IIM -----> Ganjundwara

Books by IIT and IIM grads about their work-in-progress lives are now an established genre of writing. So I won't refer to the new effort by Rohithari Rajan as 'another one of those'.

I think each of us has an interesting story to tell and so is this one. The trouble lies in the way it's told. First of all the title: IIM ----> Ganjundwara (yes, that's the way it appears in print!). Reminds me of a flowchart - dry and logic driven. And that's how most of the book comes across: no heart, all head.

IIM ---> Ganjundwara is the story of two young IIM A grads who are sent to live in a village as part of the famed HLL sales training program. The 'training' is more about just dealing with the culture shock, experiencing what it's like to live in rural India. Of course, a couple of projects do need to be completed and here the idealistic Shyam decides they will take up something which will actually 'make a difference'.

The main problem is most of the book is written in third person, instead of flowing along easily and conversationally. To give you an example.

Dacoity is unheard of nowadays, we are told. All the big bandits and their gangs surrendered to the government and became politicians. Safer, more glamorous, and the money is better.

"Understanding the role of caste politics is very important to understand the region," continues the BDO."Each village is dominated by some particular caste." There are Jat villages, Mohammedan villages, Brahmin villages, and village dominated by one or the other of the innumerable castes and sub-castes that make up the complex rural Indian social structure.

And that's the second problem: the language. The BDO speaks in pure English, like Nandini Sardesai lecturing at St Xavier's college. And so it is with Martand Tiwari, the sarpanch of village Ranpurgaon, who is their host. And his brother Anuj who becomes their friend. The use of a few Hindi or Bhojpuri words and phrases would have made it so much more genuine!

Lastly the character of Shyam - the trainee who suffers the rural stint with our protagonist (don't know his name, not sure if it was mentioned anywhere even!) He is this idealist and was a little too cardboard. It's like he was being set up to meet a certain fate (will not say more, read the book if you wish to know!).

And no, there's no Brokeback Mountain happening here, in case you were wondering. That would have been too too much for fair and lobhely loving Ranpurgaon.

This could have been a great book with better writing and tighter editing. As it is, worth a read if you are curious to know what rural marketing and Project Shakti is really about.

However IMHO the definitive 'what it's like to work at HLL' book remains 'Earning the Laundry Stripes' by Manreet Someshwar. That also has a couple of chapters on the rural stint at Etah. Sadly this delightful book is not available at most bookshops - at least I have never seen it.

Speaking of IIT-IIM type books there is also 'Joker in the Pack', sent to me by Ritesh
Sharma and Neeraj Pahlajani a couple of months ago. Guys, I'm sorry I did not review it although I did read it. Again, I can see a lot of effort went into it but the final result kind of left me cold. I did not care about Shekhar Verma and what he went through.

And I felt you basically 'educated' the reader about what life in IIM Bangalore was all about Instead of - for those couple of hours - immersing me in that world. But again, if I were a wannabe MBA or a nostalgic alum, I may want to read it. Especially for an insight into the current placement circus!

I think it's simply project report and PPT hangover. Maybe they should start a new variation of the classic WAC course @ IIM: "Wannabe Authors & Communication".

Roti, kapda aur internet

It is said that one can live on love and fresh air alone. The first is scarce on the IIT campus, so they're happy enough with unlimited access to the internet. But, that may be changing.

Economic Times reports: "Institute may limit net access to beat reclusive lifestyle".

Rajiv, alias Moviemom, is in his final year, pursuing majors in electronics at IIT Bombay (IITB). Back in the hostel after lectures and tutorials he spends most of his time downloading movies, blogging and chatting - either with friends or wingmates - until the wee hours of the morning. Not surprisingly, he doesn't make it to the morning lectures and barely manages to comply with the 80% attendance requirement

Alarmed at the 'dysfunctional', 'non-social' and reclusive lifestyle of its students, the IITB administration has decided to ban internet access to all hostels between 11pm and 12.30 pm from 12th March 2007.

I can understand the concerns of the administration. When I visited IIMA a while ago, the dorms had a deserted appearance. It wasn't term break - people just don't feel the need to hang out in the common area on every floor. They'd rather communicate online.

The same story at IIM Indore. A student told me if he needed a book from his next door neighbour he's more likely to 'ping' him than simply holler out. Luckily one can't ingest nutrients via internet, or these dudes would perhaps be seen only once a week in the real world.

On the one hand, it's sad to see the forlorn carrom board, silent common telephone (with everyone having cellphones who needs them anymore!) and lack of visible camaraderie. Of course, the same spirit and ethos has been recreated online. But is it an equal substitute?

IITB dean Prakash Gopalan told ET that "participation of IITans in sports and cultural activities has declined signficantly". He believes that students have developed an addiction to the internet, gaming and surfing which needs to be curbed.

A part of me agrees - and why IIT, even I need to curb my need to go online (am thinking of a ban between 8-11 pm so I can give undivided attention to 'life' and especially my daughter :)

So if access to everything except basic email is restricted, students will have to venture out and deal with each other. But knowing IITans they will find some way to beat the system. In fact, they will take it up as a challenge!

Secondly, this may achieve the goal of increased real-world social contact (an issue that IITB believes is directly connected to recent suicides on IIT campuses). But even the all-night internet ban (as IIT Delhi recently proposed) may not get students to class at 8 am.

I mean, 15 years ago we had no internet and many of us still did not make it to class at 9 am, especially in the second year. There are many ways to waste one's time on a campus where you have cool and interesting people. And a dhaba which makes omlettes/ parathas/ Maggi along with killer cutting chai.

So let some of the action shift back to the real world - great. But students will be students. Nothing can really change that!