The Curious Case Of Crazy Chennai Characters

The Curious Case Of Crazy Chennai Characters!!
Part 1: The wobbly beginnings.

Back after an 18 day work trip to Chennai. I know it sounds worthy of a lot of blank looks, so here's’ a little on what’s happened:
Got a call from my company around the 23rd July stating they need someone in Chennai from Monday. Okay sure said I, interviews happened, and I got selected… blah blah… within 1.5 days. Friday, 4 o clock I got my offer letter. Tuesday morning I joined!! (In the middle days I went on a shopping spree for my new job, plus a trip to god knows where.)

The entry into the office was not-so-auspicious. Got stuck in the office elevator for 20 minutes. “Speed” movie’s opening sequence flashing thru in my head. And, I thot to meself to message my new office people I will be late. Either late time-wise, or late Meghna Singh!!!! Okay bad time to think of jokes, I thot to myself. Oh and btw, I was the only girl in the lift. So all the men were staring at me, waiting me to crumble under the pressure and break into tears. I didn’t. I was having a hard time hiding my smirk. Well done God! Got me fooled into that I got the company of my dreams and that I had made it! Okay, finally the gates opened. Alas! No Keanu Reaves. Anywhoooo, proceeded to my office, with very shaky knees now!!

Couple of hours into the day, I reminded them that they might need me in Chennai. I thot, and here is where I faltered, I thot they mite need me to fly out the next morning or something. Wrong. They need me to fly out in 3 hours. Frantic calls made to mum. Start packing. Not knowing where I would be made to stay, if I would have a laundry facility etc, mum packed me ready for a war. Everything a person might need for 3 weeks, were pushed into my bag.

3 weeks!!! Seemed enormous at the time. 3 weeks away from my family, at a place so far away where I cant guilt them into coming for a visit. Sad faces would be in order, but didn’t have time to do that. Had a flight to catch. Finally boarded the flight. Damn small aircrafts. They shake and whimper like a kitten during the takeoff. Bad weather, turbulence all the way, and bad reminisces of the fact that its all an elaborate plan of God to give it all to me and then in an instance take it away by- yes- killing me. Sneaky fellow, HIM!! Finally. 2 hours 35 minutes over. Landed in Chennai. Still alive. Yes, praise the lord.

It was around 8.30 pm, when I had finally overcome the language barrier and told the driver who had come to get me how to find me. Sitting in the car, I confirmed with him, “bhaiya, hotel pride?” the hotel that my company had made reservations for me at. Allegedly!!!

Bhaiya, rather, anna replied, “No madam, Hotel Taj Connemara”. Nahh, they wont put me up there, would they. They wouldn’t and they didn’t. I was to have dinner there and go. Oh, maybe there are more people from HR team there that I am supposed to meet. Little did I know. There was our COO, my boss, international guests, and around 50 odd employees!! All senior people!!

This I got to know only after I entered the conference hall dressed in a lycra kurta, jeans, sports shoes, bad, messy bed-hair and a big laptop bag. Oh damn. Yeah. But at this point of time I was so above such humanly emotions! I had been thrown into the deep end of the ocean long before. I was just realising that the ocean was made of quick sand, and there were meteors falling near my quick sand, and there were little blood sucking Egyptian cockroaches on my neck… You get the idea right!

Anyway. I sat motionless thru whatever presentations that were going on so as to ensure least bit of attention onto me. The presentations ended. Met my boss, met my team. Apologised profusely for my attire, ate the most uncomfortable dinner I have ever could have imagined. And then excused myself for the night and headed for my hotel. Ps. thank God, my boss is a nice lady!!!

Oh here the alleged reservation part comes in. I asked the reception desk person, “reservations for Meghna Singh?” No. Gave my company’s name, city. Nope, nothing on the system. Irritated, frustrated, on the brink of screaming my lungs out, called my saviour, Herbert sir. Apparently, as soon as I said, hello Herbert sir, the hotel desk guy was like, yeah yeah I know now! Idiot.

Then I proceeded to a pretty lavish room, considering my post, and tenure with the company. But I guess it pays to be a girl. You are taken care of. Called my parents. Was on the brink of breaking down over the phone. They sensed it too. Couldn’t help it. Was damn tired, in a foreign city. So far away from them. Didn’t know what the heck was going on. Had no free wi-fi thing. Just a very very expensive LAN connection. Did connect to it. Spoke to my other saviour. AD. Who convinced me not to cry my eyes out that night. But I still did. That is Meghna Singh at her best!!!
Next morning had to wake up at around 5.45 am (YEAH, I know!!!) to reach Taj at around 7. Little did I know that for the next 18 days I was the only person to be anywhere on time, and will be the first one to reach anything/where. Arrgh!!!

> End Of Part 1 <

To be continued…

Special mention to my Chennai sweethearts here. Kavitha: She didn’t know me much, but didn’t rag me at all. Me being a newbie and all. She was all like, you can come a little late. We all are coming around 7.30. come aaram se!! And all of that.
Taj boys: made our live easier, funner, and most importantly filled with choclate cookies. Cant wait to yell out my version of STELLA again. The boys were sugu, Arun,Thiru, M.O.N.E.Y, Karthik among others. And then there was the devil!!!

The IBM squirrels: I don’t know where to start!!! May and Grace. Truly international, but contributed to some good unadulterated Indian fun for the last 3 weeks!!
More on these characters to come later on!!! Actually am sure rest of the blog will be mostly about them, their antics, and the fact that they became my family in Chennai. Yep, we had mummy, my twin sister, my friends, my buddies, my crushes, and of course the- guy-that-we-all-liked-but-no-one-owned-up-to-it!!