Why Diversity is Important

 Generally, it brings new perspectives, and learning which you cannot get any other way. Also makes life less boring.

One way I made life interesting for myself is by working in all corners- and centre- of India, from Lucknow to Calicut and Bangalore to Indore. A senior friend once told me I wouldn't survive North of the Vindhyas. But I did survive for a limited period- actually a long time in Indore.

All universities must strive for diversity in their constituents- students, faculty and administrators. This difference is striking when you compare an average American University with an Indian one. I learnt by interacting with Chinese, Nigerian, Iranian, Turkish and Portuguese classmates during my Ph.D., in addition to American students.

Also, in my American workplace later, I had a Venezuelan colleague, as also a Korean, in a faculty of size 12.

It would be a nice goal to have a gender diversity goal, in addition to other kinds- regional, ethnic, religious etc. in any cohort of students, if possible. It makes classes engaging through peer learning too.

I have also been to conferences that had multiple nationalities participating- Sri Lankans, Bangladeshis, New Zealanders, Canadians, Vietnamese, Australians and so on. Sometimes held in Singapore, or Japan, or Sri Lanka, or Vietnam.

 

Why IMT Nagpur Was Magical

 Can't put my finger on one thing, but I think the place had a vibe that was special. It included the people, and the way they interacted with each other. The students, the faculty, the staff, and also some of the inanimate objects. That may sound strange, but tangible inanimates do play a role in our lives. The grass, the trees, and the rocks. The design of some rooms, colour of the walls (Red Bricks in this case). 

Most of all, the people. Kirloskar Institute in Harihar (where I worked a few years before IMT) had this vibe too. In addition to a very tangible Golf course, but that's another matter.

The students had a mix of IQ and EQ that put them in a unique category, with a high total score. Other Qs too, perhaps. After all, we are multidimensional. So I would say that people brought their uniqueness to it,  being from different corners of the country. The faculty were actually global- many had studied or worked abroad.

Diversity makes a campus more vibrant, and we saw it in all IIMs I was at- to study or to work- 4 in all. We had it in good measure. I am still able to meet alums in Ahmedabad, Delhi, Bangalore, Mumbai, Pune and Hyderabad if I visit these places- so many years after I stopped working at IMT. Many faculty have stayed for 15 years or more! Another sign of a good place!

The autonomy we enjoyed in running the place was also a contributing factor. Which meant student and faculty needs could be met without looking over our shoulder. 

North East

 For me, this includes North and East, not just North-East. So many of my student friends are from these two regions, that I feel completely integrated. Particularly from Kolkata, Odisha, Bihar, and U.P. (Lucknow, Ghaziabad included), and M.P. (Jabalpur, Bhopal, Indore in particular), and of course, Delhi, Jaipur and so on, I can count hundreds of students/alumni.

There are some characteristics that are unique to various parts of India. East and North also have some distinctive ones. Outgoing, respectful to elders, and generous, is what I found Northerners to be. Slightly more reserved, well-read and even more respectful to teachers and elders are what Easterners typically are.

Since I grew up in the South and had relatives in the Mumbai-Pune region because of our roots, my first interaction with the North happened in 1984, when I went to work in Delhi at Living Media. A colleague in IIM Lucknow later told me a joke in which a passenger travels from Delhi to Kolkata in a train, that has him asking somebody to do something, and the answers he gets in various places range from Haan, ho jayega, ..to 'Cholbey na..' 

Anyway, our diversity is amazing, and I have found nice people from Kashmir to Kanyakumari (yes, I have had students from Kashmir too, in two B schools, and I visited Srinagar as a tourist and stayed on the Dal Lake in a houseboat long ago). Cheers to all Indians, from everywhere.

Diversity is Amazing

I am amazed at the diversity I have encountered in the human interactions I have had over the fifty nine years I have spent on the planet. Not necessarily boasting, but I have spent significant amounts of time in the four major regions of India, and a few years in the U.S. teaching and studying. While there, had a lot of international students/colleagues too. I visited at least one, Anne, in France at her home in rural France (and HER friend in Paris). Also met an Iranian friend in Malaysia and later, in India. Lots of American friends also invited us (my wife and I) home while we lived there.

It is also obvious while teaching in class, that diversity of age, gender, experience and background (previous education/subjects) usually leads to a richer class experience for all. This is true at least in management, where both technical and non-technical skills are equally important in solving problems.

The U.S. was open to immigrants (still is, compared to a few others, barring Canada and New Zealand/Australia) and has been enriched by those who chose to settle down there and adopt the American lifestyle. A few Indians are also at the top of the academic and corporate ladders there- I know at least a couple of them personally.

One has to wait and watch where the recently-made-fashionable anti-immigrant stance of countries/governments around the world will lead.

Pragati Maidan and the Exhibition

There is something about a mela-an exhibition- that Indians can't get enough of. The turnout on Sunday, when I chose to visit the annual exhibition at Pragati Maidan, was unbelievable. I stood in a line that was really long to get in, after standing in one to buy a ticket- not cheap, 80 rupees on a weekend. But was it a sellout. They actually stop selling tickets in the afternoon, because there are too many people inside.

Once inside, it is a rainbow of colours, people, stalls, and,..you guessed it...FOOD. There is so much food inside of all types that you can't get enough of the sights and smells. Of curse, it is overpriced and not as good as some of the specialty joints in town, but there is enormous variety. But why talk of food?

There is plenty more, and some of the stalls I visited always had something on offer for everyone. Clothing of all kinds, in particular. The huge crowds on that day made it tough to savour things at a slow pace (my preferred pace) but still, it is an experience to be there. Glimpses into the arts and crafts of all our states is a great benefit of visiting this one, and that is available in plenty. One can only marvel at how much we don't know about our own country and its people. Ignorance zindabad!