January 2024

 The month has ended, with a lot of happenings. Some I recounted earlier, but I also managed to travel for work to Coimbatore via Chennai, and met a couple of old friends and Golfers in both these places.

Below- the three of us on our last outing at Kodaikanal, in 2022 August.

I met both Dhanapal and Vijayakumar when working at Kirloskar Institute in Harihar. Along with a friend from Mysore Kirloskar company, YK Gaur, we formed a Golf team of sorts, and tried playing whenever we could- the Golf course was ours for the taking, just a 500 metre walk from our homes. 

We also had caddies who were part-time coaches, having lived and played there for many years. We also had Sadanand, a coach who visited us from Belgaum once in a while. We were there between 1995 and 2001, and played a lot of Golf.

Since then, we also played at Nagpur (Vijayakumar and I with Ravi Gadgil). And took a few Golf vacations to Kodaikanal and Wellington near Ooty, and once to Munnar.

Hope to get one more under the belt this year, maybe at Kodaikanal again.

Kerala

 I had visited a lot of Kerala in 1983, all the way from Cannanore (now Kannur) in the north, to Quilon (Kollam) in the South, for my internship, doing some market research- my headquarters was Kochi (Cochin at the time). But I actually went to live there in 2003, and worked at IIM Kozhikode (Calicut, where Vasco Da Gama had landed before me, in 1498 or so- he came by sea).

During those two years, I spent some time exploring the nearby places, and the beach in town. I don't remember a lot of the names, but remember going to a lake in Wayanad someplace, a dam and a beach not far from Calicut. There was also a bungalow called Casa Marina by the sea which we sometimes rented/went to, for a day-long party. There was also a restaurant called Paragon that was a favourite, especially for its seafood. Another was Sea Queen, on the beach, for its location.

I also played a cricket match in the local club, with my friend Ravi, and did pretty OK with my batting. He had the small Daewoo car that went out of production later. Also a Bullet bike, and collected gems. Uday Damodaran, my classmate, was also with me on the faculty during those two years. 

IIMK's campus was very picturesque, and I visited a couple of times on invitation. Some pics- 

At the campus on a visit recently, looking out of my room.

Dheeraj, a Malayali ex-student from KIAMS (left), whom we met in Chennai a couple of years ago.

IIMK campus- pretty, ain't it?

Above and below- Munnar, where we went Golfing in a foursome- Vijayakumar taking the tee shot, and Dhanapal, me and Ravi Gadgil looking on.

Highlights of 2015

Looking back, I made a maiden trip to Japan for a conference in Beppu. Learnt a lot about Japan, and was impressed by their politeness. Skinny-dipping in their onsen (hot water spring/bath) was a first, after childhood. Made another trip to Singapore, and met a couple of former students, Vidya and Swapna, from KIAMS-from the 2000-02 batch! Caught up with another KIAMS alum, Jogeswari, who runs Golftripz, at Hyderabad. Met a few IMT Nagpur alums in Hyderabad (Nikita), and Delhi (Meghna) as well. And Animesh Jain in Bhopal. And of course, enjoyed interactions with lots more on facebook-too numerous to list! Caught up with a few IIMB classmates during visits to Bangalore and Delhi. An XIMB alumnus I taught in 1991 introduced me to a music group on Facebook. We are fans of old Hindi film music.

In Indore, my current abode, taught a couple of new courses (including at the Mumbai campus), and planned a couple more. Completed an interesting study on Personal Branding with some qualitative research, for a change. Started one on Identity and Social media, to be completed soon. Wrote a case on international marketing by Euroflex, an Indian B to B (Business to Business) marketer. Got some new clients for our MDP (management development programs) this year, including Tata Trent.

 My niece having fun at Mandu-Jahaz mahal.

 At Indore campus with my wife and cousin.

A road trip to Chittaurgarh (a song from Guide was shot here), and Jaisalmer (pic above in the dunes) via Jodhpur with family was another highlight. Five days of fun culminating in a desert safari. Another one with friends to Munnar to play Golf there was different, as it was my first visit to the place. One to Nagpur to rekindle old golfing days was also good. Wound up the year with a trip to Shrivardhan on the Konkan coast with some cousins. And for good measure, a party at Pune to celebrate a niece's wedding. My brother who lives in the U.S. was also in attendance.

Saw some good films, like Masaan, Dum Laga ke Haisha, Court (Marathi), Bahubali, Katyar Kaljat Ghusli (Marathi) and Bajirao Mastani. Read fewer books this year, but some good ones, as usual. Twinkle Khanna's was a surprise. Matt Ridley's book about the Evolution of Everything found me agreeing with him that almost everything is about slow and steady change. Maybe that explains why slow cooked food tastes so good!

Munnar Musings

Going to God's own Country, Kerala, makes you susceptible to musings. Atal Behari Vajpayee mused when in Kumarakom. So did I, between bouts of Golf in Munnar. We drove from Coimbatore there, but you can also drive from Aluva or Kochi in Kerala, the nearest points of entry by air (known to me)-about 4 hours by road. Trichy or Madurai too, a little longer I guess-5-6 hours, maybe. We saw a lot of windmills turning out power on the drive from Coimbatore. Chinnakalan is actually where we stayed (at Sterling Resorts, pic below), about 20 kms. away from the golf course which is close to the town. It is a town that reminded me of Coonoor, or Kotagiri

.

The quiet greenery only turns boisterous in the town centre, with lots of taxis (jeeps are ubiquitous), autos and tourists jostling for space. The wannabe guides are many, wanting to show you around. Since we were focused on golf, we did not use their services.

Half the town is owned by the Kannan Devan plantations of the Tata group, and another quarter by the Harrisons Malayalam group, both into growing tea. The Malayali tea shops were in good numbers all over, and so were the shops selling fresh crop from the plantations, along with spices, oils and home-made chocolates. It rained in the afternoons, but we managed a good game thanks to the friendly staff, in the mornings.

My major musings were that-

1. We make too much of a fuss about the small things, while the big ones remain unattended.
2. It takes (a lot of) practice to get good at anything.
3. It is great fun to go on road trips with a bunch of guys you know well.

And no, we did not take a selfie! Nor did we eat Muesli while we mused.

Golf in Pics

Went to Munnar with my pals Vijayakumar, Gadgil and Dhanapal over the last few days. The pics from High Range Club there- more musings from there later.

Impending Vacation

I like my vocation because it entitles you to a vacation, against the norms of corporate behaviour, where anything other than value-added stuff contributing to the bottom line (wonder why it's at the bottom) is frowned upon.

So this animal called a vacation seems to be drawing close, with some prospects of Golf with friends being a part of it. There is a planned trip to Munnar to play and sip some signature tea, I hope. I stayed in Kerala for two years but never got around to going there.

While on the subject, I started playing some Golf on our own cricket ground in IIM Indore today. I intend to train colleagues if any are interested in the game, and maybe students if the numbers are manageable. The ground is large enogh to do some shots with a medium distance iron, and that can give you a good feel for it, and make you feel good that you know some of the great game. Trust the Scots to invent all the highfalutin stuff! They must have been itching to be different from the boring Brits!