Interview By Chance

A young man was an employee in the India Meteorological department who was posted at Regional Meteorological centre Nagpur. He was transferred to various stations in the region during his service time on many occasions. Either on promotion or on request and most of the time in the office interest as per office requirement. As he had passed the department competitive examination, he was very senior to his colleagues in the cadre. As every dog has their day, he could come back to Nagpur after a long gap and continuous struggle. He was posted in the forecasting section. Looking at his efficiency and calibre of doing work and tackling other official matters, he was in the good book of his boss. There was a very faithful relationship between him and his boss in comparison with other staff under him. He proved himself with time as a dedicated worker. He was an apple in the boss’s eyes. Many media persons would come to the office for interviews of the boss about prevailing weather in the region and forecast for coming days. The boss always asked him to collect most of the information regarding past weather and climatological data of the region. As soon as he received all required information from him, he used to brief to media in presence of him. He, therefore, learned many things about interviews from the opportunity of being accompanied by the boss.  Therefore, most of the media personnel was known to him. Hence he had a good experience of the media briefing. Many time,he used to give some positive feedback to the boss while discussing. The boss would tell him many significant clues about forecasting and media briefing. He would narrate his experience with media briefing and some important hints to tackle media to him.

Generally, these media persons were asked during office hours on working days of the boss. Perhaps there wasn’t any fixed weekly holiday for the boss. He had to be present on all days for regional forecast in the office round the clock. On a weekend, he used to come for some time for the only regional forecast as per provision. Other employees and officers were bound to remain present round the clock as per their scheduled duties. All media personnel knew that meteorological services were round the clock. Therefore they used to come as per their convenience. They would take normal general briefings over the phone from the present duty officers during fair weather.  

On one Sunday, unfortunately, the boss came early in the office and went back soon by discharging his normal duty as usual. The boss might be very busy with his personal urgent work and would be outside the city. Few media personnel phoned to Duty officer on duty on that day, asking for a byte on the present and future weather conditions in the region on the eleventh hour. They told him about their arrival time. He phoned the boss about that sudden development as it was need of the hour. The Boss was not in a position to come back to the office. He then enquired about the other officers on duty in the office. He briefed the name of his faithful officer. He asked the duty office to call him on the phone as a cat has nine lives. When he phoned him, he asked him to brief media personnel and gave some important hints and clues. Before coming media personnel he collected all required information for a briefing as it was better safe than sorry. It was his first byte in his service to the national media. He was afraid internally. When the going gets tough, the tough get going. He then behaved like a bold officer as boss. At the same time he was very excited to give byte to national media as time and tide wait for no man. He knew that after media briefing he would be on so many news channels on national telecasts.  He would get familiarity among the viewers. His friends, relatives as well as colleagues would praise him a lot thereafter. Well the beginning is half done. So he prepared himself very confidently for the task as a journey of thousand miles begins with a single step.

              

As per scheduled, concerned media personnel arrived in the office with their instruments. They were already briefed by the boss about him. When they came into the office, they enquired about him. They talked with him. Haste makes waste. So he first requested them to give their questionnaire for that day. As soon as he viewed the questionnaire, he was confident that he would easily answer them. He asked them to start the byte session. The staff was also eager to know how he would manage the task. They started asking for information regarding present and future weather in the region one by one. He replied them boldly accordingly as fortune favours the bold. Looking at his knowledge and ability, they asked so many miscellaneous questions out of the questionnaire. He replied to them as right as rain. He faced his first media interview in such a way at the crossroad as if he was the expert Media reporter. They were satisfied with him. They were not known at all that he was faced by them for the first time. They thought, in absence of a regular boss, he was supposed to give a media briefing.

                 

When that interview was telecasted over the national channel, his boss was very happy with his interview. He phoned him and gave him warm congratulation. Many friends and some significant people from his native small town upheld him. They were proud of him as a son from their soil was flashed over the national channel. His wife also gave him the heartiest congratulation for a television interview on the national channel to whom she used to be supposed very useless fellow in her life. His children were very glad as their dad was also a television star.