Whatsapp Wars

 Even more dangerous than Ukraine-Russia and Iran- US/Israel, these are the wars you see everyday, and feel tempted to participate in- The Whatsapp wars.. on a device near you!

These can rage on forever, until you exit the group, or they throw you out, in case you are the incendiary chap! Totally macho, like real wars- mostly men participate in these too.

The topic is not very relevant, but in India, since 2014 at least, it's about how X has done so much for the nation, in the face of anti-national elements who want to stop him, or the reverse. It takes two hands to clap.

Mostly, the fake news propaganda memes are used as weapons of construction- of the scenario one is pushing. The resilience of the soldiers is more than the Ukrainians and Iranians put together. These wars don't have an expiry date.

Everyone seems to have 'inside' info on various things, more than the Dhurandhar director ever did.

And so, they go on.. a good pastime after retirement, maybe.

Most Admired People

My lists don't contain celebrities, mostly. The people I have known- colleagues, students or classmates are present in the list, to which I add regularly. Family members are not in it, for avoiding possible nepotism charges :) 

Shrabani, my exec. assistant in JIS University, and her friends - Karanjyot, Sunita Samanta and Debasmita are some I want to add to this list. Very simple, easy-going and affectionate, they were there to celebrate my birthday, and events in their lives. Two got married while I was in Kolkata. I also got a lovely farewell from them jointly. Wonderful experience! Here they are-

Another admirable duo was Sayantani Saha and Ananya Ghosh. I had been meeting Ananya Ghosh for suggesting analysis approaches in her Ph.D. thesis, and discovered that Sayantani, my ex-student, was her friend. We had two great outings and I also cut a cake to say Kabhi alvida na kehna.. to promise we'll keep in touch! Pic from our last meeting at Axis Mall.

 

Back at HQ

 Left Kolkata and landed back in Pune, after a stint at JIS University as a Pro-VC. Of course, met a lot of friends in the last few days, played a bit of Golf at Fort William too.. nice memories to carry back. And these parting shots..

Lucky shot of the Bridge and station, Howrah.

Waiting to take off, while another plane lands.

Songs sung for LPG

Shortages bring out the sense of humour.. so here are some songs one can sing to the LPG cylinder-

Maine tujhe chaha tujhe paya hai. (after a struggle)

Tumne mujhe dekha, hokar meherbaan, ruk gayi ye zameen, ruk gaya aasmaan..  

Aaaja aaja, main hoon pyar tera.. aa ah aaja.. (after booking a cylinder)

Tu auron ki kyun ho gayi, tu hamari thi.. (when your cylinder is allotted to someone else)

Aap jaisa koi meri zindagi mein aaye to bhat (rice) ban jaye, haan haan bhat ban jaye.

Meeting Prachi in Kolkata

 My golf student, Ph.D. from IIM Indore, prof. at Roorkee IIT, and good friend Prachi Jain was in town for admission interviews. 

We went restaurant hopping on Park Street. Some pics. Her old colleague Umang, now teaching at IIMC, and new ones from IIT Roorkee were in the vicinity. Met some of them too. 

With her colleagues.

Umang, above, and Japanese tea, Macha, below. 

More hopping... and a kid.. colleagues again, the parents took a walk while we baby-sat.

Meets with Meethi Meethi Batein

 Continuing the series of meets with meethi meethi batein.. this time with an alumna of Kirloskar Institute, Sudeshna Ray Srivastava. Saying goodbye to Kolkata in a couple of days, on a sweet note. She is also a friend of Nishka Rathi, from KIAMS days. I have been meeting Nishka on and off.

Earlier in the day, a hail storm..

We met at this mall .. CC2 where this guy was reaching out for the Sun.

She has preserved a Marketing exam she did in KIAMS, on which I had written a GOOD remark! Must have been 2001! She answered well, I must say!

Invited Talk at SBI Leadership Institute

 Had an invited talk at SBI Leadership Institute in New Town, Kolkata. It was for emerging leaders at Clearing Corporation of India, which is into settling transactions of different types, like Derivatives or Forex trading. I had to research their business, being new to the terminology. But linked it to crises of the past two decades, and also to leadership in times of crisis. Was well-received, according to me.

Pics from the class and the campus. It is residential, for participants and faculty. Reminded me of Kirloskar Institute.