A leaf from lot like life…

To begin with let me explain what is lot like life…it’s a documentary which was shot among all the hostellers of final year batch 2010, which includes special interviews from our principal Dr. S.S Rathore and our honorable hostel warden Pandey sir…it’s a leaf from lot like life as I have taken the concept from lot like life, unlike lot like life which has it’s motto of unveiling the experience of all the hostellers, I have confined it to the 3 musketeers of room no 5105. If I go on explaining about the interviews of all the members of the hostel…I might not be able to finish it in months…therefore I would concentrate on the interview of room no 5105 with few extra details…which were not present in lot like life…
ROOM NUMBER5 5105, the first digit in the room number signifies the block (most of the final year guys were in 5th block), the second digit signifies the floor…0 for ground floor and 1 for 1st floor, the last 2 digits represent the room number (by now many people might have guessed that whose room it might be…as I was the one who fancied the number 5). We were given the 4th block in 1st year, as we graduated to second year we were given the 5th block which would be our home for the remaining three years…the choice of rooms were given on merits. When we were called for choosing our room, my then roommates (Nilanjan and Ankan) preferred 1st floor, I had to make the final decision. I went on with their wishes and selected the room no 5105…the only room in the hostel with all the three roommates having a matching name (Anjan, Ankan and Nilanjan). After we went through the 2nd year Ankan preferred to shift to the ground floor so he shifted to a vacant room in ground floor. Ankan moved to a different room but yet we shared the same bench in our classes and I would sit behind him in the exams throughout my engineering career. Everyone would accept to the fact that I was far more serious towards my studies in my college days then in my school days and I would hardly depend on others in any exam (unlike the INFORMATICS PRACTICES exam of class 11 &12th where I doubt I have ever written any of the exams without any help from others) but would often help out others and I think Ankan still owes me a treat for that ‘C’ exam. Hope Ankan would be reading this. After Ankan left the room Dayanand wished to come into our room and he approached both Nilanjan and me, I had known Daya (Dayanand) from my 1st year and so I convinced Neil (Nilanjan)...…and then came Daya as our third roommate…
Few of the trademark characteristics of three of us…even when the exams where overhead Daya would not give up his sleeping habit for a mere university exam (the exams were our entire future depends) and would often say the most important thing is a proper sleep. He was not a kind of person who would remain awaken the entire night for exams as a result he would often be found sleeping with open books just after 5 minutes since he opened his books. He doesn’t need to study hard as he had the best concept when compared with me and Nilanjan. Nilanjan, what can I say about him we two are basically from the same area in Kolkata (Barrackpore), except our similarity in names nothing else was similar between us, but yet he was by far the most long lasting roommate…and one of the pillars of room number 5105 which was never broken. Nilanjan had the knack of reading novels; he won’t hamper his studies for his novels but would be often seen with a novel in hand. He had the best memorizing capability and would memorize almost anything which were a mere dream for us. He had that unique power of understanding the concepts by memorizing things which always amazed me. I was a cricket worm (must have heard about the word book worm I was a cricket worm) if not in field I would be seen at my computer playing cricket even the night before the exams…and would often say playing continuously for hours enhances my concentration & and whatever I could score at the exams it’s just because of my cricket 07 which I play in my computer…few would believe others considered me a freak, a cricket fanatic to be exact.
I must say Neil and Daya were the perfect roommates for me…everybody has few weaknesses but when I compared myself with them I always stand third…I have learned a lot from them be it friendship, adaptability, compromise, sacrifice, helping others…if I go on it would be a entire blog on what I learned from them so I am cutting it short…and concentrate on a leaf from lot like life. Before I start for the main interview here are few lines from Neil and Daya which would remain with me forever.
Nilanjan: wish our entire life be a hostel, I have learned a lot here, than what I have throughout my life. It’s totally different from school days were you could spend with your friends only for a stipulated period but in hostel you have to live with them. With so many people who are different from me, living with them and knowing them is a life time experience.
Dayanand: life is not what you expect to be but being what life expects from you. In hostel I have known many people who were genuinely good, it’s not often that you live up to your reputation to be known as a special person but with the roommates I have, they would always be special to me...wish could have them for my entire life.
Great words indeed….I also have something to speak…
I am very fortunate to be a part of MIET 2010 BATCH, I don’t know what others have to say about it but it was the best college that I could get into, the best hostel that I was a part of, and my roomies they were the best roommates I could ever get…missing everything like hell…
Here I come to the main interview…
Keshav one of the hosteller was taking the interview..
Keshav: we are in room number 5105…here are 3 musketeers of this room, please tell about yourself
Me: hello, I am Anjan Roy, electronics 8th sem. I am from Kolkata (Ichapur)
Daya: this is Dayanand Arya; I am basically from Gridih, Jharkhand. My branch is electronics and communication
Neil: good evening, my name is Nilanjan Roy. My branch is electronics and communication & I am from Kolkata (Barrackpore)
Keshav: ok…they are our Bengali brothers (indicating me and Neil as Daya wasn’t a Bengali…but he could understand Bengali as any Bengali would)
Keshav: your first question tell me about your best and worst experience in these 4 years
Me: there hasn’t been much to call as a best experience, but the moment I cherish the most is when I won the man of the series in HPL (indoor cricket tournament) last year…including 3 man of the match awards…I was the highest run scorer as well as the highest wicket taker in the entire tournament. worst experience: in 1st year when I was suffering from viral flu…our hostel warden Pandey sir spread the news that I was suffering from chickengonia…I was very disturbed hearing that…as it was just a viral flu which lasted for hardly 3-4 days.
Daya: best experience: to meet the friends out here…I met few very good friends…few were good friends in first year but nothing such remained after that…you know things like that happen in life…worst experience: the worst experience was that I have to came here in Gondia
Keshav:…so you also blame Gondia?
Daya: I am not blaming Gondia we are here because we deserved.
Neil: there is not any best experience as such…but still celebrating friends birthday or occasions like New Year, holi…I would miss these. Worst experience: it happened in 7th sem only…I came up did my college admissions and went home without my hostel admissions…Pandey sir called me up and said my hostel admissions would be cancelled..i had to board the train the very day I reached home…it was a hectic journey…but I am ok with that…things like that do happen. This is the worst experience, except this there wasn’t any bad experience as such.
Keshav: what would you miss the most after going from this place?
Me: I will miss my classes the most…not many in the hostel are much bothered about classes…but I want to do classes…I am not a book worm or anything like that but still I would miss my classes.
Keshav: I would like to say…Anjan is one of the most punctual student of electronics department…I am also from electronics department, it’s good that he is not in my section. But he is very regular with his classes.
Daya: I will also miss the classes. We are here for 4 years, when you live in a place for so long…you tend to grow some bonding with that place…whatever it may be good or bad but it was 4 important years of our life. Therefore I will miss this place….will miss the hostel life such lives in the after years exist only in the memories….will miss the friends out here…few very good friends…like Shobhit, my roommates…
Neil: I will miss the hostel…when I came to Gondia…if it wouldn’t had been this hostel I wouldn’t have known about this place….i really enjoyed it a lot…classes…I do classes ..i don’t bunk classes very often but my attachment towards the college and class is not much as compared to hostel…this environment, atmosphere…appeals me a lot…I will really miss this…
Keshav: my last question what will be the first thing that comes to your mind when you hear the word Gondia?
Me: the first thing that comes to my mind when I hear the word Gondia…a place which is cut off from the city (Nagpur) but it still has a college, it has something special in it which I can say…I cannot call it a great but it can be called as a place where a person who wants to do good can do good…no matter whatever may be the case.
Daya: when I didn’t know much about this place…I only had information that Gondia is a halt where all the trains have a stoppage…I thought it would be a good place…but when I came here it was not what I expected…but if anybody would ask me about this place…the image of this college would certainly come into my mind…Gondia is also known for its tobacco factory…and it is also known as the’ wheat bowl’
Nilanjan: Gondia is indeed a small town compared to a village…I also had a similar thinking like Daya that it would be a good place…I thought it would be near Nagpur or somewhere close to it…I didn’t know it was so much far from Nagpur (130 kilometers). When I first came down to Gondia railway station I thought it’s a good place…during 1st year and 2nd year I didn’t like this place…but as time went by I started liking this place…from 1st year to now a lot of development has taken in the Gondia city, place is changing… people’s mentality is also changing…it will take time in developing…but it’s developing…slow but steady.
Keshav: according to them Gondia wasn’t a city of their dream…it would take time and may be the students to come may have their dream city…that’s all from room number 5105.
It was a short interview….but still had lot in it… let’s see what our principal had to say
Dr S.S Rathore: I know how you guys must be feeling right now…on the verge of completing your engg. When a drop of water falls into ocean it loses its individuality but when this same drop falls on the lotus leaves they shine as the pearl…I am sure when you will come in your silver jubilee celebration… you would notice your friends going up in the ladder of life…I may not be there …many of the teachers would not be present there…but I am sure you will feel as a pearl that day…
There was a long interview of our hostel warden Pandey sir…but I will only go through the essence
Pandey sir: this 2006 batch which is going out in 2010 is a unique batch…I am not praising you all…but it’s a fact and data’s reveal the fact…this batch that appeared under the university has taken it to different level…results are the proof of that. We have a demographic disadvantage…if we compare Mumbai and Gondia there is a vast difference…but still our college has a good ratio of teaching staff thanks to AICTE for tightening the norms. The basic need of any institution is its faculty and I am proud that we are improving with every passing year. Hostel students are known for their intelligence and skills…I have to say 80% of the college result is contributed by the hostel students… And this is the only batch in my 26 year of experience as a hostel warden (MIET, Gondia) that has broken the passing percentage of Nagpur University. Not only academics but this batch is good in all extracurricular activities… a really unique batch MIET 2006-2010.
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Pandey sir indeed our batch was the best…and much of its credit goes to you…
It’s just a leaf from lot like life...and the credit goes to Shobhit Verma (one of the hosteller) who realized this concept and made it a dream come true through…’a lot like life’. I got the inspiration for writing this blog from Shobhit…hats off to you and all others who made the documentary ‘lot like life’ possible.