The Day - CAT'07

CAT 2007! One of the toughest and highly competitive exam in India which, if cracked, leads one to the path of successful life and career with prosperity. The exam was on 18th November 2007.

I woke up at morning 6 and prepared a cup of tea for myself. While sipping the tea at my balcony, I though a bit about the exam. Cold breeze seemed to me like CAT which was attacking my body and I had only one weapon to defend myself. The Tea! But soon I realized that my tea is not hot and prepared well so I simply got up and came inside the room.
My other roommates had woke up by then and everyone were rushing to prepare for the exam. Every one of us was feeling very happy, inexplicably!

One year back, I started preparation for CAT with full enthusiasm. Preparation of CAT itself taught me so many things. It changed my perspective towards everything we perceive in our daily life and taught to perceive them in the way other than our conventional wisdom. But I couldn’t maintain my dedication towards my preparation. The reason was both, I couldn’t cope up with the pressure and the main reason, I didn’t study the way I should have done.

I reached the examination center (Pragati College) one hour before reporting time. Most of my time passed in noting my room number and depositing my belongings at store room. People in huge number were present there. I saw very few who were smiling or laughing or talking to someone but there was lots of noise. It was impossible to comprehend that noise but the voice was filled with anxiety and nervousness. Noise got feeble when instructor over there signaled to enter the premises.

My room was on second floor. I entered the room and checked my watch, 30 minutes was still left for the exam to start. There were around 20 people in my room. I noticed, few of them were sitting with their eyes closed, finger of both hands crossed and elbow on the desk, praying. Even I pray before the exams, but I thought that works only if I do enough hard work and prepare for the exam honestly. Few others were looking too stressed and their eyes were half closed, seemed like they haven’t slept for past few days. I saw 2-3 girls with their palm on their face and pressed tightly against the face. That expression was strange to me and I couldn’t determine what mental condition of them leads to that gesture! Then I noticed my self, why I am so confidence and only person in the examination hall who is staring others instead of posing for one of the above gesture. Ohh I need not write why! I thought if I would be able to maintain the same coolness and confidence with full preparation just before the exams, ever in my life, I would definitely end up in one of the prominent management institute.

The invigilator delivered the question paper and answer sheet and instructed how to fill them. At sharp 10:30 he signaled to open the question paper. The next moment after 10:30 which I realized was at 1 pm when he instructed to stop writing and started collecting answer sheets.

There was a scary silence at the examination center just after the completion of exam. Everybody was only looking at each other without any expression on their face. The minds were unable to shape any expression using muscles of face after it’s exploitation in last two and half hour by their owners. Slowly minds started getting conscious and I heard few people discussing the paper with each other.

I rushed to collect my belongings which I had deposited at store room. That was the quickest two and half hour which passed in my life and my first ever competitive exam which I wrote. Hope I will be doing it better next year.