Mahabharata refers to three great archers who face different challenges for reasons beyond their control.

There is Arjuna, the Pandava, prince of Hastinapur. There is Karna, the foster son of a charioteer, who does not know who his real parents are. And finally, there is Ekalavya, a tribal youth, an outcaste. Despite his privileged background, Arjuna feels threatened by the talents of both Karna and Ekalavya. When Karna presents himself at an archery competition, Arjuna and his brothers revile him as 'the charioteer's son who should know his place.' When Ekalavya is able to shoot arrows into the mouth of a barking dog thereby silencing him without killing him, Arjuna turns to his guru Drona, who, to comfort his royal student, takes advantage of the Ekalavya's gullibility and extracts a terrible fee: 'pay me with your thumb for serving as your inspiration'. Despite his talent that earns him the support of Duryodhan, another prince of Hastinapur, Karna is forever haunted by his status in society. Despite his talent costing him his thumb, Ekalavya is unable to comprehend why people who are supposed to be learned can be so cruel. The corporate world is full of talented people. Not everyone comes from the right pedigree, or has the right qualifications or experience, as Arjuna does. Not everyone gets the support of a Duryodhana, as Karna does. And some talented people, like Ekalavya, don't even have the tact to realize that they have been shortchanged, remaining forever sidelined. An Arjuna, despite everything, remains insecure about Karnas and Ekalavyas. A Karna, despite support of Duryodhana, always feels inadequate and under appreciated. An Ekalavya remains a victim of his own innocence. The corporate world is projected as a fair world, full of objective parameters where through systems and processes talents are managed so that the best man wins. But everyone knows that is not true. For underlying these systems and processes are the motivations and politics of human beings, factors that do not go away despite the best of technologies, factors whose existence is constantly denied. Mr. Mathias knows that because he is the eldest son of his family, his taking over as CEO will always be seen as a function of his bloodlines, and not as a function of his talent. No matter how hard he works, no matter what his performance is when compared with professionals in the company, he will always be his father's son. He is the modern-day Arjuna, found in almost every family business. Mr. Mathur knows that despite years of proving himself, he will never become the CEO; he is not part of the family bloodline and the family will never give the mantle to a professional. He is our modern-day Karna, who leaves the family business and joins a professional company, only to realize that even that multinational company has a glass ceiling. He is not an alumni of a particular B-school, hence he will never ever be good enough. He will always be the outsider. Mr. Bakshi works as a manager in a departmental store. He would have been a part of the strategic team but he will never be, because he is not a B-school graduate. No school accepted him because in the group discussion he would only express himself in Hindi. His thoughts were outstanding but those who judged him heard only his language and felt he would not fit in because he did not know English. Mr. Bakshi did not learn English because the government schools taught only the local language because the political parties insisted in supporting the regional language over a foreign language, never mind the fact that the children of the politicians went to English schools. Mr. Bakshi is the modern day Ekavalya not quite sure why well-meaning politicians and well-meaning academicians denied him his thumb.

The Durga statue worshipped during Dassera festival in Bengal, Orissa and Assam is made over a period of several weeks, starting soon after the chariot festival ends in Puri, Orissa. First a frame is made of bamboo that is covered with straw, then layered with clay, then covered with layers of paint. Finally, the details are drawn. The statue is then dressed in cloth and delicate jewelry made using pith and bark, and finally unveiled on the festival days. After the image is worshipped, it is dunked into the river, dissolved until the process begins once again the following year. Presentations made to sell an idea to customers need to be created like a Durga statue. Not all at once but slowly and systematically. First the broad ideas, then the details, then the data supporting the claims, then the graphs and the charts and the images, finally the layout and cosmetic touches before the grand presentation to the client. After which, the presentation needs to be discarded and one has to start again anew, with a fresh outlook, with learning from the past. Chandan was to make his first sales presentation to a client. And he was nervous. Prabhu, a senior colleague, walked past and saw Chandan struggling to align the text. Which slide is it? Chandan said it was his second. How many slides are there in toltal? Chandan did not know. Prabhu realized Chandan was not following the Durgamethod of content creation. You are so obsessed with the face of the deity that you have already painted its eyes in fine detail, without bothering to even start on the torso and limbs. The entire image will turn out to be disproportionate, with unequal detailing, more on the face and less on the limbs. It will look awkward and deformed. You have to think of the whole image in layers, he said metaphorically. He then explained in detail, As the bamboo framework, visualize where you want to start, where you want to end the presentation. This depends on where you want to take the client with your narrative. As the straw body, put in whatever data you have in your mind. As the clay, gather data from others, that is not easily accessible. As the first layer of paint, do the editing. As the second layer of paint, add the images and graphs and charts. Finally, for the sari and jewelry, focus on the aesthetics of the statue: the alignment, the consistence of font, the bullets, the styles. Pay special attention to the two eyes the start and the finish of the presenation, what is the introduction and the final take home. Then worship your presentation by rehearsing several times, and finally presenting it to the client. Then, dissolve the image in water: dont get too attached to it, take feedback and criticism and start working on a new presentation for your next sales pitch. That is the only way you will keep learning and keep improving, combining efficiency with effectiveness.