I don't know why but a thought suddenly came to me making me look back at this blog and see how it has come up over the last four and a half years that it has been in existence. Since May 2004, I have written a grand total of 237 posts (including this one) with the last 37 having taken three full years. The first two years having been spent on campus with so many events unfolding almost every other day can probably explain this.
Another noticeable fact, at least to me, was that there have been two relatively long periods of near complete silences on this blog, the first one after leaving campus and before joining my job from March to May 2006 (3 months with no post). The second one, of course, is attributable to the life threatening accident that I had last year and ranged from February 2007 to March 2008 (1 year and 1 month with 3 posts). Other stand-alone silent months have been March 2005, January 2006, September 2006, December 2006, and June 2008.
May 2004:
No. of posts: 25
Date of first post: 03
Title of first post: One long day
First paragraph of first post:
Another day passes with neither news nor immediate hope of the IIMK results. It is strange, the way this thing has started getting a hold over me. Even after busying myself the whole of the weekend in finally completing the book, Lord of The Rings, I could not help thinking about what will happen.
June 2004:
No. of posts: 08
Date of first post: 01
Title of first post: Working for free
First paragraph of first post:
I have been working for free once again, and that too during my last few days at Infy. I know that it may sound like cribbing but I am ready to challenge anyone who says that they love working and that too, with the knowledge that they will be leaving the company for good in another three days.
July 2004:
No. of posts: 19
Date of first post: 07
Title of first post: Inside God's own country
First paragraph of first post:
Finally, I am in IIMK. After a short and almost uneventful stay in Chennai, I had to pack my bags for another trip, this one much smaller than the marathon Buxar-Chennai one just a couple of days back. With the bag already spilling over and the suitcase packed as tight as any suitcase could possibly afford to, I had to bring my favorite Globus bag in use and the helmet was another addition.
August 2004:
No. of posts: 19
Date of first post: 07
Title of first post: A pi in the face of adversity
First paragraph of first post:
Yann Martel exceeds himself and any other writers of a similar genre as he describes 'The Life of Pi'. The book is a treatise on so many things. It delves into the rationale behind zoos, the psychology of animals, the importance of religion and faith in one's life and above all, the life of a stow-away, the things man can be compelled to do...and so much more that after reading the book, the reader is mentally exhausted because of having to take so much in. Yet, the story doesn't drag, once it has entered its flow. Admittedly, the first fifty-odd pages move slow as we are introduced to the character of Piscine but as soon as the protagonist's nemesis, Richard Parker, comes into being, the complexion of the story changes completely.
September 2004:
No. of posts: 21
Date of first post: 01
Title of first post: Dahi vadai...garam samosa...masala dosai
First paragraph of first post:
I had promised...to serve masala in this post...and so be it. At the risk of sounding some people off and even making my reputation of being the official gossip even stronger (if at all that is possible), I am back with another story...nay, not a story but as true a representation of thoughts as possible. Well, it has hardly been a point of contention...my facts, that is. What has been worrying people is either my take on the facts and their portrayal as I do it, or the effect of that portrayal on things that are held sacred (the institute name, for example...however, I do not really think that IIMK is such a weak brand after all).
October 2004:
No. of posts: 13
Date of first post: 03
Title of first post: 9 days and 1250 kms in God's own country
First paragraph of first post:
It has been a record 20 days since I last wrote in this place in spite of there having been so much to write about in all this time. A term ended at IIM Kozhikode, the end-term exams got over with their own share of highs and lows and most importantly, I am back from a road trip through the length and breadth of Kerala. It was always there somewhere in my mind...the idea of a road trip. I remember being impressed with stories of people who traveled across the country or even the world on their vehicles to promote world peace or some other such junk. Despite not feeling too strongly about the idea behind these trips (world peace, et al), I always used to like the concept of being free with your time and resources and going out in the open with no care in the world. In short, it will suffice to say that the idea of a road trip was not a novelty or impulse for me.
November 2004:
No. of posts: 08
Date of first post: 11
Title of first post: Not Fair
First paragraph of first post:
There are times when happiness knows no bounds and yet there are others, when there is no limit to the tears that come to the eyes. Some people say that this is what brings balance and fairness to it all. But why does it have to be like that? Why can't joy and sorrow be in moderate measures at all points in life?
December 2004:
No. of posts: 11
Date of first post: 06
Title of first post: Of winning hearts and heartlessness
First paragraph of first post:
Life does seem to have taken a strange turn this term. I have long forgotten the concept of trying to start some serious studies and change myself as per an 'IIM'. In fact, to be true and honest, I never had the misconception that I will find the need and moreover, even if I did find the need, the motivation to change myself, IIM or no IIM. And that is what happened. As I have been cribbing over the last few posts, I gave another door-waala-salaam to the studies and went on another trip to another inter B-school festival, this time at TAPMI, Manipal.
January 2005:
No. of posts: 03
Date of first post: 03
Title of first post: Happy New Year!
First paragraph of first post:
Bombay, or Amchi Mumbai, as the locals call it lovingly and often with an awe-struck catch in their voice, is one of the cities that has its own memories for me. Not that I have been to this place many times, but despite the one time that I have been to Mumbai, the city haunts me whenever I am thinking of something fast and big, both at the same time. Having decided not to spend the new year in the train from home to IIMK, we (that is Aditya and me) had planned to make Mumbai the stopover for the night of the 31st and most of the day of the 1st. Aditya, of course, had his own plans of dumping me somewhere for the new year's but unfortunately, could not devise a suitable plan for the same in time.
February 2005:
No. of posts: 10
Date of first post: 01
Title of first post: Is it the end...or the beginning?
First paragraph of first post:
Two days of frantic activity preceded by three weeks of hope-despair, action-inaction, love-hate, brightness-gloom, success-failure, evolution-apocalypse...Backwaters 2005 has come and gone and left me all drained. There was a time when we had been thinking of scrapping the event altogether and there is now, when we can't help gloating over the congratulatory mails coming in from different quarters about the professionalism of it all.
March 2005:
No. of posts: 00
Date of first post: NA
Title of first post: NA
First paragraph of first post:
NA
April 2005:
No. of posts: 11
Date of first post: 15
Title of first post: Getting a hold over my self
First paragraph of first post:
It has been four days since I joined PwC (as the HR guys requested, I must be careful how I write it, even if it is in the short form...in full, by the way, it is written as PricewaterhouseCoopers with only the P and the C in caps). These four days have been a little confusing, at times raising my hopes and at others, dashing them right down the ground. However, I am rushing myself in excitement of the new things that have been happening in my life without really being what could probably be called systematic.
May 2005:
No. of posts: 17
Date of first post: 02
Title of first post: Birthday celebrations and Patna eat-outs
First paragraph of first post:
It was really sweet of Shanu to have been waiting for me to cut his birthday cake. He has always been like that...a little partial towards me and that is to be expected, too. Despite being a cousin, I guess I am more of a brother to him than anyone could have been and he is the same to me. Ever since he started identifying people, he has seen me around and has spent quite a major chunk of his childhood playing, fighting, going to school, having fun with me. Having stayed with my maternal grand parents for my school education, I have always had the same amount of affection for Shanu as he took away from me, the mantle of being the youngest in the household.
June 2005:
No. of posts: 12
Date of first post: 03
Title of first post: Ye jo world hai na world...
First paragraph of first post:
Amitabh Bachchan tucks in his upper lip while he lets the lower one drool...the eyes are popped open and the eyebrows raised a little...Sharaabi, Laawaris, Amar Akbar Anthony anyone?
Abhishek Bachchan tucks in his upper lip while he lets the lower one drool...the eyes and eyebrows are covered with black glasses...ummm...he also has a red, heart-shaped balloon in one hand and his father's arm in another.
July 2005:
No. of posts: 16
Date of first post: 02
Title of first post: They are here...run!!!
First paragraph of first post:
Right from the mitochondria to the cells to the organisms to the planet and the universe, life has so many things and so many wonders hidden inside it that it is almost impossible to contemplate on what might happen next. This is the idea that had prompted HG Wells to write a story that turned out to be a sensational success, the stuff legends are made of, when relayed over the American radio one fine morning. The story comes back to treat us to the possibilities of annihilation, this time in the avatar of a movie. And before you reject it outright as a stale idea (after the success of Independence Day and even spoofs like Men in Black, the idea does seem stale), let it be known that the person who has directed this movie is none other than THE Steven Spielberg and the lead actor, none other than THE Tom Cruise.
August 2005:
No. of posts: 09
Date of first post: 01
Title of first post: Can you decipher this?
First paragraph of first post:
One of the courses this term that I have been really enjoying is Prof. Uday Damodaran's Portfolio Management. A change from the somewhat theatrical to a definitely more structured course being one important parameter that has grabbed our attention, there are several other reasons why there is almost full attendance in his classes, even if they are held at 7 in the morning.
September 2005:
No. of posts: 02
Date of first post: 02
Title of first post: Little updates from the little birdie
First paragraph of first post:
So it is about time I update my blog readers (I have ceased to wonder about the reasons for their existence apart from the ikka dukka ones I know of :-)) about what is happening in my life apart from the cribs and the rants and the sobs and the frowns. So here goes, something fresh from my garden, for all those who care to have a whiff.
October 2005:
No. of posts: 05
Date of first post: 08
Title of first post: I am alive...still
First paragraph of first post:
I have been meaning to write something on Mode C for long but fortunately or unfortunately, things out here in Paris have taken such a hectic pace that it has become increasingly tough to just keep abreast of the proceedings, forget writing about them at two places (the other blog is in deed alive, and doing well, thank you). However, Mode C and its readers (if they still come back to check, even if it is once in a blue moon) do deserve more than the neglect I have been able to offer so far.
November 2005:
No. of posts: 03
Date of first post: 05
Title of first post: Blog Mela Update
First paragraph of first post:
Blog Mela delayed due to unavoidable circumstances.
The Mela will be up by the night of the 7th of November India Time. Sorry for inconvenience, if any.
December 2005:
No. of posts: 01
Date of first post: 02
Title of first post: Le Coupe de Feu...Perils lay ahead of you, Harry Potter
First paragraph of first post:
As the huge stadium comes into focus, and the magical creatures, witches and wizards cheer the seekers, beaters, and players of the teams of Ireland and Bulgaria, we dive headlong into The Goblet of Fire.
January 2006:
No. of posts: 00
Date of first post: NA
Title of first post: NA
First paragraph of first post:
NA
February 2006:
No. of posts: 01
Date of first post: 05
Title of first post: Too much water under the bridge
First paragraph of first post:
I can't believe that it has been one whole term since I last wrote on this blog. But believe it or not, this is true and for someone who used this blog as a tool to get things out of his system, I guess there were too many things bottled up this time to get out at all. Come to think of it, there are so many things that this blog needs to be updated with, that it is going to take me one lifetime if I start at it now.
March 2006:
No. of posts: 00
Date of first post: NA
Title of first post: NA
First paragraph of first post:
NA
April 2006:
No. of posts: 00
Date of first post: NA
Title of first post: NA
First paragraph of first post:
NA
May 2006:
No. of posts: 00
Date of first post: NA
Title of first post: NA
First paragraph of first post:
NA
June 2006:
No. of posts: 03
Date of first post: 07
Title of first post: Still there
First paragraph of first post:
This is just to report that I am still alive and so is this blog. I will be back to regular posts pretty soon.
July 2006:
No. of posts: 01
Date of first post: 22
Title of first post: Continuing from where I left!
First paragraph of first post:
The journey never seems to stop but there are so many stoppages en route that at times, it becomes very difficult to maintain the same continuity from one destination to other. While there was a time when I used to think, write, and act in a routine manner, life currently has stopped giving me the same privileges. It has become increasingly difficult to really reflect about anything. Memory seems to have lost the knack of keeping things in limbo for at least as long as there is time to analyze them for whatever physiological gains one might think of.
August 2006:
No. of posts: 02
Date of first post: 09
Title of first post: Dham dham dhadam dhadaiyya re
First paragraph of first post:
Pardon my language but Omkara could possibly not have been complete without the use of such and more foul language. Shakespeare would never have approved of the same, what with his medieval English ruling the roost as far as the original went, but in the Indian context, if Vishal Bhardwaj had to show the baser instincts of men, he could not have relied on the Gentlemen's language, could he?
September 2006:
No. of posts: 00
Date of first post: NA
Title of first post: NA
First paragraph of first post:
NA
October 2006:
No. of posts: 01
Date of first post: 25
Title of first post: DELHI - Flatmate required for a 3 BHK flat in Patparganj, East Delhi
First paragraph of first post:
1 Flatmate required on urgent basis for a 3BHK flat with details as follows
Location - Patparganj (11 kms frm CP, 8 kms frm Noida, close vicinity to some 5-6 malls, just off the National Highway and 2 kms frm Anand Vihar Bus Terminus so well-connected)
November 2006:
No. of posts: 02
Date of first post: 02
Title of first post: On a fine Delhi morning
First paragraph of first post:
It has been ages since I wrote my last real post on Mode C and the blog, I though, was as good as dead. But then again, as Pavan says he keeps hoping for, the suppressed finds utterance yet again and here I am, typing away on this keyboard of mine. It is a great morning in Delhi with just the right amount of chill, just the right amount of visibility or the lack of it, just the right amount of traffic and of course just the right kind of songs playing on the car radio.
December 2006:
No. of posts: 00
Date of first post: NA
Title of first post: NA
First paragraph of first post:
NA
January 2007:
No. of posts: 04
Date of first post: 04
Title of first post: Adieu to my childhood, adieu to the child in me
First paragraph of first post:
As I left for the railway station, Pappumama's words kept ringing in my head (however melodramatic the ringing idea may seem), "kewal itna kahenge ki jis hak se nana nani ke samay aate the, usi hak se aate rehna" (all I will say is that keep coming with the same feeling of right as you used to during Nana-Nani's times). Will it ever be the same, I kept asking myself and despite the assurances I gave to a crying pappumama, I could not bring myself to believe that it will ever be anything close to what it was.
February 2007:
No. of posts: 00
Date of first post: NA
Title of first post: NA
First paragraph of first post:
NA
March 2007:
No. of posts: 01
Date of first post: 31
Title of first post: Outclassed, outperformed, and outplayed
First paragraph of first post:
Inspired by a relatively superlative performance by a couple of players, Gaurav XI rode all the way to the lunch table in style, and in the process, comprehensively beat Kotak Wealth by 78 runs.
April 2007:
No. of posts: 00
Date of first post: NA
Title of first post: NA
First paragraph of first post:
NA
May 2007:
No. of posts: 00
Date of first post: NA
Title of first post: NA
First paragraph of first post:
NA
June 2007:
No. of posts: 00
Date of first post: NA
Title of first post: NA
First paragraph of first post:
NA
July 2007:
No. of posts: 00
Date of first post: NA
Title of first post: NA
First paragraph of first post:
NA
August 2007:
No. of posts: 01
Date of first post: 23
Title of first post: Am I back or what???
First paragraph of first post:
Over the period that I have been absent from this space, I have been dead and re-born so many number of times that I have absolutely lost count. I never thought that I will be writing about all this but given the amount of time that I have at my disposal and given the fact that I can't make better use of this time at office, here I am, ready to recount what has been the most memorable episode of my small life so far.
September 2007:
No. of posts: 00
Date of first post: NA
Title of first post: NA
First paragraph of first post:
NA
October 2007:
No. of posts: 00
Date of first post: NA
Title of first post: NA
First paragraph of first post:
NA
November 2007:
No. of posts: 00
Date of first post: NA
Title of first post: NA
First paragraph of first post:
NA
December 2007:
No. of posts: 00
Date of first post: NA
Title of first post: NA
First paragraph of first post:
NA
January 2008:
No. of posts: 01
Date of first post: 14
Title of first post: Lull after the storm
First paragraph of first post:
Things had been pretty topsy-turvy over the last few months, what with the accident, recovery, joining work after such a big sabbatical, and many other things associated with the same. However, once things started getting back on track, there has been a sort of calm and dull cover enveloping the daily proceedings. In a nutshell, life goes by, currently, at an even pace without much to force the ripple, so to say, in the still waters.
February 2008:
No. of posts: 00
Date of first post: NA
Title of first post: NA
First paragraph of first post:
NA
March 2008:
No. of posts: 00
Date of first post: NA
Title of first post: NA
First paragraph of first post:
NA
April 2008:
No. of posts: 03
Date of first post: 15
Title of first post: A new update from a new city
First paragraph of first post:
There has been a lot happening around me that I should have written about but I guess I have been just plain lazy. It is difficult to put pen to paper or finger to key when you are engrossed with so much else that is going on in your life.
May 2008:
No. of posts: 01
Date of first post: 21
Title of first post: Exploiting Market Imperfections and a visit to the scientist
First paragraph of first post:
I have been wanting to write on so many things over the past week or so but now that I finally sit to write, I can't recollect anything at all. Hopefully, now that I have started to roll, things will come back to me as I keep on writing and deliberating and moving ahead thus. So, before the first of these topics hit me, let me place it on record here on this blog that I am not that disappointed with Mumbai. In terms of roads, green cover and infrastructure, in general, the city obviously does not show even a light to the grandeur of say, a Delhi. However, in all other respects, it is not too bad. The work culture is professional enough (not to say that it is in any way much better than Delhi), people smile here, too and at times, also have time to exchange pleasantries. Taxi drivers are a pleasant lot and generally tend not to cheat you off your last penny (though the same can not be said of the auto rickshaw drivers at all). Traffic is bad but coming from the congested NH-24 in Delhi, that does not seem too much of a bother either. Trains, of course, are bloody efficient even though they are perennially crowded, smelly and sweaty.
June 2008:
No. of posts: 00
Date of first post: NA
Title of first post: NA
First paragraph of first post:
NA
July 2008:
No. of posts: 01
Date of first post: 31
Title of first post: Professional Entrepreneurism
First paragraph of first post:
One of the activities that I have been involved in recently as a part of my work involves a major shift in strategy for the business that my company deals in. Although it is interesting to see how new things are unfolding and how life is going to change for all stakeholders of this new business sooner or later, what is more interesting is to observe the sheer inertia that governs the lives of people in any business. The resistance to change, in whatever format the change may be is so strong that it is difficult to envisage, forget execute something drastically different from what is already present.
August 2008:
No. of posts: 02
Date of first post: 12
Title of first post: One more time
First paragraph of first post:
It is time to give it another shot, take another chance and this time, do it with some faith and belief in the possibility of it working out after all. I am off to Kerala (to Thodupuzha, a place about 60 kms off Cochin) for the treatment of my peroneal nerve, and I am off for a good 20 days (a source of some envy at office, I am sure). For those who have been coming to this space over the last year, they would be undoubtedly aware of my condition which I keep bringing out in each of my posts in one way or the other (not that I can't help it but somehow, it does come out, what with it enjoying some tremendous top of mind recall).
September 2008:
No. of posts: 03
Date of first post: 07
Title of first post: A long vacation
First paragraph of first post:
A vacation of almost three weeks in Kerala is almost invariably associated with the image of backwaters, hills and lakes, house boats languishing in still waters, as if for eternity, snake boats famous on account of the race standing still or breezing past in all their glory, the beaches that are more pristine and yet less commercial than what the most exotic ones can claim to be. My vacation, however, was of a different variety. I spent three weeks at Thodupuzha, a small but busy town situated about 60 kms from Cochin right at the foothills of the Idukki district's ranges. Amongst a few other things, Thodupuzha is known for some Ayurvedic hospitals and treatment clinics that use the herbs grown in Kerala's hills, mix them with the hundreds of kinds of oils they have gained expertise on, and treat the most chronic of ailments with such efficiency as is rarely seen in any other contemporary form of medicine.
October 2008:
No. of posts: 01
Date of first post: 24
Title of first post: Cheers to the tough times!
First paragraph of first post:
October is almost about to end without a single post this month and that is something one can't allow, can one? So after thinking about what to write, even going to the extent of trying to copy ideas from some of the blogs I have got into a habit of reading every day, I have sat down to write...well, something.
November 2008:
No. of posts: 04
Date of first post: 04
Title of first post: What a Diwali!
First paragraph of first post:
It is that time of the year again when the streets are lighted and the mood festive, children out in the courtyards gleefully bursting firecrackers (the milder ones nowadays, of course), and people all decked up in their ethnic best. Diwali has always been one of the festivals I have looked forward to and it brings to my mind so many joyous memories of togetherness, with family and friends. This is one day in the year that I absolutely hate being by myself because it makes me feel really sad and grumpy listening to other people enjoy the festivities while I long for the company of my loved ones.
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