To Sir, With Love (On His Birthday)

It is Sumit’s birthday today. He is the Centre Manager of IMS Siliguri and also teaches Maths & DI. We gave him an awesome surprise party. I am extremely rapturous that it all happened as we had planned save few minute glitches here and there. But the celebration was a huge success – a Birthday Bash indeed and I am overjoyed. The aim was to completely take him by surprise and we managed to do that in grand style. The look on his face when he entered IMS was priceless. He just had no clue :)

Sumit when he entered. He was clueless and had no idea
A SUCCESSFUL SURPRISE :)

The event was conceptualized, planned and executed in just three days. The idea of a surprise party struck me on Saturday night. Despite knowing him for more than two years, I had not once wished him on his birthday. He is generally reserved when it comes to such stuff. So when I realized that it was his birthday on 4th, I decided to do something this time.

I discussed the idea with the students of my MBA batch on Sunday. As expected, all were excited. We tried talking about it in the class in hushed tones, but since he was sitting right outside, chances were high that we would be overheard. I suggested we talk about it somewhere out hence after the class we resumed our discussion outside IMS. However, if Sumit would come out and spot us all together, he would sense something was up. We had to make a move from there too. The best option seemed to be CCD. There we went and there started the real planning! What started as a small discussion took the shape of a proper event planning and management involving about score students.

Meeting at CCD each time would not be possible. It would be a costly affair too, I realized ;) So I decided to have the meetings at my place. It would be convenient for all. And we had elaborate meetings at my place for three days in a row. The students were so enthusiastic – it was so wonderful to see everyone so upbeat and charged up. There was a lot of detailing in everything possible.

I wanted to do something different, something big, involving the present batches and the ex-students. I tried and thought of all those small things that could go a long way in making him feel special. I wanted to connect with those ex-students who were close to him. I did not know them all, but created a secret Facebook group to reach out to them. I eventually managed to get in touch with a couple of them and they sent their best wishes which were shared through a presentation.

The card, I knew had to be something creative and hand-made. It would have been very easy to purchase a card and give it to him. But nothing beats a hand-made card. A personalized touch makes a big difference. So we finalized the idea of a custom-made card with the signatures of all the students. The card responsibility was given to Shinam and Ishita and they did a wonderful job of it. Just the selection of the hand-made paper had taken time. There was a good discussion on the colour. Shinam wanted pink and the boys were of the view that pink is a girly colour and thus he would not like it. But Shinam had set her mind on it. I let her go ahead as eventually she was the one who would be making it. And I was not wrong. What a lovely card it turned out to be! When we presented it to him, he said it was one of the best gifts he had ever received :) A readymade card would never have that effect.

Shinam & Ishita presenting the card to the "Birthday Boy" :)

Similarly venue and food also made for a great deal of discussion. I wanted the venue to be IMS itself as that was the place that connected the students to him. Plus IMS would have a homely feeling, a place which everyone knew and would thus be comfortable in. Our food menu changed so many times, it’s not funny. We deliberated on so many things, pizza from Dominos to start with. Here also we explored the option of Pizza Mania as well as large size pizzas on a sharing basis. But Dominos would never be in our budget so the idea was dropped. Next we thought of something in Chinese. But these did not seem to click. The last option was snacks and Mitra and Chinmoy Da also suggested we order snacks packet from somewhere. That would be within our budget and hassle free too – no tension to serve, no plates required. So we went ahead with it! I think the only thing where we had no problem was the cake. I had made up my mind that we would not compromise on the cake. We would order it from Victoria Junction. The cake was very yum and all appreciated it.

The Lip-smacking cake from Victoria Junction :)

The decorations were also very nice. That was something challenging. We had to get it all done when Sumit was away for lunch. We only had about 45 mins. Everyone pitched in to help. And the result was awesome. I especially loved the balloons. The idea was Natasha's. She said it looked very cute. At one point, we were thinking of getting gas balloons instead. I am so glad we went ahead with this. Not just the balloons; every thing looked good.

The most difficult and fatiguing part was planning the games. I was most worried about it. I knew that for the party to get going, we had to have quality games. I did have something in mind but the execution was a humongous task. The idea was to have games from AXN’s “Minute to Win It”. Games selection was the first challenge as there were hundreds to choose from. I selected some, mainly those for which we did not have to buy anything. After that there was great debate if those were doable or not. We had to try every game and ensure that it could be done. Some were difficult and needed modifications. We had suggestions from everyone and then tried all the options. Eventually we finalized the one that seemed to be the best. But what fun it was! Abhimanyu was a champion in most of the trials. Balancing the golf balls had become a child’s play for him. It was great fun to see the guys try all possible ways to attempt “Bite Me”. But all of it was worth it. The games were the highlight of the party. Everyone applauded out efforts and said that games were unusual and enjoyable.

Ishita playing "Don't Blow The Joker" - She was the final winner also :) 

Rameez trying to get his shot right while playing "Home Golf"

I am glad that the event today was a huge success. But I am also missing a lot of things. The main event was fun, no doubt. But the meetings were equally delightful. More maybe! These meetings were definitely the high point of the event. Right now my room looks so empty. For three days there was so much activity happening right here. To add to it, Nupur too had come to stay for those three days. She did come at a time when I was most busy and had not time to talk or discuss anything else. So all we mulled over was THE PARTY. Thus basically the discussion for the party extended even after the students had left, till about 2 at night.

The empty MAZAA bottle reminds me of the lightening speed at which the bottle was opened and its content was gulped down by all. Actually I have to thank Sandeep for this. I don’t drink other cold drinks but Mazaa used to be a favourite, especially during college time. Yashi and I were gripped by ‘Mazaa Mania’ and we used to savor it daily during the exam preparations. (Reminiscing those days when we used to study in the college library for almost eight to ten hours daily. They were such memorable times. I should write about them too, sometime soon). Coming back to the topic, despite loving it so much I had completely forgotten about it. But yesterday when I saw the bottle and Sandeep’s fervor to gulp it down entirely bottle, I was reminded of it again. The sheets of paper lying everywhere – in the drawers, on the table, inside my bag, on the carpet – ring a bell suggesting the amount of planning we had been doing to make the event a grand success, which we eventually did. The golf balls remind me of the time and energy spent in preparing for the games. The time spent in planning the surprise was definitely memorable! Everyone involved with it would definitely agree with me. 

Finally, I would say that this was all possible because of the students. Had they not been so enthusiastic and supportive the event would never have shaped up like this. And yes a special thanks to the people who helped me organize and coordinate the entire event. We have a box full of memories that will be cherished always :)

A group snap, Finally :)

IPL season 2 - getting better?

IPL season 2 saw a lot of drama before the real action of the matches begun. At one point of time it looked difficult to conduct the tournament. After various controversies, trials and tribulations, it was finally decided that IPL would be shifted to South Africa. There were again a lot of speculations if moving the tournament out of India was a good thing to do. Teams, franchises, sponsors, players and audience, all were divided in their opinion. A lot of them said IPL would not be the same in SA. Players said they would miss playing at their home grounds. At the end, all had no option but to accept the fate.

Currently, the IPL fever is on and we are well past the mid way. And what an interesting situation! It seems like barring Kolkata any team can make it to the semi-finals. People are supporting one team or the other with great fervor. But I am not enjoying it. Not that I am not interested in cricket or am averse to this version of the game. The problem is something else.

I do not have a favorite team as such, as I like various players from different teams. However if you ask me which team am I supporting the first name that comes to my mind is Delhi Daredevils. I have spent seven memorable years in Delhi and thus the connection. Theirs is a good team too, and a lot of the names are familiar. Virendra Sehwag-Gautam Gambhir combination is no doubt one of the best though it’s little sad that this duo has not performed well this season. I am glad that Gambhir finally managed to shirk off his not-in-form status and bagged the much deserved Man of the Match award. I am now waiting to see Viru’s explosive batting. I also like Vettori, AB De Villiers and Nannes.

Things would be very simple if it were just this. But at the time I have a soft corner for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) too, for obvious reasons – no not Shah Rukh Khan, though most girls go gaga over him; I was born and brought up in Bengal. Plus, I admire Dada’s grit and never-say-die attitude. They have been extremely unlucky this season and I feel sad at their plight. KKR had been surrounded by controversies even before the real match begun. First it was the multiple-captain theory and then the captaincy issue, which was handed over to Brendon Mccullum. Now when they are at the bottom of the table, much is being said about their pre-hype and SRK’s publicity stunts which did not bring any results. I want this bad run to end for them and as their latest commercial says, come back “RELOADED”. But I know that the dream run of winning the trophy has come to an end this season. All they can do now is bounce back and win the rest of the matches to save themselves more humiliation and criticism for as we know, when it comes to cricket Indians are fanatics. When the team does well and they like someone, they praise them and go mad appreciating and showing their love and affection for them. But, if the same team starts losing matches and do no perform, the same people who earlier had garlands in their hands now have stones instead. They even start abusing the team and hold them guilty for not living up to the expectations. They forget that at the end of the day it is a game where someone wins and someone loses. In India, especially in cricket, fans only expect the team to do well and keep winning. I can see the same fate for KKR. The fans were already upset at Sourav not given charge of captaincy. Now they will be ready to pounce on everyone, seeing the team’s dismal performance. So a couple of wins here should them some good.

These are the two teams that I support. But, there are two other teams that I like for only one person each – Mumbai Indians for Sachin Tendulkar and Royal Challengers Bangalore for Rahul Dravid. Sachin as we all know is an iconic player and I don’t like to see his team lose. On the other hand I have been an ardent fan and supporter of Rahul Dravid ever since I started following the game of cricket, which was way back in class VI or VII. He is one player, who I feel has not got the appreciation that he deserved. He has scored more then 10000 runs in both versions of the game but people have more often criticized than praised him for his skills. He is always considered a slow player, despite the fact that he has been the person who has held the Indian innings together a lot of times. Never mind what people say. I liked him and I still do. It was really nice to see him begin with a bang. He is the sole reason why I do not want RCB to lose a match.

That’s four teams down. However it doesn’t end here too :P I somehow like Kings XI Punjab for no specific reason. And lastly, Chennai Super Kings. Dhoni again is such a brilliant leader that I do not like to see his side lose. I feel sad to see that dejected look whenever his team is in a bad position. Other than this, I do not like the team on the whole. Like if there is match between CSK and any of the teams mentioned above, I would be supporting the other team. The toughest situation is when Delhi and Kolkata play a match. In fact they will be playing one shortly and I am with both the teams. This is a difficult situation as one cannot possibly cheer both the teams simultaneously. Such is the dilemma that I land up not watching the match. At least that’s what I did the last time. Let’s see what happens today!

The last two teams – Rajasthan Royals and Deccan Chargers are the only two teams I have never felt a connection with.  I do not want either of them to make it to the semi-finals. It would be great if Delhi, Mumbai, Punjab and Bangalore make it to the top four :)

Playing a game...Literally!

Playing the tag game. Must admit it felt a bit odd initially when I was tagged by my dear friend and asked to play the game. But it was rather amusing and feels good now. Was reminded of school and college days when such games were a common affair.

RULE #1 People who have been tagged must write their answers on their blogs and replace any question that they dislike with a new question formulated by themselves.

RULE #2 Tag 6 people to do this quiz and those who are tagged cannot refuse. These people must state who they were tagged by and cannot tag the person whom they were tagged by. Continue this game by sending it to other people.

1. If your lover betrayed you what would your reaction be?
F*** off! And it would be time to move on. There is anyway no point in holding on to anything / anyone if it doesn’t seem to be working. But cheating the person you ‘claim to’ love is an absolute NO!

2. If you could have one dream come true which one would it be?
For the past six years there has only been one wish and I earnestly wish it comes true. High time! I know it will.

3. Whose butt would you like to kick?
I don’t really care about what people do in their personal lives. But anyone who messes with me will not be spared.

4. What would you do with a billion dollars?
Let me have it and then I’ll tell you what I do with it.

5. Will you fall in love with your best friend?
Falling in love is not a matter of a choice. If it has to happen, it will happen. It can be anyone then – an acquaintance, a friend or a best friend.

6. Which is more blessed: loving someone or being loved by someone?
Love in itself is a beautiful feeling and so both have their own charm. But it’s a true blessing to be loved by the person you love :)

7. How long would you wait for someone you love?
If I love someone, it means he is worth loving in the first place. So such a person would definitely be worth the wait, no matter how long!

8. If the person you like is secretly attached, what would you do?
If it’s only a liking and not love, then it doesn’t matter if that person is ‘secretly attached.’ I can continue liking him!

9. If you could root for one social cause which one would it be?
Has to be underprivileged children. My heart goes out to see little angels living a life of dispossession.

10. What takes you down the fastest?
PMS! Hoila that reminds me I should post my ODE here :)

11. Where do you see yourself in 10 years' time?
Spare me this clichéd question please!

12. What's your fear?
There are quite a many but most of them are transitory and hence not overpowering. However THE one fear that I think I won’t ever, ever be able to overcome is – Rats! They are creepy and I am shit scared of them!

13. What kind of person(s) do you think the person who tagged you is/are?
She is my alter-ego in many ways. She’s been waiting for me to vent out my deepest feelings, desires, complaints, fears since a long time and no doubt I was the first person to be tagged. I don’t really believe in such games but it’s only for her that I am doing this.

14. Would you rather be single and rich or married and poor?
Married to a person I would love to spend every single minute of my life with. Rich or poor, it actually would not matter then. Seriously ;)

15. What is the first thing you do when you wake up?
Earlier I always woke up late and so had no time to do anything but rush to work. But since the time I am home, I wake up and tell mom “5 minutes MA” and go off the sleep again. And believe you me, the sleep that you get in these 5 minutes is a total bliss!

16. If you fall in love with two people simultaneously who would you pick?
It sure is a big deal for me to fall in love with someone. And you’re talking about two people here. You kidding me! No, but on a serious note, I know that if and when I am in love, I will be totally in for the relationship and so don’t see myself falling for someone else.

17. Would you give all in a relationship?
Well yes, entirely. I do not like to formalities, especially when it comes to relationships, be it any. So if I am fond of someone I will go out of my way for that person. Else I really don’t care.

18. What's eating you now?
What if I am not able to meet my parents (especially Dad’s) desire of getting through a good B-school! They have their expectations and so I am really anxious!

19. Do you prefer being single or in a relationship?
Is this a question of preference?

20. Tag 6 people...
Alas! 6 is too big a number. I have only recently started blogging. However tagging a couple of friends who I hope will play along :)
**Myraidmusings
**Tripti

Tag completed :)