Neatwit

Fido and Augie's great escape

2009-07-22T22:30:00.011+05:30

Last week I had one of the most heart-wrenching and emotionally-charged encounter.

It was a regular evening after work. Zubin and I were chit-chatting and catching up on the day's events. One SMS from our friend changed the course of that evening, and transformed it into an emotional roller coaster. Our friend, Kiran, came home after a long day at work to find a big hole in his garden wall and two missing dogs - Fido: a German Shepherd and Augie: a Labrador Retriever. It was 11.00 PM. Without second thought, Zubin and I were in the car, heading straight to Kiran's place.

It was like being in a Hardy Boys novel - the clue - a big gaping hole, the missing "people" - 2 fur balls who've never been out alone in the big, bad world, and the despairing family member - sad, confused, and worried about his "boys".

The search was on.

Zubin and Kiran drove off to scout the streets of Frazer Town, and I waited at the gate, in case the two flea-bags showed up at home. As I paced up and down, I hoped and prayed that the Fido and Augie were safe, had the sense to stay on the pavement, and didn't talk to strangers.

60-minutes later, no sign of them, and the 3 of us hysterical, near tears, and inching towards total panic. We split up again - this time me and Zubin in the car, and Kiran on a scooter. We went from street to street, alley to alley, running into large packs of street mutts, who came bounding to say hello, as we frantically asked, "Did you folks happen to bark at a big black German Shepherd and a white klutz of a Labrador?"

Another 2 hours later, we'd met all the street mutts within a 5-km radius, interrogated all the security guards in the area, and held back several floods of tears.

2.00 AM: Two men and a woman standing on the street consoling each other, "we'll start the search again in the morning. We'll print flyers and put them up."

Zubin and I got into the car feeling hopeless and weepy. We were ambling along and had just turned the corner, when Zubin heard a pack of street mutts barking loudly. "What are they barking at? Look! Look!", he hollered. As we peered around the corner, we saw something big and hairy go past. "That's Fido," yelled Zubin, and we were speeding down the road, shouting "Fido, here boy, here." It was him. It was Fido! Hallelujah!

The look of relief and happiness on Fido's face, and the joy in his big brown eyes that said, "You guys know me!" is something I will never forget. We ran across the street into a furry embrace. Gasping for breath, we made a happy phone-call to Kiran, who found the frightened and wounded warrior - Augie - on his way to pick up Fido. Talk about good luck!

It was a big reunion. Several hugs and "don't ever do this to me again" proclamations later, Fido and Augie were piled into the car, and the entourage trailed to Kiran's house. All five of us - Fido, Augie, Kiran, Zubin, and self - relieved and happy to be home.

As we drove home with big, dumb grins and a warm, gooey feeling inside, I realized once again that these four-legged "people" have such a huge impact on our lives. They become such a big part of our very being that the thought of losing them is unbearable. They love you unconditionally and stand by you when no one else does.

To Fido and Augie - friends, huggables, fuzz-therapy experts.

The demise of etiquette

2009-07-09T20:30:00.019+05:30

Etiquette. It's a big word. It's also a word not many people in Corporate India understand. I meet these ill-mannered people every day. It starts early in the morning at work, when one is waiting for the elevator to arrive. The gentleman in his shiny black shoes has seen you waiting patiently before him. But when the elevator arrives, he shoves you with his "branded" laptop case and storms into the waiting elevator. So what on earth were the rest of us waiting in line before "Mr. Shove-my-way-to-the-elevator" doing? Posing for the surveillance camera?

Another sign of lacking etiquette is the "clan congregation." The mini-Bengali association loudly discussing weekend plans at the pantry, as the non-Bengalis at the next table try desperately to communicate over the din. The Telugu ladies club who monopolize the wash-basins at the rest room to discuss special, home-made potato face packs. And the Akhila-Kannada "samiti", which must meet at the cafeteria food counter to analyze the poor consistency of the "Bissi Bele Bhaat", while others waiting in line starve.

One might learn to live with Mr. Shove-my-way-to-the-elevator and the Bengali association. But when some one coughs over your fruit-bowl - it's time to revolt. I mean, c'mon, have you heard of a handkerchief or may be a just a hand over the germ-spewing mouth?

I wonder whether these people are socially stunted or just plain stupid. It's frustrating to see educated men and women, from premier B-schools, working in multi-national corporations behave like inconsiderate, uncouth morons.

I have tried everything. Humble requests, subtle retaliation, blatant retaliation, sarcasm. But these idiots prevail.

Perhaps B-schools should teach the value of good manners, and Corporate India should have social etiquette training during employee induction programs. Until this happens, I will continue to glare at the man shoving his way into the elevator, and drinking my coffee in silence.

Alter-ed Ego!

2009-04-03T21:27:00.001+05:30

According to sources, I have a mild form of Obsessive Compulsive Disorder (OCD). I call it the ‘mere andar ki bai’ syndrome—the “maid in me” is my alter ego, which always wants to clean, wipe, wash, and keep things in order.

A hostel roommate, a tired husband, and harassed friends will tell you tall tales of how I have scrubbed shoes, literally swept them off their feet, and volunteered to dust their homes in my cleaning frenzies.

Unfortunately for many, my alter ego takes over in the most absurd places.

Three weeks ago, the husband and I decided to do brunch at Mocha, the coffee joint. After a fulfilling meal, the table was cleared, and the bill was awaited. Suddenly, there they were, those guilty bread crumbs, littered across the varnished table. The ‘bai’ in me took charge, picked up a tissue, and was busy wiping it, when the waitress arrived and said, “Madam, we’ll do it. Not to worry.” Seizing the moment, my husband jumped in to explain that his wife suffered from OCD, and has wiped every restaurant table in the city, threatening to take over the jobs of several thousand waiters/waitresses.

Expecting the standard response of an awkward smile or an embarrassed laugh from the waitress, and dreading the impending lecture on ‘let people do their jobs’ from the husband, I looked up at her sheepishly. The gentle woman smiled sweetly and chimed, “Don’t worry, madam. I completely understand.”

The ‘bai’ and I left the coffee shop feeling smug. There is hope for me, and my fellow ‘bai-types’. For further information on how to put the ‘bai’ in you to good use, contact me.

WALL E - Pixar’s latest genius

2008-09-17T16:46:00.003+05:30

700 years from now, planet Earth will be one large garbage dump, and mankind would have moved to outer space. This is what Pixar’s latest film/prophecy is all about. Sounds dismal? Perhaps!

But don’t get disheartened yet, because among the heaps of garbage is WALL·E —a.k.a. Waste Allocation Load Lifter Earth Class, a nifty little robot who’s been assigned to clean up the trash that mankind left behind. Literally!

Every morning, this adorable little fellow whirrs around compacting garbage into cubes, and making ‘trash skyscrapers’. But that’s not all he does. Deep within his tough, metallic exterior is a warm, loving computerized motherboard, which may have been wired for waste disposal, but has been softened by solitude. He’s made himself a home, decorated it with bright lights, a revolving goody shelf loaded with trinkets, a television and a VCR that plays a 1963 musical for his listening and viewing pleasure. WALL·E even has a buddy—an energetic cockroach who’s a constant companion, and follower.

WALL·E’s fairly systematic life undergoes a dramatic change when he meets EVE, short for Extra-terrestrial Vegetation Evaluator—a robot sent to Earth from the space station. Its love at first sight, and WALL·E does everything in the book to impress his lady love, who also doesn’t miss a single chance to bask in his attention.

The film is a fast paced delight, as WALL·E in his pursuit of love lands up in the human space station, runs into plenty of trouble, and inspires an unusual generation of human beings to reconnect with planet Earth.

Needless to say, Pixar’s cutting edge animation, and interpretation of what a human colony in outer space would look like is simply breathtaking. Their ability to create a non-preachy, fun film with a far-reaching message is admirable. Every character’s name, functions, personality traits, and their “human” side leave you in awe of the exceptional script. Go watch it, and I assure you, that you will fall in love with this curious little fellow.

We are holesalers

2008-08-15T22:12:00.001+05:30

Someone takes the coconut selling business too literally. Holesale! :-)

Thank God, Indians don't follow instructions! :-)

2008-08-03T22:10:00.003+05:30

A speed breaker road sign in Bangalore city. ;-)

Maximum City - Finding Mumbai with Suketu Mehta

2008-06-10T21:43:00.001+05:30

When I picked up Suketu Mehta’s ‘Maximum City’, I was concerned about it ending up as another piece of NRI writing, packed with criticism about India, and distant memories of a brief Indian childhood.

Fortunately, I was wrong.

Maximum City is a vivid portrait of a city that is home to over 14 million people who live a dream without boundaries.

The book starts off with Mehta’s return to ‘homeland’ after nearly 21 years of living abroad, and a small bout of the inevitable nostalgia. After the first 40 pages of reminiscence, the gripping narrative takes over, and you journey through the slums of Mumbai, feel the malice of the underworld, and the lust of the dance bars. Every person Mehta honors enough to discuss over 3 lines is as real as the neighbor who smiles at you, and as dark as the villain in a film.

The book touches upon almost everything that is becoming of Mumbai—Corruption, poverty, Technicolor dreams, wealth, power, politics, terrorism, love, hatred, communal riots, bomb blasts, ‘vada pav’, and the omnipresent power of Hindi cinema. Reading the book is like living a well-made Bollywood film. There’s drama, action, death, defiance, romance, passion, and tragedy. Dirty politics, underhand deals, seduction, trauma, and fear.

Towards the end of the book, you feel like you practically lived with Suketu Mehta, as he delved into the complexities of human nature and the flavors of Mumbai; As he bit into the steaming hot potato ‘bhajias’ [fried dumplings], and rubbed shoulders with the gun-men of the city.

Like most authors, Mehta digs deep into his prolific vocabulary, and infrequently throws in words that you will need a reliable thesaurus to reference. But you pardon this minor affliction when you begin to realize how little you knew about Mumbai a.k.a. Bombay.

Read it, live with it, and enjoy every piece of a city ‘Lost and Found’.

An equitable surge

2008-06-09T20:05:00.004+05:30

I have always believed in making an honest living. The philosophy of - earn your keep. Therefore I have had no mercy for the auto-rickshaw drivers in India; Mumbai’s auto-drivers being the only exception, since they indulge in the rare activities of returning your change, and taking you by the shortest road to your destination.

Bangalore’s auto-rickshaw drivers are a rare breed. They are loud, abrasive, and display an overbearing sense of entitlement - entitlement to rig the fare meter, and demand more money than the already exaggerated meter reading.

This evening, my unrelenting, cynical opinion about these people changed. After the usual brouhaha over how much extra I am supposed to pay, my journey with the vociferous gentleman began. He must have mistaken my cold silence for a sympathetic ear, since he proactively shared every minute detail of the hard life that an average auto-rickshaw driver leads. Steep hikes in LPG rates, arbitrary spikes in oil prices, soaring rents for a 1 room house, and the attitude of the ‘rich IT employees’, who are willing to wage a war over 20 rupees.

That’s when it hit me, that every outsourced dollar that reaches Bangalore/India gets split a million ways. A fraction for the auto/cab drivers; a smaller fraction for the maid who does the dishes; and an even smaller fraction for the man who picks up the trash every morning.

The outsourcing frenzy may have created jobs at every level, but it has not brought about empowerment as yet. It may have given birth to an economic boom, but it hasn’t bridged the gap between the haves, and the have-nots. Ironically, it has widened it to a bottomless chasm.

So the question I want to ask is — will there ever be an equitable economic surge? Where every dollar that enters the country doesn’t get split a zillion times? Can we be satisfied by repeatedly telling ourselves that by 2050 India shall become a super power, without having the answer to the basic question – at what/who’s cost?

Am I looking for immediate answers? Perhaps not. But I am looking fervently at our political leaders, award-winning economists and thought leaders to build that road to equitable growth. Where a maid has medical benefits, an auto driver has health insurance, and every child has food, drinking water and education.

A-political thought

2008-05-11T17:39:00.005+05:30

It’s that time of the year again, when roads are fixed overnight, water shortage miraculously disappears, and every newspaper carries photographs of politicians eating with the poor, and seeking blessings from village elders. They all sport angelic smiles, and declare their assets. They go door-to-door requesting citizens to vote for them.

This year, Bangalore city and Karnataka witnessed what can be called “awakening”. Radio stations, private businesses, corporate houses pumped-in large amounts of money into outdoor campaigns, billboards, sound bytes – telling everyone to stop complaining and start voting. Putting the onus on every citizen to be the change, instead of expecting the change. Everybody joined hands to fuel these inspirational campaigns - celebrities, college students, business leaders. But everybody seemed to have forgotten the one larger truth. Corruption. I don't know whether it was ironic, or an 'I told you so situation', when the papers carried three colum stories, with photographs, about names missing from electoral lists. Those names that have 'valid' voter IDs. Those people who wanted to be the change, wanted to vote, and wanted to perhaps ensure that the next Chief Minister of the state is not a complete moron.

But guess what? Change will be hard to come by. Because much higher than change is the omnipresent power called greed, which drives our leaders to cheat the common man and make a mockery of democracy. What irks me even more is the nonchalant act they all put on during media interviews. The false claims they make unabashedly, and the complete disregard they have for honesty.

I was watching the former Chief Minister of Karnataka, H D Kumaraswamy on television last week. Inarticulate, unimpressive and callous, he actually had the gall to enumerate his government’s 'accomplishments' on worldwide television, when the real truth of Bangalore and Karnataka is out there – being borne by the average office-goer, the farmer, and every honest, tax-paying citizen.

The media flays these political thugs, confronts them, exposes them. But for what? For another decade of bad governance, unaccounted funds, and acute shortage.

I am not looking for answers by penning these thoughts. But I am wondering if there ever will be an answer? Would a ‘Rang De Basanti’ plot – with citizens taking the law into their hands work? Or a nuclear holocaust?

Originality and the lack of it

2008-04-17T20:48:00.009+05:30

The Indian entertainment industry seems to have mastered the art of imitation. Television is flooded with shows that are a direct lift from American/foreign shows. It started with good old 'Kaun Banega Crorepati' - 'inspired' from the popular American game show - 'Who wants to be a millionaire'. The producers and marketers didn't even bother with 'original' branding. Everything from the logo, to the color scheme, to the look and feel resembled the original show. The one thing original about KBC were the hosts - led by Amitabh Bachchan, and then swiftly taken over by Shahrukh Khan.

KBC was closely followed by 'Indian Idol' - a blatant imitation of 'American Idol'. Once again, nobody bothered with the branding [and can be pardoned since the creator was the same]. However, the scary part was the judges attempting to imitate those of the original show - giving the poor contestants 'honest' feedback, and trying to indulge in what some may call, constructive criticism. Unfortunately for the Indian viewers, critique turned into shouting matches; and feedback transformed into mud-slinging. What a shame!

The latest entertainment line up is 'Kya aap panchvi paas se tez hain?'. No points for guessing that the literal translation of this is 'Are you smarter than a fifth grader'. This time, branding has evolved. The jingle is brand new and the show has an original logo of it's own. Evolution!

Television is not the only medium affected by this peculiar phenomenon. A lot of Bollywood cinema also helps itself to Western music, stories, and themes. We just love to pick up the 'been there, done that', tweak it a wee bit, add some 'Indianess' to it, and ta da! the advertising moolah is pouring in, everyone from the cell phone service providers to the websites are raking in the cash, and a large part of India is growing roots on their living room couches. A fool-proof formula!

Originality is a thing of the past, which the Tansens and the Guru Dutts of the world took to their graves.

Truly, A Mighty Heart

2007-12-21T10:11:00.000+05:30

Most cinema is based on fictional characters, and resemblance to anyone dead or alive is purely coincidental. But some films are about real people, who lost their lives, their loved ones for real reasons. I watched one such movie today.

A Mighty Heart is about those ‘mighty hearts’, who had the courage and strength to face the harsh truth; Who had the conviction to believe that there is no pain that they can’t tolerate, and no reality they can’t come to terms with.

The true story of the journalist from the Wall Street Journal – Daniel Pearl, is not just a story of his kidnapping and eventual killing, but a wife’s narrative of braving a battle much harsher than any pain, anxiety and fear you can ever imagine.

Even though the news of the killing in 2002 made it to all the newspapers, tabloids, television and radio stations across the world, ‘A Mighty Heart’ is the ‘really real’ story of the agony, suffering and the undeterred courage of both Daniel and Mariane Pearl.

The narrative provokes you to question, debate and even seek answers to the hostility that terrorism is, the fanaticism that religion has become and the hatred that is being nurtured. The frantic search and the investigation to locate Daniel Pearl leaves you feeling desperate and angry. And even though you know the end to the story, you still hope that he comes back home to his wife and unborn child.

I am certain that the reality of Daniel and Mariane must have been unimaginably agonizing. But to have braved such a tragedy, risen out of its ashes and started afresh, is what only a ‘mighty heart’ can do.

I salute Mariane – a true mighty heart – for her strength, bravery and grit to stand up and face the truth – however brutal it may have been.

Watch the movie, not just because I recommend it, but because you want to imbibe some of the courage that seeps through the television screen, and touches your soul.

Also, read about the Daniel Pearl Foundation and find out how his family and friends have united to carry forward the spirit and principles that shaped Daniel’s work and character.

The falcon doth soar…

2007-06-28T14:41:00.000+05:30

…leaving us behind to work on our empty corporate promises and tall business strategies.

This is the feeling that my recent friend and companion at office induces. He is a glorious ‘Brahminy kite’ (who I fondly think of as a falcon) – with white and brown feathers, a hypnotic gaze and inspiring confidence.

He almost seems vain with pride, as he mocks us lesser mortals, ‘imprisoned’ in concrete, tied to our chairs, bound by our duties… while he can choose whether to perch on the window sill and scorn us, or glide in the rain.

Yesterday morning, he greeted me once again, from his favorite perch by the window. His posture was awe-inspiring, as he preened and prepped his large wings, probably looking at his own reflection and telling himself how glorious he looked.

To most people who saw him, he was just a bird – sitting by the window, doing his thing. But to me, he was a special winged messenger – telling me to turn the computer off and look at what the skies had to offer. He squawked several times, cynically cocking his head from side-to-side, as I gingerly inched closer to him, taking pictures. Each time I moved, he displayed a different emotion. When I first bent down to get a better look – he looked suspicious, when the panel of my phone camera slid open – he flinched, and every little step I took towards him, he shifted restlessly. The slightest movement in the background annoyed him, and he took flight each time he sensed someone approaching. But, he would still return, to look me in the eye and evoke some tangible reaction. And I must admit, that he succeeded. The rest of the day was spent in telling people about him, looking at his pictures and showing him off like he was my trophy.

His style, panache and attitude – which he deservedly flaunted, changed my outlook towards the mundane activity of ‘getting to work’. Now, apart from getting my deadlines out of the way, I have a very special mission – to look out for my feathered friend, every morning. To be greeted by him, even though he apparently loves his own reflection, more than the people who admired him.

After all was said and done, he left me with one thought. In our quest for ‘perceived’ freedom, we end up paying a very heavy price – our real freedom and the ability to do what we want, when we want. But, this gorgeous creature owns his freedom and makes no bones about bragging about it too. Thanks for rubbing it in pal – cheers to you!

Fighting abuse - A small tale of victory; Supporting the Blank Noise Project

2007-03-06T21:52:00.000+05:30

Every woman encounters some form of sexual harassment and/or abuse at some point in her life. Eve-teasing comes in daily, weekly or monthly doses. And there are those times, when there is very little you can do to fight back.

Among my many failures in my fight against harassment, I have a small victory story to tell.

Almost a decade ago, my father and I went to give his car for servicing. Unfortunately, the garage was about 15kms away from home. So, on our way back, we had to take the (in)famous BTS bus of Bangalore.

Since the bus was nearly full, we got to sit at the very end of the bus – which is usually a long, seat that resembles a park bench. As my dad had eagerly grabbed the window seat, I was forced to sit in the center. At the next stop, a young man, probably in his early twenties, came and sat beside me.

I nonchalantly continued staring into space, not knowing that this man had more than just a bus ride on his mind.

About 5 minutes into the journey I felt something slide below my T-shirt sleeve. I hastily shrugged it off thinking it must be a bug of some sort.
Then, it happened again, and this time I checked; and found nothing!

A couple of minutes later I felt the same sensation, but this time, I figured out that it was a slimy finger, sliding under my sleeve, steadily moving towards my chest.

That was it! I got up, asked the man “what the hell he was trying to do?” and gave him one-tight-slap!

Obviously, I was loud enough to attract attention from co-passengers and even the conductor came up to enquire. At this point, the creep got up, and rushed out of the bus, mumbling under his breath that some passengers don’t allow others “to travel in peace” – trying to create the impression that I was the one ‘bothering him’.

While I felt great that I had managed to nail the guy who’d try to feel me up, I spent the entire week, shuddering at the thought of many such scum-balls lurking around, waiting to pounce at innocent women.

Even today, as a working, married woman, I get eve-teased on my way home - by old men, suffering from mid-life crisis, and by young boys who’ve never been taught that women are people too. What do I do about it? I pretend that I never heard them, and tell myself – what goes around, comes around.

To all you brave women – wish you a very happy women’s day and never say die!

Living with 'Shantaram'

2007-02-09T19:18:00.000+05:30

Nope, I'm not talking about any scandalous affairs or revealing the skeletons in my closet. But I am, however, admitting that reading 'Shantaram' by Gregory David Roberts, was like living, journeying and learning with the man himself.

'Lin', as Roberts calls himself in the book (and in the real life of his past), takes you on a tumultuous joy-ride through the prison of Australia, the slums of Mumbai, the languorous beaches of Goa and the frost-bitten caves of Afghanistan with such lucidity, that you get emotionally attached to him, his life and his people. You despise his enemies, you love his friends. You empathize his failures, you rejoice in his victories. You run with him during war and you hold his hand when he fights his tears.

So much so, you cry with him in death, despair, loss and suffering.

Such is the power of this wonderful autobiography!

Like most things that are near perfection, there are a few eerie shades to this book. The gory, detailed descriptions of bloodshed, the author's constant tussle with his conscience and lastly, the reader's; in this case, my own guilt of enjoying a former drug addict and armed robber's story.

Nevertheless, Shantaram is a jewel of a book and definite requirement for your book collection.

Visit his not-so-updated website for more honest confessions from Roberts. Trust me, you will find something to write home about. :)

The 'Post-Modern' Mom

2006-12-18T07:53:00.000+05:30

I work in a team largely comprising women. In fact, my team is the only one in the entire organization of over 7000 people that has a skewed gender ratio - in favor of women.

The past one month of working in this 'mostly women' group has been like moving into a hostel for the very first time; where women of different age groups, coming from diverse backgrounds, working on various projects/assignments, have united in an unspoken mission to debunk old notions.

Almost all my female colleagues are married, some are young mothers, and strangely enough all of us have the same challenges. The biggest challenge is achieving that critical balance of having a successful career and running a happy home.

This debate has been plaguing working women for decades now. And we are still grappling to find the right answer to a perfectly valid problem. However, the issues the 21st century woman faces are a lot less crippling than what our mothers/grandmothers had to deal with. Especially, because women today are more aggressive and articulate about their 'rights'.

Three decades ago, marrying the man of your choice, and then telling HIS mother that you'd much rather hire a cook, than make 4-course meals for her son, was unimaginable. Today, it is a part of the unwritten pre-nuptial agreement that most couples sign.

In fact, the concept of the 'metro-sexual man' has been quite a blessing in disguise. Of course, you are concerned about this so-called 'metro-sexual man' wearing the same pretty pinks like you; but as long as he helps with the chores, you don't mind the ghastly wardrobe.

At this point I would like to clarify, that none of my colleagues or me have typical 'metrosexual men' for husbands. But we do have broad-minded, accommodating & understanding husbands.

Yet, there is a sheer lack of time for ourselves; because we are constantly racing against time, meeting deadlines at work, worrying about baby diapers, feeding cycles and dealing with the guilt of sending the child away to a day-care center.

It's not like we don't love our children or don't want to spend all our time watching them grow up. But we do want to put that hard-earned college degree to good use, and we do want that financial independence that makes us feel more secure, and gives us a sense of freedom. Freedom to choose better quality of life, freedom to buy that expensive toy for our child, freedom to order-in food for the family three times a week, and above all, the freedom to make decisions independently.

Collectively, we are all doing our little bit to reduce the number of compromises the 'post-modern mom' will make. Whether it is suggesting new policies at the workplace, or demanding more in-house baby-care centers; we are all fervently trying to reach that perfect balance. Hopefully, the 'post-modern metrosexual man' will also evolve with time, and will assist us in getting there.

Boom - 2

2006-12-04T17:35:00.000+05:30

Continuing my rambling about the booming economy, its repercussions and the chasm of disparities – I am going to touch upon another steadily rising problem called ‘crime’.

This flourishing economy is fuelling frustrations, and driving people to forcibly snatch from those who seemingly have too much.

Crime sections of newspapers are standard templates; Gold-chain snatching, robbing at knife-point and mugging.

Every single day people lose cell-phones, laptops, bikes, cars and what not.
We live in constant fear of being relieved of our hard-earned goods.

What is more bothersome is the fact that there is no justice when you need it. Even the police force in Bangalore city is indifferent to this rising crime. FIRs, repeated trips to the police station, begging and pleading with the inspector on duty; nothing moves these so-called ‘guardians of law’.

You give up feeling disgruntled and betrayed. That’s when you begin to question why you are an honest tax payer, why you work hard for a living and why on earth do you go to work, make an earnest attempt to earn your keep, and then constantly worry about who will snatch it away from you.

You might as well give up toiling, and start robbing people. Easy money, very safe too – considering the cops don’t care a hoot, and also you can ‘work’ whenever you like!

Convenient isn't it? But life isn't. Neither is the conscience, which constantly nags you to continue doing your bit for the world; even if a large part of it is corrupt, dishonest and evil.

So here we are, living our lives in the city of Bangalore, constantly under the menace of criminals on the loose. Hoping that with time, there will be change, there will be new beginning and the world will be a better to place to live in.

Boom Boom!

2006-10-12T22:31:00.000+05:30

No, I am not imitating a heartbeat or musician Biddu's corny song with the same title. I am refering to the phenomenon that has overpowered our lives, our spending capacity and our way of life - the booming economy.

This booming economy is both inclusive and exclusive. Inclusive for those who have the power of education, the good fortune of being born into a lower or upper middle-class family, access to the internet and/or a mobile phone. Exclusive for those who have been burdened by poverty, misused by conniving politicians, deprived of literacy and have minimal means of survival.

I am lucky enough to be a part of the 'inclusive' community and often look around me to mull over the complex dynamics of this boom.

Last evening I went partying with my friends and I travelled by the not-so-common man's version of a cab - An Autorickshaw. But this was no ordinary autorickshaw! The driver too was a member of the 'inclusive' community of this boom. He weilded a cell phone, his rickshaw had a fairly decent stereo system, he had access to over 6 FM radio frequencies and he juggled between them like a seasoned DJ, listening to the music of his choice, in the language he understood.

I was but a mere mortal, seated in his rad-mad travel machine, at the mercy of his taste in music!

After my humbling ride, I spent a few good hours, downing cold beers with friends and celebrating life! Grooving on a dance floor on a Wednesday night was not typical behavior for the average Indian party goer. Until a few years ago, doing such a thing would amount to indulgence. Today, its routine!

And thus! I watched a hoard of party-goers riding the wave of good times - very literally!

The 'inclusive' side of the booming countryside is spectacular. It has a thundering retail market with malls, discotheques, lounge bars and food courts. Cars, snazzy bikes, top-of-the-line gizmo toys are also not too far behind. This mirage has something for everyone! It has zero rental mobile phone plans, multi-cuisine restaurants, hardware that can help you lead the rat race and credit cards that can buy you a status symbol in a single swipe.

Things are not a bed of roses on the 'exclusive' side of town. The usual, mundane poverty problems apart, there are fundamental issues about the divide between the haves and have-nots which is becoming wider by the day. A few years ago I thought of this divide as wide and deep. Now, it is wide, deep and steep!

So steep that an 80-year-old woman, bent with old age, walking into a 'fully-computerized' bank does not know how to read her bank statement. So wide, that her thumb impression to withdraw her last few hundreds scream of several generations of anarchy, corruption and inequality.

This boom has alleviated social problems to new levels of discrepancies; where a lonely wanna-be party goer at a small-time discotheque is scoffed at by teeny boppers sporting branded clothing and carrying expensive mobile phones. A level where the tinier the mini-skirt, the more 'happening' you are. A level where the more jobs you switch the more 'in-demand' you are considered to be [or pretend to be].

The discrepancies stare you in the face, like a hungry child when you start your smooth ride on the mall escalator, look out through the squeaky clean glass panels, into the horizon - littered with slums, little children rummaging in garbage cans or begging at traffic lights, old men and women sitting on pavements hoping for solace.

This boom is a profane monster that snares you with evil temptations and will drop you ruthlessly when it falls on bad times.

I have bitten the bait! Have you?

Humor In 'Prohibition'

2006-09-24T12:04:00.000+05:30

The sign board near the tiger's enclosure at the Mysore Zoo - somebody in the management has a great sense of humor :-D

The Marrying Woman

2006-09-22T19:13:00.000+05:30

I have had complaints stating that my recent blog entries sound 'too whiny' even though the intention is NOT to complain, but state facts in a satirical, humorous way. But since I deeply respect reader [and fiance] feedback, today is a happy blog entry.

As a 'marrying woman' and the date of the registered wedding as per the 'Special Marriages Act' looming large, I have been enlightened about certain heart-warming truths about the great Indian marriage.

I have never been a rebel without a cause - my rebellion in most cases has been devoted to fight fundamental flaws in the system and also in parental guidance. :)

Thanks to this focussed rebellion I have managed to make what could have been a dramatic wedding bonanza into a teeny hoopla of sorts. (My fiance takes part credit for it)

I have come to realize that the role of the much acclaimed [and not-so-acclaimed] bride-to-be is pivotal to the institution of marriage. Here's how:
1) Her expense list is the highest and the longest.
2) The groom's friends use her reference as the butt of all sympathetic and empathetic jokes about the groom.
3) She has dual-pressure to handle - when the parents and the in-laws look at her adoringly and secretly plan all those rituals and ceremonies around her.
4) She is the photographer's preoccupation - who ensures that she poses in all the absurdest ways possible.
5) She drives several businesses; the hair stylist, the make-up woman, the photographer and the jeweller have tinkling cash registers - all thanks to her!
6) She can easily become the next model for the new toothpaste in the market; the dress rehersal takes places while flashing her best smile at all & sundry present for the wedding.
7) She is also an entrepreneur who will head a whole, new, unborn generation! ;)

To all the brides-to-be and the recent-have-been-brides, pat yourselves on the back, buy yourselves an expensive outfit, treat yourself at the best restaurant in town and put it on the groom's tab - because you are a rock star!

Why Men Fart Compulsively & Why Women Can't Stop Talking...

2006-09-09T21:41:00.000+05:30

If you are thinking that I am making a living off parodying popular book titles, then worry not. I am just another wanna-be writer, living a rather complex life and trying to add humor to the mundane proceedings of daily life.

In my limited experience of being a woman in a traditionally oppresive society I have internalized two very important facts:
1) Men get to have ALL the fun
2) Women, in an attempt to have as much fun, end up having no fun at all.

Now that I have finished making my tall claim, let me introduce you to the intense narrative that will support my claims.

As a working, financially independent, educated woman - I belong to the 'fortunate' few who have not been direct victims of female oppression. But that does not mean that I have it easy. In fact, women like me have a bigger battle to wage, since most people believe that just because we have the ability to multi-task and manage the work place and run a home, we must be endowed with super powers; or we must have an alter-ego, dressed in a fancy pink cape, jumping over roofs and saving the world in our free time.

For most working women, efficiency - which is normally considered a strength, turns into an evil enemy and everyone from the Grand-aunt who can't stop gossiping, to your technologically challenged male colleague, start palming off work to you.

Men on the other hand get to do all the fun things, like getting to work without having to worry about whether the kids took their lunch bags or staying after 6pm without having to worry about making dinner for the family.

Men also don't have to worry about walking across a conference room full of men to make a presentation and then feeling like your clothes just fell off.

Even smoke breaks are fun times for men. After all, they don't need to be worried about being labelled as 'easy-going' just because you smoke! You see, women + cigarettes in India is quite close to being a slut! And however much Indian men deny it, this perception has not changed for decades.

Men don't even need to be worried about laughing and smiling liberally. If a man laughs heartily at every frivolous comment, he's considered congenial. If a woman dares to laugh at a modest joke, she's building her road to becoming a door mat in the male dominated world of business.

If men are brash - they are called aggressive in a very positive way. But if a woman is aggressive, she automatically becomes a topic of discussion among the men, who spend hours contemplating why she's coming on so strong!

This post could become a very long debate - where I will keep quoting examples and life will continue to be unfair to women.

The crux of the matter is that both sexes have their flaws - men love to fart compulsively and women love to talk.... but as Calvin said, "Why is it that life is not unfair in my favor?"

I ask the same question for the entire fraternity of women. Why can't life be unfair in our favor?!

Tribute to a Dear Companion

2006-09-07T22:55:00.000+05:30

Relationships are a very complex ball game - whether it's between people or between man and animal. I am part of a family of animal lovers and since as long as I can remember my parents have been kind to stray animals, given shelter to the homeless puppies and kittens and have done everything in their capacity to take care of them.

So over the years we've had several animals come and go from our lives, and since my mother is a big cat lover, we've had over a dozen cats share our home and our food.

Recently our neighbour's kitten - who in my opinion was a dog trapped in the body of cuddly kitten adopted us. This young lad was a contemporary Don Juan De Marco! Not the greatest lover of women, but the greatest lover of people. His persuasive prowess and uncanny ability to win hearts was not only endearing, but also inspiring. Since he didn't have a distinct 'meow' like most cats, but only a shrill squeak which sounded like a 'peeeeep' or the squeal of a squeaky toy, we called him 'Peester'.

Peester had a set schedule. Every morning he would scale walls, jump window sills and come screaming into our house. With single minded focus and dedication he would streak into the kitchen and place himself strategically next to the refrigerator - the treasure trove of goodies to eat! Once he had been fed, Peester would saunter into the living room and make himself comfortable on the couch for a long siesta through the morning.

Though food and sleeping were his two greatest passions, he never compromised on his disciplined activities of paying tribute to my father by nuzzling him and rubbing vigorously against his toes, visiting my mum and purring loudly with dewy eyes, and last but not the least, being cuddled by me, while he purred indulgingly and rubbed his wet nose against my chin....

He was affection personified!

And today, with a heavy heart and tears in my eyes, I write an obituary of a dear friend and loving companion, who fell prey to a couple of savage dogs. That too at a time, when he was recovering from injuries of a bitter cat fight.

With his death a significant joy in our lives has also died and we are left craving for his shrill 'peeeep', his beautiful golden fur, his cute tantrums and every little nuzzle he shared with us.

Peester - you will be missed.

Existential Binge

2006-08-26T00:29:00.004+05:30

I think life teaches us many valuable lessons, which no amount of education ever can.

Alright, alright I am on another existential trip - I admit. This is one of my latest indulgences and I will go forth and attempt to solve the mysteries of the world; even if it is doomed for failure.

The past week was a stressful week at work for the whole team, and the coming week will bring a lot more stress with it. The phones kept ringing, the emails kept popping and every evening after 6.30 in the evening, everyone was bordering on hysteria.

Incoherent jokes start flying around, mistakes start doubling and there is ultimate chaos. In between all this frustrating activity all I want to do is bury my mobile phone somewhere, disconnect all internet connections and hide in a quiet corner without being bothered by annoying ringtones and Microsoft Outlook!

Surprisingly the very communication tools that make day-to-day living more convenient, are making my life a living hell!

When I somehow managed to find my way out of the tangle of communication, I had the pressures of matrimonial logisitics waiting to pounce on me. The plumber who has a life and therefore never showed up, the pest control guys who are mighty big pests themselves and not to forget the tailor who decided that my clothes musn't fit me.

The late rains and Bangalore's perennial traffic jams, with smart Alecs who drive large vehicles squeezing their way in 2cm spaces add to the 'joy' that life is!

One wonders what is the point of all this aggravation? Screaming at dim-wits who won't dim their high beam headlights in peak-hour traffic, maniacs who have their hand stuck to the horn, and of course the busy bodies of the world, who devote almost all their time making sure that they have to do nothing...

To tell you the truth, I am still searching for an earth shattering answer to this question, among my other existential binges of course!

In the meanwhile, I shroud myself in the thick blanket of humor, I make my friends and colleagues laugh and then spend the later part of the evening sitting alone, drowning in the echoes of silence and solitude, making a blog post.

The Great Office Robbery & the Irony of Life

2006-08-15T12:28:00.000+05:30

Last weekend was utter chaos. From a joyous reunion of my 'gang of girls' which ended up in an out of control drinking session :) to a theft in my office.

After the Saturday night wedding showers, alcohol binges and giggly fits, Sunday morning was a stressful flurry of police statements, finger print teams and dog squads.

If I felt unsafe on the streets of Bangalore; Sunday morning was worse than anything I could have ever imagined. It was also a shocking reminder of how indifferent one can get when it's crime reports in the papers and the scathing impact it has when it happens to you.

It took me a good 30 seconds to brace myself as I stepped out of the elevator to see the broken glass door of my beautiful office, the ransacked drawers and conference room in total disarray. As I stepped over debris of wood and splintered glass and scanned the open cupboards, everything within me just knotted up and ached....

I felt violated and ravaged. Like someone had invaded my private space, trampled on all that me and my colleagues put together just 3 months ago when we moved into our brand new office, and the eerie presence of a stranger who not only destroyed our office, but also reveled in the pleasure of doing so.....

The fact that someone had the power to penetrate the stone walls of our office building and ruin everything we had built with such care in no time made me feel powerless.

What was even more terrifying was that the only place we had some assurance of safety, was no longer our haven; but just another unsafe place, vulnerable to mankind's baser instincts.

The thieves of course found nothing of monetary value - no cash, no cameras. Strangely, they didn't think it important to steal our computers or our hard drives - which is a virtual treasure of intellectual property, worth millions....

As I typed the FIR for the police, my heart beat louder and louder. Not out of fear but a peculiar sense of helplessness at what happened while I was away. I felt pangs of anger and disgust.

Why?

Why on earth would you destroy someone else's belongings?

Why would you so cruelly invade another individual's space and not feel guilty?

Sadly enough, such existential questions have seldom been answered and instead of waging a battle with my own self, I decided to work with my team to put the office back in order.

Between all these taxing activities, I also found a little 'alone' time while I was out shopping with my family. After several years, I had the luxury to sit and watch the world go by.... and in all the multiple layers of sorrow and strife that grips our world, I saw fleeting moments of sheer joy. I saw a young mother watch dotingly over her 1-year-old son, sitting on an electric horse, grinning with cherubic bliss.

I looked at a newly married couple admiring an expensive four poster bed, promising each other that they will buy it when they have saved up enough. I listened to the cacophonic laughter of two young girls jumping on the trampoline, spilling over each and soaking in every precious second of their childhood. I watched a teenager, peering over the McDonald's counter, looking longingly at his juicy burger being packed.

To me this was a healing balm that I smeared on my mind, as I stopped myself from giving up on humanity.

Marriages are from Mars and relatives are from Pluto

2006-08-08T15:47:00.000+05:30

Why the absurd title? Because that's how absurd the great Indian wedding can be! Let me give you some reference to context.

The concept of marriage in India is not just the uniting of man and woman in holy matrimony, but the uniting of families, along with fourth, fifth and sixth cousins twice removed. Everybody has an opinion, everybody has an earth shattering suggestion - after all words are free, especially since the action items are in somebody else's task list.....

So as I was saying, these relatives from Pluto, will suddenly descend upon you with absurd contemplations, worries about your to-be life partner's qualifications and if you have dared to marry someone outside your own religion - then God save you from conjecture!

Every phone call you make to invite people turns into a judgmental speech.
"Oh really? Your daughter found someone outside the religion, I think our community is doomed. How will 'our' boys have enough girls to choose from if 'our' girls start marrying outside." That is the 'royal plural' opinions; usually attributed to old relatives, normally 70 year olds and above.

"It must be such a relief for you! Your son found his own bride." Declaration emanating from crabby, middle-aged aunt, who is still bitter about the not-so-expensive gift you gave her during her 15th wedding anniversary.

Once the judgements about the bride and groom in question have been passed... the 'brilliant ideas' about logistics start pouring in.... Why the menu should be elaborate, or why the bar must have only 30 different types of alcohol and not 10, become the bone of contention.

Gold is another hot topic for debate.... especially if the people actually getting married refuse to buy tonnes of it and look like a walking gold slab....then everybody comes down heavily on you - wondering why one would miss a 'golden' opportunity to look ostentatious! (Pardon the bad pun!)

Clothes of course are another drama all together. Starting from why a plunging neck line won't go down well with the grand-aunt from the bride's side, to the number of sequins and amount of glitter on the flowing saree. All that is of paramount importance.

The mandatory idol worship and finding the 'auspicious moment' must not be discounted or the 'elders' of the family will be offended for life. So the bride and groom, irrespective of caste, creed or religion must cow down to these very important rituals.

Among the other stupid things that mankind has done, the institution of marriage is extraordinarily stupid.... and all of us who have or are going to succumb to it can be deemed stupid too.... :)

Comments are invited, other debates or points of view welcomed....!

Making a market in talent

2006-07-23T11:25:00.000+05:30

As a part of my routine pilgrimage to the Mckinsey Quarterly website I came across this article which sums up the thoughts of a lot of professionals I have met in recent times.

As I understand, every organization is having a hard time finding and retaining good talent - people who know their job, are hard working, street savvy individuals and are looking at proactive growth measures.

The article titled - 'Making a Market In Talent' states that

A 21st-century company should put as much effort into developing its talented employees as it puts into recruiting them. Savvy companies understand the competitive value of talented people and spend considerable time identifying and recruiting high-caliber individuals wherever they can be found. The trouble is that too many companies pay too little attention to allocating their internal talent resources effectively. Few companies use talented people in a competitively advantageous way—by maximizing their visibility and mobility and creating work experiences that help them feed and develop their expertise. In a modern, networked, and knowledge-based business environment, intangible assets (such as skills, reputations, and relationships) generate the highest value. Effective resource allocation means unleashing the value of talent by mobilizing talented people for the best opportunities—including, in particular, opportunities to become even more developed by finding work that creates distinctive new skills and knowledge.

As global markets become more dynamic and competitive, companies will need to deploy talent even more flexibly across broader swaths of the organization. Since management must develop and execute value-creating initiatives so quickly, talent is becoming more critical to corporate performance, specific needs for talent are more unpredictable, and companies must develop talent more rapidly than ever.

Stuck in silos
Most companies typically allocate roles through personal connections and transactions between individual bosses and individual employees or within small groups. Managers find it difficult to know who among a company's talented workers would be the best person for an available position; ditto for talented people who want to know what opportunities exist around the company and whom they might like to work with. Some people thrive in such settings. But for many talented workers seeking personal-development opportunities, this approach resembles trying to fit square pegs in round holes. They might develop more appropriately in opportunities outside the silo they work in, but companies aren't set up to allocate talent easily across broader segments. Managers, for their part, may be forced to choose among a small talent pool of people whose skills and experiences aren't right for the job.

The article goes on to discuss how organizations must break free from old traditions and get in line with the new market place trends. And how:

A talent marketplace can't be built easily on the foundations of traditional, siloed organizational structures. But for large, growing, and complex companies that know talented individuals may be their most powerful competitive asset, talent markets represent the cutting edge of resource allocation.

Unfathomable Chasm We Call Life...

2006-07-20T20:39:00.000+05:30

It's been over a month since I posted! A lot ensued in between... The Mumbai blast, the Tsunami in Indonesia, Indian Government blocking blogs, a humiliating showdown in the Karnataka political assembly, a tainted Chief Minister, more thefts, rapes and felony...

What was I doing during all this? Working late hours, fighting an irresistble urge to hunt down the freak shows who blatantly took 'ownership' of an unforgivable crime and wondering why we haven't yet renamed 'life' as 'sick joke'...

I also spent a little time going to Bangalore's only attraction - Malls; and stared aghast at the 'economic disparity' all around. I watched myself glide along the escalators, holding my 'curvy' bottle of 7-Up, spending on frivolities, and I also watched the cleaner- a young boy of 16, opening an old hankerchief with stiff chapatis and drinking from a broken plastic bottle with water from the tap. I felt ashamed and angry... but what did I do? I just made a resolution to become so wealthy one day that I can give without second thought and I sat before my high-tech computer and made a blog post....

Isn't life a sick joke? Where innocent commuters die at the whims of some arbitary maniac....
Where a poor young boy has to watch the rich & nonchalant spend money as he gruels to make a living.... where old parents lose young sons to unknown causes...where a young bride loses her husband....where man hates another so much that he could go to any lengths to destroy him.... where violence, arson and crime is the answer to poverty, where corruption, forgery and greed is governance....where evil reigns supreme and all good comes to no fruit... where society degenerates into an unfathomable chasm... where innocence and piety are bad words....

Such is life... such is the irony called life... such is the joke....

I don't hear any laughing... do you??

Grimy hands in the darkness

2006-06-16T16:52:00.000+05:30

Have you ever gone for an introspective walk and thus created a blog post? Well, I did that last evening, as I walked a 4km stretch from the highway to my house. It's been four long years since I walked in the bylanes of Bangalore and this is adequte time for a city to change into a living nightmare.

IT parks, a gazillion jobs, global brands, sprawling malls have all come to Bangalore; but the temperment of the city's original inhabitants remains the same. They are happy to be willingly marooned in Bangalore and would rather struggle here and have a pathetic life, than move out, explore a new world and maybe succeed.

What has also not changed at all is the constant threat from slimy, desperate men to the women who walk the streets of Bangalore after darkness descends. You could be a young school going girl or a mother of two - nothing can stop those groping hands from violating your personal space. The frustration levels run so high that even if you are clad from head to toe, the animal instinct drives these sick men to indulge in disgusting activities like grazing themselves against you in a crowded bus, or deliberately bumping into you as you walk on an empty pavement.

If you are fortunate enough to not encounter these grimy hands lurking in the shadows, you are bound to be driven up the wall by cat calling losers, who think it's their birth right to sit in their Daddy's expensive cars and pass sleazy remarks at women going by.

Every single day the newspapers carry a story of a woman who was molested or raped or harassed - on most occasions by men known to the woman.

It drives me crazy when I read the horror stories and if that's not enough, the sheer lack of justice. I've turned into a suspicious, cynical, watchdog - constantly on the guard, looking out for creepy characters who could change my life forever. Each time I step into an elevator with a strange man - I am constantly watching out for any suspicious body language.

For a woman, everyday is a battle to safeguard herself from these freak shows; especially if you don't have the luxury of being driven around by a chaufeur.

It's hard life!

Creative License

2006-06-09T20:09:00.000+05:30

I have moved from working for an agency - conceptualizing and implementing communication collateral for clients to becoming a client - which is serviced by an agency to do the same.

Both sides of the fence have had their good times and their bad times. But I've come to realize that being a client is a lot harder than being an agency. Especially, if you have a creative side to you, and if you are surrounded by people who either lack aesthetic sense or believe that they have the license to share creative inputs.

Since I am a part of an industry that is driven only by technology, the creative license is limited to showing silicon chips and IC boards as 'design elements'. For those who are wondering what this 'design element' is; let me rid you of all doubts by defining it.

"Design Element - can be defined as any vague or difficult to describe visual, which has little or no correlation to the communication tool being created, but can stimulate creative instincts and the ability to give creative ideas in those who are not even remotely qualified to do so."

Everyday becomes a battle for the so-called design agency to churn out innovative designs. If by chance, the agency does come up with color schemes and designs better than a 4-year-old's crayon sketch book, then there are the holders of the invincible creative licenses who pipe up and stifle the golden moment of sheer creativity.

What are you left with? A bare, eye-sore of a design which will never find room in your portfolio, even if you were paid to put it there!

Unfortunately, I am an optimistic believer, who thinks each day is a new beginning, and I go to work with fresh ideas, interesting suggestions and a bouquet of 'value-added services' to leverage the brand I am struggling to build [no thanks to the license holders and design agencies].

But everyday my little bubble bursts with a loud bang when fresh ideas get shot down because of other petty tasks on hand, when interesting suggestions drown because the design element was NOT as run-of-the-mill as expected and when the bouquet of value-added services get marginalized because you are too busy making amends for other people's inefficiencies.

Why can't people just be good at what are supposed to be good at, and not pretend that they can be better at someone else's competency?

Why don't people simply worry about adding value to their own work, instead of pretending that they are willing to bear the burden of adding value to someone else's work.

There are no free lunches! Thus, there should NOT be any free advice?!

Emotions and Reality

2006-05-27T22:42:00.000+05:30

Last week was chaotic - both for the student community of India and the stock traders across the nation. While students sought permission from the President to commit suicide, after the stock market crash several investors and brokers contemplated suicide.

Though all's not well for either groups, life did move on. Students continued their protest employing many innovative ways and stock traders resumed their daily gambling.

A very intriguing article on the much debated topic - 'Do fundamentals or emotions drive the stock market' got my attention. According to Behavioral Finance Theory [yes, even I recently discovered that such a complex field exists in the research world], markets might fail to reflect economic fundamentals under three conditions:

1) Irrational behavior - Investors behave irrationally when they don't correctly process all the available information while forming their expectations of a company's future performance. Some investors, for example, attach too much importance to recent events and results, an error that leads them to overprice companies with strong recent performance. Others are excessively conservative and underprice stocks of companies that have released positive news.

2) Systematic patterns of behavior - Even if individual investors decided to buy or sell without consulting economic fundamentals, the impact on share prices would still be limited. Only when their irrational behavior is also systematic (that is, when large groups of investors share particular patterns of behavior) should persistent price deviations occur. Hence behavioral-finance theory argues that patterns of overconfidence, overreaction, and overrepresentation are common to many investors and that such groups can be large enough to prevent a company's share price from reflecting underlying economic fundamentals—at least for some stocks, some of the time.

3) Limits to arbitrage in financial markets - When investors assume that a company's recent strong performance alone is an indication of future performance, they may start bidding for shares and drive up the price. Some investors might expect a company that surprises the market in one quarter to go on exceeding expectations. As long as enough other investors notice this myopic overpricing and respond by taking short positions, the share price will fall in line with its underlying indicators.

This sort of arbitrage doesn't always occur, however. In practice, the costs, complexity, and risks involved in setting up a short position can be too high for individual investors. If, for example, the share price doesn't return to its fundamental value while they can still hold on to a short position—the so-called noise-trader risk—they may have to sell their holdings at a loss.

When all three apply, the theory predicts that pricing biases in financial markets can be both significant and persistent.

As an amateur, fly on wall, small-time investor, this thought occured to me when I saw people panicking during the stock market crash. But obviously due to the lack of knowledge in behavioral finance I didn't dare to make any expert comments. In my opinion, this article does a great job of explaining a very common-place phenomenon.

Additionally the article supports all 'behavioral finance' claims with data and international stock market statistics. A few value-added tips have also been tucked in for the benefit of mainstream traders and fund managers.

If Mckinsey decides to have an exclusive India perspective on this volatile issue, it could become an excellent research tool for Indian fund managers! Let's hope the Indian stock market continue this bull, and sometimes bear run and hopefully sooner or later Mckinsey will decide to dig up some data.

Sweet Child O' Mine

2006-05-19T16:08:00.001+05:30

I'd like to start my post my thanking all those who have made insightful comments or simply shared their experiences with me.

Today, I solemnly swear to do no Bangalore beating, but instead ramble on about another of my favourite preoccupations - children!

When I was child, I rarely had difficulty making friends or even getting along with children younger than me. Hanging out with kids, getting involved in kiddy games came naturally to me. By the time I was a teenager, my younger cousins and I shared a great rapport. We often had a lot of fun together, and I was like a trusted big sister, who could also be fun to hang out with.

Things weren't much different even after my teenage years were long gone. It would be kids of my friends and relatives who would be happy in my company.
But I have to admit that today's kids are nothing like the children I used to know when I was younger.

The 'e-age' children are much more demanding, more clued into the best tantrums doing the rounds, up-to-date about their parents' weaknesses and have fool-proof strategies to exploit those weaknesses. They are even rather badly behaved, inconsiderate about other people's belongings, seldom worried about the fact that a family friend or a relative may not appreciate destruction in his well-kept home.

In most cases, parents also spare the rod. They just shrug their shoulders, almost as if bad behavior is normal.

I know it's none of my business about how parents bring up their kids, but it certainly is my business when my expensive bone China vase is about to turn into a pile of dust. I don't care about a cranky child, who screams in the middle of the supermarket and creates a scene, but I do care when he/she is yanking on my bag, trying to 'discover' what I carry to work.

Discipline apart, basic manners and good habits are also becoming a novelty among modern day kids. I remember my mother commanding manners when I would walk into a family friend's house and not greet the elders. After a couple of stern lectures, greeting the elders was almost like a reflex action. But today, an average child, in the age-group of 3-10 couldn't be least bothered about things like decorum and ettiquettes - because the poor little thing hasn't heard about such concepts. Parents are quite alright if their child is blissfully ignorant about appropriate social behaviour. So should I raise an accusing finger and point it at the parents?

No, I don't think so. I'd much rather blame it all on nuclear families and parents having having just 1 or 2 kids. I also lay partial blame on higher income levels, booming economies and the powerful media/mediums children today are exposed to.

It's an elementary chain reaction - Fewer kids, parents with more spending power, increased indulgences, sky-rocketing demands, and last but not the least - comparisons. "All the kids in my class have cell phones. Only I am the odd one out. I feel sooooo bad!"

Whoosh! That's the sound of your heart melting. Swipe! Ooooh, there goes your credit card through the machine. Blam! Your child just threw a party in McDonald's to celebrate his new phone. Ouch! That was you, wincing at your exploding expense list.

This was just the eye-witness' account. Expect to see my revised analysis a few years down the line, when I become a parent. Till then... I shalt ramble on, about this, that and the other.....

Elbow Room

2006-05-13T22:09:00.000+05:30

Goa inspired me. Bangalore transpires against me. It's a very awkward situation I have been thrown into. So I took the liberty to express my distress through this absurd title, which has been drawn from the once famous discotheque in Pune. In a Saturday night party at 'The Elbow Room' you had to settle for dancing in a place too small even for your elbow. Therefore elbow room - or the lack of it!

Today I had a similar problem in my once beautiful city - Bangalore. We [Zubin and I] made the error of the week by deciding to meet a friend in Barista on MG Road. After stepping on toes and bumping into coffee stained cups we found a 2 inch by 2 inch table; big enough only for my elbow.

Our poor friend joined us later and got intimidated by the long line at the ordering counter. Since we had already consumed our coffee we shared the glass of apple juice we'd ordered with him, saving him the hassle of waiting for a fresh order. The moment he kept his glass down, the table was cleared and waiters were hovering around us suspiciously.

2 minutes later, we were asked if we had placed another order or whether we were merely occupying precious, money-making real estate. Though we wanted more coffee, the mile long line discouraged us. Thus, we humbly surrendered to the blatant hint and left.

I immediately made peace with the situation, telling myself that I couldn't possibly blame Barista who politely displaced a regular customer for the sake of volume driven business.

To make up for it, I suggested a more cost-effective cafe nearby which was less likely to be crowded. We ordered a cup of coffee and sat around leisurely chatting, catching up on each other's life and lamenting how we live in the same city, yet meet once in 3 months. While the discussion was going on, I noticed several people come in, looking for seats. To evaluate the situation I looked around to see full-house! About 30 seconds after I had surveyed the changing coffee house landscape, the bill arrived, and an expectant waiter stood by us, urging us to pay our measely coffee money and mosey on!

I thought this explosive money driven market was only dominating the housing and real estate market. Little did I know that this stark, raving madness for more money had crept into historical coffee houses which are now competiting against aggressive global brands.

Now, only money deserves space. Only money commands service.

Goodbye dear city - thou hast died with my beautiful childhood.

World Nincompoop Day

2006-05-04T19:44:00.000+05:30

There are a lot of "World This-That-And-The-Other Days" celebrated every month. So I decided to make my own. It's called the 'World Nincompoop Day'. I celebrated it with nincompoops from a leading Indian mobile service provider and a global pizza company.

Situation 1:
I called the good-for-nothing mobile service provider, which also provides broadband services at my office and told them very politely about an error message. This error message popped up each time a browser window was opened, telling us that our newly setup broadband connection had been blocked.

After 30 minutes of being on hold and having learnt the 'Win a car' contest promo by heart, I was a little annoyed. I spent the next 15 minutes explaining the problem to the 'back-end technical support' and the customer scare executive. Both the smart Alecs assumed that I was technologically challenged, and dared to explain to me how I was doing things wrong. One of the nincompoops almost suggested that I was perhaps imagining the error message.

So after 45 minutes of deliberation, soaring blood pressure and chewed nails, I threatened to complain to the head office, take them to court and file a complaint against the account manager who claims to 'manage' our company account.

20 minutes later - the high speed broadband was working.

Situation 2:
A little past 1:00pm everyone at office was quite hungry. A unanimous decision was taken to order pizza. Like a good samaritan I volunteered to do the service of placing the order and was connected to a mousey little voice that sqeauked through the phone. This young lady had obviously never taken a pizza order before. So I patiently spent 25 minutes explaining our order, specifying toppings and describing the crusts we wanted our pizza to have. She claimed to have understood, prompting me start my 30 minute countdown and settle down to continue working.

25 minutes later our pizzas arrived. One of them resembled my description but the other one instead of being 'Peppy Paneer' [cottage cheese] had magically been converted to 'Pepperoni and Cheese'. Another 10 minutes were spent discussing the wrong order, while Miss Squeaky didn't seem to understand what the big difference was. I coaxed, cajoled and explained to her what the technical difference was - She finally admitted that there may have been a mistake and promised to send a fresh pizza of our choice.

35 minutes went by without any sign of our pizza. This time I went on a rampage. Manager, assistant manager, franchisee incharge, delivery man - everyone was blessed by my rage.

5 minutes later we had a steaming hot pizza and Rs 250 reimbursed.

Moral of the story - Shouting pays! In this case - literally!

Happy World Nincompoop Day Everyone!

Branded or band-aid

2006-05-03T19:20:00.000+05:30

I have been in and out of Bangalore at regular intervals. During these arrivals and departures I have seen the changing face of the city. From a lazy, laid-back town, it has transformed into an unrecognizable monster with traffic jams, multi-storeyed buildings, expensive apartments and people in a constant hurry.

A few parts of Bangalore have what can be called 'state-of-the-art' facilities. These are restricted to the perennially crowded malls, and the IT parks maintained by Indian and multi-national corporations.

The remaining 96% of the good 'ol silicon valley is in shambles. Potholed roads, electricity wires hanging dangerously low, sharp metal contraptions sticking out from nooks & crannies, and not to forget the gaping holes called pavements.

After Bangalore's political drama unfolded a few months ago, we thought that our dynamite of a Chief Minister will deliver! But as always we were ambitious. You see, no can stop us poor Bangaloreans from being hopeful.

Large amounts of money was supposedly pumped into flyovers which have apparently not left the architects table, metro railways which are being discussed every other day in the papers and of course the self-sufficient apartment complexes which cost only 1 crore. Oh goody! What fun!

Now now, let's not forget the conscientious corporates who worry about 'Corporate Social Responsibility', create public toilets, beautify traffic islands with pretty flowers, green grass and big laminated company logos. They definitely make an attempt to change things.

It's the average citizen who doesn't have these big words to live up to. So it's quite easy to spit out of your car window or stick chewing gum on the lamp-post or even dump your garbage outside the bin. So am I blaming the average citizens cadre - which also includes me?
Yes and no! Yes, because every little drop helps to make an ocean; and no, because as honest tax-payers we get nothing in return.

So when the government talks about 'Brand Bangalore' and takes pride in the English dictionary's new word 'Bangalored', I wonder who they are trying to deceive.

It's not brand Bangalore; it's just a litter of sweat shops doing a whole lot of donkey work and a quick fix, band-aid job which is called 'branding'.

If we ever want to learn branding lessons - we should look at Singapore or Taiwan or Japan. They are living examples of countries/cities which have been branded in style.

I'm not claiming to be a brand expert or having a thesis on "how to rebuild a city in 10 days". But I am an honest, tax-paying citizen, and I want to see my beloved city flourish. I don't want to see my garden city drown in murky drain water, get clogged with endless traffic jams and fester in the political corruption.

Whose lines are those anyway?

2006-04-29T15:49:00.001+05:30

So Kaavya Vishwanathan has suddenly become the talk of the town - again! This time she didn't make it to the best seller list, but instead got blacklisted for plagiarism.

I was watching a show on one of the news channels the other day where a panel discussion was going on about how these wanna-be, yuppity, youngsters want a shortcut to fame. None of the panels directly condemened Kaavya's act of "internalising" the lines from Megan McCafferty novel. Instead, they blamed the craving of becoming an overnight celebrity that most youngsters have. There was also much ado over NRI authors and the influence of their writing on 'literature'.

I didn't know books like "How Opal Mehta Got Kissed, Got Wild and Got A Life' are remotely literary. Aren't they just meant to be pure fiction, which you could perhaps categorize as light reading? So why make 'expert comments' on something totally unrelated?

Having said that, I agree that what Kaavya did was probably not the best way to put a book together. But I am sure a large part of the book was conceptualized by her. Also, she could have probably not made that casual statement to admit plagiarism, but should have been sincerely apologetic.

Now, both the publishers of her novel as well as the media are doing all they can to put her to shame, and there is very little the poor girl can do.

I think this a lesson to all young, aspiring authors, to be wary of such temptations. And even if one does succumb to this evil temptation called plagiarism, one should be gracious enough to admit it plainly.

Customer [S]care

2006-04-27T20:10:00.000+05:30

Have you ever received a strange call from your mobile service providers 'customer care' department, when a sugar-coated, nauseating voice keeps nagging you to pay your bill, one week before the due date?

Has your cell phone inbox been flooded with SMS' that hammer bill payment details three times a day, a week before your payment due date?

Have you ever installed a landline phone connection in your office from your mobile service provider, and then heard your 'customer care' executive telling you to read the user manual to install the phone, and also find your own electrician?

Well, I have. All these wonderful things happened me - one after the other. And I really wasn't sure why this good-for-nothing department was called 'customer care'? Instead of working towards helping their customers they do everything possible to drive them nuts, scare them off, forcing them to run to the next best service provider.

Why such a rush to make the poor customer pay the bill? I understand that the company may have been gyped by a few morons, and there must have been a lot of fraudulent cases; but how the hell can you generalize. There still ARE honest Indians out there, who pay their bills on time and pretend that the 'best prices plan' the telecom company give us are real!

So please! Spare us!

If that's not all, in case you have a problem with your connection there is not one competent person who can do the trouble shooting. Don't even dare to get your roaming activated. They will make you pay a gazzilion deposits, speak to another dozen people and constantly jab you to pay bills!

Gosh!

Anyways, now that I have all my pent up angst out of the way, I can work towards channelizing my energies, and writing a more formal piece for the local newspapers. This time I'll make no bones about mentioning the name of the telecom company, and their poorly trained 'customer [s]care' executives.

Home today, can't afford it tomorrow

2006-04-25T22:45:00.000+05:30

As a young, financially-savvy [or so I'd like to believe], independent woman, I have been working towards acquiring some real estate. People thought I was attempting to jump the 'wanna-be' celebrity bandwagon, which brags about knowing little about financial planning and believes that real estate is the safest investment avenue.
Unfortunately, I had to disappoint these people by giving them a humble explanation called the income tax rebate.

I started my modest search in the land of sun, sea and sand - my beautiful Goa. But how was I to know that the whole world had decided to descend upon Goa, and buy a sea-facing flat. Even the tiniest of apartments, with an pin-sized sea-view was costing a fortune. Since I was determined not to employ a broker or a real estate agent, my first month was wasted away in looking at cubby holes which cost a little more than a second-hand Mercedes Benz.

After three weeks of dead-end house hunts, I grudgingly called brokers and real estate agents. But alas! even they couldn't help me. With a heavy heart I decided to change the location and look for a flat in Bangalore.

To add insult to injury, Times of India, Bangalore carried a column by Jug Suraiya on how the property market in Goa had gone ballistic, the very next day after I landed. Talk about sheer bad luck!

I swallowed my injured pride, and read the story of my life in his humorous column. If that was not enough; the man decided to write a part two on the topic, shattering whatever little hope I had.

But since I'm not the type to give up without a fight I decided to start afresh. I started watching out for builders' advertisements, scanning the classifieds everyday, and just when things were looking up for me, the news about the hike in home loan interest rates hit the press again.

Once again my house hunting quest squealed to a stand-still. At this point I'd like to reiterate that nothing will come in between me and that beautiful house I will own. But because I made tall claims of being a prudent investor, I will display a little wisdom and shall lie low and wait for the winds of change.

Until then, I will borrow a roof from my parents and spend my evenings scanning through newspaper classifieds. Any help would be welcomed.

Are you being reserved?

2006-04-22T10:56:00.000+05:30

Three years ago, when I went for my selection interview in the Communication department, at the University of Hyderabad, the interview panel asked me whether the reservation quota system was a blessing or a curse? I remember taking a neutral stand, explaining that it depends on how this reservation quota is put to use.

Three years later, thanks to Arjun Singh's "quota announcements", I am asking myself the same question. While I don't have qualms about reserving seats for the economically backward; I am not in favour of reservation based on caste, creed and religion. Why should your social background dictate whether you are eligible for a seat in a master's course or for a job?

Being a member of a minority community, does not make you any lesser or more intelligent/competent than someone who belongs to a majority community. Selections for academic courses, as well as jobs should be based purely on merit.

Every individual should have to earn the seat in the university, or a job in any organization. Reservations and quotas will give way to inefficiency and poor performance.

Let me clarify one thing at this point. I'm not alleging that people from minority communities are incompetent or inefficient. But only suggesting the obvious route that the quota system takes; people become lackadaisical, and start assuming that they don't need to work hard because they have 'reservation'.

If we are a country that promotes equal opportunity, then we should become more competitive, and raise the bar by giving everyone a chance to compete. Prove that you are worth the admission into the B-school you are vying for, and no one can stop you from getting it. Show that you are worth the high profile job you have set your sights on, and you will have it.

Why expect the government to provide everything to you on a platter? Work for it, and you will get it!

Which is why I agree with what most private organization heads have been saying in the media. If India needs to transform from the lumbering elephant into a leaping gazelle, then the youth of the nation need to stop expecting that they will have the easy way out.

Quota systems and reservations should become a thing of the past, and everyone should work towards becoming more competent, and more efficient to work in a global economy.

If someone who's happy being mediocre, then why do they even need a quota? They could continue being mediocre any which way!

Coffee Breaks - The Art of Procrastinating

2006-04-20T19:42:00.000+05:30

I've never worked for a large corporate before. Well, not worked as a full-time employee. So now, going to work in a 8 storey building, sharing office space with big corporate houses has been a very insightful experience.

If someone needed lessons in "How to waste the maximum amount of time in a day", then he/she would simply need to sit in the canteen of a large company, and count the number of times an individual employee comes in for a coffee break, or a biscuit break, or a smoke break, etc, etc.

It's amazing how much time is squandered away in small talk over a diluted cup of coffee. No wonder organizations are crying hoarse over the lack of resources. That too in a country which is nearly bursting at the seams with people.

I have to admit, that I did think that these "coffee break" people were a lucky bunch. You know, they are all getting paid very well, the company pays for the 'n' number of coffees and teas they glug down, they saunter in at 10am to work, and shut shop by 5pm.

It's a good life! And I almost decided to have such a life myself. Had I chosen to be a "low level functionary, in a small department of a large organization"; I would have been one among the caffine addicted, procrastinating, highly paid, individuals!

Tsk tsk...some people have all the luck ;)

Brand "Bangalore" Takes A Beating

2006-04-18T22:08:00.000+05:30

Last weekend was a nightmare for 'Brand Bangalore' and for the people of the city. The demise of the legendary movie star, Rajkumar translated into senseless violence, arson and crime. A young, 24-year-old, new recruit of the police lost his life in futility, a large part of the police force got beaten black and blue, and several "fans" of the famous star wreaked havoc in the city.

So what does this mindless rioting do for the 'silicon valley' of India?

Well, it raises a lot of very crucial questions. Is Bangalore a city infested with unemployed, frustrated youngsters, who'd rather run amok stoning glass buildings, than worry about finding a job and making a living? Does the so-called silicon valley operate on emotions, driven by angst? Is the 'technologically advanced' city not equipped to quell a mob of rioting young men, who dare to raise a hand at the force that protects the law? Is Bangalore's police force so weak that it cannot come together to arrest anti-social elements?

I didn't have any answers to these rather fundamental questions. Even though the media did try to address them. But thanks to most of our inarticulate politicians and leaders, I had to do with evasive ramblings.

The two-day shut-down resulted in a multi-million dollar business loss. It also resulted in unnecessary damage to property, loss of human life, and a shaken Bangalorean spirit.

Tall promises of the flamboyant Chief Minister - HD Kumarswamy have borne little fruit. Expect for the expensive Octavia Skodas and Mahindra Scorpios in the ministry car fleets, there is no other visible 'development' in the Bangalore with weeps everyday!

I hope Dr Rajkumar is looking down upon us, and praying along with several millions in the city for a better tomorrow.

Moral Dilemmas - Vices, Choices and Otherwise

2006-04-18T21:54:00.000+05:30

The move back to Bangalore was one tumultuous event. And finding a job, was another strange story all together. It was the battle between large corporate brands, that are household names, and an industry body, which is not yet a prominent brand - especially in the eyes of the lay man.

The choice was also between greed, which translates into a fatter pay packet, and qualitative work with relatively less lucrative monies!

I chose the latter - for reasons more than one, and I already see a great deal of learning up ahead.

Here's to a new job, a brand new life, and a lot more to come....

Encouraging Indian Entrepreneurs

2006-04-08T13:45:00.000+05:30

This morning I had a meeting with a successful entrepreneur and business woman. I was fascinated by the way she spoke, and the impeccablebusiness sense she displayed as she explained things to me. I have to admit, I was humbled by the simple, yet suave woman was so surefooted and confident, that it was no wonder that she has turned out to be such a success, and is in a leadership role at such a young age.

Following the meeting I thought it necessary to do a little reading up on the Indian entrepreneurial spirit, and I came across this article by Tarun Khanna, a professor at the Harvard Business School. In the article he compares how both China and India have followed radically different approaches to economic development, how both economic models have their strenghts and weaknesses, and yet, somehow, the Indian economic model encourages entrepreneurship.

In his comparitive analysis he says, "First, the Chinese government nurtures and directs economic activity more than the Indian government does. It invests heavily in physical infrastructure and often decides which companies—not necessarily the best—receive government resources and listings on local stock markets. By contrast, since the mid-1980s the Indian government has become less and less interventionist. The second dimension is foreign direct investment. China has embraced it; India remains cautious.

These differences have an impact on the types of companies that succeed and, I would argue, on entrepreneurialism. Let's look first at what kinds of companies thrive. China trumps India when it comes to industries that rely on "hard" infrastructure (roads, ports, power) and will do so for the foreseeable future. But when it comes to "soft" infrastructure businesses—those in which intangible assets matter more—India tends to come out ahead, be it in software, biotechnology, or creative industries such as advertising.

Thus manufacturing companies whose just-in-time production processes rely on efficient road and transport networks fare poorly in India. But businesses that are unconstrained by shortages of generators and roads flourish. Soft assets underpin even the Indian car industry. Unlike China's car sector, which has expanded as a result of big capital investments from multinational companies, India's has succeeded on the back of clever designs that make it possible to produce cheap indigenous models. India actually sends China high-value-added mechanized and electronic components whose production depends more on know-how than on infrastructure.

Moreover, many hard-asset companies in China exist because the government funnels money to them. The government can do this because it intervenes in domestic capital markets. In India there is no such government intervention. Hence successful companies tend to cluster in industries where capital constraints are less of an issue. You don't need a deep reservoir of capital to start a software company; you do for a big steel plant.

He then talks about how due to the Indian government's low level of intervention, and the lack of stringent regulations, there is an increasing number of Indian entrepreneurs.

The Indian government's lower level of intervention in capital markets and its decision not to regulate industries that lack tangible assets (software, biotech, media) have created room for entrepreneurs. Entrepreneurial activity is fueled both by incumbent (often family-owned) enterprises and by new entrants. The former use cash flows from diverse existing businesses to invest in newer ventures. In biotechnology, however, Biocon emerged from pure entrepreneurial effort, as did Infosys Technologies in software. Similarly, hundreds of smaller versions of companies such as Infosys and Wipro Technologies have no government links, unlike so many of China's successful companies.

Although India's stock and bond markets are hardly perfect, they do on the whole support private enterprise. Here too, entrepreneurialism has played a part, even improving India's institutional framework. Take the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), founded about 130 years ago and until recently the most inefficient entity imaginable. It has become radically more efficient in the past decade as a result of the competing efforts of an enterprising former bureaucrat named R. H. Patil. With technological inputs from around the world and some fancy footwork to dodge entrenched interests at the BSE, in 1994 he started a rival institution, the state-of-the-art National Stock Exchange of India, which now has more business. In China, by contrast, the government tries to make stock markets successful by command, with predictably little to show for its efforts. There has been little competition indeed between the Shanghai and Shenzhen exchanges.

The author goes on with detailed comparisons of the two economic models, and presents his arguements but for and against both. But his last few lines I thought were the most encouraging for budding Indian entrepreneurs.

When the two countries are compared, it is easy to forget that India began its economic reforms more than a decade later than China did. As India opens up further to foreign direct investment, we might well discover that the country's more laissez-faire approach has nurtured the conditions that will enable free enterprise and economic growth to flourish more easily in the long run.

I hope this will mean that more and more business minded professionals, will start venturing out on their own, and thereby fuel the booming economy.

Mckinsey Research: Making A Market In Talent

2006-03-29T22:30:00.000+05:30

The Mckinsey Quarterly has some wondeful articles on management and business. Since I subscribe to their e-newsletter, I often get to read their free research reports.

These research reports are put together by qualified academicians or business consultants, and are accompanied by flowcharts, graphs and other exhibits which can be handy tools if you are making a business presentation.

Now that we have reached the end of the first quarter of 2006, they've released a series of 'business trend reports' which analyze various aspects of global business. One of these reports is on how it is important for organizations to invest in optimally using talent within the organization. The article titled "Making a market in talent" talks about how "A 21st-century company should put as much effort into developing its talented employees as it puts into recruiting them."

Lowell Bryan, Claudia Joyce, and Leigh Weiss then go on to justify why this is so important for business.

"Savvy companies understand the competitive value of talented people and spend considerable time identifying and recruiting high-caliber individuals wherever they can be found. The trouble is that too many companies pay too little attention to allocating their internal talent resources effectively. Few companies use talented people in a competitively advantageous way—by maximizing their visibility and mobility and creating work experiences that help them feed and develop their expertise. Many a frustrated manager has searched in vain for the right person for a particular job, knowing that he or she works somewhere in the company. And many talented people have had the experience of getting stuck in a dead-end corner of a company, never finding the right experiences and challenges to grow, and, finally, bailing out"

In a modern, networked, and knowledge-based business environment, intangible assets (such as skills, reputations, and relationships) generate the highest value. Effective resource allocation means unleashing the value of talent by mobilizing talented people for the best opportunities—including, in particular, opportunities to become even more developed by finding work that creates distinctive new skills and knowledge.

As global markets become more dynamic and competitive, companies will need to deploy talent even more flexibly across broader swaths of the organization. Since management must develop and execute value-creating initiatives so quickly, talent is becoming more critical to corporate performance, specific needs for talent are more unpredictable, and companies must develop talent more rapidly than ever.

Research demonstrates that companies with enlightened talent-management policies have higher returns on sales, investments, assets, and equity. But most large companies aren't set up to allocate talent easily across the traditional organizational silos that stand as their most prominent structural feature. By offering and transacting job rotations and arranging development opportunities for talented workers, managers may foster talent management within particular corporate silos. But this approach fails when, as now happens more and more often, a company seeks to achieve talent synergies across the breadth of its operations.

Fortunately, some of the largest and most talent-driven companies are beginning to shatter the old orthodoxies. By developing internal talent market-places, these companies are giving managers the best opportunity to mobilize the talent they need for success while giving the most talented people better opportunities to utilize and develop that talent. Like knowledge markets, talent markets become strong by leveraging individual self-interest to drive enterprise-wide collaboration rather than by relying on top-down mandates to rotate jobs. The goal isn't simply to clear the market but to help a company get its work done more effectively and to increase the value and allegiance of talented workers by expanding their company-specific knowledge. Many of these companies also find that allocating talent effectively can make an enormous difference to important outcomes, such as profit per employee."

The article is fairly long, and goes on to discuss how companies should focus on retaining talented employees, and if required do away with traditional methods to leverage skilled workers.

The conclusion could well be the gospel truth for large businesses, especially when it provides a simple, and often overlooked analysis of talent retention. Read it for yourself:
"A talent marketplace can't be built easily on the foundations of traditional, siloed organizational structures. But for large, growing, and complex companies that know talented individuals may be their most powerful competitive asset, talent markets represent the cutting edge of resource allocation."

For for the full aricle you could sigh-up on the Mckinsey Quarterly Website and visit the
Organization>Talent section.

Ideabook: Excellent Design Resource

2006-03-24T16:53:00.000+05:30

One of the most informative 'design' intensive websites I frequently visit is Chuck Green's Ideabook. It's a fine site, which is regularly updated with illustrative articles and design ideas.

The recent update is on 'innovative newsletter designs', which recommends some 'out of the box' thinking, and encourages those who design newsletters to break size conventions.

The article titled "Tall Ne ws" says, "The only thing your newsletter must do is communicate your message. How it does that is entirely up to you. It may, in fact, be to your advantage to make your newsletter look nothing like a newsletter. This layout breaks the size barrier by splitting a conventional page in two, features a magazine-like cover to persuade the reader to pick it up, and presents one article over multiple pages rather than multiple articles on a single page. A combination of differences that add up to unique. [Take a look at the image on the left].

He is also throws in a few pointers on typefaces, illustrations and using a single nameplate, with running text, to make it user-friendly and interesting to read. Here are a few of the ideas he suggests, which I think would be fun to experiment with.

"Build two page grids. One for the headline pages, one for article text pages. The headline page grid is narrower, with a wider left-hand margin that allows some breathing room around the text and emphasis for the illustration."

"Use illustrations as a theme. Even a subject that lends itself to as diverse a collection of photographic subjects as this one does can benefit from a secondary visual element--in this case, a series of beautifully complex antique scientific diagrams and illustrations. The images offer a subtle visual connection between the pages."

"Design a simple nameplate. A super-condensed typeface like Raleigh Gothic produces dramatic, interesting shapes. To create your version (left), use Adobe Illustrator to scale the text to just beyond the edge of a rectangle, use the Divide Tool to cookie-cut the word out of the background, and apply colors. Using a longer name? Try a variation on the theme (right) using a colored box to encapsulate the subtitle."

"Make it reader-friendly. One simple way of doing this is to begin the text of each article with a compelling statement; a paragraph or two of text that is more prominent and easier to read than the running text."

The article goes on about maintaining a page balance, putting graphical elements in a neatly outlined box, organizing details thoughtfully, and providing handy information like website details, email addresses, etc for the reader to benefit.

Lastly, apart from the articles, Ideabook has a wonderful resource section with URLs of interesting design websites, and access to more reading material.

Tangible physical assets Vs risk taking

2006-03-23T22:31:00.000+05:30

The bullish stock market has evoked my interest, and I've been following research and surveys on investment trends.
On one such quest to dig up articles on equity investment patterns I discovered Economic Times' report on how families prefer to park their money in physical assets, instead of the run of the mill modes of investment.

The article titled "Households park savings in physical assets" discusses how most households choose to put their savings in homes and real estate. They don't even favour fixed deposits, and bonds! Take a look...

India’s stock markets might be on a roll and investor wealth may well have risen to a dizzying height over the last year or two. Yet, this wealth effect doesn’t seem to have made much of an impression on the majority of the country’s savers. At a time when analysts have started talking about the emergence of an equity cult, it is time for a reality check. The official data on the country’s household savings for ’04-05 indicates that Indian households continue to prefer investing more in homes and real estate rather than save in the form of financial assets such as deposits, stocks or bonds. Perhaps, the typical risk averse Indian household might be viewing the savings in physical form as far a safer bet in the long-term than financial savings. Of the total household savings, the share of savings in shares and debentures stood at less than 2% in ’04-05, a poor reflection of the perception of Indians towards investing in the financial markets, despite the wide-spread reforms in the segment.

For instance, in FY00, financial savings constituted about 49.6% of the overall amount of household savings. But that figure went down to 46.7% in FY05, while savings in physical assets increased from 50.4% in FY00 to 53.3% in FY05. Interestingly, the overall financial savings in the household sector have declined from 11.5% of GDP in FY04 to 10.3% of GDP in FY05. However, it is worth noting that in absolute terms, financial savings have seen a marginal increase of 1.4% during the period. Increases in financial liabilities in the household sector have been a major contributor towards the decline seen in financial savings. Financial liabilities for the household sector have increased by 68% and currently stand at about 3.8% of GDP in FY05. Bank advances or bank loans have been the fastest growing financial liability category in the household sector.

In fact, bank advance now account for close to 89% of the overall amount of liabilities in the household sector and have grown by 96% in FY05. Increases in bank advances are a sign of growing consumer confidence, and spending power in the Indian economy. However, any more increase seen in household sector liabilities could put a check on growth in the gross domestic saving rates in the Indian economy. This is because the household sector is the highest contributor towards gross domestic savings. Deposits and claims on government are the major categories of financial savings by the household sector. Deposits account for about 38.3% of overall financial savings, while claims on government occupy 32.4% of the overall quantum of financial savings.

Claims on government have emerged as the fastest growing financial savings category in the household sector; it has grown by more than 200% since FY00. This indicates that higher administered interest rates on small savings schemes have proved to be very attractive, plus the fact that claims on government are less volatile than the securities markets. Other forms of financial savings are currency, insurance funds, provident & pension funds, as well as shares and debentures.

It's nice to see that people are evolving and looking at more adventurous ways to invest their savings. Let's hope the booming economy continues this upward trend, and creates more and more excitement in the financial markets! :)

Book Reading: Digital Photography

2006-03-22T20:27:00.000+05:30

I am currently reading this excellent book by Jim Miotke called "A Better Guide To Digital Photography".

For photo enthusiasts and amatuer photographers this books is a wonderful tutorial for understanding the digital camera, and taking phenomenal pictures. Miotke has a very simple, yet engaging style of writing, and I personally feel the book is a must read if you take photography seriously.

He makes learning technical things like aperture settings, and ISO readings a fun exercise, and draws analogies that set you thinking. He has also included a fine collection of pictorial comparisons from his own work, and throws in a tip or two throughout the book.

Miotke has been thoughtful enough to include "photo assignment ideas", so that the reader can actually go on a picture taking spree, and thus understand digital photography better.

He also has a fine website which hosts several contests, offers online courses, has a range of free newsletters you could subscribe to, and of course spectacular photo galleries to browse through!

So if you enjoy photography, and have recently discovered the joys of digital photography, I recommend reading this book right away.

Women and Investment

2006-03-22T18:04:00.000+05:30

The bullish stock market, lured me into stock trading last year itself - long before the sensex crossed the much-awaited 10,000 limit. But apparently not many women are as risk taking as me.
In a very insightful article on Business Today I read that a large majority of women are still quite conservative with investments, and are averse to risk-taking.

This is what the article has to say about women and finances:
Indian women have been handling money since the days of Ahilya Bai Holkar, who was an astute manager of state finances in the mid-1700s. Sadly, things do not seem to have progressed much since then. Most women continue to remain conservative investors, who believe in traditional instruments that give assured returns, such as fixed deposits, post office deposits and RBI bonds. Now, though, things seem to be finally changing. The boom in the equity market has seen more women seeking high-risk, high-return avenues for their investments. And the interesting fact is that these women are both from high-profile jobs and from ordinary households. And as the number of such women increases, financial service providers are increasingly launching niche products. In fact, mutual funds (MFs) like ING Vysya have launched exclusives schemes like Mahilanivesh for women investors, tailored to suit their investment philosophy.

The important thing that has changed is that more women today have large independent incomes. Not only do they have to make tax-saving investments, they also have to plan smart to take their earnings further, which invariably leads them to new investment avenues. Says Sharmila Doshi, Institutional Dealer, Asit C. Mehta: "Of late, many women, especially housewives, have started investing in direct equities. Thanks to the electronic media, women have even started tracking stocks and managing their family portfolio."
The second factor is the stock market rally, which has tempted women to take a little risk with their money. Says Vikas Sachdeva, Country Head (Business Development), ING Vysya MF: "In places like Nagpur, women are even doing day trading." As Doshi points out, the arrival of online trading has made the stock market much more accessible to women.

Recognising the huge potential in this investing segment, financial service providers are targeting it. Geojit Securities recently started several all-women trading branches, while MFs too are trying to attract women investors. Says Sachdeva: "We have nearly 2,000 women investors from all walks of life in our fund Mahilanivesh. Mostly, they are conservative and don't understand mf and equities. We sell by explaining the concept of rupee-cost averaging, to prove that over a period of time they will certainly make money."

The third factor that has pushed women to equity is the drastic fall in interest rates of fixed-income instruments. This has meant that even older women are taking that big leap from assured returns to market returns. A single parent and an ex-banker, H.J. Badshaw, 60, used to invest only in RBI bonds and company fixed deposits. But the booming stock market has encouraged her to start looking at equity. "On the advice of my daughter, a finance professional, I have started investing in equity MFs. The decline in interest rates is the primary reason for my decision," she says, but adds that she is not very comfortable with equity. As a senior citizen, of course, Badshaw should ideally keep her equity exposure to the minimum. She plans to put most of her money in fixed deposits and take the 9 per cent rate applicable for senior citizens.

“The risk of capital diminishing as well as the lack of confidence and knowledge about equity products is the key reason why women stick to traditional instruments,” says Aditi Someshwar, formerly a consultant with Airtel, who has put her investible surplus only in insurance products or fixed deposits.

Says, Shalini Tibrewala, fund manager, JM Financial AMC: “Unlike men, who have acquired a higher risk appetite, women are still conservative. They require a guarantee for their investment, at least the invested capital, which is why we have seen most women investing in bank deposits, postal schemes, RBI bonds and provident funds.” Tibrewala herself, being a debt fund manager, used to invest exclusively in debt instruments. In the last one year, what with falling interest rates and rising equity markets, she has shifted her portfolio to a mix of equity and debt, but debt continues to account for a substantial portion of her portfolio.

While some change is visible in the way women are handling investments now, the fact remains that much progress remains to be made. That will happen as awareness about financial products increases. The end result can only empower women more.

With projected forecasts of the sensex crossing 12,000 and a spate of Equity based Mutual funds rolling out, I think women should become more adventurous, and try their hand at the risky, yet more lucrative investment options!

Tryst With Goa: Act 1; Scene 3

2006-03-20T14:01:00.000+05:30

Another weekend, another galavanting trip around the Goan countryside. This time there was a ferry ride and a small trek in the itinerary. :-)

We started the day a little after noon, and drove to the old Goa jetty, a little after Ribander. Bike, bags, helmet, et al, we got ferried, across to Divar Island.

Though there aren't any monuments or 'tourist spots' at Divar, the winding lanes of the little island, dotted with quaint Goan houses with balcaos and ornate gardens, is like driving through a picture postcard. Even the view from the church square is something to write home about.

But the best thing about Divar Island is its tranquil surroundings, completely detached from the urban madness, slumbering in the hills and celebrating the natural beauty.

Next on the list was the Chapora fort. But not without a sumptuous lunch at Brittos in Baga.
So after we'd stuffed ourselves with King Fish Curry and Rice, we headed out to Chapora. We were hoping to drive up till the fort, but once we got there, we saw how steep and rocky the climb was, and also realized that it was going to be a tough trek on a full stomach.

We huffed and puffed our way up, downing big gulps of water and grabbing big rocks to avoid slipping on the gravel. The painful climb made us wonder whether we were putting in too much effort just to see broken fort walls. But once we got to the top, and sat down, we instantly knew that it was well worth the effort.

A 180 degree panoramic view - which was to die for [metaphorically of course]! The Wagator sea on one side, with rocks penetrating into the ocean, and the Morjim shore, stretching into the blue water like a long arm.

We were spellbound, as we sat looking into the vast expanse, with the fishing boats docking into the jetty, the kites and eagles gliding gracefully above us, the riotous breeze ruffling our hair, and the sunlight gleaming over the cascading water - roaring sometimes and quiet otherwise.

If we didn't have plans for the evening, we would have probably sat there till late into the night.

We drove away craving for more, and after taking a short juice break at 'The Mango Tree', it was sunset at Wagator hill. I was hoping to have a quiet sunset, but apparently a large part of the tourist fraternity had the same plans! So, we shared the little hillside with families from Maharashtra, a couple from Russia and a few other loners, who wanted to enjoy the sunset in solitude.

We then said goodbye to the sinking sun, and drove out to 'Mackie's Saturday Night Bazaar' and spent the entire evening eating, drinking and watching live bands and fire dancers take the stage.

While driving back home, there was only one thought in my mind - Goa thou shalt be missed!

It happens to all of us!

2006-03-13T16:35:00.000+05:30

Today I read a very insightful article on the Fortune website, on how though the digital age promised to help us work smarter and not harder - we still have trouble getting work done.

We are either constantly checking emails, or getting tempted to make blog posts [like I have succumbed to temptation], or busy browsing other people's blogs or taking phone calls; and so and so forth.

The article titled '5 rules to make your work day sane' provides some very practical suggestions on how to effectively plan your work day.

An excerpt from the article goes like this:
"But if Clay Shirky, professional technologist, needs the imposed digital isolation of the New York City subway to get his work done (and even that won't last, since plans are afoot to bring wireless access to the subways there), where does that leave the rest of us? How in BlackBerry's name are we supposed to get our work done?

By protecting what is fast becoming the knowledge worker's most precious commodity -- their time. To do that, you've got to figure out what is actually worth paying attention to, and when."

The crux of the matter:
Here are five tips -- and notice, there's no heavy lifting or rocket science involved -- that can quickly help anyone who embarks on the brave quest to get through their to-do lists with a modicum of efficiency and return home to their families reasonably intact. Happy, even. What a concept.
1) Give yourself a time-out. Devote an hour to uninterrupted thinking and planning every day. First thing in the morning is safest, but anytime that works for you is good. No calls, no e-mail, no chitchat, just quality time. "If there's an emergency, someone will come get you," says organization expert Julie Morgenstern. "Use this time to think strategically about your work."
2) Show your technology who's boss. Constant e-mails and phone calls bring a sense of urgency and importance that's tough to resist, not to mention the thrill of instant accomplishment. But keep your eye on the prize. "Anyone who has his e-mail client notify him anytime an e-mail comes in has already lost," says Shirky.
Most of today's devices and software actually can be set to be less intrusive. You just need to learn how: Switch off the ping that heralds the arrival of an e-mail, create folders into which incoming messages are automatically shunted. When busy, let outgoing message capabilities alert others to when they might reasonably expect to hear back from you.
3) Keep your meetings rare. Surveys show that most people find meetings a major time waster. Use them sparingly, keep to an agenda, start and end on time. And unless someone is expecting a baby (or using technology is part of the meeting) turn off all cellphones and BlackBerries. Intra-meeting texting is rude and counterproductive.
4) Say no. "Sorry" isn't the hardest word -- "no" is. But not saying it to desperate colleagues or harried bosses is the quickest way to overload your schedule and muck up more important goals. Focus first on meeting your stated objectives. Also, consider family and personal time when filling your calendar: Work-centric employees are more likely to report feeling overloaded than those who plan for their personal lives.
5) Delete. Surveys show we waste 20 percent of our day on nonproductive activities. Cut out or delegate anything on your to-do list that doesn't have long-term consequences for your work. Be ruthless. And while you're at it, don't let a stuffed e-mail in-box sap your will to live. When reviewing each e-mail, make an on-the-spot call to delete, file, or reply to each one -- even if the response is, "I'll get back to you on this later."

I think implementing these suggestions in our professional lives will be worth a try! Especially because time is money! ;)

Tryst With Goa: Act 1; Scene 2

2006-03-07T09:18:00.000+05:30

"The more I live here, the better I like it; the better I like it, the tougher it is to say goodbye."

This what Goa does to you - it makes an indelible mark on your psyche, and leaves you craving for more.

To satiate a part of this craving, last weekend we went to Morjim, Tambdi Surla, Dhudh Sagar(well almost) and Bondla national park. The drive was beautiful, to say the least.
The moment we'd be convinced that we'd just seen the prettiest spot, something more stunning would come our way.

At Morjim beach we were pleasantly surprised by the scanty number of tourists and beach shacks. And to make it worth our while, we got to witness a fishing expedition.

Local fishermen were drawing in the first catch of the day, as we strolled around soaking in the sun. They worked like a perfect team, calling out to each other, taking turns to pull the heavy net, giving instructions to those deeper inside, and constantly working in tandem to make sure that they get a big catch.

Once they drew the net in, there was complete chaos, thanks to people like me, pouring over the net to take pictures. The poor fisherwomen, who were trying to sort the fish, had a tough time shooing us off. And though we knew that crowding around was causing them great inconvenience, it was one of those once-in-a-lifetime experience, which we just couldn't afford to miss.

After the 'fishy' excitement, we decided to sip on some chilled Water Melon juice and enjoy the landscape.

The next day, we went to the Tambdi Surla temple. The drive was a wee bit tiring, primarily because of the scorching sun and the dusty highway. Up till Ponda, the roads were great, but the stretch of National Highway 4A nearing Belgaum was quite tiresome, since the trucks that zipped past, cared for nothing but overtaking the vehicles ahead.

I was a little disappointed by the sheer size of the Mahadev temple at Tambdi Surla. I expected it to be a sprawling archeological feast. But after reading about it on the solitary board at the entrance, I was impressed. The entire temple is one monolith, carved with great detail and preserved by the Archeological Society of India.

Next stop was Dhudh Sagar. I was really looking forward to soaking in the water. But once we got there we realised that the vehicle was too low, and couldn't make it through the two shallow rivers we would have to cross; Walking the 12 km steep stretch in the blazing sun was not too appealing.

Greatly disappointed, we decided to head back to Panjim. As we were driving back, still wondering whether we should have risked the drive through the rivers, we made a spot decision to go to the Bondla National Park. And boy! was it a smart decision.

We spent hours doting over the lumbering elephants, looking at the angry young leopard, and telling off antisocial families, who were teasing the animals.

The elephant ride was the highlight of the trip. Krishna, [that's what the keepers call him] eats 300 kilograms of food everyday! Talk about being high maintenance!

After the bumpy elephant ride, we left for Panjim. We made a brief stop at good ol' Mirmar beach to take pictures of the sunset, ate steaming hot croquets and scooted home to wash up.

This weekend I'll be going on another nomadic binge. Will put up some more rants. ;)

In the meanwhile, for a slideshow of pictures, visit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/neeta/

Online Activism: Blank Noise Project

2006-03-06T18:00:00.000+05:30

I was only 11 when I first realized that as a member of the 'weaker sex' I was vulnerable, and could easily fall prey to sexual abuse. But I had the power of education and a supporting family to teach me and protect me.

Not everyone is as fortunate as I am, and more often than not, sexual abuse - both physical and verbal goes unreported and almost always, unpunished.

It is commendable that now both women and men are waking up to this bitter reality and putting their heads together to curb it.

Blank Noise Project is an online activism forum which is inviting people to come together and express solidarity with words. Their 'Blog-a-thon 2006' is a 'marathon' to make blog posts, and build testimonies against street harassment in the public space.

I understand that it will be a herculean task to put an end to social evils like eve-teasing, molesting and sexual abuse. And as long as the people in power continue to twiddle their thumbs over grave matters such as these, and pointing fingers at a woman's morals; it is the 'common woman' who has to take action. Whether it is a young woman travelling in a crowded bus, or a school girl walking down the alley - we have to worry about our own protection, and we have to raise over voices against harassment.

Information Design

2006-03-03T15:54:00.000+05:30

I recently came across this really interesting and very well designed infographic on the Xplane website. Xplane is an information design firm, and their website offers great resources for reading, reference and downloads. Their publications section is rich storehouse of knowledge.

The image above is a fine example of an infographic they have created to explain a scenario. The infographic is a visual representation of the lifecycle of an efficient workforce within an organization.

Every process is clearly outlined, and can be a great resource for designers, project managers, and other communication specialists.

Dying Young

2006-03-02T11:41:00.000+05:30

I have been meaning to make this post ever since January 2006, when a good friend of mine was admitted in the hospital. One morning when she eventually fell asleep after a heavy dose of sedatives, and I was sitting by her bed reading a magazine, I heard a slow, mournful wail emanating from the corridor. I peered out to see a small body, wrapped in a white sheets, being wheeled out to the morgue, closely followed by a mourning man.

Looking at the obvious despair on my face, the nurse on duty told me that a 13-year-old child, who'd been battling cancer for over a year, lost to the deadly disease.
Suddenly, I felt like a part of the loss, as I thought of the family who had lost a young child, and the wailing father, who didn't want to leave the side of his little girl.

Mortal death is a part of human life; and dealing with such premature deaths can be very difficult.

But the worst kind of death, is the one people inflict upon themselves because of circumstances. No, I'm not talking about suicide at all.
Let me illustrate this heart-wrenching, yet common phenomenon with a few examples.

I recently met a friend's grandmother; a dignified 68-year-old woman, who looks about 10-years older than she actually is; this is because she meekly accepted the terms and conditions that were inflicted upon her when she was a young girl.

As a budding medical professional, she had made plans to study further and become a child specialist. But her father forced her into marrying a domineering, chauvanistic businessman, who believed that a woman's place is only at home. She spent a significant part of her early twenties, 'in the service' of her in-laws and her husband.

Before she knew it, the energetic, intelligent young girl, striving to reach great heights, had turned into a quiet, bitter and stifled woman, counting her days to the deathbed.

Today, almost four decades later, she lives like a ghost, detached from the rest of the world, intermittently shuffling pages of her yellowing medical books, and slowing dying in the cage she created for herself. She can't be blamed, because when she was young, rebellious women, who stood up for themselves were almost non-existent.

There is a whole generation of such women, who have virtually been dead for decades. I'm sure many of us would have met them at some point in our lives.

Poverty and the lack of education are also the culprits behind this 'dying young' phenomenon. Two years ago, I'd met this young boy who used to work at a cycle store. He was smart, hard-working, and extremely reliable. Anyone with half an eye could see that if he had the chance, he could do very well for himself. So, I offered to buy him books and teach him to read and write English. But he refused. Not because he didn't want charity or because he couldn't do it. But because he had reconciled to living in a cubby hole, and working in a cycle store for a measely sum of money. He was sure that he deserved what he had, and that he was destined to live and die that way!

At this point I remember an excerpt from a John Donne poem, "Death, be not proud, though some have called thee Mighty and dreadful, for thou art not so; For those whom thou think'st thou dost overthrow, Die not, poor Death, nor yet canst thou kill me."

If only we took this view of life, then mortal death would be the only thing we would ever have to fight.

Colour It Yellow?

2006-02-23T12:02:00.000+05:30

I recently had the misfortune to watch the hyped, blockbuster hit - Rang De Basanti. The film ranked very high on entertainment value; especially during the first half of the film. Due credit to the filmmaker for the innovative cinematography, the sepia and colour contrasts, the fancy locations, and the cutting edge editing.

But post-interval, the film was a complex tangle of multi-layered social messages and issues. A few strains of reality from the first half of the film, died a miserable death, and there was unimaginable brouhaha that followed suit. Every character was either feeling patriotic, or looking to make a difference by becoming an extreme reformist, or simply trying to prove to himself/herself that his life had been worthwhile.

If the answer to corruption, bad politicians and social evils was taking the law into your own hands, and committing murder, then several of us would be serial killers!

For an impressionable, easy to influence, teenager, this movie could spell doom.
Sure, we all had our fair share of fun in college, and sure we bunked classes and believed in the mantra 'lose control'. But at the end of the day, if you want to make a difference, then you'd jolly well be prepared to work in politics or the government services to become a change agent. You can't expect miracles to happen at gun-point, can you?

Yes! Yes! I hear the ardent Bollywood lovers arguing that it's 'just a movie', and not meant to be critically dissected, and that it was a fun watching it, thanks to some great performances, and state-of-the-art camera work, etc, etc.

Even though I'll reluctantly agree that there is truth in the above statement, I do believe that Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra in his attempt to inspire the 'awakening generation', has given out a slightly warped message.

Or maybe I'm just a cynic! Brickbats anyone?

Tryst with Goa: Act 1; Scene 1

2006-02-20T17:18:00.000+05:30

As a part of my 'discover Goa' adventure series, I have decided that I will explore as much as I can. Oh no! I'm not writing a book or a travel guide. I'm just going on a travel binge.

So, this weekend, Zubin and I drove down to Palolem beach, in the gorgeous Canacona district of Goa. Driving through Goa, in the early hours of a misty Saturday morning is a treat by itself - beautiful Goan houses, open fields, the silhouette of hills, bathed in warm sunlight and the cool morning breeze was simply amazing.

We reached Palolem at about 9:30am, and were surrounded by 'Dolphin cruise' and 'honeymoon cottage' sellers. These 'salesmen' [if they can be called so] judge you by your appearance. If you look like the upmarket, Mumbai-types, they'll speak to you in English; and if you look like the average could-be-from-anywhere-in-the-country, they'll rattle off in fluent Hindi.

After we'd managed to say 'no thank you' to about a dozen Dolphin cruises, we walked into Palolem beach resort. This place is a medium budget hotel, with tents and rooms available. The rooms are small, but extremely clean, well-kept with an attached bathroom. The tents too are nicely set-up, but don't have attached bathrooms. So if you decide to stay in one of the tents, you'd better be prepared to use shared washrooms.

After we'd dumped our luggage and changed into beachwear, the entire morning was spent beach bumming. The beach stretch was littered with sun-bathing foreigners and stray dogs snoozing under beach chairs. As Zubin dived into the cool water, I went around taking pictures, patting flea-laden doggies and refusing 'Henna tatoo girls'.

This was followed by a delicious lunch of prawn masala fry and fish kebabs, and a much needed nap. At 4:00pm, we were back at the beach, floating in the sea and enjoying the ebbing waters. One of the most amazing things about the Palolem sea is that it's very shallow, and you can walk quite deep inside and still be standing!

The evening was spent driving around, and shack hopping. This was followed by a sumptuous Thai dinner at 'The Banyan Tree' - a dimly lit shack, with good 'Thai' food, a waiter with an authentic Thai accent, and great service. The shack owners perhaps knew we were visiting, so we got to watch a fireworks display above the calm sea.

Sunday morning we were back in the cold water, with 4 stray dogs hungry for attention and willing to play in the waves joining us for dip. After a short splash, and a long walk on the beach, we we were at 'Cafe Del Mar', downing a couple of Long Island Iced Teas, in a buy-one-get-one-free, all day happy hour deal!

Palolem is perhaps one of the most quiet and less frequented beaches of Goa. A large part of the tourist parties overlook this beach, and tend to huddle up in Baga, Calangute and the likes. Which is why Palolem is cleaner, emptier and could be a wonderful retreat for someone looking to spend a quiet weekend.

Picture: The ebbing sea at Palolem

Picturesque Ullal Beach

2006-02-13T17:48:00.000+05:30

Travel Diary: Coorg and Mangalore

2006-02-03T20:55:00.000+05:30

I am on a journey, and have been so busy travelling through bylanes and highways, that 'Neatwit' took a backseat.
I have finally slowed down in the land of my birth - Mangalore. When I came here 14 years ago, as a 10-year-old, hyperactive child, Rajiv Gandhi had just been assasinated.
Despite a bad bout of viral fever, and several wrongly diagosned doses of heavy medication, I was curious enough to know why such a young man was bombed to death!

Anyway, nostalgia apart - this trip has been a gala adventure since the day we left Bangalore on January 29. Packed into an amazingly spacious Toyota Qualis, which has the best suspensions [praise the lord], my parents and my adorable aunts - who are as amusing as a gag of giggly teenage girls - drove through the picturesque ghats of Karnataka. As we hit the Kodava district we stopped at the Tibetan colony in Kushalnagar. Their 'golden temple' was an ornate paradise - peaceful, spectacularly designed and impeccably maintained.

After little Tibet, our first stop was the land of coffee and sumptuous pork curry - Coorg. The temperature was perfect, nippy enough to demand warm clothing and windy enough to enjoy the noon sun. We stayed at this cosy little estate called Alath Cad Estate Holiday Homes. We moved into beautiful cottages which were a lot like home. To add to that, the food was delicious - especially since we had requested for a typically Coogi spread.

Coorg doesn't have very many 'tourist spots' - but whatever little was there, we visited them all - barring the elephant sanctuary at Dubare. I was a teeny bit disappointed. Since this camp offers an elephant bathing and feeding adventure, apart from the mundane safaris.

The roads in Coorg were in rather bad shape. So most of the time, we'd be inching our way along the long, winding roads. Nevertheless, the breathtaking scenery, the lovely flowers, tall trees and the Coffee estates kept us good company. The abundance of natural beauty automatically merits Coorg as a photographers haven. There is so much that you can do with even a low-end digital camera with a significantly large memory stick.

Our next stop was Mangalore. En route we stopped at Bantwal, where we located a really old house owned by my great-grandfather. To me it was just another old house in ruins, but to my aunts and mother, it was legacy still standing tall.

Mangalore was muggy and hot - even in the so-called 'winter month' of February. After reaching Mangalore city, we drove into the Taj Manjarun, only to be greeted by an overwhelming stench of rotten fish. Everyone was rather replused, but still trouped in hoping that everything would be okay later.

After we checked in and walked towards our rooms on the 5th floor, the stench lingered in the corridors as well. Boy! It was terrible. Especially since we were paying a fortune to live in a good hotel. Even the rooms were quite small, tightly packed with funiture and a stale smell constantly emanated from the carpets. The collective decision to move out led us to Hotel Abhimaan in the heart of the city of Mangalore.

Though Abhimaan was nowhere close to the Taj in matters of luxurious comfort, it was quite a decent place to stay. Spacious air-conditioned rooms with clean bathrooms and a television was a good enough deal.

Mangalore's car-festival, locally called the 'Theru' was the attraction of our trip. The overwhelming urge to be a part of the religious feista took us into Mahamaya temple's courtyard. A grand authentic Manglorian supper was gobbled down eagerly and all ardent devotees with full stomachs were pushed out of the temple to make way for the next batch of hungry devotees.

The rest of the stay in Mangalore was spent in travel: to Udipi, Mulki, Manipal and Ullal and visits: to relatives, family friends and acquaintances. The Ullal beach, by the way, is worth a visit.

All said and done, it was an eight-day joy ride, peppered with laughter, spiced with great Mangalorian food, and tempered with hectic travelling.

The Picture: Just after sunrise at the Coffee Estate - the boulevard to the clear blue sky

My last 'official' column

2006-01-20T18:13:00.000+05:30

As my tryst with Goa is nearing it’s end, I can’t help feeling nostalgic, and yearning for the land I’ve loved.What was meant to be a short 3-month journey, turned into two long years, and Goa has given me its everything. From the ever-embracing sea, which is always willing to wrap you in her roaring waves, and wipe away your tears; to the glory of the crimson sunset, sinking into the horizon; to the poder who sways on his cycle selling his fresh poi; and the good old Goenkar,who might have his reservations about the invading non-Goans, but is ever so kind and helpful despite that. When I relocated to Goa in 2004, everyone I knew thought I had lost my marbles! Going to Goa to work? Now that is a laugh! Understandably their judgement was tainted with the belief that Goa is only a holiday destination. And I didn’t blame them for thinking that it was a sneaky plan I had devised to ‘party’ in Goa. They found it hard to believe that I could actually be ‘working’ from 9am to 6pm in a place like Goa. Such a phenomenon could not possibly occur in Goa. You mean to say people actually work here? I didn’t work very hard to try and prove them wrong. I let them live under the fancy illusion of ‘sun, sea and sand’.

It was so much more romantic to let them think that I was making a career out of lounging around on the beach, and eating fish curry and rice. Goa might not be a silicon valley in the making, but it sure is one of those real life havens. Here is where I learnt the real value of a good life – a life away from the mundane hassles of metropolitan city life. Here is where I spent evenings brainstorming creative story ideas, exploring new ways of unravelling the treasure troves of Goa. This is the place where I got to work with the best minds, spend time debating on diverse topics and learning new things from the old and the wise. Here is where I didn’t waste a single minute standing in long traffic jams, after a long day at work; but instead, sat on the banks of the Mandovi, dangling my feet in the slow waters and relishing the evening sky. This is where I woke up every morning to a breath-taking view of coconut trees and green hills, a hot cup of tea, and the delicious anticipation of a brand new day.

This is the place where planning a weekend was not about which bowling alley I will be hoplessly tossing heavy balls in, but about deciding which cosy little nook in the village will be good to prop up my feet, and read my favourite book. Here is where I realised the true meaning of “going on a long-drive”, uninterrupted by traffic snags and angry drivers. Goa is where I could choose not to make my own dinner, but walk down to the nearest “anda-pav” stall and buy steaming hot cutlet bread, homemade croquets, and yummy sausage bread fresh from the oven.

When I shared these thoughts with my “cosmopolitan” friends, they dismissed me as a dreaming wanderlust, who had been blinded by romanticism. To them, it was an idealistic trip I perceived to be real. But to me, it was the reality that I lived, experienced and will forever treasure.But as I leave to become “a low-level functionary, in a small department, of a large organisation”, I am taking with me the invicible memories of good times, friendships that are forever, lessons that have helped me grow into a better human being, the infallible natural beauty of Goa, and the lingering taste of sol kadi and fish curry and rice!

I remember an old, much quoted excerpt from Robert Frost’s famous poem ‘The Road Not Taken’ — “I shall be telling this with a sigh, somewhere ages and ages hence: Two roads diverged in a wood, and I - I took the one less travelled by. And that has made all the difference.”

Books are forever

2006-01-06T19:34:00.001+05:30

The digital revolution has taken over our lives. Digital information is lording over lives, and nowadays it has become mandatory to check your email the moment you step into office. Children born into this revolution are very fortunate. They are also extremely bright and enormously articulate.

I had the pleasure of meeting these ‘tweens’ (a prominent business magazine called them so) last week. I met a few children in the age group ranging from a three-year-old toddler to a nine-year-old whiz kid, who had all gathered in Goa to celebrate New Year with their folks.
I was amazed at how well-informed and expressive they all were. They knew what was happening around them, they were aware that Goa was ‘the most happening place’ to be in on New Year’s Eve and they were armed with their gadgets and remote controlled gizmo toys.

Since the three-year-old was the youngest, and by far the most articulate I struck a conversation with him. He was already going to pre-school, had a ‘girlfriend’, knew that bikes were for boys and dolls were for girls – but it’s certainly not wrong to play with either, and that he can send his latest pictures to his aunt via email. This going-to-be ‘tween’ thoroughly impressed me with his intelligent, precise replies to questions. He didn’t quite enjoy being ‘baby-talked to’, and interacted in a mature fashion. Surprisingly he wasn’t even troublesome; instead he was extremely protective about his mother, and concerned about her well-being.

Overhearing my interest in gizmos the nine-year-old sidled up to me and asked me if I was interested in ‘checking-out’ her latest game-boy. She was also abreast with what was happening on the video-gaming scene, what was available on e-bay and that "daddy paid online with his credit card."

I was both impressed and appalled. Impressed, that a young child was reading up on her area of interest, and appalled that poor daddy had to bear the brunt of the expenses. This ‘tween’ also bragged of a very busy schedule during school days. Aerobics, singing lessons, karate classes and of course, school! But when I asked her if she read books, she looked at me aghast. Apparently, she only reads on the Internet. Why bother picking up a book? I spent the next 10 minutes mulling over why this child was not introduced to the Enid Blytons, which are synonymous with childhood. She didn’t have the ‘Tell Me Why’ series on her bookshelf, but Microsoft Encarta installed on her personal computer. She had interactive multimedia CDs that told her stories, instead of a collection of bedtime stories.

Then, I posed a hypothetical question – what would it be like if she would read a book. She could imagine the characters, she could create her own version of what the world looked like and she would learn so many new words. But this immensely talented child was against book reading. You can’t click on it you see. That makes it boring!

My next rendezvous was with a spoilt, five-year-old boy. He was pampered silly. But that didn’t make him any less smarter than the others. He also had his set of technology tools, and made an ugly face at the mention of books. He detested the idea of having to read on paper, and his e-comics which came from the US were a lot more happening than a bunch of printed, hard bound books. His question to me was, how on earth will he zoom into his favourite character?

When I expressed my concern on the matter, the parents of the children had differing points of view. The three-year-old’s mom advocated books and thought it was essential to give her son a good set of books to read. But since he was young, she had put it on hold. However the others were alright with their child’s dependency on the computer. They wanted to ensure that their children don’t get left behind in the digital rate race – even if it meant spending a lot of money on buying faster, better and cooler computers, gizmo toys, and gaming gadgets.
I am also a big lover of technology, and have been attempting to teach my technology phobic parents to become net-savvy. But books, other physical reading material also add value. They have an intangible, intrinsic quality that help you in the long run. There still is a fraternity of book-lovers who believe in curling up with a book.

A colleague of mine, who recently moved to Goa from Mumbai laughs about his huge book buying jaunts, and how he has run a long credit card bill. But there is not an ounce of regret or remorse. He is proud of his book collection. Unfortunately, members of this fraternity are people like me, who have grown up with books and have been taught the importance of books, as opposed to the younger generation who scoff at the idea of picking up a book and reading it. Some even prefer to watch the movie, and seldom know that prior to the big screen, it was a book.
The dominance of technology and interactivity is inevitable. Sooner than later it will control our lives. But whether we should give up certain valuable habits from yesteryears is questionable. It is also an individual decision whether you choose to read e-books, or tread the traditional route.

I do hope that the ‘tweens’ of today don’t get swept off by the tech-wave, and realise that books, like diamonds are forever.

Strength In Numbers

2006-01-06T16:49:00.000+05:30

The recent ‘uprising’ in Valpoi, and the terrorist attack at the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore have made us all realise that we are unsafe and vulnerable in our own world. In some senses, we are victims of our own wrong-doings, and however much we try to pin the blame on someone else, what goes around, comes around.Two years ago, I had the chance to travel the length and breadth of the Telengana region of Andhra Pradesh. I had the opportunity to speak to the oppressed, poor and drought-affected villagers, who had seen innumberable governments come and go, had witnessed a variety of empty promises, and were disillusioned and disgruntled beyond measure.

Some were old and helpless, and preferred to give-up. But there were those chosen few who still had the energy to fight for their rights. They were inspired by the Naxalite movement. They sought refuge in the poems of Gaddar — the famous Telegu poet who wrote reams of poetry for the Naxal movement. They were hot blooded youngsters, who believed they could make a difference. Two weeks after I had met them, they went on a rampage, killing senior members of the zamindars, and store owners who were selling them the wheat and rice they had toiled to grow, for three times the price. The incident created wide-spread panic, and even the middle class government employees were beginning to feel threatened. Such is the might of numbers. And such is the explosive strenght of pent up frustration.So why do people resort to these extreme measures? Are they obsessive and fanatic by nature? Or do circumstances lead them to take law into their own hands? The answer is a combination of the two. They look to the government, the judiciary, and the the law of the land to provide them justice. But when all else fails, and their elected representatives cheat them, they are forced to turn into ‘fanatics’ or in their perception — ‘revolutionaries’.They are driven into revolt, which over time could make or break them. More often than not, it ends up breaking them.

Indian history is replete with examples of youngsters who have chosen the ‘revolutionary’ way with good intention. With hopes that one day they will get what they deserve. Many of them have died trying, many others have been misguided into terrorism and mindless violence.These uprisings and brutal killings are an apparent signal to the local bodies as well as the government to wake up to the reality of mounting ill-will. The poor and the illiterate are not fools. They are individuals, and members of society who understand the importance of basic human rights. They might not know that the Indian constitution has provisions for those human rights, but these suffering masses do realise that they can make demands when their rights are infringed.There is a limit to human tolerance, and in a country with rampant corruption, irresponsible politicians, indifferent local authorities, slip-shod infrastructure (and in some places a complete lack of it) the only answer for innocent citizens is to take action themselves.The problems are manifold, and the solutions too are as complex as the issues themselves. It is now up to the authorities to take visible action and help resolve issues, or ‘suffer’ the wrath of the people.

The New Year's Resolve

2006-01-04T09:33:00.000+05:30

The load of doing something 'happening' is finally off my shoulders - New Year's eve is past me!
2006 opened with a big bang. Literally. The fireworks were unbearably loud.
But was it all hunky-dory? I am not very certain...

I had a very bizarre journey into 2006. On the one hand there was the empty headed, hopelessly organized, 'Fashion TV Party' I got dragged to, and on the other hand, there was a trip to the Margao railway station, and the throngs of Army aspirants on the platform, the staircase, in the parking lot - huddled underneath sheets and blankets, trying to sleep in the biting cold. They were all braving the harsh winds for one cause - a post in the Indian army.

I think that the resolve to spend new year's eve trying to carve a niche for themselves, is way above all the fake new year resolutions we 'privileged' people make. The fact that they were all there that night, with such focussed intent was both laudable and admirable.

The journalist in me said, "Wow, brilliant story idea." But when I meandered through the sleeping people and said goodbye to the friend who was leaving, I decided that taking blatant pictures for a selfish reason (a good story and a byline) would be equivalent mocking the good intentions of all those people.

So I turned around, and walked out, hoping that the new year is indeed happy for all of them.

Happy New Year Everyone!

An Interview With Dalrymple [Excerpts]

2005-12-31T14:29:00.000+05:30

Dalrymple feels that he is in on an everlasting tryst with India. He believes that India has such a rich history and vibrant culture, that the more you explore it, the more there is to learn. His relationship with India is interspersed over 20 long years and the country is very close to his heart.

Three out of his six books have had India as the central subject matter and his forthcoming book, which he is currently working on, is based on the 1857 — Sepoy Mutiny in India and the ‘last Mughal’ — Bahadur Shah Zafar.

“My next book is about Bahadur Shah Zafar which I think is the most sad and wonderful story of a poetic, philosophic, Sufi mind that died, and was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Being at the throne in 1857 was completely the wrong time. I think he can very easily be called the Indian King Lear,” stated Dalrymple passionately.
When asked why he feels so strongly about the man, Dalrymple promptly explains, “He is a very sympathetic character. He lived at a very poignant time in Indian history. In many ways this book will be a sequel to the White Mughals. If the White Mughals was about the love affair between the Indians and the British, the new book will be a story of the divorce between the two factions.”
His other highly India0centric travel book, the Age of Kali has a chapter devoted to Goa. This particular piece raised a stir among Goans and critics alike. They all believed that Dalrymple had portrayed an ugly picture of Goa and the Portuguese rule.
“Well, I wasn’t in India when this controversy was brewing, so I didn’t have to bear the brunt of it directly. But I think it was a foolish mistake made by readers. I was not making a judgment on Goa or the Portuguese, but I was only quoting Donna Georgina, the lady I visited in old Goa. My views on Goa are independent of Donna Georgina’s opinions,” said an amused Dalrymple.
William Dalrymple is a wanderer and has travelled far and wide in his quest to satiate his appetite for history. His recent article on the madrasas of Pakistan was an eye-opening piece of writing that attempted to dispel the myth that madrasas are breeding grounds for fundamentalists and terrorists. Recollecting his experience of his journey, Dalrymple said, “It is common belief in the West that madrasas are training institutes for terrorism. Especially after the London bombings, this belief was propagated further. I thought the contrary, and was sure that these were just schools that teach the religion of Islam to young boys. I am not denying that the boys studying there are devoted to Islam but that does not translate into religious fundamentalism.”

The author even worked on a film called Sufi Soul: The Mystic Music of Islam as a part of a Channel 4 series and travelled through Pakistan, Morocco, Turkey and Syria, exploring the history and tradition of Sufism. “People in the West have only come in contact with Islam in a conflictary and militant way. There is very little in the Western media about Sufism, Sufi music or Rumi. This film was an attempt to address this imbalance in the projection of this infamous religion,” he described.

William Dalrymple is a man of the world. Someone who is certain that there are many lifetimes of travel left for him to conquer. To quench his thirst to unravel history, he has toiled several years in libraries, universities and countries, generated notebooks full of research and produced several exquisite pieces of travel and historical writing. So, for all you Dalrymple lovers, there is much more to come.

An Evening With Dalrymple

2005-12-29T14:32:00.000+05:30

The book café ‘Literati’ nestled in the bylanes of Candolim was abuzz with activity. Steaming hot brownies being laid out in ceramic plates, aromatic coffee brewing in a kettle, and people, young and old pouring over piles of books neatly arranged on the quaint coffee table.

Renowned author and historian, William Dalrymple was arriving for a book reading, and the anticipation and growing impatience was apparent. Everybody was busy contemplating on which of his books would they like autographed, and what parts of his six books would Dalrymple choose to read.

As the clock ticked 5, everyone rushed to grab the best seat in the scenic courtyard of Literati. As Dalrymple alighted from the cab with his wife and kids, there was a palpable excitement, as men and women were craning their necks to get a better look at the writer.

Dalrymple looking like he had soaked in every ounce of Goa, strode in comfy Khaki shorts and a casual T-shirt. He looked so much at home, as he beamed at the eager audience waiting for the reading to start.

He plonked himself on the steps of the portico, with all six his books book-marked and ready to be read and kick-started the reading with his first book as a 22-year-old college lad called ‘In Xanadu’ – an account of a quest which took him and his companions across the length and breadth of Asia. He chose an intricately humorous account of a film screening for an orthodox Muslim audience who did not understand the English language, and were watching a film with subtitles in another alien tongue!

Dalrymple’s authentic histrionics and his remarkable technique of animated reading had the audience laughing loudly. As he gesticulated, rolled his eyes, and read choice excerpts to the engrossed audience, I couldn’t help but marvel at the man’s tremendous talent. He was not only immensely articulate, but also deeply passionate about his work.

His excerpt from his second book, City of Djinns with caricatures of real people in Delhi, and the idiosyncrasies of the Indian man had the audiences in splits. Every second sentence or so, a roar of laughter would breeze through the crowd.

Despite being in Goa, and reading to a largely Goan audience Dalrymple chose not to read his chapter on Goa from his fourth book, and a collection of essays – The Age of Kali. Instead he read a very sullen account of the decaying, once Nawabi city of Lucknow. Nevertheless, nobody in the audience seemed to be unhappy about his choice.

The entire experience of meeting, interacting and listening to William Dalrymple was both real and surreal. You would expect an author of such calibre and 360-degree worldview to be snobbish and high-handed. But Dalrymple had an astute amicability and warmth as he spoke with supreme confidence and unbeatable dignity.

Rest assured, we all look forward to Dalrymple’s forthcoming book on the ‘Last Moghul’ - Bahadur Shah Zafar.

It was a momentous evening when the White Moghuls met the Goenkars, far away from the City of Djinns, by the shores of the Holy Mountain in the company of Kubla Khan, and of course William Dalrymple.

Was Roald Dahl a sadist?

2005-12-23T19:39:00.000+05:30

Famous Norwegian writer, Roald Dahl is one of my favourite authors. Most of the world believes that he wrote for children. I thought so too, until recently. A couple of months ago I bought an omnibus of his short stories. I started reading the book with delicious anticipation, and couldn't wait to sink into Dahl's world. But the more I read, the more I realized that Dahl has a sadistic, almost mean and evil streak. There was an underlying sadism in his stories, perhaps even evil intentions. Some of his descriptions were outright gory and almost repulsive.

I brushed it off as a figment of my imagination! Then came the world premiere of 'Charlie and the Chocolate Factory' - the movie. I'd read the book a while ago, and had long forgotten that it was Dahl's masterpiece.

I settled down to watching to movie with a big bowl of popcorn and happy thoughts of flowing chocolate. But as the movie progressed, I noticed a sense of sadism again! The little 'brats' being 'punished' because of their own doing, in a queer, eerie sort of way, and the impulsive, unnerving temperment of Willy Wonka - the owner of the chocolate factory [played brilliantly by Johnny Depp] had me wondering why there was a tainted resemblence to good ol' Dahl.

Then, it suddenly all came back to me! The movie was a based on the Roald Dahl book! Brrrrr! I had the heebie jeebies for a while.

All said and done, I must admit that I thoroughly enjoyed the movie, and I still love reading Roald Dahl. But I can't help but question whether he really wrote for children, or whether he was so traumatised by his bad times at boarding school, that his books and stories were the outlets to pent up emotions!

[P.S. My apologies to fellow Roald Dahl lovers]

Changing Landscape of Goan Christmas [Feature Story]

2005-12-23T18:39:00.000+05:30

The Christmas spirit is the air! Santa Claus look-alikes standing outside supermarkets, colourful decorations on sale, Christmas trees lined up, cake mixing ceremonies and melodious Christmas carols playing everywhere, confirm that the jolly season is here! It is the season of love, goodwill, and togetherness — and also of celebration, prayer and happiness.
But has the Christmas of yore been marred by globalisation, modernisation and migration? Do families still get together to make cakes, kul-kuls, dos, dodols, and tassies? Do they still meet for a traditional Christmas lunch and carol singing? Or are they so far apart, scattered in different parts of the world, so caught up in the rat race, that they have no time to enjoy a ‘traditional’ Christmas?
The answer to this is bordering between a “yes, time is at a premium” and “well, we do try and celebrate Christmas traditionally.”
“Christmas has definitely changed,” says Lira Pinto, “People are too busy doing their own thing. I don’t even think too many families get together nowadays. In this fast-moving world, everyone is too tied up to labour over making sweets, or even making a Christmas tree instead of buying one. When I was a child it was so exciting to see the entire family get together, make sweets, bake cakes, make a crib, etc. Sometimes we would make the crib from stone, or bring hay from the fields to create an ‘authentic’ feeling of Christ’s birth in Bethlehem. But now everything is ready-made. It’s so much more convenient to just run down to the store and buy things,” she laments.
However, this hasn’t destroyed Lira’s Christmas spirit. She will be making this time’s crib from a wooden log, and decorating it herself. There will also be a family get together on Christmas day when her children and grandchildren will all come together and have a hearty Christmas lunch.
Fortunately for Pinto, her children and grandchildren are close-by, so they have the luxury to meet, and enjoy a day of togetherness.
Melinda Powel on the other hand is not so lucky. Most of her family has migrated, and a large part of her husband’s family is settled in America, “Christmas has changed tremendously. Everyone is so busy with their work and their kids, that nobody has the time to make sweets, or organise grand lunches. Besides, consumerism has altered the landscape of the festive season drastically! My nine-year old twins don’t worry about what sweets are being made for Christmas, but are more concerned about which party am I taking them to. Though we do have a Christmas lunch at my mother’s place, it’s no longer the way it used to be when I was little. I still remember my aunts and uncles getting together and preparing cake mixes with large wooden batons, since there was no mixer then, and then staying up late to finish making the kul-kuls! The crib making, and Christmas tree was the most precious part of the entire gala! We would do whatever we could to have it ready much ahead of Christmas eve,” Melinda reminisces.
Since Melinda was an air-hostess, she has travelled the world and seen many Christmas’ abroad. But she still believes that the Indian Christmas, especially the Goan Christmas is the best. “Christmas here is so much more personal. Irrespective of whether you are with your family or not, there is good cheer everywhere! And it’s infectious too! But in the west, if you are not with your family, you will perhaps have a very lonely Christmas. Additionally, out there, it’s all about which gift to buy, rather than how best to share goodwill and good cheer,” she added.
Twelve-year-old Tina feels that Christmas is very special to her, “My grandma still bakes cakes and makes us so many sweets, and we also pick a new Christmas tree every year. This year my best friend and I made all the decorations ourselves and did up the tree. Till I was 10, my uncles and my aunts would also join us on Christmas day, but ever since they shifted to Delhi, they haven’t been able to come,” Tina states with a trace of remorse.
Over the years Santa’s Christmas has undergone a metamorphosis. It has acquired new meanings, and it has also adopted new ways of celebrating. But it is still that momentous day with mistletoes and wreaths, red hats and plum cake, carol singing and joy that brightens up homes and lifts our spirits!
So, here’s to the season of love, goodness, and a brand new beginning.
Hark! Do you hear the bells ringing?

Mistle(d)toe

2005-12-20T17:43:00.000+05:30

It's Christmas season in Goa and the festive spirit is everywhere. The decorations, the music, cake mixings, Santa look-alikes at supermarkets - the works!
The new year fever is also looming large, and a few phone calls from 'long lost friends' ruined my entire Christmas spirit.
Why?
The answer is very simple! It's nearing New Year and I am 'working' in the most happening part of the country! Goaah! The only place to be if you are REALLY partying!
I had a spate of phone calls, from those friends and well-wishers who probably never even thought of me the rest of the year, and I wouldn't talk about as my cherished pals.
They called in, one-by-one, wondering what I was doing, how life was treating me, and "oh just by the way, if I could make reservations in a 'reasonably priced hotel' for them!"

A swarm of never-thought-we-were-so-close brand of friends were suddenly very interested in my well-being. The luciferous side of me was so tempted to pretend like I didn't know them at all! But that would simple defeat the Christmas spirit.

So I sighed, forgave & forgot, and eventually ended up giving them all the information I could acquire...
I don't know whether I made a difference to their 'party' plans, but I do know that Santa must have made note, and added a few brownie points to my Christmas list... ;-)

Merry Christmas everyone!

[Un]Original Cinema

2005-12-19T16:51:00.000+05:30

Since the olden, golden days of black and white cinema, Bollywood has been taking ‘inspiration’ from Hollywood. From story ideas, to music, from histrionics to character sketches — Bollywood has generated a spate of ‘inspired’ originals for the Indian audiences.
A large chunk of mainstream Bollywood cinema seems to be crippled by the lack of original ideas. They would much rather recycle a script created by the filmmakers in Hollywood, than labour on writing an indigenous script for local audiences.

Even 21st century directors and the present generation of Bollywood filmmakers seem to prefer a rehashed rip-off of Hollywood, than create an original masterpiece.
Statistics reveal that a majority of these ‘rip-offs’ to do well at the box-office. Why do they succeed? Slick production, popular celebrities, multi-crore budgets, a couple of ravishing ‘item’ songs and of course, exaggerated publicity.

In recent times, film lovers in India have seen various ‘inspired’ ‘super-hit’ films. Amitabh Bacchan and Rani Mukherjee’s extremely successful movie Black was a blatant copy of the 1962 movie –Miracle Worker. Needless to say, the movie had some amazing performances, and Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s stark imagery added value to the movie. But at the end of the day, it was a ‘copy’ of a Hollywood success.

The 2003 desi-version of Reservoir Dogs was called Kante. A slick, well-shot, heavy-duty star cast movie that was meant to impress Indian audiences. Despite being launched with a lot of fan-fare, Kante received a luke-warm response at the box-office.
The latest Abhisek Bacchan starrer, Bluffmaster is also a snazzy take-off on Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, with the never-say-die Bollywood masala, sentimental dialogues, a couple of peppy numbers with fabrically-challenged pretty young girls, and of course, the sultry eyed Bacchan junior.

Unfortunately, it’s the mainstream Hindi cinema that is quite content being called a copy cat. The so-called genre of ‘parallel cinema’ does have original film scripts. My Brother Nikhil, Parzania, Monsoon Wedding, and the likes console serious film lovers, and make them believe that Indian cinema does have hope.
Some of the partially mainstream films like Iqbal, Page 3, Dil Chahta Hai etc have been indigenous scripts that have been big hits.
Actress Sonali Kulkarni in an interview after her Italian film screening at IFFI said, “Bollywood doesn’t entirely copy Hollywood. It does take a few good ideas, but it’s completely Indianised in that sense.”

Documentary filmmaker and movie-buff Nagesh disapproved vehemently and said, “I have travelled all over India for my documentary films. There is absolutely no dearth of original ideas. I don’t understand why Bollywood indulges in plagiarism. All you need to do is a little thinking, coupled with some research and there are a million ideas and issues, waiting to be converted into a film.”

There are various defenses and offences to this debate. But the fact remains — India does need more quality cinema. But as long as the masses are alright with the Bollywood masala, there is nothing much the ‘original thinking’ bloc can do about it.

Let’s hope, that with time and the constant upgrades in technology, India’s ‘inspired’ cinema will wake up to the importance of originality and the triumphs of being ‘original.’

Pixar Animation Rules!

2005-12-14T15:34:00.000+05:30

I was doing my daily morning reading when I came across this very interesting article on Pixar animations journey from Toy Story to Chicken Little. Since I had recently watched Toy Story -for the gazzilionth time :-) I had plenty of perspective on what the author/s were trying to explain.

Some interesting excerpts from the article:
http://economist.com/printedition/displaystory.cfm?story_id=5244073

"Computer animation has made enormous progress in a very short time. As recently as 1986, the year Pixar was founded, the use of the technology in films was in its infancy. Directors began by experimenting with special-effects sequences within live-action movies such as “The Abyss” (1989) and “Terminator 2” (1991). There were some short computer-generated (CG) films, but full-length animated films were still mainly hand-drawn and two-dimensional, with sparing use of CG imagery in some sequences, as in Disney's “Beauty and the Beast” (1991) and “Aladdin” (1992). Since then, CG effects have became cheaper and more realistic, and are now commonplace in live-action movies, many of which have come to rely heavily on them (think of the recent “Star Wars” or “Lord of the Rings” trilogies). The same technological progress also made full-length films feasible, and “Toy Story” and its many successors have now become a popular, profitable and innovative genre."

"At the forefront of this revolution in filmmaking is Pixar, which has been responsible for such hits as “Monsters, Inc”, “Finding Nemo” and “The Incredibles”. Next week an exhibition of Pixar's artwork, designs and storyboards opens at the Museum of Modern Art in New York. Pixar's rivals include DreamWorks Animation (makers of “Shrek” and “Madagascar”, among other films) and Blue Sky (makers of “Ice Age” and “Robots”). Tellingly, even Disney, which dominated the field of animated movies in the pre-digital era, has now belatedly embraced the technology. Having previously acted as the distributor for Pixar's films, last month Disney released “Chicken Little”, its first all-CG film developed in-house."

"Putting a CG feature film together is very different from making a live-action movie using actors. That typically involves a director accumulating a dozen hours of footage (through multiple takes, shooting scenes from different angles, and so on) and then editing it down to a reasonable length. For CG films, the structure is generally fixed from the very beginning. The storyline is worked out, rough character sketches are produced and a detailed, scene-by-scene storyboard is put together. Then the characters' voices are recorded by actors, digital models of the characters are created, and the animators start to bring the characters to life in accordance with the dialogue. “So you see your picture slowly start to move,” says Max Howard, a former Disney animation executive who is now at Exodus Film Group, an independent studio."

"Initial pencil-and-paper sketches of the characters are turned into computer models consisting of a wireframe, or mesh, of hundreds of thousands of simple elements. To build a monster, for example, you might start off with a cylinder for each leg and perhaps a sphere for its body, says Jill Ramsay of Alias, a leading maker of animation and modelling software. Each of these elements is made up of tiny polygons, and any number of elements can be moulded together. “You can define any shape you want in 3D,” she says, “but it is a long, slow process.”

"Pixar has always chosen to depict people in a cartoon-like way in its films, notably “The Incredibles”, rather than striving for realism. DreamWorks, in contrast, has taken a more realistic approach with the human characters in the “Shrek” films. There has been progress in the modelling of the way human skin scatters light, and hair is becoming more lifelike too. But such improvements, says Ms Ramsay, are “still costly” computationally."

The Desensitization Dilemma

2005-12-09T17:06:00.000+05:30

As a 'journalist' I have always had a nagging problem, and a moral dilemma which constantly gnaws at my conscience. This is what I call the 'desensitization dilemma'. Let me explain the events that led up to this situation of mine.

This is when I had not yet started work with the features desk, and when I used to manage Goan news. One evening there was a buzz at my usually quiet office. A 19-year-old girl had just died at a local hospital. She had been wrongly diagnosed and instead of treating her for dengue fever, the doctors treated her for a viral infection. The poor girl died suffering.

Everyone was up in arms, while the hospital authorities were busy hushing up the matter. The editorial desk was bursting at the seams. "Front page story, make it the anchor for tomorrow. And give a good headline." "Put in the briefs on the state news page. We need a good issue for that space."

A young girl had died! I know it's news ,and I know it's important, but couldn't they be a tad sensitive about it? To make matters worse, reporters were desperately trying to call her grief-stricken parents so that they could add a 'dramatic quote' to the story. Sheesh! Don't you have a heart?

3 days later. The once burning issue was simmering down. Now there was another scoop, the mysterious murder of a 21-year-old bride who was allegedly burnt alive by her mother-in-law. Just the thought of that helpless woman was killing me inside and here I was being told to give a 'gruesome' headline and add as many 'finer' details I could churn out! :(

After I became a full-fledged 'feature's person', life was a lot less unpleasant. The battle of sensitivity Vs desensitization had been silenced temporarily. Then less than a week ago, a Naval plane went off the runway and crashed. The pilot was charred to death. The entire editorial office was discussing gory details, exchanging ideas for juicy straplines and captions and I was traumatised by the thought of the deceased pilot's 23-year-old wife who was going to retrieve her husband's mortal remains!

How do I desensitize myself to such tragedies? How do I think of it as a fresh news piece and not as a human being? How I say, "hmmm, this could be a good lead story; do I want a photo collage or should i focus on getting more quotes!" How?

It was a thinking, breathing person/people who died. How can I turn him/her into mere words for newsprint....how can I think of it as a tragedy that will get 500 words in my newspaper...?

I am facing the desensitization dilemma....it haunts me everyday!

The poor man on the bicycle and the middle class man on the bike

2005-12-08T18:06:00.000+05:30

Last evening I was at my cynical best! After posting one of the most cynical postings I have made in a long time, I decided to devote all my energy to doing the layout of the editorial page. I weaved my way through words, letters by unknown people, editorials by a combination of arrogant and witty columnists and finally decided that I'd had enough. I sauntered down to the parking lot where a moronic man was trying to prove his acrobatic might on a dinky little scooty. He thought he was prince charming and flashed a toothy smile at me - oblivious to this really old man, wobbling by on a bicycle. Mr-I-know-I'm-so-cool was busy whirring around like an annoying pest and confused that poor old man. He lost control and fell with a painful thud. Given his age, I bet he will be sore for quite a while.
Scooty man didn't care a damn and continued to do his silly little jig, while me and a few other good people came to help the old man get back on his feet. Road rage is catching up everywhere. It's a predominant problem in places like Mumbai, Delhi, and Bangalore, where most people suffer from 'I'll honk your ears off syndrome'. But even a relatively well-mannered state like Goa is now turning into a mad-house. It's quite an experience standing in a traffic jam (which is rare in Goa) and listening to people honk like there's no tomorrow! Where the hell do you think I'll go? I ride a bike for God's sake, not a private jet! But no! The dumb-ass is his air-conditioned Honda City believes that he has rights, and he must be heard. At the end of the day, it is that poor man on the bicycle and the lady walking on the pavement who have to bear the brunt of 'raging roads'.
Why worry about stuff like globalization and the digital divide, when there are these haves and have nots that plague the world!

A non-Goan's saga of boredom

2005-12-07T15:33:00.001+05:30

While Goa is a lovely place to work; idyllic and what not, but life in a Goan daily newspaper is almost as exciting as the gazillionth ride on a 1970's roller coaster - rusty, creaky, devoid of constant excitement and a crippling lack of 'meaty' stories.

Like the rest of the country, Goa's political scene is a hotbed of controversy. So if you are a hard news political reporter, your life as a scribe is a lot of fun. But if you are on the features desk (like your's truly), generating stories can be quite painstaking job. Primarily because Goa has very little to talk about. It's either parties or music or bands or some winner of an arbitrary contest or some hip fad. As Zubin rightly pointed out to me this morning - there are no 'REAL' issues worthy of newsprint!

That really got me thinking. I knew I was bored, and writing stories was like launching into a meaningless rant [a couple which are even posted on my blog :-( ]. Suddenly I knew why I was perennially bored to death!

Unfortunately if there are any 'real' issues I could talk about, then they will no longer find space on the feature pages, and the vague talk continues because according to sources - namely my editor, ranting sells!

I wonder, if that's what readers want? Maybe we should do an in-depth survey with Goan audiences. But do they really care? What does it mean to them? Do feature pages make a difference to their lives?

These are exisential questions I must answer; before I get lost in the labryinths of my own 'feature ranting'!!

Amchi Goenkar lifestyles

2005-12-06T14:10:00.000+05:30

Globalisation and technology have drastically changed our lives. While multinational companies, international brands, wireless communication and the retail boom have enhanced our lifestyles and increased our spending power; it has also made our lives extremely busy.

Each day is a race against time, traffic jams, deadlines and the great battle to balance work and home. Metropolitan cities are becoming more and more crowded. Malls at every corner, KFCs and McDonalds bustling with wannabe hip teenagers, teeming crowds, and a hoard of yuppie ‘software engineers’ with six figure salaries. Life in a big city is a living nightmare!

In an attempt to get away from the stifling hustle-bustle, more and more people are moving to small towns and cities, which have not yet been deeply penetrated by globalisation.

Goa is one such hermitage, where people young and old take shelter; all with the aim of leading an ‘alternative’ life. Everyone who leaves fat-pay-checks, healthy perks, and a savvy city life, comes to Goa with a mission. Some come here to write a book, others for a comfortable, quiet life, and some to get away from it all, and do their own thing.

For Maneesha Singh it was a conscious decision to leave a plum job with the leading ad agency - Leo Burnett and move to Goa. Despite the immense love for her work, she decided she’d had enough of the mad rush of Mumbai. “I like Mumbai, but Goa is like home. A place I look forward to coming back to each time I go away,” said Maneesha who is now working for a leading information agency in Dona Paula.

Chaitanya Desai has a similar story. He had a flourishing footwear business in Delhi. He spent a decade setting it up. But he couldn’t stand to see Delhi turning into a polluted mass of frustrated people, scrambling in the rat race. He shut shop and moved to Goa. Now he has a small footwear store in Vasco and happily states, “It was a big decision for me – especially because I have been born and brought up in Delhi. But I couldn’t take it anymore. Rising pollution, growing crowds, terrorist activities and what not! I was fed up! I have always loved Goa, and decided that this is where I would start afresh. My entire family was shell-shocked, and thought that I’d decided to become a hippie or some such thing. But I knew it would all be worth it in the end.”

Raghu Fasalkar has a more romantic story. As a budding artist and designer, he was looking to make his mark. But after watching Shahrukh Khan and Suchitra Krishnamurthy on the beaches of Goa in the flick Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa, he decided that this was his dream destination. “I really enjoyed the movie Kabhi Haan Kabhi Naa. The Goan culture was so beautifully depicted that I was completely bowled over. I was also a newly wed, and the whole proposition to move from Pune to Goa was rather romantic,” shared Raghu.

There is also a cult of those with business in mind. Rahul Anand, partner of the chain of the lifestyle store – Happily Unmarried said, “My decision to come to Goa was a combination of business and pleasure. We were looking at opening a showroom, and renting a place in Delhi and Mumbai was very expensive. So my partner and I decided on Goa. Renting space in Goa is not only relatively cheaper, but we also get a good mix of an audience – young Indians and foreigners. Between the two of us, we take turns to be in Goa. It’s more like little vacations for us.”

But has life become better for all these wanderers?
“Yes, definitely” is the united reply. Everybody now has a ‘good’ life, where they have time for themselves and for their family. Where they look forward to driving home every evening, because there are no endless traffic jams to deal with and where the slow and easy life is universally accepted.

Here’s to the susegad Goenkar and the Goan good life!

Days of gratitude, hard-work and sour grapes!

2005-12-04T20:39:00.000+05:30

Information technology and television has vastly changed the way we lead our lives today. Countless pages on the Internet, mobile communication, a gazillion cable television channels, and so and so forth.

But do we realise the value of all this information, and the amount of knowledge that is currently floating around in the ‘virtual world’?

Growing up in the days of black and white television and Doordarshan, was radically different. But the 21st century generation- X has a lot more than that; and they seldom realise the value of it.

They have unlimited access to everything, television shows, music, movies, videos, lightening fast communication, information, and of course, unrestricted access to all that is ‘not allowed’.

Just this morning a friend and I were discussing the good old days of yore. Those heydays of our lives when we would rush to the local video cassette rental store, rent a rickety old VCR, which moaned endlessly if you pressed a button twice, and a rattling old video cassette, which would carry a grainy print of a classic western or an evergreen musical from Hollywood. That rental would cost us a month’s saved-up pocket money, and boy, were we grateful for those 2 hours of entertainment.

This is no longer the story. Children have handsome pocket money ‘packets’, cell phones with the snazziest mobile connections (you know, the ones with the voice-mail on discounted rates, the couple packages, etc etc), and state-of-the-art computers with broadband. Movies can be downloaded through shared networks, live, streaming video is available round-the-clock, and of course, the unlimited free porn and video games.

Kids don’t even need to worry about project work and assignments. All they need to do is ‘Google’, and all the world’s information is on their hard-drives! I distinctly remember the long evenings we would spend doing projects, visiting the city libraries, running from pillar to post to get pictures, begging our French neighbour for copies of the National Geographic Magazine, and then running to the nearest DTP centre, to get black and white photocopies of coloured photographs.

Then slaving all evening, on making an impeccable scrap book, with colourful paper labels and stars on the sides. Unfortunately, scrap books have now become a thing of the past and have been taken over by colour printouts, scans, CD-roms and PowerPoint presentations.
At this point, I must mention that all these tools are not bad. They have tremendously simplified our lives and helped children across the world. My only question however, is do these children realise how fortunate they are to be born into the information revolution? Do they ever feel grateful for the innumerable facilities they have, the convenience of having access to content and information from global sources and the privilege of everything being just a mouse-click away.

I think generation-X doesn’t quite feel the gratitude they ought to feel. To quote an example, the other day I was sitting at Reliance web world in Miramar and transferring very large files. I was so happy to see the rate at which the files were moving, and before I knew it, I had uploaded over 600 MB of files. I was beginning to celebrate and was secretly thanking the Ambani’s, when a 16-year-old next to me grumbled under his breath. I thought he had a grievance to share, so I politely asked him what the problem was. Promptly he quipped, “This is so slow man. This is what they call broadband? Sheesh! My connection at home is faster. How do they expect me to play counterstrike on a connection that a snail could beat?”

I was dumbfounded. It took me nearly five minutes to understand that he was actually unhappy with the unbelievably, super fast, transfer speed we had. I just looked at him sullenly and only felt sorry for him. He obviously thought I came from the stone age, when I lectured him about ‘being grateful’ and threw archaic words like ‘privileged’, ‘convenience’, etc at him.

This incident made me wonder, whether I am just old-fashioned and stuck-up? Or am I really witnessing the entry of a callous attitude, which is seeping into the minds of the young? Or perhaps, the grapes are awfully sour.

Movie Review - GT IFFI Page

2005-12-03T16:30:00.000+05:30

Blue Umbrella – is the simple story of the little Binya and her fascinating blue umbrella. This umbrella becomes the object of everyone’s desire in the small village near Dalhousie.

But the radiant umbrella symbolises different things to different people – and everyone attaches a special meaning to it. Though the entire village fancies it, Nandu the miserly owner of the village tea-stall has eyes only for the sparkling blue umbrella.

He is so enamored by the umbrella, that he tries every trick in the book to acquire it. But when chocolates, balloons and free biscuits and candy all fail, Nandu in his desperation resorts to stealing.

Binya’s world little world, thriving under the umbrella falls apart. She is agonised by the loss, and spends all the waking hours mourning the loss. But Biniya beti is not the regular small-town girl who will take it lying down. She does everything possible to catch the thief.

Vishal Bhardwaj has done an exemplary job in capturing the multi-dimensional emotions of Binya and Nandu. Pankaj Kapur renders a spectacular performance. From being a khadoos old shop owner, to a loner – deserted by the villagers, to the typical pahadi man with the queer Hindi accent. He has delved so deep into the character of Nandu, that it is difficult to distinguish Pankaj Kapur the actor and the character of Nandkishore Khatri.

All in all, it was a simple story, with a simple cinematic narrative, and the most powerful performances by the cast. Vishal Bhardwaj has pulled off yet another classic.

Subjectivity and cinematic expression

2005-12-03T10:00:00.000+05:30

Even before the International Film Festival of India (IFFI) began, a large number of Goans were miffed! Angry letters were written, discussions were held, the expenditure was questioned, and so on and so forth. But despite it all IFFI went on.

The entire IFFI debate had two schools of thought – one which thought it to be a colossal waste of time, energy and money, and the other which thought of it as a golden opportunity to access global cinema.

Having been film student myself, I think of IFFI as an occasion for fine entertainment and film appreciation. One rarely gets a chance to be a part of such a panorama of good cinema. This year I haven’t had the chance to watch several movies back-to-back, and I haven’t dedicated myself to the power of cinema. But I have been a part of various ‘other’ debates that ensued on the sidelines.

These debates were not about whether IFFI should or shouldn’t happen. But were about entertainment versus artistic expression. Every film festival I have ever been a part of inevitably gives rise to this debate. I think it as one of the biggest moral dilemmas that continues to flummox the filmmaking fraternity. The key question in this debate is – why do filmmakers make a film?

Do they make films to cater to society’s ‘deeply ingrained’ craving for fairy tale romances, larger than life heroes, and the need to get away from grueling reality? Or to raise a critical issue that plagues society? Or perhaps, to express oneself!

Whenever I have participated in these debates, they have eventually ended with one single word – subjectivity. But is it all that subjective? Do filmmakers have no sense of purpose when they start making a film? I wonder.

Another very important ‘debate’ that takes place during film festivals is the popular ‘Q&A’ session. This is that one session where any ordinary citizen, being privileged enough to have a delegate pass or an invitation, gets to shower the filmmaker with questions. Once again, this supposed Q&A session turns into a ‘subjective’ nightmare. Seldom do we have people who have a keen eye for cinematic analysis, to understand the intricacies that dictate filmmaking, and an insight into the genre of cinema. More often than not, these sessions end up becoming mindless rants, where all you can hear is a raucous and no one is actually listening.

I agree that everyone has a right to express his or her opinion. But with opinions come responsibility, and with responsibility comes credibility. If you believe that the point you are making is the gospel truth, you jolly well be prepared to support it with a sound understanding of the matter.

To quote a couple of real life examples from IFFI 2005, two Q&A sessions I was fortunate enough (or maybe unfortunate) to be a part of, turned into inane rambling and pointless prodding. The Q&A following the film Parzania took the cake. A middle-aged man, who looked like a dignified, educated gentleman, and apparently well informed, went on the offensive. He splattered the filmmaker – Rahul Dholakia with unjust accusations and heavy-duty jargon. What caught my attention was the sadistic smirk that crossed his face when all video cameras turned towards him, and other members of the audience were begging him to stop talking.
Even after the famed Om Puri stepped into the debate to pacify the raging man, there were others who thought it was amusing to keep babbling.

Another example was the Q&A after the movie ‘Blue Umbrella’ when a fairly senior man pointedly asked Vishal Bhardwaj about the ‘political implications’ in the movie. What was ironic was the film was the simple story of a little girl and her blue umbrella. How on earth does politics come into the picture?

As someone who has tremendous respect for cinema, and strongly believes in film appreciation, I was thoroughly annoyed, since the entire purpose of these Q&A sessions was defeated. Maybe I overreacted, maybe I am just too passionate, or maybe it’s just subjective!