CAN A BOY AND A GIRL BE “JUST GOOD FRIENDS”

There have been 2 contemporary theories about love and friendship which has dominated not just the BOLLYWOOD but also the life of common man like you and me.
While one states that “ek ladka aur ladki kabhi ache dost nahi ho sakte; aur agar hain to jald hi unko pyar ho jayega” Theres another school of thought which states “sabse achi dosti sirf ek ladke aur ladki ke beech ho sakti hai naa ki 2 ladko ya 2 ladkio me” and before I can actually support a view I get bombarded with a ton of empirical evidences, supporting both the schools of thought. The source of empirical result is both the reel and real life. I mention reel life because of the very fact that they play a pivotal role in propagating the 2 thoughts in the society around us.
Theses 2 theories are just like any other economic theory. Both have a strong empirical backing and there exists a huge population to believe in both the views. It is also more of a forecasting based on past experiences and a mathematical model of theory of probability and element of risk and return. Just like the economics theories have their own geographical spread and separate spheres of influence the 2 theories I am talking about have their own electorates. While the first one is more concentrated in small towns and cities, the latter is more acceptable in metros. Just like we have a traditional theory of economics and also a modern view; the 2 theories also can be segregated into traditional and modern views. Being a student of economics I very well understand that there’s something very unique about each and law of economics. “The above law holds well only by keeping other things constant. There’s a very special word for the same “ceteris paribus”. Well our contemporary law is also applicable when we study it with a given parameter and keep all other factors constant i.e. Ceteris Paribus. And not to forget the laws are applicable with 100% efficiency only in ideal conditions. For non economists let me clarify IDEAL CONDITION is the one which is most desirable and but more importantly, which never exists.
Every day when we read the newspaper, we find a post event analysis of economists who very wisely comment on and explain the reasons of the failure of the market or non applicability of the theories and forecasts they made some time back. And this exactly the way one can safely comment and explain reasons of failure of the 2 theories of love and friendship which I am talking about. You see in real word the market (social) mechanisms are very dynamic and volatile and it depends on various other factors. So it’s actually difficult to say what kind of relationship a boy and girl will share in days to come.
This is all what is taught in economic laws when you are in an undergraduate degree. Lets move a little high and talk of advanced theories and tools to define and comprehend them. We talk of (multiple) regression analysis and degree of correlation (r2). Discussing the various parameters
Involved in the regression analysis of the law is beyond the scope this text, rather and human being alive. I have been taught to regress only to some 4 or 5 variables in economics. However this theory would require a multiple set of parameters to be regressed. Also the degree of correlation among the variables is also dynamic and not static and it varies with change in time and other internal and external agencies. So I won’t get into the minute details of the multiple simultaneous equations which could be possibly formed in this regard.
Restricting my pseudo analysis of the 2 laws, rather theories, I would give a swift end to the same. To me it varies with every person, every society, and time horizon along with a list of other internal and external metabolism. In my case I sincerely advocate the second theory as my best friend happens to be a lady and I am not in love with the same lady. However I would also state that this may not hold true for me, the next time or for any of the readers. As always is written below every economics article, I too would prefer to mention, “The write is a student of management and view expressed are personal”

(And more importantly it wasn’t meant to hurt sentiments of the people of any fraternity.
Was only trying to learn the art of establishing analogy and through light on the pervasiveness of economics)

I AM NO MORE WHAT I WAS…

I AM NO MORE WHAT I WAS…
AS I OCCUPY THE LAST BENCH IN MY CLASS
AND TURN THOSE UNTURNED PAGES OF THE BOOK
LOOKING INTO THE EYES OF PEOPLE AROUND ME
AND INTO THOSE HOLLOW SPHERES AHEAD OF ME

I DON’T KNOW IF I AM PRESENT HERE IN THE CLASS
IT IS JUST MY BODY AND NOT MY SOUL
EYES ARE AT ITS PLACE IT SHOULD BE
BUT SIGHT IS SOME WHERE FAR AWAY INTO THE FIELDS

THERE I SEE A GIRL HOLDING THE HANDS OF A BOY
THE BOY STOOD MESMERIZED AS SHE SPOKE TO HIM
SHE MUST BE TRYING TO EXPRESS HER LOVE HER CARE
AND THE INNOCENT BOY SEEMED SO HAPPY SO ELATED

SUDDENLY I HEARD A LOUD VOICE
MY TEACHER WAS STARING AT ME
I LOOKED AT HIM AND THEN BACK TO THE FIELDS
A MOMENT LATER AND THE GIRL WAS GONE

HE STOOD THEIR ALL ALONE PERPLEXED AND DEVASTATED
UNABLE TO GAUGE THE COMPLEXITY OF HIS LIFE
SHE HAD LEFT HIM NEVER TO RETURN
PROMISES FORGOTTEN; HEART BROKEN

HIS FRIENDS TRIED TO CONSOLE HIM
WHILE OTHERS SHOWED HIM THE REALITY
BUT HE KEPT HIS EYES AND EARS CLOSED
HOPING TO LISTEN TO HER AND SEE HIS LOVE WHEN HE OPENS HIS EYES

SUDDENLY I FELT MY CHEEKS WET
AND I WONDERED WHY, AS A DROP OF TEAR FELL ON MY CLASS NOTES
WHOSE TEARS WERE THEY; I THOUGHT
THAT POOR BOY’S OR MY OWN….



IT CANT BE MINE...I DON’T CRY
I WAS JUST TURNING THOSE PAGES
PAGES….WHICH PAGES WERE I TURNING
THOSE THAT OF THE BOOK OR THAT OF MY OWN LIFE

4 LONG YEARS WHEN SHE BECAME MINE FOREVER
2 LONG YEARS WHEN SHE DESERTED ME FOREVER
BUT THE SWEET FRAGRANCE OF HER PRESENCE IS STILL IN MY HEART
ALONG WITH THOSE MARKS ON MY SOUL

I DON’T KNOW WHAT WAS ALL THAT IN THOSE 2 YEARS
LOVE ATTRACTION OR INFATUATION?
WAS IT THE BEST GIFT OF MY LIFE OR THE BIGGEST MISTAKE
WHATEVER BE IT—IT CHANGED ME FOREVER
I AM NO MORE WHAT I WAS





SRIRAM AGRAWAL

I DON’T KNOW WHY

I DON’T KNOW WHY
BUT I THINK I AM SAD
OR, RATHER,
I AM NOT AS HAPPY AS I WISH TO BE

MY PARENTS LOVE ME
MY FRIENDS SUPPORT ME
YET MY MIND FAILS TO UNDERSTAND
WHY DOES THIS HEART ACHE

WHEN I AM AT HOME
AND HAVE GOOD FOOD TO EAT
I MISS THE MAGGIE AND BUGERS WE HAD
NOT TO ENJOY BUT TO SURVIVE

WHEN I AM WITH MY MOM
I FEEL SO GOOD ,SO SECURE
YET I WISH TO MOVE OUT
TO MEET THOSE FRIENDS IN THE WOOD

WHEN I GET SURROUNDED BY FRIENDS
I LOOK FOR TRANQUILITY
AND I WISH TO REMAIN ALONE
WHICH WHEN I AM, I AVOID

LOOKS LIKE I AM IN SEARCH OF SOMETHING
SOMETHING WHICH I CANT REALLY ARTICULATE
I DON’T KNOW IF IT DOES EVEN EXIST
OR IS IT YET ANOTHER IMAGINATION


WHAT IS THAT WOULD MAKE ME HAPPY
IS IT LOVE, IS IT MONEY
IS IT THE FAMILY OR IS IT …..
I REALLY DON’T HAVE AN ANSWER
AND I COME BACK TO WHERE IT STARTED

I DON’T KNOW WHY

SO WHAT IF IT MEANS TO DIE WITHOUT HER

AS I WASHED MY CLOTHES
I SAW THE BUBBLES RISE AND DANCE
WITH EACH BUBBLE ROSE MY SENTIMENTS
AND ASKED ME TO MAKE AN ADVANCE

I COULD SEE HER IN THOSE WATER BUBBLES
THOSE GLITTERING EYES AND LUSCIOUS LIPS
I FELT SHE WERE ALL AROUND ME
EXPLOITING AN ENIGMA OUT OF ME

BUT AS MY HANDS APPROACHED TO TOUCH HER
THE WATER BUBBLE SIMPLY BURST
AND WHAT WAS LEFT WAS ONLY WATER
DREAMS ALL SHATTERED

SHE IS NOTHING BUT THAT WATER BUBBLE
SOMETIMES SO BRIGHT SO SHINY
SHE DANCES TO HER OWN TUNES OF LOVE
AND VANISHES WHEN I TOUCH HER

OH GOD WHAT IS THE KIND OF CHOICE I FACE
AS I WATCHED HER SHE WAS SO HAPPY AND CLOSE
BUT AS I EXTENDED MY HANDS TO HOLD HER
ALONG WITH HER LOVE SHE DISAPPEARED

MY DESTINY MAY NOT BE TO DIE IN HER LAP
NOR WOULD IT BE TO LIVE AND LOVE HER
BUT I CAN ALWAYS BE NEAR TO MY LOVE
WITHOUT BEING HER’S
AND WATCH HER SING AND DANCE

SO WHAT IF IT MEANS NEVER TRYING TO HOLD HER
SO WHAT IF IT MEANS NEVER TRYING TO TOUCH HER
SO WHAT IF IT MEANS TO BE DEVOID OF THAT LOVE
SO WHAT IF IT MEANS TO DIE WITHOUT HER

What lies at the core!!! Improper Attitude or a dysfunctional system

As you go through the title, you might be put off by the very thought that the next few paragraphs would perhaps be all about blaming the government and bashing the system around us and trying to prove that the kind of attitude prevailing all around us is just a manifestation of the same. Well if this was so then you must read on further because I can sense a growth of a “not so positive” attitude and perspective, though in a very incumbent stage.

Let us just move out of the macro analysis of the whole system and come down to a very micro level thought process. Let us talk about our thoughts, perspectives, reactions and the overall attitude towards our very own college or about the MBA course as such.

It all starts with getting up in time and reaching the class at 9 am sharp which most of us fail to do so including me. However I don’t question arriving late in the class as much as, I object the pride with which we talk about being late, or, the insensitivity which we exhibit when any of the professors dislike the act. We always have ready made excuses to evade any further question and a flattering interpersonal skill to gain that “one attendance.” But it doesn’t end here. We even go to the extent of blaming the authorities for scheduling the class so early in the morning at 9 am without ever thinking, “Is 9 am to be considered early morning when lacks of school students attend class walking miles together at 7am sharp with no excuse of being late. I know we are probably too busy to ever think about this. But what needs to be though is whether we are late because we sleep late working hard or we do not consider it important enough to be on time. Probably it’s not about reaching the class at 9 am or at 10 30 am but more so about being “on time” if not “in time”

Moving on to the daily chores of the day we often have various presentations to make. Now this is surely the most humorous part of our mba life where in one person has no idea of what is there in the slide of the other person and in case he happens to come across a slide which was not supposed to be his part the individual is blank. I am forced to think about the relevance of such a ppt where we seldom gain any knowledge.

Seems, it’s getting too close to bashing my own friends and colleagues and me myself! So a small clarification. I am no way entitled to do so when I myself am very much a part of it. It’s just a “passing” thought which came to me and so I found it interesting enough to write it down. At least I would realize what I have been doing since last 5 months in a b school which ranks among top 20 in India.

Currently when I am sitting here in the blue auditorium listening to the lecture by an operations specialist, I am surprised to see a large number of my classmates too, sitting here to attend the same.

Well before I make up my mind as to determine what could be the possible reason for the huge turnout of people today let me take you all 15 minutes back. The audi was almost empty and our professor was quite in a fury. He thought for a minute and asked the class representative to send a message that he would be taking a 10 marks test based on the presentation. And in the next 10 minutes the empty audi had not a seat vacant to occupy. I had nothing to react though there was a huge turmoil going deep down my mind. Is obtaining those puny 10 marks , the only objective of people coming here to do an mba. I being an eternal optimist still force myself not to think so. And was this the only way my professor could have gathered an uninterested crowd to the audi to later boast of a super gathering. If yes it simply demeans the very value of the so called highly esteemed industry expert who came to deliver his lecture. I do not have any answers but would love to get one both from the students as well as the teacher’s fraternity.

I want an answer to why do people avoid attending any guest lecture. I want an answer to why the management adopts such techniques to force students to attend the same and most importantly I want an answer to know what is the net gain from all these plethora of activities and mind games.

I want an answer to why do students find everything they are asked to do so futile and useless.

I want an answer to why do both the assignment and the answer to it remains the same batch by batch. I felt the earth move beneath me when I realized that the assignment we were to do was the one which was given way back to 2003 batch and the same fate with the answers. The list is probably endless! But just one last question…..

Where does the problem lie? With the students or with the system or with the attitude per say….

Only you have the answer.

I fail to understand!!!

I fail to understand

Today as I was browsing through the newspaper, I received a message from a news alert site. Before I could actually read that one of my friend guessed the content of the text. He asked in a very plain voice, “Where did the blast take place this time?” I was totally taken aback by his intuitive statement. How on the earth could he guess that? How on the earth could he say with such a confidence that it was about a blast once again. I was still under the shock when the other when said, “don’t worry this isn’t a major one. Only 5 died.” This was it. I couldn’t take it any more. One person talks about the blast without even looking at the news and other is so happy that only 5 died. I sense a weird and eerie atmosphere around me! What is wrong with these people? What was it that made them speak in such a cold manner about something which just tears me apart? Are they so insensitive about the deaths caused by these awful attacks by the so called terrorists! Or, probably have they very easily included the bomb blasts in their daily news gossip. On one hand I find people coming on streets to show their loyalty and unity. While on other hand I find politicians putting this under the category of a small and a trivial event (no matter it cost him his seat). I simply fail to understand the complexity of the human nature!!!
While the recent series of terrorist attacks have cost us a number of lives and a huge loss of property, what concerns me more is much beyond that. What are these terrorists up to? Do they want to kill people and destroy property? Do they wish to prove their power (or cowardice)? Do they wish to show that the current socio political set up is no more efficient enough to guarantee our well being and safety? Or are they trying to disrupt the very basic foundation of human setup and social understanding by waging a psychological war on the common man. I once again fail to understand the complexity of the terrorist’s psyche!!!
The recent attacks have put a few very serious questions on some of my beliefs, rather, the common man’s belief. More than 450 NSG soldiers took more than 50 hours to fight 25 terrorists of just around 24 years of age. And when we analyze the end result, we find no one alive in the nariman house and many killed in Taj. I do not question the courage and bravery of the soldiers. I never can. But I wish to ask the concerned authority why had our soldiers to halt when it was dark. With a huge chunk of government expenditure on defense, why couldn’t we afford a night vision and a bullet proof jacket for our comrades?
Another aspect of terrorism which concerns me is the economic feasibility of the activities. If we were to study the cost they incur in these attacks we could be taken by some real surprise. To carry out the acts of terror they indeed have a very strong source of funding. It is on the country’s government to find out the source and tackle the issue as soon a possible.
Terrorism has its toll on all the aspects of our life we could possibly think of. It affects our economy, political environment and our very legal strata. But more than anything else it affects our social and psychological set up. Probably this is the reason why a common man now has accepted terrorism as a part of his life and is so very complacent about it. Probably this is the reason why we are least bothered about what happened, a week after the incident. Probably this is the reason why the most of the people actually spent the whole day watching movies and surfing on the net and a few studious ones took the chance to complete their pending works. I don’t blame these people for what they do. In fact they are no way to be blamed for if the government itself takes a lackadaisical attitude towards such incidents what is a common man supposed to do. To be honest even I spent most of the time in my room. Unlike others I didn’t even bother to sit glued to the idiot box and listen to what was happening in taj or oberoi or trident. I again fail to understand the actions of people around me!
More than 15 major attacks on the heart of our motherland since 2003 and yet we have the same reactions from the same kinds of people around us. A political figurehead would come and condemn the terror attacks while the foreign minister of the other country will boast of donating 1 bottle of his blood which he feels would bring life back to more than 200 people dead and many more injured. To add to it our so called responsible media will telecast this very new for one full day. I feel ashamed. I feel so not just because I find people around me doing such heinous acts. I feel ashamed not just because I too am a part of this very social setup. I feel ashamed not just because we were the ones who elect these so called “leaders”. But I feel so because I still do not have any solution to this issue. I still haven’t taken any step on my behalf to move ahead on the path of a terror free society. I still haven’t come out of my room to see what can we young hearts do to solve the problem which our so called elderly leaders haven’t been able to. More so because I am still a part of that crowd which just shouts and tries to voice against what is happening and never trying themselves to be a part of the solution. But I fail to understand why others around me do not feel the same? I fail to understand why I was being mocked at when I was trying to write down what I feel? I fail to understand why students try to create a divide on the basis of which state is one from? I fail to understand why we all plead for safety when none amongst us is actually ready and willing to serve the defense force? I fail to understand why people only expect and never really give?
But I do understand one very important thing. And that, is if now we do not understand, “what I failed to understand” then probably, none of us would be there to understand, what I always wanted everyone around me, “to understand”. I know it’s difficult for you to understand what I was trying to understand while I wrote this but if at all someone understands what I was trying to, please help me out. May be it could bring about a revolution, something which we all understand.




SRIRAM AGRAWAL