Lessons i learnt in INautix

"GoodLuck.We will let you know".This is what i heard as i finished my technical interview in inautix.As i walked down the steps,i was pretty confident that i would get through and true it was.Over the next few months i dreamed big,really big ,about my corporate career and whether those dreams were fulfilled or not ,only time will tell :-))

August 2nd 2004,the day i officially stepped into the corporate jungle.Few would say"It's a jungle out there,only the best will survive".True.I felt like i was stepping into the jungle at night.Neither could i see anything nor could i predict any thing.The fear of falling prey to the worst carnivores and the cruel scavengers were lingering in my mind.But as nature would have it,the jungle had some wise and generous creatures and it was these creatures that illuminated the torch for me and guided through the jungle maze.

Training days were truly awesome.I learnt my first lesson during that time.The lesson was "Never try to be too smart".My training collegues will know what it means. :-))

My second lesson was not too far.It was during the end of the training period.Three people were supposed to work in DSCM(Configuration Management...For all the non technical people..DSCM means Job without work) and people said that one could gain excellent domain/business knowledge working in DSCM.As i was preparing for CAT and bent on doing my MBA,i thought this would be an excellent exposure.So,I went directly and met the head of Configuration Management.It was only after that meeting did i consult with "few good men" regarding this.The best part was, those "few good men" recommended me against working in Configuration Management.I then flatly refused to work in DSCM.I got a huge verbal thrashing from my training head.Never in my wildest dreams did i expect this.Hence the second lesson. "Never deal with a person of authority unless you have a sound reason to do so".

Soon after the training was finished i was deputed to work in a team called 'NetxOffice'.This is when i started to feel the real pulse of corporate world and software industry in particular.The team handled projects in Java,and i was a literal illiterate in Java then(that doesn't mean that i am an expert now :-)).The bay in which i was seated housed people with wealth of experience.Every one was talking about Java,Servlet,EJB,Inautilus,Containers,logs bla bla bla.I could not understand a single word.I was a silent observer.Soon i was given a project to work.As luck would have it,I was the only person to work on it.My first project - "Replicate Accounts for Identical Client Level Data".Sounds highly fundoo...right?In layman terms,it meant "Copy-Paste".Hence my third Lesson."Appearances are often deceptive".

The project went into production successfully.I slowly started to feel comfortable with my team members.It was September 2005 and it was appraisal time.First time in my entire life,i had someone evaluating me.The very thought of it, sent cold shivers down my spine.But eventually i learnt that this kind of evaluation is going to stay with me for my lifetime.I went inside the conference room,had a discussion,heard some sweet words from my appraiser ,came out.I felt happy,really happy with my rating.I discussed it with my peers,i learnt that my rating was only just as good as any others.Hence the fourth lesson."Never jump to conclusion,until you have personally seen and verified it yourslef".

2005 came and went.One more year of my flopped performance in CAT.2006 came.I made it this time.A new record for me.Fourth consecutive flopped performance in CAT. I felt depressed.More so the monotony of my current job eventually got to me.Three years of IT industry experience.Good technical knowledge,Good domain knowledge were added advantage.I felt the time was right to go beyond.To learn new things,to explore new boundaries,to venture new territories.It's a jungle out there.True.Animals bread in captive cannot survive in the jungle.Hence the fifth and final lesson."Change is the only constant".

Sivaji - The Boss

"Machan innikki night abirami theatre la special show 8 manikku sivaji ticket irukku,variya".This is what my friend said at around 2 PM today.I uttered just two words."kandippan varen".After slogging like a dog for more than a week i was rewarded.All of a sudden Thalaivar's punch dialogue seemed to be true."Nallavangala aandavan sodhippan,aana kai uda maattan".All the afternoon my mind was occupied with 'Sivaji' the film and whether shankar and Thalaivar combo would have actually delivered the goods.Off i packed my bags at 6:30 PM and scrambled to Abirami Theatre.

For the first time i hated Chennai roads.Horrible traffic jam and honking of horns made me sick.At one point in time i actually wondered if i would ever reach the theatre on time.If there had been a cctv on chennai roads and had my driving been captured on them,and lets say the cops here charge Rs 100 for violating traffic rules then probably i would have been bankrupt by now.Thats how i drove to the theatre (On hindsight very bad driving,never to be repeated again).Dot 7:53 i reached the theatre and scrambled to the parking lot only to be told that the movie will be screened at 9 PM(much to my relief).I quickly packed my tummy with fried rice and off we entered the theatre.

Normally i used to gape at the wonderful models on Prince Jewelery ad.It seemed nonsense to me today.9:07 PM and the screen flashed the CFBC certificate titled 'Sivaji'.The theatre rocked.Clamorous atmosphere deafened my ears.There it was.Finally,the long wait was over.

The first thing that any thalaivar's fan would lookout for is thalaivar's entry.Hats off to shankar.He has given a tremendous entry for thalaivar.(I never expected,neither i think any one would ve expected).The film took off from there.The first half is packed with thalaivar's love interest and the efforts he takes to achieve his personal ambition.Vivek has donned major role here as thalaivar's 'right hand'.Thalaivar has done extremely well in his dance this time around.His performance in 'Balellaikka' song is too good.But the real entertainer is yet to come.You ll see the actual Rajinikanth after 1Hr 38 minutes.The Interval scene is where the film gets its momentum.

1 Hr 38 minutes before interval.Phew...i sighed.But i believe its worth the wait,coz the next 2 Hrs(Yeah..the film runs for 3 and a half hours) is 'electrically awesome'(i cudn't find a single adjective to describe it).All the stories about 'Sivaji' that were flashed in the internet were wrong.You will witness the explosive peak of the film in the last 20 minutes.Boy o Boy hasn't he proved his mettle.Take note ,all you Rajini blasphemists,thalaivar could act too.And after witnessing the last 20 minutes even the greatest of the great actors will admit that he has done an explosive role.After all we are talking about our 'Superstar'.

This film equals all his previous films(in terms of power packed action and story).People were talking about Baasha and Padayappa as his benchmarks.But boy,this film would set the benchmark for tamil film industry.Everyone in the industry,if they are honest,should accede to the fact that this is the best film ever to be made in Tamil Film industry.(Shankar to get the credit)

Excellent story line(Never told before),explosive music,stellar action sequence(the last 20 mins) makes this movies a sooper dooper bumper hit.Chandramukhi was screened for 500 days.I wouldnt be surprised if this film breaks that record.

Rajinikath is truly 'The Boss'.

Tribute to 'The Taj'

When the fifth mogul emperor of India , Shah Jahan, ordered the commencement of an architectural marvel in 1632 AD,it ushered india into architectural spotlight.Nearly 25000 craftsmen worked on this project and over 50 architects supervised this engineering marvel over a span of 16 years.Legend has it that,this masterpiece was built by the emperor as an ode to his late wife Tage Mehale(few know her as Mumtaz).It is believed that the emperor was so affectionate,passionate(use whatever adjective you want) that he could not see a life worth living without her.Hence the decision to commission(sounds rhyming right..cool) a marvel,which alone could rival her beauty.Maybe it did too.It was not a surprise when this masterpiece was declared as one of the [then] modern 7 wonders and later UNESCO World heritage site in 1983.

Time and Tide waits for none.Now the time has come for electing the new 7 wonders of the modern world.With less than a month to go for the deadline,people all over the globe are punching their ballot cards expressing their choice of modern 7 wonders.It is a fact that 'Our Taj',the nation's pride, is lagging behind by quite a margin in this race to 'pride and honour'.The time has come for us to reaffirm India's presence in the global map [once again].We did that in 1947 by gaining independence without firing a bullet.We did that in the 1970's by placing a man on space.We did that in 1997 by testing Nuclear war head[when no one believed we were capable].We can do it once again.

We are humans.We have sixth sense.We all love.We have passion.We appreciate beauty.We care for others.We are Indians and we are patriotic.

"Getting to the top is great but staying at the top is greater".We got 'Taj' to the top once before.Now we need to do it again.

I earnestly urge you to go and vote for 'Taj' and make India proud once again.

Mumbai Marathon - Day 2

Pradeep ezhudhuru…mani 5 aiduthu…ellarum vandhuduva…

There it was, my nightmare of getting up in the early morning was well underway. With great difficulties I managed to get myself out of the bed (thanks to switching off fan by god only knows who and mosquitoes).Soon the morning chores began to happen in a more routine fashion (which included me banging my head against the ceiling of the bathroom. yet another place).Soon the place was flocked with folks from vrs parivar (makkal/gumbal).Some time later, the ohmam was underway in grand style. First Danvandri ohmam then it was sudhrashana ohmam.The ohmam was accompanied by people reading naalaayira divya prabhandam in the next room.Appa was also made to read prabhandam(Thanks to chechu mama).He left Chennai with great hopes. Now his face was telling all the stories. Its today that one could find the different abhinayanams.One was having stern face, another laughing like h*ll,yet another studiously looking at the paper with sudharshana ohmam mandhiram,yet another was having his face hidden behind the camera, and the list went on.Ding..Ding...Ding…the clock bell rang and it was time to have my lunch.

After a sumptuous meal everyone scampered to different places to find a nice cozy place to slouch. I got mine somewhere in between two bheeros.Soon the routine vetti mokkai started. It ended only after every one went into their hibernation mode. A couple of hours later slowly every one was rebooted back to their safe mode (after all I am working with computers).Later that evening I was offered an outing. I was taken to a place what most people call the best mall that mulund houses. The mall was ok, but the huge crowd presence was making me sick. Anywhere I turned, it was people people people all around. Mumbai these days is bitten by the mall bug and the bug is well on its way to Chennai. The presence of Sachin’s Restaurant came as a succor for me. First I saw the word ‘Genius’, then I saw ‘MRF’.Ah there it was, the Willow which made Shane Warne wet his pants ,the willow which spoiled Kasprowicz’s career, the willow which had a date with the sharjah sand storm, the willow which denied Australia the Coca Cola Trophy. I felt great pride in narrating the sight of the great willow to people back home.(but not sure what they felt…should have been something very funny…defly)

There it was the day 2 of Mumbai Marathon about to end in grand style. Again I was given clear and stern orders.”Kaarthaala seekiram ezhundhukkanum”.

We were going to Shirdi the next day…the day I would have been in chepauk had I not been traveling…the day when India met WI…the day when we parked our dikkis most of the time in the car…ouch…its still paining.

Mumbai Marathon - Day 1

After much deliberation and pondering over the decision to fly spice jet, the D Day arrived. We left for the airport at about 11:00 AM on the 25 th January and arrived at the Chennai airport by 11:30.Baggage screening and the preliminary checks were over and done by 11:45.We had all the time at our disposal for the 1:55 flight. Unaware of what to do, we strolled across the length and breadth of the airport lounges till we finally decided to have a seat. Unusually the flight was on time and one has to say that it was extremely pleasant afternoon for us. The Cabin crew made the onboard experience even more enjoyable.3:30 PM it was, as we landed at the Chatrapati Intl Terminal, Mumbai.After collecting our baggage (unfortunately which was last to arrive at the conveyor belt), we set our steps towards the exit. There it was. Mumbai at our sight. Arghhh! Also chechu mama at our sight. As usual with a madaya greeting in which he alone in this whole cosmos could specialize, ushered us towards the cab and lead us into the city. As the driver sat in his seat, chechu mama uttered three words to him… R.A.Kidwai Road, Wadala.

There it was. Our first stop on the journey. One could hear the pants and phews of amma as she managed to climb the two floors of Bhaweshwar Dham (After all old age does take its toll. She is 48 years old but never admits that).Not surprisingly reminiscence of childhood blossomed in her mind. One could hear her cry loud “Inga than naan, meera, chitra ellarum odi, aadi, velaiyaaduvom”.”Inga than naanga ellaroda veettu calling bellaium adippom”. (I thought “ungala yaaru adippa”).As we set our foot on the final step of the second floor, Papa Perimma and athimber were there to receive us. After cramping my leg for nearly two hours, at last I felt myself at home. (Wonder why all the flights are built with very poor leg room space!).Soft Rava Idlis and Sweet Bolis welcomed us too. One could not really control the appetite. (After all we traveled in a low cost airline).After spending nearly two hours at wadala, we decided to leave for our next destination. As we sat inside the lovely sedan (Maruthi Esteem), chechu mama uttered three words to the driver…Garodia Nagar, GhatKhopar.

There we were. It was around 8:00 PM and we arrived at GhatKhopar.Radha, Srinath, Srihari were also present at Balaji that time. After completing the formal enga–irukkel, eppadi–irukkel greetings, chit chatting started and continued for some while, till the time our stomachs started crying. Oblivious to the fact that I was hunger personified, srihari continued to torment me with his batman, he-man, racing car and srinath stories. But as it went, he was brilliant in his narration. One has to admire his way of speaking (those slanting head with eyes pointed slantingly upwards).I certainly enjoyed it.Srinath was his usual self. Calmness personified, Listening to Worldspace and teaching me how to operate it. Both these fellows made me forget that it was 9:30 PM and my stomach was ringing bells for the past one hour. After having the dinner and arranging the place for next days function (apart from playing a 100 meter sprint race with Mr.Mooshik), we decided to call it a day and resigned our self to the bed. Before I went to sleep I was given a stern order by amma.”Kaarthaala seekaram ezhundukkanum, nyabagam vechukko”.I asked her “eththana manikku” to which she replied “anchu (5) manikku”.

There I went to my sleep with the harrowing thought of waking up at 5 AM.I could not really remember when I did that before. Probably 10^th standard. Probably 12^th standard.

To be continued…

Sneak Preview of Day 2, Mumbai marathon:

Getting up for the function

Breakfast and meeting with fellow VRS ians

The Function Itself

Lunch

Afternoon Powernap

Trip to what most people call the best mall housed by prince of suburbs (mulund)

Dinner