'Maru'vellous' - Part 4

Changu pranced too and fro in the corridor, waiting for his turn. It had been almost an hour and he had not been called for the next round of interviews. He feared that Maru would have forgotten about him, decided the final shortlists and packed off leaving him in the lurch. But Changu waited on, unmindful of the fact that there was a royal showdown going on between the 2 heavyweights, Maru & Mohta.

The optimist inside Changu cheered him up. A slight smile came up on his face as he remembered the sequence of events leading up to the CAT, the results, the shortlists, his selection and how his life had come one whole circle.

Yet another flashback , rather a series of flashbacks followed in the same ordered structure as his just-concluded 'case-analysis'.

http://my-newsense1.blogspot.com/2011/01/catastrophy.html

http://my-newsense1.blogspot.com/2011/02/catastrophy-2.html

http://my-newsense1.blogspot.com/2011/03/catastrophy-3.html

'Maru'vellous - Part3

Changu readied himself for the next round of interviews for the Maru T stall group. He went through the usual check-up measures once again - adjusting his tie, checking his pant zip, scrutinizing the contents (CVs) of his folder. This was truly judgement day for him.

 " This a test of my character." He reminded himself. "Either I do well or I screw up badly. If I do well, no big deal. I was destined for such big stuff. But if I dont, I wont be able to forgive myself or show my face to my section or dorm mates."

 The words " Kya Aap C hain?" rang in his head like the temple bell. He instantly reprimanded himself for thinking about T-nite temps-shouts at such an opportune moment as he waited outside near the tracker.

 Maru, meanwhile, had instructed the placement member not to schedule any interviews for the next few minutes. He had been at the interviews for 2 gruelling hours on a trot wherein he had ripped apart 12 Day-1ers. He felt good after his interaction with Changu. He walked out off the stuffed AC-filled room to take in some oxygen. He saw the same flurry of activity before his eyes which he had been a part of 2 decades ago. Anxious students running around or waiting for their turn and more anxious placement members working hard to schedule their interviews.

 Maru adjusted the drapes of his sky-blue lungi which was ideal attire for the unusually hot November heat. He walked up to the tea-coffee vending machine, poured in some tea and took a sip from the cup. He gave it a scornful look as if he could burn it off with his eyes.
"What Yaaa, Nowhere near our standards" he said to himself with a sly smile. He then proceeded to wash his hands with the tea to validate the fact that it was nothing more than hot water.

 Just as he was about to turn and leave, a very familiar face caught his eye. A short man, be-spectacled, side-parted hair and a swagger to go with it. He was shouting orders on his BB. The man then pulled out a box of lollipops and then took out a piece for himself. He then struggled to pull out the wrapper for the next 5 minutes and then emphatically stuffed it into his mouth.

Maru smiled to himself saying " So, Mohta is also here." as he crushed the tea-cup in his hand as a sign of the quintessential war-bugle.
 Like Maru, Mohta too had come to recruit able people for his company, Mohta Candy Consulting.

 Maru T & Co. and MCC were rivals in the consulting domain, although they had carved out a niche in their respective domains. Both were diametrically opposite in terms of their approach. Mohta was the one driven by analytical and logical thinking whereas Maru believed in hands-on, was spontaneous and took decisions on impulse. Nevertheless both had built successful, billion dollar companies which struck dollar signs in the eyes of the young graduates.
 What's more, as an icing on the cake, they were from the same graduating batch of the college and sat in the same row.
 They had a competitive streak about them and had a really unconventional approach which was reflected in their dress sense. Maru had worn a red shirt and majstic sky-blue lungi to ensure that his combo never matched. Mohta had come in striped shorts and the 50th variant of the 'Saarang' t-shirt which was the prescribed dress code at MCC. Sources said that instead of picking a pristine black trouser, he had adorned his wardrobe with 60 different shorts purchased at the prime Kota market for the same price as the trouser.

 Mohta had seen Maru. He walked up to him and gave a smile wider than the model in the Close-up ad.
  " Never a better time to run into old foes." Said Maru with a wink.

  " You said, it" agreed Mohta as he sucked his lollipop and tried tugging at Maru's lungi.
 Maru was up for the challenge. He swiftly moved aside saying "Nice try" and pulled the naadaa which protruded out from Mohta's shorts.

 5 of the awe-struck students moved Maru T & Co. to number 1 and pushed MCC to 2nd place in their preference list.

  "Yuck..what happened to your tongue." noted Maru.

  " Nah..thats nothing. Raspberry-flavoured lollipops na" said Motha as he brandished his lollipop before Maru like a sword.

 " So, hows it going for you?" enquired Maru " You have no idea." Mohta's face brimmed with attitude.

'Maru'vellous - Part2

Maru look quite stunned with Changu's prompt reply. Never had anyone spelled out such an outrageous boutique of hobbies/interests.

Changu couldn't believe what he had just said. This was way off the rehearsed answer in the 7 previous mock HR interviews he had given to his seniors back in the dorm as part of the interview preparation. The 'skill and knowledge development', ' learning', 'exposure to different sectors' answers were far from what he had just blabbered.
For a moment Changu felt like evaporating from the interview room to escape Maru T's wrath. Maru T still wore the same look on his face - he was expressionless.

Then came his thunderous response
" My boy, I am proud of you!! You have, by far, been the most honest of all the numerous candidates I have interacted with so far."

Changu: ???

Maru T: Yes (Wipes of a tear). You in many ways, remind me of my days here, when I would get a through battering in the interviews. When I saw and heard you, I felt I was seeing a reflection of myself in the past.

Maru T: " I am having a troublesome stomach. What could be the problem?"
Changu: (With the excitement of a school-going kid wanting to be the first to answer)
Sir, give me a minute to think..
(Makes a few tree structures and arrows in a piece of paper.)

After a minute.

Changu: Sir, we first break down the problem into different smaller issues by employing the 2-G (Gayaa Guzraa) framework. In this case, the problem could be because of the food, your own body processes or some drug reaction.

(referring to his 'trees') Food can be classified as home-made, outside, food cooked by you (stifles a laughter)

Body processes can be internal or external
We concentrate on external which can be exercises, work, personal stress.

I safely assume that you have not taken any drug so there can be no drug reaction.

Let us concentrate on work and personal issues:
Since u r the boss of your company, there can be no work issues I assume.

In Personal issues, I think the first and foremost problem would be the fact that you are worried about the guys who would be hitting on your daughter.

I personally feel this is the root of the problem and it should be addressed to elimiate your health problem (Changu took the paper he had scribbled in and signed off with an air of non-chalance to indicate that he had cracked a puzzle. He looked for a word of encouragement from Maru T after the 10 minute ordeal.)

Maru T: " You moron..to hell with your frameworks..I haven't even given you the the case to work on.
(Clutching his overgrown tummy).. I was talking about my heath issues in general. Anyways, you have already wasted 10 minutes of mine. But on the positive side, I like your thought process. It is structured to say the least.

Changu: (Be-mused) Oh..thank you Sir.

Maru T: Ok..Changu we will schedule you next round in a few minutes from now.

Changu looked both apprehensive yet confident.