Ever since I stepped into the sprawling and verdant Amrita School of Business to pursue my MBA, there is only one thought that lingers and runs through my mind like the still waters of the Amazon for the past 3 years whenever The Festival of Lights was around the corner - "When will we be having the gala Diwali fest @ the quaint and charming Ettimadai Village?".What's so special about this significant fiesta? EVERYTHING!!
For those who haven't been a part of this wonderful occasion, I would like to give a small and brief primer to get yourself acquainted with the history of this lively celebration. DG Sir and Shobhana Mam has been the cornerstone of this buzzing-with-lots-of-life evento by laying the foundation for The Outreach Programme to spread its magnanimous and wondrous wings to the underprivileged children of the neighbouring village which is very close to our college. We used to teach the children without fail on every Saturday despite our hectic case studies and presentations. DG Sir and Shobhana Mam took this initiative one step further by organizing a mega Diwali event where the volunteers can contribute whatever they could according to their wish - be it monetarily or by being physically present investing their own time and effort to make it a grand success. Punctuality personified Shobhana Mam always gives me the dates well in advance to book my tickets for this high octane and engaging celebration when I became an alumni. It is not only just for me but also for all the other volunteers who wants to be a part of this highly spirited affair. Shobhana Mam goes the extra mile by also arranging rooms for us in our hostels by cutting across the university's red tapes effortlessly.
DG Sir and Shobhana Mam are one of the most adored and respected professors in the campus for their down-to-earth personalities despite their highly regarded IIT-IIM and PhD degrees from world renowned universities like Berkeley besides their laudable work experiences in MNCs like Ponds. Without any infinitesimal iota of doubt, it is a taken corollary that a wave of volunteers are always attracted to this extravaganza like a moth to a bright flame just because of their persona and their immense respect towards them.
The pre-Diwali fest organizing is as exciting and fun-filled as the main picture itself. Before the D-Day, DG Sir, Shobhana Mam, Guna Anna, myself and whoever is interested and willing would march towards the streets and markets of Coimbatore to buy the goody bags for the kids as well as the prizes for the competitions that would be held on the action-packed day. It has always been a good learning experience by observation for me to learn the management ropes in real life from the Ponds perfectionist when he negotiates with the shrewd and case-hardened wholesale traders who tries to fleece their customers to pocket some extra cash in their kitties. The entire exercise, which goes very late into the evening, is extremely eventful when we hunt for the cheapest and the best shops that sells our required plenty-of-items-to purchase-in our list like soaps, oils, powder, tooth brushes etc. for all the children living in that reduced circumstances. Once when the shopping spree is done and dusted, we head to our resting and nesting place - DG Sir's home and his specialty cup of hot and steaming coffee!
Just like how we throng to a Rajnikanth's new release with full of life and gusto, the expressions on the children's faces are worth an infinite zillion dollars! So much enthusiasm, effervescence and the sparkle in their eyes when they show their ardent desire to display their talents in front of others and be deservedly appreciated for their efforts - You can actually feel a tremendous swell of emotions rising within yourself when you witness the happiness bouncing and gliding on their cute faces. The programme kick starts with the "Kadavul Vaazhthu" and the chain of events ranging from Tug of War to numerous Sports Competitions to the famous Murukku-hanging-eating contest. Separate events are held for both boys and girls catering to all ages. The kids also participate with such keenness and intensity that you can see their raw potential in its true unadulterated nature. The children also sing, dance and perform skits to exhibit their uninhibited talent and simply wow us with their performances.
As we are on the heels of songs and dance, the volunteers are not left far behind. They also give an exceptional display of foot-tapping peppy and melodious songs and mesmerize the audience with their hypnotic singing abilities. Vidhya Sagar, Vishnu, Vaisakh, Kevin et al have simply blown away our heads with their dazzling renditions on the latest popular numbers which literally makes the kids go crazy with much agog and dance wildly to their mellifluous tunes. Our special set of photo experts, courtesy Gobi, Ashwin and of course, our very own DG Sir, capture all the candid moments with such precision that you can feel their clicks to laugh rambunctiously like the delightful frozen moments themselves.
With all the energy expended and exhausted from the various activities, the next obvious conclusion is Food, of course! Lunch is always an indispensable happening where the wolf-hungry children and adults alike are served with Veg Biryani, Curd Rice, Fryums and Sweet. The collective effort of each and every individual, who does their earnest best to quickly walk, run and hop from one place to another for ensuring that everyone has had to their heart's content, is indeed a sight to behold! At the other end of the spectrum, another bunch of bubbly volunteers actively involve themselves to see to it that none of the gifts that had been purchased the earlier day is missed out while packing the goody bags. It is an extremely time-consuming and arduous task as we had to pack up the long list of items without overlooking or missing out any single present for any child. With seamless integration from the patient collaboration of the energetic volunteers, the substantially complicated wrap ups are done smoothly and efficiently. In fact, the whole process is actually made to look rather simple though it is way far from that!
By the fag end of the day, though everyone is dog tired to death, the atmosphere is still highly contagious with fire and vigour to still do more than what has been done. It is really an immensely satisfying feel when you know that you have been able to light up joy in another person's life and when it is children, the feelings and the emotions are thoroughly overwhelming and flowing like the thunderous Niagara falls. It gives us the sense of purpose and outwardness that life is merely not just simply working and getting yourself a hefty salary at the end of every month but is something way beyond that - to return at least something to the nature and society for the plenty of things that we are really fortunate enough to be born with - in short to live an enriching and fulfilling lives.
Just like how the Blue Chips and other Enterprises give a sterling performance on a Q-o-Q and Y-o-Y basis, the participants for this mega Diwali drive is surely to only increase exponentially with the coming years. DG Sir and Shobhana Mam - Without your tireless and persistently tenacious effort, the dashing Diwali blast that is being continuously held all these years would have remained a distant dream and a muted blast.
On behalf of everyone who has been a part of this wonderful event, I would like to thank you and Shobhana Mam for the fantastic memories that you have given us till now and going to give us in the future. Thanks a ton, Sir. Thanks a ton, Mam.
PS:
I had always wanted to write about this cracking experience for a very long time. Unfortunately, in order to cover all the essential aspects, it required a lot of time from my end. Forgive my adequately inappropriate timing of this blog, Sir. I will ensure that it is done a lot quicker from next time just like your snappy and exquisite photographs.
DG Sir and Shobhana Mam are one of the most adored and respected professors in the campus for their down-to-earth personalities despite their highly regarded IIT-IIM and PhD degrees from world renowned universities like Berkeley besides their laudable work experiences in MNCs like Ponds. Without any infinitesimal iota of doubt, it is a taken corollary that a wave of volunteers are always attracted to this extravaganza like a moth to a bright flame just because of their persona and their immense respect towards them.
The pre-Diwali fest organizing is as exciting and fun-filled as the main picture itself. Before the D-Day, DG Sir, Shobhana Mam, Guna Anna, myself and whoever is interested and willing would march towards the streets and markets of Coimbatore to buy the goody bags for the kids as well as the prizes for the competitions that would be held on the action-packed day. It has always been a good learning experience by observation for me to learn the management ropes in real life from the Ponds perfectionist when he negotiates with the shrewd and case-hardened wholesale traders who tries to fleece their customers to pocket some extra cash in their kitties. The entire exercise, which goes very late into the evening, is extremely eventful when we hunt for the cheapest and the best shops that sells our required plenty-of-items-to purchase-in our list like soaps, oils, powder, tooth brushes etc. for all the children living in that reduced circumstances. Once when the shopping spree is done and dusted, we head to our resting and nesting place - DG Sir's home and his specialty cup of hot and steaming coffee!
Just like how we throng to a Rajnikanth's new release with full of life and gusto, the expressions on the children's faces are worth an infinite zillion dollars! So much enthusiasm, effervescence and the sparkle in their eyes when they show their ardent desire to display their talents in front of others and be deservedly appreciated for their efforts - You can actually feel a tremendous swell of emotions rising within yourself when you witness the happiness bouncing and gliding on their cute faces. The programme kick starts with the "Kadavul Vaazhthu" and the chain of events ranging from Tug of War to numerous Sports Competitions to the famous Murukku-hanging-eating contest. Separate events are held for both boys and girls catering to all ages. The kids also participate with such keenness and intensity that you can see their raw potential in its true unadulterated nature. The children also sing, dance and perform skits to exhibit their uninhibited talent and simply wow us with their performances.
As we are on the heels of songs and dance, the volunteers are not left far behind. They also give an exceptional display of foot-tapping peppy and melodious songs and mesmerize the audience with their hypnotic singing abilities. Vidhya Sagar, Vishnu, Vaisakh, Kevin et al have simply blown away our heads with their dazzling renditions on the latest popular numbers which literally makes the kids go crazy with much agog and dance wildly to their mellifluous tunes. Our special set of photo experts, courtesy Gobi, Ashwin and of course, our very own DG Sir, capture all the candid moments with such precision that you can feel their clicks to laugh rambunctiously like the delightful frozen moments themselves.
With all the energy expended and exhausted from the various activities, the next obvious conclusion is Food, of course! Lunch is always an indispensable happening where the wolf-hungry children and adults alike are served with Veg Biryani, Curd Rice, Fryums and Sweet. The collective effort of each and every individual, who does their earnest best to quickly walk, run and hop from one place to another for ensuring that everyone has had to their heart's content, is indeed a sight to behold! At the other end of the spectrum, another bunch of bubbly volunteers actively involve themselves to see to it that none of the gifts that had been purchased the earlier day is missed out while packing the goody bags. It is an extremely time-consuming and arduous task as we had to pack up the long list of items without overlooking or missing out any single present for any child. With seamless integration from the patient collaboration of the energetic volunteers, the substantially complicated wrap ups are done smoothly and efficiently. In fact, the whole process is actually made to look rather simple though it is way far from that!
By the fag end of the day, though everyone is dog tired to death, the atmosphere is still highly contagious with fire and vigour to still do more than what has been done. It is really an immensely satisfying feel when you know that you have been able to light up joy in another person's life and when it is children, the feelings and the emotions are thoroughly overwhelming and flowing like the thunderous Niagara falls. It gives us the sense of purpose and outwardness that life is merely not just simply working and getting yourself a hefty salary at the end of every month but is something way beyond that - to return at least something to the nature and society for the plenty of things that we are really fortunate enough to be born with - in short to live an enriching and fulfilling lives.
Just like how the Blue Chips and other Enterprises give a sterling performance on a Q-o-Q and Y-o-Y basis, the participants for this mega Diwali drive is surely to only increase exponentially with the coming years. DG Sir and Shobhana Mam - Without your tireless and persistently tenacious effort, the dashing Diwali blast that is being continuously held all these years would have remained a distant dream and a muted blast.
On behalf of everyone who has been a part of this wonderful event, I would like to thank you and Shobhana Mam for the fantastic memories that you have given us till now and going to give us in the future. Thanks a ton, Sir. Thanks a ton, Mam.
PS:
I had always wanted to write about this cracking experience for a very long time. Unfortunately, in order to cover all the essential aspects, it required a lot of time from my end. Forgive my adequately inappropriate timing of this blog, Sir. I will ensure that it is done a lot quicker from next time just like your snappy and exquisite photographs.
2 comments:
Well written... Loved reading it :)
Thanks dude....hope we all meet up again this year as well.. :) :)
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