Meetings and More

 Physical meetings are the best medicine for the gadget-mania that we all seem to suffer from, in the digital age. That's how we used to spend most of our hours before the gadgets came and took over our lives.

Anyway, I try my best to have meetings with friends, new and old. This includes colleagues, classmates, Golfers, and ex-students. No guesses as to which category is the largest one- students/alumni who I have taught, or not (because I knew them as an admin.)

Savitha has been a constant for 20 years or more, and we met quite often in this stint of mine at Bangalore. Now, on my way out, we met again, and recounted the KIAMS, Harihar times, and taking stock of our life and careers. Thoroughly enjoyed meeting her, as always. 

Harihar- Workplace with a Difference

My longest stint in one workplace (7 years) has been at Kirloskar Institute or KIAMS, Harihar. A unique place in many ways. For one, it had an 18-hole Golf Course in the campus. Never again have I had THAT kind of feeling! But even more charming were the people-students, staff and atmosphere. It was close to being an ideal and idyllic workplace.

 Some of us at the Harihar campus-above and below.

 A get-together at my place with Batch 1. I have met Achint and Nidhi from the pic above and Savitha from the pic below in the last year!

 Some of our non-teaching staff and Prof. Dhanapal, on a trip to Hubli. Below, Profs. Sandeep Kayastha and Vijayakumar, and families-mine too, at Ooty-Doddabetta.

Great times, marked by a lot of parties at homes-Pavan and Jamuna were great hosts, at Kondajji, a lake-hill-dam site nearby, Rajanahalli, on the river Tungabhadra, and longer trips to Jog Falls, Hampi and Belur-Halebid. And yearly vacations to Goa, Ooty etc.. I wrote a case many years later about Golftripz, courtesy Jogeswari, a batch 2 student. Many students have remained in touch (met Smita in Dubai, and Swapna and Vidya in Singapore), so many years later. Here's a pic with Nidhi (and her dad) at IIM Indore last year!