Ode to an alma mater

It is inevitable that human civilisation will self-destruct at some point in time. Then the cycle will start all over again. Hunting-gathering, rudimentary tools, stone age, bronze age, iron age, nuclear age and so on. At a future date, when they excavate, they might find a beautiful structure at present-day Bannerghatta in Bengaluru. There would be inexplicable stone structures spanning an area of present-day 54,000 sqm. It might look like this:

They will find stone structures like this on the following pattern over 54,000 sqm area:

They will use carbon dating or whatever methods and date the constructions to present day 1973-1983. Gradually, with the help of other artifacts and some imagination, they’ll recreate some of the structures to have looked like:

 

They will be surprised at some of the similarities of the structures to two other structures found quite far away. They wouldn’t know that these latter were called Fatehpur Sikri and Madurai temple today. They will be amazed at the structures’ spatial synthesis and energy efficiency with passive cooling strategies. The facilitation of natural light and ventilation will take their breath away. Every so often, the lines of the architecture will baffle them because they will see sudden changes of scale and occasional breakings of corridors; however, the structure would make sense when taken as a whole. 

What they wouldn’t know is that the whole complex was designed to foster an environment of learning and interaction. If they reconstruct the buildings with lush surroundings they will find the whole complex leaning on a sequence of spatial experiences. The overall sequence of movement – from the lush, open campus to the semi-open corridors and eventually to the more enclosed and protected spaces would generate multiple threshold conditions. These unique locations in the plan would allow the functional spaces to interact and assimilate more freely with the overall theme, creating fluid and easy connections between the spaces for movement and the spaces for work. 

They wouldn’t know the genius of the architect, Balkrishna Vithaldas Doshi for whom, “Architecture was an extension of the body, and it was where the mind dwelt.” Like all Doshi’s creation, this structure, with its harmonious blend of traditional Indian and modern architectural elements would be seen but the underlying philosophy would escape those in the future. They may not know that the design ethos was to create a space that transcended the physical boundaries of buildings, encouraging openness and fluidity, seamlessly integrating indoor and outdoor spaces, facilitating a dialogue between nature and built form. The structure would be representative of architectural norms at a time when the country was on the cusp of embracing modernity. 

They may well surmise a few things, e.g., that it was a place of learning, but they wouldn’t know how, by creating an atmosphere where one didn’t see divides and doors, it promoted a sense of community among the students and faculty. How the courtyards, corridors, and fenestrations were meticulously designed to facilitate natural light and ventilation, creating a conducive atmosphere for education and contemplation. How the inclusive spaces encouraged creativity and interaction. How the campus blended historical inspirations and modern functionality, making it a unique example of how architecture could bridge the past and the present. Or how over a career spanning six decades, Doshi created such a profound impact on the architectural fraternity and society at large that he was awarded the prestigious Pritzker Architecture Prize (frequently referred to as the Nobel prize of architecture) in 2018, becoming the first Indian to receive this honour. 

Above all, they wouldn’t know how the campus and the buildings housed a beacon of academic excellence called IIMB which nourished such a large number of world leaders and how enormously the architecture contributed to that process. They also wouldn’t know that although the institute was already 10 years old then, the author’s batch was the first one in that campus.

[The pathway to excellence]

Starting it all

 

IIM, Bangalore was a decade old when we happened there but ours was the first batch to move into the new campus parts of which were still under construction then. Two of us edited all the literary outputs from our batch during those heady times. My co-editor (and partner-in-crime) was Rajendra Nargundkar, currently an acclaimed Professor of Marketing and Vice Chancellor of a University. This is what we wrote in the yearbook for our batch: 

 

STARTING IT ALL 

 

We were the lords and ladies of all we surveyed. A campus emerging, Sphinx-like, from the ruminating remnants of prehistoric stones, an open-air mess with cloistered smoke inside and a green nursery without, hundred percent compulsory attendance, a fragmented library providing ex-cases for bus journeys to the City, all this presaged a two-year sojourn that ends with quadrangled card games and bucket-bashes. It was a time for venturesome dreams, gigantic castles in the air, generous undercurrents of apprehension and excitement, for exchanging names and qualifications and identification details with a hundred others, remembering some, forgetting some, and then trying to remember some more. A time for forays into skits and songs. Talks about the Inter-IIM. And first, tentative attempts at beating the system. 

And soon there was a time for waking up. For wiping away the mists of gossamer dreams from one's eyes. For taking stock. For realising that, idyllic existence or otherwise, it's all over. The last card had been dealt. The last supper in what we call the mess, devoured. Tomorrow will be a different territory, an existence separate from Bannerghatta. No more deleterious last-night battles for the next morning's quiz. No longer the long walks to Uncle's at eleven in the night. Time to pack up and flaunt the M.B.A. degree in an evanescent world of corporate make-believe. 

And in between. In between lay a two-year stretch when a lot of dreams crashed, a lot were rewritten and some new ones born. Who wins and who loses- in exams, in Frisbee, in Cricket, in JAM, in Baddy. Who gets a better grade and who gets the rough end? Who is how what. Keeping count till the cows come home. 

Tragic interludes. Of Puneet and Salvo snatched away in their prime. Of visits to the Electric Crematorium. Of ashes. Of bitter butterflies in the stomach. Two who were living were now dead. We who were living were also to come to ashes, with a little patience. Bubbling moments. PJs bandied about with competitive zeal, Mural coming alive with yesterday's headliners. 

Mimicking the Profs. The inter-IIM trophy won in the first year and lost subsequently. Chorus chants of Beatles numbers and limericks to fill the darkness when the KEB calls the tune. Late-night efforts to bring out printed IIMBIBEs (our mags). Finding places of solace on MG and Brigade. And discovering the mysterious ways back to the hostel.

All this and a lot more were what those two years were all about. We will look back upon the memories of this unpremeditated past, we are bound to. 

The new growing campus may, on some distant or not-so-distant date, become the epitome of all that is best in the best possible of worlds, a meeting place for enlightened, avante-garde haute-management. Or it may degenerate into the stale nemesis of dreams relinquished, academic might-have-been. 

Whatever happens, we will have the consolation that we started it all.

 

Dash n' Gunds

March 1984.

[Also from the yearbook, IIMPRESSIONS. Creator: I.K. Gautam]

 

Gulliver among the giants

 

We were the lords and ladies of all we surveyed. A campus emerging, Sphinx like, from the ruminating remnants of prehistoric stones, an open-air mess with cloistered smoke inside and a green nursery without, hundred percent compulsory attendance, a fragmented library providing excuses for bus journeys to the city, all this presaged a two year sojourn that ends with quadrangled card games and bucket-bashes. It was a time for venturesome dreams, gigantic castles in the air, generous undercurrents of apprehension and excitement, for exchanging names and qualifications and identification details with a hundred others, remembering some, forgetting some, and then trying to remember some more. A time for forays into skits and songs. Talks about the Inter-IIM. And first, tentative attempts at beating the system.

 

Thus begins our yearbook for the 1982-84 batch of MBA students at IIM, Bangalore. There were only three IIMs then. What the pass-outs lacked in numbers, they made up in arrogance. However, not all were arrogant. It’s fascinating to see what happened to the least arrogant or the meekest of them all. Did they inherit the earth?

 

Possibly the most vela guy was Das Narayan Das. Any kind of serious endeavour like studies, projects, etc. and he were as remote from each other as possible. Last time I saw him in India before he went to US was him doing some mysterious things in a swimming pool in Bombay. He was so energetic and vigorous that there was less water in the pool than outside when he finally came out. Out of curiosity I asked him what that was all about and he said, “Didn’t you know, I was swimming?” But before that, we were both in Bombay for our summer training. I was with McDowell and Co. and he was with TCS. One afternoon, the receptionist buzzed me to tell me that Narayan Das was waiting for me at the reception. However, when I went there, Narayan was nowhere to be seen. I was intrigued. Later when I rang him up to ask what happened, he said, “Actually, the receptionist was very good-looking so I thought I would come back and go tomorrow in a better (i.e., less crumpled) dress and after a shave. We used to play the word games where there were gradings like if you make 20-25 words, you get Excellent, 15-19 words, very good and so on. He would make a few words and then change the grading scales. He also invented something called anti-chess to counter a serious and seriously arrogant guy who used to lose a match and proclaim, “Uff, I calculated up to the 8^th move; I should’ve calculated up to the 9^th move …” What did he do in life? Can you believe it, he is an acclaimed Professor of Marketing and Dean at Harvard Business School? So popular is his course that students have to apply and bid for his course two years in advance to get a look-in.

 

A guy called Freddie (Frederic Fougea) happened to us in the second year. Inter-IIM competition was a fiercely fought affair those days. We won the inter-IIM thanks to this one guy. He would go and ace all the sports competitions like Tennis in the morning, then turn up for the Western music with a saxophone and win all these hands down. We had invented a game called Frisby Footer, playing with a Frisby with some football rules. It became so popular that there was an all-Bangalore championship amongst the colleges. We won the final 60-10 or so and out of that, Freddie score 50 odd “goals.” Well, after passing out, the guy directed 10 films and was associated with 30 odd films and television serials as producer and screenwriter. His films have won scores of awards including an Emmy and his serials have been telecast in hundreds of channels. 

We used to call him Hassled. Even now, in our group, he signs his posts as H. The name is Ramesh Srinivasan. The two things which truly excited him at the campus were winning at Carrom and perfecting his square drive. Well, he went on to play active competitive carrom for 11 years winning a lot of tournaments abroad. He also played active competitive amateur cricket in Los Angeles for nine years for which he would drive 275 miles each way. He has run two full marathons and has clocked 15,000 miles of running when last checked. Meanwhile, he headed Bally Technologies (turnover $ 1 billion) and is currently President and CEO, Agylisis, US. Last year he casually donated $1.3 million from his personal funds to his alma mater, IIT (BHU) for building a state-of-the-art student activity centre (sports).

In the yearbook, we gave taglines to most of the students. Her tagline was, “This miss is a hit.” Again a serious veli or so we thought. Life and soul of any gathering and truly easy to talk to. Those days, getting to the US was not easy and academics was one of the routes. (On her own admission) she applied for a Ph D just to get to the US to be together with her then-significant-other and later-husband. The same Tennis-anyone girl became a renowned academic. The citations of her books and papers run into tens of thousands. However, one thing has remained constant. She continues to be extremely popular, amongst students, amongst peers and, of course, amongst serious academics. I think, year after year, students at Tuck School of Business vote her the most popular teacher. She is Kusum Lata Ailawadi. 

These and many other giants trod the earth at IIMB back in 1982-1984. And then, there was little old me, almost certainly there through a monumental clerical mistake or something. A veritable tiny, puny Gulliver (a Lilliputian, actually) …