There is a nip in the air this
morning, almost imperceptible, laughable even to anyone who is accustomed to
the traditional season of winter (wear). But, for me, it is a trigger to
memories from a weather long ago at a place far away. Bangalore of the mid-late
2000s was pleasure, full of greenery, and cool winds, particularly cold inside
the hallowed portals of IIMB. Those days, the temperature used to drop a degree
or two once you set foot inside campus.
I first walked into the campus
in early 2006 to attend my group discussions and personal interviews. Filled
with nothing short of awe, I passed my hands over those grey stone walls,
walked tentatively across podiums and courtyards, and attended the interviews
with trepidation. It’s been over twelve years since then, ten since I graduated from
campus.
Ten years out of campus is a
lot of learning, as clichéd as it sounds. Student life is a sheltered one,
idyllic even, despite the pressures of coursework and tests and grades and
placements. Ten years ago, it was even more idyllic because we were one of the
last batches to pay dirt cheap fees for a 2-year course in that eminent
institution. All we had to do was turn up at class, participate with some
inputs and solutions to business problems we half understood and didn’t relate
to, cram for tests, complete group projects, and design our resumes. The goals weren’t
many, in fact the goal was only one, to get placed on Day 0. Identification of
personal strengths and interest areas, evaluating role fitment, considering company
culture – none of these were priorities. At pre-placement talks, all of us
would wait for that slide titled “Compensation & Benefits” because, nothing
else mattered. No wonder then that most B-school graduates quit their jobs
within the first year or two of joining.
Ten years out of campus also
means a lot of forgetting. We do tend to forget that those 2-years were hardly
idyllic. It was a lot of pressure, from within and outside. The first few
months were heartbreaking, because relative grading hardly made friends, mostly
only people looking for benefits. Summer placements killed whatever friendships
remained, because come on, Not Day 0, then not my friend. And that’s why it is
important to cherish the friendships that survived that time, in fact thrived
through the past ten years. What miracle is that? Who are these people who have
wanted to be friends with me all these years? No benefits here. No support in
group studies or placement prep, but they are still around, and will be around
for the 25th year reunion.
Ten years do pass by in a
flash. So much happens. People move countries, change careers, get married,
have kids, get divorced, get married again. But, people at the core never
change. Those I remember as the fun ones who can hold happy conversations about
the world at large still remain the same. And the others… they too remain. The
same. Those of us who would get around and make fun of everything and everyone
also remain, the same.
Ten years out of campus, most
importantly, just raises more questions than answers. We planted a tree in
memory of a dead batchmate. Yes, one of us died. Within just ten years. No one
called for silence as the tree was planted, we just went silent. Perhaps, we
were all thinking the same thing. What is life? Is it just a tree at the end?
P.S. Thanks M, for making me
write on the blog. It was for fear of losing your readership mostly, that I
wrote this. Also, because I wanted to write. What’s a ten-year reunion if
not a blog post?
