THE GREAT INDIAN CURSE

Over the past few years, the most important thing I’ve learnt is that being good at everything is a disadvantage. A CURSE rather.

March 2007. Having finished my class 12 exams, I had a rather clear path fixed in my mind. Join an ARTS college, get a degree in 3 years and focus on cricket. Had that plan worked out well, I would have been doing my PG in SRM UNIVERSITY right now.

Unfortunately though, it didn’t work that way.

Why?

Because the South Indian society has this strange habit of placing engineers and doctors on a pedestal and looking down on everyone else. Never mind if the engineering/medical seat was BOUGHT and not EARNED. Who cares. DR.KARTHIK or ER. KARTHIK looks better on the wedding invitation than say, a S.KARTHIK(B.COM)

So yes, a victim of this system I became.

2 years at veltech and now 3 years at SRM later, I’d still say, I regret having taken up that decision

I wouldn’t really say I hate engineering. Engineering does have its perks. Especially if it is done at INDIA’S NO 1 PRIVATE UNIVERSITY. Ac buses, hi tech class rooms (though strictly for 1^st sem only ;D), beautiful girls(again, 1^st sem only if you are a mech/automobile engineer :D), a non alcoholic pub right in the campus and hmm, an opportunity to learn how things work (with a disclaimer warning of course :D).

Now tell me, which arts college would offer all this.

But then the 5 years have really taken a toll on me, both physically and mentally. Not many people would understand this but doing engineering while you are trying to make a mark in cricket is actually tough. VERY VERY tough.

Until now, it was just the academic part that worried me. The matches would appear right during the cycle/model tests and we would have to miss them. If the staff is considerate enough, you would get a retest or an assignment (god bless those souls!) but if they were a pleasure starved necrophiliac, the only thing we would get to do after we get back to college is to make trips between the classrooms and their cabins asking for a retest. Without any success of course.

As if this wasn’t enough, after having gone around campus begging the staff for retests/assignments, squeezing in a couple of tests on the days we do attend college and finally managing to secure an above average grade, some A-hole with a self confessed sense of humor decides to pop in and say “unnaku enna machi, sports quota dhaana, avangalae mark poturpaanga.” Oh how I feel like slapping each and every one of them.

But then, even this is fine when compared to how things are panning out at the moment. The college cricket team has been underperforming of late and as a counter active measure, the university’s sports department has gotten stricter. No ODs, no permissions and a letter asking us to pay the entire 4 years tuition fee if we decide to go for a league/state game instead of a college match. Which comes to approximately 8 lakhs. For someone who has been unsuccessfully trying to complete a 4 yr engineering course for the last 5 years, even a bank loan is impossible at the moment. So college match it is. WITH NO EFFING CHOICE.

Ideally, that wouldn’t have been a problem. But what has happened now is that my league team hasn’t taken a liking to it. I’ve been missing out on a lot of opportunities in my league team because some bucking fasterd with no knowledge of the TNCA cricketing schedule decides to conduct a college tournament at exactly the same time a TNCA match is scheduled. Believe me, I am missing out on a LOT.

So yes, this is my situation now. With one more year to go, I might have to miss out on a lot more.

Which brings me to the GREAT INDIAN CURSE. Too many complications, too many sacrifices. All for a stupid ER symbol in front of your name. if ever I had a chance to change the system, this would be no.1 on my list.

Until next time,

ADIOS!