On the 20th of February, about 20 days before the RevSportz Trailblazers conclave was about to start, I landed in Kolkata to help with the final stretch of organising the event. As I walked into the office, I saw happy but grim faces—the pressure was mounting. There was so much to be done—scheduling, planning, coordinating—from flights, to hotel rooms to airport pickups. But beyond the physical arrangements, there was an intellectual load to carry as well. With multiple elite athletes and high-profile administrators on the panels, preparing to moderate sessions was no small task. You can’t step onto that stage unprepared.
Yet, when it comes to pulling off an event of this scale, one skill trumps every other—crisis management.
A Race Against Time
The very first day of the conclave threw us straight into a crisis. The event was set to begin with double Olympic medalist Manu Bhaker, and with a meticulously planned schedule, even a minor delay could send everything into disarray. Many guests had tight schedules, some with flights to catch immediately after their sessions.
A few hours before the conclave was set to start, we got the dreaded news—Manu’s flight had been delayed due to an emergency on board. She would now land in Kolkata just 30 minutes before she was supposed to be on stage.
For a moment, time seemed too slow. The logistical nightmare of rescheduling an event of this scale was unthinkable. But with Boria Majumdar steering the ship, there was no room for panic. Calls were made, alternatives considered, and contingency plans quietly put in place. The team moved quickly, ensuring that the opening minutes of the conclave would still set the right tone.
Despite the delay, Manu arrived just in time, and the event, even if a few minutes late, started off with a bang.
It’s not easy being a World Champion
Throughout the conclave, I had two major responsibilities—moderating two high-profile panels and coordinating multiple podcasts. With everyone on a tight schedule, ensuring that both the podcast host and the guest were in the right place at the right time was a logistical challenge in itself. As the producer of Boria Majumdar’s podcast, I had to juggle schedules, fetch both the athlete and Boria—who was simultaneously hosting the entire event—and make sure the recordings happened seamlessly. With other shoots also lined up in the same room, timing was everything. While some sessions went as smoothly as butter, no conclave is complete without a crisis.
One such crisis unfolded due to a miscommunication that landed World Champion D Gukesh in the podcast room while another shoot was already underway. At the time, both Boria and I were in the conclave hall, and as soon as we got the news, we rushed to where Gukesh was waiting. But this wasn’t as simple as telling him, “We’ll record later.” The World Champion had attracted a massive crowd and it was logistically impossible to move him from one room to another without a mob forming and fans vying for photos and autographs. But with some quick thinking, the crisis was averted.
It ends with a climax
But the biggest and most anxiety-inducing crisis hit us at the very end of the conclave—just when we thought we could finally breathe. The stage was being dismantled, most people had left, and only a few of us remained, packing up equipment and soaking in the relief of a successful event. That’s when the news broke—one of my colleagues couldn’t find his laptop, a device that contained crucial files. Panic set in, but the ITC-loss-prevention team swiftly took charge. After an intense hour of investigation, they caught the thief, recovered the laptop, and just like that, another crisis was successfully averted.
Despite the unexpected hurdles, the conclave came together like a well-rehearsed performance—held together by quick decisions, teamwork, and an ability to adapt to unforeseen situations. Because in the end, pulling off an event of this scale isn’t about avoiding chaos, but about managing it with precision.