CAT

19th Nov, It was a another Sunday morning, I woke up around 8. Last night I watched the new James bond movie Casino Royale with Rohinton (my MCA batch mate who also works in Pune) and my cousin at E-Square. We came back around 1 in the morning.

But this Sunday morning was a bit different from my usual Sunday’s. I had to appear for CAT (Combined admission test for IIM’s). I had given this exam once seven years ago in 1999 DEC,. I was not at all prepared this time as I had just filled the form thinking that I will study, but as usual it never happened. My center was at New English School at Tilak road. It was also at Tilak road last time, but in SP College. Both the centers are just couple of meters away from each other.

I thought I would have breakfast at Niranjan and then will go to center. I walked down from my house till Niranjan thinking about the things that happened on CAT Sunday seven years back. Almost the whole 3rd block (the Fergusson College hostel where I used to stay) was getting ready for the event. It seemed like we all are going for a mela (fest) like Congress Bhavan on Durga-Puja All familiar faces were there at the test center, we all looking for our seats, wishing each other best of luck. Aditi, Amitabh, Dingu, Gaurav, Joy, Kranti, Tublu and how can I miss Pandit who came to wish us all the best. All tensed faces - Tublu doing last minute reading as it is, Amitabh has to be paranoid. The ever cool looking Joy also tensed. I was also betting a lot on it and frankly I was tensed because I was not sure of myself. Those two hours went and moment the exam was over, Pandit was there to know how we all did. And then he took some one some where, Do I Need to say whom ;-) ?

All these thoughts were crossing my mind when I reached the center and this time there was no Pandit helping me find my seat number. Tublu called at that time to wish me luck. I just saw the crowd out there, who had come to give exam, I was looking the odd man out. Do I need to say what differentiated me from them? Well you guessed it right, I was the old guy in between all the young blood. All anxious faces doing their last minute preparation before the BIG EXAM.

When I sat on the seat, it felt so nice to sit in an exam hall after such along time and that too without any pressure. Though there was no familiar face around - last time it was Joy sitting ahead of me. Those two and a half hours flew and truly speaking this time I was able to concentrate better then last time, though there was a good looking babe sitting ahead of me and was constantly swinging her long hair in front of my face.

After the exam, it was the same scene - people discussing the answers with their friends. Some looked happy as the paper was easy. Some looked gloomy as English was tough and they feared that they would not clear the sectional cut-off. Others, who did not do that well were looking really sad. Looking at them made me feel me very nice that few years back we all were like them. I was missing all of you folks and the golden days we had. And how with time we all have gone at different corners of world busy with our own lives and doing well in what ever we are doing. Though only two of us managed to clear CAT, and there’s only one idiot still trying for that :-) . Yes folks its me. But then its CAT which made me remember so many things.

I am sure people to write such a thing again, do not know which year, but will do so again.…