He hangs upside down, has a topsy-turvy view of all things. He is a Vetal, a ghost, who has nothing to do with the business. In the ���Vikram & Vetal method of training��� followed at the Future Learning and Development centres, the trainer is not supposed to answer questions. He has been pushing his team to think in this direction, which has finally fructified in this training method. But Kishore Biyani who heads Future Group has been a great believer of storytelling in general and Indian tales in particular. Today, we typically refer to these tales, rather patronisingly, as children���s tales, and never look beyond their entertainment value. We, as Indians, just have not realised the wisdom of our traditional stories ��� they were used by teachers to transform boys into men. For what is a king or a leader or a CEO, if not a problem solver, the one who can take a call when faced with a tricky situation? What is a case study if not a story of a problem faced by a company? Management students who try to solve the company���s problem are doing what the Vetal is asking Vikramaditya to do ��� solve the puzzle, answer the riddle, prove that he is worthy of being a king. The structure of the tales clearly follows the case study method of teaching management. You might as well take me to the sorcerer who will use me to destroy you.��� If you don���t know the answer, then you are not fit to be a king. ���Answer the question, Vikramaditya!��� he challenges the king, ���If you keep your mouth shut despite knowing the answer your head will burst into a thousand pieces.
But the ghost is very clever and determined to escape he tells the king a story and at the end of it asks a question. The only way to fetch a ghost is to keep one���s mouth shut while transporting the ghost back. The tales speak of a king, Vikramaditya, who is asked by a sorcerer to fetch him a ghost from a crematorium. It is gradually becoming the preferred method of training in Future Group. The Vikram & Vetal method of training is based on a collection of Sanskrit tales known as Vetal-pachisi, the twenty five tales of the ghost.