Time to Say Goodbye

 As usual, the feelings are mixed. This time, it's not a new job I am leaving for, but a transition of a kind. But stepping down from a full-time role for now. Heading Prestige University as a founding VC has been an adventure, with multiple challenges. The location, Indore, is not top-of-the-mind for outsiders looking for a good education.

Faculty are always a challenge, whether you are at an IIM or any other B school (we started with a management dept.), and the fight for good faculty will continue. Infrastructure, luckily, wasn't a big challenge, as we have an award-winning building (for its architecture, by Sanjay Puri and co.) which is almost done. Only the student and faculty housing remain. 

Marketing, someone has said, has to be the mainstay of any business. So we tried participating in student admission fairs at various locations, doing a lot of digital marketing and branding through participating in invited events, and sometimes as guest faculty at other institutes too. All this, along with student activities through Clubs and committees, will pay off. A great placement team also helped.

Our industry connect through guest and visiting faculty has been exemplary, thanks to many of our contacts giving us generously of their time. Past students, classmates and others have helped us tremendously.

Here's hoping for a great future for the students, faculty and staff of Prestige University.

Tata to Ratan Tata

 Goodbye to an industrialist who changed India's image globally. We were known within India for various achievements in different sectors, but abroad, only for I.T. Services. Even there Tata group had TCS for many years. But it was really with the Tetley, Corus and Land Rover-Jaguar acquisitions during Ratan Tata's time that we arrived on the global stage.

He also consolidated the group by reducing the power of Russi Mody and a couple of other strong and independent-minded heads of various Tata companies. Also, appointed Chandrasekaran of TCS as a chairman following a spat with Cyrus Mistry who was earlier chosen Chairman.

He was also known for philanthropy, and some good human qualities. I never got to see him in person, unlike Mr. Premji, Mr. Ambani or Mr. Sunil Mittal (they came for our convocations at IMT Nagpur), but know enough to think he was good for our country, though he came up the hard way from being in charge of a dead company, NELCO, which made radios.

Gifts I Liked

 The best gifts are visits in person, of course. That I got from old friend Shweta Kushal, on my birthday eve! We had a blast, and visited Dopamine for some yummy food too. 

The other great gifts, apart from wishes in hundreds, were pics of me with the wisher.. Sheetal Garg had one of ours at Prithvi Theatre, from a couple of years ago, and Meghana Khadilkar, likewise. Ananya Nandi De posted one of ours from a Delhi meeting too.

A surprise was a wish from Manuja Seth of NMIMS Bangalore. She had emceed our online convocation.

Enjoyed hearing from friends in Harihar too, on the occasion. And of course, my bookworm and ghost writer friends were at the forefront.

Two more visitors who made it special, were Ishita Modi, ex-IMT and Harish Chaudhry of IIT Delhi, a former classmate from MBA days. Ishita gifted me a Golf ball inscribed with her company name!

We also had a cake cutting at Prestige University, thanks to Divya and faculty colleagues.

Lots of relatives on Whatsapp too. Had a video call with my daughters too, which was nice.

64th Birthday Wishlist

 Actually, there's no wishlist - just a few thoughts. More of a throwback.

I was born in 1960, which was a very different time. Rationing was in force, for sugar, cooking oil (Dalda) and a few other things- sometimes Rice and stuff. Radio ruled (still does in my life), TV did not exist in India. 

Cricket was a gentleman's game, still played in Whites with a Red ball. We went to school, of which I remember only some kind nuns in the first few years, and a couple of classmates. Boarding school was different, and I remember the tough schedule, starting with P.T. at 6 am every day. 

College is a blur, except the Hindi and Telugu films we saw in Hyderabad, and a mess-Ramaiah- we ate at on Sunday evenings coz our hostel mess took a break. Food at our mess was bad. But we survived. Chai and bun omelette at Hilton (Irani, not that one) was a luxury we enjoyed sometimes.

CAT happened, and then IIM Bangalore. That gave some direction to work life, as there was campus placement. An ad agency and a marketing research agency later, I headed for a Ph.D. to Clemson University, South Carolina.

It has been an adventure (starting with an Ad Venture where I worked) in teaching since 1989, full time. And then, admin. here and there, including PES, IMT, IFIM, and NMIMS and Prestige University now. As I prepare to say goodbye to this role soon, it's been a satisfactory run, as Nero Wolfe would say. 

Don't have a specific wishlist. I have grown up, maybe?

My Fling With Netflix

 I used to watch a French channel on TV during COVID. TV 5 Monde, which had a few good murder mysteries of films each evening. That was when except for news about COVID restrictions, TV shows were unappealing.

Later, I turned to Netflix for the same reason. Better choice of content compared to TV. I have now watched a few films, and series from around the world. Monk is my favourite, about a detective from San Francisco. A few good series from Mexico, and South America, and one or two from Spain. 

I don't venture into recommending any, because tastes differ, and you may want to watch things very different from what I like.

But there is a lot of content available, so check it out. Not familiar with other OTT platforms yet. 

Prestige University

 Completing 2 years at Prestige University, so a throwback is in order.. 

Top of the world. With Parth and Maria Gokhale.

Jayanta, Ilika, Nandini and Roshni..

Savitha visits for OB..and below, Anet shows her dancing skills.

Lunch outing with Riyaz, Juhee, Divya, Ayushi, Snehal.

Pratima visits from Hyderabad..

Students.. 2nd batch and first.. 

Mr. Vikram Gulia, chief guest, inauguration of Batch 2

Gurgaon mein chat and chaat. Bhavna, Silky, Dheeraj.

Women Golfers. Ayushi and Snehal.

Natasha Kothari guest lecture.. and a group assignment (below)

Promotional tour..

Veronica Thavonat.. my only Argentinian friend, golfing and with Prashanth Bharadwaj

Lunch at Charpai with Vedika Palod, Aditi Jain, and others

Silky above, and Sajal Mukherjee, Deloitte USA, below..

Golfers- students, and faculty- Juhee below.

Visiting students.. and we visit minister Temjen Imna Along in Kohima.

A lake on way to Shillong.

Inaguration batch 1.. with Aravind and Chandrakant

Gwalior.. Case Workshop.

Prachi Jain and Akansh Khandelwal of IIMI visit.

CNBC Studio, Worli

Faculty joining, with Amandeep, HR.

CNBC studio, there and before.

Ayushi's first day.. 

Amrita, Ashima and Tarika.. Spice Girls of Prestige.

Pratishtha Batra, Neeti Ingole and Sohni Roy .. at a staging of Knives Out.

Visiting IIMI with Sohni Roy.

A range in Indore? A female Tiger too?

Belgaum Chronicles

 Happened to be invited as Chief Guest at an important milestone - 34th Foundation Day of IMER, a B school run by the KLS Gogte group in Belgaum. They also have an Engineering+MBA college where I am a regular visitor. A group of eminent lawyers have started and manage this group of colleges. A pretty good set of faculty and students, for a predominantly regional player.

The function was well-attended, and I spoke about how institutions get transformed, and how individuals can be, through an educational program like an MBA. It was appreciated by many. Pics from the event.