A new journey...

It has been roughly 1.5 months since i left home, to embark on a new journey, an adventure extraordinaire, forcing myself out of the comfort of 'home'. Wasn't an easy decision by any means. The risk and expense involved was HUGE. A concern always at the back of my mind, about whether someday i will succeed. However, it certainly was a risk worth taking. For, knowledge can only be beneficial. There is nothing about it that can go wrong!

2 years is a long time and I don't know what i will become. But I can guarantee that i will work hard and strive to be the best I can be... It is hard not to worry about the outcome. However, I can only hope for the best....

"The future is scary but you can't just run back to the past because it's familiar, yes it's tempting, but it's a mistake"
~HIMYM

Wonder what happened...

I can't believe how long it has been since I rambled here... Wonder what went wrong. What happened to my love for writing all of a sudden. I suppose, IT frustration & Drama addiction took over...

The quandaries of a newbie in the corporate world….

It was 14^th December 2009, and the day we join Barclays had finally dawned. Extremely excited and eager to learn, we attended the induction attentively and arrived at the Pune-2 office in Hinjewadi, which would now be our workplace. Initially, the atmosphere was intimidating. The challenge to ramp up our skills to the level of the people around us was exhilarating and unnerving at the same time. However, the former emotion was far more overpowering, and together with a will to perform in a way that would corroborate our selection to be a part of this mighty organisation, we resolved to garner the skills, essential to make our team proud.

Our learning process here wasn’t just technology oriented. Certain practices were obsolete in the world of corporate. As we had just stepped out of college, we were accustomed to addressing our seniors as ‘Sir’ or ‘Ma’am’. However, now, that was so passé! In our attempt to learn this practice, we bungled up several times. XYZ became Sir, XYZ aand we appeared to have conferred Knighthood on most of our colleagues. It is after a lot of practice and conscious effort that we now address everyone by their names.

We all know that every profession and every company has an associated jargon. Since our first day, we were at the receiving end of a fusillade of abbreviations which made no sense to us whatsoever. This parlance can confuse those, unaware of its existence. An abbreviation that was particularly irksome was K.T. Now, the reason for that was, when were in college (a few months ago) K.T. was short for A.T.K.T, which stood for ‘Allowed To Keep Term’. This was something all us budding engineers feared over the past four years of the course. One is A.T.K.T when one has failed between 1 and 3 subjects in the course. (More than that and you lose a year!!). However, here at Barclays, K.T. stands for Knowledge Transition or Knowledge Transfer. When everyone around us kept talking about giving us a K.T. we were baffled and terrified! It was when our line-manager came to the rescue and explained to us what it really meant, that we heaved a sigh of relief!

As we spend more time here, we realise, the professional world and the academic world are rather diverse. When we stepped here the first day, we remember being petrified at the sight of so many ‘black screens’ (that was a term in college for the output screen- C, CPP et al.) and people all around engrossed in work. It was strongly reminiscent of the horrors of our practical exams, vivas and all that jazz. However, now that we’ve settled here and have started using the ‘black screens’ ourselves, we realise that it is not something to be afraid of. As college students, we used to be in awe of this world, but now, it feels great to be a part of it. I hope, 40 years from now, when I look back at these days, I too can say, in true Bryan Adams’ style, “Those were the best days of my life…”

The GRE Odyssey...

What a journey this has been... It has taught me so much while, at the same time, it has reiterated life's past lessons.. Lessons i failed to learn before. Its true, if you do not learn from your mistakes, you make yourself susceptible to the same pain and hurt once more. And this time, you deserve it. I seem to lie in the category of people who never learn, no matter what.

It all began in the month of July, when post an insightful invective from my family, for "not doing anything constructive about my future", I considered their proposal for further studies and thus, the GRE. Most of my friends were either taking it or were already done with it. So there I was, on the 5th of July 2009, at the office of the premier institute for training in GRE in India, Dilip Oak's Academy. It was within the first week of classes itself that i realised, that I was going to love attending these classes and that it was going to be a highly enriching experience. The professors were the best I had ever had. Experts in their field. If there was a GRE training institute equivalent to the IITs & IIMs in India, they would be the first people to be hired. Suddenly i found myself poring over books, the thirst for knowledge rejuvenated. The more I heard/read the more i wanted to know. It had been a long time since I felt that way and I loved the feeling. I had not been so passionate about studying in such a long time. The blend of the wish to do well and the will to strive almost had an intoxicating effect. It made me forget all those horrible years of engineering, where every exam was written with a 40 in mind. I was enamored with studying again.

The subjects especially responsible for this effect were GRE Verbal and Analytical writing(AWA). I have always taken Math for granted. Its (thankfully) come very easily to me for the most part and so I am guilty of almost having a callous attitude towards it. (Dont mean to brag). It was the English sections-Verbal & AWA that particularly fascinated me. They made me fall in love with studying. Moreover, they helped accomplish what I thought was impossible for me, a love for reading. It was the GRE english that changed my life over the past few months. I would like to believe that it changed me, at least slightly. It reinstated my lost confidence. It made me feel that I wasn't all that bad as a student. My Verbal ability, that gradually improved (with a LOT of help of course) made me feel that I probably had the capability to, not only pursue a masters degree, but also to perform fairly well. The writing section gave me an opportunity to pour my heart out on paper. I had almost forgotten how much I loved to write. I know I am no Chetan Bhagat or Shobha De in the making. However, I would like to believe that I can express myself well through the written media. Thanks to the GRE I have had the opportunity to try my hand at these subjects once more.

Today as I measure what I have lost and gained as I took this exam, I realise that I have gained so much. What I have lost in the bargain, or rather failed to achieve; a good score despite striving, is inconsequential as compared to what I have gained. Knowledge is never wasted and a score card can hardly be a just measurement of the knowledge acquired. I think by refusing to pursue higher studies, I am being unfair to myself. Im simply trampling upon another dream as one couldn't be fulfilled. Just because one thing didn't take shape does not mean the others wont too. Why not try? What I can do is, this time i can remember the lesson I have failed to learn in so long. Try not to have any expectations or demands from myself and certainly not overrate my abilities. Try not to think of the outcome and just do the needful. Let the future unravel at its own pace and reveal its mysteries for you.
I hope I finally learn this time.

Its a long post?!? Well, it has been a long and eventful journey.....

The bengali AULD LANG SYNE

My humble attempt at translating my favourite bengali song by Gurudeb Rabindranath Tagore.

Romanization: Jyotika Banerjee

Translation credit: Aditya Vasudeva

Please let me know if you spot any mistakes.....

(Purano shei diner kotha, bhulbi ki re, haai o shei,

The memories of the good old days, can you ever forget them?

Chokher dakha, Praner kotha, Shei ki bhola jaaye)------ x 2

They were witnessed by our eyes, were the voice of our life, Can they ever be forgotten?

Aay aar ek ti baar aay re shokha, praner maajhe aay mora,

Come back once more, my friend, come and be a part of my life

Shukher dukher kotha kobo, praan judabe taai

We will talk of smiles and tears (of happy & sad experiences), And will feel very good about it

(Purano shei diner kotha, bhulbi ki re, haai o shei,
The memories of the good old days, can you ever forget them?
Chokher dakha, Praner kotha, Shei ki bhola jaaye)------ x 2
They were witnessed by our eyes, were the voice of our life, Can they ever be forgotten?

(Mora bhorer bala phul tulechi, dulechi dolaye,

Together we have plucked flowers at dawn, Together we have spent hours on the swing

Baajiye baanshi gaan geyechi, gokuler tolaye.)------ x 2

Together we have played the flute, Sang the songs under the shade

Haay maajhe holo chaada chaadi, gelen ke kothaye

We parted in between, never knew where we went

Abar dakha judi holo shokha, praner maajhe aaye

If we happen to meet again someday, Come and be a part of my life.

(Purano shei diner kotha, bhulbi ki re, haai o shei,
The memories of the good old days, can you ever forget them?
Chokher dakha, Praner kotha, Shei ki bhola jaaye)------ x 2
They were witnessed by our eyes, were the voice of our life, Can they ever be forgotten?

OMG!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What a totttttaaaallly crazy pair of months its been!!! So much happened (or maybe it just seems that way coz i was always doing something.. Lol)!!

Well anyhow, to all my friends and seniors who have moved on to the next important phase is life

ALL THE BEST! May god shower you guys with loads of love and happinness!

Right from the Sangeet and Mehndi, the farmhouse party to the many pujas until finally the wedding, I had a blast!

Met wonderful people and made great friends for life..

Here are the pics I have of one happy couple

Presenting Mr & Mrs. Mahajan

THE GROUP FROM THE KIRTANE-MAHAJAN WEDDING

Had an amazing time guys.. Will miss the fun we had together for a long time...

A FABULOUS MONTH OF SURPRISES AND PARTIES!

It all started on 17th March 2008 when my friends planned a huge b'day surprise for my sister n me and ended recently with the b'day of my best friends which happens to be on the same day, 14th April....

First it was my brother who took us out for dinner on 16th and got us a beautiful (and delicious ;) ) cake

 at midnight and then my friends who threw us a surprise b'day party. Though id fig

ured something was cooking when id heard my freinds whispering excitedly in my (they thought) my absence and stopping abruptly when they spotted me, i had no idea of the extent they had planned it to!

It was only when i walked up to my terrace that evening that i realised what the huge surprise was =)

All my friends, both from school and college had come together (though they hardly knew each other) to plan a wonderful evening for us. It was the most perfect b'day and one of the most memorable ones iv ever had and has (i think) broken the jinx of "boring b'days" that we've have had so far....

This ofcourse was followed by a series of birthdays Jui, Shweta, Aparna, Poorva to name a few...

Bottomline, it was a wonderful one month...

I just hope, after all this excitement and fun we can get back to our books seriously.. 
Afterall, exam season is approaching again!!! =(

......But silence is golden

Swiss Inscription: Sprecfien ist silbern, Schweigen ist golden (Speech is silver, Silence is golden)

Meaning: Speech is of Time, Silence is of Eternity.

Time and again iv experienced one thing... Keeping quiet solves more problems than speaking about them...

Especially when your angry, you end up saying whatever comes to your mind without actually meaning any of it. By the time you calm down, you only regret saying what you did and feel bad for the person you argued with no matter what you had to hear in the bargain too... So instead, the best thing in situations where your feeling so angry you could scream, is to keep quiet.. Use every ounce of your energy to keep your mouth shut! From what im seeing, the silent treatment seems to be the best solution to all arguments and problems... When something bothers you, just keep quiet... I hate confrontations and name calling and so this seems to work for me. 

-----Afterall, as someone has said-----

~~SILENCE IS ONE OF THE HARDEST ARGUMENTS TO REFUTE~~

The Slumdog mania

Its been so long since i last posted... Iv really missed my blog... But i hope i can post more frequenty from now on, no matter how busy i am...

Nothing i say is enough to describe what Slumdog Millionaire has done for Indian technicians.. However, my only appeal to everyone around the worl would be to look at this movie as a LOVE STORY and not as a picture of India... That is not what epitomises India.. Theres a lot more to this country than just poverty, illetracy and a population problems.. Every country has a good and a bad side and this is ours... And we are trying to deal with it...

Ofcourse i have a lot more to say about this, and i will...

But for now, i want to post the lyrics of my favourite song from the Slumdog OST..

Dreams on fire...

Dreams on Fire
OST- Slumdog Millionaire

You are my waking dream

You're all that's real to me

You are the magic in the world I see

You are the prayer I sing

You brought me to my knees

You are the faith that made me believe

Dreams on fire

Higher n higher

Passions burning

Right on the pyre

Once far, forever yours

In me All your heart

Dreams on fire

Higher n higher

You are my ocean waves

You are my thought each day

You are the laughter from childhood games

You are the spark of dawn

You are where I belong

You are the ache I feel in every song

Dreams on fire

Higher n higher

Passions burning

Right on the pyre

Once far, forever yours

In me All your heart

Dreams on fire Higher n higher

Zai Jian 2008!

(Goodbye 2008!)
Just a few hours more and soon we'll be stepping into the new year!! Year 2009!!!
This year brought old friends closer, wonderful new friends, good marks *winks* , more shows among many other things... A peaceful/uneventful year on the whole...
After the bitter and turbulent end of 2007, personally, the year 2008 has been one of healing and growth.. Friendships and addictions proved to be therapeutic and helped me rise from probably one of the most difficult phases of my life. So, i must take this opprotunity to thank all those friends who stood by me and at times lost their temper and confronted me (thankfully).. Had you guys not been there, I dont know how i would have come out of it... Also, im grateful to all my new friends who were unaware of anything but helped me immensely to come back to 'normal'. Finding 'The Villa' and being a part of it was certainly one of the key highs of this year. Last yet not the least, my family, who probably suffered the most, especially in the first half of the year, when they saw me in a way they had never seen me before. Im extremely sorry to have put them and everyone else through this, but im sure they understand.
This year has taught me to love and cherish what i have right now, in the present! It has taught me that life moves on and we have to as well.. I only hope that I can.
I pray, that neither I, nor anyone else has to face a sudden unexpected loss of their loved ones and also hope that peace prevails in the world and no dastardly attacks on innocent people anywhere occur. Lets have a Peaceful, Happy and Properous 2009!!