Question 17: Read the following exchange between an interviewer and a…

Read the following exchange between an interviewer and an interviewee and answer the given subquestions:
Candidate: Good morning (Smiles at the interview panel.)
Interviewer 1: Good morning. _____
Candidate: Yes, sir. Siddhant Arora.
Interviewer 2: Please have a seat, Mr. Arora.
Candidate: Thank you, sir. (The candidate calmly takes his seat; he carries his certificates, testimonials, etc., in a well-organised folder which he places on the left side of his table.) (Interviewer 1 seems to whisper something to Interviewer 2, and they share a laugh while looking at the candidate. The candidate feels embarrassed, but hides his awkwardness and remains pleasant, but unaffected. The interviewers study him intently.)
Interviewer 1: Mr. Arora, where do you come from?
Candidate: I come from Uttar Pradesh, sir.
Interviewer 1: From where in UP do you hail?
Candidate: My hometown is Allahabad, sir.
Interviewer 1: _____
Candidate: Sir, Prayag is the same as Allahabad; Prayag was the ancient name of the city. Interviewer 1: Indeed. Can you tell us a little about your educational background?
Candidate: I did my primary education from Tagore Public School, Allahabad, and then went on to do my bachelor’s degree in English Language and Literature from the University of Delhi. I did my post-graduation in Human Resource Management from IIM Bangalore. _____
Interviewer 2: A Market Strategy Associate? Your career trajectory appears rather peculiar. _____ It is a strangely slavish choice, don’t you think, to learn something that may well be taken as a sign of colonial oppression?
Candidate: (Mildly puzzled for a moment, but quickly regains his composure) Sir, strategization, in the context of a multinational company that offers its services to a substantial and diversified client base, is as much a task of communication as it is one of ideation. English is no longer the language of a particular country or a people. Although we can trace it back to our nation’s colonial past, we can rest assured that it is a language that we have made our own. We leverage English and capitalise on it during our interactions with other international players and markets. Learning literature also impacts the manner in which one thinks because it puts one in intimate contact with some of the best thoughts and creations of humankind. One constantly learns from and draws from a large reservoir of experiences as made available through literature so as to be able to keenly understand the people that one works with, to optimally harness the strengths of those in one’s team and to comprehend and respond to clients’ expectations. My position also requires me to analyse and interpret large amounts of data and have a strong command over various analytical tools. _____ So, different as my qualifications might be, I do believe that they both equally contribute to the manner in which I dispense my duties as a Market Strategy Associate. Interviewer 1: Well put, Mr. Arora. Can you tell us about an experience where you had to collaborate with others because the project at hand required an expertise which you did not have? Candidate: Certainly, sir. What comes to my mind immediately is an instance when I needed legal consultation concerning corporate law both in our country and in the different sites where our client had established operations. _____ He also helped me negotiate transaction documentation and coordinated with external legal counsels.
Interviewer 1: Very well, Mr. Arora. _____
Candidate: Sir, I love to read and to go for walks. I also like to follow the latest news in astronomy with an amateurish interest (smiles).
Interviewer 2: Astronomy?
Candidate: Yes, sir. Like the James Webb Space Telescope’s recent discovery of enormous mature galaxies in its deep field images.
Interviewer 2: I see. Interesting (smiles).
Interviewer 1: That will be all for now, Mr. Arora. _____ Have a good day.
Candidate: Thank you, sir. Wish you a good day ahead too. (Exits after righting the position of the chair that he has vacated.)

Find the best possible option to fill the blank.
My position also requires me to analyse and interpret large amounts of data and have a strong command over various analytical tools. _____ So, different as my qualifications might be, I do believe that they both equally contribute to the manner in which I dispense my duties as a Market Strategy Associate.