Bare walls outside – Bounty wealth inside

5.30 AM Tuesday

Gently woke up and slithered down from bed – tried best not to make a sound. Don’t want to disturb sleeping tigers. When I came back to pack my bag, two tigers (daughters) staring at me to understand what this grown-up pussycat is doing. Wife with heavy heart said adieu – as if I am going to gulf countries for odd jobs and don’t know when her husband return to clear the debts.

7.50 AM

Saw the boarding pass  “Seat no - 1F” Yes!! Thumped in air and said to myself I can stretch my legs and relax for 3 hours – a very long journey to Chandigarh.

8.00 AM

Guy having a fractured arm with supporter and lady with the book in hand, are my neighbors. Sacrificed, my window seat for the convenience of a fellow passengers with severe bruises on his face and arms.

8.15 AM

Flight about to take off. Air hostess came near and cautioned to close my laptop. I obliged and nodded my head as a kid to his/her class teacher. Eventually, buckled seat belt of the injured neighbor who can not move his right arm.

10.30 AM

Tring Tring. Hello bro, have you landed where are you.

Just landed, I said. Whom shall we meet today?

 I enquired to find any appointments he took with our customers? Ha bro, there is a holiday. Ha... I am trying to reach the customer.

Yes, the sound “Ha” is his gap filler and mantra he chants 20 times in 60 seconds.. Jokes apart, I had a lovely host in Chandigarh (Ankit) who is preparing to take me to show the treasure (customers) he identified for my portfolio.

My hosts (colleagues): From right Ankhur, me and Dr. Ankit

Visit to PGIMER

Started our ride in a new fancy “Ford Ecosport” - My host has purchased the ride recently. We are passing through straight and relatively empty roads in Chandigarh. Surprised, to see the streets are much more extensive than in jam pact roads of Banglore. People are, blessed to live in such well-planned cities. Before I fill my eyes with such well-organized drives, here we come, said, my friend. I saw around and surprised to see a vast crowd – as if people pouring in for a grand event.

I raised my head saw a big bord at the entrance “PGI.” We got in and looking for a building of research labs but saw people waiting and sleeping on the lawn – realized it is a public hospital, and people must be using the garden as accommodation. We went further ahead and turned left to see a big building with cement plastering – but no colors. It looks like barren walls are the theme of Chandigarh – most of the building seems the same.

Customer visits

Hello sir, I wished and asked a couple of questions to scientist:

• ·         what is the objective of his work
• ·         What is the workflow

It has continued throughout the day, where I was able to meet near about ten scientists working in various areas.

• ·         Molecular biology NGS analysis of patient samples
• ·         Primary culture of fibroblasts extracted from patients
• ·         Developing Heart organoids
• ·         Spheroids culture, detection of tumors in nude mice
• ·         Hydrogels, scaffold preparation to test the regeneration of cartilage and bone in animals

When I asked a question about their research objective: I have observed a few expressions

10.00 AM  (the day after) Visit to IISER-Mohali

Watching the buildings ( inspired from European architecture – Gothick style) and spacious campus – gone back to my campus life in Bits Pilani, Hyderabad campus. I was curious to know our customers and their area of research.

Fruit flies – first sight

I saw big posters on the wall of a lab, showing confocal images of drosophila. I asked, my friend, could I see drosophila? He said, why not.

Our customer is gracious, allowed us to enter the lab and showed hundreds of flasks arranged on racks. Being a cell culture guy, Initially, I was apprehensive to enter the lab – because of contamination. But I understood, they are not so sensitive as naïve cells grown on flasks in a sterile environment.

Asked a couple of basic questions:

• How and from where do you import drosophila lines?
• How do you cross drosophila?
• How do you ensure they are pure lines?
• What is the life span of drosophila?
• How do you suppress a gene of interest in drosophila?

Though we know drosophila is one of the model organisms,  before this visit I really,  didn’t understand why it is selected as a model organism (maybe I forgot). So, I learned many things from my customers. In fact, as a science enthusiast, one of my dream come true to see live drosophila.

What a lovely silent and humble flies they are, they stay in the flask throughout their life. So we are, living in our presumptions and thoughts throughout our life. We do have inhibitions and assumptions about customers – as a curious marketer onus is on us to ask and clarify.

5.30 PM Chandigarh airport

After my visits, I came back to the airport and had 1 hour of free time. When I look back at my time in Chandigarh, I remember the following things:

• ·         Well maintained wide roads – functional parking space in front of malls
• ·         Buildings of the same style without colors (Barren walls)
• ·         Old buildings, labs (PGI) – with diverse research work
• ·         Drosophila – small, sluggish worms in the flask
• ·         Enthusiastic customers sharing their work details

On the whole, I am going back, Taking many more things with me.  Thanks, Chandigarh, for the beautiful experience you gave, wishing to visit often to see the treasure inside the bare walls.