November’23

Volume 7 | Issue 3 Brick in the Wall

INSIDE THIS EDITION

Festivals @ IIMA
Vanam Yashasree &
@ IIMA
Sushanth Kumar Ravva - Vanam Yashasree & Sushanth Kumar Ravva, PGP ‘24

Ask any WIMWIAN, their fondest memories of IIMA – Some might talk about Holi
splashes and torn clothes, while some fondly reminisce dancing all night for
Dear Home Navratri - I assure you it won’t be complete without one of these festivals
Padmasandhya S celebrated here. Filling the air with cheer, joy and celebration, festivals make us
pause all things serious and indulge in a time of togetherness, keeping us united in
this frenzied life of chaos.
HOLI
Classroom Chronicles Hundreds of people at one place, drenched
Vaibhav Sagar in water, dirt and colors, dancing together
spreading infectious energy, Holi at IIMA is
an unparalleled experience. Strategizing
ambush plans, grooving in sync to DJ in
soiled (sometimes torn?) clothes, this day is
nothing but heavenly madness. Think
Design twice before getting lost in the beats (of
Locha-e-Ulfat?), because 9 times out of 10
Harshvardhan, PGP ‘25 you’d find yourself making your way out of
Hitesh Wanjari, PGP ‘25 a barrel of water! But as it said, “Bura na
mano, Holi hai!”

NAVRATRI

A 9 day long festival filled with music, dance and delightful delicacies!? Add
Garba at the Old Campus cricket ground, and you’ve now arrived at IIMA’s
Navratri. Every soul here steps out sporting a traditional attire bringing life to
their inner divine, dancing to the chords of garba one step at a time - You are
fortunate if you find yourself a gujju teacher to guide you or be prepared to run
into people dancing next to you!! Legend says to this day, that people on campus
unconsciously sway to garba tunes even after Navratri.

Disclaimer: Brick in the Wall is published by the Media Cell, a student body of Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad.
The opinions expressed in the articles belong solely to the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of IIM Ahmedabad or Media Cell.
Brick in the Wall VOL. 7. ISSUE 3
November 2023

GANESH CHATURTHI
Was a Mothichoor Laddoo the first thing that
popped up, when you read this? Well you’re not
alone in that regard! Fragrances of incense
sticks, flowers & garlands adorned on our
Ganesh’s idol turn Dorm 37 into a temple for the
residents of New Campus. Students-turned-
ephemeral devotees religiously attend everyday
aarti that culminates in Visarjan, where students
bid adieu in a dance parade with loud beats
from dhols, sinking their fears and inhibitions
along with the God’s idol.

ONAM
Onam is synonymous with the campus swarmed
by Dhotis & Sarees! Breath-taking decorations,
rangolis, music and dance performances stand
to make you mesmerized at the Mess Circle. Not
to mention the Onam Sadhya, bringing
delicacies from the households of Kerala all the
way to our very own mess.

DIWALI
Diwali is that festival during which the
Campus is lit – quite literally! Students adorn
themselves in their best attire, donning their
creative hats to decorate their rooms and
dorms (read Homes) with diyas, enjoying in
groups making rangolis with flowers. With
lights and crackers, the Red Bricks shine the
brightest during Diwali. A stroll with friends
on this day around the campus will leave
you spellbound as you witness the
architecture in bright lights!!

SANKRANTHI
It usually takes a lot to drag people out of their room during
cold winter nights. Sankranthi certainly is an exception where
people move out of their rooms to gather and celebrate
Lohri/Bogi - a magnificent bonfire lit amidst the dorms. As the
bonfire burns the barriers, people sit around it bonding over
conversations, reminiscing about their fond memories all
night long losing track of time until the sun rises to call it a
day. In the light of bonfire and warmth of company, we all feel
– The night is still young, my friend.

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Brick in the Wall VOL. 7. ISSUE 3
November 2023

- Padmasandhya S, PGP’24
I am stranded in a railway station somewhere in Germany
again due to a cancelled train as I write this letter to you. It
is in such moments that my longing for you ascends yet
another crescendo. It isn’t that the trains themselves are
bad – on the contrary, they are quite superior – but the
nostalgic appeal of the Indian Railways is missing. I call it
nostalgic because, dear Home, you seem so far away from
me. Time is my charioteer, and while I urge him to speed up
a little, he continues his steady pace without a care for my
pleas.
Rhein Falls That is not to say Europe hasn’t been welcoming. It’s been exactly two
months, and I admit I am privileged to have experienced fortuitous rendezvous
with many important milestones of this region. I have climbed The Alps, admired
the gothic splendour of Il Duomo in Milano, silently wept at the memorial in
Auschwitz, pieced together the fragments of the Berlin Wall from its
remnants, sang “The Sound of Music” in true Julie Andrews style atop a grassy
hill in Salzburg, sat by The Rhine dreaming of a future that seemed more
real than the scenery around me, took pictures of fancy cars I would
probably never buy in Munich, strolled on the cobbled streets of Prague
with a traditional chimney cake melting in my fingers… the list goes on.

Throughout my travels, I
have also had the
opportunity of meeting so man
y different people
across the world. We
had such interesting
conversations, and I must add
that they can be eye-
opening. The most compellin
g learning, though, has
been self-discovery. Missing
train coaches and
midnight walks on a dark
highway in freezing
weather have unveiled my
truest potential and
built resilience and self-conf
idence in me.
Despite the wonderful bestowments above, I think of you every day. While I am consciously grateful for all that
Europe has offered me, she cannot be you. The familiar aroma of a piping hot rasam rice, which I had never
heeded while there, seems to beckon me into your arms. Gandhiji looks at me empathetically as the Euro notes
seem to find my humble purse too modest for their accommodations. Most importantly, I feel out of place here –
I don’t belong here. You know what they say – Home is where the heart is – but I am inclined to believe my
heart will always be at Home.
Anyway, the next train is here, and it is time to conclude my letter.
It is my sincere hope that this train will not be delayed or cancelled as well.
Till I am united with you again after five-and-forty sunrises,
Your Daughter
Padma
(PS: As expected, the train is delayed by twenty minutes.
Deutsche Bahn is indeed reliably unreliable).
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Brick in the Wall VOL. 7. ISSUE 3
November 2023

CLASSROOM CHRONICLES Vaibhav

Sagar
ELE PH AN TS AN D CH EET AH S ED ITIO PGP’24
N

8.45 am classes are punctuated by two distinct yet connected incidents – a rush to reach the class
on time (or only a couple of minutes late) and frequent, endearing glances at the clock ticking by.
But one such Elephants and Cheetahs class turned out to be a pleasant deviation to normality,
when (almost) nobody wanted it to end. This is what went down…

Professor Saral Mukherjee, ever the showman, was discussing an Apple case on innovation. The
point of the matter was that Steve Jobs, and his extravagant vision about what Apple was and
could be, resulted in one of the world’s most innovative companies. Jobs was the reason Apple was,
well, ‘Apple’. To really drive this point home, Prof. Saral played a video of Beethoven’s Ode to Joy, as
envisaged by a flash-mob, street performance by an orchestra. Then he proceeded to compare
Jobs with Beethoven.

Long last, 10 am had struck, the class was thought to have ended, the point hoped to have been
driven home. But not so, as the professor proceeded to perform the chorus of ‘Ode to Joy’ himself,
enlightening the class with the words:

‘Ever singing, march we onward,

Victors in the midst of strife,
Joyful music leads us Sunward
In the triumph song of life.’
life.’

The class bowed down with the quintessential parliamentarian bench thumping.