On 12th February 2018, I entered my regular classroom for the first session on Society and Business management with the same nonchalant and pedestrian attitude I am accustomed to. To be honest I didn’t really expect much from the course. I could not have been more wrong. What should have sent alarms ringing is the fact that the professor asked the students to memorize the first 2 stanzas of the poem “Where the mind is without fear”. It was peculiar in a nostalgic sense. It reminded me of my childhood. But now I am in my 3rd trimester and have been asked to, memorize a poem. I swear IIM Kashipur catches me off guard every day.
As I took my seat the Harvard modelled Classroom, I wondered at the futility of the task that we were assigned. Unlike other days where I am rushing to punch my biometric attendance at the very last moment, I reached class fifteen minutes early. Professor Somnath Ghosh was already there. Indeed his reputation preceded him. I had heard great things about him, the features I could recall were that he is a fighter, cancer survivor, a noted socialist, an impeccable orator, a brilliant raconteur and a teacher who had won admiration and respect of his students. He started the lecture without any delay, not letting his frail health be of any hindrance, at least it seemed that way to us. The pain he has been through was evident, but so was his passion for teaching through it all. As the lecture proceeded, I gradually began to understand the true intent of the task. With each line being explained to us, I could link what this poem meant to this course. He was building the very foundation of the course.
That poem though decades old, perfectly reflected the society we are living in today. Professor Ghosh made us interpret this poem like never before and related it to the society we are living in, the society that we have created for ourselves. Very poignantly it pointed out the unfortunate state of affairs and how it is affecting our society.
As future leaders of organizations that the world would run on, it was important for us to understand the state of the society and to know our duties towards it. To redesign it towards a healthier environment and to consider everyone in it. Not just the ones marching ahead, but also the ones left behind in the race. To not sympathize but empathize and to work towards looking for sustainable solutions. This course opened our eyes to problems that are existent, the urgency of the need to look into them and to brainstorm solutions to those problems.
That lecture reminded us of the very reason for which IIMs were established. IIMs were registered as societies under the Indian Societies Registration Act, for the benefit of society. They are responsible for the upliftment of the society as a whole by pulling up the ones who are left behind, by educating the uneducated and by organizing the unorganized sector of employment. To put it simply, by creating a sustainable environment that benefits everyone involved in a society.
Needless to say, Prof Ghosh managed to attract undivided attention in all the lectures that followed. That opening lecture made me look at the subject in a whole different light. Also, it made me wonder how much a subject can impact if the lessons are imparted efficiently.
Which ABG company would one want to work for and why?
Given the opportunity, I would love to work with Aditya Birla Retail Limited. The retail and the FMCG space is, in my opinion, every MBA graduate's dream. ABG’s existence in that space through its MORE stores has been one of the leading drivers of modern retail. It would be an absolute honour to be a part of ABGs venture.
-Famee Brahma