Winds of Change

Roles and routines have changed; Targets and ambitions have been revised; Material world and mortal people have changed; It has been a month and day since I passed out of this second heaven on earth - IIT Kanpur. Out here in the corporate jungle, more than finding your own way out, you see that each one is bent upon getting the better of one another. Competition is always welcome, but the kind of competition in college, amidst some odd incidents, I witnessed fair play, innocence and a friendly exchange of wits and beats too at times. Here, it is anything but that. Beg, borrow, steal, do anything to be on top of the pack. The outcome of competition here can have a massive impact, positive or negative.

Let me rewind back to June 2007. I was desperate to get into some B-school, despite being in a easy-to-manage-load kind of work, despite having got some real gems as friends. I even felt awkward making some of them cry on my sojourn to academia. Before coming back to present where now I feel like being at the receiving end, I will want to bridge this time period with my memories in IITK. Flowers, stretches of greenery, common people who though were financially poor were rich in heart. All in retrospect, me only got nightmares about deadly roads when going to report for first day.

I went into this place, Kanpur 1994 km away from my dear hometown. I was very wary of company lying in wait for me there. Somehow I was circumspect with people above Vindhyas. I decided to stay away from company initially and be in touch with all my dear friends back home through phone or chat. It took a couple of Biharis to get me to talk into joining their group for academic reasons. Honest first reaction, I was wondering "With whom have I made an alliance?". Over time, I came to know that these guys who befriended me were not really what they were being labelled as. I found I shared common traits with them like being passionate in whatever they do. That passion doesn't look genuine till you stand for something, take a stance. Though it made them emotionally explosive at times, I took that anger to be a stamp of character(In my mother tongue, there is a saying where there is anger, there is character). The common threading got us real close. Going to classes, movies just night before exams, jogging in front of Girls' hostel, tennis courts, singing together in IME night, late night canteen, gen bakar, Antaragni bravado, live shows, Auli, tales of everyone's nose cuts and failed Romeo attempts, serious fights on placements, eat-outs, pulling legs of class girls and some extra ordinary guys, working together for Consilium, DC++, I can go on and on, bottom line is "MISS YOU GUYS". I also had a fairly comfortable routine unlike typical B-school wherein I could use my spare time constructively like in internet (FYI, IITK alone consumes 3% of Country's Internet bandwidth I read). So who will let this luxury pass? Youtube, orkut and gchat kept me busy between classes or rather classes kept me busy between these ;). I should also say special thanks to couple of my close but long distance friends who were there with me through my happiness and sorrow, all through this wonderful journey in Kanpur.

We were from different regions, religion, caste, age groups, family background and still managed to find a common platform wherein all our differences went away on leave. So many guys had worked in higher roles before coming here. Still their egos never got the better of them. Despite bitter fights, at the end of the day they counted to nothing and didn't transform to grudges (exceptions may be there though). Contrast this with this new life in an AC cubicle (minus all sort of physical activity of course). Your own relative or best friend may turn out to be your folly. Stakes are high and real here. What if in a cock fight, the owner of the defeated cock has to be beheaded? Silly game turns serious, right? That's how it is. I can't help but think that it has only gotten worse after my 2 year sabbatical. When I was upset with this "win-at-all-costs" system, I had some solace that I could get back to academic life and find some peace. There is no such alternative anymore (er, no PhD for me please :)).There is no room for unadulterated affection in the world am in now. There is no room for me to turn my back on this world and move somewhere else now. I HAVE to adapt. I NEED to come to terms with the fact that everything is manufactured here; smile, a nice idea for pretty girls coming late to office to please their angry bosses, put 'maska' to get promoted (gender neutral idea, u see ;)). Exceptions can be there. Your best friend in Engineering may get bit by the corporate way of doing things and may seem like having transformed from 'merciful angel' to 'mercenary'. A pre-conceived 'bad colleague' in office may turn out to be your port of call in case of danger. In fact I was fortunate to find some really fortunate exceptions in my last job before IITK beckoned.

In my UG too, I had lots of friends who went separate ways after college. However, those incidents never really impacted me as I was used to getting on and off with people and was moving around like nomad due to my dad's transferable job. I've seen UG friends rise above me faster in career ladder, earn 10 times more than me, settle abroad, succeed in their love, get married to a nice life partner. The first wave of transformation in my network's social and professional roles hardly had an impact on me as I marched on mindlessly and endlessly trying to know some place in corporate jungle where I belonged at that time.

Present day, after 2 years and back to corporate life, I would say I'm better prepared to take up the challenges corporate life may throw at me. After all, I should make world believe that I have some take aways from my business administration degree, right?

There are two sides to a coin; On the one hand, these well wishing friends I talked about earlier made me feel great about myself and I also got used to the new role of working really seriously for wellness of others. Historically, I was this self centered person with a mind-your-business approach. The other side of coin was it made me vulnerable emotionally due to my bondage with these friends. I used to be arrogantly proud of my emotional numbness. Professionally, I may have come better equipped. Personal level, am still in the process of applying the same learnings to make me insulated emotionally. However, I have not been successful at it so far. Sometimes, I feel like standing alone on an isolated Island; you have only your shadow for company. I see a role reversal to the one I mentioned earlier in 2007 now. I'm very concerned about my ability to withstand this second wave of transformation. Winds of change have been blowing around me all through my life. It feels like I've managed to hold firm for this long without much damage. But am viewing the upcoming one with trepidation and am carefully preparing myself for more sweeping changes which may come along.

Travelogue or Travelong?

I wouldn't mind calling up all my close friends and tell them about my adventures atop the mountains at height exceeding 10000 feet. But they say "a picture says a thousand words". So employing a combination of bursts of these '1000 words' and some 'wordy' words, let me pen down my experiences in the latest trip with my dearest friends at IITK. And it is going to be really really long. But, I can say that reading it won't be completely a waste of time.

Obstacles

No, not the ones we faced on the roads while travelling, but those even before we set foot to Lucknow. There were some villains in between like rescheduled project presentations,non-changeable class timings and NDTV's news coverage reporting heavy snowfall in Mussoorie, resulting in my parents pressing the panic button and call me in between the journey and express their concerns. After somehow overcoming these, we could complete what would be one of the most exciting rides in my life.

16:00 Hrs, Feb 11, 2009

After praying to our favourite Gods and waving bye to reluctant friends who were staying back, We started off to Lucknow on this posh Toyota Innova to catch our train to Haridwar at 8:15 PM.We reached Lucknow by 7 PM. But our taste buds wouldn't settle for anything less than Moti Mahal's food. The hotel was 3 km away and in going and coming back in the heavy traffic, we scraped into the station just in time. And UP's notorious train announcement system and jittery me forgetting the ticket in the Innova while getting down made for a chaotic buildup to the wonderful train called "Janata express".Coach S6 had passengers of S1, there were virtually no coach numbers on any of the compartments. Wait, I still haven't mentioned where we were going to. The reason, after managing to find our coach, our itinerary underwent a major revision. We had planned for Uttarkashi and places around it for trekking, etc. But a local of Uttarakhand region suggested Auli for it was supposedly one of the finest ski spots in Asia. So much for my general knowledge, I thought. Other 5 began to ponder as well about the itinerary. So, with a muddled up plan, we landed in Haridwar on Thursday morning.

Thursday, Feb 12, 2009

I vaguely remember visiting the Holy city of Haridwar 17 years ago. We didn't wait longer in Haridwar and took an auto to Rishikesh as it was the point from where the routes split to all the places that were doing a merry-go-around in our thoughts. A word has to be mentioned about this auto driver whose laughter would frighten a laughing hyena. We crossed the ganges at different points and made our way through the road passing through Rajaji park to Rishikesh.

After a brief stop in Rishikesh to get ourselves freshened up, we went searching for taxis to go till Uttarkashi/Auli. And here too, all cab companies were in support for a trip to Auli, could have been with a business motive as Auli is 10 hours away from Rishikesh while Uttarkashi is only 6 hours. We wanted to club a visit to Mussoorie with a trip to Auli. However, the bottleneck came when we realized that we had little time than we had thought earlier. Why? Vehicles are not allowed to ply on hilly roads after sunset. So, when we decided to go to Auli after having this mouth watering Rajasthani Thali, we were too late for Joshimath, Auli's base camp that day. Plus, guys weren't in favour of Mussoorie as by the time we would reach, it would have been sunset there too. So, after a lot of cajoling, I accepted their idea of wandering around in Rishikesh like so many foreign-wannabe-babajis.

First stop was Lakshman Jhoola. We made our way to the temple seeing different businesses like Yoga teaching training, rafting, safari, camping, etc. Also, the western version of Gayatri mantra greeted us throughout the way. It was all fascinating to hear and see.



We then set down to the shore nearby where we sat on the rocks enjoying every pixel of scenery around us. Suddenly, we realized that water level was rising and Ganga was gaining in speed. And in a couple of minutes after we came to the top, the rock these guys were sitting on was covered under water. So, we went searching for another shore and landed on this spot supposed to be Romance corner for foreigners. But, we barged in just like that. From this spot, we could spot the magnificent Ram Jhoola and Ganga's rapids.



As we got back to our hotel, we got a glimpse of sun setting on a beautiful pink background with Ganga mayya giving company to the sky's bright colours waiting to get aboard the coach to adventure on the Himalayas.



Friday, Feb 13, 2009

The human alarm clock, yours truly, was the only person who was working to be ready for a 6:30 AM start with the rest of the gang being supremely confident that Indian stretchable time would prevail.Our driver, one of the best I've seen, was actually on time. So we left at 7:15 AM. Nature must have a special touch when it comes to lighting mornings and twilights. If Rishikesh, last evening was a sight to frame, a treasure of scenic beauties were in store on this tortuous terrain.Have a look at this.



We stopped at Kaudiyala for breakfast. Enroute to this place, we could see sun slowly waking from its slumber and casting its penetrating rays on the gargantuan mountains, Ganga speeding on its course, rafters struggling to stay afloat under Ganga's Godspeed, thatched roof camps on calm sides of the river, it was just breathtaking.

Post breakfast, backseat boys in the Qualis found it tough with curves abound every 50 metres. We zig-zagged our way to Devprayag and Rudraprayag. The former is the point where Bhagirathi from Gangotri and alaknanda from Badrinath merge to form Ganga.We were going to Joshimath, weren't we and qualis decided to follow Alaknanda all the way till 44 kms away from Badrinath. Rudraprayag is the place where Alaknanda and Mandakini river meet. Have a look at these below:





After a modest lunch near Rudraprayag, we started off to greater heights, crossing Karanprayag, Nandaprayag, Chamoli on our way to Joshimath. on our way, the snow mountains kept getting bigger and bigger.The child in all of us was getting excited and could hardly wait. But damn the corporations, NTPC has a hydro plant at such a height.And the route that we had to traverse to reach Joshimath, look below:





The beauty was, throughout this journey, the river was accompanying us, no matter what the height was. On friday evening, we accidentally tripped on Sankaracharya temple, guys wanted to go back to room since they were in shoes, still somehow, something dragged us into the cave of Thotakacharya where we had a miracle in wait. Badrinath's spatik was lying there. It is practice in off season for the spatik to stay in Joshimath and go back to Badrinath by road when season starts. So, despite Badrinath being closed at this time of the year, we managed to get Darshan. It was just an amazing feeling to experience.

Saturday, Feb 14, 2009

All the baba boys, who prefer to be peaceful got up early for the ropeway to Auli. Though some adventurous spirits wanted to bike the 14 km stretch, some sense prevailed and we decided to board Asia's longest (4.15 km) and highest ropecar (11502 feet).We had 25 minutes before ropeway to visit Narasingh temple and have breakfast and as we hurried into the temple, aarthi started. It all went like clockwork. The speciality of this temple is that it happens to be the first stop for all devotees bound for Badrinath. So getting the darshan in the manner in which we did was another wonderful feeling to experience.



On a separate note, few metres away from this temple, the deadly abyss aka road to Badrinath was visible.It maybe only 44 kms, but it surely looks like a point-to-point ticket to hell when one looks downward.



So, we came to this ropecar loading point and in the course of the 22 minute journey, we could see how beautiful the world, indescribable and beyond anyone's imagination.There was Nandadevi peak hiding under the clouds. Snow filled woods on one side, cliff tips covered with ice on the edge under which it is a free fall of 11000 feet on the other side, it was like a snow blanket spread on vast landscapes stretching till infinity...









The above picture was us trekking to the woods and beyond in trying to find a mandir next to which was the natural ski range. The construction of artificial ski in lowe level for SAF games is in full progress. Till then, skiing happens in higher heights and we ran out of time and steam halfway through the search and returned to Joshimath.



So, we rushed back from ropecar station to board our qualis back to Haridwar. We had to put a stop in between on saturday night and we picked Srinagar, a calm town saddled between mountains.

Sunday, Feb 15, 2009

Departing from Srinagar at 7 AM, we reached Haridwar at 11:30 AM. Throughout the stretch, there were sights of a beautiful sunrise and also foggy roads hampering vehicle movement; Contrasting scenarios on way to Haridwar. And Ganga was running rapid fast in ground level Haridwar. One slip, and the corpse will be deposited in Bay of Bengal. We cautiously took a holy dip and got to the station after a sumptuous lunch.



It was not a picture perfect journey. There has to be some balancing element. Once Akbar posed a question to Birbal to make a line look smaller without rubbing it off or cutting the page which had the line. What did Birbal do? He drew another line near the smaller line which was much bigger. If my onward journey was sickening, what did UP railway board do to make me feel better about that journey? Present an even worse experience in the Link Express bound to Allahabad.No comestible food, lighting less coaches, disturbed sleep, 10 people sitting in place designated for 6 and so on...

However, I would discount it as a minor aberration in an otherwise memorable experience. Divine interception, adrenaline rush, peace, visual treat, religious satisfaction, this trip was feeding all my senses in abundance. And the region, uttarkhand is a treasure chest of tourist spots. Trekking, wild life, peaks, lakes, water sport, temples, flowers, etc. My friends, you should all consider visiting this region once atleast. You won't regret it...

(In tune with theme of My Alien Territory, this wasn't my idea for a post, so this post is dedicated to the friend who floated this idea, to my close friends who would have liked to have been there, but couldn't,to all my IITK friends who accompanied me on this wonderful journey and all enablers who facilitated a safe trip)

The Curious case of Slumdog Millionaire

Woo! That looks like a perfect cross breed of two completely different movies which together account for 23 oscar nominations.However, the opinions surrounding the movie that has attracted as many detesters as much as lovers in India will be my focal point.

Two sides of a coin

There is a sizeable section of the society which feels that the movie is showcasing the plight of a chunk of the country's population to mint millions. It is not tune with India's new age image of the next super power in wait. Think of a mixture of imagination cum reality mixed in Jodha Akbar leading to Rajput uproar and subsequent ban of the movie in theatres. So, if someone is trying to make a movie based on theme which is not (or) has not been so uncommon in our country, one can understand the resistance from people who have been priding themselves on the new image of our country.If one looks at the statistics such as Human Development Index (127/177), poor Child malnutrition rates, etc., the argument wouldn't have risen in the first place. Even for the so called foreign investment, that has put us more prominently on the world map, India's rank in terms of friendliness of procedures to grant approval ranks pretty low. The process has lot of approvals and hassles involved. It is one thing about being patriotic and staunchly defending your motherland. Acting in denial is a completely different story. Just because we see the brighter side of moon doesn't rule out existence of a dark side. Wait, I'm not here to take sides about being pragmatic or euphoric. This is just a riposte to so many posts floating around.

I don't know what pre-conceived notions the mud slingers had before seeing the movie. I, for one, went with a completely blank mind, expecting to see another host after Amitabh and Shahrukh hosting Kaun Banega Crorepati.That's all I had information about before I saw it (mine was a small screen experience, so I can understand all unhappy souls who had shelled heavy amounts expecting to see a Van Gogh artistry come to life in a motion picture).

Maybe,a hard dose of reality?

I would like to draw some instances which still have relevance in the new age India. Hindu-Muslim Strife still holds. I read atleast one article in editorial in a week about this. Remember, Mani Ratnam received death threats and stones were pelted at his house after release of Bombay.That's the treatment India's ace director got. This movie, though short, did feature a small scene wherein a Muslim ghetto is demolished by Hindu activists.

The movie supposedly begins in the late '80s wherein kids still used to go gaga over Amitabh Bachchan and when they become teenagers, there is also mention about Shahrukh Khan in the movie.

I feel, that people have a right to feel aggrieved about showcasing that period when it was still seen as land of snake charmers and as a nation mired in financial trouble and which subsequently had to open up its economy.I also empathize with people who feel what's the need for a foreigner to come and show the dark side of India in bright daylight? However, does our risk averse approach help us make movies out of this world? Do our directors have the resources and proficiency in them to direct Brad Pitt and make an out-of-this-world movie like "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button"? In fact, we have such a rich mythology and our country is a motley of different cultures. Take this, it's been ages since a mythological movie was released on our famous epics, such as Ramayana or Mahabharata. Especially when there are studies mentioning that Mahabharata war was the birth place for nuclear weaponry, wouldn't it make an interesting story for a movie? Hope Mani Ratnam's Ashokvana serves the purpose. Also, treatment meted out to Mani Ratnam post Bombay means we will never get to see daring and indigenous projects on burning issues. Contrary to this, Michael Moore could make Fahreinheit 911 in U.S. Frost/Nixon is a full length documentary movie on how a playful media anchor managed to get Nixon to confess on Watergate scandal. Can some film maker come forward and make a movie on Bofors scandal (still congress till May 2009 atleast)? Will someone have the guts to make a movie on the Shankara Mutt fiasco that happened in 2004, for instance? Will someone have the courage to make a movie on Godhra incident and also put up a disclaimer saying 'based on a true story'?



Marketing - Job well done

One thing these makers of Slumdog Millionaire did was to garner good publicity for the movie. Danny Boyle, is a well known name in UK and U.S., having directed Trainspotting (features a similar scene wherein a guy jumps into a latrine commode, yuck) and sci-fi movie 28 days later. Asian base was covered with A.R.Rahman (Remember Warriors of Heaven and Earth, Maestro is no longer stranger in China). If you want a South American touch, this one looks like the cousin of City of God, a brazilian movie. It was marketed as a feel-good movie as how being positive can turn life around and help regain lost love for a slumdog. Cliched theme it maybe to us, but still formula movies work in Bollywood and I think all those who claim to be fans of Rajnikanth or Shahrukh Khan can have no right to demean this movie as being run-off-the mill stuff. The movie was marketed as a much needed change giving hope and optimism to a world shrouded in negativity and chaos. Take this for instance, Ford CEO is earning $1 a month salary. I read in yesterday's economic times about 'Riches to Rag', the issue being that Obama's first move apart from restriction on H1B visas has been to cap salaries of top executives in U.S corporations.The ingenious financial instruments of Lehman, which were supposed to be fail proof and yielding perpetual returns like a Kalpa Vriksha tree, failed miserably...Sometimes, we want to see something that we can't do or something we wish to see in real life in reel world. I am sure, the timing of release of Slumdog Millionaire, which had the reverse theme of 'Rags to Riches' and which had already generated the desire amongst the audience worldwide, courtesy, its marketing effects, led to its success. I guess the film started before Lehman crisis struck. So, it looks like even the film unit wasn't expecting the movie to become such a big hit.This effect seems to have had a say in Oscar panel's nomination list too.

Worth so many nominations?

I was quite impressed with the screenplay of Simon Beaufoy and Rahman's background score. Intertwining 3 different time slices and coordinating them in a sequence is not something that has been tried many times before this with so much effect.

The songs are definitely not Rahman's best. Ada, Ghajini, Yuvvraaj, Jodha Akbar all fare much better. In fact I read that Jai Ho could not be accommodated in Yuvvraaj and was dangling around till it was fitted in at the end of Slumdog millionaire. A nomination for 'Jai Ho' sounds terrible to me. In fact, I haven't listened to it fully even once. 'O Saya' sounds peppy and energizing, but it kind of again reminds of 'City of God', the picturization included.

The background score is quite brilliant.Whenever,the movie slows down,Rahman pitches in to retain audience interest. Again, less of innovation, more of proper packaging. He had only 15 days to finish the score.'Liquid Dance' reminds me of 'Rangeela theme'. 'Dreams on Fire' is western version of 'Netru illadha maatram'.Few originals like 'Mausam and Escape' and 'Paper Planes' are worth mentioning. Didn't Rahman do the same in Bombay Dreams also? I feel it as a vindication of my faith that all these originals were good enough for oscar nomination by themselves. Let the base be the same, just remaster it. We should all be proud that our own musician can just remaster some of his old works, that were made for us, and present it to the global audience. We have got the first sample of something that is reaching the world after a decade.The feeling itself is pretty different.



All analyses and justification apart, I didn't expect 10 oscar nominations. Golden globe wins and Screen Actor Guild wins have also swung the balance in Slumdog's favour. I feel Golden globe nominations reflected what it truly deserved. After that, it has been 'Halo effect' all along. I feel Slumdog stands a real chance in Adapted Screenplay and Music Written. However, Benjamin Button was too excellent and it will be a close contest. Music written, I feel Rahman will triumph over Alexander Desplat. Benjamin Button's score was much in tune with the movie, sober.

Winners don't take it all - Bigger Picture

Oscar wins always don't go to the deserving. Who can digest John Nash aka Russell Crowe being overlooked for Denzel Washington for best actor in 2003? There are a lot of behind the scene incidents, like a press ruckus in this instance.



Towards determining a proper marketing mix, apart from studying consumer behaviour, there is a need to study macroeconomic factors at work and also competitor behaviour. I'm not sure about how good all competitors are and whether the panel did a comprehensive competitor study, but macroeconomic factors such as struggling economies, political tensions, terror attacks, cultural policing have all played a part in different parts of the world receiving warmly what is a typical movie story. Having said that, it's reel after all and I would suggest all movie lovers to sit back and enjoy whatever part they like and appreciate the finer aspects of the movie, if they can.As Indians, we know who we are, what we have crossed to be where we are today, and I don't think one movie is going to throw us back to the stone age or change the world's perceptions of new age India. In fact, any supposed criticism should be acted upon in a positive way to eliminate it.

Is the door 'slam'med shut?

This post comes in the aftermath of a pulsating Australian Open final.On this backdrop, I would like to dwell on the burden of expectations and the curse that strikes the leaders time and again.

He usually does, but it was horror sight for me to see Federer breaking down after collecting Runner-up plate.This wasn't like Wimbledon final when Federer had to make ground by winning sets 3 and 4. Federer was in control in the first 4 sets at some point or the other. Nadal fought for every point and with every stunning winner he delivered to save a break point, he gained in confidence. Whereas Federer, despite winning set-4 had no momentum going into the 5th. It was a meek surrender in last set. School boy stuff...

Every fan wants to know what's running in Fed's brain and I'm no exception.

Is he still failing to acknowledge the fact that he has to share the limelight with another emerging talent and is he being stubborn in refusing to adapt his style of play to conditions when Nadal is opponent?

I have heard Fed say #1 rank doesnt matter. He was kind of defensive after losing last set 6-0 in French open final saying he has blanked Nadal before. Basking in past glory doesn't suit a champion.

Giving Nadal his due would only help Fed prepare himself, raise his game level, use his brains to devise pre-emptive tactics to get the better of Nadal rather than press the panic button or give up mid-way.

Is he still trying to deliver every shot with the intention of proving he is superior to Nadal?

Some extravagant shots he tried when he was 2 break points ahead were horrendous like the cross court backhand top spin shot which hit the net more than it went in.And no excuses for double faulting when Nadal is at set point.

Is the expectation level getting to him?

Could be. All former greats had tipped him for #14 in Melbourne. However, having handled things well till Wimbledon 2008, this doesn't look a convincing reason for his poor output.

Is age taking its toll on him?

Fed's record in 5 setters is 13-12. So, yes, this could be a reason.Also he is at the wrong side of 25. It did have a say in Wimbledon final. However, here I felt, fatigue's role was less. In fact in last set, he had rallied with Nadal with both hitting back to each other before Fed powers one past Nadal's reach. At that point, I felt, wow, this is his best chance to improve his 5 setter record.

Is Wimbledon loss telling on him?

This I feel is the root cause of all misery. It was adding insult to injury that was suffered after being blanked in French open final. It has hit the Leo's ego so bad that he wants to do something different, that extra bit he wants to try to put one across Nadal. Nadal benefited immensely due to this. His game play was simple, keep hitting to Fed's weaker back hand. Nadal did his basics right. Fed went for colour over correctness, power over precision to assert his technical supremacy or whatever. Nadal used the drop shot twice before Fed used even once. And Nadal was standing much much behind the baseline than Fed and still did it. What took Fed so long to use the drop shot? Nadal never volleyed from the net. He won't, he is not good at it and he didn't have to, given Fed's pathetic shot selection. Whenever Nadal came close to the net, Fed had the option to lob the ball over. Be it any athletic player,running backwards, turning and hitting it inside the court will require more reaction time. However, those cross court passes were the villain again. Had it been any opponent other than Nadal, Fed would have done these right at the right time.

What Next?

I just hope Fed takes some time off the game, maybe engage in more involving off field work like UNICEF, skip some ATP tours, basically free his mind.He needs to believe Nadal is beatable, but he needs to acknowledge him as a genuine contender to the throne than act in plain denial and exhibit negative vibes. Other than these I see no reason for the jitters he showed in 5th set.

Fickle media

Recently, I had an argument with a friend of mine who claimed that Shahrukh Khan is "The International Superstar". Though I had differences with the title that was being attributed to, I still don't belittle any of his achievements. I just want stuff like Swades and Chak De more often from SRK. That's the only complaint against him. SRK has been under spotlight for more than a decade. He has been enchanting so many Indians around the globe and despite being criticised and lauded by different sections of the society, he has handled the media quite well.

Coming back to Fed, I wonder how it must be for him to come under the scanner after Wimbledon loss and this loss (Media widely claimed that he is back after US Open title) despite having won 13 slams. I don't know when the so called Fed fans started following him. Do you become fan of a player who is winning consistently at that time period and is also hot on current form? Or is there some philosophy on the basis of which you become a fan of a celebrity or a player? I certainly base my tennis player loyalty (atleast in Men's ;)) on technical capabilities and ability to be pleasing on the eye.In fact my obsession with Fed began when he toppled my all time favorite of mine, Sampras in Wimbledon 2001 pre-quarterfinals.

Bandwagon effect or True fan loyalty?

How many Nadal fans can claim to have followed him ever since he made his debut 6 years ago? I find that people find it convenient to side with the current form than class. Form is temporary, class is permanent. Wait, wait, I'm not taking anything away from Nadal. He is a perfect sportsman, the challenge he used when Fed had run out of his in a set is a glowing example. Off field, the way he consoled Fed is a sight to see indeed. His mental strength is a great source of motivation for many youngsters, am sure. However, still it will take more than these to win loyalty of so many Fed fans.

Why still hopeful about "#14 Roger that"?

Nadal missed Australian Open 2 years ago due to injury. The work ethic he is following right now can't be continued forever. There have been promising players who were unstoppable once, but they took one serious knock and then had their career development disrupted temporarily or permanently. Brazil's Ronaldo after a career threatening knee injury in 1999 is an example. Nadal is adapting fast to different surfaces, he is improving his range of shots. Heartening indeed. However, these are all employed less. Still the ruthless muscle power yields maximum returns. I would like Nadal to show more guile. I would like him to age wisely using more of brain than brawn. As of now, his brute force has only left me feel like how I would after seeing a horror movie. Chill down the spine!!!Will all supposedly Nadal fans be happy to see the current version and expect him to be the same after 5 years as well? He could fade away unable to expand his game play to match with increasing age. This may look like I'm talking in plain denial, Unable to swallow Fed's repeated failures, disbelief at seeing Fed being usurped so convincingly from his position. I do have past instances where seemingly infallible cam crashing down to earth in no time. Arsenal's 49 match unbeaten streak came to an end abruptly though they looked unstoppable till match #49.It could not go on when you use the same core of 14 players for more than a year and half. Even machines need yearly maintanance. Ferrari's complete dominance in 2004 and 2005 was checked by bringing in rules to promote competitiveness. Fatigue and injuries will eventually take a toll on Nadal if he continues motoring on like this. Who knows, like F1, tennis balls maybe made lighter to promote more serve and volley (suggested by a friend, and I hope such a thing happens to revitalize a dying art). And something on these lines would surely happen, am confident and it could mean that it is too early to write him off and Fed still stands a chance. Maybe, enroute to a slam trophy, he could put one over Nadal or someone else may do him a favour. But I'm highly optimistic about him emulating Pistol Pete.Maybe it could be his final swansong too as I don't expect Fed's fitness levels to cooperate so beautifully like that of Andre Agassi after 30 years.

Grand Slam - Threatening legendary status

Fed may or may not win the French Open and make the grand slam.True, it adds lot of glitter and glamour, the honour of a grand slam. What if he doesn't? Does this make Edberg, Sampras, Becker and Fed lesser mortals?Sampras' 14 slam achievement doesn't lose its gloss due to it. Edberg still remains as the greatest serve and volley player of all time. He happens to be Fed's role model too. Why is it that achievements of these great men are forgotten and only voids are being looked at with microscope?

Is all this fame and favourite tag worth it all?

My dad used to say "If you just pass your exam, no one will pester you to score more as they know that this is what you are capable of. If you are scoring 95/100, they will urge you to put in more to reach 100 or complain about you missing out on 5 marks. if you are used to scoring 100/100 in each test and get 99/100, you are written off as complacent". In the business world, so called leading companies have had to constantly reinvent itself with ingenious strategies to stay ahead of competition. But how long? Is there a limit to human mind's ability to invent (for the good, am not talking about Lehman type inventions which have thrown the whole world economy into a chaos)? Is being a leader actually worth it considering the hard work needed to maintain it? Doesn't winning get boring after sometime? Is winning a curse? Questions linger on.

Kollywood 2008 - The year that was

Now this blog post is dedicated to our dear Kollywood. There were a lot of good ones in 2008. Songs like Kandaen from Pirivom Sandhippom and one from Kuruvi also sounded good. But I didn't find them good enough to run on a loop in my playlist. So let me jot down my favourites of 2008.

13.'Oru Vaarthai Pesamal' - Poi Solla Porom

I still haven't given enough listens to this song compared to others in the list. Got to know of this song from a friend. Shreya Ghoshal, a fast paced number complimented by a cute video makes it an enjoyable song.

12.'Adada Adada'- Santosh Subramaniam

Another cute movie and a cute video. A catchy tune also. But just because it happens to be a second hand version puts this song at #11.

11.'Mudhal Mazhai'- Bheema

Tough choice between this one and Enadhuyire. The disastrous video of the latter tiled the balance in favour of Mudhal mazhai. Kettu kettu pulithu ponalum still a hummable number.

10.'En Anbe' - Satyam

Late entrant...Terrible movie.Good tune though by Harris, sounds Peppy and ably aided by Sadhana Sargam's voice.

9.'Dost Bada Dosth' - Saroja

Brilliant movie complimented by superb music. I guess after 'Mustafa Mustafa', this would be one of the landmark song in celebration of friendship.

8.'Venmegam' - Yaaradi Nee Mohini

I was initially smitten by Yengeyo of Udit, his diction not withstanding. But, decided to give a couple of listens to this one and it has been Hariharan from then on. Simple tune, video has traces of artificiality, still a memorable number 2008 has given us.

7.'Naan varaindhu vaitha'- Jeyam Kondaan

I bet you didn't see this coming. Hariharan's melliflous voice is the highlight of this song set in a tune familiar to Kollywood. Still, a lovely number

6.'Marudhani' - Sakkarakatti

Rahman's high buzz action in Bollywood has been compensated with a quieter year in Kollywood. Nice tune, madhusree's diction could have been much better. Nevertheless, Rahman shows he is still alive to Kollywood.

5.'Kallai Mattum' - Dasavatharam

The showpiece of 2008 could have done lot better with any other music director at the helm. Still this one and Mukundha represent reasonable success on debut for Himesh.Hariharan lends life to controversial lyrics and a dramatic video adds to the viwer's excitement.

4.'Kathazha Kannale' - Anjathey

Myskinn has a knack of getting famous gaana paatu to figure in his movies I guess. Like Vaalameenu, this song was a major rage in the first half of 2008. Flora apart, Pandirajan and his antics in the name of dance steps makes it a funny video.

3.'Sagiye' - Dhaam Dhoom

This movie was so predictable for a thriller. I still strongly feel audience went to the theatre just for the songs. Bombay Jayasree delivers her usual haunting melody with this song.

2.'Nenjukkul Peidhidum' - Varanam Aayiram

So hard to pick one.Part of the audience hate the movie. Am not one among them. Cutting across decades, all songs were excellent. But I shall cast the blogger's vote for this slot and settle on this wonderful performance by Hariharan.

1.'Kangal Irandal' - Subramaniapuram

I bet you didn't see this coming either.One of the songs in recent times when voice and instruments didn't compete with each other and worked in sync. The raga made famous by Balamurali Krishna ji with 'Chinna kannan azhaikkiran' gets a new lease of life with this one. Hats off to "Vilai enna" James Vasanthan...

Bollywood - 2008

No, no, this post is not about the movies, I would be the last person to waste my time looking for diamonds in a stone quarry. This is about music. Let me jot down the top Hindi songs that come to my mind.

11.'Haule Haule' - Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi

Not even close to DDLJ even in terms of musical composition. Though in the eye of storm over a copyright infringement issue, this one is a funny video in the backdrop of Amritsar, aided beautifully by Sukhwinder Singh's rendition, this song just manages to make the cut.

10.'Kabhi Kabhi Aditi' - Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na

Rahman and Aamir factor was instrumental in making audience come to the theatres. Rahman had done a decent work on the background score. Just some similarity with 'Appudo ippudo' takes some sheen off what otherwise was the best song of the album. And a mention about lyrics also, beautifully penned by Abbas Tyrewala

9.'Pichle Saat Dinon Mein' - Rock On

This movie is a major rage in college campuses and has shades of Dil Chahta Hai. The only problem with the album being that it is too one dimensional with all songs bordering on soft or hard rock. Still, Farhan does a decent job on debut with his 4 songs. Just for the josh factor associated with it, it finds a place.


8.'Pehli Nazar Mein' - Race

At 2:00 AM on sunday morning, a friend of mine pinged me from U.S. saying he wanted to commit suidice after wasting $12 on this movie. We aren't talking about movie reviews, are we? Aided by Atif Aslam's magical voice and good guitars, this is a worthy entrant in this list.

7.'Bakhuda Tumhi Ho' - Kismat Konnection

Shahid claimed that songs of this movie are even better than Jab we Met. But I didn't find them to be, except for one sung by Sonu Nigam and this one, expertedly rendered by Atif and Alka Yagnik. A picturesque setting in the vicinity of Toronto, it is an enjoyable video too...The remix version of this song also sounds good.


6.'Zara si' - Jannat

I was completely disinterested when I was forced to watch this movie. Story was different and good while the way in which it was told wasn't. Sunidhi Chauhan's pick of 2008 (apart from her own, of course), KK has done a masterful job with this as well as "Haan tu Hain". Hard to choose between the two, but I'm settling on 'Zara si'

5.'Kaise Mujhe' - Ghajini

Even before release, caught in copyright storm. I personally waited eagerly and guess was one of the early birds to listen to it. Comparisons with tamil version tarnished my openness to listen to this album. Taare Zameen Par style lyrics in 'Behka' and then opinions floating that it is the next "Main aisa kyun hoon" killed off my interest in listening to the album fully multiple number of times. However, this composition is a complicated beauty. Benny Dayal must have cursed himself for committing to a song that was stretching his pitch to the maximum extent possible. The last 48 second instrumental is one of the best I've heard from Rahman and any musician for that matter. Melody Queen Shreya also does her job meticulously. Slow tune, mushy mushy lyrics, but still enjoyable. That's 'Kaise Mujhe' for you...

4.'Teri Ore'- Singh is Kinng

No, Snoop Dog, Tata Young, Bhangra, and lousy beats don't interest me. This was what this Pritam album was exactly. There was only one anamoly though and it was this song set in a Rajasthani folk tune. Ravishing Katrina in the backdrop of Pyramids makes you want to watch the video again and again. Rahat Fateh Ali Khan and Shreya Ghoshal have done their work in a professional manner. I wouldn't be surprised if Shreya wins Filmfare or some accolade for this song.


3.'Meherbaan' - Ada

The movie is not yet out. Music was in production since 2001. A very different album with shades of Italian style in 'Ishq Ada' song. However, Meherbaan steals the show. Rahman does magic with the keyboard. The sense of calmness the song brings in, it is just amazing. Another 'Vellai Pookkal',maybe...

2.'Jashn-e-bahaara' - Jodha Akbar

A period film, with Gowariker, lot of room to experiment, Rahman didn't disappoint. Though the song doesnt run fully in movie, it captures the situation perfectly. Thought it took people to recollect the man who rendered 'Kajra Re', Javed Ali got a comeback vehicle through this.


1.'Tu Muskura' - Yuvvraaj

Bollywood's Ultimate showman hasn't turned up a hit in more than a decade now. It's sad that with the movie's failure the songs have also slowly disappeared. Except for Shanno, all songs were likeable and had an element of symphony in them. It was quite refreshing. This song flows like a river and I just couldn't stop listening till Ghajini arrived to distract me...I still feel, this deserves its position because it grabbed the audience attention despite being a different genre.

Butterfly effect and Eligibility Criteria

When my close friend wrote a post on Chaos theory and its implementation in Dasavatharam, I thought such a complicated screenplay is needed to make people understand that it sounds impossible to visualize the phenomenon at work in the real world. However, the past few months have shown adequate proof of things that no one could have imagined of. What started as a collapse of an investment bank has seen bailout packages of the order whose zeroes I can't count.The biggest company in the beginning of 20th century, GM is waiting for bailout while its CEO will get a salary of $1 from January.The snowballing effects has seen so many banks from across the globe being sucked into this blackhole.

The fortunes of other currencies have been tied to dollar since World war-II after which all business transactions have been routed with dollar as the trading currency. With so many financial institutions having fallen prey to the fancied financial instruments MBAs like me had designed,this inter twining of world financial institutions' fate with that of U.S. economy had only gotten stronger with this agreement.Sadly, the world didn't bother to notice amidst the euphoria of globalization. This entanglement has served as a perfect platform for a live demo (demonstration cum demolition) of chaos theory and butterfly effect.

Amidst all the sectors such as automotive and technology and IT service firms suffering indirectly due to credit crunch and drying up of offshore projects, this crisis has managed to pull down oil prices from $100 a barrel to $44 a barrel. Something to be proud of, maybe. No say the oil companies, whose numbers have taken a real hit. How true, it is impossible to satisfy all sections of the society. Another interesting bit, Knut, the rare baby polar bear born in Berlin Zoo turns two and needs a larger enclosure to release its adolescent hormones and grow well. However, the crisis has meant unavailability of funds for the project. Knut may be offloaded to another zoo by 2010. Not fair to cute little Knut, which had brought in revenues of 10 million Euros so far.



I guess I've taken off tangentially from what I really want to talk about. The financial meltdown has had its effects on many of us, am sure. But, I'm not a commoner, sort to speak of since I'm a student right now. However, I feel it puts me in a better position to know the market signals early due to being constantly in touch with potential recruiters. Some head honchos say things will not improve for the next four years which also happens to coincide with Obama's tenure. Given Obama's stance on outsourcing, does this ring any bells about which sector I'm talking about? Companies are cutting down on growth projections in decreasing arithmetic progression also shows that things don't look that encouraging. More than signals, I would like to bring forth the fact that when things go helter-skelter everything that companies boast of goes for a toss. As part of strategy, am sure companies have a mission, vision and some ethical code of functioning. And being a student, my focus would obviously be on recruitment stance of these celebrated brands.

"Powered by opportunism, Driven by blood-sucking-vampires-in-disguise aka managers"

Companies which had been maintaining relations with our college ever since our inception ditch us and don't even bother to send an apology mail expressing their situation. They have fallen victim to greed as they feel they maybe able to get even apparently better students from top b-schools, where they usually used to get poor treatment, at cheaper prices. Sure, they must be feeling like a kid in candy shop now...Having been part of this BSE star performer and finding the internal modus operandi being completely opposite to what its mentor used to proclaim in the popular press about having a healthy work-life balance, I'd been holding some dissatisfaction about this company. This has only reopened the old wounds.Maybe I'm trying to lend some cognizance to my belief that "be whatever you want to be, but don't act a hypocrite and act like some thing you are not to the outside world". My mind though says it's how corporations have been since time immemorial.

Experience uncertainty

Another pioneer company in IT space says, it will consider people with work experience for selection and offer them suitable hike. But then, it never shortlists any, including those with rich experience in IT. Having work experience is a sin in B-schools this year. Mantra is "Be a fresher, don't bother about anything, if you have just managed to clear 40% in class XII, we would pick you". However, this company's recruitment automated system rejected the candidature since the student didn't satisfy the 60% cut off in class XII. Either the HR has not found his bearings still or the company has recruited someone who has escaped from a mental asylum. I don't see any logic in shortlisting a guy who the computer is subsequently is going to reject.

Celebrating "No work"

The company known for its "graveyard shift" played its cards cleverly saying its sister concern's HR would handle while the sister concern's HR pointed at the parent company's direction. People familiar with DBMS would easily correlate this with the concept of "deadlock". Both will ultimately fail to make a progressive move. Am suggesting strategies for HR to dodge candidates here, ain't I?

Application of thought - Ingenuity

A company hired engineers for coding then halved salaries and sent them to BPOs. Then post strikes by engineers, magnanimously decided to offer full salary and work in BPOs.This is one company which has strong value system, you see...

Volte face in 3 hours

A core industry company, promising to "Build a new India", that had sent in writing that they would recruit us did a U-turn in 3 hours with HR saying "That was a mistake, we aren't coming". Maybe this HR and the one who contradicted his company's automated system were dorm mates in the same asylum. I'm sure the company's annual report reads something like "committed to values, blah blah". Some core companies say they don't have money, really pitiable paupers they have become overnight.

Criteria that cannot be met

Another company wants candidates who have 2 or more years of experience and have worked in Mergers and Acquisitions. To understand A-Z of M&A and get involved in it would take minimum two years in a work atmosphere and we can safely assume only top investment banks or top business houses would involve in such deals. Why would such guys leave their comfy jobs at these top brands to do MBA if they already know the ins and outs of M&A? It's as good as company saying "We won't take you"

Companies which said in 2007 "only people with 2 or more years of experience may apply" says in 2008 "people with work ex to a maximum of 24 months may apply".

Seeing all the weird reasons and cock-and-bull stories companies are making up, I've decided to go entrepreneur way. I'm going to float my company called "Mannar Infotech". Funded by venture capitalist firms, Mannar would be opening offices in 6 metros in India. We would also open a small office in Dubai near Dubai bus stand. Strongly committed to bringing the best minds to serve supreme solutions and in delighting our customers every single time, we would not be compromising on our recruitment policy. If you satisfy the following criteria, please write in to us:

1) Should have done school education from Hogwarts as we need people who can weave magic with their fingers.
2) UG any degree (should not have more than 60% and should have minimum one arrear) as we believe failure is stepping stone to success and only such people will understand the value of success.
3) Should have a minimum break of one year after 12th as we believe ability to destress is a vital qualification to succeed in our company.
4) Should have served as CEO or CFO in a company for two years before MBA, we need people who have demonstrated leadership ability and all round personality. And of course, the person should have worked in a minimum of 4 M&A deals.
5) He must have worked in Timbuktoo or Xanadu as we value exposure to abroad and exotic locations highly.
6) Age should be under 23. No relaxation of this rule at any cost.
7) Candidates having knowledge of languages such as Swahili,Telerin,Doriathrin/Ilkorin, and Nandorin will get preference.