Leadership trainer Kaushik Mahapatra from Bengaluru faced challenges of a different kind this year. Accustomed to motivating others, contrarily he had to fire himself up at times during the initial phase of the pandemic-induced lockdown. "Before the pandemic, I used to meet a lot of people for face-to-face trainings and group sessions. My daily schedule entailed a lot of travelling, meeting corporate employees and stay at hotels. All that stopped when the lockdown came. Till then, we had not tried online modules and it proved a big challenge to go online overnight," says Kaushik, founder of Indian Leadership Academy.
As 2020 comes to a close, many, like Kaushik, have their own stories to tell about a year beset largely by uncertainties and compromises. As normal life took a hit, those who otherwise used to enjoy their lives on the go were suddenly forced to find comfort at their homes, while still getting on with their professional work. Kaushik calls the passing year "life-changing", adding that 2020 has been “an unconventional learning curve” for him.
Kaushik Mahapatra taking a class on leadership skills
School classes went online even as teachers and students across the country were faced with novel challenges and possibilities. Sudden adaptation to a tech-driven pedagogy posed its own questions initially, but the community soon caught on.
“The new arrangement did sow some confusion in the beginning, with uncertainties about network connectivity and the sheer practicality of virtual classrooms. But, given the circumstances, it proved to be a useful move to keep the academic momentum going,” says Uchitha Balagopalan, a private school teacher in Thiruvananthapuram. She feels that, however, missing out on practical sessions has been a big drawback for students.
Rohan Sai, a class 11 student from Chennai, seconds Uchitha’s opinion. But he feels that the reduction of about 25% of the syllabus proved helpful in lessening the academic burden. “I badly miss catching up with my friends in person. Physical training periods and computer lab sessions were a lot of fun. Now, we only have the core subjects,” he says.
Rohan Sai
On the other hand, he points out some of the shortcomings of online classes. “Sometimes, the flow of classes is obstructed due to poor network connectivity. Also, use of gadgets affects the attention span. You get notifications in between, which is distracting,” says Rohan. But he is all for the flexibility online classes offer. “I recently had to travel out of station but I was still able to attend classes. Moreover, sharing of study materials is quite easy online,” he adds.
At one point, the pandemic made court proceedings virtual and it was a wholly novel experience for the judiciary. Cases were argued and hair-splitting judgements were pronounced online. Hemant Venkat, an associate of noted senior advocate Prashant Bhushan in Delhi, recounts his observations of virtual courts.
Hemant Venkat
“After virtual courts opened, I obtained permission to move to Hyderabad to be with my parents who have co-morbidities and work from here. The biggest advantage of virtual courts is simply that lawyers are able to appear for cases even during the pandemic. On the other hand, a handicap is the lack of sufficient technological advancements in putting forth your case with other lawyers, judges and co-consultants,” he says.
Though proceedings were done online, courts insisted on the customary dress code and Hemant feels it was necessary. “Lawyers have to maintain the decorum despite going virtual as appearances are there for certain reasons,” he points out. On the plus side, Hemant is of the opinion that with virtual courts, dispensation of justice has been rather faster. “This is perhaps due to relaxation in terms of court appearances for litigants. I have seen people appearing before virtual courtrooms from their cars. So it’s much more flexible,” he says.
Sunil Kaushik at his countryhouse in Wayanad
Covid-19 may have dashed the plans of travel enthusiasts, but not the spirit of adventure for some. Like the globe-trotting Indo-Japanese vlogger couple Sunil Kaushik and Yuka Yokozawa, better known as Sushi and Sambar, their joint social media moniker. The couple now maintains a coffee plantation in Wayanad in Kerala where they presently reside.
"The lockdown completely altered our lifestyle. Instead of travel, we focussed more on farming and homesteading," says Sunil.
He says the pandemic has rather provided "a break of sorts" for them. "We can wholly pay attention to our 2.5-acre farm, where we grow coffee, pepper and vegetables such as tomato, green chilli, cucumber, pumpkin, bitter gourd, cabbage and so on. It is in a way a kind of a continuance of our adventure, but on a different route this time," he says.
Yuka Yokozawa
Yuka expresses a similar sentiment. "After so much travel, we felt it has been like an extended camping. At the moment, this is a life close to Nature," says Yuka whose hometown is in Nagano Prefecture in Japan.
