Saturday, June 21, 2008

Turning Infertile...the MBA way!!

If I were to describe Ruchika in a word, it would be “Brains”. There have been moments where me and TJ have discussed at length of her gifted brain. The “SRCC” commerce tag was enough to stamp her academic superiority over us who had to shy away when someone enquired about our college of graduation. I don’t know how and why Ruchika agreed to be a part of our project group. Everyone wanted to rope her in the first term. There are some subjects where you have the freedom of choosing your own project group. The professors become god in the remaining few by making groups which they think would instill team dynamics in you. It seemed fun when they did it in the first term because you perceive everyone who has managed to get in brings to the table certain unique qualities. But once you start knowing the people in your section, these announcements on the notice board is the second most awaited thing in every term apart from the grades! Because it tells you who are the free riders who would be loaded on to your back and it would be your duty to take them to safety.

Ruchika becoming a part of our group had more to do with me and TJ than plain luck. That would be shared later. She was a huge value addition to my group, which consisted of Nano and Moti as well. Of course she bought us more backup in terms of assignments and projects should Moti & Nano flounder. But apart from that, she was in your face and focused. She would not hide her displeasure and spit venom at us if she found anything wrong. She made sure we all worked. The dream that I had seen with TJ of washing our hands of work once she becomes a part of our group had never materialized. We were made to work as hard. Her never say die attitude and strong will power rubbed off on us. It won’t be completely wrong to say that I was a little scared of Ruchika. She had a voice which had the decibel levels required to shatter the eardrums. I have seriously prayed a few times for her future offspring’s. They would have a tough time getting scolded a record number of times in a day.

Ruchika being among the toppers of the class was directly proportional to our grades improving substantially. This was because our assignments were distant cousins of her top grade assignments. We kept it at cousins because any attempt at being a sibling to her assignments would mean that the School of Management doctors called “professors” would operate on us and ensure that we never would be capable of becoming proud fathers of assignments ever again. I had been dressing up Ruchika’s children all this while by drastically changing their appearance. Even Kamal Hassan would have been proud of my camouflages. He might have done a record 10 different appearances in his latest movie, but I had lost count of how many times I had dressed up Ruchika’s assignments and come out with my “unique” version. Technically I could call myself father of the same because they carried some of my qualities. It would be unfair to accuse me of copying stuff because I was just following nature’s rule. I have always believed that assignments are like children. Two parties need to be involved to bring a new life into this world. Same was with assignments. In my case the child looked more like the mother but there would be some unmistakable traits of me which made my child completely different from its twin. Hence I used the term “distant cousin”. I had been religiously following the natural way and conceiving assignments at an unnatural rate until that fateful day. The day I went against nature.

Strategic management was one of the most dreaded subjects in the 4th trimester. It had more to do with the professor teaching the course. She was a strict disciplinarian and very hard taskmaster. Dr. Suparna Barjatya was a visiting faculty to the School of Management. She had taken a liking for the School of Management and would come back year after year. The seniors had warned us of the amount of hard work we would be required to put in to scrap through her course with a decent grade. True to her sketch made by seniors she bombarded us with assignments from the first day itself. We were required to put in a lot of hours preparing for her 1 contact hour. Not a single lecture went without assignments. All were graded. I had been following the natural way all this while. Till that day when I made an attempt at infidelity!

TJ was excited that day. “Balu bhai……see this…passes to the Management Institute annual fest……2 passes…you and me….and all the MI babes to look at!! Dress up for the party man! My friend Mali there has assured me he will introduce us to all girls from his batch. Stop lazing around you duffer. Get up!!” I was scowling in pain because TJ had kicked me hard. TJ was already rummaging through his wardrobe for his best combination. I looked at him in amazement. “You crackpot!! How can you even think of attending the bash. We have Suppu’s assignment on strategy to submit tomorrow. I have been getting messages that it is a tough one. People have been breaking their head over it yaar. You really think we should go?” TJ’s look was enough to convince me. I got dressed in a jiffy. Once at the Management Institute, I forgot all about the assignment. The girls were really pretty. There is something about parties. Girls look all the more enchanting. Being from the School of Management helped us get a head start. I did notice that TJ was with a new girl every time I glanced towards his side. He was hell bent on getting the maximum mileage out of this opportunity. We danced till the wee hours and had loads of fun. It was around 4 am when the music finally stopped and the students of MI started heading towards their hostels. We also got back to our hostel in half an hour.

I was feeling very tired after all the dance steps I had displayed to impress the girls. I collapsed into my bed. It was then that the realization dawned and I sat up with a start. Suppu’s assignment was hanging like a sword on my head. No wonder I had seen a lot of lights still on at the hostel. “This case should really be tough for them to be breaking their heads for so long.” I said to myself. TJ had started snoring. There was a lot of alcohol in his system to get him back to senses. I was about to pull him out of his slumber when I noticed the timetable kept on his desk. I was in a state of shock when the truth came crashing down on me. TJ had not opted for this course. It was not among the electives chosen by him. How could this vital piece of information slip from my mind? He obviously had refrained from enlightening me on this earlier because I would have refused him point blank then. I glanced at my watch. It was already 5 am. The class was scheduled at 9 am. The fatigue made it even worse. I tried reading the case but I was no Einstein to come up with an instant 2 minute noodle when other nerds had been cooking up a royal feast. The case was really tough. I could not make a head and tail out of it at the first glance. I opened my mailbox to find Ruchika’s assignment in it. This had become a sort of ritual. She would send me hers after completion which I would then read and mould it into my version. This case was so tough that even a completed assignment seemed Greek to me! I had suddenly turned infertile. I desperately wanted my child to take shape but the organ responsible for it wouldn’t budge. (P.S. Brain is the organ I am referring to here) I then did the most obvious thing to me…. “Cloning”. It was from the aftermath of the incident that I joined the group of scientists who oppose cloning citing it to be unnatural. I made a few cosmetic changes here and there to Ruchika’s assignment. I could not get the feeling of being a father how hard I tried with this child. It was simply a carbon copy of Ruchika’s assignment. My system did not have the strength to work on it again. I hoped that I would not be caught and went to sleep.

A week later the grades were put up. Ruchika had breezed past me in the corridor. Had I noticed a tear in her eyes? I rushed towards the notice board and my eyes stopped at roll no. 42. I had a big zero in front of my name. I had expected it. Somehow, I did not feel bad. There were quite a few who shared the honours with me. Luckily I did not have a “Meet” tag attached to my name. A “Meet” tag to your name was symbolic of the fact that Suppu had caught you cheating from a friend’s assignment and you had to fix an appointment with Suppu to give her an explanation. Surprisingly, Suppu spared the author of the original assignment and they would get away with only a zero to their name. I had got the punishment for what I deserved. “Oh Ruchika! What a friend she is…poor soul was crying for me. I will do well in the rest of the assignments and the final term paper to negate the effect of this zero. I will do well for your precious tears Ruchika.” I was halfway when a thought struck me. I walked towards the notice board again in a state of trance. My fingers were trembling when I moved all the way down to roll no. 38. My eyes popped out in horror.
Roll no. 38: Ruchika Agarwal (0/10) [Meet]

52 comments:

Unknown said...

wow brother!! great going...u rock! knew that u write mindblowing essays, but you are really really good with funny stuff n stories as well...and the kind of fun loving guy you are reflects in your posts...u r a superbro!!

Blogger said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Sandeep Balan said...

@sandhya

ha ha ha...thnx a ton sis...

Sandeep Balan said...

@priyanka

as usual...look fwd to ur comments...thanx a lot...

Geetika said...

hey sweety.. as usual you rocked this one as well..funny and very well written.. I loved it.. :) brings me back to our good old mba days.. so wish i could go bak!! I'l be waiting for ur next.. until then.. keep writing balu!!

Ruchi Agarwal said...

Hi dear.....it was nice... would have been excellent had you written it more honestly about what went into your mind while making group...instead of rationalizing your stand... i think that would have been very very funny... neways good work..

RJ said...

hahahaha.. all i can recall right nw is the shady and stinking room no.4 on first floor where we used to sleep thru the startegy class.. and some horrible assignment given by suppu abt some airlines shit.. awesome post..

tj said...

great one.....keep it up..and share the booty wid me...;-)

Unknown said...

Hey Balu

Great going...it was quite a laugh..waiting for the new blogs to come soon!!

Keep writing!!

Anonymous said...

Too good yaar..i can simply not forget that dreadful lecture..and her horrifying assignments

Vinay Pandey said...

Hi
You write really well.
But I can't help being a little critical - sorry about that. Here are a few critical
1. Try generalizing your posts a little, for the latest post I could understand a little because I am from same institute. I am not sure about those from other institutes.
2. Entries are too long! Try keeping it below 400 words.

Sandeep Balan said...

@geetika

Thanx a ton yaar...gr8 to know tht someone who hates readin a novel to the core luvd it...

Sandeep Balan said...

@ruchi

as mentioned in the post, wht went into my mind while forming the group will be dealt with in a new post soon...thanx for ur comments

Sandeep Balan said...

@rj

Thanx for the comments bro

Sandeep Balan said...

@tapajyoti

thanx...the booty is all urs..

Sandeep Balan said...

@roohi

thanx a lot for the comments yaar

Sandeep Balan said...

@aditi

Thanx yaar

Sandeep Balan said...

@vinay

wud try to incorporate the same..thanx...

alx said...

wow!!!....brilliant.....nxt post shud b on hw u faced ruchika aftr dat....kalakki

Unknown said...

GUd funny narration.....

Lookin for ya nxt...

by d way..Yhnxx for ya comment bro....

Hppy blogging!!!

Sandeep Balan said...

@alex

thanx chetta...ruchika confrontation woud come soon...

Sandeep Balan said...

@prashant

Thanx a ton bro...

Anonymous said...

ROFLMAO!!

Good one!! Something similar has happened to me too..But poor poor Ruchi..my heart just goes out to her.. :)

Anonymous said...

Hey Balu...
As usual u ve done a great job ......
way to go .....super ....

Anonymous said...

jjhvhgcjhgchb mb gvkugvkgv

Anonymous said...

hi balu.. i am back to ur blog.. could not keep up due to some personal engagement...

amazing narration dude.. i thought i would be last person to get inflicted by blog mania. but u proved me wrong..

thanks for bringing smile in sooooo stressed moments

Mischievous Spirit said...

amazing narration :) and it totally brings u back to the FORE days :)

Anonymous said...

oh shit...dude u really hav a talent...wat amazin way u weave ur stories in... can nvr even blink my eyes off wen am readin it.. n this one was another example... beautiful... i ws transported to the notice board seriously.. so relatable this is... hahahaha...

Gagan said...

very nice !!

keeep posting !!~~

the hobbit said...

hi i was the next up in the 'comment on the blog above' forum in Bloggeratti.....i totally and completely liked this essay....i was laughing so hard initially tht i did not see the serious end coming.....really gud one.....

Dan* said...

very long post dear n e ways it was funny i enjoyed reading .......owucb

chauhanmahesh said...

hey dear....superbly written post...a worth reading a longggggggg post..n quite funny...gud job dear...keep it up.
u could be great writer dude...
keep posting

Matangi Mawley said...

tht wasa gr8 fun reading! :D
poor ruchika! :)
bt u'r narration rox!

Anonymous said...

Nice post. I'm subscrining

Rinzu said...

hey 1st of all...

ur blog name is greattt... a typical southie thingy...

:)

ur a good story teller...the reader doesnt get lost in the middle while reading ur posts...
unlike in some cases where in i realsied i was loosing track of the story...

great work...!!!

Anonymous said...

great post..keep it up
you blog name is awesome...

Gagan said...

interesting !!

keep posting ~~

Jil Jil Ramamani said...

haa haa...I like this Ruchika character!!

creyzeee said...

haha...really cool post...best part is ur description of how an assignment is conceived! :D

p.s. thnx 4 d comment

Sandeep Balan said...

@terminalrant

our sympathies lie with ruchika..he he...

@shruti

thanx a ton for the encouragement yaar...

@anonymous

abcdefghijkl...

Sandeep Balan said...

@kunal

hey great to know that u have started exploring this wonderful world of blogs coz of mine...cheers!!

@sonam

great to know tht this blog became a time machine for u..keep commenting...

Sandeep Balan said...

@akshika
dont blink...he he..keep reading and commenting..

@gagan
Thanx bro..

@hobbit
thanx for commenting bro..

@dan
the best things in life come in big packages..he he..joking..great to know tht u enjoyed..cheers!

Sandeep Balan said...

@mahesh chauhan

lets see wats in store for me in future...thanx for the encouragement

Sandeep Balan said...

@matangi

hey..thanx...great to get that comments on narration from someone whose style i myself am a fan of..cheers!

Sandeep Balan said...

@arvind

thanx...

Sandeep Balan said...

@rinzu..

hey..thats the first time someone commented on my blog name..great..thanx...n feels good to know tht the reader does not get lost in a maze while reading the loooooong posts...

Sandeep Balan said...

@saif
thanx bro..

@gagan
thanx bro...

@hakuna matata
thanx yar...

Sandeep Balan said...

@cryzee..

hey...i myself was laughing when i wrote that part...thanx for commenting..

Anonymous said...

oh :(

*sigh* college days. I have to sigh about it even though i myself am in college.

You will have much to tell your children :P

Sandeep Balan said...

@and back

my children!! gosh man..tht is light years away..who wants to wait till that...have got into story telling mode already...my net savvy children would only be handed over the blog link on their bday's...he he!!

Anonymous said...

[url=http://pittsburghmom.com/members/Pokimon2010/default.aspx/][img]http://i048.radikal.ru/0910/57/9a759e833d4a.jpg[/img][/url]

10605 movies of scant DVD status

We be subjected to thousands of the hottest movies you've been waiting to protect! And they're stylish convenient in Hi-Def!
These movies are playable on most viewing devices including iPod, PDA (HandHelds), PC, DVD & DivX players.
There are absolutely no limits. Download as much as you lack with incredibly treble speeds. No additional software is required!
Really click on a link, download a flicks and guard it on your favorite player.

[size=4][url=http://pittsburghmom.com/members/Pokimon2010/default.aspx]Sign Up[/url] today and forget about buying or renting DVDs offline. [/size]


[url=http://movies.aoaoaxxx.ru/][img]http://s43.radikal.ru/i102/0910/37/6c734f3ca5fb.jpg[/img][/url]





























[url=http://pittsburghmom.com/members/Pokimon2010/default.aspx][b]TOP 40 BEST Movies:[/b][/url]
Banshee!!!
Last House on the Left, The
Jingle All the Way
Boston Strangler: The Untold Story
Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story
Sicko
National Treasure
Astronaut's Wife, The
Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country
Bulletproof
Ringer, The
Riding in Cars with Boys
International, The
Summer of Sam
National Lampoon presents Cattle Call
Hannah Montana: The Movie
Frontline: Dreams of Obama
I Am Sam
Bad Girls from Valley High
Religulous
Kicking the Dog
Dark Of The Sun
Runaway Train
Runaway
I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry
Hunt for Red October, The
Bachelor Party Vegas
Black Dawn
Owning Mahowny
Cheaper by the Dozen 2


[url=http://notradical.com/members/aminadimkin51.aspx]Land of Plenty [/url]
[url=http://blogs.mynd.ath.cx/members/kornejvernachev.aspx]13: Game of Death [/url]
[url=http://freewebhostingtipsonline.com/members/nasihzhemchuzhnij.aspx]Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron [/url]
[url=http://cherryvalleylife.com/members/zahidbistrogla.aspx]National Treasure: Book of Secrets [/url]
[url=http://askmecode.com/members/suhajljakuvikin.aspx]13 Hours in a Warehouse [/url]
[url=http://bounci.tv/members/anzhelabolshin6.aspx]Fly II, The [/url]
[url=http://coredeveloper.net/members/klarissagolutv.aspx]Final Exam [/url]
[url=http://rfidguru.eu/members/nadzhiblozhnikov.aspx]Maid of Honor [/url]
[url=http://forum.fscp.org/members/abdulvahabsko.aspx]Love in the Afternoon [/url]
[url=http://mcgeefamily.biz/members/renataevtjushkin.aspx]Duplicity [/url]

Unknown said...

I have been visiting various blogs for my MBA assignment research. I have found your blog to be quite useful. Keep updating your blog with valuable information... Regards