Wake up Sid: Almost living upto its reputation

This certainly was one of the most awaited movies, especially for the gen-x/y/z… Something to look forward to.. Something different.. Something refreshing..Something not like loud comedy… Something not having vulgar poses and meaningless songs.. And definitely a break from the deluge of ….. in name of reality..

As the title says, it almost succeeded.. The story is of a spoilt brat (Ranbir) of a rich dad(Anupam Kher), who never takes the world seriously, unless he is forced to by certain incidents.. And who better to hold his hand through this.. Our own Aisha(Konkana).Their first meeting was an accident, but they soon became used to each other..(or should i say Made for each other).. The songs are different.. O RE MANWA definitely leaves its impression.. Konakan is brilliant in her acting..Ranbir too leaves her mark.. A character not used to the fullest is Sonia , but i wonder what more could she have been used for.. At times, the story looks lost, sometimes, the confusion looks little too much to fathom, but then that is what adds to its beauty as well.. Mumbai monsoons conclude the movies, which is as abrupt as it could get.

All in all a good watch, first half being a little slow, but as the time passes, the story picks up as well..

Dil bole Hadippa: Straight from the heart

What does a movie buff looks forward to now a days? Gone are the days of patriotic movies which would enthuse one and all, gone are the days of the movies of attrocities of village landlord, who will bring tears to one and all, gone are the days of domestic violence centric movies, which will ensre all the ladies look around for fresh set of handkerchiefs.

Now, for an average cine goer(there will always be off the normal curve people), the expectation is pretty clear: Time pass for three hours, something to relax themselves, somethings to laugh over, something to enjoy their popcorns with… This is where DIL BOLE HADIPPA fits the bill perfectly.

Minutes into the movie, and you can guess it to be a Chak De remake in new avataar, but thats only the beginning. Its about a girl living here dreams, and of particular mention is the dialogue: You may stop me from doing something, but how will you stop me from dreaming?  The story is of a village girl, who had a dream, and will go to any extent to fulfill it.She is as desi as you can think of, as pure at heart as you can imagine. The story is about a broken family, who is not shattered yet, as still there are threads of relationships between them. The story is about a Miss Chandigarh, who seems alergic to wearing clothes. The story is about a dance party, which belts real jazzy numbers. The story is about some efforts to promote harmony between India and Pakistan, and the story is about knowing that only thing that matters is victory, and rest all can wait.

Rani Mukherjee has lost loads of weight for the movie, and it is apparent. Guess Rakhi would have been paid extra money, as she uttered hardly three lines in entire movie, and danced really well. Shahid is looking really dashing, and many a dames would drool at his new looks. Sherlyn has serious allergy to clothes, and is apparent.

There is a pinch of over dramatic climax, but then Bollywood junta can always be ignored for the same. The music is foot tapping, and songs are picturised really well.

In all, a must watch. 4.5/5 says the scoreboard.

The hand which ensured food to millions is no more…

Norman Borlaug: Does the name ring a bell? If not, please google. I am sure you will finds tons and tons of articles on him. Known as the pioneer of Green revolution in Asian countries, he was the one who proved wrong the Malthusian nightmare that it will be impossible to feed the rising Indian population some four decades back.

Nobel peace prize winner in 1970, the committee introduced him as ” More than any other single person of this age, he has provided bread for this hungry world”, and he was widely described as father of Green revolution, something which he found miserable. It was last Saturday, when this great soul left for heavenly abode. 

But, what happened next is shocking. Perhaps the torn muscle of Virat Kohli and Viru’s ramp walk in Kolkata fashion week is more important. But, all I found the mention of this great loss was 1 one-liner on the sidelines in leading dailies. And I personally think media is not the only one to be blamed for it. Are we as individuals actually concerned? Does it really matter to us? Or we more interested in Big B’s gossip or the Shahrukh-Salman spat.  Media presents what ever it thinks junta is intersted in. And am sure, most people will ask.. WHO NORMAN? What did he do?

Guess it has become our habit.. “We forget the hands, which fed us. We are indifferent to what is happening around? We are becoming more and more self-centric and self-obsessed. The only things of interest left now are cricket, Bollywood and oneself. Rest all can take a backseat.”

May his soul rest in peace, and God bless him… This is all I can think in the end.

An enterpreneur can not be half pregnant…

Guess the title itself is self-explanatory. Enterpreneurship understands only binary language. Its 1 or 0. No middle value accpeted, all else are null and void. Read this line almost a year back, but every passing day understand its relevance more and more.

Talk to any fresh grad out of college and working for 2-3 years, 5 out of 10 will speak/brag/boast/dream/fantasize/share/confess their inherent wish to do something on their own. This statisitics is arrived at a pure personal experience and hence is always questionable. Out of these, 3 will also have some Business plan ready with them, and it would just be a matter of time before they will think seriously to materialize this.

Probe them a bit, and the vicious circle begins. First two years are blocked so that I have some credence to my name, also need to pay back my education loan. Next year typically goes for marriage preparations, and next six months in getting married. Next one year goes in realizing/assessing what damage has been done and by then some new person is already on its way, or has to be on its way soon for marital and family bliss as they call it. All this time, there was one excuse or other why the concerned gentleman/lasy could not start on their own, and they are just waiting for the OPPORTUNE TIME, which will never come.

If you want to know the opportune time, this moment is the opportune time, this can be the moment of truth, this can be the turning point, this can be decider for the rest of life, else you will always find reaons why this is not the opportune moment. History is replete with such examples, as to How Narayan Murthy spent 3 years on the salary of Sudha Murthy, and how Shiv Nadar started in a garage. Had they waited for things to calm down a bit, or to get a better foot hold, or for that OPPORTUNE MOMENT,  guess they would have been workers and not mentors of their respective comapnies.

Enterpreneurship is not for the weak hearted, its not for the impulsive ones, its for those, who dream and live their dreams. Some one compares it with sperms, millions die before one survi

Joy of giving

Let me start the post with a harsh reality of life.. Its immaterial whether you go to office in a Merc or brace the local train crowd, or walk down to save those five rupees. No matter which category you belong to, your body will require the same space to rest in peace. I know it is easy said than felt, but the sooner you realize it, the more comfortable you are.

With the changing world, there is no end to materialistic comforts. Everyday, I read articles wherein people spend millions on a tattoo, or for their pet room. They fully deserve to do so, but can a thought be spared for the underpreveleged. As a Hindi poet had rightly said towards the social diaparity existing in our society.

“swano ko milta doodh bhat,
bhookhe bachche auklate hain,
ma ki haddi se chipak-chipak
jare ki raat bitate hain “

History has been witness to enormous incidents of people who have given more than any one could have imagined. Guess, it was joy of giving for the sage Dadhichi, who gave his bones for making Vajra. A similar exapme is of Karna, beautifully captured in the following lines of Rashmirathi by Ramdhari Singh Dinkar. The lines describe the episode when Karna had spared four Pandavas because he had promised Kunti the same.

”सब आंख मूंद कर लडते हैं, जय इसी लोक में पाने को ,
पर, कर्ण जूझता है कोई, ऊंचा सद्धर्म निभाने को ,
सबके समेत पंकिल सर में, मेरे भी चरण पडेंग़े क्या ?
ये लोभ मृत्तिकामय जग के, आत्मा का तेज हरेंगे क्या ?

यह देह टूटने वाली है, इस मिट्टी का कब तक प्रमाण ?
मृत्तिका छोड ऊपर नभ में भी तो ले जाना है विमान .
कुछ जुटा रहा सामान खमण्डल में सोपान बनाने को ,
ये चार फुल फेंके मैंने, ऊपर की राह सजाने को

ये चार फुल हैं मोल किन्हीं कातर नयनों के पानी के ,
ये चार फुल प्रच्छन्न दान हैं किसी महाबल दानी के .
ये चार फुल, मेरा अदृष्ट था हुआ कभी जिनका कामी,
ये चार फुल पाकर प्रसन्न हंसते होंगे अन्तर्यामी .”

”समझोगे नहीं शल्य इसको, यह करतब नादानों का हैं ,
ये खेल जीत से बडे क़िसी मकसद के दीवानों का हैं .
जानते स्वाद इसका वे ही, जो सुरा स्वप्न की पीते हैं ,
दुनिया में रहकर भी दुनिया से अलग खडे ज़ो जीते हैं .”

I, in no way, am promoting social loafing, and prpogating doing the extra bit. Also, I am saying is that if your small action can bring joy and smile to some face, please do the same. Look at your school books. At best, they will be in some cupboard, being dusted every year during Diwali/newyear. Did the thought of giving it to some needy student( he may be your own relative) cross your mind? It actually would have the best use for the book. 

To sum it up, if you are God fearing, just think, what will you say to God, when he asks that when you could have done certain things, why did you not do the same? For athiests, just try once. The mental satisfaction and peace which you get is unparalleled. Comments/Counterviews solicited.

India:A Land threatened on all sides

Over last two days, the news making headlines were:

1) Chinese incursion in Ladakh,where they entered almost 1.5 km into our territory,

2) Two Indian priests manhandled in the famous Pashupatinath temple,

3) Pakistan putting his foot down  on punishing 26/11 attackers

4)Rai, a noted terrorist killed in North -East ahead of Durga Puja celebrations. Threads linked to Bangladesh.

This apart, time and again Sri Lanka finger also raises towards India, be it for being Pro-LTTE, or otherwise.

And if this was not enough, the recent declarations about the efficiency of Pokhran test forced former Army chief to ask for reassurance to the forces from the government. Now, questions are also being raised about the No-first policy for nuclear arms as well.

Looking within the country, Maoists are striking at will. Atleast in four states, they are running their parallel government. Operation Lalgarh was claimed to be a success. Ask ordinary person there, he is still afriad to venture out in night, and CRPF forces admit it.. Cobra force was forced, but is it that well-equipped? 

At this junture, I remember few lines from Dinkar..

re roka, yudhishthir ko na yahan
jane de unako svarg dheer
par fer hamein gandiv gada
lauta de arjun bhim veer

kah de shankar se aaj karen
ve pralay nrty fir ek bar
sare bharat mein goonj uthe
‘har har bam’ ka fir mahochchar

Time has come to be assertive, time has come to be assertive in appearance and behavior as well, time has come for hard core retaliation, time is ripe to tell the world that while our hands are always for handshake, these hands can throw grenades as well, and are quite capable of so. If the dragon can breathe fire, the tiger has its sharp claws as well, and time has come to bare it in full flow. 

Tough times call for tough measures, else the fall out is simple: the golden bird will again disintegrate, and all of us would be equally responsible for it.

Aagey to right:The only right is in the name itself…

An impressive star cast: Yes, I have always respected the acting talent of Shreyas and Kay Kay Menon. And add to it the two beauties, Shenaz( I hope I have spelt her correctl), and the Paro of Dev D( thats the only way I know her). Initial clippings portrayed it to be a comedy, and I thought it to be a decent bet, after the recent box office duds.

The first fifteen minutes were enough to prove me wrong, and then started an ordeal for 20 odd people in the entire theatre( Just to emphasize, it was the first day of release). Shreyas was at best ordinary, guess he also tried to go overboard to ensure the laugh buds keep tickling. The beauties showed nothing extraordinary, I mean acting, lest you think otherwise . Kay Kay emerged as the only solace with his urdu rapidly changing to Mumbaiya gibberish.. The Mallu don’s only dialogue worth remembering was “SOCHA TO LOCHA”

The script was extremely loosely tied, if tied at all. The director also forgot that a good comedy has bursts of laughter, and can’t be a laugh machine every next second. Some people aptly named the movie also as “MY LOST GUN”, as that only was the common point through the entire movie. Songs were not Jhitimating at all( as Kay Kay would have called it). The plot was lost a thousand times, and then desperate efforts to revive it were done.

Overall, a dud, and last suggestion- Sleep, work in office, chat, surf but don’t go for it. It does not qualify even as a non brainer.

In Sales, there is no right answer, weigh your options and decide..

I owe these lines to one of the best professors I have ever come across and dedicate this article to him. Whenever, there was a case presentation in his class( in all his class, there used to be one case presentation), he would counter your arguments. And then when some one from the class would put the other side, he would puncture that as well. And then when you looked upto him for solutions, he would say, in each of these options, these are the pros and these are the cons. And then in the last lecture, he uttered these golden words “In Sales, there is no right awnser, weigh your options and decide..”

At those times, I could not realize the words. But today, with two years in sales, they look to me as opening lines of Bible or Gita for sales people. Few examples to share with you all..

• Two of your biggest distributors are supposed to travel in same car. Whose place would you send it first?
• There is shortage of particular SKU. Two telephones buzz and they order for the same( Apparently, it was the same customer, who asked for it from both the shops). Whom to bill it?
• Its year end, and you are just short of the target. There is an order, wherein the distributor is just asking for little frugal benefits( Please note, this demand is not unethical). What would you do? You go that extra mile, and he may make it a norm( MAY is a key word here). You don’t, and for some one, entire year’s hardwork goes down the drain.

I know, many of you can just laugh off these instances as a one off case, but friends that is what sales is all about..These one off cases only constitute the business for you. Rarely a day passes, when you don’t face one of these dilemmas( My sales colleagues can vouch for the same). And if you think this was all, read below( And trust me, these are not acts of fiction)

• One of the distributors was upset, because your boss met him at a company function, and did not recognize him. Now he has decided he will never attend any company function. Moreover, at today’s launch, he has to be present, else it gives a wrong signal to market.  PLEASE HELP(YOURSELF)
• Or even better, the waiter brought him the starters only when he had served others. He knew very well, that this was an organized effort to demean his stature( For God’ s sake, some one tell him that there are other works for people as well)

 Some where, I had read the word Plastic smile. Some times, you are sick of it, and just want to tell the concerned person, that friend, enough of ego massage, time for some action. And some times, you need to do the same as well, and at other times, you do the same too. Now, the basis of the decision is not geometry( where sum of three angles has to be 180), it is not philosophy( Every one gets the fruit of his Karma), its pure probablity( wherein you never get correct all the time).

Welcome to sales, and I repeat “In Sales, there is no right answer, weigh your options and decide..”

Success has many fathers, failure is an orphan

Ramdhari Singh Dinkar, a hindi poet acknowledged the same in his following lines:

जग में जले जहाँ भी, नमन पुनीत अनल को,

जिस नर में भी बसे, हमारा नमन तेज को, बल को।

किसी वृन्त पर खिले विपिन में, पर, नमस्य है फूल,

सुधी खोजते नहीं, गुणों का आदि, शक्ति का मूल।

Looking mythologically, Karna seemed to have uttered the same words. Though the eldest son of Kunti, he was brought up by a low caste family, and had to bear the taunts of the world. But the same world thought highly of him when he emerged as one of the great warriors of his time. The following lines from of  Ramdhari Singh Dinkar) try to capture exactly the same.
“मैं हुआ धनुर्धर जब नामी,

सब लोग हुए हित के कामी

पर ऐसा भी था एक समय,

जब यह समाज निष्ठुर निर्दय

किंचित न स्नेह दर्शाता था,

विष-व्यंग सदा बरसाता था”

Looking at western history, there is a mention of the same in the year 1946 (La vittoria trova cento padri, e nessuno vuole riconoscere l’insuccesso. Victory has a hundred fathers, and no one acknowledges a failure.) Details of the same are available at http://www.answers.com/topic/success-has-many-fathers-while-failure-is-an-orphan.

In present world also, this old adage holds good. As long you delivers results, few delve into the details. A small blip, and the blood sucking vampire raises its head. No wonder, Kid of TAARE ZAMEEN PAR( A hindi movie, and a must watch)  have a horrible time adjusting to the world. Also, with even kids’ education becoming more and more competitive, where as small successes call for great celebrations, small misses also become a heart burn topic. Talking of Corporate world, its numbers which matter. Rest all can follow. However, in this mad rush, some forget even the very basics, which have such a profound effect that it is difficult to receover.( Else how will you explain seven loans on a single propoerty, the basic reason for Sub prime crisis).

 

But, then the history is also replete with examples which never let failures come their way. Solace for all those who are still walking the unconventional track

Bye bye capitalism, Welcome Policapitalism….

As a young child, the Economics teacher told me about three forms of economy, with Capitalism and Communism being the main two poles and the third one a mix of the two. For communist economy, the pet examples were USSR, China and Cuba. The passing time saw the disintegration of USSR, Cuba being not an economy to look at, and Chinese dragon following “GOD KNOWS WHAT” economy. This was the time when advocates of capitalism were most shrill in their voices, and tried to propogate it at the top of their voices. Even a country like India with mixed economy was not spared and shown innumerable ways to move towards capitalism.

Today, I wonder if any Indian knowledgeable citizen would not like to thank Indira Gandhi. Had it been not for nationaliztion of banks, the results are difficult to even imagine. Moreover, lets remember, we Indians are never used to Hire and fire policy of employers. What happened to an Executive in Noida and to Naresh Goyal recently is known to all.

As they say the character of a man is tested in difficult times. So came 2008 with the worst Economic crisis in recent times ever( I am yet to understand meaing of word SUBPRIME CRISIS, help solicited). Stocks and heads( i mean of corporate czars) rolled like dice in a Las Vegas casino. Every day brought the news of some more tumbling. Soon, the economic crisis became the humanitarian crisis with unemployment levels at an all time high. With more and more filings for bankruptcy, the choice was limited. Perhaps the cascading effect forced the White House to react. And react in an unprecedented manner. Guess, there would be limited number of I-Banks in private hands now. Proponents of Capitalism, what is your take?

Back to India, as a naive student of Economics I never believed that our politicians will let capitalism bloom in its full manner. It one of its kind of economy, where in the ruling party, by virtue of its post, gets a stake( even if it is undertable), and each changing election has new stake holders. What started between the Ambani brothers is nothing but a small example. I remember reading Vijay Mallaya’s interview saying ” I am not exactly an orphan”. (details available at http://www.businessworld.in/index.php/I-am-not-exactly-an-orphan.html). It leaves little to imagination. We may cry hoarse,but the undertable regulation is a phenomenon very much prevalent. The war between Ambani brothers allows us a better peak, as the political hawks are forced to show their preferences, exposing themselves. Not that it did not exist earlier, but with Hawala transactions under tighter scanner and global terrorism financing leading to stricter regulations, guess poliCapitalism is the new favor of the country. Though there are still business houses who are safe from this contagious disease( trust me, it is deadlier than Swine flu), but for how long is a more important question…