by V Karthik, Assistant Executive Manager, Sanmar Speciality Chemicals Ltd
This book is about five people from different walks of life, whose lives are intertwined through a common pursuit - to get admitted to Harvard. The five main characters are Daniel Rossi, gifted pianist, who goes against his father’s wish that he become an athlete; Ted Lambros-whose family’s roots are from Greece-a believer in the American dream, Jason Gilbert, an extraordinarily talented athlete who has won quite a few laurels in sports but cannot forget his Jewish background, George Keller, a refugee from Hungary with single-minded determination to pursue a career in politics and Andrew Eliot, the diarist who is burdened by tradition and his famed ancestry.
The story of these five characters – and the shock felt by each of them when they leave Harvard – forms the basis of this book. All their lives take a dramatic turn after they graduate and reality hits them hard. No longer confined within the four walls of their college dormitory, they have to choose their respective paths to glory or failure as the case may be. One interesting aspect of the book is that for the most part, the characters are described by the jottings in Andrew Eliot’s diary, touched by a tinge of humour and irony.
The way the author traverses the lives of these five people and takes you through to the end, where at least two of these characters feel burdened by the fame they have attained is memorable and realistic most of the way. The book culminates in the 25th reunion of the principal protagonists at Harvard, with Andrew looking back and wondering about all the events since the time they all joined there, and the toll life and its pressures have taken on his classmates.
I recommend this book especially to those about to join college. It’s one of my favourite books; I have read it umpteen times. It’s definitely High Class!
SanMensa - The InQuizition
Tired of constantly having questions asked of them at work, some of the youngsters at Sanmar had a brainwave. They have banded together to form an informal Quiz Club - and thus have more questions asked of them outside of work also! The club has been named SanMensa (though one wag uncharitably commented that a more appropriate name would be SanDensa).
SanMensa meets once in two weeks after office hours (this last point to be noted, especially by the top brass who are reading this).
The members walk in to a conference room, with all the ingredients for a proper meeting (notepads, pencils and serious expressions on their faces). Once inside, they let their hair down (figuratively of course - considering some of the participants, this just cannot be literal) and have fun.
Originally started as a young Sanmaritan initiative, word has it that some others who are so far past their prime that their youth is a very small dot on their horizon have also managed to weasel their way into this club. The only rules here are that the winners of an evening’s event have to set the quiz the next time around, and buy coffee for all the participants. This has led to the quaint practice of all the participants trying their best to finish second.
The founders aver that this is a fun way to learn - but everyone knows better. It is just a fun way to have fun. - by a Sanmar quizzer
The Sanmar cricket team completed a successful tour of England on May 2004, winning three out of five completed matches. In its only defeat that came in the match against the Spen Victoria Club, the team fought till the end, having had the worse of the conditions, being put in on a damp pitch. A round-up of the matches follows.
12 May: Sanmar beat Leicestershire CC by 81 runs. Sanmar 152 in 30 overs (Sujeet Somasundar 50, Aditya Srikkanth 39) Leicestershire CC 71 (Prashant Chandran 4/14, Karthick 2/13, Badrinath 2/16)
14 May: Spen Victoria Club beat Sanmar by 2 wickets. Sanmar 152 (S Somasundar 38, H Badani 28) Spen Victoria 153 for 8 (Schofield 39, Lambert 37, L Balaji 3/10, Tamil Kumaran 2/24)
17 May: Sanmar beat Nottingham Shire 2nd XI by 5 wickets Notts 2nd XI 171 (Elliott 43, Rhodes 50, Tamil Kumaran 4/24, Badrinath 3/30) Sanmar 174 for 5 (J Harish 63, Vikram 25, Badrinath 26)
18 May: Sanmar beat Notts 2nd XI by 45 runs. Sanmar 296 (R Ramkumar 140 not out, Badrinath 100 not out). Notts 2nd XI 251 (M Bicknell 38, Alleyne 39, R Ramkumar 5/40)
20 May: vs Sai Cricket Club, no result; Sanmar 252 for 9 (S Somasundar 60, Vikram Kumar 53, Ajay Kudua 30,J Harish 37). Sai CC 210 for 8 (Brown 90)
Sanmar foursome strike it rich
Sanmar cricketers were prominent among the prize winners at the TNCA Annual Day on 30 June 2004. Seen here (l to r) are S Badrinath (highest aggregate in the Ranji Trophy), R Ramkumar (best bowler), L Balaji (State cricketer of the year for the 3rd year in a row), H Badani (Captain, Jolly Rovers, league champion 4 years in a row).
Sanmar’s star cricketers Hemang Badani and Lakshmipathi Balaji were felicitated by the group at a function at Chola Sheraton on April 25, 2004. Besides the Sanmar Group Chairman N Sankar, India Cements Managing Director and Tamil Nadu Cricket Association (TNCA) President N Srinivasan, TNCA Vice President U Prabhakar Rao, the Editor-in-Chief of The Hindu, N Ram, and former Test cricketers K Srikkanth and W V Raman spoke on the occasion.
From L to R: W V Raman, K Srikkanth, N Sankar,
N Srinivasan, L Balaji, H Badani, N Ram and U Prabhakar Rao.