Third Degree..!!!

Statuary warning: The following piece is completely a work of fiction and any resemblance to any one living or dead is solely incidental.


Peeling off the nails, lying naked on an ice slab, hanging upside down are few of the things that sum up to the third degree used for outlaws. Fortunately ours is equivalently torturous but a bit different, and spans up to a couple of years.
Yeah folks, I’m talking about the three degrees a student has to undergo during his not so happy lifetime- 10th, 12th and at least his/her bachelors’. Surprised???Eh..!!! Bitter, but truth.
The torture begins as soon as the label of a board student is pasted on our foreheads. Unlimited pressure, be it from the family members, compeers, or teachers, starts mounting on us from nowhere. We were happily living our lives as juveniles without a trace of fear or a vision for future at the back of our minds. But the existence of some people in the society who are more interested in others’ household than theirs made our parents become more concerned about their status rather than our willingness to study. Albeit, we did our best to score as much as we could, it always appeared deficient. Somehow we managed to finish off our boards. But this was not the end. The game has just started.
The month of June is very critical for a would be class 11th student. Arts, Science, Commerce….What crap..!! Anyhow, overriding the present interests, and looking over for the bright future, we end up studying Science. Despite the fact that there are numerous fields which are waiting to be exploited, the dream of entering the two premier institutions viz. the IIT and AIIMS for the two respective fields are inculcated deep into our minds from the very first day. We come across various types of tortures during this two years of vigorous study where a student is expected to solve problems from Halliday Resnick to Loney to Morrison Boyd. Unfortunately, we find ourselves so much entangled between the competitive exams and our respective boards that we end up with sleepless nights and of course colleges like SSIT for our third degree…!!!!
The beginning of our third degree is very nice for most of us, when we are free from the daily chiding which we used to receive back home. Cash in our pockets, balance in our flashy cell phones, freedom to buy designer clothes and roam around wherever we want. But this freedom is short lived as we find ourselves chained and trussed up within the confines of the VTU( better known as Very Tough University). I can say that the life of a first year prisoner is the best ‘coz as soon as we climb up the stairs in the main building, we find ourselves more and more reluctant to look in to our books and are more interested towards finishing off the degree soon, however it may be. Innumerable assignments, about over 100 internals, 50 papers, and to add on, a over a dozen labs too. It truly deserves to be called a third degree!! Apart from academics, during these 4 years, we are audience to various changes that turn a playful teen into a responsible adult. Perhaps time is the best teacher and it teaches us every damn trick to survive…..’Coz it is only the fittest who are going to survive this test of endurance…………….

Destination OOTY...!!!!

I desperately neeeded a break from the strenuous college schedule. And it did come, in the form of a long planned, mismanaged, full of twists and turns, and of course a rainy trip to Udhagamandalam, better known as Ooty. We started off with a tiring bus journey from Bangalore @ 11 in the night. With tea breaks @ Mysore and another unknown location, we woke up to find lofty mountains, dense forest, sprawling grasslands and miles and miles of tea gardens greeting us!! The weather was obviously coool!! Without wasting any time, we started off for Conoor in the Beautiful Toy train chugging with a steam engine. With all the whistling and hushing, going through numerous tunnels and bridges, we reached Conoor @ noon. Our taxi driver-cum-guide took us through the picturesque locations dropping us at various points. As we went on and on, memories of beautiful moments spent in mussoorie kept flashing in my mind. The visit to the tea factory was worth it as we got the chance to see the actual process, and above all tasted 6-7 varieties of tea..!!

Next day was for Ooty darshan! We set out early for Dodabetta- the highest peak of the Nilgiri range. We left the bus 3 kms before the peak and trekked up the remaining distance. However when we reached , it started raining( as it usually happens wherever i go!!), but still we could manage to have a telescopic view.Next we headed for the boat house, rosa garden, botanical gardens and the local shopping area. And yes, how can i forget the home made chocolates!!! Yummmmm...the trip is incomplete without the great variety of chocolates Ooty has to offer!!

We headed back to our college, with beautiful memories in our minds to cherish forever........

Black Friday

Well, it was not that serious as it sounds from the title, but it did disappoint me. I am talking about Tantra- the state level technical symposium that our college hosted so well( unexpectedly!!!). I had been preparing for the paper presentation since our internals got over and had struggled a lot to find a topic worth presenting. Everything was going smooth, infact the day before, I was so well prepared that i was helping others with their papers. On the D-Day, I was pretty excited as it was fun to see so many people turn up for such an event! Everything looked so lively.I had to demonstrate my hobby project as well as the paper. I finished off with the project befor lunch and was eagerly waiting for my turn @ in the next roon for ppt.
Luckily I did well( as told by others). But I was happy for one thing. When someone from the audience asked me a question, the judge, who was supposed to screw me with more queries, himself stood up and was arguing with him on my behalf. And perhaps this was the biggest mystery of the day!! If I did well then why didn't I win?
Consolations came in flooded....Sorry i don't need it. I knew it was an easy strike. I guess its truly said-"The best man wins"!!- and I wasn't the best.