I was in IITK from 1986 to 1990 in Electrical Engineering. I
stayed in Hall I. And now, like countless others from there, I am in
USA. I have been here for almost 6 years, and life is good.
Yes, life is good here - there is an abundance of everything
- money, cars, ....., gadgets, the list goes on. When I was in IITK,
my seniors used to write to me about how beautiful Princeton was, and
how expansive San Diego appeared, how magical New York seemed to them.
I live in New York now. I still marvel at the natural beauty of United
States. I am jealous of their immense natural resources. I adore the
change of seasons here - it is so beautiful to see the orange and
yellow and red hues of fall, followed by the stark pristine white of
winter. The spring heralds in greens of all kinds, vibrant, dew-faced
greens. You will hear also about the wonderful infrastructure here,
everything is in order and works like a well-oiled cog. You work hard,
you earn good money, you buy things that you like, you satisfy your
childhood desires.
There is something missing here though, and it is not really
definable. Could it be inner peace? The gnawing feeling of loneliness,
even though you have a girlfriend, wife, friends? You have parents in
India, but you don't live with them after you get married. So what is
it that makes you crave for company?
I have often noticed people who live by themselves do things
a certain way. They, for example, leave the TV on all the time, and
there is music blasting in their place day in and day out. Is it the
abundance of electronic devices that makes them less and less social,
or is it that one does not get an opportunity to meet people and so
one turns to toys of solitude?
When people ask me how come I have read so many books and
know so much about things in general, I tell them because in India
where I came from, we did not have a nature park, or video games
parlor, or a bowling alley, or even a bar, for cryin' out loud. We had
no navigable stream or hill to climb. The most feasible source of
entertainment was the movie theatre and how often could we keep going
there? So, I read in India, I had long winding conversations with my
buddies, I went for unending bike rides in IITK, I discussed politics,
Hitler and black holes outside the canteen, with frequent calls to
Lala for the long-outstanding Maggie-Omlette. Over the hundreds of
cups of tea, I came to understand myself and my wants. I also spent a
lot of time doing my assignments, preparing for quizzes. I went to the
library and gorged any book that caught my fancy. I loved taking part
in contests like JAM, Quiz, and debates.
You don't do that much here. It is simply not available,
because you have so many other things to do. It is strange, I used to
yearn for other means of entertainment in India, now I long for the
long unending talks with my IITK chums. The grass is greener on the
other...?
I am not trying to paint the life here in a bad light, this
country has a lot of good things. India has a gossamer of
relationships and a certain kind of empathy, an uncomplicated and
unhurried style, and above all, an incomprehensible serenity about it
that you can never come close to, here in America. Perhaps this is the
beauty of it all, we can have either this or that but not them both.
What would I say to all you people, my juniors? (!). Work
hard, be as computer literate as possible, and try to learn "people
skills", i.e. be very good with handling people and their
personalities. That is something we do not get exposed to much at IIT.
Also take care of your health, and try to eat healthy food. I know you
will smirk at this and wonder if I had not eaten at the mess! Go to
the chungi on bicycle and eat as much "maa ki daal" as you can, you
will miss it here.
Whatever you may ultimately end up doing, staying in India, or coming here for a while, or settling down here permanently, remember one thing - you are fortunate to be an Indian and more fortunate since you'll have the IIT experience always in your life, and despite its inherent problems and sloppiness and tardiness of living, India had infused in all of us a colour that is something other than VIBGYOR. We carry a part of our country at every place on earth and we should be proud of it.