When I Became Quiz Master First Time

Date:  March 10, 2011                                                                                      Place: Pune, India

It was a normal Thursday, and In our company, we used to have fun activity at our floor after lunch. Fun activity involves selecting a person, and he or she will be asked 5 questions. If one fails to answer the questions, then he or she has to perform some kind of funny activity for each wrong answer.

The day, I joined my first project team; the whole floor started knowing me because of my funny ideas for fun activities and my on spot responses. Like I suggested many ideas like drawing a painting with both the hands simultaneously, singing a sad song in rock style, singing the same song in different emotions.  Once they caught a senior consultant, and asked me to suggest some activity. I was a newcomer at that time in company and I was moving my hand in shape of sine wave and she was changing her laughing intensity with my hands. It was quite odd to become bold in front of senior employees of company.

Once, a Project Manager was caught, I suggested her doing an act of salesperson, who is selling Air Conditioner in Siberia to a old lady, who is having two pet penguins. I was not the person, who is preparing all these quiz questions. She was my diagonal cubicle's inhabitant. She lived there from 8 am to 8 pm most of the time. 

Today is boring Thursday, I am having nap after lunch on my desk. The diagonal cubicle inhabitant come to me and asked me if I can handle quiz today as she have lots of work to finish.  And before waiting for my reply, she assumed that I am going to handle the quiz. And then I have to handle it. So, today's target is, a small cute and sober girl. She looks so sincere that no one dares to make joke with her. She sits after two cubicles in my row and she is part of different project team. There is five questions and I am quiz master. It is the first time, I’m handling any quiz, and that is too in my first company. I think I'm more nervous than her. But after watching her nervousness, mine is gone.  Now it’s time to start the quiz. I asked her first question, and she doesn't know. She asked for life line. I told her to show my Five Rupees note. She first checked in her bag and then head towards audience begging 5/- note and finally she is able to get it from one of the colleague.

Mow its second question, and she again failed. All the five questions went in same way. She doesn't reply to any question correctly. Even I was there in place of her, I would not able to answer them. The diagonal cubicle inhabitant came with really tough set of questions this time.  Okay, now it's time for activities.  One and obvious act of singing and she sings quite well at least better than me. Now it's time to second act, and she has to make me buy the two chocolates from her. 

She acted of knocking the door and asked me if I have some time to listen her. She has some very good offer for me. If I purchase the two chocolates from her and will give to my girl friend, she will be happy. Now, everyone is laughing, because she involved my girl friend in the act. Then I signaled towards and guy in audience and told her that he has having diabetic problem, and these chocolates will be poison for him. I turned the audience into big laugh as my girl friend is a boy.  She starts giving another arguments that this chocolate will going to keep my girl friend shape and weight in control. After a lot of arguments, she finally told me that she has one suggestion for me. It will be better for me to change the girl friend as my current girl friend (the boy) has lots of complications (blood sugar, overweight, no shape etc.).  The she told that try giving these two chocolates to any girl, and she will become your girl friend.  I told her that let me try and I have taken the two chocolates and move my hand towards some girl in audience and Its Over!!! I have taken two chocolates from her and her mission is successful.

It is just completely unintentional that I took the two chocolates from her.  The game is over now.  As everyone disperses after the activity, she told me that my choice is not good. Then I told her that I didn't prepare the questions, it is the girl, who sits diagonally to me in next cubicle.  Then she told that my choice of girl friend is not good.  And I stunned there. At that moment, I thought I should offer the two chocolates to her not to any other girl in audience.  It was first and last time we talked.  Because within a week, I'm going to have transfer from Pune and we are not going to meet again.  She is not much good looking but she makes a place in my heart because of her sincerity and good behavior. Hopefully we will meet again and then I'll tell her that how much I respect her. 

And yes, big thanks to that inhabitant from the diagonal cubicle, because of her I got the chance to become the Quiz Master.

Train Journey from New Delhi to Pune

Date: March 07, 2011                                                                   Place: H.Nizzamudin Rly. Stn.

I reached at railway station at 10 o'clock. The timing of train was 11:00 am. I was alone and it was my first journey from New Delhi to Pune. The LED display was showing that my train would arrive on platform number – 7. I took my luggage and went there. After waiting for about half an hour my train arrived on platform – 5. And LED display was still showing that it would come on platform – 7. I confirmed from coolie uncle and headed towards platform – 5. Now the actual journey starts. 

There were 8 other with me in compartment. A principal of college with his wife, a HR, who is going to join her first job, a PM of one of the top Indian IT company, a newly promoted operation manager, a 2^nd year mechanical engineering student, a spiritual uncle and one  silent but beautiful girl.

During the initial 2-3 hrs of journey, everyone was quiet. Then the principal started talking to me. We were discussing how we can improve our study system in colleges. By the time, everyone got indulge into discussion. The silent beauty went to upper birth with her suitcase and started reading novels. The HR girl was sitting near window. And operation manager was sitting at side birth. Initially she was reading a magazine. As she entered into discussion, she became the most impressive personality in our compartment. She was quiet good in presenting her views. Then discussion ends and the operation manger started telling her school life funny incidents and suddenly she turned towards horror incidents.

Operation Manager’s colleague was performing very well and she was the only person in that batch who was continuously giving top class performance from last 5 quarters. But somehow, she was divorced .But it didn’t affect her performance. After sometime, her divorced husband won the case and her only son was sent to his father. After that her performance went down in next 3 quarters. Her manager called her for discussing the issue. She told her manager that her team was responsible of her performance. She had taken name of each and every member of her team including Rahul. The manager got surprised because there was no Rahul in her team. Then manager inquired about Rahul but she was not able to get any information about Rahul . The manager again called the divorced lady and asked her to inquire about Rahul . The lady told that Rahul was her team member and sits in last row. She was so confidence about Rahul.  Then the lady went back to bring Rahul in front of manager. And she came with Rahul in manager’s office. Manager was not able to see the Rahul and the lady was kept on talking to Rahul as he was there in office. No one knew Rahul before that and the lady was sent to mental hospital for further treatment.

Then we had a small 15 mi break from discussion. The HR girl changed her seat and now I was stinting near window.  And we also made fun of HRs as every person dislike HR’s policies.

Then the operation manger  went ahead with next story. When she was child, in her neighbor,  children were used to play near graveyard. One day, their ball went to near some tree. After looking for long time, one boy got 6 balls instead of the one ball. He picked all of them and went to his house. After sometime, he started doing acting of different characters, sometimes he said that he was a lion and sometimes he said that he was someone else. But no one take care of him. Everyone thought that he is a child and just making fun. But after someday, he started shouting in multiple voices simultaneously . He became so energetic that 6 peoples were holding him and he was crying and shouting in 6 different voices. She told that the different spirits, equal to number of balls he picked from graveyard, entered into his body .

It was dark outside. Everyone in our compartment was become silent and serious. Suddenly,  the suitcase of silent beauty fall down on me. It was so shocking. We were discussing about ghosts and spirit energy and suddenly suitcase fall down. I was just lucky that I was safe. Then I tried to change the topic and we started talking about funny advertisements. And guess what, in this discussion also, the Operation manager was dominating. Then for some time, we discussed about old serials of DD National.  And no one got idea when the operation manager started the discussion of horror things again. We had dinner in between and she kept discussion on same track. We tried to stop her many times, but all in vain. She was kept on talking about the same. Then she showed the magazine she was reading. It has many articles on Black magic kind of things with horrible pictures. It was near about 10 pm. The I also shared some mysterious experiences like hearing the sound of anklets and running water taps in early morning hours during my training days and hostel life. Then entire discussion changed from horror things to waterman. The character was created by the operation manager, and everyone got busy in creating the moving style of Waterman with two water baskets and preparing small slogans for Waterman, like Shaktimaan. Making great fun with Waterman. How waterman will tackle ghost and how he will take care of every running tap at 4 o'clock in the morning. 

At 11 pm, the wife of principal started feeling sleepy , only then our discussion got an end. But it was not the end. The operation manager and mechanical student planned to watch a horror movie on laptop. They slept around 3 o'clock.  In the morning at 7:40, everyone woke up when train arrived at our destination, Pune. I went off from train and was looking for the way to exit. Then the silent beautiful girl came and told me the way. She also helped me in getting AuotRikshaw and left.

And my journey ends with this small and sweet incident. I wish all the characters of story for their bright future.

I will come back with my experiences very soon.  Till then, happy reading and keep smiling.