My attempt to relate Dahi Handi and a organisational set-up or an entrepreneurial set up.

Thanks to the Cultural Committee of NITIE, I got to participate in my first Dahi-Handi event .
I should say that it was an awesome experience, a welcome break from the monotony of lectures, assignments, CVs, GDs, Committees, Forums, etc. As I lay on my bed after a warm shower and a scrumptious meal following all the hulla-gulla of forming human pyramids and dancing, I expected that I will soon be snoring loud. But, though the body was exhausted, my mind was still very excited about the event and I started reflecting on the whole affair from the beginning.

Here, I first describe the events as it happened and then try to relate each point to happenings in an organisational set-up or an entrepreneurial set up.

Dahi Handi

Though the event was scheduled to start at 11 am, it did not actually start until the organisers turned it loud, literally. It was the sound of the band of drums which started attracting crowds.

The organisers and the first people who came out started dancing to the tune of the drum beats and to buy time till more people arrived at the venue.

Loud start!

Once there was a sizeable gathering , a team of guys quickly started making human formations under the hanging pot. Since there were less people around, even persons who did not have any idea of participating were also tempted to pitch in and the pyramid quickly rose to break the first pot. The successful first attempt was a great energy boost to the participants and attracted even more crowd as it made the event look very easy and interesting.

 

First Success!

Next was the turn of the ladies. Though they were a minority in number, a few over-enthusiastic ladies managed to woo more into the ring and there were just enough in number to form the pyramid with very little support . After a couple of unsuccessful attempts they managed to break the handi  to put up a  great show of girl power.

 

Girl Power!

Next was the turn of senior boys. After a series of unsuccessful attempts, the team huddled together to discuss the strategy and then came out with a strong and sturdy base followed by a steady second layer and thin and agile top layer to crack the pot open to shower the team with the coloured water contained in the pot.

By now there was a huge crowd gathering. The drums were at their loudest and the atmosphere was electric. There was a lot of push and pull to lend a shoulder/arm/leg to break the last pot.  A few players who were active so far, retired out and joined the group which was  only dancing since beginning. A few of them even ventured to try their hand on playing the drums.

 

Srong Base!

But at the centre, the situation was chaos. Everyone wanted to try a hand in the now well established event. Some simply wanted to participate, some wanted to contribute by lending their shoulders, some wanted to rise to the top above everybody and break the pot to take pride about it, some simply wanted to have fun.  One after the other, each attempt only ended up as a failure. There was no consensus. Each one was in a hurry, only to establish himself without realising that the basic necessity is to establish a team. Teams were formed and broken in a hurry. A person with a bulky build would try to climb to the top without realising that he is more suitable to form the strong base. Leaders emerged, trying to set some sense to the team. And when the pyramid slowly rose, the target pot was raised further up citing that this was a huge team. Such unsuccessful attempts continued until two bystanders (not students) came in. They requested the team to form a very lean base of 3 people. The two then skilfully climbed one over the other making use of the students' base and broke the pot to win all the laurels.

 

Leaders Emerge!

 Analogy with a typical Organisation/Industry scenario

It was the sound of the band of drums which started attracting crowds

Any initiative in an organisation or an industry needs a loud bang to attract stake holders. It could be a new product launch, an employee-engagement initiative or implementation of ERP in an organisation. It can be successful only if it is marketed well with some kind of bang. Say, for example, a blitzkrieg advertising campaign for launch of a new product.

The organisers and the first people who came out started dancing to the tune of the drum beats and to buy time till more people arrived at the venue

Often in the beginning of an endeavour, you need to be patient before gathering enough resources to make a start. It might involve performing tasks you did not intend to or different from your core objective. Here the organisers had to dance since there were not enough people to perform the task of pyramid formation. You need to perform some mundane promotional activities before attracting investors/people/resources before setting out on your bigger goal.

Once there was a sizeable gathering , a team of guys quickly started making human formations

Though one need to wait initially, one should be quick to recognise to recognise that he/she has enough resources to take the plunge. If the organisers kept dancing, soon they might forget the original goal or people might lose interest and start leaving or there might be more people in the field than required, leading to high competition. So, ACT at the right time.

The successful first attempt was a great energy boost to the participants and attracted even more crowd

Once a the world sees that you can be successful by taking a particular path, many others will follow. But to have an edge over all of them, you should be the leader, the trend setter , you should make your own path. It can also interpreted in a way that you will have more competition once others see that your entrepreneurial venture to be successful and try to enter the area to have their share of the pie.

there were just enough in number to form the pyramid with very little support . After a couple of unsuccessful attempts they managed to break the handi  to put up a  great show of girl power

It is to be noted that the ladies had a very lean team. 'Just enough' people to achieve the task successfully. It highlights that numbers don't really matter when you have the right people and right attitude in an endeavour.

strong and sturdy base followed by a steady second layer and thin and agile top layer

This often a requirement in typical organisational set ups. The bottom most layer of the organisation needs to very strong in the basic work while the top management should be agile to think about external factors, market conditions, strategy, etc.. And the middle management needs to be a steady bridge between the two layers.

crack the pot open to shower the team with the coloured water contained in the pot

The team in Dahi Handi is considered to be successful when the pot is cracked open and the thing to be noted is that the reward, in this case, is the splash of the coloured water over the team. To be a successful organization, the reward should be in a such a way that it should cover the entire team and not just the leaders at the top.

a lot of push and pull

As described earlier, once an event/ path is established, there will be a lot of competition.

A few players who were active so far, retired out and joined the group which was  only dancing since beginning. A few of them even ventured to try their hand on playing the drums.

One should know when to quit. One can quit and still derive some utility from the event/opportunity like the people who were dancing. Any no. Of people can dance and there is no competition there. Everybody derives utility in terms of the entertainment one gets. Or one could venture into trying something like the ones who actually tried playing the drums.

Some simply wanted to participate, some wanted to contribute by lending their shoulders, some wanted to rise to the top above everybody and break the pot to take pride about it, some simply wanted to have fun.  One after the other, each attempt only ended up as a failure.

This simply describes an organisational set up when the goals of individuals are all not aligned to the common goal. If each one works towards individual interest, the interest of the organisation is lost and failure is inevitable.

two bystanders (not students) came in

and broke the pot to win all the laurels

This is what typically happens when a team is quarrelling among themselves. Somebody from outside comes and swipes you off. It could be a competitor or any other form of threat.