It's been forever since I blogged. No excuses. Just been plain lazy and largely uninspired. If I'm writing today, with an exam tomorrow, I have a valid reason
Very rarely do we get to meet people who inspire, engage and manage to get you engrossed in a classroom environment. I'm doing a post-graduate, so I've met scores of teachers through school and college. I've finally met someone who can talk about anything under the sun and still make sense. Let alone make sense, he can keep you captivated. Telling stories to teach a subject like Global Economics is not something everyone can do. Stories that entice, and capture an over-worked student's attention. I'm privileged to have been taught by this inspiring man, Prof. Harkant Mankad.
Prof. Mankad walked into our class of about 120+ on 27th of August and has kept us listening, glued to his stories and awake (a surprise considering our long hours) till this afternoon when he delivered his last lecture. From the moment he cracked a joke about his waistline, through the countless stories of war, politics and history, till he told us about his interest in palmistry, there have been lessons in Economics that none of us would've bothered to pick up otherwise.
We learnt a subject that we thought would put us to sleep and instead came out smiling, like kids who'd heard the best of stories on a lazy Sunday afternoon.
It's amazing how an achiever like him can continue to reach newer heights and still stay so humble. His personality is endearing and strangely he reminds me of my granddad who narrates such wonderful stories. On the whole, its been an experience that's left me enriched. What has been the most striking to me is the revelation that this world and the economy is about psychology which makes me feel closer to the subject than I ever have. It's been a series of lessons in Economics, strangely correlated to the way we live our everyday lives.
Thank You Prof. Mankad, on behalf of the batch of 2008-10 at SIBM Bangalore. You've inspired us all to go out there and play our own game.
