MDI GD/PI

Folks, you can't beat the traffic in Bangalore. Period. You have to learn to rise above it. No no.. not spiritually or other crap. I meant literally. By taking the AC Volvo city bus. A boon to Bangaloreans I tell ya! So, I had 2 interviews lined up on 2 consecutive days. Day 1: MDI Gurgaon. By far my best call. I naturally had an aching desire to convert this one. So for the first time in my life, I actually 'prepared' for an interview. Don't ask me how. On the way there, I got really hungry and ate a dosa in a cheap eatery nearby. And my good friend Murphy ensured that a spot of Sambhar adorned the front of my shirt. I luckily managed to cover it up using my tie. Hurray for Ties!

Venue: IIM Bangalore. Time: 2:40 PM. Call: MDI PGPM.

Every single person in my group of 12 has multiple IIM calls. Sigh. The GD was gonna be one hell of a fishmarket. The topic was "Should Narendra Modi be made the PM of India?" GD Verdict: Not bad. A controlled fishmarket with Mr LoudMouth(IIM CLK) doing most of the talking and Mr Silencio(IIM BLACKI) struggling hard to get a chance to speak. Meanwhile, out of the corner of my eye, I saw the panelists laughing hysterically. Oh Boy! Screwed! I watched for about 5 mins and then jumped in and made 2 or 3 relevant points. The group was focussing too much on Modi as an person. I attempted to bring the focus back to the actual topic which was Modi as PM. Done. Later outside, Mr LoudMouth came back from his interview (he was called in first and screwed royally) and informed us that the panelists liked No 7's points and attitude. (Yes. I was the anonymous no 7... yay! Saving grace? Read ahead and find out...)

The panel for the interview was same as the one in the GD. HinglishGuy(HIG) and DistinguishedIntellectualGuy(DIG). Rahul enters.... HIG is standing behind a chair... and leaning forward on it... DIG is sitting in his chair and studying Rahul's profile sheet.

DIG(looking at profile sheet): So Rahul... Yellow Belt... did you continue Karate?
Rahul: No sir... I started a lot of things that I didn't finish. (it was a stupid self-negating statement said in the hope they would ask about the 'other' things.)
DIG: How old were you when you learnt karate?
Rahul: umm... I guess 19 years old.
HIG: achha? Good.. tab tak toh bones and cartilage must have hardened hai na Sir. Can you do the split?
Rahul: Umm... (a damned Roadies audition plays in my head)
HIG: arey... pair ko spread karte hain na... full split?
Rahul: Sir... actually we were taught Katas.... that's a sequence of steps with hand and leg movements and...
HIG(shakes head and cuts me off sharply): What is your name?
Rahul(3 sec pause): Rahul.
HIG: Good. (pause) Got it? (small smile on his face)
Rahul: Got it sir...(they wanted me to be to the point). No I cannot do the split.
(Long pause... with both panelists smiling)
DIG: Tell us something about yourself Rahul apart from what's written in the profile sheet.
Rahul thinks carefully... "hmm... family? work? no.. I'll talk about ME."
Rahul: I am very logical. (pause) I plan before taking any decisions. And once I do... I stick to them. I never regret my decisions.
HIG and DIG assess this statement silently.
DIG: So... what was your plan for the GD?
Rahul talks slowly... measuring each word like a politician...
Rahul: I decided I'll first wait for a bit and understand what the other guys were like. And then I'll give my points corresponding to the nature of the discussion... umm... And I stuck to this plan during the GD.
DIG: What do you think about the GD?
Rahul gives a confused look....
DIG: I mean... how do you rate yourself in the GD?
Rahul: Average.... Sir.
HIG laughs loudly... DIG smiles...
HIG: Sabse pehla bunda hai jisne average bola hai....
DIG: Everyone before you have rated themselves as above average. (looks at me for some kinda explanation)
Rahul: Actually I wasn't aggressive during the GD sir. So... I did not....
HIG: matlab hum GD mein aggressiveness dekh rahe hain kya?
Rahul: No Sir... I mean... I hardly talked sir... probably gave 2 or 3 points... but I'm sure they were very sensible ones. (bold words... implying that I was better than others...) That's why...
HIG: woh pata hai... hum woh nhi kah rahe hain.... ( indications that they agreed with my bold words.... wohoo!!)
DIG(interrupts HIG): Ok.. look... If you were sitting in our chair... how would judge the candidates?
Rahul(thinks): Firstly sir... I would have just 6 people.. It would be easier for me to judge when there less than 12 people...
DIG(interrupts): There were just 8 people. (smiles)
Rahul thinks ya.. 3 were absent... crap!
Rahul(smiles): I mean... You guys are more experienced at this... I can't assess with a large group...
HIG(interrupts): thik hai... woh chodo... continue... what do we look for in a GD.... group dynamics, teamwork mat bolo... apart from all those...
Rahul(thinking): I would look at who is dominating... (damn.. again on the same lines)
DIG: Oh.. so dominating is what matters... blah blah....
HIG and DIG screw Rahul about this statement... After a while he becomes defensive... HIG senses it....
HIG(smiles): Defensive mat ho jao yaar... abhi tak achha baat kar rahe the...
Rahul: ok sir... (continues a little more openly... comparisons of Mr LoudMouth and Mr Silencio)
Finally Rahul clarifies that he meant playing a lead role in the GD would have satisfied him more.
HIG: accha... tell me what are the types of leadership...
Rahul: Actually sir.. I don't know the types..
HIG: nhi bhai.. textbook definition nhi chahiye... in your own...
Rahul(interrupts HIG): According to me... leadership means identifying which people are good at what... and utilizing them as resources to get things done... to get the work done...
While talking, Rahul realizes that HIG was looking for active and passive leadership as the answer to his previous question. Anyway... HIG contemplates on this unique definition and forgets about the types-wala question.
HIG: toh GD mein kya karna chahiye tha...
DIG: You should have...
Rahul(interrupts): I should have identified who was talking sensibly and promoted them...
DIG(cuts me off): You should have made sure that those who didn't get a chance got to speak and those who were loud didn't go out of control. Isn't it?
Rahul: Yes Sir.
DIG smiles a bit... and looks at profile sheet again.
DIG: Did you like it?
Rahul(absent-mindedly): umm.. yes sir...umm.. You mean the interview process?
DIG: No.. your GD performance.
Rahul: Yes sir.. I liked it.
HIG: But tumne toh average kaha na... yahan perform karne aaye ho ki nahi?
Rahul: According to my usual standards it was average sir. Usually I play the lead....
Rahul thinking "A third time emphasis on leading the group... oh what the heck! I am what I am. I can't control my impulse to lead and I couldn't hide it either."
There is a long pause from both panelists.... and I look outside the window at the lawn and the red
brick buildings of IIM-B...
DIG(talking to HIG): Indian School of Mines... hmm... it's a premier college hain na sir?
Rahul: Yes Sir... The admission is through IIT-JEE.
DIG: Oh.. ok... What was your rank?
Rahul: umm(recalling)... it was 3713 sir.
DIG: What is your branch?
Rahul: Mechanical.
DIG(slight smile.. shakes head..): Ok Rahul... standard question... why did you join TCS?
Rahul: During my training in Delphi-TVS... I realised that a junior engineer in the core industry is exposed to a narrow scope of a business... a small set of machines or a small production process...
HIG: Arey yaar.. woh sabko pata hai... What we want to know....
Rahul(interrupts HIG): Yes sir.. umm... (says loudly) Rahul... (indicating that he will speak to the point now... this is greeted by broad smiles by both panelists). Sir... I felt that in the software industry exposure to the business aspect of the organization is more than in core.
DIG(interrupting me): You thought that.. and now you...
Rahul(interrupting DIG): We basically get a broader view of business in IT. And that would help me during my MBA. For that reason I joined _ _ _.
DIG(gives a long pause): That's why you joined _ _ _ ?
Rahul: Yes Sir.
DIG smiles and looks at profile sheet again.
DIG: Your academics do not seem that good. What was your rank?
Rahul(blank lie): I must rank 13 or 14 in my branch of 30 sir.
Rahul curses himself. He should have explained about absolute GPA system and how his branch profs suck! Then again... they probably wouldn't have listened to as deep an explanation as that.
DIG(still hunting for something): What is your topper's GPA?
Rahul(sincere truth): It is around 8.15. (This seemed to satisfy DIG)
HIG: Ok Rahul... you said you are very logical right? I'll ask you a simple question... koi trick or puzzle nhi hai... very simple. Suppose a family travels in a car. Husband, Wife, child, Grandma and Granpa. 5 people... each sit one beside the other... now.. ek person dusre person ke upar chad jaata hai... thik hai?
Rahul: haan... thik hai...
HIG: ok... now tell me... how many people are there on whom no one is sitting?
Rahul(slight pause): 3.... no sir... 4....
(HIG laughs slightly and shakes head dismissively..)
DIG(looks at HIG): Ok Rahul... It was really nice talking to you.
Rahul: Same here Sir.
DIG: You may leave. (I turned to go...)
DIG: One second Rahul... what was your percentile?
Rahul: It is 98.66 sir.
DIG(writes it down): Ok.. thanks.
Rahul: Thank you.
Rahul exits.

Once I was outside, the floodgates of adrenalin that I'd kept locked opened up and I had a psychedelic rush. The minute I became lucid again, I played the whole experience in my mind. I knew this was one incident that had to go up on my blog VERBATIM without my usual exaggeration. And that's all I gotta say about that.