Not my idea of a 'blast'...

It is just so frustrating to be living in this country. After yesterday's incidents, you cannot blame me. Our spineless administration cannot do anything. Lets be honest about it: Human life has no value in our country. Our beloved Prime Minister always ends up saying that we must stay calm and we'll fight terrorism. Haven't we heard that one before. 

Yea, and Mr Prime Minister, if you're fighting terrorism, how come people just keep dying. I think, seriously, you were better off being an economist. Our government is more worried about its vote bank and wants to lift the ban on terrorist organizations. Who voted for these people in the first place? We're lucky that the Supreme Court has rejected the government's claims. But wow? I have never seen such a shameful peace of governance anywhere in the world. 

These kind of incidents make you feel so frustrated, so helpless. I mean the situation has reached such an embarrassing level that terrorist organizations are daring you to stop them. Is this some kind of a joke?

And the only thing the Home Ministry has to say is: 'these were low intensity blasts'. Were they? Close to 30 people still died. Didn't they? Or is it alright that they died, Mr. Home Minister. Shameless Cowards. And am not talking about the terrorists here. They're doing everything in the open and challenging you stop them. No, but we must stay calm. Right Mr. Minister?  Though i frankly feel that they're incapable of anything, except for being worried about their vote banks. Some other food for thought- The current government is trying really hard to stop the execution of a person who attacked the Parliament. So technically, he's an enemy of the state. But no, he should not be executed because the government will lose its vote bank. I mean what kind of message does this send out? You just don't have the balls. Simple.

Some perceived solutions:

1. Value human life.

2. No nonsense stance on terrorism and value human life.

3. Not worry about vote bank, worry more about national interest AND value human life.

4. All of the above.

I think we should seriously re-think who we vote for next time. Or maybe India needs a dictator, an idealist who can sort out this mess. I definitely believe we don't need spineless people running our lives. Its about time that we start feeling safe in our own homes.

Travelling...Peace

Till sometime back, I never thought that certain places can be so tranquil. In my earlier post about Kerala, I had mentioned that I've never felt as peaceful as I did when I was rowing this boat in the backwaters there. I mean you could literally hear a pin drop. It made me re-think my priorities in life.

I've started appreciating the smaller and finer things in life. There is so much more to do, so much to learn and so much to see. Travelling is one of my passions. I mean if it were upto me, I would just do that for the rest of my life. Switch off my mobile phone, and abscond. Here, I've to come back to the money factor. You need the green, for everything. So its a catch 22. No Money, no Honey..i mean no travelling!!

Anyways, without drifting away from the topic, its imperative that one gets to travel. Ofcourse, it depends on each one's priorities. I sometimes feel that our whole life becomes ironic; we work so hard to strive for those very things and then never get the time to experience them. Well, i am definitely going to try n live out my travelling dream.

A perfect case in point: I recently saw this movie called 'A Good Year' *ing Russell Crowe. He's a hot-shot investment broker with a fancy job in London. He inherits a Chateau in France, from his uncle, where he had spent his childhood, (wish i had an uncle like that). Goes there with a view to restore the Chateau, sell it and come back to his job in London.

So he tries his hand at making wine and, meets his childhood love there. He goes back briefly to his job in London when his employers become impatient, but decides thats not what he wants to do. Gives up his job and goes back to the Chateau. First of all, what is the deal with France. Its an unbelievable setting. No wonder all women become weak in the knees when the word 'France' is mentioned. After seeing that movie, am in love with the bloody place. There's a particular scene in the movie where Crowe and Marion Cottilard are sitting in this park; there's a live band playing some awesome music, with a projector screen at the back showing some clippings from some old black and white movies and to top it all, you have some bottles of wine on the table. I think this was one of the most peaceful settings i've ever seen in my life. I am going there for sure. The movie ends with them having breakfast on the patio of the Chateau, overlooking the vineyards. Perfect....

Though the movie didn't do too well at the box office, it gave me a good insight into some of the things i want from life. Travelling, is right up there!!

(My inspiration for this post has been a song called 'Goodbye Lenin' by Yann Tiersen. It makes you connect to similar surroundings as the Chateau. )

Acknowledgements to Mayank for this amazing song. I would highly recommend it.

The Best Movie Endings...

The fact of the matter is- I feel fooled, let down, if the ending of a movie is not worth it. I mean you spend a good part of maybe 2 hours watching the flick, and bam, the ending was crap and you feel like a complete idiot. Most of us would agree that this has happened to all of us (maybe some might disagree. Hell then u need to watch more movies). The word 'climax' gives it away, doesn't it (talking about the movie's climax here; no need to get excited). So ladies and gentlemen, children of all ages, its simple that the ending of the movie can pretty much seal its fate. 

Personally, i feel that it is good money spent, if the ending was worthwhile. I remember a couple of movies: 'The Heist', starring Gene Hackman and Danny DeVito, and 'The Score', starring Robert De Niro and Edward Norton. Both movies didn't have exceptional plots and delivery, but left you content solely because of their respective endings (Please feel free to disagree with me). 

Now that we've been talking about movie endings,  I present my list of 'Top Movie endings' of all time. These are based on my own personal choice(s) and are in no order of preference:

• The Shawshank Redemption: Tim Robbins at his best. Incredible plot, and the ending just blows you away. You really feel for Tim Robbins' character, till you see the end.
• The Sixth Sense: M Night Shyamalan's classic- I was like 'wtf', when Bruce Willis is talking to his wife in the last scene. It established Shyamalan as 'Mr. Suspense'
• The Usual Suspects: Personally, my favourite. Kevin Spacey is god. And this is before he won the Oscar. His portrayal as 'Verbal Kint', is sheer perfection.
• Before Sunset: The film is just about a conversation, between Julie Delpy and Ethan Hawke, but keeps you spellbound. The ending is like the cherry on top.
• Jaws: You're shitting bricks throughout the duration of the movie and this is when the Shark hasn't even made its appearance. It obliges us only in the last 20 minutes of the Movie, and man, forget bricks, you're shitting entire houses now. The ending is fabulous, as there are unexpected twists and turns. Round 1- Quint, Round 2- The Shark, Round 3.....incredible piece of filming.
• Leaving Las Vegas: Nicolas Cage won an Oscar for his performance as a raging alcoholic in this movie. His character is so real, you feel devastated in the way he slowly drinks himself to death. 
• Memento: What a way to present a movie. Everything is set up perfectly, Guy Pearce is the protagonist, needs to find his wife's murderer, equipped only with a couple of clues and the inability to store any new memories. The ending is a fitting finale to a great movie.
• Batman Begins: How at the end, Christian Bale, amidst his burnt mansion, finds a card and flips it, and behold, sees 'The Joker' Card. Brilliant!!

Well, these are my personal favourites. Each one, a classic in its own right. I think one needs to see these movies inorder to truly appreciate them. The list, though,  is not exhaustive, these are the one's i could think of currently. Maybe i'll add as and when i remember some other classics. 

Please feel free to add/suggest/disagree with the list above. I would love to hear your views on it.

S

Olympic Gold.....India's Quest!

Finally..we've(Indians) have managed to win an individual Olympic Gold Medal..in the games' 112 year history. Its amazing how this is the bloody first time we've ever achieved this feat. Here i am, in my earlier post, talking about Michael Phelps 8 Gold haul at one Olympic Games, and on the other side, we as a nation are basking in the glory of one, yea one Olympic Gold medal. Please do not get me wrong here. Am not, even for a moment, discounting the feat achieved by Abhinav Bindra. Hats off to him, he has done all of us proud.

My issue here is not with the fact that winning an Olympic Gold is not a mean feat, believe me it surely is. My question here is that where the hell is the infrastructure for aspiring sportspersons in our country? Why can't we encourage sport? Whats the deal with that? It really is F***ing frustrating that the country's administrators never wanna do any good for the country. Isn't that their job?.
Look at Great Britain (I never imagined i would be citing their example).They've been pumping a lot of money since the past 3-4 years, and the results are showing. They're sitting pretty at the number 3 slot in the overall medal tally. Ok, you might argue that Britain has always had better olympic pedigree than India. Agreed, but they've never been this successful. A few days back, i heard one of the correspondents on ESPN's sportcenter saying that all of Britain's success has come sitting down, in events like cycling and rowing. But ateast they've not been sitting on their backsides, like our administrators have been. They've delivered results.
The Chinese too, have come leaps and bounds in past 12-15 years. Their government has encouraged sport. They pick up athletes when they are young, and pay for their training/development. No wonder they've had athletes in every event and every discipline at the Beijing Games. In India, its pretty much the opposite. Abhinav Bindra success story is pretty much self made. He could train coz he could afford it. He has his own indoor shooting range. He did most of his training in germany as the government regulations in India did not allow him to import even 5 % of the ammunition required for an athlete to train and compete at an international level. How stupid is that? What i've realised is that administrators in our country try to make everything really uncomfortable for you and mind you, this not limited to just sport. (Harwant Kaur, an ace discus thrower, who qualified for the Beijing Games, has threatened to migrate to Australia as she has had no support from the administration).

Let's face it, we are a mediocre sporting nation and there is no way we can even dream of pitting ourselves against the mighty Chinese. They've delivered, not only in organising probably the best Olympic games, but also have topped the medal charts (looks highly unlikely anyone pipping them with 3 days left).

In two years' time, New Delhi will play host to the next edition of the Commonwealth Games. Will India be able to play a good host? It will be a major embarassment if these games turn out to be a failure. Not only organising them will be a major issue with the countless operational problems prevalent in our country, but are we expecting to finish the games with 2-3 medals? Put in some money people, protect our athletes....give them the support they need.

The only saving grace...the path to redemption can be...putting money where your mouth is...

Amen!!

Olympic Gold

The Pinnacle of Sport...As any sportsperson would dream...The Olympic Gold remains 'THE' mountain to climb. Representing your nation at the biggest stage, stepping onto that podium, with the national anthem playing at the back, can be enough for even the strongest to show that 'bit' of emotion. Olympic champions are always remembered as the greatest the game has ever seen. No wonder, the Olympic games bring out the best in the athletes. Names like Nadia Comeneci, first person to score a perfect 10 in gymnastics at the 1976 Montreal olympics, Carl Lewis, Paavo Nurmi, Mark Spitz and the latest sensation Michael Phelps. These are legends in their own rights.

Its incredible that Michael Phelps has won 8 gold medals at this year's Beijing Olympics. Its unprecedented, its phenomenal. Considering he's just 23, his best years are still to come. Am sure critcs must be advocating the fact that he's won them all in the pool, but can THEY do it then.

What about the final of the 100 metres sprint? I've never seen someone run like that. Usain Bolt won that race by around 4 meters and he was celebrating for the last 10; Yet he still managed to set a new world record, saving his best performance for that very race.

I don't know if the name Shun Fujimoto will ring any bells. He represented Japan at the 1976 summer Olympics in Gymnastics. He broke his knee in the individual floor exercise, but still went to compete in the team event. His performances helped Japan win the Team event, beating the Soviet Union. Whats more incredible is the fact that he had to dismount from a height of 8 feet and land on his feet, which he did with a broken knee. That routine made his injury even worse, his ligaments got ruptured and he disclocated his knee cap. But he did help his nation win the 'Olympic Gold'. There are countless number of these stories, of courage, of raising the bar, of emotion.

Jesse Owens, a black American athlete won 4 gold medals at the 1936 Berlin Olympics at a time when racial discrimination and Adolf Hitler were at their peak. Hitler was adamant on proving the 'Aryan' superiority to the world. To prove his point, he ordered the Olympic officials to keep disqualifying Owens in his quest for the Long Jump Gold. But Owens, after a friendly advise from a rival German Athlete, jumped almost a foot before the jumping board and still managed to win the Olympic Gold.

Olympics are the Mount Everest of Sport (maybe even higher), every sportsperson dream.

Am very passionate about sport, hence i feel very strongly about the Olympic Gold. I think you can only respect and admire the achievements of Olympians; their passion remains unmatched, the courage remains unbaffled.

All Rise Please!!

'Viral' Marketing

The 'new' generation of marketing technique(s); with the onset of the internet and other communication mediums', 'viral' marketing has become really popular; to create that brand awareness, go that extra bit. It uses social networks, which are probably already in place to increase brand awareness of a particular product or service. It could be through e-mail, blogs, social networking sites etc, and also does really well through word-of-mouth.

Viral marketing relies on the same principle as a virus does: to spread. And when it does start spreading, it can take the form of an epidemic. Do you remember those never ending chain mails (Oh lord behold- send this to 10 people in the next one hour or you'll have bad luck for the rest of your life..aarghhh). But they did get passed on (by those who didn't want bad luck). Thats Viral Marketing, thats spreading the message. Though am not saying that we should use 'bad luck for the rest of you life' themes. I think, if used properly, its a very powerful tool simply because if i like a viral marketing campaign, i'll definitely pass it onto others, and so on. The keyword here is 'voluntarily'. Ofcourse, lets not forget the cost benefit as well. I think majority of the cost involved is the time you spend on creating a theme, and then jazz it up with flash, advergames, and other cool stuff. So its a relatively inexpensive way to create a brand awareness amongst potential customers.

Infact, its just hit me that a lot of peer pressure is involved in viral marketing. Lets look at these social networking sites. How do they attract their user base? Simple- i join in, tell my friends to be there (my friend list grows as well). The same applies to Instant messenger's (IM's) as well. I learn about this cool messaging service, and then try it out. The next step- I am going to need friends/contacts to talk to, inorder to use the messenger. So who do talk to about it- my friends/contacts. And here goes the Virus.

Hang on... its very important that i liked the messenger; based on the principle that if you like something, you on a average will tell 3 people about it and when you DON'T, the bad news goes to eleven people. (not so smart now huh?)

Some of the viral marketing campaigns i've seen have had 'bollywood' themes attached to them. Though mind you, the creators have done a fabulous job. The script might be adapted, but the tweaking is stuff of geniuses. I've been especially impressed with a few: Airtel's KBC, Orbit's take on 'Sholay' and Make My Trip's DDLJ adaptation. ( I think the agency behind these campaigns is Webchutney) I found the Links to two of them. Must check it out. (These one's are native to India, and are in Hindi)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZxT5CwoUbw0&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oIWxnfO7eJM

Kerala....

Definitely god's own country...It is a 'MUST' see. If you love to relax and crave for fresh seafood, ladies and gentlemen, this is the place to be. I visited Kerala back in January of this year(great time to go ;chose this as it was just after the peak season so it wasn't over crowded and you could still sneak in some bargains.)

Visiting Kerala had been one of my dreams for quite some time; somehow it always failed to materialise. But this one, was meant to be. It was a magical, peaceful, sort of a ride which re-invented me and my thought process.


Cochin is a two hr flight from New Delhi, n twas quite a change from the cold winter of New Delhi to the hot tropical weather of kerala. Cochin is a like a bustling cosmopolitan town, yet has its own share of history. Fort Kochi is quite a popular attraction in Cochin, with its Chinese Fishing Nets and a line of bars and cafe's. If you're lucky, some fishermen might offer you to actually try out the Fishing nets (mind you, its quite an exercise).


The best part of this trip was the Houseboat ride on the Backwaters at 'Alleppey'. You have this 60 foot houseboat, complete with on board lodging (AC rooms), an onboard chef and other staff. It was by far the highlight of the trip, taking a ride on those serene backwaters. Infact THE highlight was when we actually got to do some rowing on this fisherman's boat. We entered the 'slim' backwaters where the houseboat was unable to go. This was the most peaceful place i've ever been to, the backwaters had village houses on either side, and you could, literally hear a pin drop. This moment made me ask my myself: where am i living? what am i doing? It was so peaceful, breathtaking, i've never knew that you could actually experience such freedom today.
Stayed overnight on the boat, amazing dinner, great friends for company and lots of conversation. The next morning on the houseboat was equally incredible; the cool breeze, breakfast on deck, infact i got to steer the houseboat for a while as well. It was tough leaving the serenity of the houseboat. (I think 2 nights is a must, we spent only one)


The trip moved on: Thekkady- Ayurvedic massages and the Periyar wildlife sanctuary; then to Munnar and its tea gardens, and ending at the highest resort in Kerala: Deshadan. Its around 6-7 kms high up in the mountains where u have pvt cottages.


That trip still remains fresh in my mind: it was an unforgettable experience, the sheer magic just bowls u over......(have a look at the pictures)

Database Management: How to make use of Databases?

E-mail accounts, social networking profiles, business profiles....the list goes on. Lets face it, we're an 'account' these days. In the age of technology, all of us are trying to be as connected as possible. The result: countless number of social networking/business networking sites which have sprung up. The thing which makes me scratch my head is: what are these dot coms doing with these list of databases?

I've discussed this with some industry experts about this and have received mixed reviews. Some are pretty excited about it, whereas some feel that advertising revenues will be the only 'green' companies will see. I feel the potential is there, we need to work on a system which can lead to the monetization of these huge databases.

CRM (Customer Relationship Management) is a big word these days. Though i feel lot of companies are missing the bus on this. I've done a lot of (continue to do so) segmentation/profiling in my jobs, but i just feel that there is still that extra step which needs to be taken to deliver that 'near perfect' customer experience. I think the best way to go about is 'What does customer service mean to me?' Is it someone speaking to me politely? Are my concerns being addressed? Is my ego being massaged?

Well the answer could lie in a mixture of all these parameters. I think its very important to know your client. Build your rapport, make it easy for everyone involved. Never Commit, i repeat never commit anything, which u cannot or never intended to do in the first place. Its a big no no.

Getting back to the Database monetization, I feel we're looking at the next monster: I think you need to be pro-active. It'll be a big challenge, no doubt. Lets look at a simple blogging example: you would only return to one where your comments are being replied/answered to. WE ALL NEED ATTENTION!! Another intricate issue here is probably the most important one: Retention. How loyal are we? We tend to shift loyalties very fast these days, to make that quick buck. You might need to develop a business model which caters to this particular issue. So stickiness is pretty easy to build nowadays. Its how to make them stick, that really matters. I feel that are three main factors which makes everyone 'stick':

1. Like minded community (peer pressure) - maybe the biggest factor.

2. Interaction levels (mentioned above)- for example you may upload pictures in a zillion places, but the places where you get comments on your photos, you want to post it there right?

3. Value- this could have a lot of individual connotations to it: it could be free stuff for some; interaction for others. This is what will make people stick on.

Well you must be thinking 'we can make do with ad revenues'. Actually the grass is not that green. Ad revenues through social networking sites are not that slick as they may seem to be. I haven't clicked on any add link(s) posted on facebook, linkedin, etc. Have you? Infact i was having a chat with one of my friend's about this same retention issue. She told me that she had recently done a usability study on ad placements and realized that click through's on social apps is the lowest. So how can you make money from the LOWEST ad click throughs.

I would really appreciate if you could share your thoughts on this post.

I Phone..and tips to increase its battery life!!

The most famous word in the past year or so..rings bells into lots of lives (literally). Am amazed at how Steve Jobs and his 'apples' can come up with fantastic state-of-the-art easy to use products, which do and have revolutionized our technological lives.
I am not licking his backside, believe me. But am in awe of the sheer creative/marketing genius of the man.
I've been using the I-phone and the macbook for quite some time now. Its never been a problem. Though i wish the battery would last longer in the I-Phone.
Tips on how to save the battery:
1. Keep wi-fi, bluetooth, e-mail disabled when not in use.
2. Lower down the brightness to about 25% (yea there's no percentage, u'll just to have to guess it urself)
3. Download an application called 'services' from the installer. Install it and then turn 'SSH' to off. Works pretty well.
4. Turn the I-pod feature off when not listening to any songs. (always use the back arrow when u finish listening to songs)
5. Don't talk too much on the phone. (kidding)
Hopefully Jobs, as promised, has improved the battery life of the I-phone 3G. It would cover that 'chink' in the I-phones armor.
I might sound like someone whose pretty happy with the I-phone and apple products in general, but yea, i am.....eat your hearts out.

Music

Music is the best thing to soothe one's top floor..especially after a hectic day..infact am listening to some right now...
Where has the turn-table disappeared? I would love to get my hands on one. But that my friend's, is one half of the situation. The other, is to find the right kind of records. When i say 'right kind', i mean the right music.
I guess its now limited to just scratching (DJ's), n that too the one's who still believe in its authenticity. Though am all for technology as well. I've contemplated the fact of getting a basic version of the DJ console, only for the fact that it would give me creative freedom to try out my own style of music.
Electronic is my type...

Premier League...

Well..befittingly, the opening post has to be about the English Premier League, as it is my eternal love. No prizes for guessing the team i support (Manchester United)..
And like any MANU supporter, i've been following the whole Cristiano Ronaldo transfer saga. My take on this: he should be allowed to leave. No point having a player on ur roster who's heart is with some other team. I don't think any player is bigger than any club...he goes..MANU move on..Infact they could make some money outta him..maybe get some other quality players...
The whole bit about principles of not bowing down to clubs like Real Madrid does not matter..first of all..Real Madrid act as if they own everything..yea..they have a great history/tradition/big ego..but who cares..they haven't done jack in the past few years except for winning a couple of leagues titles...(Lyon have been French Champions for the past 7 years)..does Ronaldo wanna go there???...
Thats my version of this saga...'Cash in on Ronaldo'..am pretty sure if SAF reads this..he would have some choice words to say..but then again..do not..i repeat do not doubt my loyalty towards MUFC..
Backing them for the double again this year...n SAF..please get another striker...

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(Thanks...Mayank)