After IIT Kharagpur MHRM and K. J. Somaiya interviews I was all set for IIT Madras GT/PI. I negotiated a day leave from Teach For India and Good Friday followed by weekend helped me to attend the process peacefully. While heading towards Chennai, I never thought that this would be the most satisfying experience but on my way back at Raichur station, the train has already taken a halt for 20 minutes & the temperature is too high here. I can see something written in jalebi characters on a tea stall and this where I think I should write about va, chol, chatham and nir.....
On my way to Chennai, I was reading 2 States by Chetan Bhagat, that gave me a fair idea about how a North Indian would feel in Chennai. Though I felt things are too exaggerated in 2 states. Off course the book has to be sold out and Chetan is an IIM-A veteran so who knows marketing better than him. On reaching Chennai, I heard "Chuk Chukma, Chuk Chuk Chukma.... ". Chennai Central has a beautiful arrangement of multiple TV sets aligned one after another that one can watch while waiting for trains. Though someone from north can hardly understand anything apart from the fact that it was an advertisement. The chuk-chukma actor was quite fair, contrary to common perception about South India. On coming out of the station, I was chased by some auto-rickshaw drivers who were talking in tamil. I was convinced that I won't be able to make out what they were discussing. I was in no mood to spend any money on this GT/PI so I took a bus (5C) from the other side of the road. It was 5:30 a.m in the morning & I was sweating like a waterfall. The public conveyance in Chennai is a lot cheaper compared to Pune. The conductor was helpful & replied modestly in Hindi to my question in English. The bus passed through many flyovers, one of them very close to a residential society which made me remember Lata Mangeshkar's controversy.
IIT Madras hostels are named on rivers of India. At the main gate, I inquired about Mahanadi hostel & the security guard told me that it was 20 minutes walkable distance. On my way, I observed an animal behind the bushes. I thought it must be a dog. It turned out to be a deer instead. It was IIT Madras & care was taken to allow only branded animals in. I walked for 20 minutes but no hostel was seen. On inquiring, another guard told me that it was 20 minutes walkable distance from there. Hence the conclusion - IIT Madras security guards like fooling North Indians early morning. I asked about the bus & was told the way to nearest bus stop. The bus carried me back to the main gate & then to the boys hostel. The guard of the hostel told me that I will be allotted room at 9 a.m & asked me to wait in room no. 721. I met Kinchuk & Sapan, my friends for rest of the stay.
Vishal sir came at around 8 a.m & issued us the coupons for breakfast, lunch & dinner. I thought that this is what I came for. IIT Madras has a separate building for mess which was inaugurated by Mr. Narayan Murthi. The building has four floors & there are two mess on every floor. Together they offer every possible food known to mankind. Vishal sir tied up with Annapurna mess for the tenners. The food was tasty & unlimited. So my purpose of coming to Chennai was fulfilled. For GT/PI, I was in 3:30 p.m slot. It was the last slot for the day. We were shown a video of Department of Management Studies(DoMS) followed by question & answer session where the actual fun started. Seniors were answering the queries modestly when Prof. L. S. Ganesh(LSG) came in. DoMS aspirants kept asking their questions. Prof. kept replying patiently & eventually said "Everyone of our students cries disregarding the age & work-experience, everyone just breaks down at convocation. No one wants to leave IIT Madras". I saw many videos of Ganesh sir on youtube. those were titled "Pushing your limits" & were highly inspirational. So overall, I have a great impression of LSG sir but IIT Madras says LSG rocks.
The impression that I carried with me in the end was that an MBA student will learn a lot in DoMS, IIT Madras. The campus is exceptional. It is 650 acres of jungle. Every student is free to attend any lecture from any depatrtment. DoMS is quite low rated in most of the b-school rankings that come out every year. It deserves better rankings & average salaries than current levels. My GT/PI experience was fine but there is huge competition & IIT professors are obsessed with ranks which in my case is not so great (AIR 2049, GEN). After the process, I had dinner with my new friends & headed towards Chennai Central. I have written this article on my way back to Pune.
PS: I couldn't convert DoMS call but I still believe it is a great b-school & one should put possible efforts to get in.
Note: Bold text added later.
IIT Madras hostels are named on rivers of India. At the main gate, I inquired about Mahanadi hostel & the security guard told me that it was 20 minutes walkable distance. On my way, I observed an animal behind the bushes. I thought it must be a dog. It turned out to be a deer instead. It was IIT Madras & care was taken to allow only branded animals in. I walked for 20 minutes but no hostel was seen. On inquiring, another guard told me that it was 20 minutes walkable distance from there. Hence the conclusion - IIT Madras security guards like fooling North Indians early morning. I asked about the bus & was told the way to nearest bus stop. The bus carried me back to the main gate & then to the boys hostel. The guard of the hostel told me that I will be allotted room at 9 a.m & asked me to wait in room no. 721. I met Kinchuk & Sapan, my friends for rest of the stay.
Vishal sir came at around 8 a.m & issued us the coupons for breakfast, lunch & dinner. I thought that this is what I came for. IIT Madras has a separate building for mess which was inaugurated by Mr. Narayan Murthi. The building has four floors & there are two mess on every floor. Together they offer every possible food known to mankind. Vishal sir tied up with Annapurna mess for the tenners. The food was tasty & unlimited. So my purpose of coming to Chennai was fulfilled. For GT/PI, I was in 3:30 p.m slot. It was the last slot for the day. We were shown a video of Department of Management Studies(DoMS) followed by question & answer session where the actual fun started. Seniors were answering the queries modestly when Prof. L. S. Ganesh(LSG) came in. DoMS aspirants kept asking their questions. Prof. kept replying patiently & eventually said "Everyone of our students cries disregarding the age & work-experience, everyone just breaks down at convocation. No one wants to leave IIT Madras". I saw many videos of Ganesh sir on youtube. those were titled "Pushing your limits" & were highly inspirational. So overall, I have a great impression of LSG sir but IIT Madras says LSG rocks.
The impression that I carried with me in the end was that an MBA student will learn a lot in DoMS, IIT Madras. The campus is exceptional. It is 650 acres of jungle. Every student is free to attend any lecture from any depatrtment. DoMS is quite low rated in most of the b-school rankings that come out every year. It deserves better rankings & average salaries than current levels. My GT/PI experience was fine but there is huge competition & IIT professors are obsessed with ranks which in my case is not so great (AIR 2049, GEN). After the process, I had dinner with my new friends & headed towards Chennai Central. I have written this article on my way back to Pune.
PS: I couldn't convert DoMS call but I still believe it is a great b-school & one should put possible efforts to get in.
Note: Bold text added later.
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