Party Time!!!

The first party on campus and I must say, what a party!!! At the stipulated time of 10:30PM, India were still playing against Sri Lanka and more importantly, with Dravid in the middle, there was still hope. It was thus obvious that the party got a little delayed as all of us stayed glued to the television screen in the mess. In fact, there were people (me included) rooting even for Balaji and actually shouting that India will be able to make the required 20-odd runs off the last over with Balaji and Pathan on the forefront. Well, so much for high hopes and lost causes...

Coming back to the party, it started off with some real loud static from the mammoth speakers placed at two corners of the dining hall. After the initial glitches, the stage was set for the party to begin. But as usual, nothing at an IIM is complete without a presentation. It is something like the Ganesh Pujas that need to be done before the strat of any auspicious task. Similarly with an IIM, it is so very important to show a Power Point Presentation before anything kicks off...and so it was with the party last night...there was a presentation of some campus snaps of the senior batch arranged in a PPS (Power Point Show for the uninitiated) with the Dil Chahta Hai theme song forming the back drop. I must say that the seniors do have an appreciable aesthetic sense, and the way the snaps were arranged (I specifically liked the bit where the camera zooms in on the same frame with each consecutive snap) was extremely good. Since I had already seen the presentation during the alumni-freshers meet in Chennai, I could not watch it for a third time...yes, there was an encore.

There was another little delay after that and it was because of the accounts conscious people trying to realise some return from their investment. To put it simply, there was a huge crowd at the food and drinks (drinks highlighted) stalls and junta stuffed themselves with beer, vodka, rum,et al and the pathetic (to many) teetotallers like me had to do with soft drinks and Veg Pakodas (yes, my pathos knows no bounds, I am a damn veggie, as well :-)) Coming back again, by the time people started pouring in to the dance floor in small groups with a bottle of beer in one hand a glass of vodka in another, the music was already starting to rock.

Four hours of bindaas dancing later, there was hardly any strength left in the poor feet. I had a rocking time and as the night grew younger, the atmosphere became even more conducive for letting your hair down. In fact, I even sat on the ground to make bhang on the tunes of "Khai ke paan Banaras wala". Later, with "Mehbooba Mehbooba" from Sholay going on, I was on my knees again, swaying like the Hippies do. I was drunk with the Patiala peg...not even a single drag of smoke...not even a single drop of alcohol, and yet, I was able to lose myself in the intoxication of the party and that is saying a lot.

The party was not without its share of side lights, either. The background was made and the stage set even before the party started and that was in the afternoon, when we were having a batch meeting to decide on the loan that we are going to take for our studies. To get the facts straight, the reader must understand that like any other group, our batch has a bunch of people who are the self acclaimed leaders. Whether it is a part of Organisational Behaviour class or not, I have seen similar group dynamics in the earlier groups that I have been part of. I call such people the apparent leaders. There is another group called the potential leaders, which has all the qualities that the apparent leaders possess but may not want to project it with the same abandon.

There might be a third group of actual leaders that may arise out of either of these two groups or from an entirely unexpected quarter...but I guess I am going off-track here. The matter of the fact is that there was a clash between the potential and the apparent leaders during the group meeting. With the apparent leaders occupying center stage as usual, the potential leaders (in fact, just one of them took the baton) decided to call the bluff and make a shout about it. This was enough for the undercurrent to be present through out the night party, as well. With alcohol getting the better of restraint, tempers ran high and though there was not a direct clash (which most of us teetotallers would have enjoyed), things were said on both sides that were not exactly pleasant (sic!).

As in any place where drinks are served, some people went overboard and started letting out their inner thoughts. The most interesting part, at least from my perspective, was that so many of my 'intoxicated' batch mates came up to me and told me in clear words as to how much of a loser I am. Having read my blog, they commended me on my writing skills (God bless them), but at the same time pointed out that they found me pessimistic in my musings. They identified with my state of mind when I wrote the blog but would still have liked me to have a more rose-tinted approach towards life.

By the way, it is not just under the effect of alcohol that people have advised me to do this. Even otherwise, I have been told not to worry too much and that things will fall into place sooner or later. People, I really appreciate all of you coming forward and telling me these things. If you are reading this, I am sure that with your continued support, I will be able to come out of this mental block which might be preventing me from blending in. Also, as I mentioned in one of my earlier posts, do not take my ramblings too seriously. It is just a state of mind from which I, as expected of a typical Gemini, can come out any time. The highs are as much a part of my life as are the lows. Thank heavens that yesterday was a big high...