“What have I done to make this world a better place?”

An URI Professor ponders on his retirement


Professor Clay Sink, septuagenarian has completed 38 years of service at URI and taught more than 9000 students. Rain or shine this vivacious man has never missed a day off work in his career. His commitment to students and to the academic world is commendable. He is in his office by 8 am to attend to students queuing outside his office for solace and advice. His sensible and sensitive approach has earned him an indelible position in the hearts students. He is actively involved with the local Church increasing his circle of influence and dispelling darkness and in the society. There is more enthusiasm and energy as he inches closer to his retirement day.

Here is the excerpt from an online interview with Dr. Clay Sink.

1. An average American changes 14 jobs in his life time and goes through multiple marriages and you have changed less than 3 jobs in your entire career. How come?
My generation stayed with a position longer than the present generation because it wasn’t as easy to change jobs. Our attitude was “how can I make this job better” whereas the present generation’s attitude is that “I don’t have to put up with this so I’ll go somewhere where they do appreciate me.” Also, I have been blessed to have never had a job where I didn’t find a certain amount of satisfaction. My jobs have always given me opportunities to travel and do things outside the box. Another point that I can make is that I strongly believe that there is a certain amount of correlation between having a satisfactory personal life and happiness on the job. Fortunately I have had both.

2. Did you find what you were looking for when you came to URI? Or did you learn to love what you got?
I did find excitement by the fact that I was at URI as a young Southern person. Everyone made me feel comfortable. I did learn to love the place more and more as years have gone by. Love has to be nurtured for it to continue. I found a nurturing place where I could grow professionally, personally, and spiritually.

3. You have seen URI grow from a small community college to a global University over four decades. How was the journey along this path?
In many ways my journey here at URI has been like the journey our country has experienced. We are now a global village, filled with diversity in feelings, emotions, gender, race, sexual orientation, ethnic background and religion. This experience can explain in part why I have been so happy here.

4. Has the teaching profession changed from the time you were a kid till today when you are ready to retire? If so how and why?
The basics are still the same, but the difference is that there is more of a need to develop the total person. We used to just teach the content, but now we need to teach the content but also address or demonstrate the benefits of knowing the content and how the content can used to make the student or society a better place.

5. You have lived through America moving from being an Industrial power house to a technology power house, were you ever afraid of technology and change?
Yes, I am afraid of technology but I have turned that fear into a learning experience. I accept the fact that technology has changed how we live. I would not be comfortable living in a world without the technology we have today. Technology forces us to let go of some things that we think are comforting, but in essence those things are just things. To use technology makes us think and thinking sometimes causes anxiety and even pain. In my lifetime I have gone from having my teacher in the fifth grade take the class on a field trip to see a television to now being a teacher who uses power-point to enhance the learning in the classroom. The computer/technology can help us be efficient but we have to make sure we are also effective. Efficiency without effectiveness is a classic rule in management education.

6. There was a time when America was plagued with high school drop outs in the 70’s and today people are inundated with student loans by the time they reach their early 20’s. People say that teaching and medical practice are the noblest of all professions and, but today teaching is commercialized, it has become more of a luxury, with increasing tuition high fees and universities are making it a business proposition. Is it justified on the part of those who can’t afford the money? What is your take on this issue?
I have mixed feelings. Of course loans are a hardship on a person but thank heavens we have such things. Education for some may not bring satisfaction or a better standard of living, but I think for the most part education does do these things for a person. I loved getting my formal education. I had loans, scholarships, GI Bill, and assistantships at the graduate level. The University of Rhode Island is a state university and I feel a reasonably priced one and I think a quality school. Yet, we have people who complain about the high cost of education and these are the ones who send their children to private schools. It must be worth it – I don’t think I have ever heard someone say that it was not worth it. I am not sure that anything would be any better if education was free. Remember in the theatre, standing ovations usually come from those in the front first and these are the people who paid the most for their seats. Most students will say they come to college so they can get a better job, but most academic institutions will say that students are there to get an education which includes general education and life-learning skills. I look at it as a developmental and maturity process. It may be expensive but it is worth it.

7. You have traveled overseas and taught at Top notch Universities around the globe. Did you see significantly different learning patterns in students from different nationalities?
Yes, I did not find as much activity-based learning outside the US as there was in the USA classroom. Most were still using the traditional method of lecture. I did find a certain amount of serving the privileged in different parts of the world that I didn’t find in the USA. I did find an eagerness and enthusiasm for education in all parts of the world. People just love to learn. Students in different parts of the world always seemed to have gift of inquiry that makes learning exciting. Students from everywhere, including the USA, are basically the same – give them an opportunity and a meaningful experience and they appreciate it and in turn the professor receives a certain amount of inward satisfaction.

8. Do you think intelligence is an innate quality or can it be bred at the university?
I do think intelligence is innate. I don’t think the university can or should breed intelligence. I do think that learning can always be enhanced by using techniques that will reach students. Every situation is different so the method of teaching has to match the demands of the situation.

9. What are the flaws in the current educational system, at the school and college levels? And what revisions do you suggest?
I do think too many professors give their view of all kinds of things without presenting how others feel. Perhaps many professors appear to be “self-centered” and their priorities come before the student’s. A professor has to foster a climate where all views are heard and the student is the one who decides which view to accept. The difficulty I think for the professor is that he/she is so passionate about something that he/she forgets that there are different sides to an issue. You can lead a horse to water but you can’t make him drink unless he is thirsty and the horse himself decides that.

10. Technology is driving and learning metamorphosed from class room to web. What is your view on online education? Don’t you think web learning is incomplete since it takes away most of the human elements?
Yes and No. Online education can take away human elements, but it doesn’t have to. The question has to be asked “Why does a professor want to teach an online course” In fact, lack of face to face contact in some instances may be beneficial. The readings and activity based learning activities should overcome any concern about the human elements being eliminated. In many cases the course is more organized than a traditional class. Students are forced to follow a plan and complete their work in a timely manner.

11. America was never this way and campuses were safe learning institutions. Today Incidents of violence and campus shootings have been a frequent affair in the US. Are campuses safe anymore? Is America doing the right thing by putting guns in the hands of kids?
Incidents of violence and campus shootings are frequent on US campuses, but if we look at all acts of violence and shootings, college campuses are still among the safest of places. Colleges are a reflection of what is going on in the world. Politicians, I feel, use acts of violence and shootings and terrorism for their political gain. Instead of working to find solutions, politicians spend their time screaming and shouting across the table from each other. This doesn’t help a thing. If we can’t disagree with one another without trying to bury one another, we are teaching our youngsters that screaming, shouting, violence and shootings are acceptable activities.

12. What is the yardstick that you use to measure success in life? What makes a successful student and a successful human?
My yardstick is always “Did I give it 100%”? Success is measured in different ways. A good old saying is “What good does it do a person if he/she gains the whole world and yet loses his/her soul.” Am I at peace with myself. Too many people, I feel, look for peace outside themselves. Peace comes from within. Peace comes from forgiveness. Peace comes from the ability to love. My measure of success is “What have I done to make this world a better place? What have I done to help some student who was struggling or needed reassurance or needed a shoulder to cry on?” I know it is necessary to have resources, especially financial, to be able to do many of the things that help others. However, the true measure of success is how do I feel about myself. Right now, I feel pretty good.

13. How does it feel every time when a student remembers and comes back to see you or sends you an email?
There are no words that can describe this feeling. Sometimes I put myself in isolation and shed a few tears. Tears have a way of cleansing the soul. The remarkable thing is that often a student expresses appreciation to me for things I have done -- when in fact, I didn’t do anything special because whatever I did was an expectation of the job. However, it is great to know that I did my job in such a way that it was effective and appreciated.

14. While teachers like all their students, would you want to name a few whom you remember the most and why?
David Buckanavage – he always gives in return for what he received
Michael Jordan – he said some great things about me and I had no idea he ever thought of me as being special.
Matt Roy – looked at me as a collaborator
Matt Paldy – respected and believed in me enough to choose me as his major Ph.D. professor
Virginia Nardone – included me in her family gatherings
Chandra – shared some special things in his life with me and accepted me as I am
I have taught over 9,000 students and they all were special – the thing I hope is that they gained some knowledge, learned and continue to love, appreciate differences, and have a spiritual base that enables them to live and grow in a world that needs people of understanding.

15. Share an embarrassing moment while you were teaching in class.
I was teaching two sections of Organizational Behavior and one section of International Business. I got confused and gave my lecture for International Business in my Organizational Behavior class. I realized it when I got to my office. The amazing thing is that not one student ever told me. In fact, several students told me that they really enjoyed the last class because it was different.

16. This is from one of your emails “There is a saying that goes something like this -- "As we grow older the ones who have been our students become our teachers.” What have you learnt from your students?
Especially in the area of technology, the younger will always be more astute using it. The older can learn so much from them, but because we have such false pride we are afraid to ask. Also, the saying means that through our associations with the young we learn whether or not our beliefs make sense, have feeling, and that when we love truthfully it is reciprocated. The young teach us that we are important because they can build and further develop on the basis of what we have left them. They show us how what we have taught them can be used to make life better for everyone. They are the ones that have the strength to lead and to grow and to develop, and to improve on what we have given them. They take care of us because they love us.

17. Your memorable moments at URI and during your tenure as a teacher?
The opportunity I had to teach in France, India, Russia, and China. The associations I had with colleagues and students.

18. If given an opportunity to redo things in life, what would you like to undo and redo? Would still want to be a professor?
I would not change many things. I probably would have formed a personal relationship with another person if the times had been different, but since they weren’t I am content with how my life has been. Even though I live alone, I am not alone because of all the wonderful students, colleagues, friends, family, and spiritual satisfaction that are in my life. I think I would still be a professor – I have had fun. I did enjoy theatre as a youngster and sometimes can see that there would have been satisfaction there for me. However, now I enjoy the theatre as an audience participant.

19. If you were to teach a course on life and living, what would you teach your students?
It is not the students in my life that make a difference, but it is the life in my students that makes the difference. I would teach respect, even for those with whom we differ, and I would teach that sharing (whether it be food, feelings, or whatever we do) is necessary for a healthy mind.

20. Your advice to people who are planning to get into teaching profession?
The teaching profession is a rewarding profession. It is also a responsible profession. When a teacher is dealing with a young mind or any mind for that matter it is an awesome responsibility. Teachers are shaping the future. Teachers have to be able to accept that those who teach need to be patient, loving, and at times demanding. There are few absolutes, so be flexible.

21. Now that you are exiting publish or perish culture, How do you plan to spend your retired life?
I plan to relax for a few months and then seek out some other opportunities where I can continue teaching but on an informal basis. I want to spend more time at home and more time participating in community activities.

“Bacchanitis” cripples Indian media

A month ago air waves were saturated with lethal doses of “Lizitis” and now it is“Bacchanitis”. We have heard about celestial weddings described in puranas but this celebrity wedding is putting all celestial weddings to shame. All eligible bachelors and bachelorettes want to be a fly on the wall, a lizard in B’s garden when it comes to union of Guru bhai and the Mistress of Spices. Fairy tale weddings like this one have defaced the Indian media. Though Indian public is private and very much appreciates privacy, but media portrays Indian public as malicious mother-in-laws hungry for celebrity juice. The hackneyed question is back - egg or the chicken which came first?

Lascivious media has been walloping gossip and disseminating trash through airwaves and print media. The lens apertures are completely wide and awake 24 by 7 since their engagement in January. Be it a trip to Madurai, Varanasi or Pushkar media employs full time correspondents and reporters to tag the prey and capture minute by minute details. When there is nothing else to ruminate media turns to Bollywood to wash celebrity linen in public and bring their bed lice to light. They gather astrologers for a panel discussion on horoscopes in mainstream media. Who is benefited from such irresponsible waste of airtime? What is the value add from such programs? Are these the changing times Indian journalism?

Isn’t it hideous, frivolous and gross invasion of privacy by the media moguls and reporters hounding Mr. Amitabh Bacchan’s house? Every time the door is closed and opened and every time a visitor enters or leaves slew of reporters and cameras run behind them to find out what is happening in the house. The same celebrities, who loathe the media when their private lives are made public, turn blind and deaf when it comes to propagating their brand image and value. Where did the invasion of privacy go? The Bacchans’ are no exception to this and they have joined hands to auction their souls and lives on Ebay. It is all money baby!!

Why has the media gone maniacal about this wedding? Is it because they are able to sell more adv time and gain viewership from Junior B’s wedding?

Some news channels refer to the Bacchans’ as the “First family of Bollywood”. Wow! I thought cinema was yet another profession, but why is the media creating a cult out of this profession and giving Bacchans’ the invincible status? Marriage is supposed to be a private affair celebrated with family and friends, but why is media making it public nuisance? Who wants to know if Sachin and his wife danced at the Sangeet ceremony?

Headlines Today has definitely been the biggest publicity channel for the Bacchans’. They have 30 minutes slot every hour to discuss about this celebrity wedding. From invitations, decorations, and invitees there are slots to that discuss about the Mangaliks’. The world and the media suddenly seem to worry about Mangaliks’. Where have they been all this while and here they are today to stage a debate between rationalist and astrologers if Abishek and Aishwarya’s wedding is astrologically well engineered.

Other News Channels are not far behind in this race. CNN IBN and Times Now have been chasing invitees to capture their expectations of this wedding. Sensationalism in media took a new route with breaking news and flash news scrolling at the bottom of the screen and today it has reached another level of meritocracy with irresponsible and frivolous reporting. For the first time I felt Doordarshan was a blessing over these private News channels.

Not only does the Television media world suffer from the “Bacchanitis” even responsible newspapers are turning into tabloids. Newspapers like Times of India, Hindustan Times, and Deccan Chronicle have separate sections covering the occasion, in addition to the usual front page coverage on the wedding.

Who is responsible for misleading the media in this direction? Are brands responsible for pushing the media to frivolous news reporting on their brand ambassadors to boost their sales? Definitely there must be a win-win proposition for coexistence in the business ecosystem. Brand endorsements locally and globally are not new to the Bacchans’ or Rai. International brands like L’Oreal Paris has introduced a shade of lip stick hand picked by the provocative queen to be sold world wide. This is the first time ever L’Oreal has ever done this for a celebrity. It is perfectly understandable when celebrity endorsed brands milk extra mileage during such occasions, but for media trespass in this area is highly objectionable.

Is it the job of the media to employ reporters and hire paparazzi to run around like beheaded chickens reporting, exaggerating and unnecessarily autopsying personal lives of celebrities? For the avaricious media fraternity shows up at private parties and bashes without any invitation is not new. At Arun Nayar and Liz Hurley’s wedding reporters from the media were treated like stray dogs, chased and beaten. Is media turning thick-skinned today? Where is self respect? Is media on their own trip to self vilification? Thriving on gossip and feeding on gossip has become norm today for the media houses. Page 3 has become Page 1 and priorities have changed. Editorial desk in the media houses have metamorphosed to “Gossip desk”.

At the end it all boils down to few questions. Is true journalism endangered in India? Has ethics and etiquettes in journalism vanished completely? Every news channel from West to East today suffers from this epidemic. Is it time to rewrite the ethics and principles governing the media to changing taste and times? Has the push for consumerism diluted the content and quality? Is sensationalism required for consumerism? Lots of questions to ask, but who will answer?

The Namesake - No Naam Ke Vaas

What happens when the dry westerly winds collide with moisture laden easterly winds? Do we call this the brewing of perfect storm or is it is just a passing summer shower? Will the winds be strong enough to blow off the duck back and drench our eyelashes and cheeks with saline water or just disappoint you with the high and dry feeling? Let us wait to find out.

Can a train journey, a conversation with a fellow passenger and the company of Nikolav Gogol’s book change the future of Ashok, simple middle class Bengali? Miracles do happen in simple journey. The very journey from Calcutta to Jamshedpur to visit his grandfather gives Ashok a second life, a life changing moment. The very Ashok who was recanting his grandfather’s words “Books make you travel the world without moving an inch” at the end of this train journey decides to travel the overseas in pursuit of his dreams. His dreams were nothing extraordinary. A Phd at an American University, sharing life with a beautiful Bengali girl, career as a professor, and dutiful father giving the best of life and opportunities for his children. It all comes true as Ashima, a beautiful Bengali Koel lends her shruti to his life sacrificing her life and passion. She faces the challenges of life as she crosses the bridge on river Hoogli and embarks her journey of life on Brooklyn bridge. Dripping icicles on the barren tree branches, a stage in between water and snow describes the frigid environment, the cause for her fluidity.

However hard one tries to transplant and thrive in the new soil, the genetic make up and the core can never be altered. Pangs of moving to a new city and settling in an alien culture, anxiety in retaining the cultural identity, Ashima tires hard to recreate Bengal in Brooklyn, and weaves a cultural cocoon around her.

How does it feel to grow up as “Gogol Ganguli” among Greg, Gretchen, and George? How does it feel to grow up with a western cheesecake while the core at home is the Bengali rasagulla? Like the cheese caught between the layers of sandwich Gogol melts within when taunted by his classmates and when chided by his parents for not being another Bengali kid. The cultural disconnect resonates within Gogol and Sonia and they are burdened by the cultural cross they are made to carry. Like every other NRI parents Ashok and Ashima bring their kids to educate them on the cultural richness of India. Sonali, the squeamish ABCD stays immiscible.

Amidst the back drop of the kids growing up and trips back home grey clouds gather on the horizon. Passing away of Ashima’s her father back home makes her worry about emptying hour glass of life and withering roots. She holds on to her husband and son for her emotional survival. With kids graduating and moving out of home, Ashima like every parent fall a prey to the empty nester syndrome. The protective Indian motherly feeling breaks out of the egg. She worries unduly about his son but is only disappointed when her calls are unanswered and never returned.

Gogol caught between the jaws of the western culture and Max (his girl friend) at one end and the ever disheartened Indian parents at the other end is tormented by guilt and confusion. Passing away of his father puts an end to Max’s chapter in his life and he decides to make his mother happy by marrying Moushmi, a girl of Bengali origin. With Sonia moving to the West coast and without Ashok and Gogol Ashima’s life plays plaintive notes.

Did someone say that only time can work its magic on our skin and attitude. When that happens no one knows how and why it happens? There is a stage in life where we relinquish our dreams and stop goading kids with our dreams and accept them as they are. Ashima was at the crossroads of her life. She breaks out of her cultural cocoon and accepts her American son-in-law Ben. Now that her kids are living their American dream life, she decides to spread her wings and watch their life from this side of the shore. Ashima liquidates the assets and flutter back to the grove where she belonged. Her life goes back to the same notes she sang before marriage, she gets an opportunity to relive her passion.

Gogol, the architect is disappointed when his dream of building Moushmi Mahal was thwarted. To him the very name Gogol and the author were total mockery and revulsion, but in the back drop of Moushmi leaving him for a French guy the author turns out to be meaningful teacher and his book becomes a bible and more. He decides to read the book and architect his life with real happiness, following his father’s footsteps.

The Namesake is a simple story that brings the clash of ethnic baggage, value system and sentiments on the silver screen. Be it Bengal or Brooklyn anyone who is deeply rooted in their culture and ethnicity feels lost and confused when transplanted in a foreign soil. Is it good to have a cultural and ethnic identity? Does it do more damage than good? Ashima’s quandary and experiences answers these questions in the movie.

• Mira has done a fine job in taking a difficult but ubiquitous subject and candidly presenting it without cloying. She weaves a delicate thread from cultural cocoon that becomes a powerful backdrop and a colorful tapestry for the movie. She scores an A+ making the right choice when with cast, camera and music.


• Tabu the right pick for Ashima’s role, showed maturity in her looks and in performance. The timbre of the lost soul was well reflected on her face all through out the movie. Was it Tabu or Shabana Asmi? She scores a lot of wow moments in the movie.


• Kal Penn playing as Gogol was a challenging role, given his ethnicity and cultural background. He brilliantly transforms from juvenile Gogol to mature young men traveling through eye of the storm. He scores a lot of awe moments.


• Not for namesake, cast sake, and story sake but it is a must watch movie for all those who have crossed oceans, traveled miles, and others who plan to do so.

Survival at the end of the month

We still have 4 more days to payday and my bank account is already parched and dry like the summers of Khandahar. Thanks to maddening March. Tax planning and Uncle Chidambaram have left me scrimping and scrounging. The beggars outside the temple had more purchasing power than me.

Here is what I have in my wallet today. What can a Rupee and 25 Paisa get me? Not even a bus ride to work. The autowalas whom I haggle with were ready today to take me to work at my regular price but I had to decline their offer. Bicycles running besides me seem to have more power than my sturdy legs. I respected the same bicycles that I considered a traffic nuisance when I traveled by car. I lugged my heavy laptop and bruised ego in the hot sun to work while pondering on the power of money. I couldn’t see my own shadow follow me, may be he knew I was penniless and he moved away like the ticks that leave the body of dead animal? My empty smile resembled my wallet.

Luckily I didn’t have to buy lunch since I had packed my lunch from home. But my unruly taste buds fell in love with anything and everything edible that my eyes catch and my nose smells. I felt like a hungry reptile with a sticky tongue. I had to discipline my senses today from not watching and catching chimney smokes from the neighborhood kitchen. It pinches your heart more than your stomach when you don’t have enough change to buy a packet of Tiger biscuit. I wish I could raise the height of my teeth and arrest my saliva from over flowing. Pavlov’s theory was working fine. I could not hold them any further and I shamelessly befriended the guy at the canteen to buy stuff on credit to clam down my ulcerated intestine walls.

My enslaved senses were cursing the one who invented money. I wanted to go back to the days of barter system or even to the days where we could exchange favor for favor rather than money. Man who made money measures him today and makes him complete. Money controls the aperture of his smile and arrogance in his voice. My eyes would not rest if I didn’t pay my credit card dues and EMI. What a life!! Well this is how most of us are today, and our Karma balances are no different. Materialistic comforts and desire is driving us away into the desert of worries and stress. What can we do about it? Here I am waiting shamelessly for my next pay check like the desert sands awaiting the monsoon rain. For the first time I felt my ego balloon was punctured and the gas smelled worse than automobile exhaust, that was the smell of desire. I didn’t wallow in self pity, but rather appreciated life more than money, life is still beautiful in penury.

Mylapore Mardigras

When watermelons and tender coconut adorn the side walk we know summer has atlast arrived. This time around Mylapore pavements had more than just the thirst quenchers. An entire ecosystem mushroomed within a day to celebrate the annual festival of Mylapore. People seem more active than bees and ants. It was definitely an awe moment.

The gaint pandal at the entrance of the temple was welcoming and it set the stage for a grand gala festival. Mylapore has always been the epicenter of cultural and religious groups. Be it music, arts, street plays, or cultural fair there is something that this temple neighborhood offers for everyone even today. Though barricades and pandals erected on each of the four maadaveedhis made commute a nightmare, but still people were willing to put up the inconvenience to watch the fun and frolic unfold.

The Annual Panguni festival at Kapali temple began on March 24 this year with the traditional flag hoisting in the temple premises.


Shiva along with Parvati is taken on a procession along the four maadaveedhis each day at night. During these days Myalpore air is filled with a special concoction of soothing music emanating from the traditional wind instrument (Nadhaswaram), recitation of Sama vedam and hymns from various puranams by Oduvars. The burning of incense on the side and strong scent of jasmine from the sidewalk vendors makes this place spiritually and culturally invigorating.

The vahanas for the procession change every day. Traditionally it starts with Suriya prabhai and Chandra prabhai on the first two days of the festival. Adhikaranandhi on the third, Vrishabaha vahanam on the fifth, the car on the seventh, procession of 63 Nayanmars (Arupathimoovar) on the eight day draws scores of people from all over the city. The final day concludes with the celebration of the traditional marriage between Shiva and Parvathi (falls on the day of Uthiram star).

The festival is a big 10 day entertainment feast for all the kids and elderly. Within the temple premises oldies throng to hear the concerts and spiritual lectures, while artist from the nearby villages perform folk arts to entreat people on the streets. The little ones go around the streets and bring back a handful of items that include balloons, watches, sugar candy, flutes in exchange for a small change from their piggy bank.

The festival brings together an entire ecosystem of art, culture, music and religion filled with fun and frolic. Apart from sidewalks being turned into “Water or Buttermilk Pandal” for the Car and the Arupathimoovar festival every inch of the sidewalk is turned into a shop that sells trinkets, coconuts, flowers, incense, peacock feathers, cheap jewellery, and rangoli patterns and heaps of colors. Narikoravas, a diminishing trible also throng the temple city to display their intricate handwork that range from tuft of fox hair to ward of evil at home, catapult to hunt down birds, and chains made from colorful beads. Paramapatham and thayakkattai (Snakes & Ladders) and Pallankuzhi are hot sellers at fair.

It has been more than 25 years since I attended one and there seems no change in the
celebration. There is more fervor and flavor with which the festival is celebrated today
and tradition intact. When one would think that fast lifestyle and western influence will
pigeon hole and dilute such festivals, but on the contrary attendance is increasing year after year. This very festival connects people all over the city and the globe. The very utterance of
the word Arupathimoovar transcends peoples’ thoughts across latitudes and longitudes
and makes them feel connected and charged. Somethings last forever!!

A Journey on Time Machine – Five Point Someone

What if you were made to walk down the memory lane? Am I sounding that old or am I making you feel old? What if you were reminded about your college days? The eleventh hour exam preparations, absconding from class and taking refuge in cinema halls, smoking pot on the hostel terrace, falling in love with your HOD’s daughter and showing up for class half intoxicated, stealing exam papers. These were a few sequences in the play staged by Madras Players an adapted from Chetan Bhagat’s “Five Point Someone”. Nostalgia crept in after along time and it really made me crave for the halcyon days.

Life is a tragedy when seen in close-up, but life is a comedy when seen in long shot. Those were the words of the famous comedian Charlie Chaplin.

The play made me sit back, reminiscent and enjoy my college days. Call it chewing the cud or laugh at the comedy in retrospect, it only made my heart lighter at the end of the day filled with deadlines at work.

The story is about the three Musketeers – Infectious Ryan, the infection Harish, and nincompoop Alok – the three room mates’ journey at IIT Delhi. Ryan is the care free type who doesn’t give a shit about exams, and professors, Alok the over weight kid who sweats from eyebrow to groin with the mere utterance of the words exam and assignment, and the Harish is the pendulum who swings from between Alok and Ryan. Their personality traits are brought out in the very scene before and after their semester through out the story. Since I had not read the book till the end of the first semester I was not sure why the book was named “Five point someone”, but then it all became evident when the trio trying to beat/cope up with the grading system.

The script brings out clearly the fear inculcated in our education system. The fear from failure in semester exams and fear of not getting a decent job apart from financial and emotional responsibility at a very young age pushes students like Alok over the edge from the Hostel terrace. This makes us curse our exam system and society for its undue pressure and over expectations from the student community. Why does success in life have to be measured based on academic degrees?

What can bring spice to monotonous college routine, sadistic professors and pedagogical lectures? Well, Neha, the HoD’s daughter brings a whiff of fresh air to the story when our eyes just became cloudy. For once there is a romance scene in Indian play without a song. Harish and Neha’s love interesting develops a few more knots in the story and makes you move to the front of the seat. The plot becomes more tearful when the letter Neha holds from her brother Samir springs up in the middle of the play.

The tirade waged against Commerce graduates was hilarious. The dialogues and conversation with Harish’s alter ego brings out best in men and women when it comes to commitment. There is enough humor to keep us in our seats for two hours without wiggling.

All play no work policy of Ryan, Harish trying to impress the HoD for his daughter and Alok trying to care more for his family forces the trio to adopt unfair means in the examination. Professor Veera’s patronage was like the rain shower on a toasty summer evening. He brings back the lives of the three students on track and springs some hope in the story.


All in 5 lines: Promising Youngsters on the horizon
Ryan – the cool cat, Alok- the stress ball, Harish – the sweaty socks must be given a big round of applause. The 3 youngsters definitely made the audience relive and experience their college days once again. Rest of the crew was good, nothing exemplary. Props by Mahesh need a special mention. I have not read the book and hence I don’t know how much of justice was done to the original script, but as a stand alone theatre play FPS is definitely a must watch.


More about the novel:

Chemical Engineer, MBA - Delirium in 48 hours

When it comes to shopping both genders and parties on either side of the table today are equally astute and tough to satisfy. Is it because of perfect competition and too many choices that prevail in the consumer world or is it because there is no product differentiation? Customers do enough homework and research (Gee thanks to the World Wide Web) on the products before they set their foot in the shops. Then they run from pillar to post for the best price and play one dealer against the other to get the best offer.

I was in the market scouting to get a decent air conditioner and to choose the right one from a dozen of brands was a difficult proposition. I carefully looked at the ads and their fine prints and memorized brands that advertised to hard sell their products. It is the time of the year when air conditioner sales was picking up with the rising mercury. Dealers were giving ads in the Newspapers touting free installation and free stabilizer with air conditioners. Wow! I was happy that consumerism was driving the prices down and I had freebees and offers.

I didn’t take the regular route of researching on the web rather I directly went to the dealer to understand the latest in the world of heat transfer. Since this was my first visit during the purchase cycle I decided to study the brands and market demand more than technical specification.

I set my foot in the neighborhood dealer who was selling 6 different brands. With confidence and little arrogance I entered the shop while the intelligent ego in me was ready with questions. With a warm smile the salesman asked my requirements and price budget and he made a few suggestions. Though I accepted his suggestion but I had to satiate the consumer ego in me. I thought let me put my MBA to use and I will ask him questions from product marketing and get relevant information. I asked him about the best brands in the market, margins in brands, fast moving brands, and brands with maximum failures and complains, and also about place of manufacture and warranty. At the end of it I wiped the beads of sweat on my forehead, but he was cool as a cucumber. Since he was dealing with multiple brands he could not make up his mind on a particular brand. He was more comfortable arranging them on price than on quality and service. Before I bargained on the price, he ascertained free installation and stabilizer. I held my decision in abeyance and walked out of the place.

Sometimes too much information and research make the selection process confusing and arduous. That is exactly what happened when I came out from the dealer. The MBA in me was put to shame and I didn’t have any more hair to pull. He now put some paradigms in my mind and subliminally created preferences towards a particular brand. Coming back to the oldest trick I started asking (word of mouth is the most powerful marketing tool) my colleagues about air conditioners and their experience. Some of them gave me contradicting feedbacks and I was in a quagmire at the end of it.

Since none of my ventures helped me to zero in on a brand, I decided to pick the technical yardstick to narrow down my choice. My colleague whispered a nearby store has all brands under one roof and priced competitively. The store was hardly stone throw away distance from work and I didn’t need much momentum to drive my ego there. I let the MBA in me go to sleep and I woke up the Chemical engineer. I armed my arguments with flow patterns, turbine design, and Reynolds number. My ego was dancing in excitement. It was 10 years since I graduated and for the first time I felt my degree was put to right practical use. I was ready to beat down the sales man with all technical jargons.

I climbed the flight of steps and walked in the hallway that had rooms with see through doors on either side. There were 8 brands on either side till the end of the hallway. My ego was welcome with a smile by the first salesman belonging to a particular brand on the left hand side. I recanted my requirements and he showed me a few options. This guy was definitely technical but very shallow. His presentation aroused the real chemical engineer in me. My heart quipped “It is all heat transfer baby!!”

He tried hard to convince me that this particular brand had different nozzle shapes and sizes which cooled the room faster, but I had to remind him that capacity of the compressor was fixed and hence output can’t vary. The ego in me had conquered and squished his ignorance. His job became tougher now and he couldn’t afford to let me walk out of that room. My ego was priced at 25,000 and it was all worth for him to lose his pride and surrender his ego. He quickly realized that he had to close in now and he distracted me with a presentation that showed design of turbines/fans and how it affects efficiency. He threw another trick from him bag this time. He was trying to get me to go with his brand presenting the softer aspects wrt to embedded electronics and fuzzy logic algorithms. I was sucked right into the presentation that ran on the 14 inch monitor, but my ego didn’t want to lose either. I told him that I was not enamored by electronic controls and gizmos and I cared for performance. I had no other grounds to haggle except on price. But then I realized this was taking me no where. The salesman instantly rolled out the last bait in his bag. He tried to enamor me with the gift scheme and said that I could not avail the gift and he would reduce the value on the price of the AC. I was stunned and the MBA in me woke up and he said “Don’t fall a prey to this scam and this is to get non MBA’s in the trap”. Once again I stroked my ego and thanked my degree that kept me agile and wary.

I walked out of this brand and moved into another brand just to find reasons to accept my choice and stroke my ego. I knew I could do this only by stomping over a few more egos and finding faults with the other brands. Human mind is so capable of denigrating, isn’t it? I was convinced on the design and efficiency but the price was too high. I would rather pay for the engineering but not for marketing and brand value.

Sales guys rack up their brains to come up with innovate ways to present the same old Colgate with campaigns such as New, Improved, extra fluoride and while the ting noise stays forever. This was the same case with air conditioners. There was no clear product differentiation strategy in terms of technology. Most of the other brands had similar features and at the end of the one hour exercise I was still left high and dry. I had a tingling sensation and I realized I was in the turbulent zone and with high Nre. Nothing crystallized at the end of all these trips only my fluids dynamics was uncontrollable.

When we come to shop we all come with a requirement and when we leave we all look forward to walk away with the pride of owning the best brand at cheap price with maximum guarantee. We don’t want to believe the salesman ad want to throw our weight and knowledge around so that he doesn’t take us for a ride. None of it was achieved in my case and all rounds of research and screening turned futile.

When I came home in the evening my mother was only surprised to see my indecisiveness. My education, experience and logic all went for a toss. Even after stomping so many egos I felt rattled inside and I heard the voice in my head. It said “A Chemical Engineer and a MBA cannot make a simple decision?” My ego got swatted like a fly.

Slew of questions marooned my mind. Should I go with brand loyalty or should I trust another brand? The simple process of qualifying a brand and putting my credit card down became a complex process. Education created only paradigms and doubts in my mind. The sense of calm and feeling of being assured was all ushered in the past 48 hours. I realized I needed an air conditioner to cool my mind and ego. My complex mind immediately started building an equation for decision making.

F(x) = (history, price, quality, warranty, service)

When I presented the case to my mother and she only made it simple. Her logic seemed convincing and solution seemed simple. “We have 2 machines of the same brand at home and touch wood they have been trouble free for 9 years now. The brand is an Indian brand and there is no reason to fear they would shut their doors or give poor service. On the price front this brand was in between low end and fast moving brand and high end, luxury brand”. With conviction and clarity she said let us go with our gut feeling and from past performance. Her simple 2 minute solution put the multiple personality in me to rest. I asked both the MBA and the Chemical engineer to vacate my mind and unction my bruised ego. For the first time in two days I had an empty bladder feeling, the cloud of delirium vanished and a decision was made.