My Memorable Day with Dev Anand
Dr. H.K. Lakshman Rao, 33, Krishnapuri, Chennai 600028
It was April 1974 (I was with MFL Madras) when I was attending the one-week Management Development Program (MDP) conducted by IIM-Calcutta at Darjeeling, on Marketing Research & MIS that I casually met Dev Anand at the lawns of Hotel Oberio (hope, I remember the name of the hotel correctly), Darjeeling while Dev Anand was relaxing and reading the newspaper all alone and taking a sunbath. He had come to Darjeeling for film shooting, stayed in the same hotel, and that was a rest day. Our IIM sessions were to start at 11 am and the expected faculty Prof. Lakshmi Mohan of IIM Calcutta who was to handle the topic on Marketing Research could not turn up as the flight from Calcutta was canceled due to heavy fog. The Coordinator of the Program from IIM Cal (late) Prof. Ramaswamy P. Iyer (he was later Director of IFMR Chennai) was agitated.
All the 22 participants of the program were waiting at the hotel for the program to start. Prof. Ramaswamy expressed to me his embarrassment: to cancel the sessions. I took courage and walked to Dev Anand and got introduced to him and had a half-hour interesting talk on the film world and marketing aspects in the film industry including the viewers' expectations, etc. Dev was nostalgic of Madras Idli, Wada, Coffee, beach, melodious music, and the home of MS. He had quickly composed a poem of our meeting and his handling a session in English and read it in the class.
I told Dev Anand that we were here for the IIM-C Program on Marketing Research & MIS and the assigned faculty to handle that day's sessions, Prof. Mohan, could not turn up from Calcutta due to flight cancellation for dense fog. I dared to request him to engage us by handling a session on Marketing Research and MIS in the film industry and be our "Guide." After some initial hesitation to engage us, Dev Anand got excited about this idea and agreed to the challenge of handling a management class.
He wanted me to give him a few general tips about the topic to get himself prepared for his one-hour talk. He jotted down the few points that I gave him. The program was also held in the same hotel where we were staying, and he was also staying. I rushed to Prof. Iyer and told him that I approached Dev Anand as a substitute, and he was willing to handle the session instead of Prof. Lakshmi Mohan who could not turn up. There was a lot of relief for the stressed Prof. Iyer and a beam on his face that Dev Anand would handle the session and the assigned topic, and there was no need to cancel the session.
He ran to profusely thank Dev, who had just returned to his suite for preparing for the talk, and Prof. Iyer invited him to address the participants.
Dev's talk was arranged during 3 to 5 pm. It was indeed amazing that he gave such a wonderful, interesting, and relevant talk on Marketing Research & MIS covering concepts and live cases from the film industry for over two hours with Q&A. We took a group photo with him. It was indeed a memorable encounter with Dev Anand which happened some 40 years ago of the evergreen hero of the film world.
May Dev's soul rest in peace!!
From India, Gurgaon
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672Dr. H.K. Lakshman Rao, 33, Krishnapuri, Chennai 600028
It was April 1974 (I was with MFL Madras) when I was attending the one-week Management Development Program (MDP) conducted by IIM-Calcutta at Darjeeling, on Marketing Research & MIS that I casually met Dev Anand at the lawns of Hotel Oberio (hope, I remember the name of the hotel correctly), Darjeeling while Dev Anand was relaxing and reading the newspaper all alone and taking a sunbath. He had come to Darjeeling for film shooting, stayed in the same hotel, and that was a rest day. Our IIM sessions were to start at 11 am and the expected faculty Prof. Lakshmi Mohan of IIM Calcutta who was to handle the topic on Marketing Research could not turn up as the flight from Calcutta was canceled due to heavy fog. The Coordinator of the Program from IIM Cal (late) Prof. Ramaswamy P. Iyer (he was later Director of IFMR Chennai) was agitated.
All the 22 participants of the program were waiting at the hotel for the program to start. Prof. Ramaswamy expressed to me his embarrassment: to cancel the sessions. I took courage and walked to Dev Anand and got introduced to him and had a half-hour interesting talk on the film world and marketing aspects in the film industry including the viewers' expectations, etc. Dev was nostalgic of Madras Idli, Wada, Coffee, beach, melodious music, and the home of MS. He had quickly composed a poem of our meeting and his handling a session in English and read it in the class.
I told Dev Anand that we were here for the IIM-C Program on Marketing Research & MIS and the assigned faculty to handle that day's sessions, Prof. Mohan, could not turn up from Calcutta due to flight cancellation for dense fog. I dared to request him to engage us by handling a session on Marketing Research and MIS in the film industry and be our "Guide." After some initial hesitation to engage us, Dev Anand got excited about this idea and agreed to the challenge of handling a management class.
He wanted me to give him a few general tips about the topic to get himself prepared for his one-hour talk. He jotted down the few points that I gave him. The program was also held in the same hotel where we were staying, and he was also staying. I rushed to Prof. Iyer and told him that I approached Dev Anand as a substitute, and he was willing to handle the session instead of Prof. Lakshmi Mohan who could not turn up. There was a lot of relief for the stressed Prof. Iyer and a beam on his face that Dev Anand would handle the session and the assigned topic, and there was no need to cancel the session.
He ran to profusely thank Dev, who had just returned to his suite for preparing for the talk, and Prof. Iyer invited him to address the participants.
Dev's talk was arranged during 3 to 5 pm. It was indeed amazing that he gave such a wonderful, interesting, and relevant talk on Marketing Research & MIS covering concepts and live cases from the film industry for over two hours with Q&A. We took a group photo with him. It was indeed a memorable encounter with Dev Anand which happened some 40 years ago of the evergreen hero of the film world.
May Dev's soul rest in peace!!
From India, Gurgaon
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Hi Pon, This was actually Dr. Rao’s experience - he just asked me to post this. I didn’t exist in 1974. :) Regards, Sid
From India, Gurgaon
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From India, Gurgaon
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Dev Anand! I know him as a man of courage. The kind of films that he has directed and produced may not be big commercial hits, but I remember he was always very proud of his own creations and stood by them, which is a lesson for me.
May his soul rest in peace!!
From India, Pune
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May his soul rest in peace!!
From India, Pune
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