My First Interview

My First Interview

My first outing as a Quiz Master at BIT Mesra during their annual Tech-Fest, Pantheon-2018 was a truly memorable one. Right from the reception to hospitality to stage-management - everything was absolutely spot-on. The outing was more memorable because I have experienced a certain first in my life. For the first time ever, I gave an ‘interview’. It was conducted by the representatives of the News and Publication Society of the institution. Here are some excerpts from that talk:

Q1. How was your experience visiting Jharkhand?

This is my second visit to Jharkhand. I came here in the month of January to host the CBSE Heritage Quiz for students. This time I was brought in to host a quiz for young adults. BIT Mesra has a long history associated with it and it was an honor to receive an invitation to host a quiz in this institution. Meeting young, dynamic and talented quizzers who participated in the quiz was a very nice experience for me.

Q2. Sherlock Homes has his ‘MIND PALACE’. What is your secret weapon?

I am humbled to be compared to the great Sherlock Holmes but to be honest, I don’t have any secret weapon. This constant storing of information just happened over the years and maybe it was just constant practice. I may not be able to remember every single piece of information at the right moment but a little bit of recalling is quite easy for me because I have been into quizzing since my school days. I am still involved in quizzes and I usually perform all the mental exercises that are prescribed for a normal quizzer.

  

Q3. How can one develop an interest in quizzing?

When I started quizzing, long back, my seniors always told me to remember the three R’s to be deemed a very good quizzer – ‘READ’, ‘RECORD’ and ‘RECOLLECT’. Reading involves reading any available source of information- whatever you can get your hands upon. If you find anything interesting, note it down in your diary. You can also use your scrapbook to paste any interesting titbit of information that you found in the newspaper. For me, it started out quite early and I still have the habit of maintaining my scrapbook. From time to time, recollection is very important. I try to go through all the recorded information and would advise all budding quizzers to do the same. Also, participating in quizzes and forging friendships with fellow quizzers is very important. The students should keep on discussing information in order to bring out the stored stuff in your memory. These are some tips that any budding quizzer can follow for better performance.

 

Q4. How is the quizzing environment in BIT?

There were so many enthusiastic teams among the finalists for the quiz and most of them belonged to this institution. All the home teams were really good. I have visited several institutions where the home teams have participated. Their participation was encouraging but performance during the final or even in the stage rounds were unsatisfactory. But this institution impressed me a lot. The competition was fantastic out here and almost all the teams were quite close to each other in terms of points. I could sense a healthy camaraderie among the quizzer in the finals. The knowledge of the quizzers, their spirit of competition and most importantly, their interest in quizzing, impressed me a lot.

 

Q5. How rewarding is your profession as a quizmaster?

Quizzing started out as a passion because it made me, my mind and my brain happy. Monetarily, quizzing is definitely not rewarding. However, I am not involved in this profession due to money, I am involved due to the satisfaction I get from regular quizzing. Recognition is like a boost for me. I tend to work harder when I am recognized. Nevertheless, I love being a quizmaster. I get to visit many prestigious institutions which I have only dreamt of until now, such as IIT Kanpur, IIT BHU, IIT Guwahati and of course, now, BIT Mesra. My parents also feel proud of me because I am known for something unique and seeing my parents proud, I feel happy.

 

Q6. How do you usually de-stress and relax?

I believe that listening to music is the best way of soothing your nerves. I usually create a soothing atmosphere by dimming the lights and cooling down my surroundings by means of a mere fan or the air conditioner. I like to close my eyes to almost all types of music- it can be Rabindra Sangeet, old Kishore Kumar songs, classic English rock ballads- any kind of music which is soft and easy on the ears. I also like to have a talk with my kith and kin and spend some time with my younger ones to relax.

 

Q7. Female participation is a concern of the quizzing fraternity. What according to you, is the reason behind this?

I guess you all would be in a better position to answer this question. There were some girls in the preliminary rounds of the Biz-Tech Quiz. However, they couldn’t qualify and left. The problem here is that the participation is so low that the actual qualification probability also becomes low. The quizzing fraternity is quite worried about this because the same thing is occurring almost everywhere in India. Girls, when in school, are involved in quizzes here and there. However, as they grow up and get into colleges and then into a corporate lifestyle, they slowly lose interest. I guess they get involved in other duties and responsibilities which does not leave them with enough time to pursue quizzing as a hobby. Also, they may not find this hobby quite rewarding. Some girls have also said that quizzing is not something a girl should pursue because it is not feminine enough. Quizzing is a mind sport but people usually relate quizzes to boring, nerdy stuff. I completely admit that quizzing is not rewarding. What are you actually getting after mugging loads of useless information and showing off your knowledge in a question-answer session and wasting almost two to three hours? That same time can be invested in a good movie or doing something more productive.

Antaakshri is one such example. Initially, it had many female participants but slowly the trend died and so did female participation and involvement. We were very concerned with this fact and so a quota system was started in Kolkata where at least one member of every team had to be a girl. This has been implemented in many quizzes and now, we are thinking of taking it to a larger stage. The quizzing fraternity here can also implement this small change and I am very sure that female participation will become better. This reform has been appreciated very well and acts as an encouragement for budding female quizzers.

 

Q8. What is your message to the BITians?

As a quiz enthusiast, I would like to say that life is full of questions- try to find answers to these never-ending questions. Do take part in quizzes because they make you aware of the situations arising around you. Sometimes, these situations occur due to you and sometimes you are affected by them. Do something to improve the present conditions of your surroundings. Always be aware and if you are a quizzer, try to use up all your stored information to work for the betterment your society. Keep quizzing and be a better human being!