Movies to watch when your stoned, drunk, are frustrated with life...

1. Harold and Kumar go to White Castle
2. HitchHickers guide to the galaxy
3. Monty Phython series... 'Life of Brian', 'Meaning of life', 'The holy Grail',
The script of 'Fellowship of the Rings' is available at this link.

Well for now watch these... I'll add more if you are really that stoned/drunk...

Exchange????????

The whole day today was spent on evaluating the benefits of studying (rather visiting) Europe as an exchange student. After a thorough analysis of the pros and cons I have decided against it. The were only two institutes I was interested in. European Business School (ebs), Germany and Copenhagen Business School (CBS), Denmark. Though both institutes have a stipend that makes the total expenses quite manageable, I am not too keen after lookng at the course content of either institute. Also the courses that I would miss over here are important core finance courses that should ideally not be missed in a Finance major.

So thats the end of a dilemma. Mebbe I'll visit Europe some other time.

The Great Bong

Ramesh has introduced me to a very interesting blog. Following is the link of a hilarious (brilliant.. as put by Ramesh) post on GreatBong.

Do read it!!!

Salaam Namaste

Watched it finally.. a hindi movie after a long time... the last hindi movie I watched was ...shit dunno... it was so long ago that I forgot :-p

I believed that SN was decent until the last 20-30 minutes of the movie had me thinkin otherwise. Damn... people might say big 'crap' ;-) abt it showcasing the realities of modern Indian society. Agreed that to an extent it does... but then the movie doesnt live upto the climax it that shows a total disconnect between the 'cool' attitude and the slapstick comedy that is potrayed towards the end.

This is another reason why I dont like watching Hindi movies. Themes change abruptly, Plots follow convoluted paths and in the middle somewhere a song and dance routine is thrown in for good measure.

On the positives of the movie, I'll say that the direction and cinematography was excellently done. The photography is good. Saif dancing skills are well hidden by the zooming cams, the colour roit and other similar methods (as observed by Mansur). The movie could have really made it big with the sensitive issue it generated. However they lost it in the end with the 'crap'.

All said and done, it was a good way to spend 2 hrs on a saturday night.

Retail or Corporate?

That was the question that vexed many an eminent panelist who congregated onto our hallowed campus to debate the issue in the post lunch session of our first ever 'Annual' Banking Symposium.

Well for starters we wore our suits/blazers for the first time on campus. Formal wear for the winters we were told. Unfortunately some a***hole decided not to turn on the air conditioning inside the packed and sealed (may I add) auditorium. So there were we all dressed and cooking inside our 'formal wear'.

The roll calling done (its a tradition to be followed... who cares a damn whether you are interested in the proceedings or not!!!) the panelists were escorted to the dias. I must say that the organising committee did a great job on the celeb front. We had the whos-who and the whos-going -to-be-next-who of the financial world. The keynote speaker was the Dy. Gov. of the RBI. (Forgot her name...forgive me!!!) and the rest of the guys were senior bankers/VPs/diros of firms like Ernst & Young, ICICI Bank, SBI, Yes Bank, StanChart, Amex, Citigroup, NCDEX, etc etc.

The entire thing would have been another also ran thingie at MDI had it not been for the sardar from SBI who livened up things at the fag end of the session. He rocked the place with his sharp wit, humour, sarcasm and hilarious stories. The other guys did a marketing job of their resp. cos and the ICICI bank dood did a typical MBA style presentation with lotsa data and the ubiquitous 'sa pa da pa'

So finally the conclusion... we need a balance of both COrporate and Retail banking... knew that was coming right!!! its a typical MBA answer politically correct and vague as hell... sardar dood was bang on target when he said that retail banking depends a lot on corporate banking. If firms borrow and grow, the returns flow towards the household sector who in turn then can drive retail banking. Way to go paaji... you probably said everything that had to be said in short sentences, in succint language and served with doses of common sense that probably they dont teach at BSchool

And this number is dedicated to....

I cherish this song... Other than being one of the fave numbers I love to dance to each word is meaningful to me... I've been listening to it continuously for quite some time tonite...

This is dedicated to you .... Audrey ... Bryan Adams with "Heaven"

Oh - thinkin' about all our younger years
There was only you and me
We were young and wild and free

Now nothin' can take you away from me
We bin down that road before
But that's over now
You keep me comin' back for more

Baby you're all that I want
When you're lyin' here in my arms
I'm findin' it hard to believe
We're in heaven
And love is all that I need
And I found it there in your heart
It isn't too hard to see
We're in heaven

Oh - once in your life you find someone
Who will turn your world around
Bring you up when you're feelin' down

Ya - nothin' could change what you mean to me
Oh there's lots that I could say
But just hold me now
Cause our love will light the way

N' baby you're all that I want
When you're lyin' here in my arms
I'm findin' it hard to believe
We're in heaven
And love is all that I need
And I found it there in your heart
It isn't too hard to see
We're in heaven

I've bin waitin' for so long
For something to arrive
For love to come along

Now our dreams are comin' true
Through the good times and the bad
Ya - I'll be standin' there by you

Shopping!!!

Today was my shopping day... After attending a sad PPT and a good workout, Ramesh, Pradeep, Mansur, Sethu and me went out shopping... We had a good time and followed it up with dinner at McDonalds.
What did I get???
A pullover, a winter cap, a cool jacket and a tee. Was going to buy cargoes but didn't like the designs. Will do so in Mumbai.
Missed the CRC meet... damn... but alls well that ends well... me off to finish Season 3!!!

Late night ramblings....

I have always imagined what it felt like to speak in the cold wheather and have moist vapour escaping my mouth. I have grown up seeing the BBC corresspondent reporting from Sarajevo spew vapour while giving the final touches to the telecast. Today it finally happened. After a screening of 'My brother Nikhil' at the auditorium by the 'Samaritans' - A club oriented towards social service- we went for a coffee and there I was with 'smoke' when I spoke.

Well me going to watch F.R.I.E.N.D.S. Season 3. Gotta thank Anee for the CDs!!!


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22 more days to go before I land at home. Mannnn... its the Christmas season and Advent (The Christmas season) started last Sunday... The end terms are also just 2 weeks away... Projects and lotsa work lined up.... AAAAARRRRGGGHHHHH!!!!! I wanna go home!!!

A day in the life of Gordon D'Souza

2:30 AM
I called Audrey. Middle of the night I know. And she was busy playing with chemo drugs. Wrong time to disturb a person I say. Like they say at CCD's "A lot can happen over chemos".
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3:45 AM
I complete the HRM presentation on training of senior managers of a banking company for leadership skills.
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8:15 AM
Alarm rings......
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9:30 AM
I wake up ;-)
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3:45 PM
Back from class....
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5:50 PM
Back from the gym
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8:15 PM
Finished chatting with Audrey...... ;-)
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9:00 PM
Dinner with chole and puris with lotsa jalebis :-)
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9:30 PM
My brother Nikhil screened at the Audi
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11:45 PM
Me blogging this!!!!

So that was today... and its been a week like this... completely chilled out... dunno if I've got used to the system or wot???

Also, wonder what happened to the guy who was being administered chemo drugs... Smiling and joyful nurses can heal what chemos cant ;-)

Counting karo tum...!!!

Thot of Amir Khan saying that line in the 5 buck Coke commercial and said heck why not me have a counter too. So thats just what I did... registered on Bravenet for a brand new counter. Will have to forego all the clicks till date though; but it wont be much of an issue considering the fact that the blog is not visited so frequently.

Value steel

Past few days have seen a lot of bidding for Dofasco, the Canadian steel maker. First there was a hostile bid by Arcelor, the second largest steel co. Apparently, Arcelor wanted to strengthen its automotive steel division. Arcelor already is a major supplier to european carmakers, on the other hand, Dofasco has been a major supplier to North American carmakers Ford and GM. Probably the acquisition would create a monopoly in the automotive steel and Arcelor would be in a position to armtwist the already flagging auto industry in the West. It could also sound the death knell for US automakers. There could be a chance that GM, Ford and other US automakers might have forced Dofasco to reject the proposal from Arcelor.

As soon as the Arcelor threat was averted, Thyssenkrupp AG, the German steel maker made an offer at 40% premium to Arcelor's bid. Thyssenkrupp is also an automotive steel supplier, then what makes TK different. The only difference that I can see is that TK can add value to Dofasco's steel since TK has a service that caters to automotive design and planning which coupled with Mechatronics can be a differentiator in this old economy industry.

Should indian firms follow this model. I say a resounding yes. With demand from China set to slow down in the coming years due to the cooling of their economy there is going to be a reduction in demand for steel. Add to that the effect of falling prices due to overcapacity generated due to the highly liquid environment of the past few years, theres set to be havoc in the global steel industry.

In such a scenario, firms will survive on two counts only. Either they consolidate or they differentiate. The global consolidation game has started with Mittal steel setting the pace last year. These year will see more acquisitions. Dofasco is the first big fish this year. But will blind acquisitions aid survival? Somehow I dont think so. Primarily because these will create inefficient monopolies. But in the case of Thyssenkrupp I can see a strong value model. In fact its going the way GE went in the 90s by increasing the services component in its portfolio. There's a lot of value to be unlocked by linkages to customers (read value added service based steel) rather tha than just forcing iron down their throats.

The Thirst Theory

I have developed this theory called 'The Thirst Theory'. It states that "If a person sees a bottle of water in the middle of a discourse, that person feels thirsty." The discourse here applies mainly to classroom lectures. It has been proved beyond doubt in the last 5 years.

A typical experimental proof goes something like this. A specimen will make it known to all other specimens that he/she is drinking water. Subsequently, thirst levels start going up in surrounding specimens. Somewhere far away, a particular specimen's thirst will cross the threshold level and he/she will solicit the container of water. But as the container of water begins its journey across the class, the threshold of specimens in its vicinity is immediately crossed (something like the 'Lord of the Rings'... the water bears its influence on those who carry it) and they drink of that precious little that remains. The value of water goes on increasing as it inches closer and closer to its real destination. As it reaches the intended specimen, there is little left, and the specimen relishes each drop.

Funny but true. Check it next time someone drinks water in class.

The last of the mid terms...

Mid terms are over and thats a relief. This mid terms have been much better than the one last term. Did quite well and I'm waiting for the results. Have decided to spend a good deal of time in the library this remaining term.Our management symposium is coming up this weekend. Delphique... thats what its called. Seems to be a much decent event than the ones previously organised. Only thing that sucks is that there is compulsory attendance. Crappy I say. But in an upcoming bskool we need to humour corporates. The focus is not on learning but again on Corporate Relations. Sadly, we are not out of that mentality yet. Gotta stop cribbing about the things here.

Illuminated??

Had been desisting from posting this from a long time... Illumina our market research fest concluded on 31st October. Here in the guise of a Diwali Mela we students at MDI lead consumers to play asinine games (of course after assuming that they are a bunch of gullible fools). At the end of the day we claim a footfall of a few grand and the sample from where we collect our data wouldnt impress a chimp agency. The data collected is allowed to flow through a series of software iterations and the output is presented with fanfare.

This year we had HLL which gave us a brief of getting consumer insights into cappuchino coffee. Yes Boss! the mighty HLL is going to take the esteemed opinion of yet-to-be MBAs (who have gained insights into consumer behaviour from those great games that they designed) on whether they will launch their coffee. After all Nestle is a small fish. They are nuts to carry out MR with firms like AC Nielson, ORG- MARG and the like. MDI's greats are better. Talk about gaining competitive advantage!

The other games the less said the better. However, must say that the event was organised well. But the concept sucks big time. Events like these are all relationship building exercises. And this is not restricted to MDI. All insitutes do it. So confirms my friend from a reputed Mumbai based institute. So what are we doing here. In the quest for relationship building do we teach students what is happening at in the real market. You should see the confidence with which people were willing to swear by the MR. Brings me back to the point I raised a few weeks ago that we are generating managers with lack of practicality. God save us!!!

Anyways I gotta prepare for the mid terms beginging tomo...Wish me luck.

The Treat

We were the blue eyed boys of the evening. Jai, Ramesh, Prady and me took the gang (and Prady's women) a total of 20 odd people out to dinner.

The venue

We decided to go to Debonairs Pizza. Hari Nair was excited. Thought it was a Mallu joint. (Everything that ends in Nair need not be Mallu!!!). Pranesh 'The negotiator' Nagrajan tried to rob the Debonair guys with a wacko deal that fell thru. But nonetheless we got double decker deal.

Shravan and Pranesh did the optimising of the order. Prady did his flirting (heck.. thats his occupation...but there was no stopping the birthday boy). Me...I'm the hogger...I hogged on the pizza.

Me with some amazing pizza...damn the fork and the knife this one's too good

Done with the pizza and coke was the bill. Yup I wasnt surprised considering the bhukkads that we are. But then it was a worthwhile treat considering that I also was placed on week zero. We had a photo session outside Debonairs and then we hauled ourselves back to MDI.

Fleeced! BDay boys-(L to R)Ramesh Ananthakrishnan, S Jai Anand, Yours truly and Pradumnya Jhandyala. Seated L to R-Pranesh 'The Negotiator' Nagrajan and Harshit Jain

Some snaps taken when we were waiting for the pizza to arrive....

Mansur, Me and Hari (The real Nair)

The photo session after dinner...some crazy moments...

Hada feeling Pranesh... We all knew he had those tendencies...Roomie Hari will have to take care!!!

And thats how it ended... the blue eyed boys were a year older, the Debonair guys a bit richer, the MDI gang a bit fuller... Prady a bit happier....Hada bit bit more happier (Sorry Hada couldn't stop it after you were caught on cam) and we all lived happily till the time I'm blogging this!


Standard Disclaimer: Anybody coming to my room with sorry tales of leg-pulling will not be entertained nor shall I be coerced to change the contents on any grounds whatsoever. The intentions of the author are not mala-fide nor does he have ulterior motives thereof to cause harm to the reputation of anybody. All matters are subject to the jurisdiction of BCCI.

What ails management education....and my expectations from MDI

We wonder why we come to BSchool after we spend a term or so here... And after the term is over (and the butchering that follows it in the form of screwed up grades) you wonder why you left the cozy comfort of your home and the comfort of your job to come to this hell-begotten place where you are on the run 24x7. The assignments never seem to end. There is no holiday (everyday has something which you can directly or indirectly call work). You are away from home, i.e. if you are not a Delhi-ite. And before you know it some form of assessment be it quiz, mid-term, end-term, project work, some bloody event, an extra-curric, club meeting, etc. comes u and screws up your schedule.

Having gone through the motions of one term, I have come to realise what I want from this institute. Majority of management graduates seriously lack HR skills, rather softly put soft skills. Not that spending two years is going to improve anyones people skills, but it is very important from the following perspective. From what my mentor, Mr. DN Dalal, in Siemens told me, a person spends max 3-4 years using tech skills...maybe less. After that the focus goes into 50% tech-50% people mgmt. And further on the focus is totally on people. As Prof. Debi Saini, here in MDI clearly says, People come before strategy. Problem is that not many freshly minted managers have a people orientatiom.

Another area of concern is tha total lack of development of long term thinking. All simulation games prepared for BSchool students and all that comes out from the academics of BSchools is a terrible short term focus. Though this might work in the minutely narrow area of highly-liquid investments, I doubt its sustainability on corporate strategy. What you get is a mass assembly line output from n number of BSchools churning out short term specialists who are well suited to work out short term strategies fed on learnings from crappy analysis of business cases, last minute botched data from Google and the types. We are generating managers with lack of vision.

Which brings me to what I want from this place. I want to master the knack of thinking into the future. I don't know how I'm gonna do it, but I think it's the single most important learning I can take from this place. I also want to get into the art of managing people, since people are the most important component of any organisation. I think my academic group is a good place to experiment. I successfully tried out certain truths on group dynamics with my previous acad group.

I have learnt that when people are presented with a model which delivers results excellently, they accept it, assimilate it and propogate it. There is no better catalyst for organisation change. It is some form of self propogating fire. It is also much better than other forms of change because other models depend to a huge extent on assumptions that are not practical. (More on the practical applications of models later)

I know most of this might sound extreme gibberish to many. But to those who may understand an iota of it, you know what I want from MDI.....

What a blast!!!!

It was done in style. The hours preceding the day I completed 23 years, were filled with activity that probably I have never experienced before. KK (of Pal fame) sang to a thousand plus here, MDI spent a bomb on some amazing fireworks, a grand party has been organised with the good spirits flowing, and a DJ to boot. Some birthday!!!

Also this was probaby the only time in MDI that the birthday cake was eaten and not grabbed in a free-for-all. We were finishing the cake, licking our fingers and savouring the richness of chocolate till kingdom come. Of course, no gain without pain. My behind had a highly intense footfall and for a second I felt as if my behond had fallen off.

Back in the room, Pranesh made a birthday shot. Surprisingly, it dint hit me. I seem to be getting better at this. At least having come to MDI has made a difference!!!

Enough for now. Its an unearthly hour and sleep beckons. Far away the college rocks to punju beats. But for me its sleep time. Happy Birthday to me!!!

A new term and a new begining!!!

Today heralds Term 2 of my course at MDI. It feels like a new begining all over again. New books, new subjects, new profs... It really feels good.

First of all I want to incorporate all the learnings from the previous term. Term 1 was reeking with inefficiency, late nights, poor planning, tiredness and lethargy. Under the guise of 'BSchool life' I let my schedules go for a toss. Payed little attention in class. No pre-reads. Left everything for the last minute. In short, an engineering hangover.

All that will change from this term. I will sleep early. Get up early. Gym. Pre-readings. Efficient planning. Pay attention in class. No last minute studying. And make the best use of this place called MDI.

I am determined to make myself bloody disciplined, and began that with today. Hope that I can make this schedule last for the term. The first step to managing people is managng yourself.

Raging Bulls

Made it through Livestock, the stock trading competition from IIM A's Confluence. The event is a live trading floor where 50 top teams from across India will be participating for the top place. Our team called the ragingbulls consists of 4 Unnati people. For thse who don't know Unnati is our student initiative research and investment management group (in other words, a Mutual Fund) and me (I'm the non-Unnati guy). Between us we have 6 years worth of investing experience. Dhamija is a big mover, Anee and Goenka are said to handle big portfolios. I have done a bit and Sankalp also has investing experience.

The event kicked off with a qualification quiz of 60 marks which we were supposed to complete in 30 minutes. We have 3 junior teams and 2 senior team participating. Totally we have 5 teams from MDI.

We will be given Rs.25,000/- to trade with over a period of 3 months in the Indian stock markets. During this period we have to trade and produce research papers and justify our purchases. At the end of the period we will be evaluated on the final portfolio position, the cash on hand, the returns we generate and our research papers.

It all looks very exciting. We will be allowed to keep 30% of the profits we generate in addition to the prize money (forgot the actual figure but its pretty huge for small punters like us!!!). All's looking good, Looking forward to an exciting 3 months.....

Its almost over

The agony of the past 2 weeks seems to be nearing an end. Past two weeks have been an high octane existence. Sleep has always come in the wee hours of the morning. The entire night spent completing presentations interspersed with laughter, jokes, PJs, ordering food from the local call centre canteens, etc. Dunno what we would have done had there been no call centres canteens??!!

Eyes bloodshot. Body tired. Pushing the mind and soul for that extra bit every moment....MAN!!! MDI surely has some acad rigour. Sometimes I wonder if it is all necessary. I mean does the measure of a manager cme from how much academic bullshit he can handle.

Enough of gyaan ;-)... Me gotta finish the course on 'Managerial Economics' for tommo exam. It has made me less knowledgable on the topic, though the prof (Dr. Ashra) who teaches us is an exceptional fellow.

Till tommo 12:15 pm its back to exa mode........