Why They Keep Coming Back To Campus - NITIE Mumbai

As a part of the team organizing the annual alumni meet of NITIE this year, I was waiting at the campus gate to welcome an alumnus, who was a student of PGDIM batch of 2010 and holds a prestigious position at a well-known bank in India. I had already created a picture in my mind of a charismatic personality well-groomed in his expensive suit arriving in no less than an Audi or a BMW. Interestingly, I almost didn’t spot him while I was standing at the campus gate to receive him. Only when I turned back to see a man in a casual off-white shirt with denim jeans and Bose headphones around his neck and getting out of an auto-rickshaw, that I realized it was indeed him. I introduced myself to him with a smile and he responded with a wider smile and warmth as if he was welcoming me to his alma mater. Well, in this case, it's true because he had been frequently visiting the campus for guest lectures and knowledge sessions ever since he passed out, while I was associated with the college for little over 6 months.

It’s true that nostalgia makes people assume that past was a great time. But one cannot deny that nostalgia is a strong emotion, may be the strongest of all. And this was pretty much evident from the aura in the campus that day. The campus was at its stunning best with myriad lighting, banners, lanterns and it seemed as if Diwali arrived sooner this year. A group of alumni in their 40s-50s were roaming around the campus arm in arm and reliving their memories by visiting their favourite spots in the campus. The top spot was claimed by our legendary NITIE pond or ‘NITIE Sarovar’, which had been host to a plethora of memories as it is the most visited place on campus with frequent student gatherings for meetings and birthdays. Another group was climbing the famous 96 stairs on the way to the academic building as if they had a lecture to attend. It was their day and no one could take that away from them.

While escorting the alumnus I mentioned earlier to the campus gate after an eventful day, I had an amazing productive conversation with him regarding his thoughts on how one should make the most out of a B-School and how to align one’s career progress with the desired goals. He discussed how he used to prepare for the different case study competitions conducted by corporates and colleges and emphasized their importance in enriching the MBA experience. On that short walk from the auditorium to the campus gate, I had an epiphany that in some years I could be in his shoes having had rich corporate experience and sharing my thoughts with a certain junior. On a lighter note, he also told me that he came to campus in casual attire to relive the feeling of being a student. Nostalgia, you are definitely something!