Planet-I

I.


The preceeding paragraph/ sentence/ word/ letter (ah, let’s call it entity-I for clarity’s sake) may be any one of – well – paragraph, sentence, word and letter. Regarding its exact identity, however, opinion would vary. It would be difficult to reach a consensus because some people, who claim to see things others don’t see, would claim to have seen a paragraph. As if to see a few tiny, white dots on a clear night sky is to see the universe. Some people would be a bit conservative and opine that entity-I is nothing but a complete sentence which is logically structured and making a point. There would be people who would be confused as to whether entity-I is a word or a letter. A particularly knowledgeable and affable class of people, going around by the appellation ‘cynics’, would perform their usual tsk-tsk ritual and putting on an all-knowing expression on their faces would state that entity-I is nothing but a gimmick (marketing, probably ? ). Communists would sermonize that entity-I is a threat to egalitarian society and that it is a nefarious product of the imperialist Americans (and six months later would admit that adopting this line of thinking was a historical blunder). Some other group of people with vested interests may put forward some other point-of-view.


Well, there cannot be a debate on the fact that the preceeding paragraph is just that – a paragraph. And the paragraph makes a clear, singular point – that there exist multiple POVs on a single issue. In other words, an issue is like a kaleidoscope; what you see depends on the manner in which you hold the thing and different persons hold it in different ways. How interesting ! Without any more digressing from the real issue, let me now propose a groundbreaking idea that would alter the rotational axis (if any) of the earth and would force Stephen Hawking to admit that a black hole is nothing but a much more mundane and a much more desirable thing. The idea here is that – hold your breath – the entity-I better known as Planet-I can have numerous interpretations. As I’m no creative writer, I’m unfortunate enough to have only one interpretation up my sleeve. Which is the following :


If you observe the word “PLANET” very closely, with the aid of a magnifier perhaps, you will not find it mentally taxing to discover that the word has resulted from a merger of two different words “PLAN” and “NET” to create synergy. Notice that both “PLAN” and “NET” are managerial words. The glorious history of humankind would dutifully attest to the fact that managers are great planners. If you are aware of the prevailing great recession that was planned and executed to perfection, you shouldn’t have a second thought. “NET” is perhaps the most used word in managerial jargon. If you aren’t networking, you aren’t managing a damn thing. And if you cannot use the internet, shame on you, you are as useless as the times when there used to be no internet, because you cannot do, among other things some of which are noble and some of which are not-so-noble, social networking. Probably that is the reason why someone has incorporated the word “LAN” in the word “PLAN”.


Coming back to my point – how does this exquisite merger create synergy ? Well, let me explain. Sit on a chair, in a comfortable posture, close your eyes and cleanse your mind of all the dirty thoughts (you must have had a few). Relax your breathing. Focus on an imaginary point somewhere. Now think of the word PLANET. What do you see ? A neat, polished, innocuous, rounded object. Aka, a “GLOBE”. Yes, yes, now you’ve got it (I almost fell from my chair in unbridled joy). You are now able to visualise what is by far the single most important concept that forms the central tenet, the basic premise and what not of the field of management. See, you started with two little insignificant managerial words, and here you are. If that is not synergy, I don’t know what is.


It is a no-brainer that with so many managerial aspects this PLANET must be some kind of a management institute. But, in recent times, so many management institutes have sprouted all over India. Which management school does this PLANET-I refer to ? We need some specific information. That is where I, and let us have no argument on the fact that it is just a letter and nothing else, comes into the picture.


The extremely egotistic and megalomaniac I is one of the most common letters of the English alphabet. And no wonder. Everyone wants to talk about themselves and I am no exception. If you are already confused between the ‘I’ of PLANET-I and the ‘I’ which means, well, I, don’t be. The world around us is confusing. It is evil. And it is egotistical. (for cynics) Ego is the fountainhead of human progress (basically it is a handy thing to possess) as spake the great philosopher Ayn Rand in her legendary book aptly entitled “The Fountainhead” which by the way everybody reads and nobody understands (much like yours truly). Maybe this is precisely the interpretation; that the I of Planet-I signifies progress. Looked at in another way, the I symbolises realisation of the true potential of a human being. Shove in two I’s, and grander things are envisaged. All of this happens via M for management. No wonder PLANET-I is better known to the world as an IIM.


PLANET-I is a cute little nickname lovingly bestowed upon IIM-Indore. It is one of the best business schools in India. Situated some distance away from the dusty, developing city of Indore, PLANET-I is an enigmatic planet, completely different from what lies around it. The breathtaking beauty of the campus and the erudition of the professors notwithstanding, what gives PLANET-I its true identity is the community of the inhabitants. I, a proud inhabitant of the planet, humbly put forward this write-up by starting and ending with the letter ‘I’.