Blue Peepal

“Sir, can’t you see we are standing at a generational divide?” “The company or, I should say its new leaders think we are deadwood; only their chosen people or, as they say young team has answers to its problems.” Rudra’s voice trembled as he cleared his mind, from years of silent suffering. “Sir, I tour 15-17 days a month, in arguably one of the toughest times in this industry, just to perk up the mood in the dealerships and in the team; you and I both know that times will change for the better, and until it does, there is a daily battle for motivation.” Krishna Rao looked at the paper weight on his table, and the cracks on its glass surface; the solid glass design inside was untouched from the ordeals the surface had endured. He was attentive to Rudra’s outpouring; reflective of the state of the company and its several long timers. Sameer Babu sat silently with his arms crossed; his left hand holding his glasses to his chin. Tapas Mallick had raised a st...

“Rudra, what are you doing to meet the shortfall?” Krishna Rao’s brow furrowed, as he piercingly looked at his deputy. “Sir, I see us selling not more than 520 vehicles this month; that is going to be eighteen percent below our target.” Rudra’s professional experience of twenty one years, with stints across product development and sales, was weathering a tumultuous time in the company, and an unusually contracting market in the zone. Silence descended between two seasoned men, who shared deep mutual respect. “Premjit, can you come to the meeting room?” “Yes Sir, in 15 minutes?” “Sure” “Rudra, I don’t think Vinit has his heart in the job. I see him in office far too often, and his leave requests are only going up.” “Sir, I wanted to share with you that Vinit is going through a divorce; he did not want me to share with you, but things have reached a point where you should know.” Krishna Rao picked his glass of water, and took a small gulp. “...

“Naresh, have you cleaned Sir’s room and kept fresh water in his bottle?” Sameer Babu’s voice thundered through the silent office; the ticking sound of the ageing clock made Naresh’s heart pound harder. “8:24am”; the rusting dials gave no comfort. “Sir, I will complete in 5 minutes; please don’t be angry.” “Naresh, I think you should look for a job in another office. I am tired of reminding you every day.” Krishna Rao arrived at 8:30am. Thirty two years of his career with the company had been spent across several departments, different cities and through factory, service and sales postings. Zonal Head was not the natural progression of his hard earned reputation, nor for the length of his experience. He wanted to retire in the city, where he started his career; his genealogy traced somewhere else, and nobody knew how he got married to the city. Retirement was another 3 years away, but his precision with time had nothing to do with that expiry date. ...