Dreams are realized :)

I do not want to lose the momentum that I have got after a long time. Also I’m not going to spend ages thinking about the topic. Actually that used to happen when I used to write selectively. But now that I have decided to write frequently, this should not be a problem. So here comes the next one. 

I want to talk about the phenomenal results that we’ve had at IMS this year. To begin with, here is the news. Neha has converted IIM-B and IIM-L. She was my student and it is so satisfying to know that one of your students has realised her dreams and got admission in one of the most prestigious and sought after B schools in India. Then there is Vidushi who has converted IIM-L and Saurav who has made it to XLRI. These two were in other batches so I don’t know them as such, but it still does feel good that we’ve had such good results. More than that, it is a reassurance that students from small towns too can make it. I never had a doubt about this; it’s for most of the aspirants here who are perpetually cynical and harbour such thoughts. So Kudos to IMS Siliguri and Kudos to Sumit!! :) 

I am reminded of something. I’ve seen the mad rush of people wanting a share of the limelight when the results are out. Everyone remotely associated with the candidate claims that he/she had a hand in contributing to the candidate’s success in one way or the other. Top on the list are the various coaching institutes that come out with data a propos their success rates, each vouching that it has had the BEST results. They were and are NUMERO UNO. Next are the neighbours and relatives who can’t stop talking about how they always knew that he/she had that spark and would definitely make a mark one day. Then friends! The list goes on... 

Now, I do not want to sound like any one of them ;) The reason why I want awareness about this is that it should help in changing the mindset of the people here – parents, teachers and aspirants alike. I always keep telling my students that it is a lot about the ATTITUDE. That’s the first thing they need to have – a POSITIVE ATTITUDE. It is, in fact, a pre-requisite. Students here, on the contrary, have various misconceptions.

• It is not possible for students from a small town like Siliguri to make it to IIMs. Forget about getting there it is not for us to think about it too
• We have never had IIM calls so far. If the previous batches have not been able to do it, then how can we? What is so special about us?
• The commerce students feel that CAT is not their cup of tea. It is a thing for the engineers only. We don’t stand a chance. The worst part here is that they are supported by their teachers. In fact I know of some colleges where the teachers tell the students that they will never be able to do it and hence drop it. How pathetic is that!

There has been a change in the last two years, no doubt. But that is just in a few students. I hope this changes. I do seriously hope that candidates realize that IIMs are within their reach but only if they have that ATTITUDE and that desperation. I hope this invigorates my current batch students and fills them with lots of positive energy :)

So dream on guys! It could just be you next year :)

Naughty Nupur - Part II

There had to be a part two for this post as I wanted to write about some more things. These are basically some memories that Nupur and I have shared. It's not possible to write down all, but just some of them are mentioned here: The first one definitely has to be my birthday cake. We had just a week ago and I had mentioned that I was really crazy about my birthday. But that year, in 2009, there happened to be a strike on 11th and I was already feeling low about it. So on 10th August around 10 pm the door bell rang. It was the delivery boy from Victoria Junction. Poor guy! He had been roaming around with that cake for more than an hour. The reason – incorrect address! Instead of mentioning Silverline Hotel, you’d given the address as opposite Tourist Lodge, which happens to be in Kurseong. How on earth was he supposed to find it? He finally did, with a lot of asking around. Now I was curious who had sent it. The first one was from Appu, and I’d pretty much guessed this one was from you. I asked the delivery boy but he did not have much to tell me. Only he gave me that paper where you’d written down the address. Do you remember what happened the next day? We’d gone to Victoria in the evening and that guy sees us there and tells me “Cake inhone ne hi order kiya tha”.

Next up are our Saturday hangouts at CCD and of course the rain that accompanied every week. Well you mentioned in your comment in the earlier post that I had missed out on the rain. No sweetie. How could I have? It’s just that I had this idea of a next post and had saved it for here. So, what days they were! And what rain too! Every Saturday we used to meet and then it used to rain, and rain heavily. Remember how we once got stuck in Cosmos for a real long time. Then finally we left. We had no umbrellas and there was no luck in getting the autos. So we were just walking. We were so totally drenched. But what fun it was! That time it was a protocol that if we met up, it had to rain. We used to so look forward to it. But seriously those were fun days. All we would do is chat chat chat, and chat nonstop, about anything and everything. It’s so different now. We are always talking about serious stuff. We should do something like those days sometime soon. What say? No serious talks, no tension – just let loose and enjoy!

There are various other things – the morning walks, the coffes, the movies, the night stays, shopping, talking and so much more. Like I said it’s been good. I don’t remember of a time when we have had a disagreement, forget about a fight. Touchwood! No, but seriously, this is commendable. Guess we just have the same wavelength and get along well. And now that I see time running out, I want to make the most of the days that you are here. We should meet often now :)

Naughty Nupur :)

A day in the first week of August 2009 it was. I was speaking to this friend of mine. My parents were out of station and I had lots of free time with nothing much to do. I was sort of bored. I happened to mention this to that friend and he immediately said that he had a friend in Siliguri, from Guwahati, who too stayed alone and did not know too many people here. He told me she was an RJ with Misty. The moment he mentioned her name, I asked him, “Naughty Nupur”? He sounded excited and enquired if I knew her or followed her show or something. No, I told him. I must have heard it on the radio sometime while switching channels. He asked me if I would like to speak to her. I said I had no issues. Normally I would not have been keen on knowing a friend’s friend. Definitely not someone I had never met. But I so readily agreed to speak to Nupur. Maybe we were destined to meet!

Ok jokes apart, we were talking about it and then I had to hang up for a while as I had to go to the kitchen. I was making pasta that day, I so vividly remember. We resumed our conversation in sometime. It was one of those ‘catching-up’ days when you’re speaking to a long lost friend after ages and so obviously have lots to talk about. At that time there was a call waiting, but even before I could check the number the line got disconnected. He asked me what number it was. Why would he be bothered, I wondered! He seemed to have read my mind and told me that it could be Nupur. What!! I was taken aback because that was real quick. He had just mentioned her some ten minutes ago. She couldn’t be calling so soon. Well, this would have been my reaction under normal circumstances. But that day I did not find anything strange about it. Maybe it was because things were happening in such quick succession or like I said earlier, it was destiny. Anyway, we checked the number and it was her. He hung up and said she would perhaps try again. She did, soon and we spoke for the first time. It was a short and nice conversation. So that was how we both were introduced, over the phone. So when did we meet next? Well that same night. Yes! Something must have really clicked between us because it was not a usual meet at a coffee shop or something. She came for a stay-over at my place. Like I mentioned earlier, it just happened so suddenly. In fact our common friend too was surprised. He said he had expected us to gel well, but not so instantly that she was staying over at my place that same night. Well the rest as they say is history.

I’ve now known her for almost two years and it’s been so much fun. Nupur is a sweetheart. She is extremely lively and absolutely fun-loving; we’ve had some crazy moments together. She is full of positive vibes and is the right person to meet when you are low. She passes on that energy to you and lifts your spirits up. She has so much of energy and can talk non-stop. Yes she speaks a lot, and why not. She gets paid to do that, so she better talk, and talk a great deal. In fact she gets so carried away when she is talking, she doesn’t realize when she gets loud. Especially, if it is a closed space, like a coffee shop, I always have to gesture her to be softer. I love the way she has a twinkle in her eyes at that time. She is someone with a pure heart, who doesn’t know any pretence whatsoever. This is what I love about her the most and this is why I can be totally myself with her. It is so just relaxing to be in her company. Today, she is my only friend in Siliguri but I’ve never really felt the need of having more friends with her around. I am so thankful that I met her. I’m saying this not because everyone says this about his/her friend. It is because I’ve realized something. It’s easy to meet thousands of people, befriend dozens and be good friends with some of them. But even out of these, it is just a few people who come into your life and make a difference. They teach you many things and you form a great bond with them. Life moves on and so might they, but then will have left an indelible mark in your life. Nupur has already left this mark :)

You will soon be going away and I am going to miss you a great deal, not because I am going to be very lonely (which I will be) but because I really love spending time with you. I cherish the moments spent with you. I’m going to miss spending time with you. In fact I think I’ve begun missing you already! I love you :)

We miss you, Nicky

I really miss Nicky, my best friend, and I'm sure my blog misses her equally. She always encouraged me to write and was more enthusiastic about it than me. I remember her calling me up very excitedly and informing me that she had found a lovely template for the blog. Yes, I never had to work on its look and style. She was more concerned about it and took great care to update it from time to time. She had that enthusiasm of a small kid who looks at every new thing with great thrill, keen to discover it and know more about it. And it was she who kept me going.

But she is now busy with her marital life and I too lost whatever little interest that I had (for various reasons). The result - my blog just looks so dry! There have been no comments for the last two blog posts. Call me a kid, but yes I used to be very excited about the comments, eagerly waiting. It is quite a paradox because very few people had the link. But this never quite bothered me, because Nicky made up for it mostly. Then of course, there were select others who mattered to me. They too were supportive in their own ways. Some expressed it via comments on the posts itself or through email and chats. Then there were the silent supporters who never said anything but I knew that every post was being read by them.

Anyway I have decided to be active and write regularly. This resolution has come many a times before but this time I am really going to stick to it. So comments or no comments, I am going to write.

Nicky was forever worried that I kept too many things to myself and never spoke about them. Thus she constantly encouraged me to write. She always desired that I use this as an outlet for expressing my thoughts, desires, frustrations, grievances, and memories – basically everything. Well so far it was more of recounting past experiences, but I now want to write about my present thoughts too. It’s not that I do not write them, but they are mostly lying in the drafts. But now, enough of hiding them in the closet!

Nicky I want you to read this and I know you will. You just have to know that I am back at it, and I am sure that no matter what, you will take out time to read it and loyally comment on every single post. Well, both my blog and I am looking forward to it.

Just Like That :)

My friend Nupur had stayed over for the night a couple of days ago and I happened to mention my blog to her. She told me she had never seen it. That came as a surprise to me because we’ve been friends (good friends that too) for almost two years now and I usually share my blog link with close pals! So I asked her if she wanted to go through it. She readily agreed.

We both started reading. I was simultaneously updating her about the various incidents that were penned down there. We were both having a good time – me, recounting and re-living those memorable incidents and she listening to them with the usual sparkle in her eyes :)

Reading some posts, especially those about Nicky and Joyeeta, took us a good half an hour, or even more perhaps. And why not? They are two people which whom I’ve had a whole lot of fun and countless treasured moments. It was then that I realized two things. Firstly, my blog is mostly in the narrative form. It is either a recount of my experiences with various people or a record of situations/events. Perhaps this is why some friends compliment me for my writing style and suggest that I should try my hands at writing a novel. Secondly, and more importantly, my blog has no mention of this very dear friend, who was sitting right beside me at that time. Maybe it is because from the time I’ve known her, I’ve not maintained my blog. Thus there is no mention of her or our friendship. But whatever be the case, it was there at that moment, that I realized that my next post had to be about her. She has been an important part of my life for quite some time now and I would love to talk about our escapades and the friendship that we share. I had begun writing about Music, something again that is very dear to me, but that has been sidelined for the time being. So Nupur, you will soon have a post dedicated to you :)

Teaching

There could not have been a better topic to start my second innings of blogging with. Today, teaching is my passion. I totally love it. However this happened accidentally.

I was going through this phase of life wherein I was dissatisfied with my work. There were a lot of things that I did not like about it and was thus looking for a change. I wanted to get away from PR itself but did not know what to do next. A lot of people suggested I take CAT but I was skeptical. I was never inclined towards MBA from the very beginning. When we were in final year of college, my friend/roommate Nisha advised that I should give it a try. She said a lot of English Hons students too appeared for it. But I wasn’t in the least interested. But who knew that some years down the line, I would be so closely related to this industry.

Ok, so I was in a dilemma and did not know what I wanted to do. It was THE discussion regarding MBA, with my cousin Apurva in Green Park CCD that made me seriously ponder over it. I decided to take the plunge. I joined IMS in Delhi and started with the preparations. However I was still shuttling between office and studies, and that wasn’t easy. I was messing up both and so had to take a call. I chose to quit work and came home for preparations. Time was limited as there was barely a month and a half to go. But I decided to give it my best. I took a transfer to IMS Siliguri. I got a lot of help there, but that wasn’t enough. Maths was a serious problem. Not that I did not have the basics in place. But time was too short. Anyway, I appeared for the exams but did not get through. The reason being I only had the top ten B-schools in mind. After having a MA degree it would have been pointless to join a second-rung B-school.

It was sometime in February when all the results were out and I knew I had not made it anywhere. I wasn’t disappointed though. I remember having a discussion with Sumit, who is the centre manager at IMS Siliguri. I told him I wasn’t in the mood to get back to the corporate world. He then asked me why I was even appearing for those B-schools exams as that’s where I would have to get back to after an MBA. Anyway it was sometime then that I got a call from Sumit asking me to see him. I went one day, and he asked me, generally, what my plans for the future were. I told him I had not decided anything as yet. It was then that he asked me if I were interested in teaching English at IMS. Huh! That was like a bombshell being dropped. I laughed it off and told him I had not in my weirdest moments thought about taking up teaching. He suggested I give it a try. I was still apprehensive so he asked me to think over it.

I came home and shared the news with a couple of close friends. They suggested I try it. I had nothing to lose after all. I wasn’t too keen on it but then the thought of coaching CAT aspirants sounded good. Only, I wasn’t sure if I would be able to. Having good command over English is one thing, teaching it in a class, that too CAT level, is quite another. But after some deliberation and discussion I decided to take the plunge. The rest, as they say, is history.

Today when I look back I feel glad I took that decision. I am totally into it now. Like I said, it has become a passion. It feels good to enrich and nurture minds. Moreover as they say, teaching is indeed a noble profession. Initially I used to be so overwhelmed by the respect I used to get from my students. In fact I was just not accustomed to it. I used to compare it with the corporate world all the time, where politics, abuses, manipulation and mind-games were an integral part of the job. Contrary to that, there was so much respect and courtesy here. There are many more things I like about teaching. More on that and about my students in the next post.

Back :)

It really seems like eternity – cant believe it's been more than a YEAR since I wrote my last blog post. I now realize that I have been so away from the world of writing. All this time, I used to hear about MY BLOG from the handful friends who have the link. Some of them had been urging that I start writing again. I was thinking of getting back to it but was still dilly dallying about the whole thing. In fact, I wasn't charged or geared up to write something today either. But then I happened to casually visit my own blog, more like a stranger, and the date of the last post almost shocked me. I still can't believe it's been that long. So I decided I HAD TO JUST WRITE something and break the hiatus.

So this is it, for a start. I am back (with a bang I hope)...

Cheers :)

Consistently Inconsistent

My status reads – “Consistently Inconsistent”

A lot of people will identify with this feeling I am sure. I am mostly inconsistent – I'm capricious and tend to get bored awfully fast with situations, things and even people, every so often. But there are times when this feeling is very strong. It is more like a phase and these days I am going through such a period (no pun intended here :P). Nothing appeals to me or fascinates me. And even if it does, it doesn’t hold my attention for long. I start something with great passion but then lose the enthusiasm soon. This explains the numerous drafts in my folder because I just do not have the willpower to finish them. I doubt if I will post this one too. But today I am determined to do so. Let’s see what happens! It is like challenging me and I am already enjoying it :)

Getting back to the topic…I do not like the company of even my closest pals. I just do not feel like talking to anyone. But then again I get irritated with the loneliness. I seek the company of people, I long to share my thoughts, I yearn for a good conversation; it is a vicious circle.

I have currently started reading about 8-9 books and each day I feel like taking up a new one. I tell myself that let others be; I will me start afresh and ensure that I finish this one. But it’s the same story :P

In fact sometimes I even don’t like listening to music. Then it kind of worries me because I really can’t picture life without music. So getting bored with it or not being up to it is unimaginable. But thankfully this is rare and happens for a very short time.

Basically, the whole point is…

Well there I go. I have lost the link…train of thoughts broken! Talk about being inconsistent!!

Now this doesn’t really qualify as a complete post but I will still put it up. That’s about it for now. And I seriously hope to transfer stuff from my drafts to the blog :P

You make me proud brother

Ravi, my brother, has topped his college (Hansraj, my Alma Mater too :D) in Eco Hons, 1st year. He has scored 80% - now such high percentage in a subject like Economics was unheard of, at least during my time. The standard might have gone up, as the university topper has scored close to 90% but the fact that he comes from a Science background makes it all the more special. Moreover, there was a huge hullabaloo over his taking up this course. I was rebuked by my dad and many others for encouraging him to drop Science and take up B.A (Hons).

Dad always wanted me to take up Science, but I was not interested. So I took up Commerce in the eleventh grade. He was a little disappointed but there still was some hope. It was, however, all lost when I chose to graduate in Literature. He was unhappy with my decision but Ravi kind of made up for it when he decided to take up Science. Lost hope was rekindled and papa was very happy. But maybe destiny had something else in store for him. He did not make it to any of the good engineering colleges, missing some of them by just a whisker. He did not want to drop a year and said that he wanted to shift to Economics instead. Now, the course is good and has great career prospects. But I too wasn't very comfortable with the idea of him dropping Science. However I had to change my mind as he was determined and absolutely sure that he did not want to drop a year. Plus he had other valid points too. So after weighing all the pros and cons, I agreed. Dad was dead against it but I explained things to him. There was no point in forcing him to either take up a college he did not want or get him to drop a year. So he eventually enrolled in Economics. Dad of course wasn't happy and I had to hear a lot of times that it was not a right decision.

Right or wrong I still do not know. I don't know if he would have done better with Science. I only know that I had trust him and he did not let me down. I also know that you are sincere and hardworking and will do well in life. You make me proud brother. Keep rocking :)

Ravi (left) with his friend after receiving the awards on the Annual Day :)

Receiving the award :)

Tin, this is for you :)

It’s been a while since I have written anything or even visited my blog for that matter. The past one month I was busy traveling. I also finally visited Darjeeling :) But I will write about my traveling escapades later, in the next post perhaps. I assured a dear friend of mine that the next post on my blog would be for her. So Tin, this one is dedicated to you.

It was the same with Prachi and you. I did not like either of you initially. I was actually mad at Archana for introducing us. But then our route was common so it only made sense to travel together. I then started interacting with you’ll and realized it was not that bad after all. (However, to be honest, I had never thought that we would be such good pals one day.) Then you started working and so it was Prachi and me most of the time. Naturally we got closer and this aroused jealousy in you. As much as you deny it, the Shivaji Stadium incident was proof enough :P Now I know you would still say that you don’t remember a thing but then that was the fact!

Anyway we did have lots of fun… in the class, in various places @ CP especially CCD, the walk from BVB to the Metro station, the race at the station, then the metro ride, last minute hurried studies for the exams… it was all memorable! BVB had given me all this and two good friends to be cherished for lifetime :)

The next phase was when I was at Comma and you at Businesswire. This time we mostly met while traveling, especially when my office shifted to CP temporarily. We also had Chiki for company now. Come to think of it Tin, most of the time we have spent together has been while traveling. Like we said – metro partners! And we have so many unforgettable instances at different metro stations. Remember when Prachi and you managed to get out of the metro but I was trapped inside at Kashmere Gate. We were, rather I was, already late that day and to make things worse, the unnecessary delay. And similarly the next time @ Netaji I got in the train but you could not make it on time. Gosh, what amazing moments they were!

I am seriously glad I met you girl. I am not saying this only because of the fun times we have shared but for the reason that I like you as a person too. You are a fun-loving, bindaas, bubbly, chirpy girl, who maintains a perfect balance between friends and family, work and fun. I love your attitude towards life. I have seldom seen the emotional side of you; it has always been about the light happy moments. But I also know that beneath all this lies a matured, levelheaded persona who is extremely loveable.

You would soon be starting a new phase in your life. I wish you all the best. Love you…Muaah :)