, but then I am in love with this place, so kindly adjust) and great cocktails and food.
Zara has an in-house DJ who plays peppy but not heavy music. The mix is eclectic and really sets the mood. The bouncers are tough and still not mean. I don't have feminine company very often, yet a couple o kind words and requests will get me a nice table.
Though I will go on to talk about more pubs and discs, I would want you to know that this is still one of the best watering holes in the city and comes close to what we have to come to expect in Mumbai.
Next I will share a list of places which you can go to if all that you're dying for is a drink at some place and just guys, and the crowd be damned.
These are places which come very near to our Irla watering holes viz. Asiad and Harish Bars
1. Bamboo Bar at Savera hotel, no DJ no nothing, some arbit music, very smoky, all liquors, not very expensive.
2. High Time at GRT grand very similar to Bamboo bar, only that it will also have some firangs who are housed in the hotel itself.
3. Bikes & Barrels at GRT again, apparently this place is very popular amongst the chennai crowd, but what was irritating was that they have two separate areas. 1 for those who're housed in the hotel and or couple entry, and the 2nd area for all other random ppl which then is filled with despo boys clamoring over the balcony to have a peek at the firang chicks on the lower ground. The music isn’t much to talk about either.
4. The Leather Bar. I am sure many will argue that it is blasphemous to include this place in this list, but I am sorry. Just coz the place is in a 5 star hotel does not give you the right to overcharge for a place which is clearly nothing but kitsch. The bar is dying for more space and more than 300 plus for a small old monk is hideous. The crowd though is good, but that shouldn’t be the reason for you to get there.
Of the places I did enjoy, Diesel has to be on the list. Diesel is at the other end of G N Chetty road, right next to pondy bazaar in the same building which houses Momo's, a brilliant oriental cuisine restaurant.
Diesel is one of those peppy places you used to love hanging out in with your college buddies. The DJ is one young chappie and he so loves playing all our college anthems, sprinkled with some jhinchak bollywood numbers.
Tons and tons of awesome cocktails and shooters. Of the ones i tried, I really liked 'AK - 47' made from Irish cream, scotch and kahlua. The food is nice too.
Speed is in hotel Grand Orient near Thousand lights, and is easily one of the 'easy' places to hang out, decent lighting, nice music, good crowd, and no stag entry on weekends, decently priced stuff and a dance floor. Yes there are very few dance floors in chennai. I am not a dancy dancy person myself, but still u feel like shaking a leg once in a while and it is just the place to do out without shelling out a bomb.
More coming soon
Keep watching this space
July 20, 2007
I wasn't born with it
A thought often crosses my mind, and now when it did again, i wished to record it.
When a child is born, it does not have any conditioning as to what religion is?
What faith, the family it is born into, follows.
So essentially, whatever hate or disrespect an individual has for a particular community, he wasn't in the first place born with it.
Hypothetically, If all civilisations were to end today, and a new generation was to rise, all religions, and with them, all hate ends too.
So does that mean that only a catastrophe or something like that can do it - remove hate from the world.
I pray there is an easier way out.
If only we could just pray, for ourselves and for mankind. And not kill those who pray in another language!
Or for a change, let children rule and govern the world. I think they'd do a better job than the well read career politicians we have at the helm these days.
Just a thought.
we weren't born with it.
who gave it to us?
and do we need it at all?
hate?
religion?
When a child is born, it does not have any conditioning as to what religion is?
What faith, the family it is born into, follows.
So essentially, whatever hate or disrespect an individual has for a particular community, he wasn't in the first place born with it.
Hypothetically, If all civilisations were to end today, and a new generation was to rise, all religions, and with them, all hate ends too.
So does that mean that only a catastrophe or something like that can do it - remove hate from the world.
I pray there is an easier way out.
If only we could just pray, for ourselves and for mankind. And not kill those who pray in another language!
Or for a change, let children rule and govern the world. I think they'd do a better job than the well read career politicians we have at the helm these days.
Just a thought.
we weren't born with it.
who gave it to us?
and do we need it at all?
hate?
religion?
July 18, 2007
July 11, 2007
maybe
main chahta bhi yahi tha, woh bewafa nikle,
use samajhne ka koi to silsila nikle.
jo dekhne mein bohot hi qareeb lagta hai
usi ke baare mein socho to faasala nikle.
use samajhne ka koi to silsila nikle.
jo dekhne mein bohot hi qareeb lagta hai
usi ke baare mein socho to faasala nikle.
June 24, 2007
kaam
Been over a month since I joined work. It’s not bad. That’s how I’d put it.
After spending a week doing nothing in Vashi office, was packed off to Chennai development centre for technical training on the product, coz ‘knowing the product you’re selling, inside out, is good’. So am here, in the city, which was described as the opposite of heaven, by some of my colleagues, is not so bad ya know.
I’ve been here before. But for a shorter duration.
Two weeks and it is growing on me. And no, its not that bad. It was uncomfortable some time back, but every since it rained a week back, the weather couldn’t have been better.
I went out sight seeing today. By myself. Armed with a city map, some direction sense and the patience to haggle with the tamil speaking auto- rickshaw drivers, I soaked in some Chennai heritage. Santhome church basilica, where
Tomorrow I got check out pondy bazaar. Please excuse the name. It is not a point of sale for objectionable visual material. But really a bazaar in the oriental sense.
Hope to upload some pics the next time a get a nice and fast connection for my machine.
Making do with reliance web worlds which have a very stupid interface and make a really fu**ed up browsing experience and the b*****ds have even blocked orkut for chrissake!
Okay I am not in a very good mood. And you got the drift.
See you later.
In a better mood.
June 23, 2007
But....guys don't cry!
Was watchin a movie today. The man of the house. Tommy lee jones. Funny movie.
The man’s daughter says ‘I love you Daddy’. And ma stupid eyes swelled up again. I dunno. I thought my daughter would say that to me some day.
I remember my friend telling me the other day that I am obsessed with my girl child. Who’s ain’t born yet. who aint comin for some more years. But God knows how much I want to love a daughter.
About eyes swelling up. I cried buckets the other day. Was watchin the movie ‘saheb’. Hard core senti stuff. Why I cried wasn’t necessarily coz of the movie. But that was the ‘catalyst’. Fortunately I was alone in the room. And I kinda let go. Felt better after that.
It is not to say that I am not liking it or am not comfortable. I am ready and have adjusted to the travelling that comes with the job. Moreover I have been living away from family for a good 2 years now.
But sometimes it just gets to you.
I love u Mom, Pa and bhai.
June 7, 2007
aap agar in dino yahaan hotey
been 3 weeks since i joined. 3 days since i joined my team. and i haven't started 'working' yet.
thats not the worst.
i haven't moved into own acco as yet. found a flat, gathering the deposit for it while the date of posession nears.
in the mean while i am housed in a hotel, running up a bill which i have no idea how i am going to pay.
sab jhel leta magar, there aren't any friends around. sab ke sab town mein rah gaye. Vashi isnt such a village i had thought it'd be, there are enough places to hang around, but there's no one for me to hang out with.
To make matters worse, since i have the privileged US business to look after, i have my work hours coordinated with the team that is based in New Jersey, simply put, i am doing night shifts, and that really cuts off my last link with the people i would have considered going out with.
Earlier when one was supposed to reach the 9 am lecture on time, tab neend khulti nahi thi, and was happy being awake all night, watchin movies or playing counterstrike or NFS. And now, when those timings are actually required for my job, i am drowsy as the clock strikes 11pm and i wake up fresh at 7am. yeh bhi koi baat hui?
I got my first salary some time back, though it was only for the 15 days we'd worked for, i was overjoyed as any newbie would. but the ebullience was to soon die out as i worked on the list of expenses that were staring me in the face.
a selected list reads:
home deposit approx 30k
home rent 6k
agent's brokerage 9k
hotel bill 5k
phone bill 2k
edu loan repayment that starts this month 8k
and none of these, you would agree, are faltu expenses.
I am being good boy and not flaming my first pay over clothes or the much anticipated N series phone.
but sab kuchh chhodo, i want my friends back.
I would now kill to get an andheri posting, which is not likely to come by.
hafta shuru hua nahi ke i am waiting for the weekend to do up my home to be and then meet up with friends and everybody else who has suddenly forgotten about my existence.
aap agar in dino yahaan hotey,
hum zameen par bhala kahaan hotey.
thats not the worst.
i haven't moved into own acco as yet. found a flat, gathering the deposit for it while the date of posession nears.
in the mean while i am housed in a hotel, running up a bill which i have no idea how i am going to pay.
sab jhel leta magar, there aren't any friends around. sab ke sab town mein rah gaye. Vashi isnt such a village i had thought it'd be, there are enough places to hang around, but there's no one for me to hang out with.
To make matters worse, since i have the privileged US business to look after, i have my work hours coordinated with the team that is based in New Jersey, simply put, i am doing night shifts, and that really cuts off my last link with the people i would have considered going out with.
Earlier when one was supposed to reach the 9 am lecture on time, tab neend khulti nahi thi, and was happy being awake all night, watchin movies or playing counterstrike or NFS. And now, when those timings are actually required for my job, i am drowsy as the clock strikes 11pm and i wake up fresh at 7am. yeh bhi koi baat hui?
I got my first salary some time back, though it was only for the 15 days we'd worked for, i was overjoyed as any newbie would. but the ebullience was to soon die out as i worked on the list of expenses that were staring me in the face.
a selected list reads:
home deposit approx 30k
home rent 6k
agent's brokerage 9k
hotel bill 5k
phone bill 2k
edu loan repayment that starts this month 8k
and none of these, you would agree, are faltu expenses.
I am being good boy and not flaming my first pay over clothes or the much anticipated N series phone.
but sab kuchh chhodo, i want my friends back.
I would now kill to get an andheri posting, which is not likely to come by.
hafta shuru hua nahi ke i am waiting for the weekend to do up my home to be and then meet up with friends and everybody else who has suddenly forgotten about my existence.
aap agar in dino yahaan hotey,
hum zameen par bhala kahaan hotey.
April 16, 2007
Episodes: Placements
When I was in the first year, i was volunteering for the placements' logistics team, and found place in the food and beverages team that takes care of feeding the candidates and specially the companies on campus thru the hectic 2-3 days. And doing that, i was working out of the SCR and coordinating with teams over the walkie talkie and sending out food orders.
So basically, i wasnt on the floors, in the action, to witness the anxiety and everything else.
and u lucky ppl who got PPOs are, well..... lucky.
But after you've been through it all, you wouldn't want to take as much stress ever again in your lifetime, but ure still loving the experience.
A month before the D-day, the last of the company presentations ended. and prior to that we'd had some 2-3 months of going through presentations from some of the best brands in almost all businesses in India.
So all of us had a fair idea of which company was offering wat roles and wat money.
Most had sectoral as well as company preferences. I had mine.
I'd been and auto freak for most of my growing up years, and even while at MBA i was looking at auto companies as prospective recruiters but was pained to find that only 2 of the major indian automakers would visit our campus and even those werent the best paymasters.
Anyway, my preferences still lie with the autosector, but with those packages, they were slotted pretty late in the day. And i wasnt the one who was going to not apply to n companies listed before them.
I was NOT game for fin services... i.e. insurance, banking and everything like that.
Not so much for IT too, though the money was always good, but somehow wasnt going to be hardcore marketing and all that jazz.
Ab marketing waala banda FMCG na apply kare, to ho nahi sakta, but i still dint apply to all except the top notch. (not that i had great hopes of makin it there)
What i WAS really interested in was Media and advertising, apart from Auto that is.
My applications pre placement applications met with less than moderate success with very few making it through screening and i tried to put blame on the bad cgpa until the baap of all FMCGs shortlisted me. And then on, i was game.
So all in all, of all day zero companies, i made it to the interviews of the 2 FMCG majors but dint make it in the end when it mattered.
And till now i had been brave (or stupid) enough to not apply to the big Fin and IT offers which were offering ludicrous monies.
And all this while, there was this sole ad agency i was focusing on. everything, in and out of it. all about IMC, Media, and everything there was to do with the agency business was on my tips. on the day, it was thankfully slotted pretty early in the day. And i was pretty confident abt it; made it to the last 3 in the process.
Phir, it came. the news. only one of the last 3 was selected and it wasnt me. I was there. standing in utter disbelief. It was like the beginning of the hardest trek ever.
the companies slotted immediately after this one were rather good, but i hadnt applied to most of them, and now was the time to move on.
And i realise now, had it not been for those good friends, it would have been even more difficult. Really, they kept me from falling apart.
It was already happening. I was screwing up straight forward GDs. Din't get through any of those.
Then came a slew of IT cos, some i hadnt applied to earlier and no amount of pushing CVs was going to help.
Anyway, i managed an interview with ek sexy consulting brand and cracked it too. It was for a position i knew wasnt worth it, but still was banking on bargaining in the interview for a better profile. At the end of it, they werent going to give me anything better than pre sales and that wasnt just wat i was going to take.
So that was the end of it. But it helped in a way, that i had at least one company make an offer.
About 3-4 more GDs and later, came one IT co based in the north. Though the brand is a known one but not so much for its culture or that ways.
Anyway, ab tak... jo kehte hain.... phat chuki thi. And mind u, this is just the first day. 2 more days slotted with good brands, I think most of the pressure comes from seeing the fizzling out crowds as everybody and everybody u know is getting placed and ure the one left out.
So i went in for this interview without knowing the I of the IT consulting business i was pitching for and the interview was pretty funny to talk about.
one of the interviewers asked "So what do you know about XYZ (her co.)?"
And i was "Well, it is a respected IT consulting company, with these many clients and years in the business and blah blah blah, AND OF COURSE, IT HAS WORK LOCATIONS IN NORTH INDIA"
I don't know where that came from, it was funny, but not in this situation, and least of all jab meri khud ki phati padi hai. And the interviewer too, let out a chuckle and then got back to me with "Is that the reason why you're applyin?"
Achan: thats not what i meant. Its just a bonus to be near my family. I'd like to work for you, even otherwise. (to myself: decent comeback)
I was the first interviewee for this process and it went ho hum.... then came the call for the other IT co, #! i had thought of as my backup in my run up to the day. This was a co i had heard was good, was offering good profile and more than decent money. So off one went for this process while others were being interviewed for XYZ.
Ab ji interview achha gaya, then pata laga there are going to be more interview rounds for this one, AND in the mean while communication from the other XYZ co panel came that they wanted to negotiate and make an offer.
So now was the time to go for the kill. I had a message sent to #! panel that i had an offer and if they have anything positive for me, then they might want to consider speeding up my process in particular. And so it happened, 2 more rounds of interviews later, I was made a spot offer and was only too happy to accept it.
In hindsight, everything seems to fall in place, as it always does.
At the end of it all, to say that i was relieved is definitely an understatement. My friends too, who had been there for me throughout heaved a sigh.
another funny account of that day is, when i was going in and out of the interview room for the multiple rounds that were happening for #!, all the friends were standing outside with bated breaths..... after it was all over somebody commented that they were waiting like fathers to be outside an OT waiting for the first wail of a new born!
All's well that ends well and so it did the next day, Placements at NM were unofficially closed in 1 and a half day's slots. About 45 more companies that were slotted for day 2 and 3 and 4 were politely conveyed the happy situation at campus.
One Auto major i had in mind din't get the opportunity to recruit at all.
One memorable day that was.
So basically, i wasnt on the floors, in the action, to witness the anxiety and everything else.
and u lucky ppl who got PPOs are, well..... lucky.
But after you've been through it all, you wouldn't want to take as much stress ever again in your lifetime, but ure still loving the experience.
A month before the D-day, the last of the company presentations ended. and prior to that we'd had some 2-3 months of going through presentations from some of the best brands in almost all businesses in India.
So all of us had a fair idea of which company was offering wat roles and wat money.
Most had sectoral as well as company preferences. I had mine.
I'd been and auto freak for most of my growing up years, and even while at MBA i was looking at auto companies as prospective recruiters but was pained to find that only 2 of the major indian automakers would visit our campus and even those werent the best paymasters.
Anyway, my preferences still lie with the autosector, but with those packages, they were slotted pretty late in the day. And i wasnt the one who was going to not apply to n companies listed before them.
I was NOT game for fin services... i.e. insurance, banking and everything like that.
Not so much for IT too, though the money was always good, but somehow wasnt going to be hardcore marketing and all that jazz.
Ab marketing waala banda FMCG na apply kare, to ho nahi sakta, but i still dint apply to all except the top notch. (not that i had great hopes of makin it there)
What i WAS really interested in was Media and advertising, apart from Auto that is.
My applications pre placement applications met with less than moderate success with very few making it through screening and i tried to put blame on the bad cgpa until the baap of all FMCGs shortlisted me. And then on, i was game.
So all in all, of all day zero companies, i made it to the interviews of the 2 FMCG majors but dint make it in the end when it mattered.
And till now i had been brave (or stupid) enough to not apply to the big Fin and IT offers which were offering ludicrous monies.
And all this while, there was this sole ad agency i was focusing on. everything, in and out of it. all about IMC, Media, and everything there was to do with the agency business was on my tips. on the day, it was thankfully slotted pretty early in the day. And i was pretty confident abt it; made it to the last 3 in the process.
Phir, it came. the news. only one of the last 3 was selected and it wasnt me. I was there. standing in utter disbelief. It was like the beginning of the hardest trek ever.
the companies slotted immediately after this one were rather good, but i hadnt applied to most of them, and now was the time to move on.
And i realise now, had it not been for those good friends, it would have been even more difficult. Really, they kept me from falling apart.
It was already happening. I was screwing up straight forward GDs. Din't get through any of those.
Then came a slew of IT cos, some i hadnt applied to earlier and no amount of pushing CVs was going to help.
Anyway, i managed an interview with ek sexy consulting brand and cracked it too. It was for a position i knew wasnt worth it, but still was banking on bargaining in the interview for a better profile. At the end of it, they werent going to give me anything better than pre sales and that wasnt just wat i was going to take.
So that was the end of it. But it helped in a way, that i had at least one company make an offer.
About 3-4 more GDs and later, came one IT co based in the north. Though the brand is a known one but not so much for its culture or that ways.
Anyway, ab tak... jo kehte hain.... phat chuki thi. And mind u, this is just the first day. 2 more days slotted with good brands, I think most of the pressure comes from seeing the fizzling out crowds as everybody and everybody u know is getting placed and ure the one left out.
So i went in for this interview without knowing the I of the IT consulting business i was pitching for and the interview was pretty funny to talk about.
one of the interviewers asked "So what do you know about XYZ (her co.)?"
And i was "Well, it is a respected IT consulting company, with these many clients and years in the business and blah blah blah, AND OF COURSE, IT HAS WORK LOCATIONS IN NORTH INDIA"
I don't know where that came from, it was funny, but not in this situation, and least of all jab meri khud ki phati padi hai. And the interviewer too, let out a chuckle and then got back to me with "Is that the reason why you're applyin?"
Achan: thats not what i meant. Its just a bonus to be near my family. I'd like to work for you, even otherwise. (to myself: decent comeback)
I was the first interviewee for this process and it went ho hum.... then came the call for the other IT co, #! i had thought of as my backup in my run up to the day. This was a co i had heard was good, was offering good profile and more than decent money. So off one went for this process while others were being interviewed for XYZ.
Ab ji interview achha gaya, then pata laga there are going to be more interview rounds for this one, AND in the mean while communication from the other XYZ co panel came that they wanted to negotiate and make an offer.
So now was the time to go for the kill. I had a message sent to #! panel that i had an offer and if they have anything positive for me, then they might want to consider speeding up my process in particular. And so it happened, 2 more rounds of interviews later, I was made a spot offer and was only too happy to accept it.
In hindsight, everything seems to fall in place, as it always does.
At the end of it all, to say that i was relieved is definitely an understatement. My friends too, who had been there for me throughout heaved a sigh.
another funny account of that day is, when i was going in and out of the interview room for the multiple rounds that were happening for #!, all the friends were standing outside with bated breaths..... after it was all over somebody commented that they were waiting like fathers to be outside an OT waiting for the first wail of a new born!
All's well that ends well and so it did the next day, Placements at NM were unofficially closed in 1 and a half day's slots. About 45 more companies that were slotted for day 2 and 3 and 4 were politely conveyed the happy situation at campus.
One Auto major i had in mind din't get the opportunity to recruit at all.
One memorable day that was.
April 14, 2007
Episodes: 11/7 bomb blasts
11th july last year all flat mates were at G7 cinema in bandra to see 'corporate'. the tickets had been bought and we were about to enter the hall in some 10 minutes and thats when we heard the cracker like sound.
G7 is right next to the suburban train tracks, people climbing up the wall to check out wat was wrong couldnt figure alot, but could see a train stopped in is tracks some distance ahead.
It really did take about 5 minutes for everybody around to figure, that it was something serious. and thats when our cellphones started ringing. Frantic relatives from all over were calling to know our whereabouts and thats when we thought it was a nice idea to leave for home immediately. At least that was the safest place we knew at any given point in time. and no sooner, all of SV road was getting packed and it was only my super bike that could navigate the distance to irla in abt 35 minutes in those conditions.
It was one harrowing time. But i also did come across instances of ppl offering help to complete strangers. like offering a ride, offering a glasses of water to those who chose to walk home.
G7 is right next to the suburban train tracks, people climbing up the wall to check out wat was wrong couldnt figure alot, but could see a train stopped in is tracks some distance ahead.
It really did take about 5 minutes for everybody around to figure, that it was something serious. and thats when our cellphones started ringing. Frantic relatives from all over were calling to know our whereabouts and thats when we thought it was a nice idea to leave for home immediately. At least that was the safest place we knew at any given point in time. and no sooner, all of SV road was getting packed and it was only my super bike that could navigate the distance to irla in abt 35 minutes in those conditions.
It was one harrowing time. But i also did come across instances of ppl offering help to complete strangers. like offering a ride, offering a glasses of water to those who chose to walk home.
Episodes from the past 2 years: floods
My MBA has finally come to an end. And i am sick of being vella and not even blogging when I have the time.
A good friend reminded me of this page and said that i should get back to it. for my own sake.
And i suddenly realise the solace it gave......Oh wat crap. I liked blogging and i still do.
Achha, i wanted to write out anecdotes from these two years which have been the most interesting thus far, out of 24.
The first one has to be about living in bombay. And how my impression of the city has changed, evolved and concretised over time.
A quick check into the posts of april 2005 tell me, its been exactly 2 years since i landed in this city. And i did have a very positive impression to say the least.
Ok, my impression apart, so much has happened in this city, no wonder they called it the one city in india that is 'happenning'. and what really happened: Floods, Riots, Bomb blasts, and what not.
Going through the archives, i am pretty amazed to find that there aren't any references to the 26th of july 2005.
On that fateful day, i was in college. the lectures were abruptly cancelled coz the electricity had been cut off. this was at 2 in the afternoon and it was already rainin pretty bad.
at arnd 3, when all students were playin in the quad in ankle-deep water, something was funny. the splattering on the fibre glass roof was unusually loud. some who dared to take the beating went out with the now useless umbrellas to their respective hostels and homes.
in hindsight, those were the lucky ppl.
by 4, it was serious. and suddenly there was a call for volunteers to pick children from a schoolbus that was stranded about a kilometre away.
Some 50 guys frm the college went ahead and made a human chain of sorts so that none of us fell into a couple of manholes we remembered were open for maintenance the previous day.
I made one trip to the bus, and by this time, my turban was all wet and really heavy now. I took it off and handed it to a friend who had stayed back for safe keeps, while i returned for another sortie to the bus and brought with me another cryin kid. and all this while she was on my shoulder. if she were to walk, she would have been more than neck deep in water.
The next step was to organize teams which would look after the kids till their parents could come pick them up. while that was being done, me and ankur ventured out to get watever we could to feed the kids.
So here we were venturing out again and this time it was almost 5 feet high water and we were barely stickin our heads out. we went to shops which were closed and asked for watever stuff they could spare, climbed into residential buildings whose residents, surprisingly, were very hospitable and gave both of us a break and stuff to eat for our selves and plastic bags full of snacks and cookies.
in the whole exercise, my stamina was tested after a long time and it still fell short. while on our way back to college, i did stall. more than once and almost gave up. but step by step i made it to college. a distance which would have taken 10 minutes to cover on a normal day, took 2 hours.
once inside, i lay on the floor for i dont know how long, completely exhausted.
it had become dark outside now and the anxious and crying children were getting louder. next i got involved with the teams calling up parents informing them of their children's whereabouts. i really dont remember when, i went to a classroom and found my friends in the dark and sat with them, chatting, cracking jokes and singing songs, to finally doze off, while the rain was still splattering on the window panes and the water level still higher than an average indian male's height.
the next morning, i was still wet and itching to get to hostel. the water had receeded and was 'only' waist high now. with a couple of friends i set out and reached in some 45 minutes. a distance of 1 km.
on our way we were witness to ghastly sights of human and animal carcasses floating in that water. there were ambulances from the cooper hospital to collect the humans and BMC trucks to fetch the animals' .
the next 2 days in the hostel too were a quest for hygienic survival. we dint eat much except a parle-g packet in a day. more to avoid the waterless restrooms than anything else. but we dint want to risk drinking anything but bisleri water, which was now a luxury good. the whole market was dried out of bisleri water. we walked miles to get 5 or 20 ltr cans of water.
had our meals cooked in front of us, rather than the basement where the hostel kitchen was housed.
Many of my colleagues contracted diseases out of the wading through water, but none of the cases were very serious or severe.
A good friend reminded me of this page and said that i should get back to it. for my own sake.
And i suddenly realise the solace it gave......Oh wat crap. I liked blogging and i still do.
Achha, i wanted to write out anecdotes from these two years which have been the most interesting thus far, out of 24.
The first one has to be about living in bombay. And how my impression of the city has changed, evolved and concretised over time.
A quick check into the posts of april 2005 tell me, its been exactly 2 years since i landed in this city. And i did have a very positive impression to say the least.
Ok, my impression apart, so much has happened in this city, no wonder they called it the one city in india that is 'happenning'. and what really happened: Floods, Riots, Bomb blasts, and what not.
Going through the archives, i am pretty amazed to find that there aren't any references to the 26th of july 2005.
On that fateful day, i was in college. the lectures were abruptly cancelled coz the electricity had been cut off. this was at 2 in the afternoon and it was already rainin pretty bad.
at arnd 3, when all students were playin in the quad in ankle-deep water, something was funny. the splattering on the fibre glass roof was unusually loud. some who dared to take the beating went out with the now useless umbrellas to their respective hostels and homes.
in hindsight, those were the lucky ppl.
by 4, it was serious. and suddenly there was a call for volunteers to pick children from a schoolbus that was stranded about a kilometre away.
Some 50 guys frm the college went ahead and made a human chain of sorts so that none of us fell into a couple of manholes we remembered were open for maintenance the previous day.
I made one trip to the bus, and by this time, my turban was all wet and really heavy now. I took it off and handed it to a friend who had stayed back for safe keeps, while i returned for another sortie to the bus and brought with me another cryin kid. and all this while she was on my shoulder. if she were to walk, she would have been more than neck deep in water.
The next step was to organize teams which would look after the kids till their parents could come pick them up. while that was being done, me and ankur ventured out to get watever we could to feed the kids.
So here we were venturing out again and this time it was almost 5 feet high water and we were barely stickin our heads out. we went to shops which were closed and asked for watever stuff they could spare, climbed into residential buildings whose residents, surprisingly, were very hospitable and gave both of us a break and stuff to eat for our selves and plastic bags full of snacks and cookies.
in the whole exercise, my stamina was tested after a long time and it still fell short. while on our way back to college, i did stall. more than once and almost gave up. but step by step i made it to college. a distance which would have taken 10 minutes to cover on a normal day, took 2 hours.
once inside, i lay on the floor for i dont know how long, completely exhausted.
it had become dark outside now and the anxious and crying children were getting louder. next i got involved with the teams calling up parents informing them of their children's whereabouts. i really dont remember when, i went to a classroom and found my friends in the dark and sat with them, chatting, cracking jokes and singing songs, to finally doze off, while the rain was still splattering on the window panes and the water level still higher than an average indian male's height.
the next morning, i was still wet and itching to get to hostel. the water had receeded and was 'only' waist high now. with a couple of friends i set out and reached in some 45 minutes. a distance of 1 km.
on our way we were witness to ghastly sights of human and animal carcasses floating in that water. there were ambulances from the cooper hospital to collect the humans and BMC trucks to fetch the animals' .
the next 2 days in the hostel too were a quest for hygienic survival. we dint eat much except a parle-g packet in a day. more to avoid the waterless restrooms than anything else. but we dint want to risk drinking anything but bisleri water, which was now a luxury good. the whole market was dried out of bisleri water. we walked miles to get 5 or 20 ltr cans of water.
had our meals cooked in front of us, rather than the basement where the hostel kitchen was housed.
Many of my colleagues contracted diseases out of the wading through water, but none of the cases were very serious or severe.
March 25, 2007
March 8, 2007
bye bye!
Mujhe tum nazar se gira to rahe ho,
mujhe tum kabhi bhi bhula na sakoge.
Najaane mujhe kyun yaqeen ho chala hai,
mere pyaar ko tum mita na sakoge.
Meri yaad hogi jidhar jaoge tum,
kabhi nagma ban ke kabhi ban ke aansu,
tadapta mujhe har taraf paaoge tum,
shama jo jalayi hai meri wafa ne,
bujhana bhi chaho bujha na sakoge.
Kabhi naam baaton mein aaya jo mera
to bechain ho ke dil thaam loge,
Nigahon mein chhayega gham ka andhera,
kisi ne jo puchha sabab aansuon ka,
batana bhi chaho bata na sakoge
this one is a beautiful ghazal by mehdi hasan, and i came across it only recently.
when i told geetu that i was getting kinda sad listening to his wonderful but sad song, uska reply was rather funny.
she said y wud i get depressed listening to this song, its more like, 'screw you, but you aint gonna forget me soon!'
and i was instantly in splits. :-)
and BTW, Achan is still the INDIAN IDLE.
eat drink sleep eat drink sleep eat drink sleep
mujhe tum kabhi bhi bhula na sakoge.
Najaane mujhe kyun yaqeen ho chala hai,
mere pyaar ko tum mita na sakoge.
Meri yaad hogi jidhar jaoge tum,
kabhi nagma ban ke kabhi ban ke aansu,
tadapta mujhe har taraf paaoge tum,
shama jo jalayi hai meri wafa ne,
bujhana bhi chaho bujha na sakoge.
Kabhi naam baaton mein aaya jo mera
to bechain ho ke dil thaam loge,
Nigahon mein chhayega gham ka andhera,
kisi ne jo puchha sabab aansuon ka,
batana bhi chaho bata na sakoge
this one is a beautiful ghazal by mehdi hasan, and i came across it only recently.
when i told geetu that i was getting kinda sad listening to his wonderful but sad song, uska reply was rather funny.
she said y wud i get depressed listening to this song, its more like, 'screw you, but you aint gonna forget me soon!'
and i was instantly in splits. :-)
and BTW, Achan is still the INDIAN IDLE.
eat drink sleep eat drink sleep eat drink sleep
March 1, 2007
wiser...
jaach mennu aa gayi, gham khaan di,
hauli hauli ro ke, ji parchaun di
changa hoya tu paraya ho gaya,
muk gayi chinta tennu apnaan di
marr te jaa, parr darr hai damma waaleyon,
dharat vi vikdi hai mul shamshaan di
na deyo mennu saah udhare dosto,
lae ke mud himmat nahi partaan di
na karo shiv di udaasi da ilaaj,
roun di marzi hai ajj baimaan di
hauli hauli ro ke, ji parchaun di
changa hoya tu paraya ho gaya,
muk gayi chinta tennu apnaan di
marr te jaa, parr darr hai damma waaleyon,
dharat vi vikdi hai mul shamshaan di
na deyo mennu saah udhare dosto,
lae ke mud himmat nahi partaan di
na karo shiv di udaasi da ilaaj,
roun di marzi hai ajj baimaan di
February 27, 2007
all over again....
ajab apna haal hota, jo visaal-e-yaar hota
kabhi jaan sadke hoti, kabhi dil nisaar hota.
na mazaa hai dushmani mein, na hai lutf zindagi mein
koi gair gair hota, koi yaar yaar hota.
ye mazaa tha dillagi ka, ki barabar aag lagti
na tumhein qaraar hota, na humein qaraar hota.
tere vaade pe sitam garr, abhi aur sabr karte
agar apni zindagi ka humein aitbaar hota
Jagdemash! (Borat for 'how are you!')
so we meet again.
quick recap:
Placed with an IT co.
Good Money
Location now known till now
MBA almost over.
weather in mumbai these days is nice
i am total vella
i eat drink sleep, eat drink sleep, eat drink sleep, exactly in that order
I went to goa after placements
my second time there
palolem beach is beautiful
i miss dilli
kabhi jaan sadke hoti, kabhi dil nisaar hota.
na mazaa hai dushmani mein, na hai lutf zindagi mein
koi gair gair hota, koi yaar yaar hota.
ye mazaa tha dillagi ka, ki barabar aag lagti
na tumhein qaraar hota, na humein qaraar hota.
tere vaade pe sitam garr, abhi aur sabr karte
agar apni zindagi ka humein aitbaar hota
Jagdemash! (Borat for 'how are you!')
so we meet again.
quick recap:
Placed with an IT co.
Good Money
Location now known till now
MBA almost over.
weather in mumbai these days is nice
i am total vella
i eat drink sleep, eat drink sleep, eat drink sleep, exactly in that order
I went to goa after placements
my second time there
palolem beach is beautiful
i miss dilli
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