Every individual’s childhood is surrounded by incidents which leave an impact on him/her and shape up the road ahead. When I was a child, cricket played a major role in my upbringing. It all started in 1987 when I was little more than three years old and my grandfather introduced me to plastic ball cricket in our veranda. I still remember the yellow plastic bat and the red plastic ball; they continue to be a part of a kid’s toy set in India.
For as far as I can remember there were two things that were a regular ingredient in my growth process – mathematics and cricket. Every morning, I used to wake up at 5am and then go through a rigorous session of numbers and calculations followed by some kind of cricket, either viewing or playing. In 1988-89 when I got my first set of friends in the form of Amrit & co, the game became a reason for all of us to spend more and more time together. Discussing cricket at the age of 5 as if our views had an impact on the overall proceeding of the game made us more close to the game. 1991 was a turning point in my cricketing career when I met two person – Lovery sir (my class teacher in class 2) and Promit Pattnaik. Lovery sir injected the spirit of cricket into both of us and it was supplemented with the action packed 1992 Benson & Hedges world cup. For the first time world cup cricket was being played under floodlights, in colour uniform. The atmosphere was frenzied. It somehow attracted Promit and me and since then we got stuck to the game.
In class 3, when I organised my first cricket match between Digi’s section F and our section (D) I never knew then that in 2010 every ball of that match would still be fresh in my memory. I opened the innings and remained unbeaten on 6 in a 12 over match. We had scored 82 and Digi’s team folded up for 44. My grandfather acted an inspiration as he always encouraged me to go out and play under the sun if I was not doing mathematics or watching cricket on the television. Any time he would see me at home, the first thing he would do was send me out to the grounds. There have been times (1994-1995) when he himself would take me to the coaching class as early as 5am and wait for four hours for the session to get over. Since I was not a natural athlete so it was quite obvious for me to falter in every match but what kept me going was the fact that most of the time I was out of home.
In a way I consider myself fortunate to have grown up in a locality like BJB Nagar, Bhubaneswar which to its credit has got at least 10 manmade cricket fields. So getting involved with the game came as a by-product. That led me to witness quite a number of local club matches which were as competitive as it could get. Then playing with players like Ayaskant (Papuni), Digi (Anwesh Padhee), Tiku (Amit Kar),Manas amongst others and listening to people like Pua bhai and members of Paramount Sportings made the experience a larger than life occasion. Discussing the game and strategising about the opponents 24/7, having team meetings well into the evening and preparing the ground at as early as 5am with a bucket of water and chalk powder made it all an enjoyable childhood journey. A few incidents that bring a smile to my face are as follows:
- In class 4, I left school after the final period but on my way back home got stuck at a cricket ground to watch a match. By the time I returned home everyone was worried about my whereabouts.
- In class 8, when I was organising my first day and night cricket tournament, I had left home at 9am saying that I will be back in 10 minutes. As it turned out, I returned home at 2am and my father made me kneel down outside the house. It remains to be one of the most important days of my life.
- In class 9, I bunked school to attend the district school team trials. My school principal complained at home and I was thoroughly taken to the cleaners that evening by my father as were Ajay Jadeja and Robin Singh doing to the Australians in a ODI match.
- In class 12, one day before my Accounting board exam I was covering up for the regular commentator (Khirod Behera) of our club as he himself decided to play in the XI in the final match of the Paramount Cup 2002
However one thing that got ingrained in me was the statement my father had made then –“You can be a great administrator or official or a statistician of the game but never a good player.” Today as one of my childhood dream got accomplished, of being an accredited umpire – the memories from the bylanes of Bhubaneswar/Cuttack just came rushing back. What I go on to achieve from here on is immaterial as long as that child in me is alive and kicking.
Regards,
Sidhanta Patnaik
18th March 2010 (Thursday)
Sheffield
P.S. - For the records – 18th March 2010 is the day when I got accredited with England Cricket Board as a level 1 umpire.
Friday, March 19, 2010
Thursday, February 25, 2010
The SUPERMAN from India
24th February 2010 is a red lettered day in the history of Indian Cricket and the reason for it is none other than the master himself. The feeling is yet to sink in and it is one of those days that will be conversed about over dinner tables across Indian families for generations to come. The typical I was there, I saw it in a garage, I saw it in a petrol bunk stories, my internet had got disconnected when he was about to take the run. A moment of high indeed.
From that distance morning in Auckland when he opened the innings for the first time till today, every day has been a reason for celebration for us. A whole lot of us have grown up in life with him being a constant factor. Come joy come sorrow, we have known our gateway to escape to the land of relaxation, rejuvenation and happiness. The smile that he has brought over the years cannot be expressed over a piece of article but he is definitely that one man who holds the power to elevate the mood of the country. He has done it in the past, he is doing it in the present and he will continue to do it in the future. He is the best example of experiential marketing and for every marketer in us there is a lot to learn from him on how he connects with the customers most of the times without fail. In business terms he is empathetic and knows how to satisfy the stakeholders. No wonder off the field he has been one of the most commercially successful Cricketers of all times.
Whenever asked about the man, I have always maintained the fact that more than the game it is the human in him that attracts me. By sheer volume he is one of the most popular face in the world and in the past we have seen how popularity can drive people towards foolishness but he is one such being for whom the priorities have revolved around values and character. His humility and level headedness offers all of us so much to learn. He understands the fact that all the glory attached to his name are because of his deeds on the field and as long he does his duty (scoring runs) perfectly he will be hailed. It is not the other way round. The man is a machine of runs for sure but more than that he is a fountain of knowledge and inspiration. How many people do we know who have that childishness alive in them at the age of 37? How many around us have followed their passion like the way he has done? The answers to these questions make him what he is today.
A few years from now, he will bow out of the arena and all of us will stand on that particular day and say – A PART OF MY LIFE IS OVER because before this generation became the Facebook generation it was an era owned by him and still does for most of us. But let us not worry about that day because today technology gives us a chance to revisit the past with one click umpteen number of times.
In an interview with ESPN in mid 1990s he had once said –“Convert your passion into profession.”
I will not pick his top 5 innings because every time he faces a ball, he gives all of us a reason to feel happy but instead I will share the link which gives a list of all the 442 ODI matches he has played so far
http://stats.cricinfo.com/ci/engine/player/35320.html?class=2;template=results;type=allround;view=match
From that distance morning in Auckland when he opened the innings for the first time till today, every day has been a reason for celebration for us. A whole lot of us have grown up in life with him being a constant factor. Come joy come sorrow, we have known our gateway to escape to the land of relaxation, rejuvenation and happiness. The smile that he has brought over the years cannot be expressed over a piece of article but he is definitely that one man who holds the power to elevate the mood of the country. He has done it in the past, he is doing it in the present and he will continue to do it in the future. He is the best example of experiential marketing and for every marketer in us there is a lot to learn from him on how he connects with the customers most of the times without fail. In business terms he is empathetic and knows how to satisfy the stakeholders. No wonder off the field he has been one of the most commercially successful Cricketers of all times.
Whenever asked about the man, I have always maintained the fact that more than the game it is the human in him that attracts me. By sheer volume he is one of the most popular face in the world and in the past we have seen how popularity can drive people towards foolishness but he is one such being for whom the priorities have revolved around values and character. His humility and level headedness offers all of us so much to learn. He understands the fact that all the glory attached to his name are because of his deeds on the field and as long he does his duty (scoring runs) perfectly he will be hailed. It is not the other way round. The man is a machine of runs for sure but more than that he is a fountain of knowledge and inspiration. How many people do we know who have that childishness alive in them at the age of 37? How many around us have followed their passion like the way he has done? The answers to these questions make him what he is today.
A few years from now, he will bow out of the arena and all of us will stand on that particular day and say – A PART OF MY LIFE IS OVER because before this generation became the Facebook generation it was an era owned by him and still does for most of us. But let us not worry about that day because today technology gives us a chance to revisit the past with one click umpteen number of times.
In an interview with ESPN in mid 1990s he had once said –“Convert your passion into profession.”
I will not pick his top 5 innings because every time he faces a ball, he gives all of us a reason to feel happy but instead I will share the link which gives a list of all the 442 ODI matches he has played so far
http://stats.cricinfo.com/
Sheffield
Monday, February 15, 2010
Pune – 13th February 2010 – It’s a time we live in.
We live in a time where no more can anyone afford to think that nothing can happen to me, I am immortal. In today’s time anything can happen to anyone at any point of time. Death or tragedy is just a blast away. You, me, our loved ones every single one of us is a target or a reason for various groups to put across their message. So if it has to be at the price of our life, then be it. Whatever happened in Pune on 13th February 2010 will be spoken about for a few months and will be condemned and things will again come back to normalcy and just when we will be under an assurance that things are finally back in control, another terror attack in some part of the world will open up the Pandora box and our confidence and belief will again be shattered.
There used to be a time when people in tier B cities used to read and hear about terror attacks on newspaper and television and used to discuss around that topic in social circles. But times have changed. Yesterday the target was Koregaon Park in Pune. Tomorrow B.J.B Nagar, Bhubaneswar or Mappin Road, Sheffield might be in the news for the same reason. Let us accept the reality that terrorism coexists in our neighbourhood.
How the governing system around the world is going to tackle this ever increasing threat is something we keep getting reports on but what happens behind the closed doors is not something a common citizen of the world knows. As a lay man of the societal system it is in our best interest to have faith in the governance and extend our support to the system because that is the only thing we can do. The more we criticise the system, the more it gives a reason for the terror outfits to rejoice and take advantage of the mistrust. We need to understand that to prevent attacks the system has to be lucky every time whereas to launch an attack the terrorists have to be lucky just once. Apart from that it becomes the responsibility of every knowledgeable citizen of the world to use his/her common sense in an apt manner rather than acting foolishly and then playing the blame game. Had that waiter in German Bakery not opened the unattended bag and had he informed the police authorities who knows today we could have saved a few lives.
As I write this piece in one part of the world, extremists in another part of the world must be merry making for having successfully executed their plan a few hours back. They have every reason to be happy as with just one act they have managed to attain more TRP ratings than Shah Rukh Khan or his movie “My Name Is Khan”. It is a irony that the more we write and speak about issues like these, the more they get reasons to rejoice and the reason being something we marketers use so efficiently –Top of the mind brand recall.
We are angered, anguished and we feel helpless and arrested. There is a grief in the atmosphere and our heart goes out to the family members of those who have lost their lives. It may happen to our families tomorrow. But more than anything what hurts me is the setback it causes to the industry of dreams. With so many young people dead and so many disabled I can so easily relate to them because I am also a youngster who has dreams and aspires to make it big in life. Just prior to the blast, the discussion on the table must have revolved around topics like Indian Premier League, English Premier League, the 2nd test match between India and South Africa at Eden Gardens, Shah Rukh Khan’s My Name Is Khan, Shiv Sena, about future, plans for Valentine’s day and what not and the very next moment their world changed and life came to a standstill.
We are young and we dream because it is the dream that keeps us going every moment. Every moment we think about the job we want to do, the car we want to drive, the girl we want to date, the industry we want to work in and it is these thoughts that keep us going and all our energy gets channelized towards aspiring these aims. As youngster our eyes sparkle with a hope that one day we will reach the position we desire to and that day will be the day of life. I am disturbed that in times like these all these thoughts have no value because you don’t control yourself, its the environmental factors that control you. What happens to the boy who lost his leg in the blast and his dream to play for Mumbai Indians IPL team. He has lost his leg so he can never aspire to attain his dream anymore. But does that mean we stop dreaming? By stopping to dream and by surrendering ourselves to the environment are not we sending out the message to the extremists that they so want to hear. The day we stop dreaming, that is effectively the day we become a walking-talking dead body and with that the society halts and the future gets buried. The biggest challenge for the youngsters of today is to continue to lead a life of freedom and energy amidst the chaos and confusion that surrounds our life. In times like these it is important to draw inspiration from ourselves and the surrounding and live every day to the fullest and seek for happiness within ourselves. It is important that we as individuals smile at our fellow mate and spread the charm and radiate positive energy. More than anything, the need of the hour is to trust in each other’s ability and to stand united.
As youngsters and the future caretakers of the system let us promise to ourselves that come what may we will not deter from our path of dreaming because to dream is what we have the right to. Come how many ever such incidents, our eyes will continue to sparkle with hope and we will envisage dreams and make everything possible around us to achieve them. We should not get weak and give into the terror network. We will lead the life we have always aspired to lead and the spirit within us will always be as lively as it was when we had started this journey. Tomorrow will be a new day and the Sun will rise again and the rays will be beautiful.
I will end this note of mine with the Facebook status message of Sourav Rath, my friend from school who used to be a frequent visitor to the German Bakery but on that fateful evening, work had kept him occupied in his office:
“Nothing ever happens... Nothing happens at all... The needle returns to the start of the song... And we all sing along like before.”
Regards,
Sidhanta Patnaik
14th February 2010
Sheffield
Friday, May 4, 2007
PUNCH OF CHANGE-GAIN THEM TO WIN THE GAME
There is a saying that the biggest game you play in life is that of LIFE.It is a game that you start playing right from the day you know what life is.It is a matter of few months or years before every one realizes that he/she is playing the game. It is such a game where you are playing with your own self as the opponent and as the team mate. It is so very interesting that once you get engrossed in it, very few things can actually pull you out of it. But the matter of fact is how and why we play this game. There is no single entity on this earth who has the same reason for playing the game.
One thing that I have obsereved with time is that before you commit yourself to this game, there would have been a few things that you would have done and they definitely have an effect on the proceedings of the game. It may be in the pessimist or optimist sense. If life is a business model, then we are the businessmen of this model. So how well we manage and run the business is what matters at the end of the day.
In this business model the only constant factor is CHANGE. How well you adapt to this particular factor at various moulds is what differentaites a winner from a non winner. One has to realise that everyone is born as a winner as every single entity is unique in his/her own way.Just that we get diluted in the process because of this vice of immitating others and therefore the game of Life has become so very complicated for majority of the mankind.
Coming back to CHANGE, it can happen out of the blues to anyone anytime. You may never know when it strikes, but one thing for sure when it strikes its lethal, quite similar to a fast bowler's inswinging yorkers. There have been times when the riding have been smooth with a predictable closure written on the wall but from no where the storyline drifts apart and the script takes a U turn to force most of the homosapiens run for cover. It has happened to everyone of us in our day today lives. Few have realised it and many have failed to know the CHANGE.
What matters is however who has the guts to face the PUNCH of CHANGE and stand up once again to face it because the game continues till you breathe your last. So instead of falling with one punch, if you keep walking up to your next punch then you are helping your self in gaining the experience of facing the punches with better mind set. Experiencing CHANGE is the biggest experience one can gain in his/her life time because by experiencing diversity one is increasing one's probability of inching towards success. There are times when a common man may ask an experienced man on what success has he gained by taking the punches but the common man fails to realise that success is no packaged tangible product. It is something that is intangible and is felt within. It is a sweet that is savoured without putting your tongue into it.
One can conclude by stating the fact that to be successful in life one needs to take the punches every given time rather than shying away from it. Because with each punch you go into one higher level in the social circle. The confidence that you gain post punch can only define what lays ahead in this lonely journey of life.
KEEP FACING THE PUNCHES, BECAUSE YOU NEVER KNOW WHICH ONE OF THE PUNCHES CAN JUST CHANGE THE WAY YOU LEAD YOUR LIFE!
Monday, December 18, 2006
Thoughts & Words- Play Them Your Way
The power of expression since ages has been termed as the birth right of a living entity. It is a right enjoyed by anyone. Denying anyone of such rights can be considered unlawful under a perfect economic condition. How we express is a pivotal question in the process of executing expression. Expression is an instant flow of emotion on being affected by a current situation or a sudden out burst of thought flow when things of the past sweet days come rushing back to tamper a bit of your memory cell. The recent advertisement of a cellular service provider significantly makes it clear that expression is the key to success. To live, one needs to explode so that the recycle bin of the human thought system is emptied on regular intervals, thereby giving scope for creativity and innovation to be re-defined with an additional flavour to it. To communicate is to express, that is what was always taught to us in our elementary classes. I wander as we grow in life, how many remember the lesson imparted by the sweet little teacher of the hay days. Whether you write, speak, keep silence or show body gestures, you are just crafting yet another mould to the world of expressive communication.
The art of writing has been a powerful mode of expression as it leaves the permanent mark of the ink for people of all generations to use it as a source of documentation. It is rightly said, pen is mightier than sword!
For me writing has come natural for reasons best known to the almighty. It is through this mode that I have always felt comfortable in expressing my thought process and displaying my emotions and attitude. People say that aggression comes with action and if we substitute action with expression, then the exact meaning of aggression gets a whole new fresh look. The league of writing is class apart as it builds in you, your wants though you never get a feel of how time passes by with literature. Writing is a pipeline and every bit one writes is just one step further. One starts fresh with ideas knocking the complexity of the brain and as the thoughts start getting a look of tangibility, the stature of the person grows in size and by the time, the piece of execution is over, the maturity of the individual would have reached a new high, taking you one more day ahead in life, a bit faster than your colleagues and peers. This expressive mode is faster than electricity as it ignites current with the power generated from literature.
My experience with writing has been a fruit reaping one in every sense. If Sachin has been scoring all those important runs for the country courtesy practice, then I have been growing with maturity every single day due to my writing which has been inculcated within me as a habit or a practice. It is such a beautiful thing to have happened to mankind that no one seems to be complaining if they know the art of putting down their mind on a sheet of paper. Writing is an institution by itself and to be a part of this elite association is an achievement and a prestigious honor in every sense of it.
Emotions have always been played with and given the least priority as the homosapiens have shifted base from morality to moronity. This is where writing creates the difference to the upward rise the graph of the society. Just for a moment, had writing not been there then barbarism would have been the order of the day, leading to chaos and trauma.
My personal experience with writing has been a honeymoon session as it has helped me to see things from two sides and has helped me to know that to raise the living standards , one need to prioritize the importance between doing an important and less important task. Writing instills the self confidence within you and you never hesitate to say ''I AM WHAT I AM''. It is an energy booster that keeps the adrenalin rush pumping within you, enabling a chill run down your spine with the smell of a fresh sheet of paper. Writing creates the base for innovative thinking as much as other forms of art do. This form of art is an exclusive set up which creates its own specifications and makes it so easy yet difficult topic to be understood. Geography says that ''Pacific Ocean is the biggest ocean'', I guess they had not considered the ocean of writing while making this statement.
The structure of writing is imaginatory and is left upto the discretion of the writer to give it a shape and that’s what makes this institution unique and dynamic in every bit of it.
It is unfortunate to see the present generation not making the best use of this art. All they need to do to be a part of this elite club is to press the buttons of a key board but how many actually do it is a question that can raise serious concern as we transit our base from generation X to generation Y. Its time that youngsters start making a note of the significance of this exclusive form of expression as it can in many ways contribute to the overall development of the society. Our ultimate aim being our well being I believe its the basic responsibility of every entity who is anyone to communicate his expression through the powerful mode of WRITING.
DEDICATION:-
People have been appreciating my writing every time I jot down a few points or the other but never had I realized that I write pretty well. People like Prof. K. Murali Mohan (PESIM-HR Head), Ms. Vijayabharati (BBM English Madam), Ms. Rema Panicker (English Faculty in Class 10th), Sudip Dhar (Fellow Mate), Aishwarya Omprakash (PESIM-Junior), My MBA AYOGYA Mates have always spoken high and helped me in improving my style and standard of writing, yet there are two people who need special mention for sowing the seeds within me and creating an inclination for me towards writing. They are my Grand Father Mr. B.C. Patnaik, who used to make me write the editorial of English, Hindi, Oriya newspaper after reading them everyday early in the morning for 10 long years and my Class 11th-12th English teacher Ms. Mamta Banerjee. She is the one who actually made me believe that I can write and when I topped the CBSE class 12 English exams, she was like,''yeah I was expecting Sidhanta to do so'' and that boosted my self confidence.
The art of writing has been a powerful mode of expression as it leaves the permanent mark of the ink for people of all generations to use it as a source of documentation. It is rightly said, pen is mightier than sword!
For me writing has come natural for reasons best known to the almighty. It is through this mode that I have always felt comfortable in expressing my thought process and displaying my emotions and attitude. People say that aggression comes with action and if we substitute action with expression, then the exact meaning of aggression gets a whole new fresh look. The league of writing is class apart as it builds in you, your wants though you never get a feel of how time passes by with literature. Writing is a pipeline and every bit one writes is just one step further. One starts fresh with ideas knocking the complexity of the brain and as the thoughts start getting a look of tangibility, the stature of the person grows in size and by the time, the piece of execution is over, the maturity of the individual would have reached a new high, taking you one more day ahead in life, a bit faster than your colleagues and peers. This expressive mode is faster than electricity as it ignites current with the power generated from literature.
My experience with writing has been a fruit reaping one in every sense. If Sachin has been scoring all those important runs for the country courtesy practice, then I have been growing with maturity every single day due to my writing which has been inculcated within me as a habit or a practice. It is such a beautiful thing to have happened to mankind that no one seems to be complaining if they know the art of putting down their mind on a sheet of paper. Writing is an institution by itself and to be a part of this elite association is an achievement and a prestigious honor in every sense of it.
Emotions have always been played with and given the least priority as the homosapiens have shifted base from morality to moronity. This is where writing creates the difference to the upward rise the graph of the society. Just for a moment, had writing not been there then barbarism would have been the order of the day, leading to chaos and trauma.
My personal experience with writing has been a honeymoon session as it has helped me to see things from two sides and has helped me to know that to raise the living standards , one need to prioritize the importance between doing an important and less important task. Writing instills the self confidence within you and you never hesitate to say ''I AM WHAT I AM''. It is an energy booster that keeps the adrenalin rush pumping within you, enabling a chill run down your spine with the smell of a fresh sheet of paper. Writing creates the base for innovative thinking as much as other forms of art do. This form of art is an exclusive set up which creates its own specifications and makes it so easy yet difficult topic to be understood. Geography says that ''Pacific Ocean is the biggest ocean'', I guess they had not considered the ocean of writing while making this statement.
The structure of writing is imaginatory and is left upto the discretion of the writer to give it a shape and that’s what makes this institution unique and dynamic in every bit of it.
It is unfortunate to see the present generation not making the best use of this art. All they need to do to be a part of this elite club is to press the buttons of a key board but how many actually do it is a question that can raise serious concern as we transit our base from generation X to generation Y. Its time that youngsters start making a note of the significance of this exclusive form of expression as it can in many ways contribute to the overall development of the society. Our ultimate aim being our well being I believe its the basic responsibility of every entity who is anyone to communicate his expression through the powerful mode of WRITING.
DEDICATION:-
People have been appreciating my writing every time I jot down a few points or the other but never had I realized that I write pretty well. People like Prof. K. Murali Mohan (PESIM-HR Head), Ms. Vijayabharati (BBM English Madam), Ms. Rema Panicker (English Faculty in Class 10th), Sudip Dhar (Fellow Mate), Aishwarya Omprakash (PESIM-Junior), My MBA AYOGYA Mates have always spoken high and helped me in improving my style and standard of writing, yet there are two people who need special mention for sowing the seeds within me and creating an inclination for me towards writing. They are my Grand Father Mr. B.C. Patnaik, who used to make me write the editorial of English, Hindi, Oriya newspaper after reading them everyday early in the morning for 10 long years and my Class 11th-12th English teacher Ms. Mamta Banerjee. She is the one who actually made me believe that I can write and when I topped the CBSE class 12 English exams, she was like,''yeah I was expecting Sidhanta to do so'' and that boosted my self confidence.
(This piece of writing is a dedication to all the above mentioned people and I hope I keep developing on this base of mine to contribute to the mankind.)
Wednesday, December 6, 2006
Time's Running Fast
BANGALORE ---AS IT IS
The occasion of life is so beautiful that the aura of existing on this surface to cherish your days and moments simply takes over you when you try to fit into the role of a philosophical homo sapien.
Before I realise about tomorrow, my association with PES has entered the sun set stage.In a few days from now , batch 2005-2007(MBA) will be entering the post 3rd semester phase and thanks to the university, students can start being called as professionals from January 2007 which technically means that a decent enough student need not see the classroom once again after the 3rd semester exams get over but for appearing in the 4th semester exams in June 2007.
In a literal sense, the so called college life has finally knocked the exit door. Personally for me college door means PES door as its here that I spent all the 5 years of my college days running up and down the hill(up the hill-down the hill)
If my memory is still strong enough, it was on June 28th 2002 that I got down at Bangalore railway station at around 5.30am. Chily wind and cold atmosphere were the components that greeted me to the city of gardens. Like a typical small city boy, I was blank in my thoughts and had no expectations and also prefered people who made no expectations from me but I was matured enough by then to realise that the game of life had just taken a new, decisive and pragmatic turn!
It was 2002 and I am mentioning of 2007 MBA completion, now 5 years will be completed in Bangalore and there has been only one shelter for me- PES. Its been my home away from home in more ways than not and interestingly I have grown more at this home than the home in Bhubaneswar. Going into the details of how and why would not do justice to the topic.
HOSTEL
Before I attended my 1st class, my association with PES began through the hostel. Being a first timer to hostel life, I handled the initial days of INTRODUCTORY sessions by seniors with much fun and enthusiasim. Interestingly I enjoyed every bit of my interaction with my hostel seniors and soon the ice was broken(It is true that ther's no ragging in PES). To state a matter of fact, I was slapped by my HOD in the very 1st week of my hostel life as I was trying to cover up a few seniors who were ragging my batch mates. 3 years in the Management block of PES Hostel will remain as one of my most memorable phases of life as I came across a totally new and different culture and socialism. Rules apart, it was fun doing the craziest of the things at our own peril. The evenings in the corridor and hostel mess were basically stress buster sessions and helped me hone my interpersonal skills. Knwoing new people and maintaining friendship with them is such an interesting thing to do in life that I was totally engrossed in doing it and never knew when 3 years just flew by. Mr. T.Seetharaman, the hostel warden had a mixed feelings towards me and till date I have not realised whether he thought me to be a hero or a villian.
BBM
Getting into the course was a blessing in disguise for me as all of a sudden I realised of the hidden potential within me. Till I came to Bangalore, I had never spoken in English to a large gathering but here I found that I can speak and speak really well as compared to fellow batch mates.Thanks to my English Ma'am (Vijaybharati Ma'am) who asked me to come on to the dais and speak about Indian Politics. I followed my intuition and spoke what I knew and in 2 minutes, the audience was applauding my thought flow.Wow!That was a confidence booster and since then there has been no looking back. The force within me has been kind enough to sustain the freshness as it was on the first day in bangalore though over the years I have learnt new skills of playing the game. BBM was the shell for me from where I taught the W's of life in a big city(What,Why,Where,When,Whose) , where every 2nd person you meet is one step smarter than you.
Mr. DHIMANT V. GANATRA(Presently in MATS, Bangalore)
Head of the BBM department when I joined the department. There was so much noise about him in the hostel that I was wandering who this guy is! As he entered the classroom to address the fresh batch, there was an aura associated to the atmosphere as he controlled the audience with the power of his speech and voice modulation. Much to the pre hyped expectations, he won the hearts of every single entity in no time. To start off I had a unfamiliar experience with him(after all I was the 1st student in our batch to be slapped by him) but just a few days before the college fest-VISTAS, I won his heart through my level of commitment and the level of energy and passion that I displayed,made him stand and notice me. Since then the association has bloomed and he is the core individual to have laid my foundation in Bangalore. Whatever popularity I enjoy today in PES wouldn't have been a thing of reality had he not given me the freedom to execute my thoughts at the cost of classes. He contributed a lot to a lot of my decisions in the initial 3 years. It was a sad incident when he quit college in 2004 but again that gave me a chance to see the world through my own eyes in my final year BBM. I could realise in no time, how people change colour
SURENDRA N.V.(Suri Anna)
Sourav and I were keen on getting hold of some work in VISTAS 2002 as we were pretty much interested in knowing what life is apart from books. We also had that small city mentality of doing whatever came our way. Incidentally Suri Anna was the person at the helm of affairs. Every time we went to him begging for work, he would give some excuse and ask us to come later. People of our batch who were not interested in contributing to the cause were dragged to execute ground level tasks just because they were better than us when it came to smartness and communication. It demotivated us as our dedication and desire were not being notice. The first work that we got after much persuading was that of a gate keeper for receiving the colleges on the registration day of VISTAS. My fellow batch mates had laughed away at us but we just sticked on to the task because we knew nothing but to work, whatever the profile may be. Seeing the interest level,Suri Anna slowly started considering us for tasks that were of better quality than that of a gate keeper. The turning point of our relationship came when he as a MBA student did Shiv Mani show in PES, which till date remains to be the biggest show in campus. Since then we have been talking on the same wave length when it comes to events and entertainement.He remains to be an inspiration till date and our cognitive plans of making it big in the entertainment industry keeps on being fueled, thanks to the level of sincerity that has existed in the relationship for nearly 5 years.
SUMANTH D.S. (Sumanth Bhai)
The best thing to have happened to my life. He is one person who has changed my total outlook towards life and keeps on adding new features to me till date. My association with him goes back to January 20th 2003, when I walked upto him and put forward one statement with a bit of courage and guts,''Sumanth Bhai, I want to be a part of the fest team and I am ready to work 24/7.'' The next question he asked me was what makes you feel that you can work -My answer was ''WORK IS WORSHIP.'' That was the single moment point which defined our relationship. From him I have learnt innumerable things but what stands out is he making me aware of the bliss associated with SMART WORK & PROFESSIONALISM. The mere process of observing every move of his for more than 4 years has added so much value to me that I have forgotten what was I before I met him. Commitment doesnt mean to slog, commitment means doing things the right way. Emotional involvement with your tasks is injurious to health. These are few things I have picked up from him among other precious lesons. Through him, I got close to a series of enthusiastic creative people like Rohit Bhai, Chirag Bhai, Madhukar Bhai, Arvind and everyone of them has kept on adding some or other value to my process. Incidentally it was Nitin Bhai who introduced me to the whole group. Another person who has made an impact on me is Naveen Bhai and it was again Sumanth Bhai's network that brought me close to Navin Bhai and gave me an opportuinty to have an insight on the event world through my brief stints at WIZCRAFT.With Sumanth Bhai, my association has been strengthening and the future looks to be full of experiences courtsey experiencial marketing strategies of SNAP Events & Consulting Private Limited.
PROF. K. MURALI MOHAN (Murali Sir)
Considered as THE LIFELINE OF PESIM, he is one individual who was a motivation for me to live life my way in the MBA department. For me Murali Sir is of MBA, what Dhimant Sir was of BBM. The freedom he has given will probably not be given by any other faculty in the history of PES BBM & MBA. His chamber was as good as the student activty room of the college. It was the place where thoughts were generated, ideas were given birth to and concepts were materalised. How can one forget those fun filled 2 month night outs at his place, with we both being the only teetollers among the lot.Those nights have left a print in the minds of every AYOGYA for so many reasons which for obvious reasons shouldnt be shared with peopel who were not a part of it. The late night snacks in his chamber, the serious discussions where I used to keep on explaining a few things only to find that he was lost in his own world and I had to start all over again, all those humor filled moments at crisis, all those singing sessions with Phalgun where I would be converted into a mere onlooker, all those friendly talks will now echo the hearts of everyone of us as he's leaving the department well before we do so. He was the one who used to be the face of the department in any issues related to the growth of PESIM as an entity.He was always there for all the reasons the department wanted him and the association was blooming big time.It is an unstated fact that he was the KING OF PESIM, for people who wanted to grow in the right path and who wanted to use PESIM as the platform to grow in Life.Department will miss the services of its stalwart as its time to move on in life and moreover every AYOGYA will now look at the chamber from quite a far distance as if its haunted..The mere presence of his in the corridor of PESIM used to bring a charm in everybody's face. I am afraid to mention that the charm and the aura will be a thing of past for people who knew what he meant to PESIM. A large void has been created!!!!It will take years before someone tries to fill it up with justice.Words cant describe the magnitude of the loss!!!!But the bottomline remains that we need to move on in life.
WHOELSE(Everyone with whom I have been directly or indirectly been associated in PES)
In this journey of 5 years I have come across people like Sourav Majumder, Sudip Dhar, Nishant-Rakesh-Kiriti-Ritiwik-Bodhaditya, Rajeev & Co, Prashant V.B & Co. other BBM & MBA Mates, juniors,seniors, AYOGYAS of PESIM, Prof. Venugopal Naidu, Ms. Sahana Umesh, Ms. Jessy Nair, compeitiors of other colleges (who have gone on to become good friends) ,who have contributed a major part to my growth as an individual.
Mentioning a line or two about Prof. Venugopal Naidu, it was his constant encouragement and motivation that led to my improvement as a speaker. My first major presentation was in his class and since that distant day so many presentations have been completed without much of vocabulary problem.
APART FROM PEOPLE
Three non living things that have given me a reason to live life the way I wish to in Bangalore are VISTAS, MANIT and FESTS. Organising fests and winning fests have gone into my blood in these 5 years and as I move on to my next phase of my life, it will take some time for the feeling to sink and some months before I come out of the nostalgia associated with inter college rivalry and competition. As Murali sir says, ''Patnaik lives for and on Fests''
WHERE NOW?
This marathon phase in my life has just laid the foundation for greater peaks to be conquered. I wish to do justice to myself by making the best utilisation of the base I have created here in PES over the period of 5 long years. The road ahead has a lot many turns but I am confident of taking those sharp turns with agility. thanks to the experience gained at PES. A whole new world awaits!
Monday, November 13, 2006
The Beginning-THE JOURNEY
The journey of life began for me on 7th October 1984(sunday), 10.48pm and since then life has been such a beautiful occassion to celebrate.
I find it amazingly different to be surviving here as 90% of the people around me keep cribbing about things that hold little importance in life. But for me like the remaining 10% of the mankind its always been a platform to understand the basic concepts with more intensity.
It took me around 3 years to get hold on myself as I first came out of home in the year 1987, thanks to my pre nursery school(Ruchika). After that I have never looked back though whatever I was doing till the age of 10-12 was being done in an unconcious state of mind.
The atmosphere around me always used to remain friendly and was full of bonhomie. I never knew what's a holiday because for me everyday was enjoyment. Never did my parents, rather grand parents i should mention forced me indoors or never did they take a call on my behalf. Right from my childhood it was made to me clear that it's your life, you live the way you want to without being dependent on others so take your own decisions. Then I used to feel bit lost as I wasn't able to recognise what's happening around me especially because all other friends of mine were so very dependent on their parents, even for a simple question whether they should go out of their house on a sunday morning?
The fact that I was always treated as an indivdual and all my commitments were given the importance they deserved made me feel grown up quite early in my life. For instance, I was never forced to go for any family occassions if I had my cricket match or a friends re union already prefixed in my schedule of things. There I learnt the importance of few words like commitment, time, dedication and the value of keeping words. I used to get bemused when it had to be me who had to go to all my friends house and convince their parents to get their ward out for playing or for class get togethers. But soon it became a part of the process and their parents started believing my words and till date in my hometown, people by using my name have been going out for dates and other bigger commitments of this age though I am in Bangalore. Looks like humor but that's what reality
It took me some time to realise the value that has been instilled within me right from my childhood and needless to mention because I was given a free hand quite early in my life, experience wise I am few steps ahead.
In a way right from my childhood I have been creating experience for people who were depended on their parents then and unconciously somewhere down the pipeline I have got into a profession which expects to create experience, though in a bit different way.
So here I am CREATING EXPERIENCE for people around me......
First it started unconciously,but now its the way I earn my bread.
For sure a long and eventful journey and hope the journey continues with some better experiences being created in the minds of the next set of people I come across(read clients)
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