And The Result Is.....

27th June 1999 - At the age of 16, it was a lot of pressure to handle. The reason - X std Board exam results were out. Just earlier that day I was standing in a mile long queue outside S.I.E.S. college, Sion. to get an admission form.. I still don't know why did I even consider getting a form from S.I.E.S.? I dint have ONE good reason to be a part of that esteemed Alma Mater.. I am not a South Indian (which is a so called privilege given to that minority), I wasn't expecting more than 85% marks in SSC (which was the minimum qualification to get into FYJC Science) and I stayed at Dombivli (which translated to approximately an Hr long train commute during rush hrs). But somehow my 2 hour long wait in the June drizzle got me a wet, crumpled S.I.E.S. admission form!


I headed straight to Dombivli by catching the next available train from Sion stn. This was the most miserable commute in years despite a relatively empty train... For the whole 45 min - 1 Hr journey, all I was thinking was about that goddamn BLUE sheet of paper which will have my career path planned for me... My mind raced through time - End of IX std finals, X std coaching admission, VOWs to study very hard for the whole coming year (which was never kept), first day of school on June 13th, Decent results in 1st Unit Tests, Crying like crazy over lost love (or a mere crush!), Annual Sports meet at school, Annual Social Gathering, Filling slam books for friends, Prelims, Disastrous results (67% - To be specific), Send Off party at school, Getting upset, Studying hard again, giving all exams, enjoying vacations and hmmmpppffff... 'Twas today - the D-Day!

Wandering back in time, made me realize the prowess of the old proverb/idiom that I had learnt in IV std - "As You Sow, So Shall You Reap", which simply meant You Do Not Deserve More Than 70% in SSC board exams... The train halted with a jolt... I came back to reality. Got down at the station and rushed to school to see the anxious faces of my friends.... Hoards of 16 year olds, unable to withstand the pressure were trying to behave normal. We were let inside, every passing moment gripped me with a weird feeling. Inside, we were called out by our roll # on the hall ticket. "E-188669!", the teacher yelled. I went to the podium with my heart beating faster and louder with every single step... The teacher held out the mark-sheet... She dint even look at me.. Even I dint care. All I wanted to do was snatch that damn thing off her hand and look at the result of my 'PERFORMANCE' of the entire year...

I prayed - one last time - and looked at the mark-sheet, it was a whopping 78.13% Honestly I was NOT really expecting these marks... My papers had really gone PATHETIC to get those marks.. 75% being an above average score, I had scored ABOVE the above average limit... I was very happy... Turns out that I scored well because of languages.. Later I got to know that I had stood FIRST in English subject in the entire school and it definitely was a big thing for me! I rushed home with some sweets to let Mum, Dad and Tais know that I was ELIGIBLE to be a part of the Science stream of a decent college...


Parents were probably expecting more out of me so they gave their career best performance in acting proud! Both the Tais were excited that I dint let the family TOO down... Ashwini Tai promised to spend the whole next day with me discussing my career options and I slept like a LOG thinking about the new venture of my life called - COLLEGE...