Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Rang Barse….

‘Holi Aayi re’ was the mood on the campus not just on the d-day. The preparations started much in advance. The business ready managers who would take charge of large business units and take decisions worth millions were perplexed when they have to chose how much of which color, Should it be pink gulal or green gulal……

On the D-day there’s not a single soul spared. You want to return a book to the library or you have to go meet your friend – there’s only one reason to it –‘It’s holi’. It’s one of the wildest holies I have ever witnessed. Reasons galore – Buckets of Bhangs on the pavement and people bathing in it, making sure that none of the guys have their T-Shirts on, though not a pleasant sight (Have to mention poor Vijay who changed his shirt thrice and the gang mercilessly tears it apart and throws it on a tree), the sweet revenges by dumping packetfuls of color on folks who laugh at anyone, pouring bucket full of water on someone who’s sitting peacefully, attacking someone with colors after conniving on color combinations, the memorial tree which has all the tee shirts hung on it…. Absolutely crazy holy I’d say !! One needs to be here to know what I am saying. Yet there were a few poor souls who were so concerned bout the effect of colors on their skin or getting tanned etc – what a pity. People are in a mode of making the best of the last few days at college and what else can I say than ‘I am loving it’

Picture speak now










I love the festive of colors for its true sense and meaning. This is one day when everyone comes together, irrespective of age, color, sex, caste, creed… Thanks to my friend Animesh who captured people celebrating Holi in Hyderabad. His pictures below drive my point home…








Sunday, March 8, 2009

Follow me

Isn’t it difficult to lead? Well atleast I always thought so.

It was salsa time today. And first things first – I am a beginner and a pathetic beginner. I confuse my partner so much that he would forget that he is dancing salsa and would probably end up in jive or cha cha cha !! Now that I am so good at it, needless to say I need a strong partner so that I could simply follow him. Spin if he spins me, turn if he truns me etc.. After dancing for sometime my partner said – ‘You are just not letting me lead you’. Well, I brushed it off and started dancing with someone else. Well in the end, they all had one thing in common to say. It’s as if they were all echoing in sync and shouting at me –‘You just can’t follow. Can you? It’s so simple. You just have to trust me and take my lead’ Well, I have been so foolish all these days and thought it’s difficult to lead !!!!

Sunday, March 1, 2009

dy/dx

Long Long ago (yeah its almost 7 years back) there was a gal who was scared of numbers. The excuse – am a commerce student! The very thought of mathematics and she would see a horror movie instantaneously. And the worst is yet to come. Behold!! She was preparing for one of the toughest competitive exams and yes you guessed it right; Quant was one of the sections. (For some of you who still couldn’t figure out – the lead role in this story is I, Me and Myself).
One fine evening, I was in the classroom. The most dreaded topic of all. Yeah it was this dy/dx topic. Is that called differentiation by any chance? As if it weren’t enough it was differential calculus. Double Jeopardy!! And there stands my trainer, (Ranga - the toughest one I eva came across – Initially, I thought he was a villain) with the threat of calling out some name and asking that fella to solve the problem on the blackboard. I was 200% sure it would be me.

Ranga : Sirisha. Solve this problem
Me : Errr… but you know.. I mean I don’t know calculus

Ranga : But you could give it a try
Me : No ! You see, I don’t even know what it means (not budging from where I sat)

Ranga : There’s no other go. You gotta try this one.
Me : gggrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr (no thought of trying it too)


And what followed is something nobody would guess. He stood there explaining us that “Fear is a useless thing in life. It is just a state of mind. Most of the times you fail not because you don’t know how to do something, but because you haven’t tried it. The best way to conquer is to put your best foot forward and do it even if it means failing the task………………………………………….... I guess this is same for anything in life not just mathematics. Nothing is too difficult that you cannot try.”

I vividly remember that day of my life and how I started looking at things a little different – I meant fearlessly. That small pep talk made a lot of difference in my life. Then on Ranga has become my mentor for everything in life and I have idolized him. Be it calculus or some problem dealing people !! Some one who absolutely leads by example.
Thanks to all those great souls I met in my life without whom I wouldn’t have been what I am.

Ranga, I know you would be reading my blog and slyly smiling to yourself. Or may be you would ask your wife to read it aloud for you! And you thoroughly deserve it.