Miniscule Musings

Rockstar - Definite one-time watch and multiple times listen :)

2011-11-13T21:50:00.005+05:30

Just back from Rockstar… One line review: You will definitely like it, might even love it, but will not “enjoy” it…

Warning: Spoiler Alert

The cast seems designed to cast/propel Ranbir into limelight. Shammi Kapoor with a cameo would be happy to see another Kapoor join the league of great actors that we know the Kapoor-stable has produced… Ranbir is brilliant in all roles he has depicted – the Jatt college-goer, the troubled artist and the pained lover… Nargis sure has a long way to go before she establishes herself; her dialogues appear fake – sometimes with no emotion and at other times, overdramatic. I was left wondering why Aditi Rao and Nargis didn’t swap roles…

The cinematography leaves little scope of improvement. Shots of the lake in Kashmir to the customary European buildings and orange rooftops, from frozen jungles to the European meadows, it has it all captured in its best form.

The screenplay and direction is non-linear. Very few directors have been successfully captured non-linear movies. Imtiaz Ali does it brilliantly. The movie shifts from one flashback to another to present without warning. Probably maintaining consistency of Ranbir’s look was the motive. The motive was well served – despite rapid shifts in timelines, the movie appears seamless.

The story is not that great but then I suppose it was not meant to be. No pretences here – its just a troubled rockstar’s love story…

And why haven’t I talked of the music – well, there is little I can say about it… You have to listen to it to know more. It will suffice if I said, ITS MAGICAL!! Rahman came into the industry with the magical Bombay – this definitely takes that bar far beyond any other in recent years. Oscar or no Oscar, the music is definitely you will take back with you. I’d be shocked if you leave the hall not humming one of the many tunes from the movie… Mohit Chauhan has done it again… Kun Fayakun, Naadan Parindey are absolute gems. Saada Haq is as rebellious as can be – sorta imbibes the image of ‘rock’… And when its Rahman, you gotta expect a mixture – there’s sufi, folk and even a Czech gypsy tune (Hawaa Hawaa)…

Listen to the Music Here

Overall, the movie could’ve been shortened by half an hour or so and still would have achieved the same level of appreciation. If anything, the stretched second half could have been done away with. But a definite must watch…

P.S: I was asked the meaning of Katiya Karoon - literally it means "I will spin your cotton" but I guess it means "I'll do anything for you" in context.
P.S2: Similarly in case you are wondering what Kun Fayakun, it is an urdu phrase said in praise of the lord. It means "Be. And it is."

The Unknown Euphoria

2011-08-19T22:28:00.002+05:30

Some days the fate is really kind on you… Those days you will feel an unknown euphoria. You want to jump up in the air and then the mind will tell you to control for this one day is just one amongst the many others where you will want to jump in the air; But directly off a 2000ft stone cliff overhanging a raging sea…

On those good days, you often do not know what it is that made you jump up in air. You never know if this euphoria will last – you sure want it to but fear it might. Just that you are happy and can’t stop smiling.

Or it might be that you know what made you happy but you are afraid if you touch the bubble, it might just burst! Someone pings you to say ‘Hi’ and you check your chat history to be sure it actually happened! Someone calls you and you call back an hour later saying, “Did you call, I’m sorry I was busy that time” though you might have been plucking imaginary petals of imaginary roses to pass time.

Even with that bubble intact, sometimes you wonder if the event was a big enough to get you euphoric. You are like, ‘I drink Coke every day – which special happiness opened today? I talk to people daily, which idol of mine did I talk to today? Or was it my long lost sweetheart calling to say I was missed?’

Or sometimes, you are just plain happy to be happy… anticipating your whole life to be as was today… Hoping you never sleep or even if you do, you wake up with the same euphoria… I shall go to sleep today with this same euphoria… and what is the best part - I KNOW THE REASON TOO :)

Why I believe Anna Hazare is wrong in his means (and not the ends)...

2011-08-17T21:44:00.010+05:30

At the outset, holding the democratic process to ransom through political blackmail is wrong. Going on fast-unto-death is illegal (equivalent to homicide) and any person indulging in it should be arrested – doesn’t matter if that person has the backing of a billion Indians (and the remaining million are only the “corrupt” law enforcement agencies).

Now coming to the issue of a Lokpal bill…

I would be going against popular sentiment but dare I say – WE DO NOT NEED A LOKPAL BILL – Neither the “Civil Society” version nor the government version. Here are my reasons for the same:

Too few cooks make poison not broth: Our constitution – the Raison d'être of all law agencies – is a brilliant piece of applied thought. It creates three bodies – the executive, the judiciary and the legislative – all of which are independent but completely dependent. What one does can be checked and annulled by the other through justified action. The problem arises when these come together – the exact thing that the Jan Lokpal proposes to do! Hand over power to one person/institution and make him absolute… to make law, decide violations and ensure execution - and what you have is a perfect broth - the only problem being that the recipe being perfect is of 'disaster'...

The RTI, the CVC, the CAG – all these are bodies designed to curb corruption – but do they work? So now we create another one – and then five years down the line – another one to supervise the Lokpal... When does it end! The problem is not existence of no control or supervision – its too many controls.

The reform process – if taken to its logical conclusion – will remove the necessity of any such bill. I wrote earlier about this – the reforms have created a less corrupt society already (imagine getting phone connections, paying electricity bills, paying taxes, getting a stamp paper without paying bribes even ten years earlier) – the corruption has been pushed up the ladder… Yes, I’m worried when my tax is gobbled up (supposedly) by corrupt (again, supposedly) ministers… But thankfully my day-to-day jobs have fewer hassles now. By slowly making more things transparent, the corruption will be pushed up the ladder – and then out! By adding the Lokpal – we just add a wrung to the ladder which the corruption can climb!

I’ll not go into the problems of the Jan Lokpal Bill – there are far too many that even a noob like me can see (for eg: the concentration of power, the selection panel, the age limits etc. etc.) because I know the end is justified – lesser corruption… In its current form the Jan Lokpal Bill is a situation where (as mentioned in a debate on TV) – If there is a theft in my house, I’ll worry about locking up my house later – I’ll first go to fast to force the commissioner to provide me more police force!!!

Now people say, OK you are just writing blogs – at least we are out here protesting against the government and their corrupt practices! Well I say, at least I’m doing my job right… In the last full year, I can vow to have never paid a bribe -no single rupee. How many of you can vouch for that? I agree I never voted. How many of you accept that? If not, did you or did you not vote for the “right” candidate from the local level right to the MP! We all expect our rights to be honoured but forget the duties that the constitution also mentions…!!!

I’m a firm believer in democracy – I’ve been part of School and college politics myself – no matter how much the elections were rigged – the best people, more often than not, get elected if everyone participates. So once the democratic process is set right, everything comes in place... Here are the electoral reforms I propose:

You want a strong Jan Lokpal Bill. Bring a strong “Vote Karo” bill. How about sentencing people who do not vote to 5 years rigorous imprisonment... would you be ready for that? How about giving a tax rebate to people who voted in the last general election?

Ok, I want to vote but who do I vote for... So ban people who have been convicted (not accused) of any law breaking/tax evasion from elections. Yes today very few will pass/fail, slowly more will... finally one day (probably 100 yrs from now) we’ll have an unblemished candidate list!

Use RTI more. You find some problem – please take the trouble of filing an RTI application. Instead of asking for more governance mechanisms, learn to use the ones that exist!

Our courts (and nationalised banks) work for less than half the year – how about extending that? Have more fast-track courts to settle small disputes in a speedy manner... You might not agree to it, the courts (including the lawyers and judges) are highly overburdened for now!!!

Of course, I’m no expert – just another “Aam Aadmi” who fails to see reason for using undemocratic coercive solutions for perfectly legitimate causes. And what is most of all, I do not want to put the blame of my lethargy on a weak system...!!!

Yes I'm Corrupt...

2011-07-31T02:09:00.004+05:30

Yes I’m corrupt – but less than what I was ten years ago. Yes I'm corrupt.

1990 – That was when I recall making my first STD call. I remember my dad taking me to a phone booth. The guy operating the booth could decide if he wanted to connect my call – I had to pay him extra else the line would be “busy”. I did.

1995 – I remember understanding the train ticket booking system. You went to an “agent”. You gave him 10% per ticket or Rs.250 whichever is higher. He went inside the booking chamber in the station and paid a percentage to the operator who then booked the ticket. It was long time later I realized that it was NOT how you booked tickets and that what we did actually constituted to paying a “bribe”.

2000 – I remember opening my own bank account. I thought I would be required to pay an “opening charge” to an introducer – to my surprise (a pleasant one) – bribe was no longer the norm. The bank account still exists.

2005 – I buy my first mobile phone and can make calls at any time of the day – including STD. I ‘message’ for free.

2010 – I pay my taxes online. There is no “tax for paying tax”.

And they say, corruption has increased over the past years. The scale of corruption might have increased. The 2G scam – well I will refrain from giving it a number – the amount is quoted to be far above my comprehension – seems to be the biggest scam ever in the Indian History. But is it more than the cumulative “charge” taken by that “STD operator” across India? And so on and so forth…

The point I'm trying to make is that while the scale of corruption might seem to have increased, it has become extremely concentrated. The system is more open and “reform” – the same reform that many “activists” claim is the root of evil in today’s society – has reduced corruption at the grass-root level. Why do I bother if A Raja garnered the money if I get a good mobile connection wherever I go? For one, I’m sure he couldn’t have kept that money for himself. There would be a Tata-Radia hiding somewhere in the closet. Secondly, the government might have lost out by selling the spectrum at giveaway prices – but isn’t it exactly what prompted the telecom price-wars that ultimately benefitted the “Aam Aadmi”. The combined NPV of public benefit would surely be more than the amount that Raja is being charged for.

Anna Hazare might go to jail for fighting against corruption – and many on FB might “like” it or “attend” the “Aug 15th event against corruption” – I will continue to live my usual life knowing I’m paying my taxes – and JUST THAT. Yes, my money might be going to a pocket of an “undeserving individual” whose only qualification is that he is an uneducated MLA/MP – but as I theorized long time back – any money making dupes someone else – so in essence – everyone is corrupt! Don’t go so hard on Raja because he made more money than you – that is not anti-corruption – that I call ‘envy’.

P.S: On second thought, oh yeah, prosecute him – get the black money back – that will mean people will have more money – but oops – the prices of common goods might have just gone up by the same amount by the time – and even if they don’t – who doesn’t ever want more money! :D

Guidelines to filing IT Return online using ITR-I and ITR-V in India

2011-07-24T13:21:00.008+05:30

Wow… For the first time, I filed my own IT Return. After doing it, yes it seems to be very very simple. However, till I had actually done it, it seemed pretty complex to me… There was no set guidelines on how to do it. There are many websites that take money to do it for you – so obviously no one tells you how to do it yourself. But thank the internet and the open source inspiration – now you can file your own IT return as I have done (which hopefully works).

Disclaimer: I’m no tax consultant. So I bear no liability should this not be a correct process and you be raided by the IT authorities. In case, this is wrong, please do bring to my notice so that I might file the correct IT Return.

Just a brief introduction to me: This section is important because for someone else, the method described below might not be true… I’m employed with my salary being my only source of income. I pay rents and have a few perquisites. I get these details from the Form 16 given to me by my employer.

Go to: https://incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in/portal/login.do

Create account using your PAN number (below the Login button, there is a link for "New User Registration".

Download ITR-1 - it is a zip file. Extract it to some known folder - this might be required later too
- If you are filing return for the income earned in year 2010-11, the corresponding. AY is 2011-12. Ensure you download the correct ITR-I form. The AY is mentioned at the top.

When you open the file, it will ask you to enable macros. Go ahead.

Fill up form. The fields marked * are mandatory.
- You will need form 16 to fill the form. It is pretty simple if you have those details.
- In case you do not know your WARD/CIRCLE, you can leave it blank. When you upload the XML, this is automatically filled using you PAN Card information. In case you need to confirm this, you can visit: https://incometaxindiaefiling.gov.in/portal/common.do?screen=jurisdiction and enter your PAN number.
- When the file is complete - click on "Calculate Tax". This is very important. This step calculates the tax that you need to pay. In case, the TDS is less, it calculates extra tax payable.

Fill in the Bank Account Number. The MICR is the 9-digit numerical code written at the bottom of your cheque.

Then click "Generate XML"

Save that XML to a known folder.

Log into your account (created in Step 2). Go to Submit.

Since you do not have digital signature, leave the checkbox empty.

Upload the XML.

The website will generate an ITR-V form. Download it. it is again a ZIP file which needs to be saved for future reference.

The ITR-V is a pdf. the password to the pdf is {PAN number in small letters}{birthdate in dd/mm/yyyy}. I've not received the ITR-V on email as the website mentioned I would.

Print the ITR-V. Sign at the appropriate place (at the bottom). Do not make any other alterations to this form.

Send the same by Speed Post to: CPC, Post Bag No - 1, Electronic City Post Office, Bangalore – 560100. DO NOT SEND BY COURIER

Well, that is it. Hoping my IT Return is successful.

#Edit-1: I received the ITR-V form by mail two days after e-filing.
#Edit-2: It is important to add any interest you might have received on your savings bank account or Fixed Deposits you have as "Other Income".

Uttarakhand Tourism welcomes you to Pithoragarh

2011-06-30T21:28:00.008+05:30

Of the famed Kashmir beauty, I had only heard… One visit to Pithoragarh (PTH) and I’m already thinking, if this place, often touted as the miniature Kashmir because of its geographical features, is so beautiful, what would the real thing be. Small villages scattered in an extremely green Soar Valley, ice-capped peaks in the distance, clouds floating above houses and hotels, beautiful soft-spoken Kumaoni people – all set to leave you wondering why on earth has this place not been on the tourist radar so far…

It is then that you also realize the answer to the question you posed to yourself... It is then that you remember the scary hairpin bends and steep landslide-struck roads that you negotiated to reach this place from the more famous Almora! Almora is around 4 hrs from Kathgodam (the nearest rail head - KGM). Then you travel for another two hrs before you reach Daniya. The road gets adventurous after that – and the last hour of journey after Ghat – it is surely not for the faint hearted!

But if you braved those roads and reached here, its time for some bliss... terraced fields all along the hill will be the first thing that catches your attention...
Complete hills have been carved into concentric circles of farms (apparently if want to purchase farmland, you need to purchase a complete circle). The town is not really blessed with the best of hotels but then, for an outdoor person like me, it didn’t really matter. In the distance, on a clear morning, you can see the Panchachuli peak from very close outside the main town. The church at the Chandak pass gives a panoramic view which is sure to leave you flabbergasted for not having come here earlier...

I had to travel further the next day and so retired early the next day. Nothing is as refreshing as waking up to the early morning sun. Leaving at 6, I set out for Dharchula – a small town around 4 hours away – on the Indo-Nepal border. From Jajar Deval (just outside the main town of PTH) to Kanalichina, the roads were pretty good. If Ghat-PTH road was tough, the road there on is perilous! Of course, the extremely cautious and experienced driver (Bhuvan) made it more of a joyride. A few miles before Joljibi, you meet the river and then on, its a journey with the cascading river as your companion. The Gori and the Kali rivers meet under a hanging rope bridge which connects India and Nepal. It is where you realise what absolute BS it is for man to create borders – exactly similar terrain and people (in fact even the currency) on both sides of the ‘border’! Leave alone everything, the chai in the same small glass tumbler tastes exactly the same!

Here on its pretty much a nice ride in the river-valley – on the Mansarovar Yatra Route - till you reach the NHPC colony and the military area of Dharchula. Dharchula is a warm place (a comfortable t-shirt would be ‘good’ attire) situated in the valley along the same Kali river. Oh btw, from Joljibi to Dharchula, the Kali river acts as an international boundary between India and Nepal! You can cross over without Visa and can carry personal daily goods but nothing tradable. You buy a Pepsi bottle woth Rs.25 – give a Rs.50 note – and get Rs.40 back (exchange rate is 60paise to a Nepali rupee) :D The hotels leave much room improvement. Rains are frequent and heavy at this time of the year (pretty much through Apr-Sep). No phone connections work except Nepal Telecom (the STD Booths charge Rs.10 per min to call India).

The return was tiring - one that even gave me a sun-burn because of the harsh mountain sun! I travelled to Haldwani in 12 hours - battered and tattered but extremely satisfied and pleased :)

Rest In Peace

2011-06-15T22:25:00.004+05:30

The city ringed with fire, police bell
The city was picturesque, a living hell
Amidst this a drunkard lingered on
Life was long, endless without a dawn…
Out of the shops, buildings was thrown he
Silent as the idol, looked on Thee
Laden with heavy armour, masked
Finally a policeman stopped, asked
“Don’t u want to return to house,
Seeking u are ur children, spouse?”

The drunkard put his hands in pocket
Tears rolled down his deep eye-socket
Out of his shirt, he took out some ash
Just then there was another splash
“This is my house”, he said, “my wife.”
“Burnt as you can see is my life.”
“Out of these my children call out.”
“Can’t u hear, feel them shout?”
I die. Do me a favour, will you?
Please cremate me, O please do!

O god! Please take me to them
Take me away from this mayhem.
This was one or many, no one knows
To tell the exact number, none too close
O leaders of religion, please wake
Life you know, is not a piece of cake
Some years of life we have on lease
Let us live, at least “REST IN PEACE”
Let us live, at least “REST IN PEACE”

My Analysis of Baba Ramdev's Demands

2011-06-05T09:14:00.007+05:30

My Analysis of Baba Ramdev's Demands

Disclaimer: I'm not for corruption. Completely against it. I accept I might (surely would) have indulged in some form of corruption over my life and thus claim no moral right against corruption. But yes, I consider blackmail to be the biggest form of corruption - and 'fast-unto-death' is blackmail.

Tough Lokpal Bill; death sentence for the corrupt

Death Penalty in the Indian Constitution is awarded in the rarest of rare cases. And as far as I know, corruption surely not amongst the ‘rarest of rare’. There is not a single instance of a person being corrupt – it’ll always be a huge group of people who are corrupt. Until of course the aim is to reduce the population of India, this demand is surely not viable.

Return of all black money stashed abroad

How? Are the Swiss Banks liable to Indian laws and ordinances?

Abolish Rs.1,000 and Rs.500 currency notes

This almost seems like Faking News! Let the government bring the inflation to negative such that the 500 and 1000 rupee notes are not needed. In the current India, can any sound-minded person tell me this demand is valid!!! Reissue of currency - isn't educating people on counterfeit notes a better option?

Replace the British systems with Indian alternative

Such generalisations never work. British Law is also based on “Natural Law”. If you are so bent of changing the laws, ‘Civil Society’ has two eminent Lawyers on-board. Why don’t they tell the government which laws need to be amended? Many laws have been amended in the past and many more can be – at least point out what needs to be changed! “Change British systems” is a foolish generalisation!! Similarly for education – Run any institution you want – if people believe your system is better – people will join your system.

Reform in the electoral system; Prime Minister is directly elected by people

There are pros and cons of this. Calls for a big debate. But yes, there is not sure way of saying the direct election will elect any better person than the current system. Might, and might not. So no comments.

Ensure all citizens declare their incomes

This is more Chidambaram’s demands too...!!! How? When people build wealth in the name of charitable insstitutions and educational institutions, how do you make them disclose their incomes!

Promote Hindi (almost the expense of English)

Haven’t the Chinese been lesson enough...!!! They are all set to conquer the world – not by inhibiting English but ensuring kids learn English. I really don’t understand what it is that populist leaders have against English. Do anything to develop your language. Why curb the language that is going to propel the Indians into the global league – accept it – it might be bitter – English is now the ‘official’ language of the world – and anyone would do well to be well-versed in the language – even if forcibly.

Never Let Me Go (2010)

2011-06-04T21:16:00.003+05:30

There has to be something about dystopia that gets my fingers moving on the keyboard faster than ever... First it was 1984 and now this... Just watched the movie “Never Let Me Go”. It is one movie that you will want to see even if not for Keira Knightley :) No I’m no pessimist who believes dystopia is coming and mankind will one day submit to the dystopian thought depicted but yes, it does get me thinking, “What if...”!!

Warning: Plot Summary discussed here...

In a British school set in almost perfect scenery of grasslands and dotted with trees standing over fences, students are taught to be themselves completely healthy as they are ‘special’. What is so special about them – they are being grown for organ donation!!! It is no science fiction mystery where the dystopia is revealed at the end... It is right there – in your face – watch further at your own peril - types. The idyllic cinematography makes the thought a little less scary than what it would have been had Christopher Nolan handled it with shocks and surprises...

Amongst this unnatural setting is where a love triangle develops between Ruth, Kathy and Tony – though each one of them is ultimately aware of the inevitable – their untimely yet predictable death (known in the film as ‘completion’). There is hope developed through a rumour of a ‘deferral’... Even I thought there might be hope in this dystopian land – but there was none. When Tony thinks art might the route to getting referral, he is very courteously (or curtly) informed, “We didn't have to look into your souls, we had to see if you had souls at all.” Ruth goes first – left to die on the operating table as one of her vital organ is removed and put into a bag (Yes, I told u, its right-in-your-face stuff...). Tony’s eyes look towards Kathy, the ‘carer’, as he goes under the surgeon’s knife – for the last time.

The climax is hauntingly relieving – Kathy receives the date for her first donation – she would soon die too... or should I say, she would complete. And as she says, “We all complete. Maybe none of us really understand what we've lived through, or feel we've had enough time.”

My throat went dry as the credits rolled down the screen... Were my eyes watering – no they weren’t – the shock had left them dry too. The handling of the love and death makes this one must-watch movie though the scary background makes it “not for the faint of heart”. Leave your mind at home and watch it with all your heart – you will enjoy (ok I really dunno if I can call it that) this melodrama no end...

Orwell's 1984

2011-04-24T12:03:00.008+05:30

As I complete a ‘novel’ after a long time, something, far worse than my worst nightmare, has gripped me. I just felt it needed some release. It was one of the best novels describing the worst form of dystopia. Now I’ve read some Utopian novels and felt they were too optimistic, but I now sure wish they are true. Such is the gruesome reality of the George Orwell’s ‘1984’.

In a nightmarish land (hopefully far, far away and then further), an Outer ‘Party’ worker finds himself in a moral dilemma. In a land where thought is crime, he has committed it. In a land where there are only three ever-lasting and all applicable party principles, Winston Smith finds himself hating the Party but obeying it all the same. What follows is a tale of absolute dystopia and as he shall discover – the price of freedom is betrayal...

Quite unlike other ‘novels’ I read, this one is not based on a story – but more on a belief – a commentary on the world state of affairs. No wonder that so many of the terms used in the book are part of our language and more importantly, part of our lives.

The dystopia, while it is scary, is almost true – and that is the more scary part of it. In a world so connected, all our actions can be governed and even controlled – and with every evolution in psychological science, we are moving towards how not just the actions but also the thought can be read and controlled. What is history but a repeated version of someone’s memory! What if all our thoughts could be controlled – all memory will be linked to one version – ‘Party’s version – and all past can/will be altered according to what the party wants. And so will be our present and hence the future...

In a long narration from Goldstein’s book, Orwell describes how the world we live in operates – how governments and societies function – not just the how but also the why and not just the why but also the how the ‘government’ can remain powerful and how the ‘upper class’ can remain so – all at the cost of the ‘Proles’.

And in the end – when ‘thoughtcrime’ is committed, how Winston is subjected to mental reconstruction through pain, humiliation and of course the legendary ‘Room one-oh-one’.

I’ll leave with a few memorable (and scary) lines from the novel:

The war is not meant to be won. It is meant to be continuous. The essential act of modern warfare is the destruction of the produce of human labour.

It is intolerable to us that an erroneous thought should exist anywhere in the world, however secret and powerless it may be. Even in the instance of death we cannot permit any deviation . . . we make the brain perfect before we blow it out.

If you want a picture of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face—forever.

WAR IS PEACE
FREEDOM IS SLAVERY
IGNORANCE IS STRENGTH.

Who controls the past, controls the future. Who controls the present, controls the past.

Your worst enemy, he reflected, was your nervous system...

Under the spreading chestnut tree,
I sold you... You sold me...

It was curious to think that the sky was the same for everybody, in Eurasia or Eastasia as well as here. And the people under the sky were also very much the same--everywhere, all over the world, hundreds or thousands of millions of people just like this, people ignorant of one another's existence, held apart by walls of hatred and lies.

And the eternally haunting line - You once asked me, Winston, what was in room 101. I think you know. Everyone does. The thing that is in room 101... is the worst thing in the world.

All in all, a sure MUST READ...

Jail Bharo??? Why not 'Vote Karo'???

2011-04-08T21:59:00.001+05:30

There is one person fasting-unto-death to fight corruption in India. There are hundreds supporting him at Jantar Mantar. There are 1000s “sharing” it and 10000s “Liking it”. So is that the way we fight corruption in a democratic country like India?

Fighting corruption is not just a noble idea, but almost a necessity. But how? Ok we know Afzal Guru was sentenced to death. Punishing crime with a suitable punishment is justified right? So I will fast-unto-death till he is hanged...!!! That is childish mentality to say the least.

When I said so, I was told that “this fight is not against a set of corrupt individuals but to bring a change in the system. Any individual is only as good as the system...” Eh?? Really?? Why then do we have leaders who have been credited to have changed the world we live in? Those are the ones we refer to as ‘visionaries’. I’d rather say the opposite; any system is only as good as the person in-charge. And that I can prove by personal and professional examples.

Agreed, the parliament doesn’t want to draft the bill because of vested interests of the parliamentarians involved. No I’m not justifying corruption by saying everyone does it and we can’t do anything about it. I’m just saying, the method to root it out is not by fasting-unto-death. It is through the impeccable execution by the police. We already have many bodies and laws “banning corruption” – the only problem is the execution.

We’ve had institutions like the ‘Lokpal’ in past. Aint CVC a similar body? The fault always is with the constitution of the body. Lokpal is proposed to be constituted by Nobel laureates and Magsaysay Awardees apart from Bharat Ratna awardees and Judges. How, if I may ask, is winning the Nobel, a qualification for prosecution of the corrupt!!! Rajiv Gandhi, a Bharat Ratna Awardee, is eligible for the body despite his alleged role in the country’s largest defence scam – the Bofors.

The biggest perpetrators of corruption are not the politicians but the rich and the famous; I’m sure many are currently on television pretending to be supporting the anti-corruption ‘movement’. If Raja does it, it’s a scam – if Ambani does it, its business acumen...!!! If you do it in Tirupati, its Aastha, if you do it in a government office, its a bribe...!!!

What I believe is that transparency will give the “civil society” far more powers of execution than it feels it currently has. If used correctly, the RTI would negate the necessity of the Lokpal. By creating the Lokpal, we are just deferring our duties to someone we think will do the job (or in other words, shirking). Instead of trying to stop corruption, score a government on parameters and put them to test through the democratic process of election. I’m sure when the voting percentage of India reaches 90%+, there will be no more agitations against corruption. Till then, you can agitate all you want, go on fast-unto-death, light candles and march to India Gate – all you will be doing is increase emission of green house gases without any productive result.

P.S: I’m waiting for the day the Lokpal is charged with favouritism or partisan behaviour or like the CVC, the chief is accused of corruption...

The Cobblerist Movement

2011-04-03T23:47:00.008+05:30

This post is inspired by an old joke and in reply to a chat I had today (yeah, completely unrelated to cricket)...

The world, after decades of strife, was at ease – but an uneasy calm, an eerie silence pervaded all around. American defence budgets had soared to more than 6% of their GDP for the first time. While the majority of budgets for the past 5 years were dedicated to research, for the first time in the decade, manpower costs were hiked – that sure didn’t bode well for the year – was there a war lurking in the background?

The 1984th resolution of the UN Security Council declared that nuclear enrichment by any nation was to be done only under the watch of IAEA. The IAEA, headed by an ex-DefSec, was a 10-member democratic body consisting of 6 US ex-senators, two British ex-PMs, Hamid Karzai and an ageing Jalal Talabani. Pakistan, which had been a largely peaceful nation since the time they contacted Narendra Modi to rebuild their state ridden with turmoil, stated on record that they had no use for nuclear energy and had hence, stopped their civilian nuclear programme. They also refused to buy American technology for the same. Insider sources reported that the budget deficit of the US was to be funded by Pak purchase of advanced enrichment technology for carbon¹⁵.

US, under the aegis of IAEA, declared that Pakistan was hiding their nuclear enrichment programme and had potentially been using the same for non-peaceful purposes. They alleged that the enriched C¹⁵ was sufficient to manufacture nukes against India. While India remained non-committal, they refused to endorse the US view of the same. However, US was adamant and declared that they would rid the world of all Nukes starting with Pakistan. The democratic IAEA voted unanimously in favour of US aggression.

Brash nation that they are, US declared a unilateral war on Pakistan. The brashness didn’t end there. In a highly publicised press conference, they openly declared that they would obliterate the terrorist network operating in Pakistan and all terrorists, including the cobbler who sat on the parliament house steps would be killed. Suddenly there was outrage in the world. Human Right activists called US a fascist nation for attacking the cobbler. Cobblers from around the world condemned the declaration. Suddenly there were government schemes announced to protect the cobbler. Three nations offered him asylum. The cobbler, ignorant of all that was happening around him, was polishing shoes as usual when the first missile hit the parliament. Afraid, he took up on the offer by the visiting head of state. The ambassador proclaimed victory on humanitarian grounds. The cobbler was airlifted out of Islamabad and taken to an undisclosed location.

Missile after missile kept hitting the Pakistani nation. The cobbler meanwhile was safe in a safehouse 30m underground in an Arab nation. Pakistan was reduced to ashes. 300,000 were assumed dead. Meanwhile, human right activists kept shouting slogans against US decision to kill the cobbler. Rights Groups sat on ‘Dharnas’ demanding survival rights of the cobbler. The media covered the complete event in great detail. The cobbler’s parents and family joined in on an indefinite hunger strike. Finally, after 62 days of war, the US accepted it was a folly to decide to kill the cobbler. The activists proclaimed victory. The state of Pakistan will forever be known as the state that was sacrificed to save the cobbler.

And India Win the World Cup...

2011-04-03T07:23:00.005+05:30

Uttarakhand Tourism Welcomes you to Dhanaulti...

2011-03-29T07:16:00.017+05:30

My travel has led me to many popular tourist locations – this time it was a quaint little place – not the typical tourist destination – further up from Mussourie – to a forestland in Dhanaulti. It was a very short trip, nevertheless a most cherished one.

We started on the 25th of March – the time of the year when the weather in Mussourie is comfortable – slightly chilly evenings and sunny days with clear skies. We started around 4:30. The drive from Mussourie does become slightly colder as you start climbing altitudes. After about an hour of drive through the narrow winding roads, we reached Buranskhanda. Few adventure operators organise short treks and mountain biking expeditions from this place. It is windy and gives you the first view of the snow-capped hills of the majestic Himalayas (Winter sees this place being covered in snow). After a short tea break, we proceeded towards Dhanaulti. You know you are approaching Dhanaulti when the vegetation starts growing thicker. You can spot deodar and pine trees along the roads. The red rhododendron flowers are an absolute treat.

There are many small hotels in Dhanaulti. We had a look at one and then decided that it would indeed be a shame to stay in a concrete room even after coming all the way from Mussourie to go closer to nature. Our driver took us to the “Eco Hut” maintained by the Dhanolti Eco Tourism and Eco Development Committee. The Garhwali guy at the entrance initially refused to give a room citing no vacancy. After applying a few selling (in this case, buying) skills that I’ve been trained on for the last 10 months, we landed the four of us a room. And we were glad to have got this room. Set right amidst the deodar trees, this place is indeed a nature lover’s (or for that matter, any lovers’) paradise. Made of bamboo, this place is as close to nature as you can get. The water is solar heated and the “street lighting” is solar powered. It was 6:00 in the evening and we decided to have a look at the Eco Park – the only tourist destination. The place is a good spot to start birding though we didn’t have the time to go birding.

When the attendant at the gate insisted that the park was closed and that he couldn’t keep it open any longer, we finally came out and spotted the favourite snack of the hills – Maggi – being made right outside. The guy, Kishore Rana, a Garhwali who ran this shop as a side business in the tourist season, was a potato and peas farmer. After gorging on two plates of Maggi each, we decided to retire for the night. After having a simple dinner of parathas and a lot of gossip, none of us knew when we slept off.

The morning was bright and sunny. The early morning sunlight on teh snow-capped hills in the distance was an absolute beauty. We decided the forest merited a walk. After around an hour of strolling through the rhododendron and the extremely tall deodar trees, we came back to Mr. Rana (oh yes, yet again) for a cup of masala ginger tea. The hot water in the cottage was indeed a pleasant surprise and after quick bath, we proceeded to Tehri. More on Tehri later...
PP

Trial By Media

2011-03-21T20:47:00.005+05:30

It was a chilly morning of February 22nd in the year 2006. However, the chill that went through the ToI reader’s body had almost nothing to do with the cold. It was the headline – the hard hitting – “No One Killed Jessica”. When no one killed Jessica, why was she not alive - because police coudn't catch 'No One' and the prosecution couldn't prosecute 'No One'. Time for some media action… And 5 years later – as we now relive the story of the power of the media through the much acclaimed, “No One Killed Jessica” (henceforth, NOKJ), I was left thinking – who will monitor the monitors of democracy?

No, I’m not against the verdict sentencing Manu Sharma to rigorous life imprisonment – perhaps the media did get it right this time and the heinous crime deserved punishment. But, what if the media did not? As Warren Buffett put it very succinctly, “The rear-view mirror is always clearer than the windshield.” Looking back, I might say the media did a right thing by adopting an activist’s role and “bringing the guilty to justice”. But can the same be said about every future campaign that a media house takes up? I’d hate to even think of the ‘proof’s that India TV can get if they set out to brand me as the incarnation of Satan… Given their propensity to videograph ‘news’, they just might succeed!!!

Jokes apart, the movie poses some serious concerns. It is good to have the Indian democracy, long plagued by corruption, monitored by the Fourth Estate. But then, where do we draw the line. What if the media itself is corrupt? It is a no-brainer that the television is not philanthropy – it is serious business – business aimed at making profits. And nothing corrupts like money. Can the evidence presented by media be considered accurate? What if the context has been deleted/edited? As Will Smith said so in the “Enemy of The State”, “We've also come to realise that we need to monitor the people who are monitoring them...” But how?

NOKJ did one thing smart – they got the ball rolling. Ram Jethmalani might not be right in his judgement (or in many cases he has taken in recent past), but he is not too wrong when he says that this case was a trial by the media – the same media that created the ‘Prince’ out of just another child from hundreds who keep falling in manholes (many not so lucky) everyday, the same media that hailed the billionth child, Astha, while well ignoring so many others born at the same time across so many other hospitals in India. No malice against the media – I’m just concerned about the “selective news” that media chooses to telecast over prime-time.

At the end, well NOKJ did a great job in its portrayal of the positive (hopefully) role played by media in the entire Jessica Lal Murder Case – but just like TZP or 3-Idiots, it can tend to mislead the gullible Indian population into believing everything that media does is picture perfect. Judiciary might be slow – even cumbersome – even corrupt – but does have some good brains (if not the best) to help it chart its own course.

Just remember, for every Jessica Lal Murder Case that media helps to solve, there is a Barkha Dutt (and others) reporting live.

@Barkha – Just in case you are reading this, I’ve full respect for you but just feel there might have been a few lapses in Mumbai – but as you said so, “Praise and criticism are twins that travel together”.

Cricket Crazy...

2011-02-27T23:47:00.002+05:30

I have realized over years that I write only when I’m deeply moved. Today’s match more than just did that.

It initially built up an interest in me – its been a long time cricket managed to do that. Then it got me hooked – I skipped my evening snack because The Master was in sublime form and its just pure bliss to watch him smack those effortless boundaries off very good balls. Then I was left dismayed with the Indian batting’s yet another collapse – and terminated with a short run followed by a Run-Out. At that time I thought, “OK, would have contributed another 10-20 runs, so what…!!” It was a short 20-min break due to slow over-rate by the Englishmen. Another opportunity for a snack wasted.

Then the English started the onslaught on the hapless Indian bowling attack. Strauss matched The Lord shot to shot. Two great innings in a single day – now that is stuff that makes Indians crazy about this game. Then came the new Steve Bucknow for Indian cricket – the UDRS. Stupid Stupid Stooopid 2.5m rule. (Ok then, I’m an Indian first…!!!) Clear LBW given not-out because the impact was 2.5m away – what on earth does that show! The ball was not gonna suddenly rise in the air like the Golden Snitch… Well Ian Bell made the most use of that lifeline almost taking the game away from the Indians – the key word being “Almost”. Cramps did him in and he fell - Zaheer doing the trick.

I realized my dinner was not coming tonight but there was no way I was gonna get up at this juncture – surely not when India had just fond a lost gateway to salvation in the form of Bell’s wicket!!!

The next ball undid Strauss – this time UDRS was helpful (I told you – Indian First). If you were a heart patient, the roller coaster that followed was surely not meant for you. India suddenly had a sting in their stride and there was an impending twist in the “tail”. Piyush Chawla got into the act (though as the mystery unfolded, we realize his portrayal as the Indian Hero was not who we thought he was). Just then, out of nowhere came a (Black) Swann and smacked two sixes that brought the kingsmen back in the game. Chawala gave away two sixes in the penultimate over. And then, Shazad hit a first ball SIX…!!! And in the end – a TIE…!!!

That is indeed cricket at its best… Its 11 pm now and my stomach is gurgling – all that I might have had surely got digested by this time. I’ll cook some Maggi – that good old 2-minute snack that is the life savior for so many bachelors like me… Just yesterday, someone had remarked that this world cup was “Thanda”. Now its surely heated up…!!

P.S: Since 1999, every world cup there has been a tie... Started with that famous SA v/s Aus in 1999. Then the less-famous SL v/s SA in 2003. Last time too there was one with Ireland v/s Zim... The trend continues...

Long Distance never works...

2011-01-22T09:17:00.003+05:30

Finally, I broke up. It was a long-distance relationship that I had thought would last though it was destined to always be long-distance. It went well when we were together. There were fights and misunderstandings but nothing everlasting.

The clock ticked and I had to move on. Differences appeared. These differences were not yet crevices threatening to open up. As always, in a long distance relation, there appears a third person (let’s call X12). Now this third person may not be as dear to my first love (let’s call X11), but yes, he was right there and I was away. The worst part, the third person was also my own!

Now X11 thought I was getting too close to X12, that I was feeding him info about X11’s plans. X12 was new and gullible and well frankly – too gullible – such was the nature of our relation. Well, quite obviously, I sided with X11 and played on the gullibility of X12 – I knew it would all reveal itself. For a good ten days, X12 was left wondering if he had been mistaken and signed up for a “joy-ride” to hell - and partly because I sided with X11. X11 thought X12 knew of the plans through me and declared me a rogue lover. :(

Well, all did reveal itself. X11’s joy of the reveal was dampened because of my proximity with X12. X12, well he was furious too – for I sided with X11 despite having been in a much longer relation with X12.

And now, X11 has broken up with me (or in other words, "ppl were ready to kill you"), X12, well our relation was really short-lived after the reveal.

And here I’m, having learnt a very important lesson, LONG DISTANCE NEVER WORKS.

The Despicable Boss

2010-11-13T19:13:00.010+05:30

Disclaimer: This post has no connection with any person. Any similarity is PURELY coincidental.

It was 8 am in the morning. He pressed 2 on the quick dial and that Bob Dylan sang through the empty room…

“Good… Good Morning Mike” came a voice as Bob became silent.

“Good Morning Arthur, How are you?” , he said in his nicest tone, not that he had to pretend too much in doing so.

“Very well sir, How are you doing this fine Monday morning?” , Arthur replied trying and pretty much succeeding in hiding the shock of getting a call at 8:00 on a Monday morning. Call at 8… This had to be bad… Arthur could have done well to begin this week without this early morning call – especially after the disaster o a week the last one was.

“Very well Arthur. Good job last week.”

“Uh Sir?” Did he get it right? Why, rather, what was his boss praising? Did Arthur get a hint of sarcasm? He decided he shouldn’t drop his guard just as yet.

“Good job managing the crisis last week, Arthur. It did become quite a scare, dint it?”

“Oh yes sir. I’ve seen tough times before but never as much as the last week. Well, thank you sir. I try to do my best.” Phew… That was close. Arthur felt the blood rushing back to his numb hand holding the phone.

“Well Arthur, why do you think it happened?”

“Well Mike, the HR policies for the last few months have been changing so much. A buildup was taking place for two months now, since the incident with Hailey.”

“Arthur, but did we talk about the same the last time? You had assured me you would take care of it.” Mike’s voice slightly hoarse and rising.

“Sir, I tried to but did not get any support from the logistics. I had informed the same to you. Even you had talked to Hamish.”

“But did I not tell you to go ahead? Hamish and I had worked out the details. In fact, I worked the whole of the weekend to settle that. Even after that, you have not been able to find a way out.” The exceptional stress and loudness of NOT was unmistakable. Arthur wondered why he ever let his guard down. Why hadn’t he seen this coming? He just hoped, this was the end of it.

“I know sir. I tried sir…”

“Tried is not enough. Or else you haven’t tried hard enough.”

There was a long uncomfortable pause.

“Mike…”

“Every time this happens, I have to step in and play the last minute fiddle. Why can’t you get these things done without me? This is the fourth time this is happening. We were lucky this time. Next time you might not be.” His voice was slow and forceful. Arthur knew Mike meant business.

“OMG, I might not be lucky? Why did Mike say ‘you might not be lucky’? Am I going to be fired?” Arthur wondered.

“But Mike Sir, you know I couldn’t have done anything to prevent it. The management pressure is far too much. And…”

“And you need to find a way out.”

“Ok Sir.” Arthur resigned.

“Listen Arthur, you have grown from where they are today. I remember you always used find a way out. I’ve immense respect for the way you work. But then, I also have high expectations from you. I try to help you rise to those, but you can’t expect me to solve them every time you are in trouble. Please try a little harder.”

“Yes sir.”

Mike kept the phone down and had a glass of water. He was sweating. That went well, did it… Arthur was a good subordinate – one of the best he had – high performing and creative. What did he do to deserve such a rude early morning call…!!!

Well, in his defence, Mike was just trying to be a good boss but all he could be was… a BOSS...!!!

Well, now he knew why the adjective “despicable” got associated with the noun “Boss”.

Learning to play for Pizzas (John Grisham)

2010-09-05T07:58:00.002+05:30

Just read a John Grisham novel – “Playing for Pizzas”. It’s about an NFL quarterback who has to move to Italy because of a few fumbles in a NFL match. It’s about how he hates anything to do with Italy but grows to love the game so much that he decides to stay on in Parma for the second season, barely playing for pizzas and not the hefty contracts he was used to.

If nothing else I realized how easy it is to do what one completely believes in and loves doing. Is the contrary also true? It becomes extremely tough to do something if you do not believe in it. And ‘sales’ is one such career. You never believe in the targets that are given to you. You always see those as a little too high – but then the field is as ruthless as it can get. You either achieve it or you don’t. You either hit it or you never will.

And as a manager, initially you are more of carry-and-distribute-agent. You receive a target – you carry it in your mind – you distribute it. While doing so, you might make it sound that the target was the simplest possible and can be achieved with just a little extra effort – while in your own mind, you harbour doubts the size of Titanic – you make it sound like it is the unsinkable but know there are irrefutable chances this Titanic is gonna sink.

Initially you hate it. But… Slowly over time, you have seen many-a-Titanic go down the ocean and you now become impervious to another mishap and just look forward to creating the bigger and the more unsinkable ship. And as these too keep sinking, you learn the right way – of playing for pizzas – forgetting your baggage of playing in the NFL (say those ‘elite’ B-Schools) – and playing for the fun of it – the fun of making the ship safer. And that my friends, is when sales start to happen.

As for me, till now, I’ve just built my first Titanic and it sure is gonna pain if it sinks. Pray it doesn’t :D

I AM an Isolophobic

2010-08-16T07:17:00.003+05:30

I confess. I AM an Isolophobic.
They say, ‘solitude is bliss’. They sure dunno the meaning of either solitude or bliss. Or is there something amiss?

Over the past one month, I’ve come to face my worst fear – of being alone. For a social butterfly like me who HAS to talk with people to stay sane, this life of living alone in a 1000sqft space demarcated by walls to create rooms, can be quite an experience – and not in a good way. They say the only way to get rid of your fears is by facing them head-on. Well, for an isolophobic, this is pretty much the nadir of life and if this can’t get rid of the phobia, nothing can. This is as head-on with isolophobia as I can get.

They tell me I’m in the most wonderful of lands – oh sure I am. Whichever way I look, there are beautiful mountains partially covered by rain-bearing clouds. There are these famous “view-points” where lush green valley extends upto infinity – only cris-crossed by those mountainous rivers flowing aimlessly. Many times, I’d love to be that river – it has those trees that whistle every time it passes through them. I whistle only to myself – that too only when sure no one is looking for it be seen as indecent. It has that boulder which continuously talks to it in that gush language. The only talk I hear is that constant rumble I have in my head. It has those small pebbles that accompany it till it meets other rivers. Those small pebbles are my excel sheets – which constantly hound me till I meet others and even later.

They tell me I get the best food around. The only thing would taste good right now – is a piece of my mind. Well-cooked and deep-fried – treated with lots of boredom – garnished with a sprinkle of irritation, it must taste awesome. It is a stage where I dread the sight of restaurants – eating that big plate of that awesome ‘choumin’ alone or ordering those 4 pieces of paneer day-in-day-out because you know anything else you order will be too much for one person. Those roadside chats have their charm only when you are able to describe how wonderful they taste – when your taste-buds start talking to your teeth, it’s time to stop. Those famous ‘rasgullas’ and ‘ras-malai’ seem to melt no more in your mouth – or they do – a little too quick – they are there for a second and the next, gone – and then all you can think is, “Did I really have that or was it an illusion – must have been one – Phew…”

They tell me they would die to be in my place – oh you need not die – I want you to live – through what I live.

Bitten by the movie bug

2010-07-10T12:01:00.002+05:30

I always thought very few people believed in movies. And even less would do something being inspired by the movie they saw over the weekend. But the events of the last few days have made me believe otherwise.

I was influenced by movies but to a very small extent… I saw “Requiem..” and decided I was never even going anywhere near narcotics. I saw “God Tussi…” and decided I’d never question the will of “God” if ever there was any. “Pursuit…” changed the way I talked to salesmen. (Little did I know that I’d be entering the same field four yrs thence) Never have I shooed a personal selling agent away after watching that movie – no matter how distracting or persistent!!! There were a few other movies that changed the way I look at things and people. But hardly was there ever a movie that made me change the way I do things. The last movie I watched did just that…

I’m talking about the 2000 not-so-hit movie, “Pay It Forward”. With a host of Hollywood celebs in movies that I absolutely love, it was the unknown boy Haley Osment who affected me the most, proving content always matter more than cosmetic makeovers and star-power. The last few days, I’ve been looking for ways to help people – though not in the life-changing way Trevor wants us to, but yes in small ways that I can.

Just yesterday, I was on a business trip to Haridwar. On my way back I couldn’t get a taxi and decided to take a bus. Since the route was pretty much a plain route with good roads, bus seemed a comfortable option. The bus grew very crowded very soon. Just as the bus was about to start, I saw a family with two young kids (must be 2-3 yrs old) get on. The lady got a seat but the man was left standing. He held his daughter in one hand and clung to the support with the other. The roads were good but the ride, no less bumpy, thanks to the ‘brilliant’ drivers. I noticed his discomfort but in that crowded bus, thought I couldn’t do much. The small girl, with her head on his shoulder was sleepy but her head kept bumping around. Around 15 mins into the journey, I noticed the man grimace with discomfort. Holding to the overhead bar support while holding to his daughter in a bumpy bus is no easy task. I thought of getting up but there were a good 10-12 people between me and the man. I called out to him once but the call was drowned in the chatter around and the groan of the engine. I tried the eye-language once or twice but unsuccessfully. Finally I called the guy standing next to me to call the guy in front. Ignoring a few angry stares from the “middlemen”, I completed the chain and used the eye language to indicate that my seat was on offer. He understood and came over. The child slept peacefully as I stood next to the guy for the rest of the journey. The guy thanked me and asked me how he could repay that small favour. I smiled and told him to “Pay It Forward”. The guy laughed at first but soon understood I was serious.

By the time I reached home, I was broken - make no mistake – the bus ride was bumpy and standing was no easy task. But weighed my discomfort against the man and more importantly the child’s discomfort and decided I was in a better situation to handle it than either of them. I was tired but happy. A small gesture, but meaningful... This was far bigger joy for me than the entire Joy of Giving Week with all its media fanfare and glitzy flagging offs and ceremonies.

Oh yeah, if you read the above content, please promise to “Pay It Forward”…

Last Few Days on XL campus...

2010-03-17T08:21:00.001+05:30

Everyone I met had just two questions, “What will you do?” and “Why are you not going home?”. The first one I could easily answer, “I’ll find something to do.” The second one was slightly more tricky. If I said XL was a home to me, it sounded very cheesy. If I said, “I loved the company of friends in XL”, as with a lot of other things in XL (and me), GRAX circles would be having a field day trying to guess the “friend” I was staying back for. But surprisingly, both of the statements were true. Obviously I love going home but that is something I would be doing a lot of times in the future. Staying and relishing the campus, unhindered, was not something I’d get to do a lot after March 27th.

So as it figured out, I went to a trip North-East and came back. There are about a score of us on campus. And there has not been a day when I’ve been bored. I’ve found myself something, and something interesting, to do. Others might see it as vellapanti, but after two years of being involved with so many things that happened on this beautiful campus, I deserve my moments of vellapanti.

Spending time in Googling the most arbit (also arcane) stuff, updating Wiki stubs, reading book reviews (I even read a novel after a long time), movie reviews (I’m yet to see one though) doesn’t seem a waste of time now. And I don’t get the FRAXer tag for doing this too. I don’t FRAX. And I’ve got some actual work lined up in the coming week. So here I am, spending the last few days of XL campus (Oh, I’ll keep coming back, but then, it won’t ever be the same). Cherishing the free time... Cherishing the beautiful campus... Cherishing the election process, this time as an outsider... Listening to cribbing about how SAC rules are unjust and outright redundant... It’s fun being on the listening side of GRAX too :P

Tourist info - Yumthang Trip

2010-03-16T08:48:00.013+05:30

I recently visited the North of Sikkim. This is a travelogue of the Yumthang Valley.

We left Gangtok (the time is early March) in a Mahindra MaxX. (The tour operator had arranged the trip and the permits. You need to carry a Photo ID and two passport sized photos for the permits. This process takes at least one full day when done through a tour operator.) Sikkim tours are arranged in 10-seater Sumos, MaxXs. These are “shared” cabs as they are called. So the five of us took one of these and luckily, were the only 5 in the back two rows which was very comfortable. Just as we left Gangtok, we entered the rural Sikkim which is very picturesque.

Spice forms the major cash crop and can be seen along the hills. Waterfalls can be seen trickling down the slopes every few kms. (In early March, they are trickles but there are tell-tale signs of rocks on the sides bearing the brunt of these dancing waterfalls after the rains)

The valley with the fast flowing Teesta deep below you looks daunting (almost freaky at times, spl if ur driver is too confident :P) on the left side of the cab for a large part of the trip upto the border checkpost (which is arnd 20 kms from Chungthang).

Naga falls come enroute. The sight of white water flowing down the mountain, bouncing on the rocks along the sides is actually very beautiful. If the flow is not very fast, you might be able to convince the driver to drive right through the falls. Beware – the water is really chilly; Enter at your own risk.

Chungthang is the dam-site for the Upper Teesta Hydro Power project and is a sight to savour for any engineer. The sight of the fast-flowing Teesta being channelled into the foot of the hill while huge trucks work on the construction of the dam is something you don’t see often.

Beyond Chungthang, you reach Lachung where most tours stay on for the night. The road to Lachung is quite narrow and travelling in fog can be treacherous with visibility reduced to a few metres. In winter this place is covered in snow but in early March – the only sign of snow was the driver talking of it. Nevertheless, the feeling of staying in a wooden cottage at night was different and fun. (Be informed that searching for a lodge or restaurant in this place is extremely difficult and though he might charge a premium, let the tour operator book both for you before starting from Gangtok) It creaked at times giving the eerie feeling of being watched (OK I’m no chicken but yeah, creaking wood in a desolate hill location does give birth to those eerie feelings) We had a simple dinner (Rice Dal Roti Aaloo) and retired to bed under two layers of quilts.

Early morning (around 5:30 am), I decided to venture outside in the chilly morning breeze and was greeted with the first sights of snow on distant hills – the ones we were destined for further in the day.

We had steaming tea (which cooled down before we could finish it) and decided to hv breakfast later. After renting the snow gear (Boots @ Rs. 30, Jackets @ Rs. 40 and skull caps @ Rs. 20) from the cottage owner, we set out for Yumthang Valley. The driver kept telling us that he’d rather take us to Katao but with a deep-rooted mistrust we ignored his suggestions. Going to Zero Point cost us Rs. 1750 for the whole cab. (We were 7 of us, so Rs. 250/- per head)

The sight of the Yumthang Valley is one of pure bliss – pure peace. Set amidst tall snow-capped hills, the valley is an absolute must-see for a tourist. A dry valley with a river (Teesta) running right at the centre... In peak winter, it is covered in snow and during rains, the river is a lot wider.

Close-by, there are few shacks where we got our breakfast (consisting of bread and butter) made. The pine forest around was covered in snow (at some places about 6 inches deep). It had rained the previous night and as such there was not a sign of any cloud and the early-morning warm sun helped in the winter. Being a valley, there was not much wind though the slight breeze was enough to send shivers through you if your ears or feet were exposed to it. The water in the river, expectedly, was chilling (almost untouchable).

The valley offer panoramic view of beautiful snow on the hills. There is hardly any flora-fauna other than the expected conifers and lichens in this region though the driver did mention that in February, herds of Yak do visit this region. During the rainy season, the route apparently has beautiful rhododendrons. From here we decided to go to Zero Point - the end of the well-maintained NH 31A. (apparently the Tibet Border is visible from there but it is often closed due to security or safety reasons) That climb is indeed on of the more steep climbs of the trip. Within a span of 20 Kms we climbed around 2500 ft. The air feels light and few of my friends felt the first effects of light-headedness due to the altitude. After going on through winding roads for around an hour, we reached a sharp bend in the road beyond which no vehicle was allowed. (Apparently Zero Point is 500 mtrs from there.) The first sounds that greet you is calling for having hot brandy and hot coffee...!!! There is snow is every direction you look.

The sun glares into your eyes even if you are not looking directly. This glare can indeed be unnerving and very uncomfortable for some (One of my friends had to sit with his head bowed for the entire time). But the fun of playing is the snow is something tourists come here for – and we were not disappointed. Snowmen, throwing snowballs at each other – carving texts in snow – we did it all.

The locals (selling brandy and coffee) told us that there were snow animals including snow leopards (I hope not mythical) in the region. However, the only form of fauna we saw was a crow that kept hovering over us. After a stay of around half an hour, we decided to come back. The altitude sickness was slowly getting to us all. Breathing had fastened though no cause for any alarm was raised by anyone. On our way back, we visited the hot water springs. Now these are pretty petty to the tourists who have visited Manikaran or Badrinath but a tourist destination nevertheless. Just outside Lachung are the Amitabh Bachchan Falls (No kidding!!!) Water falling of a tall steep ridge into a small pool below. A word of caution – it is situated at a high-speed righter and hence beware of speeding vehicles.
The journey back to Gangtok is fast and covered in around 7 hours. The whole trip cost us 4K for a group of 5 people. This included the travelling, staying at Lachung (in two 3-bed rooms), all food and visiting. The rented winterwear was separate.

Things I'll take back from XL - 2

2010-02-23T20:20:00.002+05:30

Quite accustomed to the long queues of the bureaucracy that a govt. college (I was in NITK) brings, I was actually shocked, even scared, by the free ride that registration in XL was. For all you know, I could not be Puneet Aggarwal and still be completing the two years in here. And that my friend is the freedom that XL accords you with – of doing anything as long as you deem it right; if you are ready to bear first, the costs and then, the consequences of what you do, no one here is gonna tell you what and what not to do. An independent life, devoid of any rules but your own is not one that less responsible people can handle. That is the true test of a manager and that, thankfully, I passed. So, responsibility that comes with being free is the second thing I’ll take away from XL.

Things I'll take back from XL - 1

2010-02-22T20:52:00.002+05:30

From today I wud try to post one new post every two-three days till the day I leave... all about something in XLRI that I’ll take with me... will try to keep it chronological...

I was travelling alone from home (Bellary) to XLRI, Jamshedpur. Apparently that was new for ‘freshers’ who were generally dropped off by parents but then, I was always an independent child. There was anticipation and even an iota of neophobia. As I reached platform number 19 of the Howrah station, that neophobia seemed to melt a little. I saw another family which was going to XL to drop off a classmate. As I boarded the train, Steel Express, that neophobia was all but gone as I realised, where I go, I’ll never be far from an XLer. There were so many of my to-be batch-mates on that train. One family, on realising I was travelling alone talked to me through the journey to Jampot and I realised how big getting into XL was. And that, though we curse the location, the journey from Cal to Tata ensures we all travel together, wherever we go, whatever we do. And that is the first memory of XL that I shall carry with me... Of being close to friends even in a completely new city...

The Mercenary

2010-02-11T11:03:00.004+05:30

He was just ten – a toddler in his world full of soldiers – tin soldiers with a metal head and a hollow chest. He was no 10 – for he could carry weights much larger – of those hammers, belts and arrows – all together. He was just ten – he mistook the ticking mechanical sound from those tin soldiers to be a heart-beat. He was no ten – for he could do tasks others twice his size couldn’t – fighting a lone losing battle for example. Not just a battle – but one that was never his own; One that he chose to fight because the king was weak – too weak to even acknowledge his presence – or when he did – follow it up with further battles.

And just like that, after the battle was won – litres of his blood spilt – he walked on – to the next battlefield. And just like that, if the battle was lost, he vowed to come back – never any taller – never any stronger – Just in his battered state – to avenge the defeat – to bring glory to a gory king who never knew he existed. The king – the dear loved king who he idolised – the one with those green eyes which saw everything green – green, not as the expanse of grass before him – but the barren battlefield – greened by the impure blood of the other tin soldiers.

And just like that he fought on – and on – and on – swords flung at him from all sides – including his own. His own side – or the one he thought was his own – for he never had a side of his own – and also, always did. Every time he turned – whichever way he turned – his back felt a sharp sting – from the hammers, belts and arrows – the sting he was no stranger to – a seasoned hard-bound bag of sand – who ruffled every time it was hit – ruffled to the core – and in no time – reformed to get ready for more. And his king looked on – at times sending a bludgeon to the weak spot – the tender spot – ensuring he was seasoned fully.

Could he run away from battle – but run from which battle – and go where? Back to the loins he came from – to the place he was born – born to fight – or so he thought – thoughts of a warrior –here to please and appease – just waiting for one strong paw of the beasts to pin him down – the thought of being the gladiator – when in fact all he was – was an expendable, replaceable – but always available – a mercenary.

Every Child is Special - Proved

2010-01-05T00:41:00.004+05:30

I've been so bitten by the Aamir Khan movie bug that I think about a of lot of them these days... One of those thoughtful moments, I happened to be reading Wiki entry on "Interesting Numbers". I just thought, Aamir's statement in Taare Zameen Par could also be proved, and logically, using this paradox... :)

Aamir says, "Every Child is Special."

Let us prove this using the method of contradiction. Assume that not every child is special. That means the set of all children can be divided into "special" and "not special" children. Assume this set is mutually exclusive and collectively exhaustive. Now not special is akin to saying there is nothing unique in the child as Aamir believes every child has something unique in him and is thus, "Special". Let us consider this set of "not special" children. Arrange them in order of height.

Now we find that in the set there is a child who is the tallest. That is something unique. The Tallest "Not Special" child. so we should remove him from the "Not Special" set and add him to the other set.

Now from the remaining, we arrange them in order of their ages. There is an eldest child. He'll be the first "Not Special" child to become an adult. Now that is something special. Let us transfer him too.

Going in the above way, we'll be left with one child who is "Not Special". He's the only "Not Special" child. That is really unique and special.

Q.E.D: Every Child is SPECIAL :)

Jinhe Naaz hai Hind Par woh Kahaan hai!!!

2009-12-31T13:18:00.006+05:30

It was the alumni home-coming for the batch of 1984 that I heard this song for the first time. It caught me by the throat and refused to let go for the moment – but as with a lot of other things, the song went to a corner of my memory and never resurfaced; till yesterday. Suddenly I wanted to listen to the “emotionally charged song that Bodhi Tree played” and I’ve listened to that song ever since.

The lyrics – powerful and charged brings back memories of those newspaper articles we read some years back and quite conveniently, though unfortunately, forgot. As with every new thing I read about, I googled the mentions in the song – and came across the incidents and how we have really forgotten those who take pride in being what they are – and are today in the same state as the martyrs who are remembered on the one day of the year.

Bilqis Rasool, the gangrape victim of the infamous aftermath of the Godhra carnage. Satyendra Dubey, the whistleblower, the IIT alumni who decided the pride of the nation – the GQ project – could not be handled by incapable local goons, wrote to the PMO about irregularities and ultimately paid with his life for this expose. Manjunath, the IIM-Lucknow alumni, who was brutally murdered in Lahimpur Kheri by the oil mafia for his action against adulteration. The last mention was of Navleen Kumar, an unknown social activist in the Nallasopara region of Mahrashtra who raised her voice against large scale land acquisition found herself on the wrong side of the local MLA.

I’ll copy here the lyrics (downloaded) as I want every person reading my blog to at least know the power of a well-written song and the emotions that it can charge with respect to being a proud Indian. And if possible, take cue as to what being an Indian means... Rabbi, I bow to thee...

Mera naam Bilqis Yakub Rasool
Mujhse hui bas ek hi bhool
Ki jab dhhundhhte thhe vo Ram ko
To maen kharhi thhi rah mein

Pehle ek ne puchha na mujhe kuchh pata thha
Dujey ko bhi mera yehi javab thha
Fir itno ne puchha ki mera ab saval hai ki

Jinhe naaz hai hind par vo kahan the
Jinhe naaz hai vo kahan hain

Mera naam shriman Satyendra Dubey
Jo kehna thha vo keh chukey
Ab parhey hain rah mein
Dil mein liye ik goli

Bas itna kasur ki hamne likha thha
Vo sach jo har kisi ki zuban thha
Par sach yahan ho jatey hain zahriley

Jinhe naaz hai hind par vo kahan the
Jinhe naaz hai vo kahan hain

Mujhe kehte hain anna Manjunath
Maine dekhi bhatakti ek laash
Zamir ki beech sarhak Lakhimpur Kherhi

Adarsh phasan jahan naaron mein
Aur chor bharey darbaron mein
Vahan maut akhlaq ki hai ik khabar baasi

Jinhe naaz hai hind par vo kahan hain
Jinhe naaz hai vo kahan hain

Mazha nau aahe Navleen Kumar
Unnees june unnees var
Unnees unnees unnees unnees
Unnees baar

Unnees unnees unnees unnees
Unnees unnees unnees unnees
Unnees unnees unnees unnees
Unnees vaar

Looto dehaat kholo bazaar
Nallasopara aur Virar
Chheeno zameen hamse hamein
Bhejo pataal

Jinhe naaz hai hind par vo kahan hain
Jinhe naaz hai vo kahan hain

Creating a "Top-10" for Dummies

2009-12-28T12:26:00.008+05:30

This has been inspired by a recent "Top-10" which ranked engineering colleges

Take up a topic that everyone would be interested in. When it’s the month of May, everybody in India is interested in knowing which the best college in India for every stream is. If it’s November (or Mar-Apr), everyone wants to know which the Best B-School in India is. So when its spring, the magazine might come up with, “Top-10 Flowers” in India or when its Diwali time – “The Top-10 Crackers”...
Create an “exhaustive” list of parameters on which the object can be judged. So if it’s a flower, my criterion are:
- Its colour
- Durability
- Ease of growth
- For the sake of completeness, its ability to attract the other sex
- And its acceptability in Indian Temples
Categorise the object that is being ranked. For flowers, categorise it as flowers that can be used to decorate the house, that can be used to appease a roothi hui girl friend and those that can be used in bouquets for giving to the winners of the survey.
Create a fundoo sounding methodology. Just note that the following words and terms should appear at least once. Expert, detailed, analysis, survey, representative, statistical, large (wide) sample, ranking, stakeholders, perspectives, review.
Shuffle the known best (Like the IIM-A in B-Schools, 6 IITs in technical institutes, AIIMS in medicine) and award them the top ranks. Throw in the lesser considered ones (NITs in engineering; Other IIMs, XLRI, SPJIMR, MDI etc in B-Schools) to complete the top ten. If you want to make it look even more authentic, remove one of the top from the top and declare that the 'top' refused to participate in the survey and hence is not ranked.
Throw in a few comments from one of the “stakeholders” stating why the best is the best. Throw in an interview with the head of the best and a few more from people below him in the hierarchy.
Importantly, throw in a few statistics which no one can confirm. Ex: While number of petals in roses averaged 57, the number of petals in marigold averaged 123. The trend is expected to improve in the current season due to the influx of Sodiumbenzonitropantonate.
Throw in a few “interesting” points. Interestingly, sabsebadafool is the only flower that is found in Jhumri Talaiya that found its way into the top ten.
Call one of the later ones in the rankings a “surprise” package who is making its “re-entry” after a gap of 6 years. Cite one reason why that could be. Ex: The Hibiscus finds itself back in the top ten after a gap of 6 years because Ms. Sonia Gandhi has decided to cover her garden with different varieties of Hibiscus.
Conclude with a few generic statements which can apply to anything. The atmosphere has a huge impact on the quality and in the coming days, with increasing disturbances, can deteriorate.

And Lo! You have your first top-10. Go publish it. If the first step is right, I’m sure you will receive sufficient readership and with it, possibly, big moolah.

Review: 3 Idiots

2009-12-26T05:23:00.004+05:30

I do not like to like posting movie reviews, but this one deserves it.

Spoiler alert: Though I have tried to not describe the story, there might be a few hints and glimpses.

It didn’t start off very well – the unpleasing butts stared into our faces – literally. Then there was a shock – again, literally – and the fun express took speed. Through the brilliance of the antics of Rancho and the troubles and dilemmas of Raju and Farhan, the movie entwines a beautiful story which every one of us will relate to. The humour though, is not without some heart-wrenching scenes – like dealing with a successful suicide attempt of a student. Midway I realised, I was just another “gadha”. But I take the insult sportingly and shall not sue Vidhu Vinod Chopra :P. The ending was slightly pushing the funda of “All izz Well” too far but then, a little over-optimism never hurts a fun-living moviegoer. :)

The songs, barring one, are well placed and do not really annoy the viewer with a break in the story. In fact, the songs quite run in the background of the story without affecting it. The music is lively and forceful when required. It’s been long since we had a non-Rahman good sound track – this sure fits the bill. Jaane Nahi was my favourite though All izz Well shall very soon become an anthem... Sonu Nigam's typical stamp on the vocals is all pervasive...

The let-down that Avatar 3D was – was more than made up by the 3 Idiots. Aamir, is his usual entertaining self. Kareena is not the slim-trim hot babe as in Tashan – but no less attractive. Madhavan looks kinda old for a 22yr old but gels well with Aamir. Sharman Joshi plays his role to perfection - his potrayal of the cash-crunched youth with the burden of an ailing family and a young sister does touch a chord. Boman Irani is good in his Hitler-Einstein hybrid look. Omi Vaidya (Chatur Ramalingam) is brilliant in his expressions and to me, created few of the the most comic scenes of the movie with his “humko hindi nahi aata, tum kidhar jaati” style. Rajkumar Hirani may not have created yet another Munnabhai but Rancho would come quite close in appeal.

This movie, not quite the same tone as TZP, carries a very strong message indeed. I now see ViruS in every institution that I’ve studied so far (Oh, I met one Rancho too). I see how murders are committed everywhere not because of the pressure on the windpipe but way above – right in the head (I’ve known one murder committed – a budding artist who was forced to do his masters in engineering). Most movies quite spoil the fun of the book – this movie makes me wanna read Five-Point-Someone again though the author and the director have denied direct inspirations.

Aal izz Well....!!!

2009-12-26T05:13:00.005+05:30

Ok I dunno where to start – the interesting and entertaining day or the very interesting but not so entertaining night...

I’d rather start with the wonderful Christmas that we had... It all started two days back when one of my dear friends suggested another friend that we should go to Kolkata for a movie on Christmas. We booked online – and early morning today, we were on our way to Kolkata. Nice warm weather from the chills of Jamshedpur – a literal warm welcome :)

The taxiwala though was not so warm – after going 28 km in the taxi – where he first feigned taking us to Science City – passed it without asking if we were getting down – then took us to the “bypass” to South City. We saw the turn to Salt Lake City but didn’t say anything as we were new to Kolkata and thought probably it was just round the corner. When after turning many corners and reaching 25 km on the meter, the South City Mall didn’t arrive – we decided to take the matters into our hands and asked the locals about its location – and surprise – the taxi wala asks for “Sowl City” and then suddenly turns the taxi around to say – “Oh I took one wrong turn. We’ll be there in two mins” when we were in fact on the right path (finally). We corrected him and soon, we were at South City mall and with a lot of help from the local bystanders, we managed to get the taxi off with a fare of Rs. 100. So basically we went to science city – then salt lake city – then a fictitious “Sowl City” and then finally our destination. I thought, not for the last time in the day, “Aal izz Well”...

While one friend visited her relatives who stayed close by, we had a subway – which tasted as it always does across anywhere in India – Good. Then just as we reached the Fame entrance we realised, the speedy ticket counter for online bookers was not as speedy. It took us a good 20 mins into the movie “Avatar 3D” before we could get in but finally we did and again I thought, “Bhaiya Aal izz Well”...

The movie had stunning VFX but nothing so great about the storyline... James Cameron kinda let me down. But then, the effects and the 3D made it worth the money. We came out and clicked pics around the many X-Mas trees decorated there. And again I thought, “Chachu, All izz Well”...

After a refreshing giant Pepsi, we 4 idiots entered “3 Idiots”. I shall leave the review for another post but rest assured, we came out laughing and thoroughly satisfied, thinking, once again, “Bhaiya Aal izz Well”...

I decided, it was Christmas, and while my friends enjoyed a plate of spicy and mouthwatering pani puri, I had to give Father Christmas’s gift to the person who is behind most joys in XL and with me in most sorrows at XL. Suddenly realisation dawned on me – I didn’t have my credit card!!! Did I lose it somewhere? Where? I remained calm and checked my bag – called up my friends to check. Thankfully it was in the camera pouch. Once again, the thought came to my mind – “Murgi, Aal izz well” :)

We rushed through the Kolkata traffic to reach the station only to discover that our train was delayed by 8 hours!!! We didn’t want to spend the night on the Kolkata station. Decided we had to bypass rules and go through touts and get ourselves on the next train going to Tata. Got booking via the inside route – with a ticket premium of more than 100% over the cost – but at least better than waiting on the platform. Yet again, “Bakre, Aal izz Well”...

The train journey was scary to say the least. We were completely unprepared for the cold. No blankets. Sweatshirts that could cover us through the evening chill in Jamshedpur but surely not the biting cold of the moving train. And surprisingly enough, I was the most comfortable amongst my friends. In a close huddle, we derived as much body heat from each other as possible and reached – rather, made it – to Tatanagar. God bless Indian Railways and the coffee guy on the platform. The auto ride back was where I realised why the winter takes its toll in the North India. Even when laden with light armour of a hooded sweatshirt, my hands had gone numb – actually numb. I could only imagine what the destitute across the northern plains would do when they ran out of firewood. Thankfully, I reached the campus, alive; turned on the kettle and put my digits – almost at the breaking point – in the warm water. Blood rushed back through the digital systems and now again, “Bhaiya, Aal izz Well”...

Overall a great Christmas outing... Merry Christmas...

P.S: No disrespect to Kolkata-waalon - but tourists to Kolkata, please beware of the cheating Kolkata Taxis. Take the pre-paid and you will sing, "Aal izz Well"... :)

New Internal Security Ministry...

2009-12-23T12:30:00.002+05:30

Chidambaram proposed a new “Internal Security Ministry” today... This sure signals that all is not well in India. Why would the home minister want to offload a part of his portfolio? Does this indicate that the internal security matters have become so grave that the Home Ministry is not able to handle it?

Even if they do create a new ministry, what matters is that the ministry is headed by an able administrator and not someone like Shivraj Patil. Or is it Shivraj Patil, who has been kept on the sidelines for quite sometime now wants to come back to mainstream ministry, this move is being made. Since the Home portfolio is firmly kept away from him, he wants a part of it. if not the whole. Gives the tainted record of the Congress on these matters, it would not be too surprising... After all, the person who could not run the home ministry was being proposed at one time for the post of the President of India... this is way smaller...!!!

Cameron's new AVATAR

2009-12-18T04:50:00.002+05:30

Long back I had talked about how there was an unnecessary (my opinion) controversy created whenever there was a Hindi movie inspired by and English/other language movie. The recent controversy regarding the ‘Return of James Cameron’ movie AVATAR has just vindicated my stand that each director was different and each movie was different. While Avatar might be inspired from a book, picturization of a book in the modern sci-fi day cinema is not the easiest of tasks and James Cameron must be lauded for that. James Cameron has been one of my favourite directors and no controversy regarding “plagiarism” will take that away from him. As he says in one of his hit movies through Arnie’s dialogue, he’ll be back... I just hope the movie is as good, if not better, than the trailers...
PP

100th post...

2009-12-18T04:16:00.005+05:30

Till I arrived on the dashboard, I hadn't realised this was my 100th post. Its been just more than a year and the blog has given me words and voice. In some cases, that voice has been heard, and few, even considered for action. Here's a colelction of some of my favourites...

It is no secret that my favourite tags is The Philosopher Me... All about specific incidents in my life that extract the philosophical Puneet out of the otherwise critical one... My favourite posts here have been A Toy Story and The Screamer. Both incidents created craters on my interior and will rattle my memories every time something similar happens...

The year being spent in XL has seen quite a few posts on my life at XLRI school of Business and Human Resources. Truly, the XL posts have been posted for my future memories more than anything... My favourites here have been more on satirical side and can border humour for the uninitiated - I'm a Proud Geek takes the cake. My 4-part reporting of the summer internship process of 2008 were a reflection of the rigour and uncertainty that an Indian B-School student faces in his first year...

I Think Therefore... was my best attempt at humour that will be best understood and appreciated by students of consumer behaviour. Duryodhan's Diary was my attempt to think of a variant viewpoint and deviate from the accepted. However, my posts labelled 'Attempt at humour' will be incomplete without my experience and subsequent description of Group Discussions. Probably PMIR my colleagues at XLRI could take a hint and devise newer methods of recruitment.

Surprisingly the blog post generating maximum number of hits was the post on the Pink Attire of Nadal. Just goes to show how and what searchers look for 'News'.

Anyways, its been a fun to pour my emotions, ideas, critical comments, viewpoints or simply reporting of facts and hope I can continue this blog unlike three of my previous attempts...

Puzzled Puneet (PP)

Yet another interesting journey...

2009-12-14T09:17:00.005+05:30

The journeys are always as exciting and the beautiful as the destinations themselves. This has proved to be true in my case unfalteringly.

I dunno why that happens to me but my plans for a tour have failed in the past two years with an accuracy of close to 100%, the only success being “Rivers Meet” (OK that WAS the only success, so it IS counted even if it was just a 30 mins drive). As usual, with every failed plan, it brought me anguish of not being able to go but also importantly, of planning again for Plan B!!! So this time when the north-east trip did not happen, I was left to plan for my journey back home.

Now, the journey back home is no easy task for me. I need to travel close to 2,000 kms across India (from Tatanagar to Toranagallu) to reach home. And that is going almost by the shortest route there is. I do have longer routes with more travelling time which I frequent due to higher frequency and faster speed. I figured the earliest I was getting there irrespective of the costs is Monday morning. There is one train going from Howrah to my place, Toranagallu (Henceforth, TNGL) but that plies on Saturday but not Sunday. So as it happened, if I missed the Saturday train, I had two options – first being taking the flight to Bangalore (Henceforth, SBC) early next morning (8,000/-) and then the night train (500/-) to TNGL or waiting for Monday’s train and reach on Wednesday. Given my short term-break, the second was almost a non-option as it’d give me a home stay of 4 days with travel of 3 days and every day counts when you are going home for 5 days.

So I checked for all possible routes which would make me reach TNGL by Monday morning. Trains going westward – I checked trains connecting my place to any place on route from TATA to Mumbai. Trains to Nagpur, Daund; I even considered going to Pune and taking a night bus but again – reaching Pune was gonna be trouble as tickets were not available at this time of the year. Then I decided going to my normal route but on trains which would drop me somewhere I could catch a train to TNGL. So I checked up trains going to Vijaywada (henceforth BZA), Guntur, Guntakal and even decided travelling to Kharagpur (Henceforth, KGP) to catch a train to Hyderabad from where I could catch an overnight train to TNGL. But again, I’d be reaching on Tuesday morning. So it was finally decided, if I had to travel by train, it had to be this train leaving Howrah at 2330 hrs on the Saturday.

So I decided to book everything possible in this train till I got a confirmed reservation and got myself booked in 3-tier ac, 2-tier ac and the same in the Tatkal quota. I figured, the second class was too full to even have a glimpse of a reservation. And as fate would have it, all of my tickets were wait-listed.

Now India has a peculiar system of getting reservations where the train ticket examiner (famously called TT but is actually TTE) has the complete power over who he allots seats after the chart is prepared (which is approx. 6 hrs prior to departure of a train). I decided, one TTE was gonna be rich tonight and started from Jamshedpur with double the fare in cash and the all my tickets – giving him all the options for a conversion. What happened If the TTE was an honest man or he actually couldn’t do anything despite all my generous offers, I’d spend the night on the platform buying myself lots of coffee/tea to keep warm (I had given my gloves and warm blanket to a Chennai friend who really hates cold but was travelling by the second class due to lack of tickets) and spend 8,000/- and take the morning flight to SBC and then again try to get a TTE to give me a seat from SBC to TNGL. Both ways, I’d be reaching home by Monday morning.

I used the GPRS to keep checking just in case something got cleared. Somehow, a ticket in 3-tier ac was confirmed when I reached KGP. I was very happy. One TTE just missed his share of fortune. Then just for the heck of it, I asked my dad to check again in half an hour (GPRS was too slow) and as luck would have it, all my tickets were confirmed!!! In a matter of hours, I went from having no ticket in my hand to having multiple confirmed ac tickets. And what was more, the chart had been prepared. So regardless of other passengers, I knew there would be four ‘Puneet Aggarwal’s onboard 8047 Amravati Express. I knew Tatkal quota cannot be cancelled. So I decided to maximise return on investment and travel by 2-tier ac though i geenrally prefer 3-tier ac due to the larger number of people to talk to. The non-Tatkal tickets I got cancelled but being less than 6 hrs prior to the departure, I got only 50% of the fare charge as refund. The other tickets, I let go. The TTE would realise by KGP that there was no Puneet Aggarwal coming on the seats and finally get his share of fortune, though not through me...

The journey was very beautiful. India is very beautiful in the winters. The train passes through the heart of Lake Chilka, the biggest backwater lake in the country. And on a foggy morning, all one needs to do is hang the curtains of the double glassed, tinted ac window on the sides and savour the sunshine and the panoramic views of the lake. Soon after, the aroma of biryani being served in lunch tells Andhra (yet undivided) is here as Anakapalle (terminus for SCR) passes by. Then you cross the mighty Godavari and Krishna in quick succession as the mighty rivers and the long bridges make you wonder why there ever is a water shortage in this country. All through the journey, paddy fields abound. From BZA (where you are served another round of Biryani), the train turns westward and deviates from the Howrah-Chennai trunk route. By this time it is late evening and I decided to sleep early to get up early (8047 reaches TNGL at 5:30) and just as Guntur passed, I was fast asleep dreaming off all the goodies I’d savour in the next 5 days at home.

The Other Side...

2009-11-27T17:30:00.006+05:30

This post was written almost a month ago but was waiting for this day, the 26-11 to finally declare to the world that I was once on the other side too... Now I can say proud, I’ve seen it all... And this is where it all began...

It was a year ago...

I was on the other side...

The other side, the side which faces all the heat when all around people keep telling you to be cool...

The other side, the side which feels everything in the world is wrong when the only thing wrong is the belief that everything is wrong...

The other side, the side which doesn’t want to eat anything but needs to, just to survive yet another day... and god forbid, another... and another...

The other side, the side that always thinks bad things happen to bad people. I’ve always been a good guy... I’m gonna get good things in life...

The other side, the side which wants to go to bed with a smile on the face, sometimes in company of a good friend the muscles of the face even manage that, but once that friend is gone, they contract back to their anguished state...

The other side, the side which realises for the first time that there are good people in this world who’ll leave everything to be by your side when u need it...

The other side, the side where every day doesn’t rise with a sunrise but gloom of seeing it...

The other side, the side which reaffirms its belief in the Chaos Theory and Murphy’s Laws and the worst of all, requires a process much more efficient than the MSExcel rand() function to actually reach QED...

The other side, the side which after two months of mentoring and careful planning wonders what was it worth...

The other side, the side which experiences, at least in small bursts of time, a world where there are no friends... Only colleagues...

The other side, the side which no one wants to ever be on but everyone ends up being on...

The other side, the side which u enter a baby but emerge a man...

And so those of you just coming from the other side, all the best. Hope to see some of you there for us when we visit the other side in the coming months...

Btw, in case u are wondering what is "the other side" about... read this

Unilateral Love...

2009-11-08T10:58:00.003+05:30

Just the other day I read a line that got me thinking: “I love you far too much to be bothered by what you say or do to me.” This, as with a lot of other things, got me into the philosophical mode. Now this is either un-human or a simple plain harmless white lie!!! Can any human being actually love someone and not be bothered by what they say? Doesn’t it talk of unilateralism? Can any love be unilateral? To this extent? And again, as with everything else, I tried to reason the philosophy with logic.

Emotions always have the potential of being unilateral. Many people hate George Bush. But can he hate them? I’m angry with the Indian Government for so many things – to the extent that I might try to evade as much tax as possible. But is it angry with me? It’ll still continue to offer me what it always did – the citizenship of a “free” country. While all around me is misery, I can be the happiest person in XLRI or even on the face of the earth and probably beyond. And the converse – while all around me are partying, I can sit on the table and hope I could disappear or rather disapparate to the small hole, 40 ft below the surface of an ice island, in Tundra.

But wait, all these emotions I talked about were my relations with the group. What about individuals? Can I have unilateral emotions towards individuals? And such Extreme? I could hate, really hate, someone but when they help me, I would not be able to stop the feeling of gratitude. I could be angry, furious, with someone but when they came to me with a sorry written on a sullen face, I will relent though I might not absolve the other person of all their crimes.

But love behaves quite different from these human emotions. It is, after all, divine. I reminisced how many times in history/mythology has love led to people being irrational. Love has caused wars and ended them. It is the single most potent weapon in the hands of a poor soul on the other side of anger. I finally concluded – love – more than most (or should I say, all) other emotions – can be unilateral. Next time, when it comes to it, I won’t hesitate to say, “I love you far too much to be bothered by what you say or do to me.”

Miles to go...

2009-10-17T23:52:00.005+05:30

The other day, someone remarked that my frequency of blogging had decreased considerably. The truth is that there are many posts that I have drafted but never got myself to post them. Socially desirable responses and blogs... The unwillingness to answer a few pointed Qs... Those furtive glances... All of these conspired against me posting anything.

This post however finds its way out...

I was never the one who believed in sticking to culture and heritage. I, for one, always believe in the progressive stance and believe any progress needs sacrifices. I always resented the idea of a joint family. Today, I realise what those values and fun of the joint family meant. Till last year, XL was one huge family. The seniors, juniors and the Professors were members of that happy united family. Some Idiotic Process (SIP) axed away the bond between the siblings – the seniors and the juniors. The elders, well, I didn’t even realise when that bond was severed. This Diwali sealed it all. East is East, West is West and never shall the twain meet.

There was no welcoming to the houses. There were those ‘kutti idlis’ but that was not what pulled me last year. It was the joy of being invited. I went to have those ‘kutti idlis’ this year too but didn’t feel like having – and actually ended up having just a few forkful of noodles. There may have been the taste – after all, nothing ever changes in this sleepy town of Jamshedpur – including the tastes. But without the warmth of being served, the taste was actually not present. There was the customary Antakshari, good fun too. But when the company I cherish the most is absent – life truly is drab – what if it is Diwali. In this drab life, every sound of cracker is loud noise and every spark is a blinding flash.

I still believe I’ve a purpose to serve. The motivation might have been killed - quite cruelly - but I still believe someone somewhere might just need me. I hang on... I live on... The journey is not as pleasing as it used to be...

The woods are not lovely...
They are very dark – very deep...
But I’ve promises to keep...
and miles to go before I sleep!!!

The celebration...

2009-09-27T13:35:00.004+05:30

The Italian chandelier was lit by a dim halogen glow. The soft light falling on the banquet hall really seemed to fill the evening with joy. The aroma of the tossed Russian salad mixed well with the selection of exclusive selection of French wines procured specifically for this occasion. The ikebana specialist, Sun Takahashi was happy to have got the contract for the arrangement of the Dutch Tulips in the central hall. The smile(y) was present on every nook of the decorated room. The city’s who’s who were all there, waiting for the Mr. R’s arrival. There were suddenly flashes all around and sudden frenzy at the door. Mr. R was accompanied by his new fiancée Ms. S. Dressed in a deep blue Armani, Mr. R looked ready for the occasion. The media sure was.

“Friends, the last month has been a real enlightening week for us. It was one where we experienced feeling so surreal, so redeeming that I feel privileged to be present here today to tell you more about it. We started off with the “Ghoomo India” campaign where 20 of us travelled across the country. Thanks to the innovative designs of our buses by Mr. D, who agreed to design the buses without any charges, we were able to visit places where no government goes. I’m happy to inform you that we supplied the village health centres worth 20 Crore of medicines. Thanks to the involvement of the 200 self-help-groups and mahila mandals in the city, we were able to collect 20 quintals of grain and used clothes. These were distributed to the needy with the help of the NGOs who decided to support us. Thanks to your support, we were able to reach out and spread the message of our foundation to 20 crore people of this country. Tonight we are here to celebrate the success of our mission and we have a reason to. I’d like to thank the schools and colleges, the Governmental Organisations and the NGOs, the self-help-groups and above all, the media for helping us on this tough journey. Please enjoy yourselves. I’m sure Chef P will have prepared a good selection of food for all your tastes. I’ve a meeting to attend and will thus take leave. Good night.”

Mr. R left the hall and walked towards his car. The chauffeur opened the rear door of the sedan. Mr. R. got into his car. The media was now focussed on other guests at the party. Just then...

“Do rupaye de do saahab. Kal se kuch nahi khaya hai. Maa Bimar hai. Yeh dekho sahib, behan ko bukhar hai. Do rupaye de do.”

“Chal Hat, Watchman, yeh log andar kaise aa gaye. Hatao inhe yaha se. Watchman... Driver Gadi chalao...”

You know you are back at XL when...

2009-09-14T14:57:00.001+05:30

You get a feeling you should be working... That’s it. The feeling stops there...

That feeling comes only if you got a submission the next day and it is 1:00 am in the night...

You start loving all those vegetables mom used to force you to eat but you gave an ugly look saying, “Mom, aren’t there better things to make!”

You realise dieting is something that ppl do (remember ppl, not Me or you) because they don’t get those tempting Bisuda parathas at 2 in the morning...

You realise alarm clocks are needed to put you to sleep.

FB sure is one way...
- Farms are no more wilted.
- Your Mafia friends “wall” you for a pair of scissors, a haircut and cufflinks. You pick up fights and wars JLT. You learn new family values.
- You get tagged on notes, cartoons, links and for everything you are not.
- Fortune cookies are in high demand. (New B-Plan anyone?? New promotion strategy – Found in a Fortune Cookie, “You should eat a Bull’s Eye tonight with someone special”)

He Cut My Wings Away...

2009-08-27T22:53:00.006+05:30

I was a happy li’l tweeter
One tree to another, I flew
Suddenly he came along
And cut my sweet song...

What would happen if suddenly one day I lost the only thing that mattered to me – the only thing that I thought differentiated me – the thing that made my survival worth it.

It was the moment that I waited for
The victory would’ve been mine
Today would’ve been my day
Had he not cut my wings away...

I was planning for things to come. My future looked bright. The only thing I was afraid of was uncertainty. Alas, that had the last laugh...

To stay alive, I fought hard
The breath was snuffed out
The claw curled, I clung on
Lest in death I be frowned upon...

It wasn’t just myself that I was leaving behind. I didn’t have to be the joke. I was the brave tweeter who would will his way out of things... I wouldn’t give up, not now... I couldn’t be myself but I could still be someone. I’d live my life as that someone.

Those final steps I had to make
Just go that one more tile
Though would I fly in the rain
Never be the tweeter again...

The unknown. The unobtrusive. But I’d live. It was just three steps... one... two... three... Almost there... Like so many others who had been... But I was no “other”. I was the tweeter. I had to claim my right to the six feet of space. The three steps for the six feet...

Those three steps is why I live
First for my sweetheart
Two for the clouds cast
And three to relive the past...

And I survived. He could take my wings but I flew higher. Or could I? May be I couldn’t. He took my wings... Oh, he didn’t take my dreams. I could dream of flying higher. But would I? Probably I would. I was the tweeter... I shouldn’t give up... Or should I???

I Think Therefore I'm.... Single :)

2009-08-14T15:32:00.010+05:30

Disclaimer: The following piece of literature is a satire and an attempted application of MBA concepts to real-world. The author is not responsible for feuds resulting or arising out of the text though he would be interested in knowing about them ;)

Disclaimer 2: The analysis is believed to be gender independent and universally applicable :)

The ‘product’: Depending on the consumer characteristics, the product can be high involvement product or a low involvement product. It may not be generalised but the product’s use as FMCG is not socially desirable. Thus, for the purpose of simplification of analysis, we shall assume the product is a high-involvement product and is intended to be used as a consumer durable. The product has a high-maintenance cost associated but the perceived lifetime value is higher than the costs involved. Thus, the product has a high aspirational value.

The ‘purchase’: The purchase decision is generally non-impulse though the primary point of contact with the product has a high impact on the final purchase. The purchase can involve extended information search. Alternative evaluation, though, is restricted, often by the terms and conditions mentioned by the product. To meet the alternative evaluation requirements the consumer often observes flanking brands to be satisfied of the genuine advantages of the evoked set. General consumers like to try the product before deciding the purchase. Only surrogate attributes are used for evaluation during trial. The trial period can involve high monetary, emotional and temporal costs. Elimination-by-aspects is the general rule used for final decision. Sometimes, consumers do trade-off important attributes for the less important ones and thus actually use compensatory decision rule in conjunction with elimination-by-aspects. In many cases, the product is deemed faulty and discarded without any damages sought. Packaging has a high impact on the purchase decision. The consumer seeks out the product and hence the place dimension of the product mix is insignificant at the point of contact. However, for all further decisions, proximity is a highly desirable trait. Group impact on decision-making is very high and co-branding strategies are often successful.

Post-Purchase: Post-purchase dissonance is often delayed and not instantaneous. Display of post-purchase dissonance is restricted. Consumption guilt is often absent. Disposability of the product is very low. Hence, in cases where post-purchase dissonance or consumption guilt exists, the product is put to a no-use state before being slowly discarded. The duration of the no-use phase before disposal (and replacement) is highly dependent on attribution. Depending on the individual consumer, the product may sometimes be replaced immediately with a new one but more often than not, the second purchase is characterised by a prolonged period of analysis of previous use, and an in-depth study of the consideration set elements for making the second purchase.

MMM

P.S.: Go Ahead, Guess the product :)

Disclaimer 3: The author has limited knowledge of the product. The analysis performed is based on secondary data.

Credits shared by: @ng, Kutti

My Late Date...

2009-08-10T23:15:00.005+05:30

I had imagined it’d be like this but never could have imagined it could be this great. The weather was just apt. Slight drizzle from the sky, a hint of hum through the wind... This moment had been long time coming but somehow the forces were against it. Today I decided, come what may, I’m not gonna miss the chance – no matter what the world thinks – the GRAX boards could keep rolling... my date was gonna happen today. I decided 2245 hrs would be the meeting time. The restaurant was quiet... the last of the diners were leaving. Slow instrumental music filled the room... The light was just right... The diffused yellow light gave a snug feeling to the room... The setting was perfect. I took a few moments to prepare myself for this... this was definitely not an everyday thing. There I was, sitting on the corner table of Regent, waiting. And then... she arrived. The waiter escorted her in. Instantly and involuntarily, my lips parted and my tongue rolled over. The whole world came to a standstill. My mind went numb. She was dressed in a dark overall just as I had asked; So beautiful... So sensuous... Looking hotter than ever... Did I just see a few wisps of steam rise from her... I was sure I could devour her just with my eyes... My heart started racing... Should I get up and take her to the table? Or do just sit and wait for her? Would the waiter get a wrong impression if I looked too anxious? Would I be judged? Oh so slowly the waiter moved... painstakingly slow... She was shown the way to my table. Was anything in the world worth this feeling – of a quiet corner in a restaurant with your true love? I could’ve exchanged anything in the world for this moment. I was sure the waiter could’ve too. Slowly and courteously, without moving his eyes away from her, the waiter asked, “Anything to go with the Bull’s Eye Sir?”

P.S.: Regent = One decent place to dine; Bull's Eye = One decent Chocolate Dessert

P.S.2: This story is inspired from true events of today and doesn't involve any living person other than me and the waiter. Any coincidences are purely coincidental :)

Why Does History Repeat Itself?

2009-07-23T14:55:00.004+05:30

We blame the history for repeating itself but the more we see the fundamental behaviour of humans, the more we shall find that the phenomenon of history being able to repeat is primarily the reason why it can repeat. Confused??? Its fine... I was too, till I gave more thought to it... And what is worse, still am....

Let us look at the judicial system: A precedent is something that can hardly be ignored, unless the case facts have altered beyond a point. The precedent, then, is taken as the judgement to be made. If the case facts are similar, the culprit must be the same – is what we believe. Why don’t we question the judgement of the judge who set that precedent? How many amendments do we know of which sought to repeal previously held judgements. Most amendments are actually “appendment”s. So effectively, if in a dubious case the wrong guy is hanged to death, the precedence will be held true for all cases in future too – and repeatedly, the wrong guy will be dead. And undoubtedly, we’ll claim, “History Repeats Itself”.

The second instance is what I got interested in today – Technical Analysis of stocks. The chartists claim that trends are similar across times – that trends themselves have a trend!!! But where they cement the phenomenon is their belief that the trend cannot change, that if the prices went down this day in history, they will do so today!!! So the next time I recognise a trend, I know what will happen and thus will follow the trend... Thus I, inadvertently, become a part of self-fulfilling prophecy. I recognise the trend that prices will fall and start selling my stock. Everyone else also does the same. When it reaches a certain level and I realise that the historical trend predicts an increase now, I start to buy stock. Everyone else does too. Is it a wonder that the prices actually fall and rise “as predicted by Technical Analysis”? The chartists believe that market psyche remains constant to market stimuli, why they discount the human mental evolution is something I’m yet to understand. Probably a chartist or behavioural finance specialist can explain.

MMM

P.S.: I'm neither a Lawyer nor a Chartist. More importantly, I do not claim to be one. The above are simply ramblings which I hope will be answered over time.

Of negligence, dereliction and corruption

2009-07-19T11:32:00.005+05:30

It was just one of those things that can get me started. I hate inefficiencies but not being the most efficient performer (despite my concentrated and hopefully dedicated efforts) myself, I try not to complain too...!!! I might crib about it but forget it soon enough. More often than not, I end up praising for perpetuator of inefficiency for the work done... (Remember my praises of mess food;))

It was a simple expression of anger on the inefficiency of a government-run body. The perpetuator of inefficiency (and may be dereliction too) was an employee of the govt. And it got me started... I’ll paste the chat that followed (me v/s XXX)

me: But its a big vicious circle..
and initially u feel angry against the perpetuator..
but if u analyse it, u cant blame him..
jungle hai... sher deer se dosti karega to khayega kya..!!
XXX: kya pata yar
deer kaun sher kaun
sab hi sher ho rakhe hain
me: initially we also thot the same..
but then i talked to the perpetuator
thn realised.. he cant really help it..
and his job is really his side business.. they provide jobs to many other families through other things they do. basically ek haath se 150/- dete hain aur doosre haath se 100/- lete hain..
XXX: kya pata yaar
me: hmm... not sayin sab doodh ke dhule hain..
XXX: perpetuator ke part pe bad job ka justification samajh nahi aata
me: hmm.. but yeah.. they are not so wrong also... one thin i realised on my village trip was tht we, with all the resources, can afford to think of idealism..
they cant..
XXX: probably true
me: just think.. 100/- pm se kitna kamata hoga.. aint tht amount u spend on treats and bisuda..
.
.
.
.
me: coz in engg coll days i wanted to teach the kids of the roadside labour..
but realised.. i cud do it coz i knew it was not somethin i was doing for eternity or a living..
XXX: hmm
ye bhi hai
me: if it was for a living.. then i'd not be teachin them beyond a point whr they stop dependin on me...
and if they doubt.. i'd ensure one of my friends takes the tuition and i teach in "school"
so in essence i'll safeguard my source of income if tht was so..
XXX: :(
me: corruption can and should be analysed from the point of view of the perpetuator..
XXX: hmm
me: just imagine.. how many times - almost daily - do we involve ourselves in corruption - how many times do we not do our duty - and then we complain of negligence, dereliction and mal-intention..
.
.
.
.
me: ok, wat is ur duty?
u knw ur capacity is infinite..
XXX: alag alag role mei alag hai
me: yups.. hv u performed everyone of them?
if u say no, i'll say.. "see"
if u say yes, i'll add two more things tht u cud and shud hv done..
so really u dont hv an answer..

MMM

P.S. @XXX: I really hope, ur anonymity is well preserved and this post is in no way offensive to you or your beliefs

Did Nokia borrow my idea???

2009-07-01T23:15:00.005+05:30

“Business leaders do not spring from a classroom, they are born of THE COLOSSEUM.”

Thus says my T-shirt. Are ideas also born of THE COLOSSEUM? They sure seem to...

I had talked about how Nokia publicised its N97 through the B-School competition, THE COLOSSEUM some months back. But now that I think of it, it was not just publicity. The event was really a cradle of ideas – ideas that Nokia could use for not just N97 but also its other future products.

Think of it... The event was participated in by the most brilliant minds of the country. The suggestions came out after a detailed market analysis and touch-point study of the target consumers. What came out of the competition had to be top-notch. All that would be required after these ideas were generated would be communication of these ideas to few creative people who would then look for consumer target icons and use them to create super brands.

With an industry which keeps changing so fast, it really can be expensive to hire a top-notch ad agency to create advertising and marketing campaigns month after month. It would be very expensive to hire consultants for brand positioning and value propositioning. Going to B-Schools thus becomes an easy source of innovation (in terms of promotion strategies and not products). With the technology backing, all a marketing giant needs to do is float such competitions in the best B-Schools and the best design schools. One such competition would give them enough fodder to feed a few of their future products. At cost that would not even equal a single product launch, it sure is a very beneficial form of outsourcing.

P.S. Case in point: My introduction to the idea was this (not same but similar to Nokia 7610's "Its not just a phone, Its who we are."):

"My first phone was a Nokia 3310. It solved my communication needs. Then I bought a Nokia 6360. Not just did it solve my communication needs but connected me to real-life through its colours. Then I bought a Nokia 6670. That connected me to my computer and I could read documents and listen to music. Then I bought an NGage. That kept me connected to my first love – games. Then I purchased a N72 – which with GPRS, Good Music, FM radio, Camera and decent video – changed the whole concept of a phone. I was now connected to the whole world. But my world was limited by the capacity of the phone. Then came the N95 which with its huge memory ensured I had a bigger repository of songs than I could ever listen to in one sitting, that stayed connected to my memories through the images and videos I could store. What next? Has Nokia transcended all boundaries and connected me to everything I ever wanted to be connected to? Now I need something that not just connects me to the world but is also an extension of myself. Thus it is not a phone but my virtual self."

Our Team: Karan, Angshu, Me

Mowgli's Welcome - Part 2

2009-06-27T04:39:00.004+05:30

If you haven’t read this, read it first

The story so far: Mowgli comes to town chasing his dream. He flouts a few “rules” and is protected by the residents of the town, who take all the blame onto themselves in order to protect Mowgli. What Mowgli thought would be a very cool transition to the new town wasn’t a pleasant transformation anymore. And then...

The rift was widening by the day. The sessions meant to acclimatise Mowgli were shortened. (That the residents were busy with their political process was a fact not known to Mowgli.) One of these sessions, the sincere helpful residents who had decided to take up all the blame for Mowgli’s doings were banished from the town. The boiling point was reached... It never recovered from here. Mowgli had alienated more residents than he knew.

Meanwhile Mowgli did apply to the very important branding committee on insistence of the friendly guardian council. He was given few very strategic and important assignments which he earnestly completed. With the connectivity problems not helping, it was indeed a test of his gut and strength. He sourced information, woke up nights, but somehow, managed to finish his assignment and the council was indeed pleased by him. But the residents, they decided to vent their anger on him and the guardian council for want of someone to blame for the banishing of their fellows.

Around the same time, the Sun fell sic. His good work was about to be undone by others’ callous disregard to listen. And perturbed by the agendaless council meeting, he decided to withdraw, but then, giving in to the last minute nature of the process, decided to continue, though mellowed down. Things got back on track.

And it was the D-Day... It had to happen... Mowgli was good (or he thought he was) but one of his clan wasn’t careful enough. A leak happened. The guardian council read out the “actual” leak in front of all Mowgli’s clan. First the banished residents and now the leak... The brand of the town would have been tarnished forever. All Mowgli could was hang his head in shame and walk out of the sanctum sanctorum through the hallowed portals for his absolution. His path was lit by light of righteousness. His lone walk ended in front of his residence where he decided to take his oath – the oath that had been taken by his ancestors – the oath that would hence redefine his existence. The skies opened up and washed Mowgli and his clan of all his sins. He was now an official member of the town.

Mowgli's welcomed - Part 1

2009-06-26T22:21:00.003+05:30

Disambiguation: For the benefit of the batch of 2009-11 and beyond, all further references will be hidden and/or disguised :)

It was the time of the year when anxiety rules on one end of the jungle and the fun of watching the anxiety on the other!!!

Mowgli was not new to the world, but this one, he had never seen. Mowgli had always looked to the day when he would walk into this acclaimed town with the feeling of having tamed all but a few big and wild cats of the jungle. This he thought would be a new life – the life he had always waited for – the life of a know-it-all, the life of the master. And it was... well not exactly as he had thought it would be J

The first day, the earlier residents of this town called him and told him to get his other friends. The residents were sweet and looked caring. He was glad. Suddenly out of nowhere did the mast haathi – the Lord Ganesha come in and started uprooting the camaraderie that was built up. All that was required was a prayer song to the Lord Venki to make the rook trace back his steps. All the world’s a stage – said the Bard. All the lawn’s a pool said the master(ess) and Mowgli knew he had to keep swimming (in all possible ways) to stay afloat. And stay afloat he did. But then, how long could he do that!!! He could really feel the earth rising and swallowing him up.

To bring some order to the things fast going out of control – the Sun (no typo) was born... Yes The Sun – the centre of all gravitation – the bull’s eye of all cupid arrows. The prodigy took over the reins and organised basic survival workshops for Mowgli and his clan. His was a small court – just one “sweet” hulk with the face of the god himself drinking coke relaxing on a bed of petals.

Mowgli was glad. He was learning the life of the town. Though sometimes he did wish he was back in the jungle. The will to survive overpowered the need to sleep and soon everything seemed alright. Meanwhile, the other residents did try to catch up with Mowgli’s clan. Soon the residents knew more about the clan than the clan itself. The pure netizen climbed the summit of helpfulness, and unmindful of the gag imposed by the town council, reached out to Mowgli and his clan.

All was soon gonna change. The goat was being readied for the grand feast – the catch being that it wouldn’t be able to enjoy the feast that he thought he was looking forward to. Little did Mowgli know that he had to stay away from the worldly pleasures he had once enjoyed in the forest. This was no forest and there were rules. The earlier residents decided to save Mowgli from the guardians and take it all upon themselves but the rift was created. Would life ever be the same again for Mowgli? Keep watching...

Why Am I Not an Alien!!!

2009-06-21T21:10:00.003+05:30

Somehow, this post missed getting published... It has stayed in my drafts for long now and wants to see the light of publication...

Wants and wishes – the two human traits that I could surely have done without. Many of my friends say I’m an alien – not human – why am I not an alien!!! Why are they not correct!!! Why do I wish? Even if I do, why do I not wish for things that are more achievable like being the President of India, like earning a pay-check the size of India’s GDP or even say building my rooftop garden with palm trees dropping mangoes on the 9th moon of planet BCD-996 revolving around Alpha Unknownus in the galaxy Unreachabilus. I wish for things that are beyond what is termed ‘possible’ – a good friend for example.

Why am I writing this – well, something that helps when I have no one to turn to – when everyone else believes he’s got more important things than keeping up a promise – when these simple wishes of mine overpower me and cause me to think I better be an alien – not that with every passing instant I’m not becoming one. It starts with a simple NO and soon enough those also stop coming and I assume them anyways. Very soon I’ll have green ears which do not hear anything, green eyes which do not see the part of the world they do not want to and the brain which works only in cases where 2+2 = 4 and not when to bring two 2's together there are other 1s required – and heart – well it better not exist!!!

I Love "Love Stories"

2009-06-10T09:15:00.003+05:30

And I read another book – looks like my frequency of reading books has improved – quite a bit at that. Compare 3 books in four years (during engineering) to 4 books in a year (since passing out of engineering). I generally kinda like all books which have a decent paced storyline or flow of thought. I hate books which expand and elaborate beyond my liking, Tolkien, for example. No wonder Dan Brown and Jeff Archer find themselves on my favourite list (not that it is a very illustrative list which they would be proud to be on). Anyways coming to the book...

It’s called “Anything for you, ma’am” and tagged – “an IITian’s love story”. Tushar Raheja, an IITDian of 2006 has more created a Hindi movie plot than written a book. – And must I say, a good one too (Do IITians even study engineering – first Chetan Bhagat and now Tushar Raheja!!!).

The initial plot seems a tad confusing – jumping timelines – flashbacks. And but for the chapter names stating the month in the timeline, I’d have really lost myself (Now I’m no voracious reader and have to make some effort to recall characters in books – nothing strange for me to get lost). But yes, Tushar does pack it with a lot of humour and IITD lingo that makes these jumps no less fun.

Pappi’s character is really colourful – the otherwise really nice surd who can be rough too when he sets out to it. Tejas, the gallant lover who will and does travel across the length of the country to get his first kiss, creating plots and schemes that would match the best Bollywood screenplays. Shreya, the so well painted picture of the simple Indian girl who can easily be the girl of everyone’s dreams (which guy doesn’t dream of a girl who doesn’t make him spend in 5-stars!!!). The friends of Tejas and the family – most of all the understanding and loving didi – I never had one and now wish I had (but then, I never had a “Shreya” either, and now I wish I had ). Those are pretty much the important characters in the plot – oh yes there is the khadoos old-fashioned - “Love? WTF!!!” - Chennai-dad who will start everything with a pooja.

The plot is fast paced and filled with humour and views of Tushar. Dunno why he interjected it with attempts at elaboration and elongation!!! Frankly, I hardly paid attention to his songs (Oh yes, there is a song for every occasion). I’d have gone into the details of the story but will refrain for the benefit of those who haven’t read the book and have stumbled here. There are some really funny moments and also few which will make you stand up and pull your hair out screaming, “WOW, Brilliant!!!”. The ending is the most beautiful part – the romantic setting created for Tejas by his new-found friend (Raju Bhaiya) on the serene sand of the Chennai beach, amidst the crashing waves under the blue sky.

“I looked into her eyes; eyes that said so much. She closed them as I brought my lips close to hers and touched them. The wind, the waves, the sky, the day, had all ceased to exist.”

Netherlands Stun England!!!

2009-06-06T01:32:00.004+05:30

In the first match of the Twenty20 World Cup, we have a upset. The minnows have beaten the hosts England. England were going fine till the over ten, reaching 90. But then on it was a downward slide as Holland clawed their way back and restricted England to a very manageable 160 odd runs. Grooth and Borren led the Dutch chase as they chased down the English total in a nail-biting last-ball finish... England, more than anything were let down by their fielding. The English had many chances but couldn't get a direct hit on the stumps. It was a fitting finish that the Dutch won the match on an overthrow!!! My man-of-the-match: Grooth.

I just read a satirical on Cricinfo stating that India and Scotland would be in the finals. with Scotland having a slight edge. That doesn't seem so satirical anymore...

Microsoft Does It Again...

2009-06-05T20:29:00.004+05:30

I just downloaded the Vista Service Pack 2. And guess what, it comes with an add-on to FireFox!!! I hated IE and switched over to FireFox and now this MS encroachment to Firefox... And that is not it – U can’t even uninstall this from your Firefox!!!

I generally support MS for all it does in making computing easy and accessible to all. Ya Ya.. LINUX groups will jump onto this statement saying Linux is better blah blah... I could never manage that (and I’m not a computer illiterate). I love the way MS gives me easy ways of doing things... who cares if I have that control on my comp or not. I don’t want the control that LINUX users promise – I want the ease that MS promises.... But things like these are what irritate me. Why shud it install something into Firefox which is not even its own!!! Do whatever you want with windows application but leave the others alone. Other than Office, I rarely use any other windows application... and I kinda prefer it that way. I dunno what the functionalities of this add-on are... I’m yet searching for that... If anyone’s got a clue, please post it over...

Its all in the head...

2009-06-01T19:27:00.004+05:30

It’s the tough of the heart who win games, sets and matches. Tommy Hass was well on his way to another upset in the French Open (after Nadal’s shock defeat yesterday). Two sets to nil up, he was tied at in the third set. And just then, he went up 40-30 on Fedex serve. Break point at this stage was as good as the Match Point. He sent it wide... And that one point changed the direction of the whole match. He lost the set 6-4 and the next set all Fedex had to do was to send the ball over the net and in the court. Hass sprayed it all over the court. It was two sets apiece now. Tommy Haas found some glimpses of brilliance that he had displayed to win the first two sets. Suddenly, faced with a break-point, Haas cracked. The game was Federer’s. Not just that game, Federer sent three aces down in the next game to win the game at 40-0. And by the next game, Haas had all but given up. He lost the next game again at nought. Fedex keeps his career slam opportunity open. Federer was not at his best today – but all it took for Haas to stumble to defeat from the brink of history was one point and it was then that he had lost it in his head. On the court, it was a mere formality... Result: Federer wins in five sets after being down in the first two and reaches the quaterfinal.

P.S.: The crowd may not realise it, but just as they celebrate the Fedex victory, 228 of their family is missing in AF 447. My heart goes out to the families. Being lost in an airplane crash is the worst that can happen – the status of the person can never be confirmed. Did the plane crash? Did anyone survive? Are they out there waiting for help? Are we looking in the right areas? Can they contact us somehow? How do we tell them to hold and that help is on its way?

And Finally... The end of an era...

2009-06-01T13:17:00.010+05:30

Was just bored and saw the TVC of Nirma. A search on youtube finally gave me the link.. (its not easy to find)
But, finally – the TVC that defined jingles and brand association has been replaced its new high-tech version. The new TVC is colourful and is a huge shift from the whiteness platform that the earlier ad positioned itself on. This ad is replete with colours and flowing clothes probably depicting the quality of the fabric. Dunno what the underwater nature of this ad symbolises though... any suggestions?

The New Commercial

Whatever, I like the ad – though I miss the old jingle... Who can forget the evergreen line from the commercial

Hema, Rekha, Jaya aur Sushma... Sabki Pasand Nirma. Washing powder Nirma

Simple things...

2009-05-31T16:06:00.001+05:30

It’s amazing how simple things mean so much more than elaborate arrangements. This, I write as I watch the clip of the “Saturnalia Miracle” over and over again (the iTunes count says 21) – reminiscing how, over the past one year, have I found joys in the most simple and unnoticed of gestures. A plain old simple hug means so much that it can surpass the combined value of all those baskets of goodies. A plain simple word would of goodwill, of love would mean so much more!!! The more I watch “The Big Bang Theory”, the more I feel, I’ve so much in common with Sheldon. I’ve always pondered over what to gift my friends on special occasions and often can’t come up with anything... How sheepishly I ponder over what gift is worthy of the feeling that I actually want to display. I never even know what to write on a greeting card – once I start writing, the words never stop coming – I could well write novels on that greeting card when all I wanted to say was “sorry” or a simple “thank you”.

P.S.: The best dialogue of this episode (or in fact many many others)

Penny: He came into the restaurant. Sorry the napkin’s dirty; he wiped his mouth with it
Sheldon: I possess the DNA of Leonard Nimoy
Penny: Ya, Ya, I guess. But look he’s signed it.
Sheldon: Do you realise what this means? All I need is a healthy ovum and I can grow my own Leonard Nimoy.
[I mean, WOW... Where does someone get an idea that geeky!!!]
Penny: Ok. All I’m giving you is the napkin, Sheldon

99% Success is a Failure Grade

2009-05-27T01:19:00.003+05:30

Or so, it was said of surgery and military. Very soon it'll be true of education too!!!

Just today I was seeing a news piece - 90% in CBSE is considered average!!! When I cleared CBSE X (2002), 90% was considered very good. This time, students of my alma mater, 15 students got >90% (out of 30 odd students). Goes to show that to match the standards of state boards, CBSE standards have fell!!!

So what students now have is less syllabus but they still don't learn or understand anything. Its just become easier for them to cram up - there's less syllabus. Basics, well the "Question Banks" are the basic. I know of students who hadn't even read the prescribed Text-books but managed 95%. Few years back the government proclaimed that the text-books would include more basic stuff (when the actual motive was undoing what the previous government had changed in the text-books). The argument that going back to basic in education will help falls flat in an atmosphere where understanding matters far less than the score achieved (which btw, doesn't require understanding because of the question banks and the "sample papers" released by the board). Did the easing of syllabus lead to the child being more active in other fields? NO. Did it aid anyone? NO.

CBSE started off with a good initiative of declaring the grade and not rank. I feel that should be extended to doing away with scores at all. When 90% = 95% (I really feel it is), the kid will probably try to understand more because he anyways can't get better than an A+. If not that, at least he'll spend his time not cramming up question banks but for some other interest or hobby.

High time students, parents and the boards realised that the grades and marks are all but one and must I say, unimportant part of the education the child receives. More important is what he learnt from it. Anyone can identify pictures of different strokes in swimming and score a cent percent but when at sea, the only stroke that'll work is what can make you survive till help is at hand.

French Open: Rafael Nadal in PINK

2009-05-25T18:31:00.011+05:30

That he is no less male was demonstrated through his shots and the ultimate scoreboard (7-5, 6-4, 6-3) in the opening round against Brazilian Marcos Daniel but still PINK!!! And it was no manly pink... It was no Mauve or anything but PINK... He may call it "Light Rose" or whatever... but as Phoebe puts it many times in her typical tone "po-tay-to po-tah-to", its PINK after all...

Now if Federer can't make his trademark shots and ends up losing to Nadal, he can surely make an excuse of courtesy or even better, distraction!! We can bid goodbye to the trademark bright green - hope it is not the case with the brilliant tennis he plays along with it.

Yup, the pic on the right is his colour this French Open...

P.S.: The latest score - Federer Lost his serve in the opening game and trails 0-2.... OK no, not to Nadal :)

The heat was definitely ON...

2009-05-25T00:25:00.005+05:30

“The heat was definitely ON...” -- President of South Africa on the IPL.

And once again Lalit Modi shows that he is indeed the best thing that happened to Indian Cricket since Jagmohan Dalmiya’s commercialisation. When the country refused to provide the IPL the security that it needed and requested, an ad hoc plan to shift the whole tournament to South Africa was required and within days,, he shifted the whole event to the rainbow nation. In his own words, “To relocate an event of this magnitude to another continent in less than four weeks is simply mind-boggling.”

I was glad I was in Bombay for my internship, thus allowing me to watch the matches on television each night – also once on the big screen at Juhu Mocha! Saddened though I was on seeing tears on the ever-so-bubbly dimpled face of the pretty Preity, I couldn’t wonder at how the South African nation stands to benefit from the IPL. Four weeks ago, as they wondered if they were ready to host the biggest event in their short history – the FIFA World Cup 2010, Lalit Modi provided them with the best dress-rehearsal there could be. With exactly 50 weeks before the first match is played, South Africa can sure claim to be the right place for the FIFA World CUP.

And not just that, the economic benefits far outweighed the troubles this huge logistical nightmare brought to South Africa. 35 days of cricket – around 30-40 staff for each team, reporters, sponsors, crickets officials, the media, the organisers and the fans – all in all we sure are looking at five-star bookings tops 10k hotel days. Add to that the travel that these people had to do – the airline tickets itself would be huge economic boost to the nation. Add to that the tourism benefits – the safari packages, the SOTC tours et al. Even the simplistic of things like the roaming charges on cellphone!!! The President put the economic activity at 1 billion rand!!!

Lest I forget, let me also mention the indirect economic activity this would bring to the nation – the goodwill that it will generate internationally. The IPL has put a cross-mark on the international event-managers’ radars. And now the South Africans can sure brag of hosting huge international events and surge on their preparations for the Confederations Cup – 2009 and the most watched television extravaganza – the FIFA World CUP beginning on June 11th, 2010.

All in all – the grandest party of the year for the South Africans will bring in more than just the fun and excitement it promised...

Now waiting for FIFA 2010...

P.S: What filled my heart with pride and gave me goosebumps – The closing ceremony – the beautiful instrumental played – guess the tune – vaishnav jan... Gandhi will never be forgotten in this foreign land even if he is ridiculed in his own nation...

P.S2: If you missed the closing ceremony, you surely should see the re-telecast. Though I din't understand the local songs (obviously, or may be they were English but I din't listen), the lights, colours and fire made it worth every second. Sydney 2000 wasn't as good!!!

P.S3: If you are wondering what the "army man" sung before the beautiful fireworks display - click here. It is a beautiful song by Eddy Grant.

#1: Did u know...

2009-05-24T04:05:00.004+05:30

I thot the Sri Lankan cricketers had longish names - wait till u see this...
Who is the IPL cricketer with the initials LRPLT?
Luteru Ross Poutoa Lote Taylor, RCB (New Zealand)

P.S.: Looking for other long names: Click Here

BJP: Gear up for 2019

2009-05-23T03:17:00.010+05:30

The verdict is out – it is a mandate for the Congress led UPA government. PM Dr. Singh becomes the second PM after Pandit Nehru to return to office with a clear mandate. With the Left not shackling it and now DMK out too, the Congress cannot blame anyone but itself if it fails to deliver what the alliance promises to – progress. Mind you, I’m no Congressman, but when it comes to a stable dynastic government versus an unstable democratic government, I’d rather prefer a dynastic government. I do agree Advaniji would be a strong PM but with allies like Mayawati and Jayalalitha to keep the alliance under a continuous threat of collapse over trivial issues like the Left did to the UPA, I'd rather have Sonia-Rahul dictate terms to a "weak" Manmohan Singh.

And in what may seem quite contrary to my views earlier, I kinda liked the “non-congress’ised Rahul Gandhi. While Sonia may have become the AICC and the UPA chief due to the dynasty, Rahul wants to establish himself through the route an “aam aadmi” would take – the route of toil and hard work. That, even the staunchest of opponents will observe, he does. His "Discover of India" tour was well publicised though did not really yield instant results for the Congress. When Rahul Gandhi came to the scene initially, he was being looked upon as the bearer of bad luck. Whichever state he went to, the Congress lost it. And not all was because of the opposition’s good performance. Few statements made by Rahul Gandhi were rebuked by the BJP and few of them simply showed Congress in bad light. But at least he was true to himself and the country - he was a "naive" politician!!! One thing that he did well for the congress was to recruit the youth to the congress. Byre Gowda contested against the might of Ananth Kumar in Bangalore. That in itself shows the strength the youth Congress has accumulated. And clearly, a lot of credit should go to Rahul. But now that he has been "Congress"ised, will he remain that focussed on actually achieving improvement and development – both for the Congress and the country – is a question that time will answer. For now, looks like, I will give him the benefit of the doubt.

In a situation where the DMK even quit the government because the low performing ministers were not acceptable to the PM, Rahul declined to take up any portfolio – not that he would surely do a good job – that does speak volumes about the PM-in-Waiting. As the infighting in the BJP ranks erupts, even threatening to burn up the party’s loyal base of the RSS and the VHP ranks, here’s just a suggestion for them – look for an heir who will lead you in 2019. 2014 will surely be the congress sweep in the Parliament – Rahul surely will not lose his first election as the PM-to-be and I sure believe he'll be ready for the top job by then (Though few experts do feel Rahul wouldn't do good by being so and I agree that very well can be the case)

The Autowala Wisdom

2009-05-22T13:16:00.005+05:30

Do you think the intelligent people come out of the best B-Schools in the country? Well, intelligent they may be but they all they can be attributed to are the recessions and the crashes – what comes out of the hawker and the autowala is wisdom that works!!!

I was travelling from Andheri to Bandra in a rickshaw. I saw a congress board thanking the loyal Bombay junta for their votes. The autowala remarked uninstigated– "पहले election पे इतना पैसा waste किया – अब thank you बोलने पे करेगा यह politician लोग." That was the conversation I was looking for – and it started. From how the politicians “work” to how it affects the “Aam Aadmi”. We talked on similar things and I din’t know I had reached Linking Road.

Wait for it...

Yes, it was then that the autowala delivered a timeless piece of wisdom – “साहिब जानते हैं, काम तो सभी एक ही करते हैं. Congress हो या शिव सेना, बारिश के मौसम में flood रुकने वाला नहीं है. But कोई भी government हो बड़ी margin से जीतनी चाहिए. हमको तो बस stable लंबा government मांगता है.”

I was like, “Wow, how would a stable government affect this petty driver?”

He continued, “अब यह देखो, मैं चार भाई लोग है. दो Congress के साथ है. एक भाई और उसकी बीवी शिव सेना के साथ है. election जो भी जीते पैसा तो मिलता ही है अपने को. जितना बड़ा margin, उतना बड़ा पैसा. और जब government रहेगा तो भी पैसा आता रहेगा. अब जो भी जीते, पैसा तो अपने फॅमिली को मिलता है।”

Now that is a very intelligent Driver!!!

Why Doesn't India Vote?

2009-05-14T14:59:00.006+05:30

(TIME Cover: March the 2nd, 1992)

Consider this:
The voter of West Bengal voted for the Congress thinking they were sick of the Left and could, in no way, stand a Left Rule at the centre. But after the elections, the Left is back in power. Similar situation exists in Kerala too.

The voter of Bihar votes for the good governance of Nitish and against Laloo. Elections gone and Laloo is back in power. After all, the Fourth Front gives the UPA the all important 30 seats at the centre.

The voter of AP din’t like the rule of the BJP+ and votes his ally out of power – the ally fights without the BJP – the voter is happy – the ally goes back to BJP – and if it was not bad enough, both are back in power. Wow!!!

The voter of Rampur is essentially wasting time – whoever wins, the government remains the same. The situation in the whole of UP is the same – the voter doesn’t know who and why did he vote for.

Do the political parties have a few ideological allies and foes - they don't even have an ideology. What do we vote for? They ask the voter to be informed - the manifestos of the BJP and the Congress are mere mutations of the same thought. Who do you vote for? The manifestos exist but the practice and implementation, that doesn't even exist on paper. Then they crib over people not voting and worse still, talk of making voting mandatory.

I wish to vote but haven't been able to because of many reasons - and I'm not the only one at fault - you can't blame me for not having a Voter ID if it takes more time for a voter ID to get prepared than my stay at the place.. {It took the administration more than a year to register me for a vote - by then it was time for me to move to a new location} Actually now that I think of it, even if I could, would I? Till the time that accountability and stability is made an important part of the Indian Democratic system, I don't really know if my vote actually makes a difference. For all I know, it might lead to the worsening of the nation due to a post-poll alliance that I hadn't thought of.

To quote advani:"Manmohan Singh holds office but has no authority, while the person who wields the authority has no accountability." I ask Advaniji, if he is unable to get the black money from the Swiss Banks within the promised 100 days, will he resign and ask Rahul Gandhi to implement his 100-day plan? If he states on record and follows this, I promise never to vote for anyone but the BJP. Till then, whenever I get my vote registered and, I shall vote. कर्मन्येवाधिकार्स्ते मा फलेषु कदाचन।

India Voted for....

2009-05-08T11:30:00.002+05:30

Now that the elections are over and the whole nation waits for the results, lets work out scenarios and see what will become of India post-elections...

If Congress comes to power:

Bofors scam pushed under carpet for yet another five years, Quattrochi made honorary member of Rajya Sabha through a special ordinance and then honorary defense advisor
Few more Indira XXXX Yojana and Jawaharlal Nehru YYYY Programme
Setting up of n new IITs and n/2 new IIMs where N = number of states where congress is in power ==> If he is an IITian, so am I... so am I... and so am I...

If BJP comes to power:

No more “Sonia Ji” speeches from Modi
Khakhi shorts declared the uniform of all national government machineries
Nationalisation of education and educational institutes
- New Masters Courses in Palmistry, Tarot Reading, Parrot training

If Left comes to power:

IPO of CITU – sure to be oversubscribed 70 times on Sensex (reliance power was 69 times)
Reinvestment in all sick private units functioning at below 40% utilization to create more jobs and more unions – after all private companies are way under-populated

If Mayawati becomes PM:

2% Reservation for all “upper castes”
Fake caste certificates legalised. Rates nationalised at 10% declared annual income

Reflections - Part III (Term 3 @ XL)

2009-05-05T17:34:00.005+05:30

Dear Blog,
Click to read Term 1 and Term 2

The third term, the end of the first year, the term where you suddenly realised you are alone in the college without the seniors to guide you at every step, where realise you will soon stop being a student and start being a manager, was, for me, a mixture of both achievements and failures, promises kept and vows broken.

The travel did not, at all, augur well for a good third term at XL... it was hectic from the start and running train experience was indeed a new one – though I must say, exhilarating one too.

If I thought, the term was more eventful at the beginning compared to the last term, the near-end events were beyond the usual definition of “eventful”. XLRI sure was a happening place!!!

It started with a lot of firsts for me – the first dance class, the first CV point, the first bunk and proxy and a few more... The first dance lesson (I guess it was Salsa) was something I would remember for more reasons than one. Then started the chain of events that reminded me of the classic line by William Davies’,

What is this life if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.
No time to stand beneath the boughs...

Starting with the formation of Team Services – the vow taken to repay in kind all the help that we extracted out of the seniors – the vow taken not to rest till each one of them was placed – the vow taken to not complain of missed classes for something more important than any grade was at stake. And successful the vow was.

Simultaneous was the formation of the Maxi Admin Team for the Maxi Fair – by far the grandest event in XL in terms of student participation. Meetings through the night and door-to-door selling through the day. The whole junior batch prepared for keeping up a 30-yr old tradition of excellence. And successful the effort was.

No, it did not go by without a sad thought – I missed my first graduation ceremony– for the fiercest rivalry known to B-Schools in the India – the legendary XL-IIMC meet. I so wanted to be there but there were responsibilities – not just of the meet but also the vows taken. Forever shall I remain “unconvocated”.

The Valentine’s Day passed without a thought about it – it was the day of reckoning – it was Day ZERO. The scene wasn’t too good but did we say we were giving up!!! The fight would go on – right up to the last man standing. We were battling the worst nightmare of a B-Schooler – the worst crisis of the century – on and on it went – for a good long 74 days - and we would be victorious.

Unfortunately the battle was not the lone battle I was involved in – the academic battle was far from over!!! By no means was this an easy term. There was the “Research” and the “Operation” though hardly any “Production” – even Strategic reproduction was hampered due to the slower net speeds and the other battlefront engaged in a full scale war!!! As usual, before I knew what hit me, the End-Terms were overhead. Thanks to my group-mates, many of my projects were completed in time and that left me with the only worry of eliminating the ghosts of the exams – which I must say has never been my forte.

Learnings from the past term:

The grass is greener on the other side but what is the other side!!!
Naive ain’t useless – it is the only thing that works. Any other forecast will turn out to be too complicated for the uncomplicated market.
If you can’t explain it, match it to some unknown factor. If you can’t match it, redefine it – all economic theories are based on this simple funda.
What do managers do – Strategise – aka hold long closed door meetings – to decide crucial issues like whether the grass looks better dark green or light.
What worked in 1950 works now!!! You can’t work it out??? Well.... you dint study in class 6th and 7th, why sob now...
If you can’t do it, ask your virtual self to do it...
And once again, never the least of all, friends are your biggest assets. Once a while they may promise you a toy and forget, once a while they may make you feel small enough to drown in little drops of water but more often than not, they will be the balancing figure to match-up your balance-sheets. No inequation with friends can be solved as their shadow price is simply infinity. Their importance is a exponentially increasing curve with alpha>1... To all ye friends...

TGIF!!!

2009-04-24T16:58:00.006+05:30

Dear Blog

For the first time, I know what this means... in its true sense :)

The first week where I actually worked - cracked my heads over subjective issues... Now I feel tired - more like exhausted!!! Though my job included a lot of pondering over things and not actually working, it was tiring. Now that it is 5 pm, I'm desperately waiting for the clock to turn faster. I'm waiting for the remaining 30 mins to pass quickly.

Not like I have the weekend completely planned. I do plan to meet up people (some of them after planning but being unable to last week). I do plan to see more of Bombay and use my new monthly train pass to the maximum. I do plan to relax a while too...

For the first time, I'm so looking forward to the weekend and can sigh and say aloud - Thank Goodness Its Friday!!!

2009-04-23T11:15:00.001+05:30

On the Back of a taxi -

Dear Fellow Citizens!
The Country Looks up to you again...
Perform your duty... Think and Vote!

A mind-numbing experience...

2009-04-22T09:02:00.005+05:30

Dear Blog,

I was returning from work. Yet another normal day at office it was... I got down from the bus and saw a juice shop. It was a hot and sultry evening and decided one glass would do me good and ordered one large glass for me. Just then, a beggar boy came there - almost crying - said aloud – भैया दो रुपये दे दो. भूख लगी है. The shopkeeper, sensing my discomfort shooed the guy away (not the PC way). The boy went away but he didn’t go from my mind. There was something in his eyes that held me.

Now I have heard a lot about the beggary nexus of Mumbai and how kids are tortured to begging and how the beggars network to make money! Something struck me. The boy – barely 10 – roamed the streets the whole day barefoot and asked for Rs.2 from me. Accepted he didn’t give me any direct service or product but that didn’t mean he wasn’t tired – that he didn’t need food – that he dint wish it was him who was having the cool juice. He worked the afternoon – probably more than me and asked for Rs.2 in return. I do not like to support beggary – but that’s because I’ve been asked not to and this was one area where I somehow never questioned the orders – an area where the rebel Puneet did accept. But now I questioned it... The beggar had already moved on. I too did...

But not for long... I reached my room and switched on the IPL – The Kings were losing yet again – but my mind was far from pretty Preity. I just couldn’t get the boy out of my head and decided I needed more info. I walked back to the juice shop – the guy was there asking another guy for Rs. 2. I asked the boy what he would do with the money – he said he’d buy a vadapav for food. The shopkeeper suggested I forget the matter in his typical mumbaiah – “इन सबको भाव नहीं देने का” accent... I decided I wasn’t gonna give him money but I could also not leave him. I retraced a few steps and found my regular bananawala there. Bought 3 of them for Rs.5 (I only had Rs. 10 change and I had other plans for the Rs 5). I went into the shop just behind – the shopkeeper knew what I was doing – he uttered some profanities against the street urchins but I was not listening today. I asked the shop what he’d give for Rs.5. He gave me a Vadapav. I went back to the juice shop - the boy was still there. I gave him the bananas and the Vadapav. The Juicewala and the boy, both looked at me in surprise and probably even suspicion but I guess the boy was really hungry. He took the first banana and ate it off in a blink. Next took the vadapav and thanking me, ate that too. I do not know if he needed that vadapav despite his “network” but for me, it was the vadapav that told me that the boy (and others of his kind) do desire – unfulfilled but earthly desires – those which we take for granted – those we ridicule – those that form the very basis of their livelihood and what we call “nutrition”. For them, its plain and simple - "Survival".

I know its better to teach a man to fish rather than give him a fish - but what does he fish for!!! In a world full of fishermen waiting in the lines, who will allow him to fish???

Torangallu to Bombay

2009-04-21T09:09:00.003+05:30

Dear Blog

Its been a long time coming... Not due to nothing happening but due unavailability of the net... Oh how inaccessibility can paralyse u!!! Anyways, it hasn’t stopped me from writing and i shall post what I’ve written on sheets.

I travelled from my place to the city of dreams – Bombay in train. Luckily for my habit of reaching the station well in time, I was able to catch the train despite some misinformation on the train timings (it had been preponed by 15 mins). Another ominous sign followed – Laptop charger!!! When things start to go wrong they really do. As can be expected, this wasn’t gonna be the last of my worries. I had a general ticket but the general bogie was really crowded. I, with my elephantine luggage could not get on, forget travelling. I got into a sleeper coach and had a “verbal go ahead” from the TTE (He did agree but not before pocketing a Rs. 50/- note, which I willingly gave). Then again, as always, there is that old unaccommodating old woman who just wouldn’t let you stand though you are in no way obstructing her. Thankfully, I reached Guntakal without any further hassles. A daunting realisation hit me as I descended on the crowded platform – I had to pass more than 3 hrs on that dead platform. This is where the things turned for the better. Thankfully (really can’t the author enough). I had the “Last Lecture” by Randy Pausch. Read the whole book in those three hrs and boarded the train to Bombay after a lone quiet dinner.

My copassengers included a professor, two IT engineers one PhD and two ladies who really had seen India. Now those who know me, will know how enjoyable my journey must have been. From current economic scenario to Laloo to travelling through India, we talked about anything and everything under the sun.

I reached Bombay and was brought to the well furnished room that I’m currently staying in. Hoping this good time continues into my days that will be my first ever paid assignment.

Little Drops...

2009-03-31T03:11:00.001+05:30

Little drops of water make the mighty ocean - Do I need one that big to sink into!!!

All's well that Ends Well...

2009-03-29T20:19:00.007+05:30

Finally it’s done... The feeling of wait is over – I’ll miss these days... Here’s a short list of wat I’ll miss:

First and foremost, meeting the seniors day-in-day-out. I know most of them may not remember any of us, and that we tracked each one of them through their arduous journey is a fact that not many will know or acknowledge.
Running behind one pparticularly sweet PCommer who kept forgetting things – most of aall, FOOD!!!
Getting stares and requests from the people in process and more often than not, fullfilling them to my content.
Calling up the FnB team at the most awkward of times to order for some really reallly awkward demands.
Calling up one non-V-Group V anytime I couldn’t find anyone to do a job!!!
Allotting companies and then realising the coordinator was not in town!!!
Cribbing about not being studying and sc#$%ing up OR test coz all others were busy with studying and couldn’t be there in the process.
Scolding up and threaatening PCom with non-cooperation when I myself cudn’t bring myself to in anyway endanger the process..

I dunno wat the official release says, but one thing’s for sure – it nevver can estimate the value of the joy of hearing the official release with a 100% result in these tiimes. I’ll miss waiting for this moment...

Free Democracy...

2009-03-24T14:05:00.003+05:30

Dear Blog,

It’s the election time once again. It’s the time for allegations and counter allegations to fly. Its time when the media – the essence of a free democracy – should play its most important role, that of bringing in news that matters, that of informing the voter about his candidate, that of helping him make an informed decision, that of making everyone realise how important it is to exercise his right to control the future of India.

I was just reading the news and reviews of Varun Gandhi’s “Hate Speech” and something just struck me. Why do we find that the congress can seldom find anything faulty in the opposition but being communal? I’m no supporter of BJP but given their past record, I’m forced to believe they do fight on issues – issues which affect the country. Talking of a Hindu-Raashtra is no doubt communal and condemnable but at least better than policy of minority appeasement. We as usual, do not learn from the history. The policy of appeasement has, in the very recent past, led to a world-war and another internal one is surely on the cards.

It is now that the Indian population is realising that the policy of appeasement remains at that – a policy. An earnest implementation will lead to erosion in the complete vote-bank of the appeasers. The inherent problem of the policy of appeasement is that the face of the appeased are benefitted and thus like the whole community to believe that they are benefitted by the policies which is far from truth. The inherent selfish nature of these privileged few ensures that the truth behind the sham of the policy is never brought to the fore.

Can we have an election where no sops are announced for any category of individuals? Can we have an election which just talks of improvements in the system through inclusive development and not through exclusive opportunities for a few? Can we have an election where the election commission need not intervene in matters of money-distribution and mutilation of a free and neutral democracy?

Legacy Costs...

2009-03-20T15:43:00.003+05:30

Dear Blog,

The culture, they say, is the biggest asset that any organisation can have. Yes, the culture, when it is started is the biggest asset but as with every long-term asset, it has its own depreciation rate. In a stark contrast to other accounting assets, culture is one asset that doesn’t depreciate to zero - it goes beyond that. It goes on to become a negative asset or a liability. The rate of depreciation then starts increasing and the liability of culture on the organisation starts increasing. It can go on to a point where the organisation becomes bankrupt just because of the strong culture that it had.

The rate of depreciation of the culture is higher if it is founded on principles of “information is power and must be preserved to derive competitive advantage”. Unfortunately, in an environment which is highly competitive, this principle is more fundamental to the existence of the organisation than any other. And this tenet of closed-door working philosophies lead to an environment which further speeds up these legacy costs.

It is these bankrupt conditions that prevent (when in fact they should promote) the efficient functioning of a change agent – an agent who looks to examine the conditions and precursors to the asset of culture being adopted and also if that baggage needs to be carried any longer. Any overhaul suggested is seen as tampering the sacrosanct liability accrued over years!!!

Looking to be the change agent...
PP

No, Not Yet...

2009-03-14T18:14:00.001+05:30

It was a long summer night,

And elongated it would be,

I saw a hope, a light,

Thought the sun would rise,

A voice said, "No, Not yet..."

I leaned an ear to my side,

To listen to a soothing voice,

I heard a chirp, I felt,

Thought my bird was back,

A voice said, "No, Not yet..."

I stretched all around,

For the touch I so longed,

I brushed a soft feather,

Thought I would be soothed,

A voice said, "No, Not yet..."

Given up, I cursed myself,

Forced a dreary me to smile,

Wanted back my ol' days,

The damned voice rang out loud,

"No, Not yet and never again..."

Mr. Wadvani V/S Mr. Sehru

2009-03-06T03:11:00.018+05:30

Disclaimer: Any similarities with any person (dead or alive) or event (past or future) is purely intentional.

It was a dark dreary night in Hindia. Mr. Batwarlal Sehru and Mr. LaKh Wadvani had set up office not far from each other. Both are looking to be the next Kautilya - the biggest office of profit in the Bindian Democracy. Our reporter Mr. Darkha Butt (DB) was there to report live – for the first time from temporally shifted but geographically connected locations.

DB (from outside Mr. S’s office): It’s a scurry of few people rushing in and out of the two offices. Two mins back a 60-yr young man rushed in with the news of successful distribution of the pamphlets in the Historiabad. Election manifestos have been read by the junta. A Digress victory seems imminent. The charisma of the leader will ensure victory. The vote bank is expected to swell following the successful implementation of the new dam project in the state. The voters are enthusiastic about the last 5-yr plan. Promises of jobs and food are seeming possible. Darkha Butt reporting (a)live from 1959.

DB (Outside Mr. W’s office): Since evening the pings have been coming... The 42" plasma-screen is abuzz with SPSS response-sheets from various constituencies of Futurpur. IT engineers are trying to create the information overload problem and ensure the voter knows just who to vote for. The CDs with the End-Voter agreement have been circulated. Media content is being offered for subscription fees through jTunes or dedicated large-capacity servers. No one has time to glance at the Ticker Election Manifesto. The windows-based ticker was hacked in the past hour by sleuths of Hon. Mayavidhi Trojan. Froogle Mad-sense has ensured the internet is flooded with Mr. Wadvani’s advertisements. Kinks to his blog and website are everywhere. Darkha Butt reporting live form Bin-City, Futurpur, 2009.

Studio: Thank you Darkha. Hum dekh rahe hain ki Mr. Sehru bhi technology ko use karne ki baat kar rahe hain. Mr. Wadvani apna agenda reset kar rahe hain. Voters, fundamentalism, aur money ke beech multiple regression ke result kuch hi der mein aane waale hain. Uske baare mein aapko kya jankari hai?

DB: Mr. Sehru scientific thinking ke lagte hain. Shayad is 50 saal mein agla 5-yr plan implement ho sake. Mr. Trojan ke successful hack ka result ummeedvaar batane se inkaar kar rahe hain but jaankar sources se humein pata chala hai ki Mr. Sehru apni constituency mein jeet rahe hain. Mr Wadvani apne agenda ki multiple copies ke saath press video-conference ke liye ready hain. Regression ke scenario analysis IT engineers na kar diya hai aur result aate hi voter mind corrupt karne ka suitable virus launch kar diya jayega. Back to you, Raazkeep.

A Toy Story: It Happened one day to me...

2009-02-24T19:06:00.004+05:30

It was a fine morning (or was it afternoon, I doubt). A very dear uncle of mine called on me (Yes, he called on me, after long, but for real) to inform me that he was coming... and with him I would get to meet a few friends he was getting for me to play with– plastic ones. It got me so worked up for the day. God, I so loved my uncle... who doesn’t love the uncle who gets toys!!! I dint tell anyone about uncle coming, lest he be seen as partial... someone who could come if it was for me and my toys but not otherwise.

The whole day I just thought about the toys that I’d be getting on the morrow. The whole day I felt so lucky to have got an uncle who loved me so much as to get me those wonderful toys that he was gonna get for me. My friends called me for a game in the evening but I couldn’t go – what if I got tired of the game and din’t have enough reserves left to play with my uncle when he came – oh sorry - “If” and when he came. They played my favourite game – the game I loved – the game I fought to play – the game I was never allowed to play but recently– but to hell with them – my uncle was far more important than any of their (or for that matter, my) games. I told them my friends I was tired – they understand.

The night approached. The anticipation grew. I checked up on my uncle to find if our plans were on – they were. The morning approached. The anticipation grew. I checked up on my uncle to see if our plans were on – they were – with a slight delay though. The noon approached. The anticipation was subdued. As the evening approached, I gave away all expectations. I don’t want any toys. I never wanted any toy. I never wanted any plastic friends to play with. What I surely didn’t want were the wax promises of those plastic friends. I know uncle will come... My dear uncle... My favourite uncle... My only uncle... Sometime... Sometime I'll play... With the plastic toys... With the wax promises... Sometime...

Its time now. Its time I stopped playing. Its time I stopped wishing I could play. Its time I stopped wishing.

Mathematical Model of a B-Schooler

2009-02-21T22:21:00.008+05:30

It was another boring and hectic night and the day. As I was getting bored to the point I was looking to the ceiling and making patterns of the blotches in white-wash, a slightly more interesting idea came to me. My next weird project, developing a "Mathematical model of participation and interest of a B-School class (Good idea to pass a term spl after learning to use SPSS) in the subjects over the term in particular and the program as a whole."

I hypothesize that it is a positively shifted exponentially decreasing absolute function with pulses of a decreasing amplitude and a linearly increasing time period, starting around a week and going onto a longer period of around a term.

Explanation: The shift is given to ensure that it always remains on the positive and appears lucrative to a non-B-Schooler. When the student enters the B-School, (s)he is full of enthusiasm and more so expectation. The initial momentum is squashed in the first few days when (s)he discovers that a B-School is not much different from the bachelors or the job he was doing - the same mundane task of searching for data and placing it into contexts which suit the preferences of the evaluator continues. The interest continues to decline rapidly at first. There are a few short bursts of interest whenever he sees some interesting assignments or projects. Then, as the deadlines close and he doesn’t find time to even think about the project until the morning (or at best, the night) of the submission, the decline continues. Thus, on a declining trend, ends the first term. The second term brings in new hope, though the magnitude is greatly diminished. Goes without saying, not much changes from the first term. The interest decreases and alarmingly, what decreases is the effort put in. The third term is where the realisation dawns that the whole exercise is futile. The peak of interest is also reduced. Well, this is the point where I lie currently. Low on interest and loyyer on effort. Lets see if the curve follows the hypothesised curve right upto the end of course or shows a deviation from the hypothesis.

The other side

2009-02-17T00:04:00.002+05:30

The grass is greener on the other side of the fence... Is it?

To make a short story long...

2009-02-16T12:05:00.005+05:30

Dear Blog,

It’s strange how the human mind works... It looks for meanings in nonsensical things and ignores the facts when they are glaring... It makes a mountain out of the mole-hill and ignores the oncoming deluge... It relinquishes the future to history and construes sagas out of simple statements...

One small line on Gtalk... One long story in the mind... A story conceptualised over time... A story scripted by fate... A story directed by the forces... A story depicted through hidden emotions... A story enacted through unsaid words... A story played by unnamed characters...

A story of grit... A story of sensitivity... A story of trust... A story of betrayal... A story of sacrifice... A story of selfish desires... A story of fake smiles... A story of tearful outbursts... A story of wax emotions... A story of stone-heartedness... A story of relentless effort to appease... A story of effortless denial... But above all that it seemed... A story of friendship...

Was it just another story??? No... It was more... A legend that went beyond the realm of a story... Into the realm of life...

2009-02-08T11:35:00.011+05:30

Dear Blog,

It’s been a loong week since I posted anythhing... Not that the earth and along with it, my life, stopped moving. Not that nothing noteworthy happened. Not that there was nothing I didn’t have an opiinion about. Just that in some cases, I didn’t find the time to do it and otherrs, I didn’t find the inspiraation to do it.

Well the usual stuff, new episodes of Lost, House MD, HIMYM, Heroes, TBBT, 2.5 Men, Chuck, Roadies 6.0 etc. got downloaded and watched, enlargement of the nominees' liist for the DCP awards continued, I bunked yet another classs, yet another week without mess dinner... Well they don't quite need mention... There were also a few things that neeed mention...

For starters, I missed the 6th annual convocation @ NITK. That means I’m still not an Engineer. Why did I not go? Multitude of reasons... First of which was the legendary historical 30th annual XL-IIMC sports meet. Secondly, when you are a SPOC of a placement support committee, hardly can u afford to not be in campus for a day, and when the process is preponed at short notice, more so. In short, according to Pauli Exclusion Principle, “I’m the unConvocated”.^{© Secy, ER, Joka}

And then the sports meet got postponed to a later date!!! All the bbuild-up surrounding it, the war hysteria built over three terms melted away in a matter of two eventful days.

Would that mean, the weekend was a forced holiday, a time I could gather myself up for the coming week, a time I could muster up few hours of peaceful sleep, a time I could not work??? Well, the admission letter of a B-School does come with an unwritten clause in the “Terms of Agreement” and the “Voluntary Disclosure”, “I hereby declare to not keep myself free from work for the time I’m on campus. Any infaarction on this stated rule can invite serious non-disciplinary, nevertheless, socially-impeaching and far reaching action. Leaving the campus without the explicit long-term term-brreak will constitute gross neglect of the workaholic clause.”

And thus, I spent the weekend, a weekend many students afforded to trespass the Workaholic Clause, planning and pondering over the coming week, a week that will surely leave me tattered and battered i.e. if at all I manage to not have my name in the Obituary section of the local Telegraph. Till then, serving aces, getting to score: Advantage XLRI...

P.S. Double Role Required...

Ignorance is Bliss...

2009-01-30T09:46:00.001+05:30

A wise ol’ man remarked: Ignorance is bliss. No more than today, do I realise why Thomas Gray remarked such.

It is so difficult to know something and not speak up. What when what you know is said by someone of someone, both of whom are your closest pals... What when the statement conveyed could alter things beyond a point of no return. What when, you wish you dint know what you know. What when this information is so critical that you feel you are committing a crime by keeping it yourself. What when this information is so confidential that relaying of this info is not just unethical but also unasked for... It is these moments that you realise the meaning of butterflies in the stomach – it’s so uneasy keeping quiet and so easy blurting out “secrets”, but once out, the situations could spiral out of control in lieu of the information leak. If the matters aren’t complicated enuf, there will always be this X-ray vision of the subject that every time you connect eye-to-eye, you avert them lest these be the window to your soul. And then begins the game of cat and mice till the time the mice are in the open and at peace with the cat or else the cat gives up looking for the mice. It is this game that I’ve now become an expert in and have been playing for the past few days...

Science is also "cool"

2009-01-28T02:19:00.004+05:30

After an intense, a true-to-my-heart post, I’m back to my miniscule musings. This is one of those posts, where I forget my originality principle and copy the basic theme.

Just another of my arbit searches... I stumbled onto this cartoon strip.

I’ve so often felt being the Science-Man and lost to the aqua dude and every time I end up asking myself, is it worth it? Shouldn’t I be more the Aquaman and be “cool”. Well it wudn’t take me long to be him but It wouldn’t be me. I love my identity. I love being the science dude – the guy who not just knows the “What”s but also wants to the know the “Why”s.

Ab koi khush ho ya ho khafa, Hum nahi badlenge apni adaa, samjhe na samjhe koi, Hum yahi kahenge – Hum to bhai jaise hain waise rahenge...

The Screamer

2009-01-26T16:30:00.005+05:30

I wonder if what I did was right
To let the heart go without a fight
But then, if it were to happen,
What better day than tonight

I’m an introspective person, actually more a retrospective person. I do things and think if they were right. I choose not to speak for fear of repercussions hold me back. But some day the dam was destined to break... And that it did.

It was always a monologue, my line
The feeling expressed was truly mine
As usual, in a moment it all changed
As usual, I pretended to be fine

I get involved in many-a-fights and many-an-arguments but this were not one of them. I just spoke the one damned line and it was over. What changed in that one line was something I did not know!!!

I’m quiet when they often say
I’m silent when it is not my way
For a moment I chose to speak
Fell back and see everything go away

I don’t talk of people, just to them. And it is not usual of me, but today I did. I spoke out. I fell back and saw it wither away... The one long arrow of words floating in mid air –interpreted in ways I did not want them to be.

Wonder if I lost at my own game
Wonder if it’ll ever be the same
I’m a blood-flesh human being
A body attached to my name

I so not wanted it this way but it was hot and steamy inside... the words were boiling... They needed escape. And that they did. The human, me, couldn’t hold it. The stimulus was there. But did they burn anything around it remained to be seen.

I ask for one more chance
Give me that one soft glance
The time shall turn backwards
It shall all be just one bad trance

How Bad Am I? Only as bad as I think I am...

2009-01-25T11:00:00.005+05:30

Wow, this week has been a series of firsts... At this rate, I'm sure gonna run out of new things to do... And yesterday was another first – My first western dance class...

Well, not that I’ve never gone to dance classes before, as a matter of fact, I have. Learnt Bharatnatyam for quite some time in secondary school but back then, it was by force. Yday was the first of my own accord and the difference was there to be seen. I loved every minute of it. The final story will remain that I cannot dance but then, it dint matter for the time that I attempted to do so :)

The cultural society in campus gave shape to what’s being planned for the past term – the dance classes. Hardly anything XL starts on time, this was no exception to the rule, but yeah, I’m yet to see so many people gather in time for the End-Term!!! The instructor is a cool chap from Calcutta with the typical Calcutta accent of Hindi and English.

We start off with Salsa... The basic movements – I think again – Am I in the right place? Should I be going through this? Did I put myself into a wrong position!!! I’m sure Popu, if he’s reading this, would have scoffed and rolled around at this idea of Pudunath attending Salsa!!! But then I look around, “Hey, not too bad. Guys do appear to come from the military school (OK thr’s one sailor who is different...)” After a lot of demos and unintended innuendos, we start on the music... performing the basic routine, shifting partners as we go by... It’s fun after all. Who cares (OK I don’t) if I’m not Michael Jackson on the moon... :)

To end the day, a fast step (ISDT or whatever it was called) sans couples... Attitude and fun combined.

Two more classes to go... First class realisation – How bad am I at dance – Only as bad as I think I am!!

P.S.: To all my partners: If I was too bad, Please excuse me :)

A day of few firsts...

2009-01-20T16:13:00.003+05:30

It was a day of two firsts – One negative and a few other positives.

The positives first... It was the second round of Nokia Coliseum, my first corporate presentation – a novice attempt, I must say. I generally have starting problems but today was also my first presentation to a packed hall and I did not stutter in the intro - Did I get the message across, I'm still waiting for someone to tell me tht!!!

The first round was a good success with the video getting a good number of hits on youtube and even getting rated in “top ten (#2)” of videos under the category “Education”!!! The second round, well the results are not out as yet, but according to me, the presentation did not exactly convey the preparation. I had done a lot of data mining to identify segments, their attractiveness and the touchpoints for potential N97 customers. These however were not clear from the presentation. There were a few other shortcomings and thanks to many reviews and suggestions by the seniors, I’m richer in experience if not the 5800!!! How much I appreciate a true critical remark! Win or lose, here comes my first CV point in XL ;-)

And now in one line the negative– I bunked class but was not absent for the first time in life!!!

Launching the DCP Awards...

2009-01-19T11:08:00.003+05:30

Dear All,

MBA is all turning waste to gold... or at least selling it as one. That requires a special talent which all MBAs develop over time. Some do that by being too technical and sweeping the other guy off his feet by a simple statement of unstated and often unknown facts. Many try to create qualities that don’t exist. A few small numbers actually try to tell the customer about the product and hope that the product is good enough. The most number however, manages the sale through special use of King’s English. And this is what most B-Schools teach (though unintentional and inadvertent) the best. With the emphasis on learning through classes, a huge window of opportunity opens up for the future managers to practice and hone their selected talented and methodology. This is what constituted class-participation at first... and later took the shape of DCP. But is doing DCP so easy?? Often many attempts go unnoticed. It is these attempts that I plan to capture and burn to memory and recognition. It is these efforts that will get rewarded.

Thus, I (in association with another classmate) announce the launch of the DCP almanac. On a post in late March, we shall have a collection of the DCP attempts and a vote shall decide the winner. Attractive prizes to be won ;).

Current Leaderboard:

Q. What happens when a person goes on sea in ship? Which law is applicable?
A.” The territorial boundaries of India extend upto 12 nautical miles.”
On Intel Strategy and brand repositioning: “It’s not about tangible things but about tangible and intangible things. After 20-25 yrs, no one would like to change their own name.”
On Satyam problem: “It is an extreme manifestation of the agency problem.”

P.S.: For non-XLers: DCP has been explained in one of the comments. Please read through

MAXImum Sales Experience...

2009-01-16T19:05:00.004+05:30

Another first...

It’s the oldest marketing research fair in India (or the world, I’m not so sure) and requires people to participate for its very existence. And for us to know that people are participating, we need to sell tickets to required people of specific socio-economic class... Now this is no easy task for reasons more than one... Why would anyone pay to be a part of a marketing research, ain’t it being treated like a guinea-pig!!! It’s a Sunday and there are a million other interesting things you could do. It is in one corner of the city which is hardly visited, let alone frequented, by anyone. What is in it for me, a small gift which I could surely do without!!! There is no celebrity endorsing... it’s just another small fest that students have to amuse themselves for a weekend. Its MBA students, the fair must also be for students, in short, I’ll just be the cliche square peg in the round hole.

Convincing them takes a lot of effort... Many cases we gotta tell them it’s not what they think it is. In many other cases, you gotta tell them it’s more than they think it is... In short, market the fair in its grandest form... create impressions that you want them to have; In some cases, correct the correct impression they have to the one you want them to have.

Anyways, what can be termed a not-so-good-not-so-bad type sale, we were able to sell 26 tickets in the specified SEC. Must I add, in a large measure, thanks to my (outspoken) good (looking) partner who used all the prior experience of door-to-door selling into today’s sales... ;)

P.S.: BTW my partner must have been pretty confused today... one lady saw a kid while a gentleman got offended when his wife was referred as ‘aunty’ remarking, "She is not as elder to you".

Scientification of Myth

2009-01-13T13:04:00.003+05:30

Uttarayan or Makar Sankranti is a festival celebrated all over India with fervour and uniformity matched by few other festivals. It signals the end of the winter crop season (Rabi crop). Harvest (wheat being the major crop in the North) is often started on this day across India.

However, as usual, I couldn’t take the festival name on face value. What is “Uttar” in Uttarayan? What comes to the North? When asked suddenly, any person vaguely connected to Gujarat, Punjab etc will say that it is the day the Sun travels and enters the Northern Hemisphere. And here we are not talking of ignorant ppl or even non-science grads... We are talking of science students, engineers of top institutes (IITs and NITs) and managers. What is wrong then? Does anything travel northwards?? (The stock market dealers will surely hope the northward growth is in the stocks ;) )

Wiki says it is the day the sun travels towards the north on the celestial sphere. But I thought, we were taught in class eight that the sun is over the Tropic of Capricorn on Dec 22nd (Winter Solstice). So by definition, the Sun travels north on every day after that. Why is it that we celebrate the “Uttar”ayan on Jan 14th? And, if the logic is that the sun enters the northern hemisphere on Jan 14th, it can’t be true as the sun only reaches the equator on the equinox, i.e., March 21st. Also, it cannot be said that the Sun travels northwards over India (it is majorly an Indian festival) as India lies completely in the Northern hemisphere and thus when the sun has not even crossed the equator, it cannot be over India. Then, sun travels to the north of what is the question that remains unanswered.

Ironically, while most Indian festivals are based on the lunar calendar, this is based on the solar calendar (few others include Vishwakarma Jayanti). I conclude that this festival is just another harvest festival and an attempt was made to give it a scientific meaning by the pundits (no disrespect meant). Of course, contradicting views with references are invited.

Well, for me it means a lot different, sans all the science and let’s say “Scientification” of myth... A day I get to eat rabdi and til... the eve celebrated as Lohri with a bonfire with typical bhangra around it. Few folk songs and a lot of fun...

Lohri ki khoob saari Badhaiyan :)

Looking forward to a good SPAXI dinner,

Of groups and MBA...

2009-01-11T19:43:00.004+05:30

Dear Blog,

It’s a part of every subject. It’s a part of being an MBA. It’s a part of working as a manager. It’s a part of being a social being. It’s a part of life. You cannot work alone... God created the man and then realised man’s identity could be harmful for the weaker, his mistakes, and the errors in the otherwise six-sigma universe. He then thought, “Let me create the need for social recognition, the need for affiliation.” Just to ensure his point was well hammered, he also created one Maslow and then a few OB teachers who taught man the importance of group work. And thus, individual pursuit of excellence was curbed to make way for group development.

All fine till now. But then, as with all other things, man took this noble intention to the extreme and decided he needed to build and enforce this group behaviour in every aspect of life and in MBA terms, part of every course evaluation. Thus were born groups and group assignments in management. With those groups came the complex group dynamics. Who forms the groups? Who takes the initiative and includes whom in the group? Including one person may not mean anything but saying no to anyone means doubting his capacities and what is more, it demonstrates your unwillingness to work with a friend if not your inability to work in a team. But including a person means alienating someone else who does not want to be with that person or in not-so-rare and not-so-extreme cases actually doubts him/her. And caught in this are those people who simply do not care what group they are in!!! Their sole objective is to ensure the best they can do individually, enrich the group that they are in and few cases, try to cover-up for the weaklings should there be any. This does not mean that they do not want to be with their favourite group (the concept of impartiality is slightly flawed by its very definition) but that they would be equally comfortable with anyone else...

Thankfully, despite all his efforts, God could not embed a culture of group discussions in humans and thus these were used as differentiating points for recruitment!!!

Waiting for a group-less course,
PP

Ambushed...

2009-01-11T02:04:00.012+05:30

I always wondered, "Why do companies go to B-Schools and release competitions which cost them large chunks of money and time?" I got my answer yday...

It was the break after the second term I was SACked one day. Nokia had a event Coliseum and selected B-Schools were invited to create a publicity concept and build thereon. The stage one involved building and briefly communicating the concept. As is so very usual, dint start working on it till the last day!!! Then a brief stroke of the creative genius in me appeared and we got the concept. My teammates (must say, much more capable in the field than me) developed the concept into a full-fledged opportunity for an advt.

Then started the work and I realised what the Bollywood missed, XL gained ;) One guy who Rocks On, balances Baddy, his Hep Job and the beautiful partner... He’s surely no less than a hero!!! None of us were accomplished in the area of video recording or editing, nevertheless we set on the mission of making an ad, however good or bad... It turned to be a very crude video with little or no editing (due to shortage of time). However, upto here was very routine and expected...

Then I uploaded the video after some techie stuff... Within the first 1 hour, the video had been seen 30+ times... Out of curiousity I checked wat others had done... And to my surprise, at least some 30-40 videos in the past hour were uploaded which concerned the Nokia N97!!! Ambush marketing at its best... Using B-Schoolers to run campaigns on youtube without letting them knw tht we were actually being used as the advt channel, also free of cost. Also, this ensured that N97 was shown and will be, in the coming few weeks to the perfect target segment – the young rich who have lots of income to spend... the ones who will graduate out of these famous B-Schools and immediately look to buying their first phone bought with their own money. A few of the videos I saw were actually brilliant (both concept and execution) and wud give the pros a run for their money. All-in-All, a very good marketing strategy by Nokia to give itself a very good pre-launch publicity...

My Video: Good Concept but not so good editing... obviously nokia, with all its professional setup, should be able to better it... We call the concept (click on the link to see the video):

Your Virtual Self

Duryodhan's Diary Found...

2009-01-06T23:33:00.007+05:30

Just discovered, the secret Diary of Duryodhana...

One day:

Everyone knows I’m the jack of all master of one... my favourite Gada. Acharya Drona, who I have the utmost respect for when it comes to teaching, has one folly. He has favourites. अगर आज अर्जुन ने बोला होता की मुझे चिडिया की आँख नही, हाथी की आँख दिख रही है, तब भी आचार्य द्रोण ने उसको ही पक्षी को मारने को बोला होता... “good... चिडिया हो या हाथी... तुम्हे सिर्फ़ आँख ही दिखनी चाहिए”

Another Day:

Today I invited, Yudhisthir to a game of chaupad... It was all fun till he became too possessive. I never knew Bhratashri was such a bad loser. People call him dharmaraj but today he proved them wrong. When he didn’t have anything to lose, he pledged his wife!!! Which devil would do that? I was shocked to hear that and thought he was kidding, but then he proceeded to play...

Yet Another Day:

Out of nowhere, भ्राताश्री has started asking for all kingdom to be declared his. इतने साल से मैं रखवाली कर रहा हूँ... Dad अंधे हैं पर एक दिन चैन से नही बैठे... हम 100 भाई दिन रात एक कर देते हैं पर प्रजा को complain का मौका नहीं देते... And आज suddenly... I’m sure इसके पीछे उस कृष्ण का हाथ है... पहले से पांडवो को ग़लत ग़लत पाठ पड़ता रहता था... पर वोह नही जानता की मेरे कारण ही उसकी द्वारका बची है... नही तो कब का attack हो चुका होता उसपे... खैर, talent की कमी नही है बन्दे में... try तो करेंगे उसे अपनी side लेने की... आ गया तो good...

And Yet Another Day:

Today, against all my wishes, I took to battle-field. Arjun में थोडी sense थी... उसे लगा की जो हो रहा है ग़लत है... but वोह कृष्ण फ़िर से बीच में आ गया... कुछ तो लम्बी लम्बी हांकी और अर्जुन ने agree कर लिया... साथ में युयुत्सु को भी पटा लिया... मैं तो बहुत बड़े धर्म संकट में हूँ... कैसे मारूँ अपने भाइयों को... Thankfully, आचार्य and पितामह हमारी side से ही लडेंगे... पितामह हमेशा बोलते हैं की वोह हस्तिनापुर की भलाई चाहते हैं... पर भ्राताश्री उनकी सुनते ही नहीं...

And another Yet Another Day:

आज फ़िर उस कृष्ण ने गड़बड़ की| पहले तो हमनें बहुत ही चतुराई से आज का युद्ध लड़ा... पहले अर्जुन को चक्रव्यूह से दूर ले के गए और फ़िर अभिमन्यु को घेर लिया... पांडव भी इतने कायर हैं की कोई आगे नहीं आया... एक बच्चे को भेज दिया| but last में, युद्ध के नियमो के against, जयद्रथ को मारा... Hypnotism से पहले sunset करवाया और फ़िर सूरज निकाल दिया... पूरा world धोखा खा सकता है... but मैं नहीं. इसके लिए कभी माफ़ नहीं कर सकूंगा कृष्ण को...

The semi-final entry:

अभी माताश्री ने बुलाया था... कृष्ण मिला रास्ते में. उसकी आंखों में वही पुराणी धूर्तता थी. भीम भी जानता है की मुझसे विजयी नहीं हो सकता... आज उसके हारने का दिन है. पर कृष्ण की चाल को कौन समझ सकता है!!! जो भी हो, मुझे अपना धर्म निभाना है, पाण्डवों ने यह युद्ध आरम्भ किया. आज मैं समाप्त करूंगा. धर्म की लडाई थी जो पाण्डवों ने अधर्म से लड़ी. आज मेरे 98 भाई मारे जा चुके हैं, पिताश्री हार मान चुके हैं, पर मैं कैसे छोड़ दूँ. हस्तिनापुर का भाग्य उन पाण्डवों के हाथ में नहीं छोड़ सकता. कृष्ण तो अपनी द्वारका का विनाश कर चुका है... न जाने द्वारका कब समुद्र में समां जाए!!! मैं अपना धर्म निभाऊँगा... धर्मराज को धर्म सिखाऊँगा...

The Final Entry:

मैं जानता था पांडव नहीं लड़ सकते धर्म की लडाई. मैनें हमेशा भला चाह और वोह!!! कृष्ण ने दुनिया को दिखा दिया की दुनिया में भगवान् नहीं हैं. राम चले गए और साथ ही उनकी मर्यादा भी. कहते हैं कलियुग आएगा, शायद यही शुरुआत है... अब कहानियाँ बनेंगी की सुयोधन ने यह किया वोह किया, सत्य हमेशा की तरह लाक्षाग्रह की लपटों में जल जायेगा. क्या पटा मेरा नाम ही बदल दें... मेरे पास ज्यादा वक्त नहीं... अपनी अन्तिम कलम से सब हस्तिनापुर वासियों को मेरा आखिरी अलविदा.

Truth Always Triumphs??? Nopes, Triumphant Tells you the "Truth"

I'm Back...

2009-01-04T22:15:00.005+05:30

Dear Blog,

First of all, mixed feelings getting back to XL... Just when I thought I was settling down and felt there was no difference, I went to the mess!!! Ya this is not the same. Aloo and paneer are back!!!

Getting here was prob more interesting than being here... I thought I’ll travel to Hyd, finish off some job, meet some family friends and then fly to Kolkata. All fine till the planning...

The day of the travel (today) started fine... Got up early and caught the airbus to the airport. And then, at check-in I was informed that the flight was just landing at B’lore while I thought I was late for the flight at Hyd! I was joined by two of my friends and all of us were to catch the train at 2:30pm from Cal to Jampot. Now if the flight were to start any later than noon, the train was sure to leave without us on board. Thankfully, the announcement was made at 11:00 that the flight landed in Hyd; I was a little more assured. As I expected, we took off from Hyd and reached Cal at 1:30 pm. But as usual, Murphy’s Law applied and the luggage took its time!!! We started in a pre-paid taxi (at quite an exorbitant price) from the airport at 1:52 (by my watch which has been adjusted for the one second delay at the New Year). Initially we covered distance fast and then as we entered the city limits, the driver gave up hope... We almost jumped many traffic signals and entered opposite one-ways... As we drew closer to MG Rd, I knew we would make it as the famous Howrah Bridge and the station is quite close. But I was only partially right... We entered the station and with some external help reached the train. My watch showed 2:29. But then the adrenaline took me a lil further... While the train is still standing, I thought I could cover as much as I can on the platform and tried moving towards the coach I was supposed to be travelling in!!! And the signal turned green and without warning the train started moving... Got into the coach that was very close to mine :) Luckily the jounrney thence was not such eventful barring one particularly peculiar comment about a kid (this is for the kid, if she is reading it) ;)

The cold climate (compared to the mid-twenties and thirties I grew accustomed to at home) and the dusty atmosphere and the rustic autowallahs welcomed me... 7:00 pm and the oh-so-beautiful manicured lawns and flower of XL, the iron-guarded entrance to TFEMR and the (differently arranged) mess – I’m Back...

Feeling Good,

Happy New Year

2008-12-31T20:39:00.004+05:30

Of Bollywood's Copy-Cat Tag...

2008-12-29T14:40:00.008+05:30

Dear Blog,

I was just having a long argument about the efficacy of the Indian film-makers... My friend (anonymous) laid forward a point – “Indians film-makers can only copy. No Indian movie in the past three-four yrs has been an original hit. Be it Chak De or Black and the last one, Ghajini.”

Well, I agree they may have been inspired... But doesn’t it take a lot of effort to make it suitable for the Indian viewers... "Devdas" has been inspired from earlier “Devdas” but that in no way takes credit away from Sanjay Leela Bhansali. Talking of Bhansali, "Black"may be inspired from “The Miracle Worker” but aint both movies inspired by the life of the great Hellen Keller!!! Why do we call “Black” a copy of “The Miracle Worker”? I’m no movie critic, but "Black", to me, was one of the finest depictions of the Alzheimer’s disease. This was confirmed by my sister who is currently pursuing medicine and was impressed by the meticulous chronology of Alzheimer’s followed by the script... The making... The symbolism of colours especially the interplay of Black and White... The dialogue and the monologue... Even Rani’s First (and the last) Kiss...

Movies do draw inspiration from others... but comparing them is no good for they are made for a different set of audience... Take the case of "Ghajini" and "Memento". There is no doubt that "Ghajini" was inspired by "Memento" (it’s not a remake for sure). But for all those song-sequences (which I felt needless and distracting but my mom felt good), the movie may have been too much of continuous violence (not that it was any less now) rendering it impossible for the faint-hearted Indian viewer who likes tragedy but mixed with emotions and drama and not the outright violence as is often depicted in Hollywood flicks... Try making the "Apocalypto" in Hindi and the box-office would bomb it out (i.e. if the censor board clears it first). There is very little doubt that viewers of both "Memento" and "Ghajini" might find the latter deplorable (i.e. if they understood "Memento" in the first place) in comparison to the original but then... (OK AAmir Khan Disagrees with me here... He dint find Memento as good)

There are stories and there are movies... What directors do is make movies out of stories... Is there anything wrong if the two movies have the same story...

How many Bollywood movies do u see with a couple asked to leave home only to face hardships in the exile... The lead heroine gets abducted by the villain... The Hero finds friends in the wilderness and recues his lady... Are all those remakes of Ramanand Sagar's legendary Ramayana!!!

P.S. For those who did not understand Memento, I got one site that actualyl tried explaining it... I'll post it as an edit when I find that site again... I, for one, loved the movie... much more than the action packed Ghajini...

P.S. As I promised... Warning: Spoiler Alert... Do NOT Click HERE if u've not seen Memento...

Reflections – Part II (Term 2 @ XL)

2008-12-27T01:10:00.018+05:30

Dear Blog,

Just as I had started settling into the rhythm of 8-hrs sleep per day, a rude awakening call was given to me by the damn reminder in my mobile: September 21. Time to go back to the 3-hrs sleep days... Time for second term @ XL...

The first week, as in the first term was pretty normal. Some teachers were yet to return from their other assignments and hence I was “free” with other pursuits. That joy wouldn’t last for long though... And even in those few days, I had to prepare for the SIPs. Squeezed in between was the great XL Diwali...

Two GBMs... One for the introduction of non-conventional placement opportunities (which I must say gave rise to more concerns about fewer opportunities and the tough times ahead than the “opportunities”) and the other for introduction of the senior teams for the process (to reassure and mend the dent left by the previous GBM)... I’ve already described the process in great depth in other posts [1, 2, 3, 4] and thus will not venture details here... By the way, there was also the famed GBM which I shall not mention here...

Then came Ensemble 2008.

A place for the best minds from all-over India to meet. Sad, but for the few OTS events, hardly any XLer would have “Ensembled”... The Sudoku challenge, the fin-quiz, the face-painting competition etc. were the saving grace. Else, it was just the various associations and the few lucky teams selected to the final rounds (names withheld due to obvious reasons). The reason behind the best in the field not being called upon and the job left to few “selected” members escapes me... What is more... genuine help is frowned upon and looked at with scepticism (I surely hope, in few isolated cases)!!! As the great Bard put it, All’s well that ends well...

Then the realisation suddenly dawned, not the SIP or Ensemble was what I was here for... The existence of project deadlines and tests hit me hard. That I was able to squeeze in time for everything was in itself a great wonder... My prior experience with PPTs and excel sheets did prove to be handy... Before I realised, the end-terms had dawned, just as I realised, they were over.

My learnings from this term:

There is logic behind great organisations being so great... 3M and Google surely did not know they were to change the entire content of case studies and presentations.
Facts are artefacts... Rare... General knowledge is not very general... Not very well known to people. Any assumptions thereof will be the point of discussion and example for many discussions and possibly even Group "Discussions"!!!
History is indeed written by the victors... and so is a successful marketing strategy! The loser can only wonder, “what if...”
If you do not know a thing, keep quiet. If you know it, more so...
Market never runs efficiently... Thus, it becomes the role of finance managers to take the blame for all the bad judgements of all the people. Who should be blamed for all the economic evil that the world is going thru... the brilliant economists and MBAs or the common junta who just can’t calculate the price of a financial instrument... (well, they are not expected to... but shhhhh... who else can we blame)
Under Sec 1(aa) of the College Student Act, any dissent against boring subjects is henceforth declared unlawful. The right to strike has, with immediate effect, been withdrawn. Any violation of the above nature may be dealt with in a manner deemed strict by the offender. The award of punishment will be discretionary in nature.
Democracy gives u only one right... The right to remain silent... Everything else can and will be used against the right...
Once again reiterating... Friends are the biggest assets... unfortunately, no accounting standard allows them to be written off in the balance sheet as they bring no liability with them... Pacioli was wrong here...

Bringing the curtains down on an eventful term...

XL Meri Jaan....

2008-12-26T01:10:00.002+05:30

Dear Blog,

I was sitting on my computer, typing away words... Yes, thr was my bed with my favourite pillow near me... Thr was the clean green garden visible from my window. There was the hill reminding me of the picturesque hotels I have stayed on my travels. There was the relief of knowing there was a squash court nearby where I could pass time should I feel bored. And there was the joy of having mom’s hand-made food with lots of pure ghee and no aloo... But then, I missed home...

Call me mad but I’m in love with the hectic schedules... that waking up till 4 in the morning with nothing to do but talk about nothing at all. I hate the ISO:9001 food but I more than that I love cursing it and after all cursing, ultimately having the same cheese dosa every alternate day... I hate to live in that small room 311 but I love the neighbours and their neighbours and so on... I hate not being able to find time in the evening to have a game of badminton, but I love making plans with friends for it... I hate when friends talk of home but love it when I make them feel at home far away from home...

I’m home... But thanks to the two terms spent doing MBA, now I’m far away from my other home...

XL Meri Jaan...

Two contrasting Movies in a Day

2008-12-23T02:53:00.004+05:30

I had decided tht all work here will be original... Just cudn't resist putting this in the archives...

Danny: Sometimes I wonder... will God ever forgive us for what we've done to each other? Then I look around and I realize... God left this place a long time ago.

Was watching Blood Diamond today.. Must say this was one great movie I hadn't seen.. Very powerful message... Good acting and breathtaking shots of Africa... Prob the best movie I've seen on Africa and slavery after "the master of it all from the master of it all", Amistad (Spielberg, Freeman, Hopkins...What better cud u ask!!!).

The other movie I watched today was SRK starrer "Rab Ne..." Quite a contrast to watch :) Well, I'm no SRK fan but the ease with which he shifts between roles is really praiseworthy... The storyline may be nothin worth mention but the way SRK adapts to it sure is... I knw, many are callin me crazy as I write this, but yeah, I kinda liked the movie despite all its melodrama and the YRF cliche.

Planning for tomorrow's Matinee show...

I'm A Proud Geek...

2008-12-19T13:05:00.010+05:30

I'm a proud geek.. and just to clear a few misconceptions... doesn't remotely mean I'm a ghissu (XL lingo... with no english translation...)

The context...

Sheldon is the perfect example of the perfect geek... My new role model...

Geeks are sociable people. Ghissus are sociable only with the books...
Geeks love technology and products. Ghissus love the reading the theory behind the technology without ever realising that the theory was discovered and rejected for being too complex around two decades back.
Geeks are well aware of Page 3 news. Ghissus are well aware of page 3... and not just that.. also page 4,5,6,7,8...100,101,102.....999 of every one of their books.
Geeks crack jokes (understanding them requires something extra though). Ghissus can crack jokes only if they have taken humour as an elective and their text-book contains an exercise where they have to pick out phrases commonly called by people as jokes.
Geeks love people. Geeks will use all their geekyness to help a friend in need. Ghissus love the people only if they are the authors of their favourite text-book.
Geeks are frail (often to the point of being invisible). Ghissus are not. They are often plooomp (this can be credited to their long hours spent in their rooms or library or canteen).
Geeks put their friends first (spl in case of fights with others... the reason.. refer the previous point). They will use their geekyness to the breaking-point to solve any problem. Ghissus, they follow Groucho Marx to the letter and have books as their best friends...
Geeks have deep emotions (which may or may not be as geeky) and believe in the Saturnalia Miracle. Ghissus are deeply attached to their books (quite literally).
Geeks are five-point-someone. For all they care, they could go down another half a point without getting worried. The ghissus.. they often wonder why, even with their near perfect replication of the book, their grades linger around the sevens and eights without once going over the magical figue of 8... BTW a slump of 0.1 often translates to two less hours of sleep everyday...
And for the curtain dropper...
Geeks will know that the territorial boundaries of India extend upto 12 nautical miles into the sea but not who the author of the books they are carrying is... and for the ghissus... well does it matter as long as it is a book they are carrying.

A Proud Geek,

Miniscule Musings

Rockstar - Definite one-time watch and multiple times listen :)

The Unknown Euphoria

Why I believe Anna Hazare is wrong in his means (and not the ends)...

Yes I'm Corrupt...

Guidelines to filing IT Return online using ITR-I and ITR-V in India

Uttarakhand Tourism welcomes you to Pithoragarh

Rest In Peace

My Analysis of Baba Ramdev's Demands

Never Let Me Go (2010)

Orwell's 1984

Jail Bharo??? Why not 'Vote Karo'???

The Cobblerist Movement

And India Win the World Cup...

Uttarakhand Tourism Welcomes you to Dhanaulti...

Trial By Media

Cricket Crazy...

Long Distance never works...

The Despicable Boss

Learning to play for Pizzas (John Grisham)

I AM an Isolophobic

Bitten by the movie bug

Last Few Days on XL campus...

Tourist info - Yumthang Trip

Things I'll take back from XL - 2

Things I'll take back from XL - 1

The Mercenary

Every Child is Special - Proved

Jinhe Naaz hai Hind Par woh Kahaan hai!!!

Creating a "Top-10" for Dummies

Review: 3 Idiots

Aal izz Well....!!!

New Internal Security Ministry...

Cameron's new AVATAR

100th post...

Yet another interesting journey...

The Other Side...

Unilateral Love...

Miles to go...

The celebration...

You know you are back at XL when...

He Cut My Wings Away...

I Think Therefore I'm.... Single :)

My Late Date...

Why Does History Repeat Itself?

Of negligence, dereliction and corruption

Did Nokia borrow my idea???

Mowgli's Welcome - Part 2

Mowgli's welcomed - Part 1

Why Am I Not an Alien!!!

I Love "Love Stories"

Netherlands Stun England!!!

Microsoft Does It Again...

Its all in the head...

And Finally... The end of an era...

Simple things...

99% Success is a Failure Grade

French Open: Rafael Nadal in PINK

The heat was definitely ON...

#1: Did u know...

BJP: Gear up for 2019

The Autowala Wisdom

Why Doesn't India Vote?

India Voted for....

Reflections - Part III (Term 3 @ XL)

TGIF!!!

A mind-numbing experience...

Torangallu to Bombay

Little Drops...

All's well that Ends Well...

Free Democracy...

Legacy Costs...

No, Not Yet...

Mr. Wadvani V/S Mr. Sehru

A Toy Story: It Happened one day to me...

Mathematical Model of a B-Schooler

The other side

To make a short story long...

TOW "I'm the unConvocated" ©...

Ignorance is Bliss...