February the 24th, 2007
1530 hrs
Topic of Discussion : Is taking care of one's child just a responsibility/obligation or is it because of the love that the parents have for the child and the want to provide the child with the best of the opportunities that they themselves wouldn't have got?
The new generation thinks that it is all routine for things to happen and fall in place and that getting better education and more bigger opportunities are just normal in life, the love the parents show and the responsibility that the parents shoulder to bring them up in the best way is just ordinary and happens everywhere. But, they prefer to ignore the fact that there are many people who wouldn't treat these events in life as normal or routine as they know the value.
At the end of the discussion, I was at EASE (E - Emotional, A - Angry, S - Sad, E - Empty), just because, I was the only person who was fighting for the reason that parents love their children first and that, everything that they do for you comes from the responsibility derived from the love that they always have for you.
Taking responsibility for every action you do is certainly important, but can that kind of responsibility be compared to the responsibility that falls on the parents at the birth of a child. So, now another question comes out in the open. Is the child born because of the reason of love between the parents, or was it just because a illicit sexual relationship?
One of my friends was saying that, parents who send money from the Gulf, really wants their children to use the money and enjoy and they become happy at seeing that, because they never go a chance to do that when they were young and that the parents live their dream through their children. I would agree to that to an extent. But what do parents really want their children to have? I would say that, the parents want their children to get the facilities (books and atmosphere ) that they themselves lacked during their schooling and college days and not by providing the most expensive of liquor that they never had and never the cigarettes that the children puff into their lungs. Wrong interpretations of what the parents want their children to do by the children, tend to take their life in the wrong way. But which way is wrong. Who know? I'm not GOD and I don't decide!!!!
I certainly agree that these thoughts may be completely relative to a person. But, I wouldnt agree at any point that taking care of your own is an obligation. If it feels as an obligation, you are just mechanically doing something that you don't really want to do, but just finishing off your obligation just because the society is looking at you.
I'm not one of that kind. I'll love my wife (when I marry :-)) and will take care of my children with love and care and will be take their responsibility not just because I'm their father, but because I love them and want them to do better in life.
Sunday, February 25, 2007
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
Aus - Are they the Invincibles ?
Now, with straight 5 defeats in One Day Internationals and with many better players sidelined due to injury, many people are ready to write off Australia.But I'm not one among them. Because, I believe that this Australia team will rise from the dead and rise to such strength that it will still be the favorite for winning the 2007 Cricket World Cup.
Being an Indian fan, I've noticed that the Indian media, which is one of the biggest task force in the world, is highly critical of anything and everything that is happening in the world of cricket in India. At the lose of every game, the cricketing media will analyse each and every aspect of the game such that the team management or the team of selectors need not even have a meeting to discuss the reasons of the lose. Sometimes, it so feels that there is not need for the team of selectors or team management as the media fraternity themselves will do everything require. And then letz see if India wins all the matches. I don't think so.
The Australian team plagued with injuries to its front line players and Adam Gilchrist opting to sit out of the Chappell Hadley series, it was always tough on Australia's 2nd XI to defeat a Newzland team working towards opening the world cup road in success. But, the defeats that Australia had to handle were not as bad it seems to be. Maybe the first match in the series that they lost, would have been because of sheer carelessness that their batsmen showed in the application of technique and calm on the field. But, the next two games where toughly competed and the best of the XI won. It could not be blamed on anyone specific. As always said "Catches win matches.", they should have held on to more catches than popping it out of their hands.
Maybe, their over-confidence would have got the better or them. Taking nothing away from South Africa and Newzland, we have seen the 3 highest run chases have come against the strongest cricekting nation in the world. It suggests that they become complacent when they have bigger scores and letz the pressure out of the opposition. These defeats would have equally stunned the Australian team as it has the world and I think that it would be an eye opener for Australia and they would start coming out of the loosing streak with a bang, starting at the world cup. All team beware, of the Invincibles.
Thursday, February 15, 2007
Getting a US VISA
Thursday, 15 February, 2007
0700 hrs
I woke up in the bed of Room No.9 of VR Home in Alwarpet, Chennai. It was hot and humid, the climate in Chennai, but I was in the comfort of the AC room provided by TCS at VR Home. I didn’t have to suffer from the scorching heat of the burning sun and 500% humidity. But soon enough I would have to leave the comfort of the room as my PA, as it is called for Personal Appearance before the American Embassy, was scheduled to be at 1030 hrs.
From my colleagues who had come for the same purpose, i.e. to get their VISA stamped, had said to me that everything was cool and that I need not worry at all and that too for an ordinary plain L1B individual, there is no need of even a hint of concern. But, even with the room temperature at 20 Celsius, I was hot and humid inside. I was feeling nervous altogether and upset thinking of the very bleak possibility of my VISA getting rejected and I have a solid reason to think the same. To tell you about that I would need to go almost 10 months back.
Around 10 months back
Someday, April, 2006
Sometime
I got a mail forwarded by my Project Leader asking me to initiate my H1B VISA process. I was surprised, as the information that I had was that an associate could apply for VISA only once s/he gets confirmed and I still had 4 more months to get confirmed. I personally went to my PL and confirmed that that I had received the mail and checked whether any action need to be taken about it. He told me that I fell into the criteria that TCS had set for the associates that year to apply for H1B and that I could proceed with the same. I felt elated and special thinking that this is a great opportunity for me.
I hadn’t still got the Passport from the Passport office in Kochi, Kerala. My parents tried to fasten the process for the same and they managed to get the same within one week and meanwhile I gathered all the documents which was required for the H1B application and provided to the FDFU of TCS. They processed the documents and applied for the VISA at the embassy. After two weeks I got another email saying that the documents have been sent to the US for verification or something and that the next communication may take a duration of 90 to 150 days. I was ready to wait. After all I was not planning to miss such a golden opportunity that may not come my way every now and then. So, I waited and waited and waited, not 90 days, not 120 days, not 150 days, but more than that, was over the top of the patience I had. Even my Module Leader also started to ask me about the status of the VISA. I wrote mails to the head of VISA Cell Bangalore, seeking information regarding the status of the application that I had submitted some 6 months back. He tried to dig out some information and was unable to do so and we presumed the H1B application to be dead.
Now what? I didn’t know what to do. After almost 7 months of patient waiting, one day I come to know that nothing is going to happen regarding that, its natural that I get frustrated. And I got frustrated. Really frustrated. Now the only thing that I could do was apply for L1B, which would be processed comparatively very quickly and lesser hassle to get through, but the only difference being that changing of clients while on onsite would have been more easier if it was H1B rather L1B and as I never had any such things in mind, it never mattered to me whether I'm getting a L1B or H1B, and the only thing that I was keen on was getting a VISA and making myself eligible for travel to onsite as and when required.
Someday, December, 2006
Sometime
There was one colleague of mine, who joined just 7 days after I had joined our clients, who was also eligible for applying for L1B VISA. So we planned to apply together. Now, I having more experience in filling up the forms and preparing the documents, as I had already done that for H1B once, took up the initiative to do all that and later he could copy from mine. He is one such guy who slogs like anything. He always says to me that he is not is a smart worker like me. But, I feel very hurt when he says that. I don't know how he defines his 'Smart workmanship', as for me being tagged as a 'Smart Worker' makes me feel myself lesser to people who to really work hard. Leave alone that topic, I'll write another blog on that. Now that he has told it, I prepared all the documents and kept on waiting for him for 10 to 15 days. I didn’t exactly count. You should also understand that I'm writing this from the memory that I had about this incident. And incidentally, we software developers, just keep in mind only what is necessary as we declare a pointer and destroy it when it is no longer to be used.
I kept on reminding him that I was already late by 7 months and that now I don't care to wait any longer. At last, my efforts were fruitful and he took great care and passion to find out faults and defects in what I had written while he filled up his application and I didn’t care and it was good for me too that he finds out the mistakes and I correct them. Once he was done, we applied it on the same day. We were pleasant thinking about the chances that we may get the same date to appear before the US Embassy and that too almost the same time and to extend it a little further that we would get a chance to go onsite together. And mind you, he still wants it that way to happen, which I'm almost certain that wont be until that day arrives at its earliest.
After a few days, he came to me during a break saying that he got a mail from the VISA cell that his petition has been approved and that this PA date is January 23rd and the he needs to go for breifing regarding the VISA procedure in SJM Towers, near Majestic. He came to me saying this thinking that my application also would have got approved and that we could go together. I humbly informed him that I haven’t yet received any mails and that it'll be unable for me to accompany him. He was surprised at first and so was I. I called up the concerned person at the VISA cell and enquired to him regarding the same. So he told me that I had applied for L1B Individual, because for me unfortunately while choosing the branch for applying for engineering I applied for a branch for which the demand was high. If I had know it then, i.e. around 5 years back, I would have taken Computer Science or Information Technology just because the Americans gave special treatment to guys who learned CS and IT over guys who preferred to study other things which they thought would be demanding in the market, but it happened otherwise.
But to my glee, I got a mail from the VISA cell the very same day, towards the evening. I didn’t read its subject, opened it thinking that mine also would have been pushed through and I might have gotten lucky. But infact I was getting more and more unlucky. Now think about this, a person who waiting for 7 months to know that nothing happened about the application he had submitted and that he will have to start from scratch again, a person who was ready to start all over again for the sake of it, a person who waited for more that half a month for his colleague to prepare his documents so that they can apply together, being optimistic about lot of other things, now gets a mail saying that his petition cannot be applied now as I need to provide documents regarding the TCS propreitary tools that I'm supposedly using. I was certainly irritated and pissed off to know about this. I called up a lady in SJM regarding the same. She said that this procedure was introduced recently and that if I had applied 1 day before, I could have skipped this exercise. She asked me regarding when I was planning to submit the remaining documents. I was goddamn screwed up and I lost my mind and said that I was least bothered about it now and that I'm leaving for my native, which infact I was, and that I will not be able to render the required documents unlike next working day, supposing it to be coming Monday.
Indeed I was really disappointed and upset. I was feeling really let down by GOD. GOD the creator of heaven and earth and of all things visible and invisible, had decided to delay my VISA proceedings. But in midst of the delay that GOD wanted me to endure, he also send an angel, the VISA representative in SJM. She was so helpful that, she forwarded me the writeups for the TCS properitary tools on the same day and when I checked my mail on Monday, I realized that GOD is not so cruel to me. I forwarded the rest of the documents to the VISA cell on the same day so that it can be processed at the earliest.
Someday, January, 2007
Sometime
I opened the Outlook to check my mails, and then I notice a mail from the VISA cell. To be frank, I was pretty uninterested in opening the mail as I was in a state like 'Once bitten Twice shy'. But I mustered my courage and opened and to my glee came to know that everything is fine and that I'm required to appear before the consulate on February 15th. Now when I think of that, it is just like taking the vehicles before the insurance agent for taking a new insurance. Without seeing the vehicle, the companies won’t grant insurance. Even getting a US VISA is similar to that.
Thursday, 15 February, 2007
0800 hrs
What do you think? With such delays and blocks associated with the process of getting my VISA processed till the PA point, I was eligible to think that GOD may be, doesn’t really want me to get the VISA and this is the bleak possibility of my VISA getting rejected, that I was thinking about at 0700 hrs. So, I had the right to be doubtful and I indeed was, but I wouldn’t waste a chance even if there was no possibility at all. I was famous at college and office to take risks and I had to live up to my reputation.
Thursday, 15 February, 2007
0900 hrs
So here I was, sweating in the queue outside the gate of the US Consulate. I just had to wait for 5 minutes before I reached the counter outside the gate. He took my passport and my appointment letter. He verified the same and reminded me that I shouldn’t be carrying any electronic gadgets or metal objects inside the consulate. I brushed that advise aside coz I knew it before and had taken care of all that. Leaving behind the mobile at VR Home was an issue, but getting a VISA was more important to me now, than retaining a mobile, which was eligible to be put up in a museum.
Another security guard rushed me inside the consulate's heavy metal door. I was damn sure that the metal door was heavy enough to crush at least 10 people. Okay I'll be more realistic; maybe it was enough to crush some 3 guys. I went in that heavy door and there was a lady who collected my files and checked whether I'd kept some sharp items inside those. Once I cleared that, I went through a metal detector and it didn’t utter a sound, as I was all clear. So the final barrier that I had to pass was a body check done by yet another guard. He did it pretty fast and he also was unable to find anything dangerous on my body. There was another bullet proof door which lead to the lobby and then later on to the lawn which took me to the building where the PA had to take place. There was a small queue here also, which got over very fast. I went in the building and handed over the green folder to the receptionist. She tore the pink receipt with utter disdain and handed it over to me and told me that that it is my copy.
I was returned the green folder along with a new brown sheet and was asked to proceed to the counter number 2 for finger print scanning. I noticed that I was sweating a lot and I was finding it hard to wipe it all out with the unusual handkerchief that I carried this day. I generally don't carry any handkerchiefs or watches or extra things which would make me feel heavy during the day to day activities. So here I was today, inside an Air Conditioned building, sweating like someone I never knew even while standing in front of the mirror.
I was looking smart today, that is not so unusual as I generally am smart unless I get a mood shift because of any stupid stuff that would have happened around me. With my hair neatly brushed sideways and black ties with grey, white and bright red stripes over a medium light blue colored shirt, I looked like the best I would look for some couple of months to come. My chance had come to do the fingerprint scanning. I went forward and greeted the person behind the counter as 'Good Morning Officer'. He greeted me back and asked me how I was. This was unexpected, but gathered my wits and answered in one word, 'Fine'. I got both of my fingers scanned and he gave me my passport back, thus made it clear that it was done and that I could move. I was asked by some Indian employees at the consulate to stand at the end of the BEP queue which leading to counter no.7. I was kind of 20th person in the queue (little bit exaggerated) but still was the last person of the queue.
Thursday, 15 February, 2007
1045 hrs
I don't know how time passed and I didn’t even bother to know it as I was all nervous and mixed up inside. I had tried to by heart some of the answers to some general questions that the TCS VISA cell guys had mentioned during the briefing session. Now, when I tried to recall all that I had memorized, I was unable to do so. In the midst of the confusion over there, they opened another counter no.9 for the BEP associates and all those who were standing behind in the queue were asked to move to the new counter and I was one among the lucky few.
I was watching the proceedings from the back of the queue, one guy from NIT, Kozhikode was now at the counter. The officer was a lady and looked pretty pleasant. She asked him some questions like, "Why are you going to the US?", "What kind of work are you going to perform over there?" and many more like this. He was looking fussy and confused and thus he made himself good enough to get his VISA refused and so it happened. The officer returned his passport along with a pink form and he look dejected and disappointed. And he left the place as quietly as he had come. What else could he do? I could feel my heart all the way at my throat. I was very tensed and I was going to be in before the Officer in less than a minute.
And thus came, the great moment. I was standing in front of the counter and I offered the Officer the green folder that I had with me. She accepted it gracefully while I greeted her with a 'Good Morning, Officer' that was the beat of the day. With answers like 'I'm traveling on an intra-company transfer', 'Once I get my VISA, my BRM will arrange my accommodation' and 'SEI is a asset management and investment technology solution provider to banks and high profile individuals.' my mind was full and growing with new ideas and answers to questions that were bound to be asked by the officer. She never looked at my face. She was going through the documents that I had submitted and still deciding over how to screw me up, little did she know that I was already screwed and down. She started with the most obvious question.
Officer: What are you going to do in US?
Me: I'm going on an intra-company transfer to SEI.
Officer: What do you work on?
Me: (I was supposed to list out all the tools that I had provided in my CV, but I decided against it.) I'll be working on TCS proprietary tools like ADEX and OMGEN. (I expected her to follow up this question with some question asking me to explain all the tools that I had mentioned. But, she failed to rise up to my expectation.)
Officer: Who is your client?
Me: SEI, Simulated Environment Incor- Incorporated
Officer: Simulated Environment Incorporated! So what do they incorporate?
Me: (It was a funny question. I thought I was trapped. But my colleague had said that I could seriously bullshit the Officer, if and only if, I was confident in my answer.) SEI mainly provides consultancy on asset management and investment technology solutions to Banks and other high profile clients.
Officer: Why are they sending you?
Me: I've been working on the TCS proprietary tools for quite sometime. ('Quite sometime', What, what did I say just now? Did I expect her to convert my 'Quite sometime' in terms of experience, thus, I continued.) for the last 1.6 years!
Officer: What is your qualification?
Me: Bachelor of Technology in Electronics and Communications Engineering.
Officer: Your VISA have been approved. Have a nice journey.
Me: Thank you, Officer.
I wanted to tear down the hallway, shouting that I had done it, I had stamped over the bleak possibility of the refusal of my VISA, thus I emerged triumphant over the clouds of doubt that I had over my thinking process.
I walked slowly towards the exit of the building, then towards the exit of the lobby that I had come through initially and then the last heavy metal door, which would set me free at last of the bondage I was experiencing inside the consulate. In fact, I was feeling great and my face was blank. I opened the door slowly and the Chennai heat and sun hit me directly on my face. I was greeted by curious eyes rooted on me and my reaction. I pulled out my great acting skills that was gifted to me by the GOD Almighty and started my act. I pulled out my tie with such displeasure that many would have then and there felt that this is a possible rejected candidate who is walking out and this I followed it up with an equal opening of cuffs and the first button from top of the shirt. Yahoo, I was successful at both, getting a VISA and brushing up my acting skills on the road.
I hope this provides an insight what all a simple person endures on his way to securing a US VISA. All the best for you too. Bye
0700 hrs
I woke up in the bed of Room No.9 of VR Home in Alwarpet, Chennai. It was hot and humid, the climate in Chennai, but I was in the comfort of the AC room provided by TCS at VR Home. I didn’t have to suffer from the scorching heat of the burning sun and 500% humidity. But soon enough I would have to leave the comfort of the room as my PA, as it is called for Personal Appearance before the American Embassy, was scheduled to be at 1030 hrs.
From my colleagues who had come for the same purpose, i.e. to get their VISA stamped, had said to me that everything was cool and that I need not worry at all and that too for an ordinary plain L1B individual, there is no need of even a hint of concern. But, even with the room temperature at 20 Celsius, I was hot and humid inside. I was feeling nervous altogether and upset thinking of the very bleak possibility of my VISA getting rejected and I have a solid reason to think the same. To tell you about that I would need to go almost 10 months back.
Around 10 months back
Someday, April, 2006
Sometime
I got a mail forwarded by my Project Leader asking me to initiate my H1B VISA process. I was surprised, as the information that I had was that an associate could apply for VISA only once s/he gets confirmed and I still had 4 more months to get confirmed. I personally went to my PL and confirmed that that I had received the mail and checked whether any action need to be taken about it. He told me that I fell into the criteria that TCS had set for the associates that year to apply for H1B and that I could proceed with the same. I felt elated and special thinking that this is a great opportunity for me.
I hadn’t still got the Passport from the Passport office in Kochi, Kerala. My parents tried to fasten the process for the same and they managed to get the same within one week and meanwhile I gathered all the documents which was required for the H1B application and provided to the FDFU of TCS. They processed the documents and applied for the VISA at the embassy. After two weeks I got another email saying that the documents have been sent to the US for verification or something and that the next communication may take a duration of 90 to 150 days. I was ready to wait. After all I was not planning to miss such a golden opportunity that may not come my way every now and then. So, I waited and waited and waited, not 90 days, not 120 days, not 150 days, but more than that, was over the top of the patience I had. Even my Module Leader also started to ask me about the status of the VISA. I wrote mails to the head of VISA Cell Bangalore, seeking information regarding the status of the application that I had submitted some 6 months back. He tried to dig out some information and was unable to do so and we presumed the H1B application to be dead.Now what? I didn’t know what to do. After almost 7 months of patient waiting, one day I come to know that nothing is going to happen regarding that, its natural that I get frustrated. And I got frustrated. Really frustrated. Now the only thing that I could do was apply for L1B, which would be processed comparatively very quickly and lesser hassle to get through, but the only difference being that changing of clients while on onsite would have been more easier if it was H1B rather L1B and as I never had any such things in mind, it never mattered to me whether I'm getting a L1B or H1B, and the only thing that I was keen on was getting a VISA and making myself eligible for travel to onsite as and when required.
Someday, December, 2006
Sometime
There was one colleague of mine, who joined just 7 days after I had joined our clients, who was also eligible for applying for L1B VISA. So we planned to apply together. Now, I having more experience in filling up the forms and preparing the documents, as I had already done that for H1B once, took up the initiative to do all that and later he could copy from mine. He is one such guy who slogs like anything. He always says to me that he is not is a smart worker like me. But, I feel very hurt when he says that. I don't know how he defines his 'Smart workmanship', as for me being tagged as a 'Smart Worker' makes me feel myself lesser to people who to really work hard. Leave alone that topic, I'll write another blog on that. Now that he has told it, I prepared all the documents and kept on waiting for him for 10 to 15 days. I didn’t exactly count. You should also understand that I'm writing this from the memory that I had about this incident. And incidentally, we software developers, just keep in mind only what is necessary as we declare a pointer and destroy it when it is no longer to be used.
I kept on reminding him that I was already late by 7 months and that now I don't care to wait any longer. At last, my efforts were fruitful and he took great care and passion to find out faults and defects in what I had written while he filled up his application and I didn’t care and it was good for me too that he finds out the mistakes and I correct them. Once he was done, we applied it on the same day. We were pleasant thinking about the chances that we may get the same date to appear before the US Embassy and that too almost the same time and to extend it a little further that we would get a chance to go onsite together. And mind you, he still wants it that way to happen, which I'm almost certain that wont be until that day arrives at its earliest.
After a few days, he came to me during a break saying that he got a mail from the VISA cell that his petition has been approved and that this PA date is January 23rd and the he needs to go for breifing regarding the VISA procedure in SJM Towers, near Majestic. He came to me saying this thinking that my application also would have got approved and that we could go together. I humbly informed him that I haven’t yet received any mails and that it'll be unable for me to accompany him. He was surprised at first and so was I. I called up the concerned person at the VISA cell and enquired to him regarding the same. So he told me that I had applied for L1B Individual, because for me unfortunately while choosing the branch for applying for engineering I applied for a branch for which the demand was high. If I had know it then, i.e. around 5 years back, I would have taken Computer Science or Information Technology just because the Americans gave special treatment to guys who learned CS and IT over guys who preferred to study other things which they thought would be demanding in the market, but it happened otherwise.
But to my glee, I got a mail from the VISA cell the very same day, towards the evening. I didn’t read its subject, opened it thinking that mine also would have been pushed through and I might have gotten lucky. But infact I was getting more and more unlucky. Now think about this, a person who waiting for 7 months to know that nothing happened about the application he had submitted and that he will have to start from scratch again, a person who was ready to start all over again for the sake of it, a person who waited for more that half a month for his colleague to prepare his documents so that they can apply together, being optimistic about lot of other things, now gets a mail saying that his petition cannot be applied now as I need to provide documents regarding the TCS propreitary tools that I'm supposedly using. I was certainly irritated and pissed off to know about this. I called up a lady in SJM regarding the same. She said that this procedure was introduced recently and that if I had applied 1 day before, I could have skipped this exercise. She asked me regarding when I was planning to submit the remaining documents. I was goddamn screwed up and I lost my mind and said that I was least bothered about it now and that I'm leaving for my native, which infact I was, and that I will not be able to render the required documents unlike next working day, supposing it to be coming Monday.
Indeed I was really disappointed and upset. I was feeling really let down by GOD. GOD the creator of heaven and earth and of all things visible and invisible, had decided to delay my VISA proceedings. But in midst of the delay that GOD wanted me to endure, he also send an angel, the VISA representative in SJM. She was so helpful that, she forwarded me the writeups for the TCS properitary tools on the same day and when I checked my mail on Monday, I realized that GOD is not so cruel to me. I forwarded the rest of the documents to the VISA cell on the same day so that it can be processed at the earliest.
Someday, January, 2007
Sometime
I opened the Outlook to check my mails, and then I notice a mail from the VISA cell. To be frank, I was pretty uninterested in opening the mail as I was in a state like 'Once bitten Twice shy'. But I mustered my courage and opened and to my glee came to know that everything is fine and that I'm required to appear before the consulate on February 15th. Now when I think of that, it is just like taking the vehicles before the insurance agent for taking a new insurance. Without seeing the vehicle, the companies won’t grant insurance. Even getting a US VISA is similar to that.
Thursday, 15 February, 2007
0800 hrs
What do you think? With such delays and blocks associated with the process of getting my VISA processed till the PA point, I was eligible to think that GOD may be, doesn’t really want me to get the VISA and this is the bleak possibility of my VISA getting rejected, that I was thinking about at 0700 hrs. So, I had the right to be doubtful and I indeed was, but I wouldn’t waste a chance even if there was no possibility at all. I was famous at college and office to take risks and I had to live up to my reputation.
Thursday, 15 February, 2007
0900 hrs
So here I was, sweating in the queue outside the gate of the US Consulate. I just had to wait for 5 minutes before I reached the counter outside the gate. He took my passport and my appointment letter. He verified the same and reminded me that I shouldn’t be carrying any electronic gadgets or metal objects inside the consulate. I brushed that advise aside coz I knew it before and had taken care of all that. Leaving behind the mobile at VR Home was an issue, but getting a VISA was more important to me now, than retaining a mobile, which was eligible to be put up in a museum.
Another security guard rushed me inside the consulate's heavy metal door. I was damn sure that the metal door was heavy enough to crush at least 10 people. Okay I'll be more realistic; maybe it was enough to crush some 3 guys. I went in that heavy door and there was a lady who collected my files and checked whether I'd kept some sharp items inside those. Once I cleared that, I went through a metal detector and it didn’t utter a sound, as I was all clear. So the final barrier that I had to pass was a body check done by yet another guard. He did it pretty fast and he also was unable to find anything dangerous on my body. There was another bullet proof door which lead to the lobby and then later on to the lawn which took me to the building where the PA had to take place. There was a small queue here also, which got over very fast. I went in the building and handed over the green folder to the receptionist. She tore the pink receipt with utter disdain and handed it over to me and told me that that it is my copy.
I was returned the green folder along with a new brown sheet and was asked to proceed to the counter number 2 for finger print scanning. I noticed that I was sweating a lot and I was finding it hard to wipe it all out with the unusual handkerchief that I carried this day. I generally don't carry any handkerchiefs or watches or extra things which would make me feel heavy during the day to day activities. So here I was today, inside an Air Conditioned building, sweating like someone I never knew even while standing in front of the mirror.
I was looking smart today, that is not so unusual as I generally am smart unless I get a mood shift because of any stupid stuff that would have happened around me. With my hair neatly brushed sideways and black ties with grey, white and bright red stripes over a medium light blue colored shirt, I looked like the best I would look for some couple of months to come. My chance had come to do the fingerprint scanning. I went forward and greeted the person behind the counter as 'Good Morning Officer'. He greeted me back and asked me how I was. This was unexpected, but gathered my wits and answered in one word, 'Fine'. I got both of my fingers scanned and he gave me my passport back, thus made it clear that it was done and that I could move. I was asked by some Indian employees at the consulate to stand at the end of the BEP queue which leading to counter no.7. I was kind of 20th person in the queue (little bit exaggerated) but still was the last person of the queue.
Thursday, 15 February, 2007
1045 hrs
I don't know how time passed and I didn’t even bother to know it as I was all nervous and mixed up inside. I had tried to by heart some of the answers to some general questions that the TCS VISA cell guys had mentioned during the briefing session. Now, when I tried to recall all that I had memorized, I was unable to do so. In the midst of the confusion over there, they opened another counter no.9 for the BEP associates and all those who were standing behind in the queue were asked to move to the new counter and I was one among the lucky few.
I was watching the proceedings from the back of the queue, one guy from NIT, Kozhikode was now at the counter. The officer was a lady and looked pretty pleasant. She asked him some questions like, "Why are you going to the US?", "What kind of work are you going to perform over there?" and many more like this. He was looking fussy and confused and thus he made himself good enough to get his VISA refused and so it happened. The officer returned his passport along with a pink form and he look dejected and disappointed. And he left the place as quietly as he had come. What else could he do? I could feel my heart all the way at my throat. I was very tensed and I was going to be in before the Officer in less than a minute.
And thus came, the great moment. I was standing in front of the counter and I offered the Officer the green folder that I had with me. She accepted it gracefully while I greeted her with a 'Good Morning, Officer' that was the beat of the day. With answers like 'I'm traveling on an intra-company transfer', 'Once I get my VISA, my BRM will arrange my accommodation' and 'SEI is a asset management and investment technology solution provider to banks and high profile individuals.' my mind was full and growing with new ideas and answers to questions that were bound to be asked by the officer. She never looked at my face. She was going through the documents that I had submitted and still deciding over how to screw me up, little did she know that I was already screwed and down. She started with the most obvious question.
Officer: What are you going to do in US?Me: I'm going on an intra-company transfer to SEI.
Officer: What do you work on?
Me: (I was supposed to list out all the tools that I had provided in my CV, but I decided against it.) I'll be working on TCS proprietary tools like ADEX and OMGEN. (I expected her to follow up this question with some question asking me to explain all the tools that I had mentioned. But, she failed to rise up to my expectation.)
Officer: Who is your client?
Me: SEI, Simulated Environment Incor- Incorporated
Officer: Simulated Environment Incorporated! So what do they incorporate?
Me: (It was a funny question. I thought I was trapped. But my colleague had said that I could seriously bullshit the Officer, if and only if, I was confident in my answer.) SEI mainly provides consultancy on asset management and investment technology solutions to Banks and other high profile clients.
Officer: Why are they sending you?
Me: I've been working on the TCS proprietary tools for quite sometime. ('Quite sometime', What, what did I say just now? Did I expect her to convert my 'Quite sometime' in terms of experience, thus, I continued.) for the last 1.6 years!
Officer: What is your qualification?
Me: Bachelor of Technology in Electronics and Communications Engineering.
Officer: Your VISA have been approved. Have a nice journey.
Me: Thank you, Officer.
I wanted to tear down the hallway, shouting that I had done it, I had stamped over the bleak possibility of the refusal of my VISA, thus I emerged triumphant over the clouds of doubt that I had over my thinking process.
I walked slowly towards the exit of the building, then towards the exit of the lobby that I had come through initially and then the last heavy metal door, which would set me free at last of the bondage I was experiencing inside the consulate. In fact, I was feeling great and my face was blank. I opened the door slowly and the Chennai heat and sun hit me directly on my face. I was greeted by curious eyes rooted on me and my reaction. I pulled out my great acting skills that was gifted to me by the GOD Almighty and started my act. I pulled out my tie with such displeasure that many would have then and there felt that this is a possible rejected candidate who is walking out and this I followed it up with an equal opening of cuffs and the first button from top of the shirt. Yahoo, I was successful at both, getting a VISA and brushing up my acting skills on the road.
I hope this provides an insight what all a simple person endures on his way to securing a US VISA. All the best for you too. Bye
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