Paper N Pencil

"Earth Laughs in Flowers"

2011-04-15T23:52:00.003+05:30

I know it's summer, but my garden screeeeeems, SPRING!

Whatz NEWS, btw?

2010-04-05T20:16:00.007+05:30

Shoaib - Sania - Ayesha, their families, friends, lawyers & souces close to them are all over the place, thanks to NEWS channels. The whole issue seems kind of unfortunate.... When all one should have been bothered is about trousseu, hair do & nail art, what to say, poor thing Sania....!

Well, between all the claims, counter claims it's not just the families of the concerend that are torn apart, but viewers like you & i........Our agony is no less...

At the end of a tiring day, all i wanted was to catch up some news....hey, i mean the real stuff......But what is this? Breaking News, Developing News, Exclusive News, by what ever name you call it, al of it is occupied by just one scandel....Tell me, does the marathan press meets of these folks needs to be really LIVE??

Oh My God, it's geting wierd, wiereder & wierdest:-).How is it a purely personal issue becomes nation's headline? I simply just can't understand...

Perhaps, it will be fabulous, if we have one 30 mins news per day & not 30 mins news for every hour.......

PS: Cant secretly stop thanking Shoaib - Ayesha -Sania, we are spared from the torture of Rahul Mahajan - swayamwar contestants & Nithyananda- disciples episodes!

Happy 2010!

2010-01-04T20:33:00.004+05:30

Wishing You A Rocking Year, Ahead :-), my dear, dear blog buddies! 2010 sounds cute & trendy, isn’t it?I'm sure it stays that way!

I’m back from an eventful vacation in Chennai. This is the time of the year, when the air in Chennai is replete with the flavor of classical music! It’s quite heartening to see so much enthusiasm & support for classical music, inspite of all the westernization..….You know, the tickets are sold like hot cakes at the Sabhas……And it’s pleasantly delightful to see all well dressed people:-).

Ma3Ka : I ‘m a big fan of Anita Ratnam, so I was there in Naradha Gana Sabha to catch her in action! Ma3Ka, was a contemporary tribute to the women power, the goddesses, Saraswathi, Lakshmi & Meenakshi. The way Anita Ratnam brought out the 3 powerful feminine forms by giving human face to the divinity was simply awe-inspiring! The choreography was brilliant too…… It did remind me of her performance last year, Faces! It requires thorough knowledge, intelligence & courage to experiment and Anita Ratnam did convincingly. Hey, how can we not admire Revathi Sankaran……..The way she narrated the storyline with passion, elegance & sense of humour, Revathi, you definitely deserve a big round of applause!

Avatar: What a movie yaar! The storyline is simple and typical of million Hollywood flicks! But the way it has been shot & each scene unfolds makes you scream WOW:-)….The magnificent Pandora, the Navis, the colors of the land, giant trees, hanging rocks, colossal birds ……..Ohh….Everything about Pandora simply literally gives you an out of the world experience! I really liked the faire tale ending too:-):-):-):-).

Ofcourse vacation starts & ends with one word…….Yeah, Shopping! Nothing works like a retail therapy!! More the merrier, and the lovliest one was the jumkas from Rassvihar:-). I did manage to catch up with friends, and books as well. When it comes to books, my all time fav places in Chn is Landmark, Oxford & Odissy…..I simply love the feel of Oxford & can forget myself there between the shelves:-). Quite happy to pick up a book on the consolidated works by Khalil Gibran! He says, "Let there be spaces in your togetherness and let the winds of the heavens dance between you. Love one another but make not a bond of love: let it rather be a moving sea between the shores of your souls." What a way to describe love in a poetic as well as practical way!!

I’m sure you ‘ll appreciate me for making it to Yoga cls at 6am in the Margazhi Kulir, all through the holidays!

Any interesting NY resolution??

See Ya.

All Izz Well wt 3 Idiots!

2009-12-26T13:57:00.003+05:30

First day first show, is worth only for very few flicks, and I felt it every bit, wt 3 Idiots on Xmas eve! The popcorn & dark chocolate tasted simply yum in the galatta of Amir & Co! A sqeaky clean, hilarious entertainer!

It's a story of 3 students at the premier engineering college, packaged & presented neatly by the Dir Raj Kumar Hirani. The movie opens with Raju Rastogi (Sharman Joshi) & Farhan Qureshi (Madahvan) setting out to trace thier friend Rancho (Amir Khan). Then, the story travels back in time to the Engineering College.

Racho was different from his entry into college, handling the ragging in an unconventioanl way.....The 3 guys become buddies and go through the learnings of their life, together and in the process discover their true self.

Viru Sahastrabudhhe comes across as a strict & insentive pricipal of the college, who makes the lives of students a near hell, played by Boman Irani wonderfully......Even his lisping is very natural.....

The jouney in college involves grading, suicide by a student, attempted suicide by another, Rancho's love interest, and his stand on education for excellent & not marks:-). The character of Rancho is very interesting, thought provoking & keep you in splits as well.....Rancho is naughty and loves making people laugh. He hates the way the educational system works and says the grade system is like the caste system. Ofcouse, the storeyline will not be complete without the mark obsessed, no thinker but a top scorer Chatur Ramalingam!!!!

The movie has pleasant turns & twists, including a brief background about Rancho & the climax as well:-).The movie is a rollercoaster ride which guaratees a laughter riot....The maker of Munna Bai, has taken the movie to a new horizon with the b'ful blending of blend of social message & entertainment.

Some of the dialogues like, when your friend fails in exam you feel sad, but when he comes first you are even sadder are pretty cool :-).

The flip side is that the story is so predictable......There is quite an amount of melodrama, which could have been avoided, as well......And,what is that delivery of child, performed by these boyZ, in a crude & lengthy scence.......

What impressed me is the freshness with which Amir eased into a role of college kid, which is not only convincing but fits the bill brilliantly! Simply commandable performace:-).

So, 3 CHEERS to 3 Idiots.....They are real smarties indeed!

Diversity & Inclusion

2009-12-12T20:54:00.003+05:30

It’s been a while, I blogged…work & work related travel is taking most of my time and the rest by grocery & vegetable shopping:-).

This week I attended a conference by Nasscom on Diversity & Inclusivity. The two day session primarily focused on diversity (attract & retain women work force) and the steps to make the organization an inclusive one! It’s like that; diversity is robotically linked only to women though diversity as such has much broader connotation.

Just reflecting my thoughts on “Women”, errrrr, “Working Women”.

It’s a reality that still board rooms are dominated rather filled by only MEN IN BLACK!

With year on year school passing percentage as well as toppers by girls the ratio of women making it to TOP is quite negligible. Where do these bright brains disappear, yaar???

The die- hard optimist in me (backed by stats!)says, the scenario is definitely changing, and it’s not so long before we get to see more & more women in the hot seat!

However the real challenge is the status of women NOT in India Inc, but the real India, where job does not mean something not so cushy…….It’s not about rights & privileges but simply survival….Yeah, in the unorganized sector, which is 70% of the chunk…. where women are even paid less than the men…..Where do these women fit in the scheme of things, when it comes to welfare measures such as maternity benefit, protection against sexual harassment, zero tolerance to discrimination etc…..We can safely assume “NO WHERE”. It’s no joke with 90% of the total women workforce, in unorganized sector.

The South East Asian Countries boast of having/ had Women on Top, while it’s still a challenge for the US & UKs of the world…..But we can’t be blind to the bitter truth is all these women were “connected”, to someone in POWER, either their father/ husband, so on & so forth…. The point is how does it help when it comes to women, who have to walk miles to fetch a pot of water???

The World War II, saw many women take up to education as well as employment in the western world which in turn gave rise to a emancipated society:-). In India, we still get to see and we are cool with stereotype terms like lady lawyer, woman president, woman writer etc…..It’s outright disgusting……..Btw, what is the equivalent for a guy?? Is it male/ man lawyer???!!! Who cares, anyway!

Wonder, why do all the inclusive measures simply peter out, when it comes to a village girl? As per the latest census (2001??!!) the literacy rate for women is only 54.16%. Primary schooling & basic health care is a luxury for millions……hang on, it’s not about money, many a time it’s just lack of awareness…. The bizarre thinking of why educate a girl child, when she has to be married off & her primary responsibility is just to give birth??!!

All it takes is a mindset change and kill steriotypes.

Okey, I not trying to be prude by saying it’s all the job of the govt, NGO & CSR………We can all very well be part of the solution by ensuing primary education for a single girl child who is not as privileged as we are:-).

Enjoy Ur Weekend, See Ya...

"The best teachers teach from the heart, not from the book."

2009-11-09T21:13:00.038+05:30

I had a rain soaked weekend at Chennai.Water, water everywhere.......It was like all senses could feel only rain!! Hey, no cribs here.....this is the water that sustains life for a year for Chennaites:-).

Yeah, with skies opening up with fury, most of the time, all i could do was just nothing:-). I am not going to waste your time by saying what i was doing whiling away my time!!

The best and the warmest part of the weekend was the rendezvous with my Prof. Though he has double PhDs at his kitty, he is no nerd, rather a very simple & sweet person to the core!

It's been a while, so i decided drop in at his place without even checking with him, may i come in, Sir?????!!!!! Actually we can count the number of ppl with whom we can take this liberty!! As always, he was quite happy to see me and we had loads of things to catch up from his PhD topic, the affairs of the current judicial system, my new(no so new!!) job, how mediocrity is part of the legal education, ethics & legal profession, merit in the system, practicing lawyers vs corporate lawyers, et all over a cuppa masala chai:-) and snacks:-).

I share a very special bond with him, just for one strong reason. He was the one who always believed in me, rather my abilities ......When i met him first, i was one carefree teenager with no specific goals or worse not a good self esteem..............This brilliant Prof has tremendous faith in a student, who not even had much faith in herself !! He is the major influence in shaping my character, thoughts, attitude. My exams, syllabus, silly questions, fears, results, he has always been there:-).He used to be the first one to cheer at my grades :-). Always encouraging & motivating, a friend, philosopher, guide....TEACHER.

More than anything else, he taught me to believe in myself & do the right thing no matter what.

"The teacher who is indeed wise does not bid you to enter the house of his wisdom but rather leads you to the threshold of your mind."

I have no words to express my gratitude to him & certainly not just a "Thank You".

Teasers That Tease Us!

2009-10-26T23:06:00.014+05:30

I am someone who will vouch that commercials are much more crispy, fuuny and cool than the actual programs, anyday...Ya, Kit Kat breaks are really cute! We get to see the perfect guy, perfect woman, perfect home & perfect car all pakaged & presented neatly in just 20 seconds:-). Lovely!

Agree, every company has the right to advertise their product, showcasing the highlights..Thats absolutely fine as long as it does not crush common sense! No brainers are strict no-no!!

Every wonder, how just a dabba of cream make someone b'ful? ( And, her dad too!!??). Or how can a bottle of fresh juice remain really fresh for days/ months without preservatives?? How about promise of long lustrous hair, in a bottle of shampoo?? And, from DD days, we have these soaps & powders which assures complete make over for women: pretty, youthful, confident & successful all instantly!! Many a time she finds her love too:-), with the generous dose of powder!

Who can resist the cutie pie ones like the Vodafone (Hutch) Pug or the dad-son drool at Fiat Linea:-) or the misty romance of Alto.

You know, every teaser/ advertisement must be truthful and ethical. It should not mislead the consumer or promote indecency/ vulgarity. If we come across any such ad (yeah, we do, many actually!) we have a right to sue the comapny/advertiser.

When an advertisement says you get a certain benefit by using the product (Offer), and believing that you go and buy that product, and still worse, use it (Acceptance), and you see no such results as promised in the ad, you can very well approch the Court:-).

Or, simply you can make a complaint to Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI), free of cost!

Few LAWS that come handy are:

____________________________________________________________________________

ASCI:

Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) is a voluntary organization of the advertising industry. It handles complaints from consumers as well as industry, against advertisements which are considered as false,misleading, indecent, illegal, leading to unsafe practices,or unfair to competition, etc. ASCI ensures:

Truthfulness and honesty of representations and claims made by advertisements and to safe guard against misleading advertising;
Advertisement are not offensive to generally accepted standards of public decency;
Safeguard against indiscriminate use of advertising for promotion of products which are regarded as hazardous to society or to individuals to a degree or of a type which is unacceptable to society at large;
Observe fairness in competition so that the consumers need to be informed on choices in the market places and canons of generally accepted competitive behaviour in business are both served.

Drug and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisement) Act, 1954

This Act controls the advertisements of drugs in certain cases and to prohibit the advertisement for certain purposes of remedies alleged to possess magic qualities and to provide for matters connected therewith.

Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices Act, 1969 (Replaced by Competition Act)

Any misleading, false, and wrong representation either in writing (i.e. in advertisements, warranty, guarantee etc.) or oral (at the time of sale) actual or intended, even if actual injury or loss is not caused to the consumer/buyer constitutes as unfair trade practices;
Sales, where there is element of deception;
All business promotion schemes announcing ‘free gifts’, ‘contests’, etc. where any element of deception is involved;

__________________________________________________________________________________

So, if your builder promises fabulous sea view apartment and charges a permium, but all you get to see from your balcony is a thin blue strip, visible only thru a high power binauculor, boy, you have a good case in hand!

Austerity Begins @ Home

2009-09-17T19:21:00.002+05:30

Yesterday, when i was about to board the flight from Delhi, my sis messaged me, saying, watch out, you will most likely have a high profile politician as your co passenger!!
What is this new found fashion fad on simplicity?

Ministers have been pulled up for staying in luxury hotels, and the mantra seems to be fly by economy, ie, if no trains are available!!

Is there a Policy that governs how the tax payer’s money is spent? Rather than focussing on austerity, letz focus on integrity. If a CEO can fly business class, stay in Taj why not a cabinet Minister??As long as the tax payer money is not spent on this extravaganza, it doesn’t matter.
It is sheer hypocrisy to see our Netas clad in khadi dhotis and Chappals but have their families, friends & extended families amazing wealth in no time. What is that we get carried away????

Not sure if any of our leaders will dare to attend public functions dressed in Armani....or carry a stylish Louis Vuton clutch!! But most of them do send their kids to schools abroad, go for exotic vacations, own acres of prime property & always carry the tag “hey, you know who am i??” And funny, this act of fake simplicity is also copied by the faded actors, who want to spend their retirement in the political puddle!! While so much is said about the austerity does anyone care to check the performace?

We have seen CEOs bragging how they live in an old flat, or drive one of the uncool cars....What matters is the value the Organisation can bring to the society which is much, much more precious than the quarterly numbers or their brag on simplicity! And ofcourse, we are mindful of the fact that these guys take home millions in the form of tax free dividends!!!!

It’s all about being a responsible human being:-). If we are compassionate, we will be conscious of wasting any resource, including money....

It’s true...It’s kind of sickening, to see someone blatantly flaunting wealth lavishly, especially in a country like India where millions starve. It is irresponsibility to the core. If you want to have a feel of it watch ‘Big Fat Weddings” in NDTV Imagine!!

Why go that far?? Even in my neighbourhood, while we talk about the amenities like heated pool or better quality of life, latest model of a car, few meters away are street children who eat, play & sleep on the road. Scores of families live & die in a shanty.

The solution lies in bridging the gap....Ensure that atleast basic education & health care is accessible to all, instead of focusing on the train/ bus trips! If the austerity drives end with more money pumped into development as grassroots, its welcome otherwise, this will end up as one more publicity stunt!

sWiM

2009-08-07T14:57:00.003+05:30

Yo! It's been nearly a week,i am into swim, yes, if you can call walking, kicking, splashing,breathing & trying to float in the water as swimming:-). Not sure what inspired me to take a plunge,(Probably to escape the ordeal of Raaki Ka Swayamwar)!! but, i am lov'ng it:-).

The Pool

The water can get pretty chill in B'lore, and with luck, there are few drizzles too!! So my first 10 mins in the pool goes in shivering & thinking of excuses to get out of the pool and by the time i come up with something logical, my instructor piches in & yells why are you still standing?? Just take a complete dip & sit inside the water, you will be alright!!!!

On day one in pool, when ever i closed my eyes, got reminded of Google's mentor Rajiv Motwani
who drowned recently............Our brains act so funny, bringing up unnecessary thoughts at the most inappropriate moments!~~~

Trust me, the real stuff is much tougher than the "Learn to Swim" sessions thrown by Bing! Can't deny the fact that an hour of swim(!!), with chill breeze and cloudy dark sky do nurture the senses. After a grinding day at work, I find swim equally tiring as well as relaxing!

When i get back home for a hot shower, dinner & sleep it's really blissful. And, i wake up with all my 2000 body parts aching, though!!

See Ya.

Inspiration!

2009-07-27T08:16:00.001+05:30

Thanks, Sriram for being so geneous:-) & passing this Award to me. These stuff are quite encouraging, i am sure you wd agree, mate!

Everything comes with a baggage and this award is no exception! It says i have to list of 7 loves as well as pass on this Award to 7 bloggers!~

My 7 loves:

Family & Friends : My immediate family has always been a pillar of strength, love & care! My friends who make my life better as well as worse at the same time!(Don't want to mention all the names and make it sound like FM dedication list!!).

Gandhiji: Leadership, Innovation, Ability to steer & Change, Truth, Conviction, Honesty, Noble Soul et al.

A R Rahman: This guy's music can change my mood instantly.

J Krishnamurthy: Original thinker...Makes me explore the power/possibility of unlimited/uninhibited state of mind.

Yoga: Anyday, I can swear by Yoga for fitness, flexibility, energy, calming of mind, better immunity....and ofcourse glowing skin & sparkling eyes:-).

Silver Jwellery: Each of this is a piece of art; It goes well with any outfit.

My Balcony View: Pool, lake, b'ful patch of greenary, IAF Choppers, pair of doves who visit my balcony for water & grain daily, twinkling lovely blue sky ..........Just luv'em all.

7 bloggers:

Can't limit to 7. So, it goes to all cool bloggers out there:-).

I know it's been sometime i have written anything worth while!! Just that new city as well as new job at the same time is pretty demanding, and i find these kind of stuff come in handy, since i don't have to think & write!!!!

Relocating to a different city and discovering even small things like newspaper mart to super market to gym to road map to office is exciting as well as taxing too!!!! Though i would love to continue my Yoga sessions (yet to fingure out a cl/teacher nearby), certainly happy gymming, at my apartment complex!Hope to get back to my routines (read, dull & boring lifestyle!!!!)and keep up with blogging too:-).

Bye then, See You Soon.

32 Q&A -It's ME!

2009-07-12T20:43:00.004+05:30

Blog Buddies, i am sure you must all be missing me (okey....jus kidding!). The relocation & my new job eat up most of time. But, how can that be an excuse if tagged by blogger/writer Sridhar? So, decided to take a plunge and take on the Q&A.

1. How did you get this name? Do you like your name?
Parents named me. Infact i wanted to change my name while in college, but realised my head won’t turn for any sound other than "Viji"!

2. When was the last time you cried?
I am quite sensitive and can cry easily, though always in private. Last time when i shed tears was two weeks back.

3. Do you like your hand writing?
Not anymore. I use to have a b’ful handwriting which degenerated into a silly scribble.

4. Favourite lunch?
Anything vegetarian & healthy.

5. If you were someone else, will you befriend with you (Viji)?
I would love to!

6. Do like to take a dip in the river/ ocean?
Warm shower in my bathroom. Planning to learn swimming soon! Then if not a river atleast i can say proudly Pool.

7. What do you observe when you first see a person?
Eyes....Dress.

8. What is that you like/dislike in your spouse?
Will tell you when i find Mr. .Right!

9. Whose absence you miss, most?
Definitely few people, whom I love, adore & respect but can’t be with.

10. What are you wearing when you write this?
Pink color pyjamas & white tee.

11. What are you watching/ listening now?
Man in the Mirror-MJ & Best of AR Rahman. Watched "Kambakth Ishq" and stopped watching everything else after that!

12. If you were to change into a colourful pen (ink), which colour would you choose?
I will transform/ experiment into all colours but finally settle into black.

14. Which fragrance you like?
Smell of the soil after first rains.

15. What are the qualities, you like in the bloggers you are going to invite ?
Scroll down for details.

16. What is that you like in the blogger who has sent you this?
When i first read Sridhar’s blog during my initial blogging days, the first impression was his writings reminded me of Sujatha. Sridhar knows the art of writing simple, b’ful tamil in a very interesting way. His short stories are amazing too.

17. Favourite sport?
Nothing in particular. I am not into sports at all. Any day i would settle down for a movie & tub of popcorn.

18. Do you wear spectacles?
Nope. I feast (!!) on carrots to keep glasses away. I do love shades, and have couple of them though!

19. What kind of movie you like?
Romantic Comedy. And, all Maniratnam movies!

20. Last Movie?
Kambakth Ishq

21. Favourite Season?
Starting of monsoon-first rains!

22. Which book are you reading?
Today – Femina!

23. How often you change the picture in your desktop?
Right now it’s the default “windows” picture. So, may not change it at all.

24. The noise you like/ dislike?
Like: Loud Music
Dislike: Honking noise at the traffic.

25. Farthest distance you have travelled from home?
Chennai – Hethrow.

26. What is unique about you?
Zest for life.
(Actually i can write million things here!!!!)

27. What is that you cannot accept?
Hypocrisy – Corruption- Being Unethical-Lies.

28. The devil in you?
I can get pretty laid back in the name of relaxation.

29. What is your fav vacation spot?
My room:-).

30. What do want to be?
Live life as it is ....No major plans. (Actually cant decide between a saint to page 3 to general counsel to home maker to simply doing nothing!)

31. What is that you want to do, without the knowledge of your spouse?
Don’t think anything as such, i will do ( But will let you know if i do something:-))

32) One liner on life?
Life is an unpredictable, small, sealed package – Our life goes in unpacking the mystery:-).

Love to invite fellow bloggers to participate in this Q& A:

Aadithya Ajmira – His Buddhist/ Zen quotes are awesome. His blog is like reading a book. Extremely inspirational. He hardly writes anything about himself. So, it would be great if he takes it up:-).

Karthika - She writes day to day affairs with a pinch of humour.

Narayanan - His photographs are aesthetic and b’ful. His blogs take us on a virtual tour to many lovely locations.

Surya - He reviews and rips apart international cinema. His writing is very simple & elegant. Infact i have developed an interest in international cinema after reading his blog.

Prem - He has strong views about anything & everything around. I like his thoughts on political/ social issues though many a time i differ with him.

Sriram: He takes up simple topics and explores it so well. Very thought provoking at the same interesting.

AR - A recluse & Chennai basher. Wish to hear few good words from him abt Chn, someday!!

Praveen - He is damn good with management & leadership mantras. Takes blogging quite seriously.

Parthasarathy - Lastest to dare to join my blog. Would like to know more about him thru this 32 Q&A.

Let me grab my dinner of dosa & coffee while you enjoy reading this piece!

Good Nite:-).

"The Secret"

2009-06-10T09:55:00.017+05:30

"The earth turns on its orbit for you.

The ocean ebb and flow for you.

The birds sing for you.

The sun rises and it sets for you.

The stars come out for you.

Evert beautiful thing you see, every wondrous thing you experience, is all there, for you.

Take a look around. None of it can exist, without you.

No matter who you thought you were, now you know the Truth of Who Really You Are.

You are the Master of the Universe.

You are the heir to the Kingdom.

You are the perfection of Life."

...............................................The Secret

"If Nothing Ever CHANGED, There Would Be No BUTTERFLIES"!

2009-06-01T09:17:00.014+05:30

Guys, its Monday Morning & all i had to do is Yoga, stroll in the park, coffee & more coffee!! Hey, i am on vacation....more precisely taking a break between jobs:-)! But, we all know. "Old habits seldom die hard"......So, can't resist my hands off the key board....But for a change, its not about responding to e mails, but blogging:-). What a Merry Monday!

Infact had a fun filled weekend, rendevouz with my hot n sour friend~P:-)!We share thoughts from leadership to philosophy to management to lotus shrub curry, when we are not fighting, that is:-)!

In just 2 weeks time, i would be relocating to B'lore. A pretty exciting career opportunity made me to move my ass from the cozy comfortable couch!

We all know,"Change always comes bearing gifts":-)

Voila! New jobs, new city, new people and everything about this "newness" certainly brings in a sense of excitment:-)

The decision was not easy;Actually, it's pretty hard for me, harder than you could imagine! I am a hardcore Chennaite and well connected with folks around...It's like i know whom to call if my car needs attention, whom to trust for the savy hairstyle, or even simle things like a doc & chemist!!(Well they also know me!!). Yoga cls is something, i would certainly miss....The list includes my familarity with arts, theatre, temple, as well as food joints, boutiques ...and anything & everything in Chennai....Cant stop mentioning about the brown cat in our backyard! And the most emotional thing is about Friends especially when they say, they wd miss me (Don't be so mean......Certainly some of them did say it!).

Yo ! I am glued to all kind of materials on "First 100 Days in the JOB"....since your first hundred days will tell your new company what you are all about! The broader mantra seems to be:

1. Stop & Listen

2. Understand -Core Values of the Org; Org Culture; Processes; Business Model;

3. Get a better perspective of the job role;

4. Observe & study the way the Org solves problems;

5.Integrate with the Org;

6.Dont rock the boat- Dont attempt to change anything drastically;

7. Don’t try to win arguments about debates that occurred in the past;

8. Understand the preferred communication model;

9. Learn to manage expectations;

10. Ask appropriate questions;

11.Build relationships;

12. Be flexible and open minded.

Life is a journey :-). Joy is not just about reaching the destination but enjoying the travel as such:-)!

Happy Week Ahead:-)

Media Frenzy:News & News Channels

2009-05-20T09:21:00.006+05:30

Guys, I am quite puzzled at the way our 24/7 news channels feed us with “News”! Wonder, if it be more appropriate to name them “90% views & 10% news” channels……Don’t you agree???

Post 16/5, Rahul Gandhi has become a darling of the Media. Overnight he is hailed as a "true leader"……though I am no great admirer of him as a politician, our man of the hour with dimpled smile certainly deserves the credit for all his hard work and relentless campaign and some pre poll strategic thinking (And his dignified composure, at victory). But where was the media then???? They were busy chasing Priyanka Gandhi:-)!

On counting day, while the leads/ results were displayed, understandably last election scores was also flashed along side…..LoL….there was this third number…….seems it was the number predicted by the news channel!!!! Each of these channels was vying to say, their prediction was the closest to the final (actual) tally:-)!

What is this about some of the emotionally charged journalists/ anchors, or that high decibel screams??

Worse, when a kid falls in a pit in a remote village in Bihar, we are subjected to a live telecast of the event (!?) from close up of the pit to the rescue/recovery and “opinions” from anyone & everyone in between.

At the end of a tiring day, when one is left with very little energy just to catch up news, all you get is an in depth analysis on what’s cooking up between Hrithik Roshan & Barbara!!!!! No kidding, I am talking about the news channels only!

Off late, I tune in to BBC World….though, it is nowhere closer to exciting compared to our desi media, I do want to get a glimpse of the real news!

Desperately want to escape from this information overdose:-). Do you know the WAY?

Ego

2009-05-15T11:58:00.004+05:30

This is something I am trying to kill……Still fighting hard………..

Guys, I am not talking about Freud’s concept of ego…..But some stupid stuff that gets into our head…..and makes us act funny, even creepy…….

Looks like, we are all born perfect, and go on collecting loads of dust as part of growing up and try to shed them, once we start growing older!!!!

Probably a thin line demarcates between being confident and egoistic! Something like a difference between complacency and contentment!!

Whenever I travel, and have time for myself, I love to introspect ((hey, noticed the I, me, myself piece??? Can’t do one sentence without it!!!)). This is something that sneaked into my mind, while working out in the hotel gym in Bangalore:-) today ((lovely gym, overlooking the pool))! Hey, those of you who were missing me, (I am sure, none!!) just, an FYI……I am in B’lore on work.

The autobiographies of Gandhiji and Abdul Kalam are epitome of humility:-)….Similarly many, many great achievers and leaders across globe are humble & well grounded:-).....

"hey, You know who am"....attitude is a big put off.......

“Pride will have a fall”……….This is one of the greatest lessons History teach us!!

Labour Day!

2009-05-01T11:15:00.001+05:30

Work is worship, even if it is all about dangling precariously!

Place: Chennai-DLF Infocity: Temperature: 37°C

Why? Why?? Why???

2009-04-28T20:22:00.003+05:30

Oooooo my dear, dear Blog Buddies, wanted to share some stuff, which constantly baffle me and defy all the logic…beyond human rationale…. Can you help me to untangle this mess?!

Why are we subjected to daily dose of Priyanka Gandhi? While she says she is not in politics, why is she speaking on everything from Congress’ election strategy, alliances, attacking the BJP, Sri Lankan issue…and what not??

Why is that, still we see dusty mud roads, poor villagers, thatched huts, lack of colleges or major hospitals, in Ameti and Rae Bareli? Or, for that matter many VVIP constituencies??

What do our leaders say on Sri Lankan crisis? Separate Tamil Elam, devolution of power, equal rights, humanitarian measures, peace, war, ceasefire, internal affairs of Sri Lanka, monitoring closely, fast, strike, not a terrorist…terrorist …..friend….not a friend …..Do anyone understand what these jargons mean? To me, it’s all about fishing in troubled waters.

Why, still many, many & many folks strongly believe a faded and old actor in wigs & grease paint can recreate the gud ol movie magic in politics?

How the hell, even kids clearly understand politics is all about money power & muscle power?

What voters want? In a sense, the pattern is the same from 1st to 15th LS elections! Millions of people happily vote for their favorite leader (!!) who simply smiles, cheers, waves and talks some rubbish and never bother to ask for the agenda if voted to power?

Criminal conviction = basic qualification to become a neta?

How come the cricket fanatic population, never raised their voice against Azarudeen’s nomination? ((I may sound blasphemous in the IPL era…but can’t help…..Yep….my total indifference to Cricket!!)).

Why is many of our 24/7 channel anchors, turn so emotionally charged while doing a news edition or interviewing a neta or simply hosting a talk show?

Will we ever get to watch a Tamil news channel, which is all about just news and not their simply party views or their boss’s?

Why do smart, young techies commit suicide, because of economic downturn, more precisely on getting laid off? How come it never occurred to them that there are millions of daily wage laborers who support their families, bring up children and manage few SmileS too.

How do Page 3 “celebrities”….err…. actually make it to the Page 3 and just remain there!?

Though Chennai is like a firepot during every summer, why everyone says this year is the hottest ever….ooffff…oooffff…..its all coz of global warming etc, etc?

Why is this shoe throwing syndrome catching up like flu?

Why am I bitten by this election bug, that off late I can’t breathe, think, talk & write anything but politics! Huh….. Inspite of my hectic work schedule and a refreshing mini vacation to my grandpa’s place…Thanjavur, this obsession has not faded!! No panics, will fix it soon-).

Kaun Banega BIG BOSS??!!

2009-04-15T20:52:00.001+05:30

Yo! Hours to go for the biggest battle for ballots and the question of the hour is “Who will be the CEO of India Inc”!! Reminded of GB Shaw’s adage” Power does not corrupt men; fools, however, if they get into a position of power, corrupt power”!!

Will that be, Manmohan Singh, L K Advani, Sharad Pawar, Lalu Prasad Yadav, Jayalalitha, Rahul Gandhi, Ram Vilas Paswan, Anbumani Ramadoss, Mayawathi , Mulayam Singh, Amar Singh, Nitish Kumar, Mamta Banerjee, Chandra Babu Naidu a Comrade or someone else, or some underdog???????? Gosh….…..Any guesses.......

If we look at PM aspirants, PM in Waiting, PM in making, Shadow PM et all, it’s such a bottomless list:-). Can’t deny the fact that some of the names sound scary and sends a chill down the spine. Looks like it may be much easier to forecast who wont make it rather than who would! On the prime contestants for hot seat, pitched against the honest, academician, expert economist and gentleman PM is the equally honest, brilliant politician, voracious speaker, visionary and proven leadership abilities, Advani! With horrifying stories of growing terrorism, I would prefer to see some one who is really, really hard on terror. At this juncture, the treat of terrorism certainly is a crucial issue and can’t be taken lightly. For this reason, my vote goes to LK AdvaniJ. He is one smart blogger too!!

RK Laxman Cartoon

Since, the coalition governments are the order of the day, who ever manage to win even a single constituency, musters enough muscle…err lung power! I agree with Manmohan Singh, on “Independent Candidates are spoilers”. Many of them are un known before elections and forgotten post elections, and just help in splitting the votes!!

One thing I am at loss to understand is the talk of “age” in politics…..Come On……If you want to feel effervescence of youth, then become a politician!!!! If you are in 30s, you are a youth icon, in 40s youth leader & young MP, 50s head the youth wing of the party, 60s sr.party leader & cabinet minister and post 70s party high command & …….PM aspirant:-)! So, what a big deal??!! Personally I think, as long as somebody is fit, hale and healthy and most important qualified for the post, age shouldn’t be a criteria at all!

“Dance of Democracy” by ToI stands for what you call a responsible journalism. Even after decades, and with so many 24/7 news channels and analysts around, Pronnoy Roy manages to hold the forte when it comes to psephology!! Simply brilliant:-). Yahoo’s election edition lets you compare manifestos of various parties at:http://in.elections.yahoo.com/comparemanifesto.html. Cool na??.

We have to find a “Method in Madness”. Elections, more precisely Voting does help in achieving it!

Just Timepass...

2009-04-05T22:30:00.002+05:30

After a packed weekend, watching "Yavarum Nalam" &"Fashion", catching up with friends, and shopping with my mom in T.Nagar (after more than a year, i dared to venture out to T.Nagar, and it was not so bad), when my brain is completely "switched off", this is what i could "think" of..........................I-Me-Myself!

Instant PEP UPS!

Shopping for must haves, nice to haves, good to haves, no need to haves.
Morning Coffee; Cold Coffee; Cappuccino; (No, Civet Coffee …………Yukkiieeeeee; If you haven’t heard abt it, don’t bother to know).
Chocolate; Chocolate Sauce; Death by Chocolate; Gooey Chocolate Fudge; Hot Chocolate; Anything & everything prefixed or suffixed with Choco…
Sea Breeze.
Petrichor (Fragrance of rain on the dry earth).
Peppermint Pedicure.
A R Rahman’s Music.
F.R.I.E.N.D.S.
Snoozing the morning alarm; better, shut it up.
Simply the colour "Orange".
Vanilla flavor.
Yoga.
Popcorn.
Calvin & Hobbes.
Surprise call from a long lost friend/cousin; ex friend, ex boss; or simply an ex.
Sink into a couch and do nothing.

Turn OFFS!

Fake eyelashes, fake nails, fake smile & plastic words.
Ash’s giggles Salman Khan’s semi nude avatar, Himesh Reshammiya’s hair do, Govinda’s dress sense, Kareena’s size zero obsession, and Shah Rukh’s never changing acting style.
Ads for toilet cleaners.
After messing up my hair, when the hair stylist grins and looks straight into my eyes and says “You will get used to this style in a day or two”.
Coffee table conversations getting hijacked by a jerk, who goes on and on about his boss, in laws, spouse, kids, pets his travels, house, car, EMIs, allergies and on & on & on.
Insensitive people.
Faded actors, repeating their good old movie dialogues for Votes.
Folks who always covert everything in Dollars from real estate to vegetables (The best part is, these ppl were onsite for just 6 months, whole of their life).
While driving for a long time, suddenly realize that you are in the same place.
Blood & Flesh , heart & kidney in television in the name of “Medical Care”.
Jumping Queues.
Being stared at.
Ciao! Ciao!

What to SAY?

2009-04-02T10:12:00.003+05:30

Wanted to vent out something, which disturbed be a lot in the last 3-4 days.

This happened in a family, I know of very well for years. A typical middle class family!

The guy (our hero) got married nearly a year back, to an innocent small town belle, (appavi ponnu, in the real sense). The marriage was a blessing for our hero, for they had lot of tragedies in the family at that time. He is working somewhere in a remote village in Andhra Pradesh. Infact our hero had a tough time getting bride, because of his job location! His wife was living with him for few months, and then moved to Chennai to live with her in laws. The girl is not employed, but does all chores at home. Our hero keeps travelling between the village and the metro! Our hero was in town last weekend, and here begins the ghastly episode.

Our hero has come to know that his wife has quite irregular monthly cycle, and believes his wife and her parents have not told him at the time of marriage. Our hero and his extended family bashed them up saying you have cheated us, and take her back and get her medically treated and bring her back “fit”. The poor wife and her parents had no other choice, but rush to the doc, and figured out she is suffering from ovarian cyst. Now the wife is back with her parents, for the treatment and will stay with them till she is completely cured, even if it takes a year or so.

I am curious to know how she must be feeling. Though heart of heart I wish her speedy recovery and get back with her hubby, but somewhere I also wonder; is it possible for her to love and respect her hubby the same way, after all this drama….

Health- How come she and her parents ignored about this, and didn’t bother to get a medical advice.

Is it the wife’s parents who have to take care of her in case of ailments and not husband, is it?
What is this about “Till death do us part”?
Is it not a husband & his family’s responsibly to take care of the wife?
If a guy falls sick, can a wife send his to his parents?
Is it ego/ignorance/arrogance /stupidity or little bit of everything?
Are relationships based on the dynamics of economy; financial dependence/independence?

I agree we may never know the complete facts, since this is a private affair of somebody. I am not trying to be judgmental or generalizing anything. Just wanted to share something which bothered me a lot….

The Great Indian Political Tamasha !

2009-03-27T09:00:00.006+05:30

As the countdown begins for the 15th Lok Sabha elections, it is decision time, my dear blog buddies:-).

Our beloved Netas are at it again….what else….the freebies…..It’s sickening to see manifesto after manifesto being filled with free (or cheap) rice, wheat etc! “If you want to build a boat, do not instruct the men to saw wood, stitch the sails, prepare the tools and organize the work, but make them long for setting sail and travel to distant lands.” Any takers????

Kudos to Soniaji, for making it brutally clear that Dr.Manmohan Singh would be the torch bearer, for the second time! Don’t get me wrong on my allegiance. It a big relief, that she has saved us from the ordeal of watching a bunch of Septuagenarians, good old Congressmen (read, senior leaders), being asked by the likes of Barka Dutt, “Sir/madam, are you open to become the PM?; and the senior flashing a grin and mouthing the all time famous lines…. “I am always ready to serve the people”!!” Sigh…….

Some time back an article I read, disturbed me a lot; it was about a student exchange program and the 13-14 year old girl students from a village in Bihar said, they have never used toilets, in whole of their lives. How sad. Why don’t we address real issues like education, basic health & sanitation, rural employment on priority???

The way Varun Gandhi made it big to “Breaking News”, the stirring of debate over his outburst, major political parties’ take on this issue; no doubts made him a celebrity overnight! Though EC was right in pulling up this young chap, it made me wonder; how come everyone including EC turn mute spectator, to fielding candidates who trace their roots to a particular constituency thru their religion, case & sub caste; You bet, this is true of every constituency in India, except few urban ones! It is disgusting to see how communal cards are played, during elections.

We all have seen it before!! One pre election event is formation of Third Front, comprising of miniscule parties, with mega ambitious leaders (read, all PM aspirants!). It happened this year too! Anything is a possibility in a coalition era!

PMK switching loyalties in TN did not surprise me, but pitching Sowmya Anbumani certainly did! Our political scene looks like something straight out of Karan Johan movie! It’s all about KaandhanJ. BJD & RJD has also opted to change wagon!! What do you say on the kind of crowd Prajarajyam is able to attract??

LK Advani inviting Manmohan Sign for a live TV debate is a great initiative! If it materialises, we would get to see what the top contenders for the hot seat have to say??!!

Refreshing to see cool dudes like Shashi Tharoor, Mallia Sarabhai, taking the plunge.

You know what, while US goes for paper ballet, hip hop India votes electronically!

Moving away from election front, to tit bits happened over the last couple of days in the world of I, Me, Myself:

Spirituality: I had an interesting encounter with a Japanese traveler, Fitushi in my Yoga cl. I met him on the 27th or 28th day of his 30 days sojourn in India!! His fascination for bhavad gita, himalayan treks, ganges walks, bharathnatyam, temple architecture, carnatic music, dosas and curd rice really fascinated me. We debated on the similarities between Shintoism and Hinduism, how precious democracy is, and what it means being a Vegan! He says, Viji is a nice name, but very, very difficult to pronounce!

Courage: The way my friend Kameshwari braved her mother’s heart surgery. The mother, daughter duo was spreading cheers around, in the hospital, even a day prior to the surgery! Beautiful peopleJ.

Nuisance: How my friend Ms. Brains, had to wade off a “happily” married man’s overtones…. Irritating……..We had a hearty laugh though, at that moron’s expense!

Ego: Confused, when my Pilot friend, chided me for uttering a harmless “da”…..No amount of convincing that it’s just a friendly, gender neutral term, and absolutely meant no disrespect, did help! Huhhh….

Turn Off: In a fit of impulse, I enrolled into aerobics. I find it oooooooo, soooooo boring, jumping around, in a room with a bunch of strangers for 60minutes, for some loud music. Any day, it is million times better to live with few extra inches, than this mindless hopping.

Aesthetics: Apart from the cool cotton stuff, the lovely silver jwellery collection in Kalpadruma; quite affordable compared the ones at Amethyst!

C…Ya….Letz Catch Up With More NEWS & VIEWS:-).

Abstinence is NOT Cool !

2009-03-14T17:45:00.006+05:30

The grandest event of democracy is in the air, for the largest democracy in the world! As India is all set to exercise her Vox Populi in the coming months, the citizen in me kicked in, and here goes the impact!!!!

We have seen and heard time and again in our coffee table conversation to street corner debates as to Why in India:

Literacy rate is just 65.5% ((Less than Sri Lanka!!).
Family Planning is a total failure.
27% of our people live below Poverty Line.
Corruption is institutionalized.
Environment is degrading.
Single digit GDP growth year on year.
Bomb blasts, terrorist attacks, crimes et al…..

Whopping 100+ crore Indians instantly and intuitively know the answer for this complex predicament: BLAME THE POLITICANS!

Hmmmmmm…Does it sound rational…….To me, Nope…….certainly a "BIG NO"

Darling, we are a democratic country and we ELECT our netas. We (simply, You &I) decide the Numero Uno Minister to the Ward Councilor! So, are we not responsible for the highs and lows of the Country?

Where is the irony?

Smarties, who understand the electoral process, candidates, indulge in debate, discuss, draw graphs and analyse on 24/7 news channels, over a cuppa coffee, on office lounges, in B-School campuses, participate in online polls, etc….. and……… just S.T.O.P with that. Rather on D-Day, they simply prefer to do the same thing, and not dare to get into real act……Voting!

Folks, who are less privileged to formal education and flood of information, care a damn about everything else, simply GO & VOTE!

This creates a huge crater, from fielding of candidates (caste, religion based, with criminal convictions, local goons, faded actors etc, etc!), the way the campaign is structured (usage of all abusive language…good platform to pick up few swear words, if you want!!…., personal attacks, no discussion on national issues) competency of the candidates (educational qualification, health records, skills, achievements, integrity) parliamentary debates (noisy,walk outs, stalling of proceesings) and finally reflects in a big way on the nation’s growth.

In the melee our votes carry a price, not value!!

Election after election, the manifesto of political parties is full of promise of freebies……..from free rice to clothes to televisions to liquor to what not!!!! The real factors like, economy, industrial growth, national security, environmental protection, basic education, primary health and sanitation, urban-rural parity……..all takes a back seat….Why the hell we should care…when are entertained with more gripping topics like Sanjay Dutt contesting elections….or in case he is barred by law, ((Mind you, he was convicted under Arms Act)) will his wife contest, his campaign strategy (!!), his fight and forgiveness with his sisters…..Ooooooooops……God Save!!

All that is required, to CHANGE this trend, is U & I should Vote! This will trigger a change in the quality of the leaders getting elected! The political parties would be careful in selecting the candidates; the quality of electoral debates would go up; real issues will be discussed; Most important, candidates with criminal records will not make it. Going forward, we will have leaders and administrators representing usJ and not mere politicians.

Okey….Okey….i am not saying all this will happen in just one day or in one election!! Somewhere it better has to begin!!

The constant crib, read lame excuse from abstainers is that we don’t vote because, no good candidates in sight…..Come on…..when we are out shoping, we don’t end up buying Armani or Versace….We pick the best from the available lot, with all the constrains on. The other frequent escapism is my name is not in the voter’s list. Well, when we want to watch a movie, do we just go to the hall, and say oh…no…the tickets are sold out…No, right??!! We ensure that we watch the movie…we know what efforts to take!! Why don’t we invest some efforts in participating the democratic process??!!

For the hot seat, more precisely CEO of India Inc, my Vote is for Narendra Modi for his administration skills, proven leadership, pro industry stand, charisma, decision making ability, ability to communicate effectively and being at the right age! Jayalalitha and Chandrababu Naidu would also qualify for the race, for similar reasons.

How about our handsome, suave, blue blooded boy Rahul Gandhi…Refreshing to see his dimpled smile splashed in newspapers every morning ! But beyond that I cant vouch much, looking at his travels, limited only to Ameti/Rae Bareli-sharing a meal with a farmer, hugging a granny, resting under a tree, talking about his legacy and posing for photographs with the group of clueless villagers……..hum…you could do much more than this, for sure, Rahul!

Responsibility of the privileged ((in terms of education) and the awareness of the less privileged will go a long way to cleanse ((and tone, moisturize, beautify and groom too)) the system!

Vote, India Vote!

The End of Lawyers???????????

2009-03-05T14:26:00.011+05:30

Today morning, as usual, when I scrolled the blackberry, my eye balls popped out seeing a mail from my Boss with the subject line “The End of Lawyers??????”……..My curiosity levels went few notches up, since in this kind of times, you never know what it means, until you finish reading the last word of the story!!

Nope….……..no panics….….it turned out to be excerpts from the book by Richard Susskind with the title “The End of Lawyers?”……My work took a backseat as I got immersed into reading this lucid piece. ((helllooooo, hold on…..the subject line has a direct impact on my bread, cheese & cake!!!!)).

Susskind argues that the legal profession may be on the verge of one of the biggest shake ups in its history. In his view the role of traditional lawyers in some fields will be extinct. Sphere heading the revolution are two elements: the commoditisation of legal services, and the increasing ability of technology to handle basic legal processes.

Tit bits from the Book in Richard’s own language: ((Better way of saying it than “copy & paste”, hope you agree??!!))

1. The challenge for all lawyers to introspect, and to ask themselves, with their hands on their hearts, what elements of their current workload could be undertaken differently — more quickly, cheaply, efficiently, or to a higher quality — using alternative methods of working.

2. The challenge for legal readers is to identify their distinctive skills and talents, the capabilities that they possess that cannot, crudely, be replaced by advanced systems or by less costly workers supported by technology or standard processes, or by lay people armed with online self-help tools.

3. The market is increasingly unlikely to tolerate expensive lawyers for tasks (guiding, advising, drafting, researching, problem-solving and more) that can equally or better be discharged, directly or indirectly, by smart systems and processes.

4. No lawyers should shirk from the challenge of identifying their distinctive capabilities.

5. Many of our fundamental assumptions about the nature of legal service and the nature of legal process would be challenged by the coming of information technology and the internet.

6. On top of this smaller group of genuine legal specialists and this growing cadre of hybrids, I also envisage the emergence of a third grouping: the legal knowledge engineers. These are the highly skilled individuals who will be engaged in the jobs of standardising, systematising and packaging the law.

7. Can any responsible lawyer sensibly state with confidence that legal work in 2030will be much the same as today?

8. No one seems to be worrying about the fate of the next generation of lawyers.

9. Open-minded lawyers and those who genuinely care about the interests of their clients should, in the internet age, continually be looking at ways in which IT can play a more prominent role in their services.

And here goes my favorite piece:
10. Perhaps 100 years from now, maybe more or maybe much less, people might sit in fine comfort in some vestige of today’s legal world (perhaps an ancient courtroom refurbished as a restaurant, as some of London’s banks have been repurposed) and, appropriately nourished, speculate in a leisurely manner about solicitors and barristers and advocates and attorneys, in much the same way as I had been musing about various craftsmen of centuries past.

>>>>>Did the Madras High Court lawyers, who are on an indefinite strike for a couple of weeks…err….months, inspire Susskind to pen this Book, or more precisely the title??????

Courtesy my friend Asha, I will be watching the preview show of the thriller “Yavarum Nalam”…..late today evening. Wonder, how on earth, the choco boy Maddy would fit into a thriller flick????? Will chk it out and let you know:-)…

Catch Ya Later….

Ecstatic….!

2009-02-25T20:10:00.003+05:30

Just can't stop gushing "Ooo La La......Ooo La La....."

A week of euphoria, witnessing 3 awesome Indians, AR Rahman, Gulsar, Resul Pookutty grabbing Academy Awards…Still cant get over our very own “Mannin Maindhan’, AR Rahman’s haul of 2 Oscars…..What am I going to write, that the whole world has not read about the trio, in the last couple of days??!!! Will not bore you with repeats, don’t worry!

The Academy Awards, mostly were on predicted lines with no major surprises……While Angelina Jolie dazzled in red carpet, Kate Winslet went on to bag the Award, (7th time lucky!!??) and followed it up with an acceptance speech which bordered on real drama. Slumdong's sweep too was as expected!!!!

Lol…..Lol……Full credit to the Slumdog kids & Pinky for making the Oscar Nite, beautiful & colorful:-).

Kudos, to great Indian trio for their amazing simplicity, humility, team spirit and composure and the way they are firmly grounded!! The acceptance speech by AR Rehman and Resul was striking and sounded very, very genuine:-). Resul's reference on "OM" is remarkable....And Gulzar is all dignity personified!

Okey............As an ardent fan of AR Rehman, I just can’t….can’t……can’t resist my temptation to share this little piece, , which I read in ToI ((Then what, do you think he called me straight from Kodak Thetre and told this!!)…..Apparently his learning from working with so many music composers in his formative years ((read…..pre….pre…pre…Roja days) was that 1. Never be complacent 2. Dare to look beyond forbidden territories…..No wonder; he is where he is today:-).

With AR Rahman & Resul making the world turn towards Indian Cinema, we won’t be surprised to see Brad Pitt in a Mani Ratnam flick ((Bet, that will surely be my all time favorite movie!))or Amir Khan in a Steven Spielberg movie!!Don’t stare at me like this…..the news is already out…..Woody Allen has already signed Frieda Pinto!

Let me not sound skeptic, but how feasible is the dream of an Indian movie winning Oscar, considering that it has one only category to compete, “Foreign Language Film”!! Hamm…..Letz see…….But who has imagined an Indian to perform at Oscars Nite or even see a “Mini India” at the Kodak Theatre during the Award Nite!!

But anything can happen, baby….We all know the power of “Audacity of Hope”:-).

On the personal front, pretty much excited for the coming weekend(extended!) trip to God’s own country…..Guruvayur–Cochin……with my family. While it’s strictly pilgrimage for Guruvayur, I am keen to unwind in an ayurvedic spa in the backwaters of Cochin, while my parents have a huge list of pilgrim centers for darshan.....Will be interesting to see, how we work it out with minimum arguments:-). Hoping to frame the nature’s allure in my Nikon and share it with you!

A bientot!

Outliers: The Story of Success by Malcom Gladwell- Review

2009-02-19T21:29:00.002+05:30

Outlier: An observation that lies outside the overall pattern of a distribution.
Also, read as…..Outstanding; Odd One Out.

The third book from the author of Blink and Tipping Point comes up with a straight forward assertion,: Success also depends on being “on the right time at right place”.

In “Blink” Gladwell explains what happens during the first few seconds we encounter something, before we actually start to think; how decisions are made in the blink of a second, consciously or otherwise.

"Tipping Point" was all about how ideas and behaviors reach a momentum, critical mass, and the agents of change; catastrophic change that swiftly turns insignificant incidents into epic events.

Like his earlier works, Gladwell relies on a single premise in this book too; his strength lays in the coherent narration, simple language, relevant analogy and logical argument all packaging the book an easy and interesting read.

While, Gladwell takes us on a fascinating journey through the world of "Outliers", the best & the brightest, rich & famous; innovators & super achievers, we just sit up and take notice.

Is it always the geniusness of the achievers or something else that differentiates between them and the rest of us?? The correlation between those who have access to right opportunity at the right time and those who have not, differentiates between the Outliers and the rest. Does, when you were born, where you were born, what did your parents do for living, and your upbringing all make an impact in your success?? Gladwell says, a "Big Yes" and we can’t deny the role of cultural lineage, family, upbringing, environment and opportunities in attaining success.

>>>> Remember, Machiavelli’s theory that the kind of political system is related to environmental factors like ecology, food, culture etc?????!!!!!

Synopsys:
Outliers has two Parts; "Part One: Opportunity" contains five chapters, and "Part Two: Legacy" has four.

Outliers, are defined by Gladwell as people who do not fit into our normal understanding of achievement, Outliers deals with exceptional people, especially those who are smart, rich, and successful, and those who operate at the extreme outer edge of what is statistically possible. He illustrates this phenomenon through the lives of, Bill Gates, Beatles, physicist Robert Oppenheimer, lawyer Joe Flom and many, many other guys who made it to the TOP.

The book opens with Gladwell's quest on why a large number of elite Canadian hockey players are born in the first few months of the year. The answer, he says, is that since youth hockey leagues determine eligibility by calendar year, children born on January 1 play in the same league as those born on December 31 in the same year. Because teens born earlier in the year are bigger and sturdier than the others, they are often identified as better athletes, leading to extra training and a higher likelihood of being selected for elite hockey leagues. This phenomenon is dubbed "accumulative advantage" by Gladwell. Interesting hypothesis from a mundane data, right??!!

Look at this statistics: Microsoft founder Bill Gates was born in 1955, co-founder Paul Allen was born in 1953, Apple founder Steve Jobs in 1955, and Sun Microsystems founders Bill Joy and Scott McNealy in 1954. Not a simple coincidence, passionately argues Gladwell! Their exposure to software development during 1970s plays a vital key in their success….. all these guys made it BIG not just on their extraordinary talent but also because they had the right opportunities at exactly the right time!!

He also explores how the great depression in 1860s, favourned men born in 1830s, what differentiates between a good pilot and the not so ones, relationship between the rice paddies and mathematical wizardry.

In the last Chapter, he dwells on his personal account; Jamaican roots, slavery of his ancestors, what it meant to be few shades darker, access to education and history’s gift to his family…Quite a stirring piece!!

Bill Gates endorses this view by saying 'I am lucky'!

Take Aways from Outliers:

Ø “10,000-Hour Rule” - Key to success in any field is simply a matter of practicing a specific task for a total of 10,000 hours.

Ø Genius is not the only or even the most important thing when determining a person's success.

Ø It is not the brightest who succeed; success is not simply the sum of the decisions and efforts we make on our own behalf. It is, rather, a gift.

Ø Extraordinary achievement is less about talent and it is about opportunity.

Ø Success arises out of the steady accumulation of advantages.

Ø Outliers are those who have been given opportunities, and who have had the strength and presence of mind to seize them.

We can’t help the fact that the book reminds of Tipping Point in many places. The root of Gladwell’s argument is not supported by scientific research but by random unconnected data sampling! Also, too much of statistics makes the subject quite slacking and compels you to flip few pages.

Overall, the book leaves you with a satisfaction of time spent worthwhile;And certainly triggers your thought process!