Let's do a bit of a flashback today..recently saw Kill Bill 2, so am in some sort of a 'Quentin Tarantino-ish' mood;) Aldo, talking about myself in the same breath as him is almost blasphemous..if his movies are anything to go by, the guy's a friggin' genious!!

So, we zoom past the last few months, to the time that the CAT results had just come out..IMS announced some workshop in Mumbai..two days, from sunrise to after sunset..rigorous rounds of GDs and PIs..

There was junta there from all over the West-Zone..MBA aspirants crawling all over Wellingkar's like ants! :) Must have been close to 400 people!

Well, the first day was all GDs, the second some seminars and a couple of PIs..the GDs were to be of different types..Factual, Abstract, Controversial and Case Study!

We all know what Factual and Controversial is, a lil bit of gyaan about the other two-

Abstract - Here, the sky is the limit! You can be asked to discuss anything on earth..most of the times they give you an extremely esoteric sounding statement and throw the GD open..

Some examples:
# Pink pajamas at the Red Fort!
# Golden boys and girls, like chimney sweepers must eventually come to dust..
# . - yeah, tats right! A Dot, fullstop, purnaviraam..now discuss that!
# Which first - Chicken or egg?

So, you see, this sort of a GD usually had people racking their brains to come up with the craziest stuff..stretch your imagination to its break-point and somehow connect the most abstract thing to stuff like 'India's ecomony, GDP growth, China, Nucluer power, fuel' etc! No kidding!! People used to come up with these fundoo comparisions!

Case Study - Here they give us a situation. .Could be related to business, ethics, relationships, whatever..but the main characters are in the throes of some major dilemmas! They have to make some difficult choices or think of a way to extricate themselves from whatever jam they have landed in..be it, a CEO of an organisation and his employees shirking work, or a doctor who has to make a choice bteween his career and ethics! Can turn out to be miniature masala potboilers at times;)

I was given terrible feedback for three out of four of those GDs..

GD # 1 - I had this 'altercation' with some guy..he wasnt letting me talk..almost told him to shut it:) Then the whole thing went into this huge mess..I started laughing coz I just cldnt understand why people were in such a hurry to talk!
Feedback - 'Had I been on the panel, I would have asked Shreya to leave immediately'..btw, the 'Panel' were these IIM students who had taken out the time to come and criticize us..they were doing a pretty good job too, methinks;)

GD # 2 - This was controversial - in the feedback, I was told that I should learn to listen to the other people, to quote - 'from your attitude, it seemed like you were treating the others just as mannequins, try to listen to them and remember they are people too!' Gawd!! Wat-ever!

GD # 3 - Abstract - I was told that nothing I had said had made any sort of impression on them. The panel could, in fact, while giving their feedback, not recall anything that I had said!! There goes my 'Love me, hate me, but can't ignore me' excuse out of the window! LOL!

GD # 4 - The Case Study - Here I was in my element;) I did it all right. The thing was ur typical 'fish-market', but I managed to get my stuff across and finally this - something that shone out like a beacon over the muck that the day had been - 'If I had to choose one person from this group, it would be the lady there'! :) No prizes for guessing who the 'lady' was! :)

The second day was even worse!

We were asked to fill up a couple of forms..stuff like strengths and weaknesses, career goals, etc, ur regular pre-interview form..based on these forms, the panelists would conduct a mock-PI for us..these forms were to be filled up by us in all sincerity and taken to the Interviews! Me, being the smart-ass that I always aim to be, treated the form like some piece of shit..I filled them lying in bed at 1 o' clock at night (to be fair, inevitable circumstances had led to me being extremely tired and not in the mood to fill out forms)..so I did a very lousy job..my thinking was that they (the panelists) would discuss the form with us, like IMS staff usually do, and not model the whole thing on a real PI, down to the whole stress-test thing! My mistake, it was supposed to be a MOCK-PI!!

So, you can guess that my interviews sucked! They tore me apart, both times, I was told that I was arrogant and did not listen and my answers on the form were not very convincing..and all this was coming from my badly filled out forms. .It seems they had formed an unfavorable opinion of me by just glancing at the forms..and I cannot blame them..some of my sentences were not even complete!

So, all in all, I had a terrible time! And I must have been one of the few people to have had it so rough, as mostly everybody else came out with decent feedbacks..

But at the end of it all, I knew 'What not to do' ;)

That is when I did some more introspection and realized that there was no point in trying too hard at the GDs..just listen and follow the flow of the conversation..as for PIs..the golden rule here would be - FILL up the damn sodding form well..like your life depended on it!

So let's continue..

Stop # 2: SP Jain

This was one of the most exhaustive interviews I had..The pressure was comparitively less, so I kind of really enjoyed the first stage..yeah, there were two stages of interviews..

Let me begin at the beginning..

It was a warm sunny day on the 25th of February:) I reached SPJ at around 7:45 in the morning, the process was supposed to start at 8..We were made to sit in an auditorium.. and as people trickled in, the audi got packed..I knew a lot of people here too..met an old JC friend..these interviews turned out to be proper 'adda' spots man!

One interesting thing about the composition of people here: There were quite a few non-engineers..of course, engineers were in the majority, but there were more non-engineers here than I have heard of, or met at other interviews..

There is this thing about SPJ, I have it from reliable sources that most things are student-managed..so you would be managing the finances of the institute, or be a part of the administration, or helping out with the recruitment, depending on whatever your interests might be..

So we had these three-four students managing stuff like getting you to register, calling out your names for the interviews, announcing whether you got through the first round or not..escorting you to the interview panels even!

But since there were so many of us, the entire registration process took quite some time, and even after that one did not know when one would be called in for the interview..One thing I should mention here is that SPJ has 'Group Interviews'..a concept that works out well sometimes, as in, they are not out to butcher just you..aur bhi bakre hain halaal karne ko;) So you can take a breather between two questions..but on the flipside, you have to be assertive and if you have a good point to make (since most of the questions asked are thrown at the group), you have to worry about somebody else putting it across before you do!

My group was called in pretty early..I had seven people in my group..one other Somaiya-ite and one other Infoscion apart from me included! LOL! We were escorted by this guy who told us that our panel was pretty chilled out and we need not get nervous..

So in we went.."Into the jaws of death, rode the.."

Okk, I am done dramatizing..so in we went..our panel had two men..plus the guy who had escorted us in! Yes! The students even sit on the panel at SPJ!

We sat down, did our introductions..

Hey btw, did I happen to mention that the world, especially India had just come out of hibernation the day I had my interview?! By which I mean, that the Railway Budget had come out and three long pending and extremely important court cases had been resolved just the day before! We were busy lapping up the newspapers outside in the audi knowing fully well that Lalu's 'Gareeb Raths' would be the hot topic of discussion!

N we weren't disappointed..the interview lasted for over an hour and all sorts of topics under the sun were discussed..The Railway Budget in great detail..mostly the professor on the panel wanted us to think about why the Railway Budget was creating such a furore, considering that due to cheaper air-fares, the Railways seemed to be going out of style! We spoke about how there was still a huge customer base for the railways..esp to and from places which do not have airports, blah blah..

Then the tone shifted to values, ethics, what is wrong in the world of today, the India of today, corruption, taxes, the role of parents in shaping their children into succesful and ethical people, the role of schools, the BRIC report, how many years it would take for India to achieve what it wants to, the IT sector, qualities a good manager should have.. etcetra..O man, as you can see..it was a very interesting interview!

I was told later on by a fellow 'participant' (Long back when the CAT results had just come out, somebody had compared the entire GD-PI process to a 'Reality Show'!) that I had got super passionate and was extremely assertive during the interview..mind you, he did not say 'aggressive'! :)

Well, my take on the interview (you are your best judge..most of the times, we all know how well or badly we've done..it's only that we do not want to admit it..even to ourselves sometimes)..so my take on this interview was - I had done well..somehow, I managed to get in at all the right times, and the views that I had come out with had seemed to go down pretty well..

We came out and were made to sit for some time before we were told our results..I had got through the first round..the second round was to start after a break of a couple of hours..I went to lunch in a nearby restaurant with some friends I had met there..

The second round started..I was in the first group to be called!! There were 6 people in my group..we were taken to this auditorium and made to sit outside it for sometime..we got acquainted..two non-engineers..the rest all engineers-working..three out of them in Software..

We were called inside then..the audi was this huge dark place..like a movie theatre..hardly any lights were on..the interviewers were sitting in the front row seats..there were some four of them..and a couple of students besides..we were taken to the stage where chairs had been put for us..these chairs were covered with white cloth..and the spotlight was turned on, pointing, you guessed it right, on us..

The reason why I have described this whole thing in such (excrutiating?) detail is because I want the reader to get an idea of the apprehension we were feeling..the whole thing looked like we were being set up for some 'tamaashaa':)

The introductions were again done..we were made to speak a bit about ourselves..I hate this part..I never know what to include..how much to leave out..what aspects to touch upon..I said some stuff about my schooling, college..extremely superficial stuff..some people spoke about their strengths and weaknesses, beliefs..that made me feel that I could have done a much better job..

After that, they started a GD..The topic was ' India's stand on Iran'..It was a good GD..I made good contributions..one of the guys held some very anti-american views..his comments sparked another GD..they asked us to talk about 'America using arm-twisting measures to meet their economic ends'..I was terrible in this GD..I hardly made any contributions! Left a bad taste in my mouth!

Then they started asking individual questions..I was asked just one question..what values has Infosys imparted to you! I started in a somewhat shaky manner..but once I got into the flow..I must have sounded like a Miss Universe contestant..making a huge deal of the values, professional ethics and the importance of customer satisfaction and delight that I have learnt from Infosys! LOL!

They seemed to lose interest in my answer by the time I finished!:) I was extremely disheartened by that..considering that they asked some other people a lot of questions..grilled them no end and received (what seemed to me) satisfactory answers..I was feeling quite miserable at being asked just one question!

Thus ended the second stage also..while walking out from that place..I did not think I would get through..

But I did..

We had been told that the first interview also carried some weightage..it was not just an elimination round..so you see, that must have sailed me through..because the second one was nothing to write home about!

So, here we are, at the end of another interview..

At this point, I was thinking that no matter what happens..I would take a lot back from these interviews..the whole process got me started on a lot of subjects which I had not known much about before..like finance, economy, the budget, how it affects us..it made me think about a lot of aspects about myself that I had not thought about before..and it brought me in contact with a lot of people..brilliant people, people who knew so much more than I knew..

So, I knew that this whole 'Reality Show' would be a great learning experience!

Here we are..I am finally ready to unleash my thoughts upon the public..don't really know how ready they are for it though!

So do I really have those many thoughts? ;)

Okk, serious now..below follows an account of all my GD PIs..will help some, entertain some and the remaining are most welcome to give it a miss!

So here goes!

Stop # 1 - Kozhikode:

It was on the 21st of Feb (Ohh man, I am gonna remember these dates for the rest of my life! A friend of mine always refers to them as 'trysts'! )..so it was the 21st of Feb and I had parked myself just across the road from Dadar Catering College, where most of these trysts take place; by which I mean that I was staying with relatives just opposite DCC..

The thing was to begin at 9:30 in the morning..I slept early..woke up early..read the newpaper..got my documents in order and chal diye..zindagi ko gale se lagaane ;)

I reached there..small stuffy waiting room..a couple of people I knew..the ubiquitous Somaiya person..and the equally omni-present Infoscion! After making small talk for some minutes..I realized that I did not have my Degree certificate with me!! O man..meri toh haalat kharab ho gayi:) But fortunately the guys sitting out there collecting those documents turned out to be quite flexible and accepted my final year marksheets instead..Phew!

In some time, a couple of guys came out of two adjoining doors (we were to be divided into two panels..of about 10 each..could have been 9..not too sure)..and started to call out our names..we went inside the rooms and sat..

There were two men..at the time, I don't remember taking a very good look at them..I was too busy getting my posture and body language correct ;) LOL!

They handed out slips of paper to us..the topic for the GD..something about whether we believed in the Malthusian law that population itself is not the problem, but lack of proper distribution of resources, organisation etc is what we should be looking at..something to that effect..

We started..the GD was quite peaceful..there were three girls in my group, including myself..we all got enough oppurtunities to speak..

ASIDE: My entire preparation for the GD..apart from reading up some stuff, had been to tell myself repeatedly that it is NOT a DOG-EAT-DOG jungle out there..but just another discussion..this put things slightly in perspective and prevented me from getting all hyper about not being amongst the first two-three to speak..I was never in much of a hurry to speak..a modest and low-key approach was what I was gunning for..

So the GD was quite decent..and we all trooped out..

Now the wait for the Interview..I fortunately did not have to wait too long..I was called in second..

Now somehow..I was not scared or anything, I was just excited..so in I went..

ASIDE: My entire preparation for the interviews had been, but of course, the reading up..but mainly the introspection..I did not want to lie, fool or pull stunts..I wanted to be sincere and honest..as far as possible..and when I went in, I knew I had all the answers that really mattered..

The two men - one was a darkish man..with a luxuriant moustache and the other a very amiable looking and grandfatherly guy..I sat down (after duly remembering to ask 'May I sit down please'! Gawd! )..and the first question that was thrown at me - 'What is the difference between Fourier and Laplace'!!

Holy shit!! Fourier and Laplace! Laplace and Fourier!! Now we all know how much dedication and sincerity had gone into doing all those soporific DSP experiments back in college..I hope I have the sympathies of the junta reading this when I say I could not remember one single thing about either Fourier or Laplace!!

So anyway..I smiled and said 'I do not remember much about Fourier or Laplace but let me just think'! Guy A smiled..he was actually the one asking all the techie questions..he tried to prod me - 'Tell me which is done when'..I thought..I drew a blank..I then went on to say..'I know how to do it, but I cannot tell you why it is done!'..they both smiled very knowingly, and I was like 'Shreya, yeh kyaa bol diyaa!'..then they asked me 'Have you heard of this term called Entropy?' Now I had but could not recall where..So I told them just that..they said 'What about Information Theory? You remember that?' I sort of did, but not exactly! I remembered there was this theorem called Shannon's Theorem but beyond that the memory refused to jog..

It was back to the smile then..

After this, things got a little better..they asked me about my work..and I waxed eloquent on that..they tried to slip in a couple of trick questions there too..Guy A seemed to know quite some stuff..

Then they asked me about Infosys..whether I knew anything about the fracas between NRN and D Gowda, what my stand on it was..blah blah..

Then to some general knowledge Qs..I made a couple of blunders here..the IT sector's share in the GDP-me said-not sure..they said-guess..me said-err..17?! They burst out laughing! Me laughed too! Later on, to my chagrin, I learnt it was somewhere around 4.5%!!

But anyway..life goes on..next stop..they asked me to talk about Globalisation for two minutes! Two minutes!! O man! I could have gone on endlessly on Globalisation! So I spoke..I managed to put in some interesting trivia..they seemed happy..I have realized that when the interviewers are happy with you, they sort of look at you with a dazed expression..sort of like, hmm..so she knew that one..hmm..we had not expected that! LOL!

Ohh..did I forget to mention that food was flying fast and furious all this while? There were these attendents bringing in all sorts of stuff at regular intervals from all directions! Dadar Catering College yaar!

They asked me a couple of things from my form..something about weaknesses..I gave a convincing answer..I mean, sounded good to me..so must have been!

Okk..so after that..since my form said something about me wanting to be an entrepreneur (who doesn't in these interviews!)..they asked me to name some women entreprenuers..I did..Kiran M Shaw, Sulajja Motwani, Anu Aga..they came back with - 'Most of the women have inherited their empires from their husbands or fathers. So do you think that women in India cannot make good entrepreneurs!!'

Bas!! Mere andar ki garmi jaag utthi..I got somewhat passionate about how women earlier had not probably been self-made because of differing circumstances, and the environment, oppurtunities, but today's woman definitely has it in her to do all that she wants to do, I gave the example of the Lijjat Papad woman..they asked me whether I would be the next one and me said ' Yes sir, I definitely want to be' with what I thought was a 'steely glint' in my eye and a determined thump of the fist! LOL!

Well, I must have done something right, because I got through! :)

All in all, the tone of the interview was very relaxed..they made me feel comfortable, they seemed like real nice people:)..even when I made mistakes, they seemed to laugh indulgingly..so after it got over, although I was painfully aware of all the mistakes I had made, I had a good feeling about it..I was happy with what I had done there..my expressions and my attitude..so overall it seemed like a pretty decent experience!

And that is all I have to say about that!