I was planning to write an article about my amazing association and experience at Ashoka, but then I sat down to write a response email to Sunil and Ashoka family for invitation for inauguration of the Sports Block, without realising I was blocked from doing so, courtesy some recent developments at the university. 

In any case, below is a note from me to all you Ashokans. It's actually not intended for others as they wouldn't get the jokes.

Dear Sunil,

Thank you for the invitation. I apologise but unfortunately I’ll not be able to come for the inauguration of something so close to my heart because of too short a notice. 

I’ll do my bit anyways since this is my baby, always will be. I’ll announce the inauguration of the Sports Block live on FacebookLive at Hindustan Times fb page at 5pm on Thursday, 20th October. If you can, do check it live on https://www.facebook.com/hindustantimes

I’d like to take this opportunity to congratulate the whole Ashoka family, especially you Sunil and Sonam, and also the groundsmen for sticking to your guns against odds as odd as they come. 

Inspite of the founders who simply-know-it-all and think sports-exercise-physical-activity have no connection to the brain but still kept pumping in the money in sports, even though miserly, the master architects who at the very outset questioned me if this was a sports university or liberal arts, but still very reluctantly agreeing to give us enough space, so what if Olympic size pool froze in the Delhi winters because of no cover, Mr Vikas Gera and his projects team setting new benchmarks for the Indian Standard Time, but at the end of the day delivering all that was promised and finally the faculty-staff-student body who have been ingrained with the sense of entitlement like no where else on planet earth but a slight bit of sense of duty too, the Sports Block is finally being inaugurated. So what if it’s 2+ years later than what I had promised. 

I unconditionally apologise for the delay. 

It might sound otherwise, but I am very excited for the sports block finally opening. I failed miserably at implementing a lot of my promised programs at Ashoka but I guess not all things can succeed everywhere, even in the best of places. I still remember when I had first visited the campus in Jan / Feb of 2014, all there was in the name of Ashoka University was barren land. So it’s always amazing to see your brain-child to finally grow up and be ready to take on the world, even if it’s not necessarily in your intended way. Things evolve and you need to let go. 

Liberal Arts Critical Thinkers, Get Off Your Arse now. 

Keep miling and smiling folks, because at the end of the day, nothing else matters. 

Rajat