My Experience with Chalo – A Lesson in Arrogance and Inefficiency
This is going to be a detailed experience. Hopefully, you learn something from it.
The HR Call – A Rare Gem
I got a call from HR, and let me say—this was one of the best HR interactions I’ve ever had, far better than the ones at Google (if you know, you know). She was professional, articulate, and knew exactly what she was doing—10/10. She explained the process clearly:
1️⃣ Round: 1-2 puzzles and a medium-level DSA question.
2️⃣ Round: Android fundamentals, career discussion, and past achievements.
3️⃣ Round: HR round.
Round 1 – A Decent Start
The interviewer was professional, patient, and polite—a rare find in technical interviews.
Puzzle 1 (Weight Management, Medium) – Never seen it before, but the interviewer actually guided me in the right direction. A great experience. (9/10)
Puzzle 2 (Probability, Medium-Hard) – Again, new to me. Struggled a bit, but eventually, the interviewer moved on. (6/10)
LeetCode Medium Problem – Had done it before but forgot, so I solved it with some guidance. (8/10)
✅ Got a call from HR saying they liked my logical thinking and moved me forward. I asked for three days to prepare, and she scheduled Round 2.
Round 2 – The Peak of Arrogance
This was hands down the worst interviewer I’ve ever encountered. The kind of person who thinks they know everything but is completely disconnected from the real world.
🔴 First Red Flag: He apologizes for being late and casually admits that he hasn’t even looked at my resume. Professionalism? Never heard of it.
Him: “What’s the most challenging thing you’ve faced?”
Me: Starts explaining…
Him (interrupts me): “Hey, hey, I just need a one-line answer.”
Oh, so we’re doing speed interviews now? Fine. I give him a crisp answer, and suddenly, he’s interested. Now he wants more details. Make up your mind.
The "Technical" Discussion – Or Rather, A Test of Patience
Him: “Are you someone who just knows how to use things, or do you understand how they work internally?”
Me: “Depends. If best practices exist, you follow them. If you're building something new, you go deeper.”
Now he starts digging into Context in Android. I explain what I know, but since I never had a reason to deep dive into it, I wasn’t super confident. Instead of moving on, he keeps pushing and digging like we’re writing a PhD thesis on it.
The Gotcha Question – Because Why Not?
He asks me a basic UI issue in Android with button clicks and API calls. I answer, and he keeps twisting the scenario to force a mistake.
Him: “Will this solution work?”
Me: “Yes.”
Him: “But what if the user clicks very fast?”
At this point, I realized this was a complete waste of time. The industry is moving to Jetpack Compose, and here’s this guy obsessing over a problem no one faces in real-world development. I mention an alternate fix, and he keeps questioning everything I say, as if that’s some superior way of assessing knowledge.
The Final System Design Question
He throws in a cache system design problem. Fine. I start solving it. No guidance, no engagement. Whenever I asked for input, his only response was “yeah, that could work”—so basically, I was interviewing myself at this point. Came up with an efficient solution, and at last, I could leave.
The Exit – A Reality Check for Him
At the end, I finally decided to confront him.
Me: “Why is it so important to know the internals of isEnabled?”
Him: “We want people who know more than just documentation.”
Me: “But wouldn’t people only go deep when they face real problems?”
Him: “I disagree. Some people are curious.”
Yeah, sure. Because real developers have time to analyze isEnabled when there are actual features to build.
Final Thoughts – A Joke of an Interview
After this disaster, I looked him up. Turns out, he’s the AVP at Chalo. Suddenly, it all made sense—the arrogance, the useless deep dives, the lack of real-world practicality.
At higher positions, you expect vision and leadership. Instead, I found someone obsessed with pointless trivia. Companies succeed by solving real problems, not by micromanaging things that aren’t broken.
Worst interview experience ever.
But hey, at least the HR was cool.
