Saturday, April 16, 2011

The eagles are ready to fly


The students at Indus International School in Bangalore are referred to as eagles because when eagles fly high when the skies get cloudy. Yesterday was graduation day at Indus for the 12th graders and a new batch of eagles are now ready to fly. The school believes in leadership, whole development and being prepared to adapt to new situations quickly. This was illustrated yesterday when rains came down in Bangalore yesterday and put a damper on Indus's plan to hold the graduation ceremony in the open air amphitheater. But the school administration reacted quickly and the program was moved to the indoor sports complex and started only 15 minutes late.

The CEO spoke about embracing failures and learning from them quickly. The principal encouraged the students to become lifelong learners. The chief guest urged them to consider teaching as a profession and the IB coordinator reminded them to respect teachers and parents.

As each student was awarded the graduation certificate, their profile flashed on a large screen. It was amazing to see young and confident teenagers ready to rush out into the world and explore the vast array of opportunities ahead of them. These 50 or so students are setting out to be journalists, designers, oceanographers, entrepreneurs, engineers, doctors and lawyers. By next year, this group will be spread out all over the world - China, Singapore, Dubai, Australia, United States, United Kingdom, Korea and India.

Needless to say, it was a proud evening for Mona and I to see Aanish in his green cap and gown receive his graduation certificate and an award for excelling in Economics. We are getting ready to see our young eagle leave his nest and fly out into the world to define his own destiny.

Saturday, April 02, 2011

India wins World Cup 2011!!!


28 years is a long time to wait! Last time India took the world cup home was when Kapil Dev's devils beat West Indies in 1983. Yesterday was a return to cricketing glory for Team India as MS Dhoni's Dashers beat a strong Sri Lanka team in the exciting final match of the tournament in Mumbai.

The entire country had been in the grip of cricket fever for the last several weeks as 14 countries battled it out for the cup in a tournament hosted by India, Sri Lanka and Bangla Desh. India met Pakistan in a thrilling semi-final a few days ago and won the match to move into the finals.

The excitement around the World Cup is virtually impossible to describe. You have to live it and experience it. It is amazing to see an entire country and Indians around the world (over 1.2 billion as per the 2011 census!) get behind a single team. The mood was electric all over the country yesterday. For both the semi-final and final matches, the home owner association in our building had setup a large screen in the outdoor amphitheater. A live stadium environment was recreated and the residents responded with complete enthusiasm. We had over 100 people show up for the match with Indian flags, whistles, signs etc. to create a stadium atmosphere.

As Dhoni hit the final match winning sixer, the skies erupted with fireworks and the parties kicked off on the streets. What an amazing tournament it has been.

Congratulations, Team India!