IIM Calcutta’s early reunions spark debate on corporate life, Covid vaccines and early deaths | Trending

Bombay Shaving Company CEO Shantanu Deshpande has claimed that IIM Calcutta has brought its traditional 25-year reunion forward a decade for a sobering reason. In a post shared on LinkedIn, Deshpande said he was speaking to a friend – a graduate of IIM Calcutta – who revealed that the top B-school was now holding reunions after 15 years instead of the conventional 25 years. IIM Calcutta has advanced its reunion a decade? A viral post claims so. Deshpande said there were two reasons for the shift, and one of these reasons scared him to no end. He claimed that IIM Calcutta realised that many of its graduates were not alive to attend the 25th year reunion, and hence moved it forward a decade. CEO’s post“A friend I was talking to had just gone to his 15 year reunion at IIM Calcutta. He (and a few more alums) asked the profs why the OG 25 year reunion had been advanced to 15 years,” Deshpande, founder and CEO of Bombay Shaving Company, wrote on LinkedIn. “One reason was that at 15Y, people were at mid life crises so always good to get together. But, the other reason scared me to no end,” he said. The other reason for bringing the reunion forward 10 years was that more and more alumni were dying the 25-year mark. “Increasingly, larger percentage of batches were expiring the time 25Y passed. They were just no more,” Deshpande revealed. “So they advanced it a decade.” The Delhi-based CEO wondered whether lifestyle changes or Covid vaccines or some other factors entirely were responsible for the early deaths. His post has sparked a broader conversation on health concerns and high-stress jobs. HT.com has reached out to IIM Calcutta and IIM Calcutta alumni cell for a statement. Social media reactsThe post has gone viral on LinkedIn and X, where many people were surprised to learn why IIM Calcutta had decided to hold reunions after 15 years instead of 25. “Considering average age of MBA graduates between 25-30, it means lot of people dont even cross 55, that’s too freaking soon,” wrote one X user. “Stress leads to premature death. Corporate life at higher packages is full of stress,” another said. “25th reunion means they are in the age group of 55-60. Are they implying that a large % of the batch was dead in this age group ? How does it fit with avg life span of rich urban Indians?” an X user wondered. Many slammed Deshpande for bringing up Covid vaccines. “Throwing vaccines in there as a reason is diabolical to be honest! Please do some actual research,” read a comment on LinkedIn.