My Interview With the Branch Manager of Eureka Forbes, Noida.

Last tuesday (August 25, 2009), in the peak of heat, i went to C-88, sector-2, noida... to conduct an interview... it was my 1st one... and it went pretty well... i guess... read on!!!

Sanjeev Sharma is the branch manager of Eureka Forbes, Sector 2, NOIDA Branch. He also handles the Sector 57 branch. He has been associated with Eureka Forbes for the past ten years. We are thankful to him to have had taken out some time aside to answer some questions to aid this project report. He answered all the questions without a glitch even though he was pressed for time because of a delivery schedule.

After a brief introduction about the project and the required information, this is how the interview went:

Group 10: Sir, could you please throw some light on the history of Eureka Forbes Limited?

Sanjeev: Eureka Forbes has been around for about a century now. The first product of Eureka Forbes was a vacuum cleaner and was launched in the year 1909. Eureka Forbes came to India in the year 1981 and began its operations in Delhi. We are almost at a 1000 crore turnover company and have an export turnover of about U.S. $382,000.

Group 10: Congratulations sir, for completing a hundred years. This must mean that you have a huge customer base and an even bigger turnover.

Sanjeev: That’s right! We have a customer base of about 6 million. We have our presence felt in about 131 cities and 398 towns in India. We have a total of 136 outlets. In fact, we have 10 franchisees in NOIDA itself.

Group 10: In the web site, it was mentioned that Eureka Forbes deals with Water Purifiers, Vacuum Cleaners, Air Purifiers and Security Solutions. Which one of these products sells the most?

Sanjeev: Yes, we do deal in all the products mentioned. Out of these, the water purifiers sell the most. In fact we have a dedicated customer base of about 40-50 lakhs in India. Out of these, aquagaurd contributes to about 10 – 12 lakhs. We have established Aquamall exclusively for our water purification systems. We are ISO 14000 and 9000 certified and last year we had a turn over of about 15.5 crores and a profit before tax of about 1.8 crores in the segment.

Group 10: Could you let us know about your contact plans, how you collect and build upon your database and what is your distribution channel?

Sanjeev: Well, Eureka Forbes has always been into direct sales and we intend to stay with the same. As for our database, we already have a huge database, for more customers we rely on references from our existing customers. We also tend to advertise and involve in various camps such as school camps, park camps, doctor camps etc.

Group 10: What exactly is a school or a doctor camp?

Sanjeev: Well, here our sales reps tend to focus on the particular segment in a particular area. For example, if a sales person has been allocated a doctor camp in Noida, then he has to go to all the doctors (and only doctors) present in the area and educate them about our products.

Group 10: So, how do you get the information about all the doctors of a particular area?

Sanjeev: (laughs) Yellow Pages.

Group 10: What other promotional and advertising activities do you involve in?

Sanjeev: Well, we tend to advertise in all sorts of mediums, from print media to online media to television advertising. You must have seen our friendly sales person ad or the Smriti irani ad, haven’t you?

Group 10: Yes sir, very much. So how many ads do you release in a year?

Sanjeev: Well, its very hard to please a customer, and it is even harder to retain an old one. So to build an impression and to remain a trustworthy brand, we tend to release 1 - 2 ads each year. We also tend to focus on a friendly relationship with the customer and like to be treated as a part of as a family, hence our ads are also oriented toward the same. You might remember the ‘ussay kya hoga ad’?

Group 10: Yes sir, that was a very cute ad. So, have you had any converts because of the ads?

Sanjeev: Yes, we get numerous calls on our 24 hour helpline. We are able to convert most of them on the basis of a simple demonstration. After all, a customer would only call for a demo is he or she is already convinced by the ad.

Group 10: Initially you said that you are in direct sales. Could you please tell how many prospects receive a demo in a day and how many converts do you get out of them? Please be specific about your water purifiers as they are on the hot list.

Sanjeev: According to the company policy, a sales person needs to give about 3 demos a day. But, a sales person is only able to manage 30 – 40 demos in a month. The conversion ratio is about 3:1.

Group 10: Could you please throw some light on the sales force that you have in India and in the Delhi region? Also, are you men oriented or you employee women as well?

Sanjeev: I estimate that we should be having a sales force of about 6000 + employees. The Delhi region must have about 400 – 500 employees. Yes, we do employee women, but as we have a lot of door to door selling and women avoid getting into the field, the ratio is around 98:2.

Group 10: Could you also tell us about the margins that you have in a product?

Sanjeev: O no! I cannot do that. That is top class information. Next question please.

Group 10: Alright sir, could you at least tell us about your discount policies?

Sanjeev: We do not give any discounts until and unless there is a bulk sale. There also, we only provide a discount upto 2 % and the minimum order should be of at least 11 products.

Group 10: What about the sales people?

Sanjeev: What about them?

Group 10: What is their share? Do they get any incentive?

Sanjeev: The sales people are paid according to the bracket they sell in. For example, if they sell 8 units, they fall into the 180 slab and if they sell 12 units, they fall into the 220 slab. They get a bonus of Rs 50 per sale.

Group 10: Sir, you have launched many products in the water purifiers segment itself. Could you please highlight the complaints that the customers generally face?

Sanjeev: Well, first of all, we upgrade from one product to another, not because there were faults in the first one, but because we need to customize the product according to the current requirements. We do not receive many complaints, but incase we do, we tend to solve them within 24 hours. We believe in the concept of friends for life, hence we wish to retain a customer, so we tend to sell the right product in the first instance. But, we do have a return policy for dis-satisfied customers. We refund their full money incase they wish to withdraw within a week of installation. We have never needed to resort to this policy though.

No, everything given in this is not a word to word interview... i did add a lot of extra information (almost 90%) on the basis of research... internet is a potential tool i must say!!!

The Leaf!

When I turn back the pages of my life…

I come across many people who have touched my life…

One is my mother, who gave me this life…

Two is the father, who made my life…

Then came the sister, which I wanted more than my life…

Four of us constitute a family, and that’s the truth of life!!!

I turn over the pages and make new friends…

Some are girls, the other’s boy friends…

Life suddenly became different from the incoming of friends…

Family took a backseat, first came friends!!!

Fast forward the life, old age’s turn…

Gone was the past, am in the present, let’s see what the future has in store…

I see no friends… so I decide to take a U-turn…

& go back to the family, I knew before!!!

I see my family waiting for me…

They know that I have turned a new leaf…

I never realised it could have been so stupid of me…

I was running after many, when I already had the best of all the leaves!!!

The High Ride!

Life is like an automobile, you are careful with it first, then you experiment, then you become rash, then the wear n tear starts showing... the only difference is you can discard an automobile, but you can't get rid of what you've done to your life!!!

When we learn to speak, we make a conscious effort to say the right words… when we learn to walk, we try to keep our feet steady… when we get on to a bicycle, we try not to fall off… this is the time when we are careful…

Then, we grow up and we can say the right words, do the right things, walk a straight line and drive a car with seven fingers (five on the gear box and two on the steering)… we do not have to put an effort in doing the same… we have mastered the art of it… this is the time we abide by our life!!!

Then, comes a time when we all wanna be rock stars… mot of us involve in the three famous activities of being a rock star (sex, booze n drugs)… we do things just to be cool… if we can’t get publicity the right way, we choose the wrong way… after all positive or negative… publicity is publicity… this is the time when we are experimental!!!

Then comes a time when we all transform into crabs… we turn to the crab mentality… we wanna get to the top whether by hook or by crook, and if we can’t get there, we don’t let anybody else get there either… we back bite… call names… malign other’s reputation… involve in drugs not as a means to be high, but as a means to survive… the good ol' water is replaced by booze… this is the time we are acting rash!!!

What follows are pink slips for unethical behavior at office… divorces for the ones who managed to somehow get married… even more drugs and even more booze leading to complicated problems of the liver, lungs and the heart, which in turn leads to numerous visits to the doctors… this is the time the wear and tear starts showing!!!

A few more years down the lane, we are sitting all alone at the beach side villa that we bought with the money we minted by selling our morals… we see people holding hands and kissing in public and look at our hands that long for support… we want a hug but we realize that we crushed the feelings of the people who could give us the hug and ripped apart the relationships that could have been beautiful… we did all of this intentionally just to get to the top… yes, we are at the top… but we are alone… this is the time when you wish you could discard the automobile called life, but sadly… do I even need to tell you - you can't!

Don’t try n be the rockstar… don’t try n be the crab… don’t treat your life as if its an automobile… thaz not the way its meant to be!

Bhat to do???

So I’m paying like 8 lakhs for higher studies… 2 years… that sums up to about 4 per annum and 2 per semester… 1 semester is of 6 months… hence its about 34 grand per month and about 700 per class… we are a batch of 300 students in m&s… about 60 per class (in 5 sections)… hence, its approx 60 X 700 = 42 grand per class… the least that I expect is that I understand at least 25 percent of the knowledge that my faculty imparts!!! (I understand that I cannot be concentrating fully all the time so I chuck off 50 percent and I also expect a little goof up from the teacher’s side, so there goes another 25 percent)… I hope you’d agree that im being pretty modest in my expectations!!!

But, life does not live upto my expectations… So you know Im taaking (talking) about something… right… you know… something… this is how one of my 4 credit paper teacher teaches… pls maam… if I knew the something that you expect me to know, I’d already be minting money, not taking classes for it!!! Then, there is this other maniac who comes 15 minutes late and eats up half hour of our break… and the PL (program leader) has very manipulatively arranged all his classes right before break… he openly admits that hij englisss ij bhery poor… he asks questions like “bhat ij the bhalue oph the bhariabul I taut u yesterday?”

Now, pleej tell me bhaat do I do??? Pleej taut me how to handle the situationzzz???

Dil Titli… Dil Titli Sa!!!

I have always loved the airtel ads… but… Oh my God… I so relate to this ad… cuz my dil also titli dil titli sa!!!

No matter how much effort I put into something… no matter how hard I try… no matter how strongly I pursue something… when I am almost about to reach my destination… there is always a temptation standing right there… and my heart would flutter with excitement… and I would forget all about the efforts that I put into my project or whatever and go with my heart!!! Now I know why… cuz dil titli dil titli sa!!!

All those of you who have read my past posts would remember my bachpan crushes… two at a time… I was never able to come first becuz dil titli dil titli sa… then in college, my 3^rd semester marks dropped, cuz again dil titli dil titli sa… then I had a heart break… n I thought my titli flew away… but then again… college fourth year… my titli came back… and i must say... it has stayed by my side ever since!!!

Then I joined infy… we were grilled there for four months… people would stay up all night and study… but I would stay up till 2, cuz dil titli dil titli sa… I have had enough experiences in my life to know dil titli dil titli sa… how about you???

The Night of 15th January

While I was working with NIIT, i have been a part of many fun events... 1 such event was a story writing compition where our edmc team of the publishing department was split into two groups and we had to come up with a story... we were all given certain dates when we were to add lines into the story.... the rules were:

1. you can only add 3 lines at a maximum, if you add an extra line, ranit (the coordinator) would delete it and that line cannot be used again.

2. you need to write three lines and pass off to the next person asap.

3. you cannot pass the story in less than 24 hours... i.e. the story cannot change hands in 24 hours...

so here is the story that team a came up with... i had totally forgotten about this 1.... but i found it in a blog called notes-diary.blogspot.com.

So here it is...

Ambika was so excited about her month long trip to the Maldives. She was all packed up, waiting for her taxi to arrive. Her eyes were stuck on that expensive cuckoo clock that hung on that mauve-colored wall in her luxuriously decorated living room. She had to meet her husband, Karan, at the airport. Karan, an investment banker, had an exigency at work and was coming to the airport directly. This sudden development had irked Ambika a bit, but the thought of the pristine beaches and cobalt blue waters they were going to enjoy soon was too exciting to fluster her. Just then, something strange happened. Ambika noticed a shadow of a cuckoo, right next to the cuckoo clock. For a second, her entire body froze.

The sudden awareness that it’s twelve at night and she has to reach the airport alone crossing the old villa, scared her to death. This villa was owned by Karan’s grandfather who died in a car accident. Ambika and Karan left the beautiful villa and started living away from this ancestral house shortly after his death because whenever Ambika used to see a shadow of a cuckoo at midnight, she used to have strange evil hunch about her future, which eventually used to come true. Realizing the fact that she will have to go to the airport alone, Ambika gathered herself. She had a lot to do before leaving for the airport and there was not much time left. She was checking the luggage that was lying in the drawing room when the shrill sound of the doorbell made her jump. With her heart beating loudly, Ambika went and peeked through the keyhole to see who was at the door and was relieved to see a taxi driver standing. The taxi came earlier than scheduled but she did not mind because she was a bit scared being alone in the big house in the middle of the night. She quickly put her luggage in the car and was about to lock the front door of her house when a thought suddenly crossed her mind—how come she did not hear the taxi coming in the silent night. Ambika immediately brushed away her fears realisng that she must be too engrossed in her thoughts to be able to hear the taxi coming. She asked the taxi driver to wait in the car while she locked the front door. As she turned towards the door, she had a feeling in the pit of her stomach that something was amiss, something was just not right…the eerie silence of the night appeared to confirm her fears. With all her courage, she turned and saw the driver beckoning towards her. Gasping a deep breath, she calmed her quivering nerves, moved into the shabby taxi, and left for the airport. Sitting in the taxi, Ambika started feeling a bit relaxed, when suddenly her cell phone rang. It was a call from the taxi provider confirming that the taxi is on its way and will report within next 15 minutes. Her entire body engulfed with fear. Before she could react, the car came to a screeching halt in front of the old villa. Ambika’s worst nightmare came true. The driver, straining his eyes in the dark, looked towards the address plate of the gloomy villa and turned around confirming Ambika's home address. Ambika froze on hearing from the driver, that he was suppose to pick someone from the villa but had by mistake landed at her door. She courageously argued that no one stays at the villa and that he should take her to the airport. Despite that, the driver got off the car, walked towards the villa to confirm the same and vanished in the dark.

Ambika now decided to ring up her husband to know where he was and to tell him about all the weird things that were happening to her. And while she was dialing to connect with Karan, a black Accord made a screeching halt right next to Ambika’s cab. Ambika soon recognized the car and cancelled her call, for it was Karan getting out of the car and reaching her in person. Ambika was so astonished to see her husband that she jumped out of the car and hugged him tightly. Karan calmed her down and told her that their flight has been delayed. He thought of joining her rather than waiting at the airport but when he reached home, he noticed her getting into the taxi and followed her all the way.

Feeling relaxed and calmer on seeing Karan Ambika was shaken from her stupor by the shrill tone of her mobile. It was Karan on the line telling her he was awaiting for her at the airport and wanting to know how long she would take to get there. A dazed and befuddled Ambika could not comprehend how come Karan was there in front of her and at the same time calling her up!

Ambika’s mind was in turmoil and she just didn’t know what to believe. Karan was, meanwhile, saying something to her. From a haze, she realized with a start that Karan was asking her to join him as he went inside the old villa for a round since they anyway had some time to kill. Ambika gathered all her fear and holding Karan by his hand started walking on the pavement that led to the villa’s main door when suddenly her eyes caught sight of the round, huge, old clock hanging from the villa’s wall that struck two. As they moved toward the villa, Ambika gave an admiring glance to the antique piece that shone brilliantly in the dark. Suddenly strong wind started blowing with a heavy downpour; Ambika and Karan ran toward the porch…the door creaked open. As the door opened, Ambika‘s grip on Karan’s hand tightened as she could sense something strange inside the room. Just as they stood, the grand villa went into darkness, but they noticed a beam of light falling at the gigantic old piano.

She realized that her evil hunch is coming true. She looked at Karan in horror as he told her that he is going to sacrifice her to bring his dead grandfather to life. Before she could say anything, or even plead for mercy, Karan slit her throat open (these three lines are my contribution). In the sharp silence of her fading strength, her vision blurred and the shadows grew in her eyes as she fell weightlessly onto the wooden floor, failing to hold on to the cell phone having Karan still on the other end of the line. He could hear her mumbling incoherently to someone, obviously not him! What on earth had come over his wife!

After what seemed like an eternity, Ambika could feel someone shaking her, shouting out her name and saying “What happened?” As she opened her eyes she could see the same familiar beady eyes in front of her and the same familiar room and her husband grumbling “You watch way too many horror movies these days and wake up in the night shouting and disturb my sleep as well.” And he proceeded to go back to sleep after handing her a glass of water.

As she gulped down the water, she glanced into the mirror near her bed. Were her eyes deceiving her? There was an exact mark on her neck like in the dream, with a few drops of blood trickling down. Dazed, she climbed out of her bed and approached the mirror to examine the mark. As she looked in the mirror, she froze; to her horror she saw someone lurking behind her with a shining object in hand. In panic, with adrenaline rushing, she picked up the heavy flower pot from the table and turned around.

She had almost hit the shadow with the flower pot when she realized it was Karan standing in front of her, perplexed to see her in such a weary condition. Karan looked deep into her blues eyes—those eyes which had always been like two mesmerizing sapphires overflowing with love for him—looked so violent and terrified today. There was nothing greater than hers and Karan’s love for each other, and although, tears were trickling down Ambika’s blue eyes, she mustered courage and moved closer to Karan. The shining object that he held in his hand was, indeed, a beautiful ribboned box, trimmed with decorative braids, ornate laces, and flirty tassels. She was caught unawares, when Karan pulled her closer and placed the ribboned box in her hands, which finally, gave her a sense of assurance and comfort that this was reality.

She lovingly pulled apart the ribbons of the box, and inside the white velvet of the box, was a dagger, dripping with fresh blood. She looked into the mirror, and could not see her reflection. The room echoed with Karan’s laughter!!!

Presentation... What to Hide and What to Show.

As we grow up the career ladder... we need to imbibe some skills in ourselves... 1 such skill is the presentation skill!!! I gave a presentation today, and realized that many of us are awfully nervous while giving our presentations... Just standing on the dice is a big deal!!! So, i'm the type who suffers from stage fright... but i have a special fright... i only get scared if the stage is a level or two up the audience!!!

I got a tip once... when on the stage, consider the audience naked... and i tried it... there were 2 problems...
1. i wasn't able to consider them naked (yes, i do have an imagination, but it does not run that wild)
2. my attention got deviated, hence i was even more nervous!!!

So, if you too get this advice... either work on your imagination, or forget it...

My only advice to you is... hide your nervousness.... a stage makes just about everyone nervous... Now how do you hide your nervousness???
1. Prepare for the damn thing... do not mug up your presentation... learn it inside out... how can you go wrong, if you swear by it!!!
2. Practice... look in the mirror, and rectify your smiling patterns and body language!!! if you don't like the sight of the mirror, your audience will not like you either!
3. maintain eye contact... i mean... do i even need to explain??

thaz what i follow... and if none of these work... imagine yourself to be a different person... as if you are suffering from schizophrenia... imagine that the damn presentation is just a presentation... and it don't make no difference to you... when you're not the same person and you are not concerned how he/she performs... you will do a hell lot better!!!

all the very best!!!

How Deep Is Your Love?

Real love touches us in a way that no tangible thing ever can… real love makes you do things that you once laughed at… it makes you smiles for no reason… it gives you a tipsy feeling in the pit of your stomach... and it makes you feel as if your heart has been squeezed into a tiny dot... yet, you enjoy the pain... it makes you wanna jump off the highest mountains and swim the deepest seas... or just simply dance with joy or take a stroll... it makes you feel beautiful and it makes the world a bed of red roses… love is a beautiful feeling and it must be experienced by each… you may not have love forever, but if you have it right now, you’re special…

You know you’re special not when somebody kneels down and proposes… you are special if he still gets ready 2 hours in advance for a 30 min date even after 3 years of being together… you know you’re special when you vomit on his hands and he still holds you tight… you’re special when he looks into your eyes and smiles all bright even when you’ve had the worst hair day and when you have a thousand pimples on your face and even the mirror refuses to look at you… you’re special when he travels from one corner of the country to the other just to celebrate your birthday with you…

You know you’re special when he looks at you instead of checking out “the hot chick”… you’re special when he wants to talk to you even if you only have 5 mins… and most importantly when he never misses an opportunity to fill the gaps between your fingers… if you are special… don’t be a fool… don’t let go!!!

HARI SADU…

1 word… awesome… this is the only word that can truly describe the naukri ad… thaz what I thought when I saw the ad for the first time!!! It actually was my favorite!!! I thought what a smart ad… this is the way to get back at a sucker… this is an amazing marketing strategy… it brings in the feeling of being the boss… I decide my life… I do what I want to do… I talk trash to trashy people… after all, I will easily find a job with naukri.

But, then I joined an mba… I started to look at the things which were not really all that evident… and then, I saw a flip side to one of my favorite ad… it defies the first and the basic rule of working… never back bitch about your organization and never malign the reputation of a senior no matter how sad his life actually is… when you a join a new organization, you’d never know who’d they contact in the your old organization… you’d never know it actually may be your Hari Sadu!

Weighty Woes!!!

So what if I’m on the little chubby side… it doesn’t mean I don’t have no feelings… I feel the same as the non-chubby girls… I laugh, I cry, just like them… I even think like them… I act, talk and walk like them… oh k, the walk may be different… I can’t carry a cat walk with all that weight!!!

It all started when I was 1… thaz from as far as I can remember it… my ma, who was a skinny one then, refused to carry me up in her arms, as she could not tolerate my weight… my dad was always burdened with the burden (me… I still am one)… When I turned 1, I took my first baby step… then I took another one… and then the third one… during the three step process, I realized that my chubby thighs were rubbing against each other… yet, I still carried on… I should have listened to my brain… but you know me… I never listen to my brain (no matter how right it is), I always go for the heart (no matter how wrong it is) and thatz exactly what I did that day too… and then, there was this loud dhupp… and I was on the floor… crying loudly… yeah… that was my way of getting attention… anyways, so thatz how my story goes!!!

And after all these years, I am still battling with my chubbiness… I have tried it all… dieting… it worked for me big time… when I was in college, I went on an automatic diet… I didn’t like the food… hence my waist size went from 34 to 26… then, I tried exercising… that helped too… It helped me loose around 7 kgs… but then I realized… its all vain… I am chubby, and I will stay chubby… so I let go of all… and dedicated all my attention towards food… now, chubbiness has become a part of my daily routine and I am thoroughly loving it (incorrect reference, I mean I am loving the food part, not the chubbiness that… that is unavoidable)!!!

The Blessing!!!

Oh k… so I fight with my ma… like all the time… for the pettiest of reasons… I fight with my sister too… here… I don’t even need a reason, I just fight cuz I wanna… I even have the guts to fight with my dad… here, I need strong reasons… the point is… I fight with them all… I curse them… I swear on them… when, I was younger, I sometimes even secretly wished that they all die… I even tried to punch my ma!!! I know I can be really nasty at times!!!

So, we generally fight cuz there is a difference in opinion, and none of the parties is willing to bow down to the other… both think that they are absolutely right!!! In my case, I am a hell of a stubborn child… when I believe I am right, I have to have physical evidence of being wrong… I do not fall for words, no matter how sound they may sound!!! I have made terrible decisions in my life… my parents have made decisions for me that they thought were the best, but I din’t like at all…

The point is we can all be wrong… I have been wrong many a times… but, when I found out that I was wrong, my family supported me… through and through… till I made it through… and in spite of that… I still crib sometimes… ok.. many a times… but, I know in spite of my cribbing, and in site of all the fighting, and in spite of all the things that have been said and done… I know I am blessed… cuz I hav a family that will stand by me through thick and thin!!!

Hatch Pee

I opened my gmail inbox, and saw a mail from an old college friend... I generally do not read the forwarded mails but I could make out that it is not a forward… I opened it and saw in big purple font… congratulations!!!

Oh… I see… so this was a congratulatory mail… but what for??? ;O I read on to find out… my friends have completed 3 full years in HP (Hatch Pee) yes… that is the pronunciation… Even the person at the highest post in Hatch Pee, Bangaluru calls it that… If you have read my earlier posts, you would know that it is Hewlett Packard, not Hindustan Petroleum…

Wow people… I must congratulate you on completing 3 full years in Hatch Pee… I remember that Hatch Pee is our dream company… at least that’s what we were told… Right??? Cuz Hatch Pee is everyone’s dream company… anyways, even though I just spent 1 month and 5 days there… I have a lot of fond memories… In one month, I managed to fight with Debo and then managed to make the bestest of frenz with him too, I managed to find a girl who shares the same birthday as me (it was so funny ya.. Happy birthday G!... same to you yaa… hahahaha)

I remember, the PG that I stayed at… the morning tea I made, and the bread butter sand witch that I made… trust me… even that was an achievement then… I remember the dhaba waalas we ate from… the way I washed my clothes everyday… the way it would rain every evening… and then I also remember… Athiya… the food was awesome… su, debo…. I remember how we thoroughly enjoyed that ½ hour!!! I also remember how delighted Bangalore was at having us… it renamed itself to Bangaluru!!! See our effect… we never let things remain the same!!! I know things have changed… but these memories I will cherish forever!!! Cheers to life!!!

Why Do We Flirt?

Flirting is an activity that each one of us performs... sometimes, we flirt cuz we like the person in front of us... or it gives us a feel good factor... or cuz its like a ritual, it has become a part of our life... we just cant do without flirting!!!

So what is flirting??? The cliches like you're place or mine??? Have we met before??? Are these flirting tricks??? No.. i don't think so... these are tips to get a good slap accross your face!!! ok... so what about acting high, talking trash... ummmm... i dont think so!

So what SRK did in the movie, Rab ne bana di jodi... is that flirting... yes, it is... and it very much is CHEAP flirting... The only reason that that chick fell for him is cuz he is SRK... i'm pretty sure if it were somebody else... He would have a FAT Chance!!!

Flirting tips... you need to follow the contingency approach... you need to follow different approaches with different people... first check out... then, sometimes you need to be friendly, sometimes silly, sometimes intelligent, and if you're intrested then inviting too!!! no matter which approach you follow, remember it is utmost essential to be confident... you know you are flirting right when the person in front of you smiles back and you have the tipsy feeling at centre of your stomach! and you're both enjoying it!!!

Why flirt?? Flirting is a real good way to improve health, refresh mind, and experience new emotions... So, all those of you who are looking for ways to achieve the above mentioned without visiting a doctor... try flirting!!!

Infosys@Chandigarh!

People say that college life is the best time of your life.. you better enjoy that time... well... my college life was ok.. i think... but the time that i enjoyed the most was at infosys@chandigarh... I joined infy on the December 26... it was pretty cold that day... me and my family reached chandigarh on Decmber 24th, my dad was working with an MNC that had a guest house in chandigarh... for 2 days, we ate nice food, enjoyed site seeing at chandigarh... even celebrated christmas eve there... i tell you, dilli di sardi is nothing in comparision to chandigarh's.

Anyways, 1st day at infosys was real fine... a bunch of 250 fresh graduates together under one room... u can imagine the kind of fun... :) we were made to stay at a hotel in pankula (sad part, boys and girls' hotels were separate)... my roomie was from pune... she was shorter than me... so she let me have the entire hangers wala area of the almirah... god!!! it was such a good feeling...

in infosys, we were made to undergo extensive training for 4 months, 1st two months were general training, and the next two were stream specific... they followed modular fashion of training... we would be taught something for a week, then we would have a test, that would generally fall on a monday... chandigarh is a 6 hours drive from delhi, so i had to come home every weekend (ma's food and washing of clothes was essential) + who studies at home... i never did... most of my frenz warned me of the consequences of failing an exam... passing marks were 75 ( i think, im not sure that i remember it well) failing would lead to being chucked out from the company... but i thankfully i never flunked!!!

i made frenz there... female frenz... its funny... this was the 1st time i was getting along with gurls... i stood up and fought for my class when 70 percent of us failed in our 1st test (most of us passed on re-eval)... i went out with frenz for late-night parties... i studied late night... i sang truly madly deeply in front of 50 people... i helped madhur in getting an answer right (this is very imporatnt, cuz he used to consider me a dodo before that)... i drove back ajit's car cuz he was too drunk and puking all the way... in short... i had the loveliest time of my life... i thank all the people who made infy @ chandigard so good!!!

The Interview

It was my second interview ever... The first one was with HP (Hewlett Packard) not Hindustan Petroleum... campus interview... i cleared that one... went to b'lore... din't like.. came back... stayed home for 3 months... was super inconfident for my second interview... why? Cuz i had lost touch with my studies... and 3 months of nagging had made me feel suicidal and worthless!!!

Nevertheless, I had one thing that was making me confident... I had cleared the infosys paper that 1 of my brilliant cousins and 1 of my friend were not able to! So, i knew that i was above them... I especially bought and wore an orange suit... why?? cuz I thought that orange was my lucky colour... I tied my hair nice and proper, wore lenses, blah blah!!! The interview was scheduled to start at 12: 30... i reached the premise at 11:30... I was a little confident but high on energy.. time passed by... the clock went from 1, to 2 to 3... my turn had not come as yet. :( + i was hungry + a couple of people asked me if i had solved some puzzle book... what the hell... i din't know that infy asked us to solve puzzles!

Then i heard my name, I pulled up my sox (not literally), put on a bright smile and entered the room... Good afternoon, i said to the two middle aged gentlemen, they gave me a stern look and said, it seems somebody has had a good day! Anyways, tell us something about yourself... your strenghts, your weaknesses... wow... this one was easy... i sailed through... then they asked which is your favourite subject, i said VLSI, then they said what do you think you're the weakest at... i said GK... (I mean, I seriously suck at it)... then they said... you will need to face your fear... tell us... what is the name of the president of india... wow maan... i knew this one... the only problem is I f****** could not remember his name... or was it his or her name... uuummm.... i said... i know this one... they said...ok... go ahead... so i took a deep breath... and said... i am awefully nervous.... to this they said, you look pretty confident... i said... well its this guy who has pretty long hair and does not believe in short cuts... they were amazed at my answer and started laughing... i laughed along.... they said... ok next question... and i suddenly thumped the table and said its APJ Abdul Kalam.... yeah maan... i was delighted!! i got a Gk question right for god's sake...

Next question... who is the FM.... I said thaz P. Chidambaram... this one came right out when they asked... next question... who is the the PM... oh shucks maan... again... i knew this one, but whaz with the damn name... I suddenly found that I had one hand up on my head, as if i were holding a tennis ball right there, and i said, its the sardaar ji... they said... do you know the name??? I again thumped the table and said Manmohan singh.... i dont understand whats it between me and the table, i have the answers when i bang the darn thing.

Then they pointed towards my watch, i was wearing a fastrack watch, i still have it... they said... what is that? i said its a watch... ok, what shape is it? I said it looks like a triangle to me... they said, im talking to an engineer, why dont you tell me what shape is in technical terms... i stared at my watch for a good 1 minute, and said it pretty much looks triangular to me... both my interviewers looked at each other and sighed... then they said, should we thump the table for you? I said, why? Is my answer wrong... they said, try thumping the table, so i did... oh yeah! it is a parabola not a triangle... i think.... that table was very helpful to me that day.

Then they said, what is that you're wearing in your ears... i said its an earring... what earring... they are pearls... they said its looking nice, where did you buy it from (Oh! so he wanted a pair for his wife or what)... i replied... well, my mum bought it, its actually my ma's.... he said, ok, lemme rephrase the question, where do you get pearls from? i said... this one, i think is from hyderabad... i mean hyderabadi pearls are really famous... i suddenly saw an excitement build in their faces... 1 of them said... no dear... where are they made?? or actually mined?? Which mountain do we get them from? do we find them in the northern regions or the southern regions?? I was actually falling for it... My mind was doing a full swing... where are they mined from??? which moutains??? then it suddenly struck me... diamonds are mined... so maybe pearls are mined too... but where???

I could not remember... I was about to give up... Then thanks to my love for cartoons, i suddenly remembered something... i very gently said, I really respect your knowledge, but im not sure if pearls are mined at all... they asked, why do you say so?? I said, i have never seen extraction of pearls, but i have seen many a times in the cartoons that in the oceans, there are shells (i made a air filled horizontal namaskar) and when the shells open up ( i slowly opened up my namaskar to make an almost 90 degree) you can find the pearl in there... they said, thaz bullcrap ( i am pretty sure thaz not the word they used, but for simplicity, we will take it as is) pearls are mined just like diamonds from a specific mountaineous region... i said, you could be a 100 percent right, but cartoons are an indirect way of imparting knowledge to the children, hence, i am pretty sure that the pearls are found in the oceans...

They both looked at each other and started laughing hysterically, then they turned to me and one of them said, geeta, betay, we've never had such a fun filled interview before.... you really made us laugh, all the best for your future!!! (All the best for your future.... they had rejected me... o no!!! i consoled myself) I said, so may i leave for the day... they said, no, wait outside... i said ok, got up from my chair, turned around, opened the door, turned around to face them, said thank you, have a great day! they smiled back, and said you too! i quietly moved out of the room and closed the door behind me... then there was another chit chat where i discussed with others how their interview went, and was amazed to find out that people were given puzzles to solve and asked all sorts of technical questions!!! (a le! so they never wanted to hire me... they din't ask me even 1 technical question).. anyways, we had another round with the hr, who just asked us if we will have a problem if we were to be transfered any place else, i said no! (as if they were going to hire me anyways)

i cried back the entire way... + i hadn't eaten all day, so my stomach was hurting and grumbling!!! i felt like a complete waste... full day lost!!! anyways... 2 weeks passed by... and the result was out... wait a minute... my name was there... i wanted to scream with joy... but i could not believe my eyes... i switched off the computer, turned it on again, asked my ma to see my result... my joining date was Decmeber 26 at infosys, chandigarh.... hahahaha!!!! i could not and still cannot believe i made it through infosys with an interview like that!!!

Rakhi... Raksha Bandhan... not Rakhi Sawant!

India is a country known for its diverse and rich culture. We have multiple festivals to celebrate our rich culture. One such festival is rakhi. Day after tomorow is rakhi and it reminds me of all the joys that rakhi brings. Rakhi comes in various sizes and colours, my cousin brother was so fond of the big rakhis when younger, that i still punish him for the same.... :)

It is a festival which is given a lot of importance especially in schools... from our second grade to our seventh grade, rakhi is looked upto with anticipation from girls and boys alike... from seventh grade plus, it is looked upto with horror, espically from the boys, many even absent themselves from school... or come up with excuses such as, I have plenty of sisters of my own, i need no more!!!

Here, i am reminded of a particular rakhi celebration at my school, i think we were in the fifth grade... i think i only had 1 rakhi left, when girls came bubbling with joy... when i asked, what happened... i was told that Ayan Ghosh had given them a lovely pair of earrings each... Suddenly, I felt my body afloat and floating towards Ayan... i happily did the tika and tied the rakhi... then i forwarded my hand... and to my ill luck... Ayan was left with no earrings... :( he did promise me a pair the next day... but he just forgot.. Ayan, i still am waiting for that earring! :P

There is this particular boy, Vipul Gupta... i tied him a rakhi every year... I still remember, in the eighth grade, when all boys were scared of the rakhi... he specially came to my class to get the rakhi tied... that was really sweet... i will never forget it all my life. That's when i realised, rakhi is not a festival for minting money or getting B.E.A.Utiful gifts, it is a festival when people promise to take care of each other!!! Though on the contrary, it is a nice way of minting money!!!

Friends Forever!

As today is world's frenz day, I would love to write a post on the topic...

They say you keep your true fren till the end of time... but in this fast paced life, we make frenz, we swear by them, we swear on them, we even swear we'd kill them... then we do the worst, we use them to go up in the ladder and never look back... our frenz give us everything we need, and once we have sucked each drop of their blood, and they have nothing else left off them, we leave them cuz frenz are to be taken for granted...

no... m not writing this, cuz i have been taken for granted... i am amongst those people, who take others for granted!!! and i have made this mistake not once but twice... i have taken two of my very best frenz for granted... why??? cuz thaz wot most people do... today... i just wanna take this oppourtunity to appologize... guys, im never gonna take you for granted ever again!!! i would love to abide by the saying, and keep you guys till eternity!!!

Frenz are the angels in devils' disguise exclusive for us. Angelic because they always want our best... and they are disguised as devils because good is nice, but bad is sexy... and we all opt for sexy between the nice or sexy!

P.S. My exclusive Devil, I will always love you! (not in the 377 way)... and i wanna keep you forever as my bestest (if that is a word) fren!! ;P

Mistakes we Make...

Right from school, we heard... Learn from the mistakes of others... I always wanted to know why? I always wondered why should i learn from other's mistakes? Thanks to the Indian culture, I never got the reason!!! Its funny, cuz mistakes are so interesting... they give us so many lessons!!! But, for all of you who are still wondering why we should learn from the mistakes of others?? It is because life is too short, you don't have enough time to make all the mistakes yourself... :)

Mistakes are things we all do... sometimes we do them on purpose!!! i made a lot myself... but, when i joined infosys, one of my SPM's in chennai gave me a super nice perspective towards making mistakes... He said, make mistakes, but do not repeat them, make bigger mistakes!!! so thaz what ive been doing all my life... i made mistakes, and kept the intensity growing each time!!!

Now, i have reached a point where I have lost count for the mistakes i have made... no... i did not get sloshed... nor did i do drugs... nor i did i end up at the wrong place at the wrong time... these are not really mistakes... These are things people do to look cool... they do it to fit in!!! i dont believe in the concept of fitting in... i believe we all have a place set for ourselves, we will fit into the right place eventually!

The point is, there is no harm in making mistakes... you just need to learn how to undo them... the human species is filled with an emotion called forgiveness... Just give it a try!!! We are like clay, sculptured by our own mistakes... we can be redone as soon as we realise that we made one!