Swami Samartha Maharaj - my guru

Year 2001
In 2001, I had been to US of A to appear for my CPA examinations. This was the third and last attempt at becoming a CPA. At the Mumbai airport, I was asked to claim my baggage from the France airport – for reason unknown. I too did not bother to ask them that.

I got the biggest shock of my life at the France airport - I was told that since I did not have any visa I could not claim my baggage. I spent 2 hours with the officers speaking in broken English and French. Finally, an officer agreed to claim the bags on my behalf and transfer it to my plane.
I reached US safely but my bags did not. Like an idiot, I had also checked in my hand bag. Luckily I was having my passport and money with me. I lodged a complaint for missing bags at the airport and then called up my dad.

I was supposed to go directly to Vermont but since my bags were missing I had to stay in Boston. I got a room in one of the motels. Upon reaching the room, I called up my parents again – I felt like crying. They asked me not to worry – but I knew that they too were scared.
I disconnected the line, fell on my knees and started to cry. I told Swami Samarth ‘Swami tumchya mulala hya adchanitun sodwa. Mala tumchyavarti vishwas ahe. Mala mithi mara swami!’ In about 5 minutes, I got a call from my cousin - Sangi didi from Detroit. Hearing her voice was a relief – she took down the numbers of my lodge in Vermont and agreed to call them up informing them about my delay. She was also in touch with one of our aunt’s staying in Boston. She hung up saying that she would call up Leena Atya and inform her about this problem.

Leena atya was out for some party – but Sangu didi left her a message with my number. I thanked Swami and said ‘Swami tumhi mala baher kadnarach’. In about an hours time, I got a call from Leena atya – she shouted at me for not informing her about my arrival and told me that she and Gautam kaka would come to pick me up the next day.
The next day they picked me up from the motel, took me to the airport and asked the authorities to send the bags to their home. When I reached their place I was shocked to see swami samartha maharaj’s photo in their living room. I was happy to see that Leena atya and her family too were swami bhakts. I again thanked swami – 'Swami Samarth Maharaj tumhi tumchaya mulala tumchyach gharat anlat'.

Akkalkot niwasi Swami Samrath Maharaj Ki Jai!

Year 2006
My mom had given up on finding a suitable bride for me. I too used to get nervous about not being able to find a suitable partner. It was a Friday evening and my mom, sis and I were discussing this over dinner. They had registered me with every online matrimonial site – I checked through the sites but did not like anyone. As usual, my mom got irritated and went back to her room.

That night, I dreamt of going to ‘swami samartha’s math – it was a very beautiful math – I have never seen this math in my life. After offering our prayers, me and my sister (Rujuta) are about to leave when someone calls me asking ‘Arrey, itkya lavkar chalas?’ We turn back and are shocked to see Swami Samarth talking to us. He asked me to tell baba to take care of himself and not to take stress. We spoke about something ( I don’t remember that now). Then I asked him ‘ Swami tumchi sun kadhi detay mala?’ He smiled at me and said ‘ Tula lagnachi khup ghai lagli ahe. Kalji karun nakos – yogya vel alyavar mazich mulgi tula denar mi.’

Next day onwards, I decided not to worry about my marriage since swami would be getting me his own daughter. Year and a half passed by and there were no results. I still had faith in my swami. I remember aai asking me ‘Swaminna athvan karun de parat.’ Again that night I saw him in my dreams – he was sitting in a room. He smiled at me and said ‘Mi ahe azun’. Probably, he wanted to tell us that he remembers his promise.

On 9th Feb 2008, I was supposed to meet a girl called Samira. I had no expectations from that meeting. I decided to meet her alone at Vile Parle’s Café Coffee Day. I saw this girl standing outside the café – I found her to be very down to earth – she was very nervous I could see it in her eyes. (Of course, I too was slightly nervous). We discussed a few things and out of the blue I asked her if she believes in God. She said yes. I told her that I believe in Swami Samartha – on saying this she gave me a broad smile and said that she too believes in him. After that she became very comfortable – we spoke for about 90 minutes and then left the place.

I had liked her but I was still confused. It took me 2 days to decide on this – after all it was the question of my life (our lives rather!). Mom, dad and sis had given up on me. My sis told me that if I reject her – she will never forgive me for it. I was confused.

I told swami ‘ Swami jar hich mazi wife asel tar maza man badla ani signs dya. Jar ka hi mazi nasel tar tichyakadnach rejection yeu dya.'

That afternoon, I was supposed to go for my friend’s wedding. On my way towards the venue – I saw so many pictures of swami samartha that I got down to think if there was something more to it. On my way back home too I was thinking about it. Suddenly, it struck me that swami had promised to get me his daughter. I asked my self – 'give me 3 reasons why I should reject her?' – I could not find any. Swami had indeed changed my mind and as promised had sent me his daughter – I was blind not to recognize her. On that day I gave my approval to my family.

I think Samira has been the best gift that Swami Samartha Maharaj has ever given me. She is not only a good wife but a good friend and a great advisor.

Thank you Swami!
Shri Swami Samartha Jai Jai Swami Samartha

Lost soul

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This post was written in a hurry and needs some editing.
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The date is May 7, 2013. It's 8 am in the morning and I am wide awake and thinking aloud "What has gone wrong? Why are people ignoring me? Is it the people that have changed or have I changed?" As usual there are no answers and I get up and make my way towards the bathroom.

My family gives me a vague look as if I am a stranger coming out of their son's room. Hello guys - its the same old Akshay - whats wrong with you?" They just ignore my words and get back to their respective rooms. Worst was yet to come - I could not recognize the person standing in front of the mirror. I take a quick shower and run out of the bathroom.

I thank my wife for keeping my clothes and other stuff ready. My wife looks at me with a sarcastic smile and says "At your service sir! Is there anything else you want me to do?"

Something is seriously wrong. I ask her "What is the matter? Have I done something?" She said "You are not the person I loved before marraige - you are a different person altogether." She leaves the room upon saying this. I am dumb founded -no words to express my feelings.

I reach office and start checking my mails. Around 1130, I decide to meet my old office folks - its been a while since we met. Thanks to our busy schedules we could no longer have those mini meetings over lunch. More than the lunch it used to be the discussions that we used to look forward to everyday but now they were history.

My friends too give me a cold smile and get back to their laptops - this was one of the most heartening sights. I felt like jumping out of the window and ending this God damn life.

I get back to my solitary confinement (read as cabin) to ponder over the recent events. I suddenly realize that it was I who had messed up all the relations. I got so busy in the rat race that I had no time for family, friends and colleagues. It was I who had changed and not the people around me. Not anymore - I will be the same old Akshay from now on - I will continue to give my best at work but will also spend time with my loved ones. I take out my notepad to make notes on how to have a perfect work-life balance. There is a loud ringtone that disturbs my flow of thought and I hear someone saying - "Akshay, please turn off the alarm!".

I suddenly wake up and find my wife sleeping next to me. I pinch myself and find that I am very much awake. I check my cell phone and find that the date is May 7, 2009. Phew! What a nightmare! But it did teach me a lesson - I should learn to have a perfect work-life balance. If work gives you the money to run your family it is your family for whom you are working - equal importance needs to be give at both ends.

Customization

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Source: This is an excerpt from one of my presentations on 'customization'. I OWN this article; it is solely based on my experiences.
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What is Customization?

1. Getting a pizza with the toppings of your choice – is customization.
2. Cars modified by DC – is customization.
3. Getting tailor-made suits/dresses - is customization.

So, basically giving something more than your usual service offering is customization. Please note that customization often comes with a premium.

Myths around customization

1. Retail clients will never have customized requests – they do have customized requests but often avoid asking for it to avoid the premium.
2. Customization is not worth the efforts put in by us.
3. Clients with special requests are painful – they are not painful in fact these are the clients who have been around for quite some time and can be our growth drivers.

Why is customization needed?

• To understand clients and their requirements.
• To have a stronger hold over our competitors.

In short, with customization comes growth – if we understand our clients, their requirements and meet their expectations – we will have a stronger stand in the market that would enable further growth.

Challenges involved

• Lot of back n forth involved – at times client might get irritated.
• Be ready to face multiple rounds.
• Most of the times clients don’t know what they want – we have to understand them and educate wherever possible.
• Possibility of losing clients if we fail to meet their requirements.
• Need to be patient and calm at all times.

Benefits of customization

• Have a better knowledge about our service offerings.
• Stronger portfolio.
• Higher chance of converting bigger clients.
• Strong hold over competitors.

Consider 'customization' to be your key to success and enable growth through effective customization.

Visionary Companies – Part 1

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Source: The following article is a collection of my thoughts based on my understanding of the chapters mentioned in the book ‘Built to Last’. I will be writing a series of articles based on visionary companies. Some of the terminologies have been directly picked up from the book. This article specifically deals with the definition of a visionary company.
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What defines a visionary company (VC)?
Visionary companies are premier institutions in their respective industries having a long track record of making a huge impact to the world. These are the companies who have gone through multiple rounds of product life cycles and have produced generations of leaders from within the organization.

VCs believe in the philosophy that a good idea is always a bad idea. They have never waited for any good idea; in fact they have grown by experimenting new methods, made mistakes and then finally created an identity of their own.

Profit-making is the last thing on their agenda. Values, ideologies and a sense of purpose form their core strength and drive their growths. Yet, these companies have a record of generating maximum profits.

They primarily focus on improving themselves rather than beating their competitors. They believe in having Big Hairy Audacious Goals (BHAGs) – according to these companies BHAGs work as their oxygen which eventually enables them to do their best.

VCs believe in the ‘Genius of the AND’ rather than ‘Tyranny of the OR’. For them it is always A and B and not A or B.

This article has focused on the definition of VCs - I will be writing many such articles relating to VCs. It might seem that I have ended this article abruptly but it is not the case. The concept of VC is so vast that it is impossible to include everything in just one article. Watch this space for related articles.

Service-Profit chain

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Source: In the following article I have jotted down my thoughts based on my understanding of the article - Putting the Service-Profit Chain. I OWN the article written below.
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I read an article called ‘Putting the Service-Profit Chain to Work’ by James L. Heskett, Thomas O. Jones, Gary W. Loveman, W. Earl Sasser, Jr., and Leonard A. Schlesinger. This article talks about how employee loyalty can drive company’s growth and profitability.

A month ago I had given a similar feedback to the manager of Hotel Kodai International. I was aware of the fact that if a company keeps its employees happy then they are bound to get satisfied customers; however, I was not aware that this theory was called as Service-Profit chain.

How does the service-profit chain work?
In this article, the authors have mentioned that if a company works on its internal service quality (listening to employees, providing an excellent work-environment, training, etc) then it would lead to 100% employee satisfaction. Employee satisfaction would in turn fuel employee loyalty which would raise their productivity. Higher productivity would bring in greater value to the external service that is being provided by the company. Excellent service boosts satisfaction and loyalty amongst clients. High loyalty drives growth and profitability.

A company is a link between its employees and clients. Employees are the ones who are responsible for driving the growth. As discussed above, growth and profitability will come only if the client considers the service or product to be a value for money. It is extremely essential to keep the employees satisfied and engaged. Employees should feel “proud” to be a part of a particular organization not because of the pay package they are getting but because of the values and environment given to them by the company.

Employers can introduce some of the following techniques in order to keep their employees happy:

1) Job rotation – this can be on a project basis where employees would get exposure to other departments within the organization. Examples:
· Delivery team associates could work for a shorter duration with CRM – this will give them exposure to client feedback and will be able to use it effectively in their core work.
· Client servicing associates can work with the marketing team – this will give them an exposure to the market needs and accordingly work harder in converting the client and meeting their needs. They will also be able to understand pressures faced by marketing team.
· Marketing team associates can work with client servicing.
· HR associate can work with CRM – this will help the person in understanding client needs and accordingly keep those in mind while looking for the required candidate(s).

2) Conduct employee satisfaction surveys regularly – HR can select the most critical factors affecting satisfaction and accordingly take the desired steps.

3) Having one-on-ones with low performers – we get to hear about top performers becoming low performers. These people either quit or get fired. It is extremely essential to know why a person is performing low on quality and productivity. A little bit of concern can do wonders.

4) If an employee’s quality scores are dipping – then we need to understand why this is happening. If it is a case of skill issue then you either ask him to improve or leave; if other factors then take necessary steps to help him improve his quality.

5) Recognition - start mentioning the names (along with photos) of employees who have high productivity scores – either on company newsletters or websites. In case of service industry, the risk is that clients might ask for the same person to work on their files but the advantage would be that others in the company would strive to work hard to earn this recognition. If you implement this it would have more value than any other gift vouchers.

So the bottom line is that if companies keep their employees happy, they can safely expect higher growth and profitability.

Perception and Priorities

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Source: The following is an e-mail forward and I am not the ORIGINAL writer of this post.
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A man sat at a metro station in Washington DC and started to play the violin; it was a cold January morning. He played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During that time, since it was rush hour, it was calculated that thousand of people went through the station, most of them on their way to work.

Three minutes went by and a middle aged man noticed there was musician playing. He slowed his pace, stopped for a few seconds and then hurried up to meet his schedule.A minute later, the violinist received his first dollar tip: a woman threw the money in the till and without stopping continued to walk.

A few minutes later, someone leaned against the wall to listen to him, but the man looked at his watch and started to walk again. Clearly he was late for work. The one who paid the most attention was a 3 year old boy. His mother tagged him along, hurried but the kid stopped to look at the violinist. Finally the mother pushed hard and the child continued to walk turning his head all the time. This action was repeated by several other children. All the parents, without exception, forced them to move on.In the 45 minutes the musician played, only 6 people stopped and stayed for a while. About 20 gave him money but continued to walk their normal pace. He collected $32.

When he finished playing and silence took over, no one noticed it. No one applauded, nor was there any recognition. No one knew this but the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the best musicians in the world. He played one of the most intricate pieces ever written ; with a violin worth 3.5 million dollars.

Two days before his playing in the subway, Joshua Bell sold out at a theatre in Boston and the average ticket was $100.This is a real story. Joshua Bell playing incognito in the metro station was organized by the Washington Post as part of a social experiment about perception, taste and priorities of people.

The outlines were: in a commonplace environment at an inappropriate hour: Do we perceive beauty? Do we stop to appreciate it? Do we recognize the talent in an unexpected context?One of the possible inferences from this experience could be:If we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best musicians in the world playing the best music ever written, how many other things are we missing?

Starbucks Experience

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Source: The following article is a collection of my thoughts based on my understanding of the book - The Starbucks Experience. I OWN the article written below.
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I came across a book in my personal library yesterday – it was called ‘The Starbucks Experience’. The first few pages were so interesting that I got down making notes for myself.

The book talks about how Starbucks turned an ordinary business into an extraordinary organization – that is loved not only by its customers worldwide but also its employees.

What defines a great company?
A great organization would be a combination of a great vision along with a plan that is implemented to perfection. Starbucks is one such organization that not only dared to create a vision but also implemented it to perfection.

Let us take a look at how Starbucks managed to create such a great organization.

Values and Culture
Starbucks has a unique culture in which the senior management believes in sharing not only their resources but also their wealth. Their employees are called as ‘partners’. They believe in giving their employees, quality and customer focused training, work-friendly environment which would enable them to keep their customers happy.

The best thing about them is that they have been maintaining consistency across all their outlets worldwide.
1) Leaders have created a unique culture for their partners in which Empowerment, Entrepreneurship, Quality and Service form their core values.
2) Partners in turn believe in creating a unique and personal experience for every customer.

Leadership
1) Starbucks leadership believes that the right way of doing business is to turn your employees in to partners. In fact their CEO distributed stock options not only to the senior management but to all the employees who spent more than 20 hours every week. Through this sharing, their partners appreciated the direct link between their efforts and the success of their company.
2) Starbucks has created their own Mission Review committee that is responsible for checking whether their leaders are living their vision and mission and also passing it down to their partners.
3) Starbucks believes in having an aligned mindset between the senior leadership and its partners.
4) It is only when the leaders live the values will the partners imbibe it.
5) Leaders believe in staying small while growing.
6) They face constant challenges in attracting quality and like-minded workforce.
7) They have a separate department called ‘Culture and Leadership development.
8) Senior leadership says – ‘It does not matter how many millions/billions of cups we serve if it doesn’t suit our clients need.

Values, mission and excellent customer and employee focus has been the driving force behind their ultimate success.

Starbucks partners
1) Partners feel ‘proud’ to be a part of this organization because they have the liberty to make things right.
2) The above point is a result of constant training and grooming.
3) Partners believe in creating an emotional bond with every customer.
4) They give importance to every customer by customizing their needs, making them feel important. It is only this trait that has resulted into higher loyalty amongst their customers.
5) Their packing is so great that they aim for 0 spill rate.
6) They believe in making a difference in the lives of their customers – this has been passed down through their leaders. This is what they call as ‘The Starbucks Experience’.

Other important facts
1) Starbucks has been maintaining the same quality consistently for years across all their outlets worldwide.
2) They spend more money on quality and customer focused training than on advertisement.
3) Apart from sharing financial benefits with its partners they provide the following as well – training in product knowledge, guiding principles for success, personal empowerment and the importance of creating a warm customer experiences. These things have resulted in to higher customer satisfaction and loyalty.
4) Employee turnover rate is 120% less than the industry average.
5) Partners have an 82% satisfaction rate.
6) One of their loyal customers not only knows where all the outlets are situated but also gives her family and friends directions to those outlets.

Apart from a great vision, core values and a strong work force they believe in 5 principles that act as their oxygen for surviving:

Make it your own
Everything matters
Surprise and delight
Embrace resistance
Leave your mark

Most of the companies may or may not be able to follow suit but we can definitely extract some of the important aspects and use it in our day-to-day work life. We could start off with the following:
1) Create a vision and share
2) Create an environment such that every employee feels proud to be a part of the organization. This can happen through client focused training, giving them the desired things, empowerment (basically a feeling of ownership).
3) In short, we need to create a Service-Profit sharing chain that will lead to employee satisfaction and loyalty, which in turn would lead to customer satisfaction and loyalty and drive our growth and profitability.

10 things I wanted to do before losing my bachlor's degree!!

I just can't belive that I am getting married on Dec 21st. Well, yea I was kind of waiting for this day (I am being honest!!) but there were quite a few things that I wanted to do before losing my bachlors degree. The list is really big but for simplicity I would like to restrict it to only 10 things:

I wanted to do the following before losing my bachlor's:
1) Watch 4~5 movies with friends.
2) Go on a long drive and an overnight trip.
3) Bachlor's party - would have loved to get sloshed :-)
4) Freak out with my childhood buddies
5) Organize St. Micheals 1994 batch reunion
6) Lose weight :-)))
7) Watch Ghajini,Rab ne Bana di Jodi and Burn after reading
8) Re-arrange/re-organize/clean up my wardrobe
9) Sleep for long hours
10) Do something wacky/crazy - may be go on a trek or river rafting :-)

Well, I was unable to do nay of the above things - but what the hell? I can still do some of the above things after getting married :-)

Trip to Visapur - a short story

“Vikash, you think Samar would make it for the trek today?” asked Ashutosh. “Knowing him I think he would definitely be here.” I replied. “Hmm…but we were not in touch for the past 1.5 years. I doubt if he even recollects what was discussed. I mean this is ridiculous dude, how can you not keep in touch with your best buddies?” said Ashutosh. “I agree Ashu but he is not the only one to be blamed. We too are equally responsible for not keeping in touch! We could have at least exchanged a few mails and kept in touch!” I explained. “Alright! Let’s wait for another hour or so and then leave. His number too is unreachable – at least he could have informed us about the new number.” said Ashutosh.

Ashutosh and I had come down to Mumbai after 5 years. We had plans of going on a trek to Visapur, Lonavala. During our good old college days, the three of us – Ashutosh, Samar and I were known for our trek tours. We had made this plan about 1.5 years ago when Samar had come to Cincinnati, USA to spend some time with us. Ashutosh and I had migrated to the US with our families about 10 years ago. Samar always wanted to pursue his career in India while we craved for the West. All of us were doing very well and were looking forward to a bright future. In these 1.5 years the three of us got extremely busy with our work and hardly kept in touch. Of course, Vikash and I being in the US were in constant touch but had lost contact with Samar.

Going for treks during monsoons had its own beauty. It was 6 am in the morning and we were waiting for Samar at a local tea stall in Powai. It was raining heavily and in order to beat the cold we had to go in for a hot cup of tea with fried pakodas.

Ashutosh came with two cups in his hand and a little boy followed with a plate full of hot and fried pakodas.“Here you go brother!” said Ashutosh as he gave the cup to me. “Man, nothing like a hot cup of ginger tea with fried pakodas.” I said. “How about dumping our original business plan and starting a franchise for pakodas in the US?” asked Ashutosh. “Yeah, sure go ahead!” I replied. “Let’s discuss it once we go back to the US.” replied Ashutosh. “What? You serious about this?” I asked. “Yeah, I am serious-ly joking about this!” replied Ashutosh with his typical wicked smile. “Very funny!” I said and got back to enjoying my pakodas.

We were startled by a loud knock on the window. It was Samar. “Sorry for the delay guys! I was stuck somewhere!” said Samar. “Where the fuck were you all these years!” asked Ashutosh. “I am sorry guys – I had plans of getting in touch with you about four months ago but something happened and I forgot all about it.” replied Samar. “Hey that’s alright! At least you remembered the trek and came all the way from Bangalore.” I replied. “I am sorry for being rude buddy but when did you reach Mumbai?” asked Ashutosh. “Yesterday! I am staying with my aunt.” explained Samar.

He was a changed man – he was not his usual self. The old Samar was a jovial and talkative guy – this guy was a stranger, at least that’s what I felt. “Let’s move guys!” said Ashutosh. “Guys, we will be taking the Mankhurd route via Ghatkoper and then hit the highway.” I said. “No, don’t do that!” replied Samar. “Why not?” I asked. “There has been an accident on the Mankhurd route and we may not be able to get out of that route.” explained Samar. “How do you know all this and it’s only 6:30 am in the morning we won’t get any traffic.” explained Ashutosh. “I heard it on the news and we will not be able to move out of that place because three trucks have over turned and are blocking the way.” explained Samar. We bought his explanation and took the Airoli route via Ghatkophar. It was raining cats and dogs and the foggy climate was making our journey even more interesting.

Around 8:30 am we reached Lonavala and decided to have our breakfast. “Guys, we are meeting tomorrow at my place for lunch and dinner. We won’t get any time today to catch up on the last 1.5 years so we can keep all of that for tomorrow and enjoy our trek. What say?” I asked. “Count me in!” replied Ashutosh. “Hmm…yeah sure!” said Samar. “What took you so long to think?” asked Ashutosh. “Samar, what is the matter with you? You are not the same old Samar we knew. What has happened in these last 1.5 years that has changed you so much? You hardly spoke in the car; you are not eating – what is the matter with you?” I asked.

I wanted my friend to open up. “All I can say is that something terrible has happened that has changed my life completely. I am fasting today hence won’t be eating anything.” explained Samar. “You are freaking us out, Samar. Can you be more specific?” asked Ashutosh. “Ashu, Vikash – whatever had to happen has happened. All is fine now except that the after effects still haunt us. Believe me when I say that things are back to normal now. I would not like to get into the details. I hope you understand.” explained Samar. “As long as things are fine we have no issues, buddy! Let’s stop this discussion and leave for Visapur. We still have to cover about 5-10 kms to reach the base of Visapur.” I said.

Around 9:30 am, we reached the Lohagad base and started our trek. Initially, it seemed to be a very easy climb but 15 minutes later, we realized that it won’t be that easy. We then reached a place where one path leads you to Lohagad and the other to Visapur Fort. Being a Saturday, it was crowded and most of the people were heading towards Lohagad. Hence, we decided to head for Visapur Fort.The scenery was beautiful but the roads were muddy and we had a tough time climbing up the hill. We lost our way twice and had to hire two kids to show us the way. There were occasional showers and the rocks were slippery so I had already started working on my will – one wrong move and I could end up falling on my head. In fact, I fell on the same knee thrice – it’s the worst thing that could happen on a trek.“Ouch!” I yelled. I was unable to put my foot in the front – the pain was unbearable. Samar asked me to sit on the nearby rock and started massaging my knee. He had a healing touch and I could bend my knee and was able to stand. “I have already started work on my will. You never know when you might face the angel of death on this trek.” I said. “You have a long life my friend. So don’t worry about it. You and Ashu have a long way to go – this is just the beginning of your life.” said Samar. “What do you mean beginning of our life? We are almost in our mid-thirties!” asked Ashutosh. “I meant that you guys are doing extremely well in your respective careers and will continue to do so for the next 30 years or so.” explained Samar. “Samar Baba ki Jai!” said Ashutosh. “Thanks Samar – feeling much better now. Let’s hope that we continue to succeed in our respective domains.” I said.

Finally, after a lot of hardship we reached the top of the fort around 1230 pm. It was a beautiful sight as we were surrounded by lush green trees and hills. We found a good place to sit where the sight was beautiful. It was drizzling and the temperature might have been around 5-6 degrees celsius. Ashutosh was carrying a bottle of port wine – we opened it and started gulping it down. Samar was on a fast so he did not taste it.I wondered when I would get to see the old Samar doing his crazy antics. I just hoped and prayed for Samar’s happiness. Ashutosh was a good cook and he was carrying some food. We gave some food to those little kids accompanying us. I wanted to break the silence and decided to start talking to Samar.

“So, Samar what about your dream house – how are things progressing on that front?” “That will remain a dream for the rest of my life?” he replied with a dejected face. I had hit the wrong chord. I knew for sure that he was facing a financial problem. “Why do you say so?” asked Ashutosh. “Forget about me guys!” said Samar with a big smile on his face. We had been dying to see that smile on his face. We knew he was hiding his pain and covering it up with his trademark smile. He continued “Don’t worry about me! I am fine. Everyone has to go through this phase of life. You guys should think about your dream venture!” We were surprised to hear that because we had never mentioned anything about our business plans to Samar. “Hey how do you know about our business plans?” I asked him. “Well, I have my own sources you see!” replied Samar. “I am just kidding!” he said with his trademark smile. “No, but how did you…?” asked Ashutosh. “Guys, about 1.5 years ago under the influence of alcohol you guys had revealed your plans to me. I am glad that you guys were serious about it and have started working on it” replied Samar.

We then changed the topic and started discussing our respective family lives. At least we got Samar talking – he was not his usual self but better than what he was in the morning. I felt the urge to ask him the exact problem but before I could say anything he got up and said “Guys, it is already 4:30 pm and we need to start climbing down. It might start raining heavily and we will find it difficult to get down.” It’s as if he had sensed what was coming. We nodded and agreed to make our way back.We assumed the journey downhill to be quick and easy. But to our surprise we were slipping and sliding our way back down. Due to the knee injury I could not keep my leg straight so I had to take help from Ashutosh while climbing down.Once we reached the base, we were surprised to see the crowd there. There were people dancing and singing. Some of them were so sloshed that they didn’t know what they were doing. It was a funny sight!

Ashutosh was in no mood to drive so I had to drive back home. We reached Powai around 8 pm. “What next?” asked Ashutosh. “Well, you guys need to come up for a cup of coffee before proceeding. My folks have gone out so we can chill out!” I replied. “Man you remind me of our college days – folks not at home so we can enjoy, huh?” said Ashutosh. “Guys, I need to be at my aunt’s place – so you will have to excuse me. I am not sure about tomorrow either.” said Samar. “C’mon buddy! We are meeting after 1.5 years and you want to be with your aunt, that’s not done!” I said. “I know that but please understand my situation. I am staying at my aunt’s place and she is very particular about punctuality. I know it sounds funny at this age but I am a guest in her house.” explained Samar. We could not stop him. “Fine buddy! When do we get to see you? How do we know that you have reached home safely? Give us some contact number.” said Ashutosh. He gave us a number and said “Just think about me and you will find me by your side. Your life is about to change for good! All the best and be good!”

After having a hot cup of coffee we decided to call up Samar’s aunt. I dialed the number and put it on the loudspeaker.
Vikash: Hello, am I speaking to Mrs. Pandey?
Mrs. Pandey: Yes, that’s right!
Vikash: Hello aunty, I am Vikash – Samar’s friend.
Mrs. Pandey: Hello beta! What can I do for you?
Vikash: We just came back from a trip and wanted to know if Samar has reached home safely.
Mrs. Pandey: What kind of a joke is this? Are you out of your mind?
Vikash: Wh-Why? What happened?
Mrs. Pandey: You call yourself his friend and don’t know what has happened?
Vikash: I beg to differ but I don’t understand what you are trying to say.
Mrs. Pandey: Samar died about 4 months ago. He and his family were on their way back when they met with an accident – they died on the spot.

Ashutosh and I were speechless when we heard what Samar’s aunt had just said. We couldn’t believe a word she was saying. How can a person spend an entire day with us when he is already dead? Now we know why he was so detached and aloof. Was he visible only to us? I remember those kids giving us crazy looks. My chain of thoughts was broken by my crazy ringtone – it was an international call. I wanted to disconnect the call but Ashutosh didn’t let me.It was a call from our business agent – “Vikash, congratulations! I was trying to get through your number since yesterday. Your business proposal has been accepted and we can go ahead with it. Being a weekend we can’t do anything as of now but will send in your papers along with Ashutosh’s on Monday and get the ball rolling. Congrats once again and hope to see you soon!”

Our life had indeed changed for the good. We were on our way to fulfill our dreams. We were in no mood to celebrate our success - we had lost a dear friend forever! Samar was a man of principles and kept his word even after his death. I hugged Ashutosh and we wept the whole night.

Graphology

(****After a gap of 4 months I finally decided to get back to blogging. Writing has been a passion but have no time to write. I will make it a point to write few things on my blog - either daily or once a week***).

Last week, I completed my course in graphology - I am now a professional graphologist. I need to analyze as many samples as possible in order to become proficient and then go for the advanced course in March/May.

Why did I learn Graphology?
I was always intrigued by human psychology - though graphology doesn't deal with that subject directly, it does have some relation to it. Self-improvement too was one of the reasons why I went in for this course. I wish to change myself and also help the HR department of my company in their recruitment decisions.

Where did I learn it from?
I learnt it from the Institute of Graphological Studies, Prabhadevi. Our faculty, Mr. Anal Pandit (Sir) had an in-depth knowledge f the subject and made it very interesting for all of us (students). His sense of humor combined with beautifully woven stories made it easier for me to grasp the subject.

Will I recommend this institute to others?
I would definitely recommend Anal sir and his institute. No-no I am not getting any cut for recommending him :-) Seriously guys, if you wih to learn graphology then it has to be from IGS that too under the able guidance of Anal Sir.