Day 10: Bangalore

I can’t believe this is the last day of the study trip! So sad! It’s seems like an absolute age ago that we arrived in Mumbai and began this adventure.

Today’s meetings were last but definitely not least. We were given a tour of the magnificent Infosys campus in the morning.

Touring the Infosys campus

We then met with Mr Narayana Murthy and his wife Mrs Sudha Murthy. They spoke for about half and hour each about the tremendous growth of Infosys, and about the philanthropic work of the Infosys Foundation. The Q&A session was covered by about half a dozen eager paparazzi with their cameras, which added some extra excitement.

Meeting Mr and Mrs Murthy

In the afternoon, we got to feature in another TV show, this time on a much bigger channel with much larger audience. It featured us (of course), some Indian students from some of the Indian technical schools, and of course, Mr. Murthy, along with the President of Cornell University (he and Mr. Murthy are close friends, and Mr. Murthy is also on Cornell's board... or something like that).

On the TV set

The final meeting of the day and the trip featured no guests. It was just us reflecting on our experience over the last ten days. Professor Roberts commended the six leaders of the trip, Sarah, Chaitra, Sandy, Prashant, Tarun and Salim for what he described as a “truly exceptional management job”. We all thoroughly agree with this and would like to use the opportunity of this blog to give a big shout out to all six of the leaders. They worked tirelessly putting together an unbelievable trip that we will all remember for the rest of our lives. Thank you so much. You guys rock and we love you.

We've been through a lot together, and will certainly look fondly back on the good times, and smile broadly when we tell about the "bad"...but for now, our time here has come to a close. Keep an eye on the blog as we may indeed add more pictures as we gain access to them, but for now, this is the India Study Trip blog team signing out… Namaste!

Group Hug!

Day 9: Bangalore

One of the perks of meeting with a food company is that you get fed well. Such was the case on the morning of day nine and our meeting with S. Maiya of MTR foods. We enjoyed a traditional breakfast of masala dosa in small intimate dining rooms above the kitchens. This was great... and would have been greater had our host stay families not all been doing their best just an hour earlier to stuff us completely full of the very same types of foods... probably bought from MTR's packaged food line!

Breakfast at MTR Foods

The afternoon saw us over to a panel of venture capitalists and entrepreneurs who shared with us a variety of perspectives on the Indian business environment. They discussed issues like finding talent, whether being an Indian or having an Indian on board is critical (they believe it is), and where they see the next big opportunities. They, just like everyone else, are sure that India will continue to remain an exciting place for business.

Bangalore Venture Capatalists

We had a few hours to kill before dinner. We were all keen to experience a genuine Indian cultural experience. So we decided to go ten-pin bowling! Again, a little embarrassing to admit, but this was ridiculously good fun. Of course, the fun might have been aided by a few specially prepared drinks... aided our fun but most certainly impacted our scores in a rather downward fashion!

Dinner was also awesome. We sat outside, cross-legged on cushions at a modern restaurant called Opus. There was Karaoke so of course the Stanford GSB had to represent. Jason gave a powerful rendition of ‘Sweet Child of Mine’, while Paul and his girlfriend Amanda sang ‘Sexual Healing’. I was personally very disappointed that virtually no one on the Study Trip had heard of Robbie Williams! Seriously, do we need a study trip to England next year to educate people about British teen-pop culture?!

"Robbie who?"

The evening continued getting better as we moved on to a plush hotel to party with the MBA students of Columbia Business School on their India Study Trip. We were excellent ambassadors for the GSB and had a great time mingling with these fine folks from New York.

Day 8: Bangalore

In the light of day, the Infosys campus bears a striking resemblance to Stanford. Broad, pristine streets. Young men and women on their bicycles. Tall, modern buildings of tinted glass and steel. Cloudless, blue skies and glorious sunshine!

Only two meetings today. The first was with Srini Rajam, CEO of Ittiam. This is one of India's leading hi-tech firms and a great success story. One of the most interesting factoids about the company is it's recruiting statistics: for every 10,000 applicants, they only hire 20 people. Intense.

We then went over to the offices of Biocon to meet with Kiran M. Shaw. Last year’s India Study Trip voted Kiran the most inspirational speaker of their trip and we could certainly see why. She had originally wanted to pursue a career as a brew master but, unable to break into this traditionally male-dominated industry, chose instead to start her own biotech firm. With only a handful of employees and limited capital she began to build one of the world’s leading biotech firms and is now the richest woman in India. Her company is currently doing fascinating work developing enzymes to help in the fight against diabetes and head and neck cancers.

We returned to the Infosys campus for a traditional south Indian lunch and a nice afternoon siesta. In the evening we went our separate ways, having dinner with local families in Bangalore. Many of these families were relatives and friends of Chaitra and Tarun, both of whom hail from Bangalore.

A few of us decided not to do home stays and went out instead for an evening on the town in Bangalore. We went to this funky club called Fuga which was great – except for fact that each drink there cost about $20!

For those that did participate in the homestays, most (and I only say most because I haven't conducted a formal survey, but I'm pretty sure I could have used "all") had a phenomenal time. One of the highlights was for Janel, Tara, Marcelo, and Jason, whose respective homestay host families brought them to what could only be called a "birthday extravaganza". The Don (for indeed, that was the only way he was introduced to us and the only name we have for him even now) was turning 70, and as such, it was time to celebrate. Stage, music, video, flashy Indian dancers, heartfelt monologues from family members... and let's not forget, everyone dressed in black and trying to look like a member of the mafia... this was a party (and a homestay) to remember.

Vignette: Vikas' Lost 24 Hours...

It is worth taking a quick break from the flow of this blog to tell a quick story about what happened to one of the study trip members, Vikas, over the last 24 hours. He left us at the airport in Delhi to fly to Mumbai for an interview with a private equity firm. When he arrived in Mumbai he got in a cab to his hotel but unfortunately the cab driver had no intention of taking him there. Instead, thirty seconds into the journey he pulled the taxi into a dark alleyway and demanded all of Vikas' money. Vikas protested but was out numbered 2:1 with the cabbie and his friend who had been sitting in the passenger seat. He ended up having to pay $58 and being stranded in the alleyway. If this was not bad enough, when Vikas arrived for his interview, the head of the office was in the middle of closing a deal and so could not see him. Vikas waited for two and a half hours in a conference room only to be sent back on his way to Bangalore. So not the greatest 24 hours...

Day 4: Delhi and Agra

4.30am is a cruel time to be awake. Yet, that was when we all had to get up in order to miss the traffic on the way to Agra and the Taj Mahal. Unfortunately, we were still not early enough to miss all the traffic and the drive still took us nearly five hours.

The Taj Mahal was of course spectacular, and we took the obligatory touristy pics. India’s number one attraction not only lures millions of tourists every year, but also thousands of beggars and street urchins. It wasn’t possible to move more than a few feet without being accosted by individuals, many of whom could not have seen their tenth birthday, offering to sell you a postcard or plastic trinket.

Posing in front of the Taj

Sandy learnt a valuable lesson that day. NEVER sit down next to a giant cobra snake, even if there is an old guy with a flute telling you to. You never know when the snake will attack!!!

Where's Prashant?

It’s a little embarrassing to admit but the highlight of the day was actually our lunch at Pizza Hut! In the first instance, it was a welcome relief to our digestion systems to have one non-India meal. But the real treat was the bangra dance show that the waiters at the restaurant performed for us. None of us had ever seen anything like it in a Pizza Hut before, and Carloyn, Jason, Mika and Nao joined in showing off their funky moves on the Hut dance floor!

Dancing in Pizza Hut

The journey back to Delhi was tortuously slow. But it made the evening’s New Year’s Eve celebrations sweeter when we finally got back to the city. We went to Dr Mo’s sister’s house. She works out here for an NGO and was a great hostess and threw a wonderful party for us all. Many of us, unfamiliar with the style and form of Latin dancing, were given a first hand show by our resident Don Juan de Brotons. We’d give you details…but what happens in Delhi, stays in Delhi ;-)

Parting at Mo's sister's house on NYE

Happy New Year everyone!!