at last...!!! graduated

While i was planning my trip to Mumbai, a friend of mine adviced me to take my parents along with me. I just brushed aside this idea and said no way!!!!!!!! first of all they would melt in the heat. Secondly, my mum and dad hate Mumbai. So why trouble them i thought. But during this sultry hot day, when i received my degree i missed them the most. And my brother too.

Oh btw I have graduated.... THANKS..THANKS...

I am done with my masters in personnel management and industrial relations.

All traditions were broken this year when the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was invited for the convocation. TISS usually doesnt indulge in such extravagance. When i walked into campus, it resembled deonar police station.

oh i forgot to mention about the dept. lunch we had. Our HOD had hosted a small lunch for us. So i rushed to the hotel directly from the airport. Just before i entered the room i ran through my mind, how my friends would welcome me. I paused for a minute and opened the door...and i was not disappointed. Sangha, Kichu, Ambika, Sandy all hugged me.....missed anu and others...

Went back to campus and by the time i knew it the day was over.

The next day went relatively slow and I was at the height of inactivity when i decided i would kill time by deleting my old mails(ya i was really bored) when sangha(thank god) came and hauled me out to her house. We watched RDB, laughed over insane jokes and took the car and left for the airport to receive her mother.

From the airport aunty was kind enough to drop us at Juhu beach.

I and sangha just sat down and ,.......,yapped......what else we do !!!!!!!!!!

We counted aeroplanes, watched them disappear into the clouds , had behl puri. Felt complete when we walked out of the beach.
WE caught up dinner at a joint nearby and went and sat in MOcha.

Sangs had a four storeyed chocolate cake all by herself and left me awe struck!!!!!!!

We came out and took an auto back tot he airport to pick up anu.
My friend called and told me I sounded very cheerful. I told him that was because i was back in my elements. Back in my favourtite city, Back to doing insane things at insane times!!!!!!!

Picked up and reached sangs place.... and ya we slept at four!!!

Woke up at 6:45 for convo!!!!!!!!!!!! and the usual fun times draping sari....

Left for campus. Campus was polished to the brick(literally)...all the crow shit off crow shit marg had been washed off. Fresh paint and tar greeted us.

We reached the holding area and ya no points for guessing..yapped for a while.

Then we formed the procession queue and waited for The PM to come. We had insane ideas about he would land. The best one was the where sanga said" he would land on top of LH1 and while he walked down, we would scream...man in the hostel. Added to this orange would be his escort.(sorry for the tiss lingo...I am sure tissians are laughing their heads off)

A boring convocation. Highpoint : My friend sangha topped.

While the vote of thanks was being read the most bizarre thing happened. An old student of tiss stood up holding a black flag in protest to PM's decision on Narmada issue and the Bhopal Gas tragedy issue. Some of us were angry. Some irritated. Some indifferent. Some happy- quintessially like TISS!!!!Guess the media got their share of flesh for the day.

On to a nice fare from TAJ, we got back to the convo were the others (apart from the toppers) got their degrees. Yours truly was amongst them. Opened the envelope with trepidation. Our last sem grades were in it. Thankful of what i saw in that sheet, we moved on.

It suddenly struck me- I had graduated. Me, ANANTHALAKSHMI has done her masters too!!!!!

I forgot about my graduation ceremony for my engineering. I think I have a come a long way from there. Wish i could have shared those few moments with appa, amma,anna, rajini vaish,shabeer, sushant, arpita, buddha...the list goes on.....

thank you all......most of all Thank You TISS......