The Fall into Disgrace

The Satyam fiasco. A nightmare that can't be wished away.

For the uninitiated, you can find here the scanned copy of a confession that might change a lot in the way business is done in corporate India. This is being termed as India's Enron - a dubious honour we could do without.

Under the arc-lights of media frenzy and mass hysteria, a great Indian dream is biting the dust. As an ex-Satyamite, I was proud of that company. All its accomplishments, were also mine and vice-versa. Of course, I had my frustrations with the HR, the middle-level management and so many other things that irked, but never was I ashamed of being a Satyamite.

It was the first company I started my career with, grew with for 3.5 years and where I made some lifelong friendships. I looked up to Ramalinga Raju - I had met him once when he came over to Vevey for a management meeting with Nestlé and then had the time to sit with our team here, and just talk. A soft-spoken humble man. Rama Raju was present when I received my first client appreciation certificate. So many memories - mostly pleasant.

And today, the man is being made out to be a monster on the TV screens. All the shady dealings are under scrutiny - by people who must have been bribed to pass those aforesaid dealings. His confession letter gives the image of him locking himself up in a room to edit the balance sheet. That just can't be right. There had to be others in the know although the buck stopped with him. All those individuals should be punished. I remember harsh HR repurcussions on associates who failed their BG checks. These "corporate honchos" should suffer the same indignity. Time will show how accountable the investors would make these individuals for destroying so much of value.

Write it down as wishful thinking, but for the sake of all the stakeholders, my investments (time and money) into this company, and for the sake of many of my friends who are still there, trying to come to terms with the sudden uncertainty in their lives through no fault of theirs, I wish Satyam, the company, manages to ride this wave. It would have to start with a clean slate again and maybe with twice the effort to salvage the situation and reputation, but then which honest Indian is afraid of hard work?

Of tingling fingertips and the better India

My fingertips are tingling - a sensation very much like what my sister calls "the meetha waala dard" (the sweet pain) after an unexpected game of badminton. I am on the verge of getting some clavi (umm... that's the plural for callous and I just learnt it too!) but I should just keep practising my guitar to get them soon. Then I won't feel the pain anymore - or so they say... For now, I am enjoying this tingling sensation. :)

Continuing with the updates of my life this year, I became a anime fan. I watched almost all the Studio Ghibli movies - My Neighbor Totoro, Laputa: Castle in the Sky, Kiki's Delivery Service, Only Yesterday, I Can Hear the Sea, Whisper of the Heart, Princess Mononoke, Spirited Away and Howl's Moving Castle. I've also seen some series like Scrapped Princess, Full Metal Panic! (all parts), Kamikaze Kaitou Jeanne. I absolutely love the imagination and creativity that goes into these things. Now, in addition to knowing some basic Japanese words like Hai (Yes), Iie (No), Gomen-nasai (I'm sorry), arigatō (Thank you), Wakarimashita (I understand), etc I know what to gift my niece for quite a few of her birthdays :D

With my admission offer, came peace of mind. I resigned on the 1st of this month and was happy with the encouraging reaction at work - only because I am going to do my Master's. Had I been leaving to join a competitor, it would have been another story, I am sure! I am now catching up on my reading with a vengeance. I have been staying up ungodly hours like 3:30 am just to finish a book - just like in school and college! Only difference is that over here I have to ensure that I get to work, have something to eat and do all the mundane stuff of "living" by myself. :-s

Just one more thing before I sign off this Sunday evening: I came across this site recently - http://www.thebetterindia.com/ Before you dismiss it, let me tell you that it is NOT a site trying to make you feel guilty about not giving enough charity. Like a breath of fresh air, this site publishes positive news-worthy stories about India - stories that inspire and pleasantly surprise. According to the "About Us" page - The Better India is an attempt to bring out those happy stories, those unsung heroes and heroines, those small good deeds, and showcase them to the world. Over here, you will be able to read about the incremental progress being done by the industrious people of this country, the developments happening on the social and economic front. We hope that by showcasing these here, we might be able to inspire at least one amongst you, the readers, to do something that leaves an impact. Small or big. But, an impact.

ISB ahoy!

Alors! I am going to be doing my Masters in Business Administration next year - at ISB, Hyderabad (India). I got the news yesterday and I have been celebrating it since! :) I was never so unproductive at work before. This week was spent as a bundle of nerves - first reading the posts at a forum of aspirants with the blood pressure threatening to skyrocket at every 10 minutes and then the uncertainty of the time when the results were to be declared. And then, finally, because of the news :D
Moving on to another topic, last evening, I saw Michael Flatley's Lord of the Dance! It was awesome! Don't miss it if you get a chance to see it in your city. Here's a tidbit of information about this show:
In Season 4 of Friends, when Monica is asked that "According to Chandler, what phenomenon scares the bejeezus out of him?", her correct answer is "Michael Flatley, Lord of the Dance!" because, according to Chandler, "[Flatley's] legs flail about as if independent of his body!" For the use of the word in a general sense, see Friendship. ...

Updates - Loads of them!

So, now that I found my vagrant steps back here, I have loads and loads to tell, which I will proceed to do without further ado and in no particular order:

1. Since my last post, I travelled to UK for Easter (London and Edinburgh, to be precise) - Thanks H, S and K! I loved this trip! :)Then, I went to Copenhagen on a roadtrip on a 3 day weekend with my Swiss friend (who is now working in India, with my previous employer) - J! I miss having someone as impulsive and foolish as me over here! I also travelled all over Switzerland over spring and summer with friends and clocked up many many kilometres in my reliable little Lupo.:)
2. I have got bored of watching movies on the net. I know! I can hardly believe it, but life does go on, you know!? :D Given that not all Hollywood movies are released here, if at all (Eg: Wall-E premiered here after 2 months) and finding distributors for Indian movies is a lost cause, I get enough time to... umm... watch serials (*grin*) :D I am hooked on to How I met Your Mother and for some time, even watched Two and a Half Men diligently. However, a broken link ended my precarious enthusiasm for the latter. Although, I still watch HIMYM because I love Barney (always have, since his Doogie Howser days) and because I hope someday I might find a guy like Ted. By the way, the guy who plays Barney is a case in point about my theory about handsome, single, humourous and comfortably well-off guys being gay. *sighhhhhhhh*
3. I made a lot of friends since then. I have become more outspoken and less inhibited. :) I am surprising even myself with the ease with which I converse with random guys. I am even talking so much at work these days that my teammates comment immediately on the lack of that on my "off" days.
   
4. I have done a lot of dancing in the past two months - between going for the dandia night held here and *ahem* increased clubbing. :D
5. O gave me his song collection which is 120 GB. Awesome!
   
6. I went to India in June - for a measly little week - to see my adorable niece, who was, then, only 15 days old. Aunt and niece hit it off immediately much to the wonder of all and sundry - she didn't pee or poop even once in her aunt's arms. :D Given that the general rule of the house was that the person in whose lucky arms she would perform her un-cute duties would have to clean up, I was doting on her by the end of the trip. I will be going during Christmas again. This time, as concluded by listening to her vociferous opinions on the phone, I would be meeting a decided 6-month old personality. :D
   
7. I have begun learning to play the guitar. Finally. :) Getting the guitar here from Mumbai was an interesting experience. I can't tell you how handy an excuse for conversation carrying a musical instrument can be. :) From the lady officer who scanned me at the Mumbai security check to the Swiss Passport Control Officer - everyone spoke to me and were very kind and helpful, as well. My tutor is an American student here who's been playing the guitar since junior high. He's good and says that I will be playing decently well by Christmas, if only I practise everyday.
8. Gym - ummmm... I have not been the model member (forgive the pun) off-late. Curiously, one of my colleagues spends 2 hours everyday in the gym and says she doesn't notice a difference, while I continue to reduce weight :D We concluded that she's working out for me as well and since then, I have made it a point to make her feel guilty enough about skipping gym so that she doesn't miss it and I can blissfully binge on créme brulée :D I know I am wicked!
9. I am continuing to work hard and play hard. I will be skiing this season... and - I want to go for the 6 km sledge run at Pilatus as well.
   
10. And finally, I haven't yet given up on my plans to study further. I am applying seriously now for the next fall. My family has happily given me the freedom to reach for the stars (wherever they be) by agreeing not to shackle me by matrimonial bonds until then.
    

Donc! J'ai terminé pour maintenant! à bientôt, mes amis! :) :)