Thursday, September 13, 2007

The end of a killer term... and a killer on campus?

The pall on Kampus has lifted. The specter of the end terms now well and truly vanquished, it’s time for PGP11 to kick back and enjoy some quiet time before they return for the massacre that is Term 2. As goodbyes are waved, bags packed and books gladly shoved away (after what seems like years), the atmosphere here positively reeks of joy or something stronger. Loud Punjabi songs and rock anthems jostle in a weird jugalbandi as PGP11 finds a musical outlet for its pent-up frustration.

But has the realization that they have now finished 1/6th of their time here finally sunk in? Or are they just glad that the term from hell has finally ended? Now that the End-Terms have given way to the term’s end, the K-files talked to a few PGP11-ites to find out their thoughts on their first term at K.

“I finally understand what Einstein meant when he said time is relative” says Chaitanya. “Time at K can crawl as slow as it can fly fast. A minute in normal time might seem like an eon when you are waiting for the results of a Markstrat session and a day of sessions and movies of Dr. Mathew might seem to be over before you can blink. Sometimes it seems like it was ages ago when I entered the campus dumbfounded at its awesome beauty and sometimes it seems like the term just flew by. The experience however only got better, getting to know all the awesome people here, joining committees and getting through the 8-exams-in-4-days ordeal. One thing that I'll take home is a sense of belonging which will bring me back here, term after term with more zeal and enthusiasm than before.”

Perky Punekar, Aniket Kute, agrees with Chaitanya, “The entire process of volunteering for various committees and finally being chosen was a great feeling. The camaraderie developed while preparing for Roobaroo was a highlight of the term. But undoubtedly”, he said, “Markstrat had to be the best 2 days we spent on campus. When else would you find people waking up voluntarily at 7.30 in the morning and discussing marketing and distribution budgets?”

Stringy Srinivasan or Gokul as he’s better known had this to say, “Term 1 was a blur. Too many things were happening around me and I wanted to be a part of everything! I guess the enthusiasm in our batch is infectious. And the best course of the term was STI - no doubts on that front and I am sure the whole batch has a similar take on it. But somewhere down the line, there was discontent brewing within us... of having been deprived of girls. With the academic load increasing, frustration set in; people became homesick; but slowly, we have been brought into the folds of the K culture and we’re enjoying every minute of it – be it the long hours of BCing at the NC or the mad frenzy of messages on IP - the initiation into the Kult. We’ve become a part of K.”

Gokul wasn’t the only one who felt that term 1 had sped away. As Puneet Nagi puts it “Like a 10 minute quiz, it ended before it started. But it sure was good fun while it lasted! In this of state of being overwhelmed by the feeling that it's over, I can’t really recall any of the cool things that happened. Perhaps there were just too many of them! All I can think of at the moment, is putting the closing entries on my burgeoning sleep debt account. Debit sleep, credit sleep debt. Or whatever. Accounts sucks!”

Rishi Tandon wrapped it all up nicely saying, “A blink of the eye, and already we are 1/6 MBAs. The term started deceptively slowly, with a starry eyed moi walking wonderstruck into this hilltop paradise. Welcomed by a score of activities, and a happy reconnection with the academic life, I've lived life to the fullest this one term- courses, parties, assignments, field visits, crazy deadlines, infinite all night gyan sessions with a bevy of new friends. This is just how I'd imagined being at an IIM to be. The term break is welcome and I leave for home feeling that all this it’s over all too quickly. I know that I'm returning soon, rejuvenated and wanting more of the IIMK life.”

One down. Five to go.

PS: It wasn’t just PGP11 that was running free on Thursday afternoon. Joining them was this little cobra that for a brief while became the star of the most downloaded video on campus. Think twice before sitting on your bike the next time! Our mallu protectors though did a magnificent job of catching it and here it is in all its innocent glory. Here is a video capturing the same, with MessCom Rohit Arya's commentary.



2 comments:

asiftherock said...

Behold & beware the Mallu protectors :)

Anonymous said...

1/6th MBA.. can you believe it?! :))