Freedom

10 things a swimming teacher would tell you

2011-08-06T18:10:00.008+05:30

1. Breathe , breathe , breathe. Keep breathing , never hold breath as it will make your body stiff and make you get tired easily.

2. Keep you body straight when swimming. Most people have either their have a U shape or their legs are falling down. Both will cause you to loose balance.

3. When doing back stroke , point your head at 45 degree in front

4. Free style. Try to maintain balance and keep legs close. Make a nice circle with your hands. hands should fall gently onto the water.

5. Breast stroke . Push your legs as if pushing against a wall. In this case water is the wall around you. It pushes you in front. Hand and leg movement is done alternately. If done together body will go down.

6. Butterfly - Move your body like a wave. Hands should move in a S Shape.

7. When breathing , focus on breathing out. Breathing in happens naturally.
70% inside water and rest outside.

8. Legs should move very close to each other. Ideally just touching when moving up and down. Just inside water ,not outside as to sprinkle water onto others.

9. For beginners. Floating is very important and their body should be straight. Legs should not be falling down. Legs and hands straight. Bubbling also helps as it helps to get comfortable inside water.

10. Back Stroke hand movement. It very important that you properly move your hands to maintain balance. Its similar to free style with one small difference. You doing up side down So hand movement becomes more important to help you maintain right balance.

Michael

2009-06-29T16:43:00.007+05:30

Michael Jackson is no more. In this pensive moment for me and millions of his fans , I had to write a few words in tribute to this great,talented artist who had a tragic end. I have soo many fond memories from childhood dancing to his songs and wanted to be a dancer when i grow up. I was pretty much hooked to his Music. Thriller , Dangerous , Bad epitomized my english collection.
I still remember the days when he came to India. Big billboards were on display annoncing his arrival. It was a big moment for India to host a big star like him in those times.
I am saddened by the fact that i forgot my childhood idol.May god give his soul peace.

One of my favourite song of Michael's
Man in the Mirror

Clipmarks

2009-05-05T17:45:00.002+05:30

I was wondering why being a computer engineer i have never written much about Internet or computers.
There are tonnes of websites that come up all around us and become overnight sensations. Take for instance twitter. Not a great concept but just see how it took off. I am sure some one else had thought about it , but somehow this took off and other didn't. There must have been some fundamental difference in the thinking that makes X tick and Y fail.
Let's not go into it. I was going to talk about a cool FireFox plugin that i found the other day. I know it's not new , but it was pretty useful. Try it out https://addons.mozilla.org/en-US/firefox/addon/1407

slumdog millionaire

2009-01-18T12:10:00.004+05:30

Once in a while something comes up and makes me come back and write. This time it's the British Indian movie Slumdog Millionaire.

I would have to accept that my first impression of the movie was that it's was pretty good and real , and definitely not a feel good. (Tha't what everyone terming it) The movie shows the slums in Mumbai , children getting blinded for money , police beating up the suspects , riots on the streets of Mumbai, prostitution etc. How can such a movie be feel good.

Oh ,then it stuck me. It's feel good for the people in west to see and realize how lucky they are , that the economic upheavals are nothing compared to the life in slumps of Mumbai or India in general. That's when i get convinced that the director didn't make a movie but actually a real life documentary and it should have been named "Poverty and Crime in India" not Slumdog Millionaire. It has not shied away from showing even a small detail that doesn't show India in bad light. I feel sorry to accept that a lot is not untrue.

Take for instance the scene at TajMahal. I accept that there is a sewer on the back side of Taj , but couldn't the director have at least avoided adding that into the scene of Taj in the backdrop.

Then there is a classic scene in which a American Couple is duped by the kid and all there Car parts are stolen. In a very American way(as projected by Boyle) they hand that boy a 100 $ bill , pronouncing that's what a normal American would do when cheated. Second half is much better and bollywoodish.

And I would like people in India to take it as a bitter pill and do something. And for those in west , Mubai is not a slum. The slumps in Mumbai are because Mumbai is the economic capital of india, and people from all parts of india come there for better life. There is a limit to which it can catter to these people and the rest are left to a life in slum.

Crazy Japan - Part 2 (The Naked Truth)

2008-10-26T08:59:00.005+05:30

Scene 1 : I am taking a member ship of a Gym near my home. And I very happy to be doing something at last to stay fit

Scene 2: Enter the Change room. Everything is normal till now.

Scene 3: As I am about to enter I thought I had seen a completely naked grown up man just pass across the Changing room door. It's OK i thought , I must be hallucinating

Scene 4: Now i have entered the hallowed gates of changing room and there is no doubt in my mind of what i had seen few seconds back. There are naked man (without there undergarments) walking across the room as if they are in the confines of there plush bathrooms back home. Drying themselves and talking over phone.

I think , welcome to Japan and as a matter of fact if you think deep inside , actually there is nothing to hide . Right ? ;-))

Crazy Japan - Part1 (70 year old Hip Hop Dancer)

2008-10-07T18:10:00.003+05:30

Not every day you see a 70 year old Hip Hop Dancer and that too a women. Just when I entered my Gym ,normally there will be some yoga or bale dance classes but today I was shocked to see a Hip Hop Dance class . And if that was not enough a very old lady was doing Hip Hop and that too pretty well. I would definitely put this on top of the crazy things I have seen in this country. You could just imagine how funny it was seeing her dancing on " In da Club"...

Charity Run

2008-09-23T19:03:00.006+05:30

Today I ran in the Tokyo YMCA charity Run , a total of 10 KM in relay format. There were 6 players in a team and each one of them had to run approx 1.5 each. Frankly I did prepare for it as I had never before taken part in a race. We finished 33rd out of the overall 90 team taking part in it. Almost all teams were sponsored by companies in Tokyo .

I recently developed interest in running. Though I am still of the opinion that it is a very passive and boring sports compared to other like Cricket , football etc . I feel it is essential in my sedentary lifestyle.

But overall it was lot of fun and yes at the end of the day I could say "It was all for charity " and go to a good night's sleep. :-))

Some pics from the run . Click

Canyoning

2008-08-03T07:53:00.004+05:30

Went for Canyoning yesterday. It was an amazing experience. One might think it's same as a water rides in a theme park, but I would disagree. It's not at artificial as them.
In natural surroundings , with minimum human intervention(yeah u need ropes and safety hooks) , it's totally different and more full filling experience. You need to have a kind of confidence and faith on the forces of nature. And indeed after it you will have respect for them.

F1 -Silverstone

2008-07-05T10:29:00.007+05:30

F1 is almost in the middle of it's season with the London's silverstone circuit coming text this weekend. Should be fun to see how the team's fare. It has been a pretty mixed season for almost all the team , with no clear winner. BMW , Ferrari, Mac Laren all in the contention. Thought it's clear that Ferrari are way ahead in speed , but had some misfortunes all along.

One thing that amazes me is the down slide of Hamilton since last season ended. He was a poster boy of media and now with all his arrogance he has fallen badly. I think the problem is not his driving , but everything other than that. He should be concentrating more on F! and less on popularity. It comes automatically. Kimi is a perfect example , he is very focused on his driving and F!.

Narendra Modi

2008-06-29T11:38:00.007+05:30

Modi's Speech and Interview at the Hindustan Summit:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nYD3fgqcmIQ - Part 1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dg18zSr2PF8&feature=related - Part 2
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YauyALWBWnI&feature=related - Part 3
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V36f7w0EwHw&feature=related - Part 4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oMZjvplDtcA&NR=1 - Part 5

I am a BJP supporter , but I was embarrassed by the Gujarat riots of 2002. And i think , Riots were one of the main reasons for defeat in 2003 general elections.

But 6 years have passed since then , and it seems that the media is still not willing to forget and leave that issue. Gujarat since that time has changed a lot and has undergone many changes(for good) and we can't ignore Modi's contribution in that. For one there has been no riots since last 6 years(A record of sorts in Gujarat's history). Large amount of investment is coming into the state etc.

It has been written and said million of times in history that majority in any community or country have done innumerable injustice on the minority. But India i think has a opposite scenario. First the Muslim invader from Afghanistan and then British exploited and did injustice over the majority. But how can one just forget and accept the injustice done on Hindus all over India in past many centuries. Innumerable temple were destroyed to build Churches and Mosques. I don't think there is any wrong in asking to revert back those injustices.

Let's face it , what happened in Godhara(burning of a train of Kar sevaks) , would have resulted in similar backlash in any part of the world. Why is Indian media targeting only one person? It was more of a public backlash against an event that was infuriating and unfortunate.

We should forget it and move on , and as Modi said(In the above videos) let us build a stronger India by building a stronger and prosperous Gujarat.

Nippon - Update 1

2008-06-12T20:18:00.006+05:30

I find myself guilty of not being regular with my blogs. This is the longest period of dormancy .

Well not much has happened in my life anyways during this time. I am still here in this beautiful country Japan. One thing that sill amazes me are the wonder full people of japan.

The kind of mutual respect and courtesy they have for each other is totally amazing and teaches one or two things to people of other countries and traditions. There might be no religion , or i should say very less of that , these people are still more religious if we consider that ll religions teach and love and respect for there fellow humans.

It's been almost a year and frankly I have not seen much of Japan other than Tokyo and my aim for the coming time , is to see as much of it as possible.

Fuji Speedway

2007-10-27T06:53:00.000+05:30

I am writing this almost a month after my trip to F1 held in Tokyo. But better late then never :-) .
It was to be a once in a lifetime experience of going to the race but what it's made as to be a one big festival/ celebration blah blah is not actually that. Reality is totally different. The experience itself will not be good until and unless you understand the sport very well. The pit lanes , the overtakes , the safety cars, the machinery , tyres , Qualifying , etc , there is no end to the rules and regulations.
Another thing is the track layout is such that person sitting at a point Will not be able to see the whole track because of the so many curves and bends. So it's like seesing the cars go through one same point nth times. How exciting can that be!

Well the tickets are also damn expensive and if you really take my word it's better if you watch it from home.

But none the less now as the season has come to an end, I am eagerly awaiting for the next season to start and have decided to watch it from the comfort of home.

Force India ..

2007-10-26T20:42:00.000+05:30

So we finally have a F1 team , that's great news. And the name Force India sounds ok, atleast better then something like Indian Star or Indian Lions etc. Let's see how this goes as the name and idea are good. Looking forward to see them atleast beat the Super Aguri and Toro Rosso next season.

Being in F1 will definaltely give Mallaya a much needed global audience . And with strong 500 million avid followers it will give good visiblity to the India GP slated for 2010.

http://www.formula1.com/news/headlines/2007/10/7036.html

Fuji san ki chadai!

2007-09-02T06:37:00.000+05:30

The trip started in ways that I never expected , I will put it this way I never expected it to start. We had planned it for Saturday morning and it started in the afternoon. Why because it was never meant to start but suddenly we had a calling ,some divine force , I believed it to be the Fuji san's intervention and the combination of beautiful lakes that was calling us to climb this beautiful mountain. There were forces that we later realized that really existed . These forces were the one that made you strive to reach till the top when you know you can’ t take an extra step , there are forces that made you calm when you look down those slopes and realize that one wrong step and that's the end . You see those people from all ages you are hit by a reality. That some thing really exists , maybe just a faith in Fuji san that it will not hurt you. And it gave us faith too.

So that’s it for the divine part , but then I want to tell you things really started bad. We had not done any preparation before that day , and when we decided to go we realized how less time we had in our hands. All of us ran to the Donkey’s and did our basic shopping( head light , gloves , caps, energy drinks , ) and somethings at the 100 yen shop. The things had already started rolling . Anshul took the wrong train to reach Shinjuku Station and had his cell’s battery on low. Shinjuku station as it is a like "Kumbh ka mela" back in India , millions cross it daily and there are trillions of spots to get lost here . But we finally manged to find him through some of Nipun’s beautiful flower ladies(that is another story). So now we were three and waiting for Ajay to come. Though he had no phone we finally found him , how? Actually he found the guys who were going with us , whom he had never met.

So now we were ready to board the train and go to Matsuda …..ShinMatsuda -> Gotamba …Subhashiri(5^th Station). We missed the last bus at Gotamba and had to take a taxi till Subhashiri fifth station.

Bench

2007-07-18T18:30:00.000+05:30

Bench n.

1. seats for nonplaying athletes: in team sports, the seats for players not taking part on the field or court

2. seats for non working SE’s: typically the SE will be found in the library or Coffee outlets, basically having a great time.
Example: Rahul is on bench and he is having a hell of a good time.

Related word

Bench strength n.

1. quality of substitute players: the quality of the players who are named as substitutes in a sports team

2. quality of Software engineers: the quality of engineers (technical skill set) who are kept in waiting for the future project in an IT company.
Example: XYZ Inc. has tremendous bench strength and is sure to bag the project.

The origination of the word is from the field of sports specially football. The teams strength depends on its bench similarly an IT company’s bench strength is critical to get new projects.

Source :http://encarta.msn.com/dictionary_1861589946/bench.html

F.Y.I.
I am on bench

March 14 th 07 --> July 11th 07

2007-07-11T12:48:00.000+05:30

March 14 th 07 --> July 11th 07 ..Writing after a long time..
Maybe because I didn't have anything to write or plain didn't want to write anything..
Don't know..

Wishlist for second half of the year :

Learn something new everyday.
Read some good books.
Visit some nice places.
Make some new friends.
Writes some decent blogs
.
.
.
.
.
Will update more

For those who missed the world cup doodle!

2007-03-14T06:42:00.000+05:30

Though the first 'O' is not clearly specified it still looks pretty attractive and catchy.

Abacus

2007-03-11T07:29:00.000+05:30

Bought an Abacus yesterday. I had some eagerness to know how a simple mechanical instrument does all the complicated caluclations. As it turns out in a short span of time I was able to do some simple additions and subtractions and believe me it was loads of fun. If u wanna know more Click here and don't be surprised when i tell u that it has been voted as the second most valuable tool of all time by forbes

My Abacus

ICC's Super Eight Predictions

2007-03-08T09:54:00.000+05:30

Click here

Matches to watch out :

Sat 31 Mar A1 v B2
(Australia v India)

Sun 15 Apr

B2 v D1
(India v Pakistan)

Considering the long steak of poor performances by the minows it was an easy task to decide the super eight schedule. May be this acts as a boost for them(minnows) and few of them upset super eight setting.

Tokyo at night!

2007-02-28T19:54:00.000+05:30

Communists lead villain on inflation front

2007-02-26T08:31:00.000+05:30

Click here to read the article

Light of Lohri!!

2007-01-29T18:22:00.000+05:30

From Lohri

Two faces of bangalore!

2007-01-16T17:04:00.000+05:30

Ripe coconuts at my home.

Dried leaves in my backyard.

Some advice for Dr. Singh

2007-01-15T11:49:00.000+05:30

Click here

Found on : http://www.pratikbhandari.blogspot.com/

Victory in SA

2006-12-19T15:12:00.000+05:30

Well It is not a series win but a win nonetheless and it also got me out of the hiatus . This test win in SA has to be one of the memorable moments for Indian cricket . Sreesanth for me was a revelation and his fighting spirit is what differentiates him from the rest . The most memorable moment for me would be his dancing down the pitch after hitting Nel for a six.
Nonehtheless there were two very important contibutions from Laxman and Ganguly both on a comeback.

Gandhigiri Works .Seriously?

2006-09-29T15:28:00.001+05:30

Atleast it's back in fashion. Our father of the nation Mahatma Gandhi would be a very happy man today after all these tormenting years for his soul .His beliefs were forgotten and what remained was his picture. We got so used to seeing thm on walls , roads and currency that it was all but ignored and was taken for granted. We had forgotten what he really preached.

What he preached was not only non violence. It was more than that. He preached unity. He knew that the country was soo divided that the only way forward was to first unite the country.

In history you will find many instances where a violent struggle had been succesfull. Take the instance for American War of Independence against the British. But that can only happen when the whole country realizes a common enemy.

I am not sure to what extent it helped us get independnce , but sure it united the people of this country.

We need more like him!

2006-09-25T18:52:00.000+05:30

Story of Sarath Babu.
It's an inspiring story of a IIM grad starting his own business , rejecting a lucrative job offer.
The inspiration is simple . To give employment to people.

Made in Japan!

2006-08-31T16:47:00.000+05:30

One of the best books I read in along time. Made in Japan is one of those books whick motivates you. Akio Morita was a revolutionary. He made SONY into what it is today. Being from a business background he had the abiltity to take risks and think big and innovatively. Walkman is just a case in point . He said that no amount of market research would have told them that Walkman would be successfull. He folllowed his intutions on these matters and luckily for SONY he was always right.

Just go ahead and read this book. It's a wonderfull read.

Made in Japan by Akio Morita

Pirates!

2006-07-31T18:32:00.000+05:30

I wasy very eager to watch this movie..But it turned out to be a dud.
Captain Jack Sparrow was a big dissapointment. Not the hero but the role.
The story line was bizarre. It was like watching "Harry Potter" without having read the novel.

Reason for dissapointment: Too high expectations.
Otherwise watch it to watch the 3rd part and don't xpect too much.

Sup..

2006-07-25T16:37:00.000+05:30

Apr May June sucked ..had lot's of work ..no time to read..
I was reading( ascending order of time I started reading them)

Monk Who Sold His Ferrari
Life of a Pi
Argumentative Indian
Freakonomics
Kane and Abel by Jeffrey Archer

and finally now last 15 days i had time and did complete the last two..
both were interesting reads.

Life of Pi is a boring read at least the starting and haven't been able to really get in a mood to pick it again.
Monk Who Sold his Ferrari is not a book to complete in a go. It's a real good book and always go back and read it again. So haven't been really able to complete it because I keep reading the same chapters again and again.
Argumentative Indians has some good essays but as a whole I feel it's an avg book.

Banned!

2006-07-21T10:56:00.000+05:30

Government of India..hahahaha
In my earlier post I raised the same concerns.Click here
Puppet in the hands of Left.Banning blogs in the name of secularism.
Just see for yourself what exactly they meant.

Following are just two of the 17 blogs being banned.

http://www.exposingtheleft.blogspot.com/
http://mypetjawa.mu.nu/

Read More:

Not a Gentleman's Game! So what

2006-07-10T17:58:00.000+05:30

Like the earlier edition this world cup made me sit and watch this game. Mind you we are more used to the Gentleman’s game and this game does shock me sometimes. Players cheat and do things that would lead to suspension of that player if happened in cricket. But it’s surprising how easily they get away with it. Rightly it’s not a gentleman's game. But who said that games are for gentleman. They are meant to be fierce and hard fought. With a feeling of do or die. It's this tempo that makes this game a true delight to watch.

One of my favorite world cup moments was when barely six minutes were on the clock in the opening game between Germany and Costa Rica when Philipp Lahm cut in from the left and curled a beauty into the top corner of Jose Porras' net.

It really set the tempo for an exciting world cup.

Disinvestment on hold!

2006-07-07T16:51:00.000+05:30

Ok so disinvestment has been put on hold!
You just can’t get enough of the wrong that these governments can do for this country.
First making an alliance with the left then , giving this country a weak PM , then doing major blunders in Bihar (Governor’s action of dissolving the government) , then the latest one of reservation and finally the disinvestment.
It was well said that Congress is a party for poor and they are trying to increase there base by making this country poorer. PSU’s (Public Sector Units) are making huge looses and government is putting the good money into these units. Ok people will loose there jobs, but if simple mathematics is applied, the losses will be huge if one considers the benefits of using the same money to educate people, build infrastructure etc. Government should not focus on work that a private co could do better. Its should better focus on educating people, building infrastructure, improving the judiciary and improving the law and order situation in general and also providing quality health services to the poor they say they support.

Superman vs Krishh

2006-07-04T12:28:00.000+05:30

Ok just last weekend watched both these superhero movie back to back and I couldn't stop but comparing these two movies.
First Krishh. As the first Indian superhero movie seriously made it has been a commendable job. With the budget and viewer ship limitation that Indian movies have it is a very well made movie. Our super hero falls in love and first half goes by with him singing and dancing. Second half is where our hero is exposed to the outside world and realizes the old saying "With great powers come great responsibilities". He saves some kids, gets his love, saves his father (who strangely has lost all his powers), kills the bad guy. A typical Indian movie.
Superman: Man this guy has lot many more powers than our Krish. The movie is very well made with the Plane crash shot in the beginning setting the tempo for the movie. The movie is a typical big budget Hollywood movie. What less can one expect?
Both the movies exploited the emotional sides of our super heroes.
Lot of room has been left for the sequels in both the movies and will eagerly wait to see the sequels.

Is Govt making life difficult for the salaried class?

2006-06-06T17:38:00.000+05:30

See this link

West Indies thrash India

2006-05-30T19:06:00.000+05:30

Read in newspapers that it would be best time for team India to visit West Indies before the World Cup next year. This was supposed to prepare Indian team and frankly it has.
What is in Indian team that they falter when they are most expected to do well. Same was the case this time and they faltered. The reason that i see for this loss is very simple. Playing Dravid in the opening slot is dangerous. It is in the best interest of the team to play him one down. India needs a good opener to compliment Sehwag and Indian team missed Tendulkar at this spot.
Another thing that would have become very clear by now is that Indian team needs a right mix of experience and new talent outside india. I think that time has come for Greg Chappel to prove that he is as good as he is wants to show himself as.Because Indian team's performance has been inconsistent under him. So buckel up your shoes mister chappel because the road ahead is getting hotter with World Cup coming near.

Reservation -- A case in point

2006-04-26T10:07:00.001+05:30

For a long time I was planning to write my view on this. But seriously there are some things you won't find people arguing your point. So it seemed no point in writing about it and moreover a lot already has been said and writen Here is an interesting case in point which I found amsuing and wanted to share with you guys. Just wanted to clarify that I am not against SC/ST's or OBC's and it's not at all my intention to hurt there feelings by this. But it's totally and clearly my intention to do that for the politicians who instead of providing them with proper education at primary level are spoon feeding them.

I think we should have job reservations in all the fields. I completely support the PM and all the politicians for promoting this. Let's start the reservation with our cricket team. We should have 10 percent reservation for Muslims. 30 percent for OBC, SC/ST like that. Cricket rules should be modified accordingly. The boundary circle should be reduced for an SC/ST player. The four hit by an OBC player should be considered as a six and a six hit by a OBC player should be counted as 8 runs. An OBC player scoring 60 runs should be declared as a century.
We should influence ICC and make rules so that the pace bowlers like Shoaib Akhtar should not bowl fast balls to our OBC player. Bowlers should bowl maximum speed of 80 kilometer per hour to an OBC player. Any delivery above this speed should be made illegal.
Also we should have reservation in Olympics. In the 100 meters race, an OBC player should be given a gold medal if he runs 80 meters.
There can be reservation in Government jobs also. Let's recruit SC/ST and OBC pilots for aircrafts which are carrying the ministers and politicians (that can really help the country...)
Ensure that only SC/ST and OBC doctors do the operations for the ministers and other politicians. (Another way of saving the country...)
Let's be creative and think of ways and means to guide INDIA forward... Let's show the world that INDIA is a GREAT country. Let's be proud of being an INDIAN..
May the good breed of politicians like ARJUN SINGH long live...

The most vocal propenent of these reservations Mr V.P Singh has been getting treatment for a long time now in UK. We can ask him to get his treatment from the doctors who got entry into Medical colleges through reservations. Moreover he doesn't find it amusing that crores of Indians go to these same doctors for the very same ailments.
Jai Hind

Quote

2006-03-29T13:51:00.000+05:30

Just consider how terrible
the day of your death will be
Others will go on speaking, and
you will not be able to argue back.

Raja Ram Mohun Roy
[1772-1833]

Journey

2006-03-23T17:30:00.000+05:30

I was going home (Delhi) this holi by train and I had many apprehension of how I will be spending my 38 hours (which ultimately got extended by another 2 hrs) on the train with no one to accompany me. But all my apprehension were proved wrong once a spent my first few hours in the train.
I met people from the same background( Software engineers), who were going home on holi .They were also working in some or other company in Bangalore and earning there living from this city which had become synonymous to silicon valley of India. One person became a very good friend of mine during the journey and he had come from a small town near jaipur, Rajasthan. He came around the same time when I came to Bangalore. He had no job then. He slogged for 3 months and gave interview for some 10 odd companies and was ultimately selected. Some others also had similar stories to tell.
One person had come to Bangalore to enroll his son in a dental college. He was from a small town near Delhi. With IISc and other world class institute already here, Bangalore is not only a job hub but is soon becoming an education hub as well.

No wonder it has become one of the most important cities in India and henceforth is going to need a lot of attention form the government to allocate funds for improving its infrastructure and getting back its past glory.

The Flat World

2006-02-22T17:20:00.000+05:30

The World Is Flat not really but literally as pronounced by Thomas L. Friedman in his book ‘The World Is Flat’ A Brief History of the Twenty-First Century. In the world of today everybody has got a level playing field. People in developing world compete and collaborate with those in developed world. This way we are witnessing a phenomenon of widespread distribution of wealth across the globe and are bringing prosperity all around. It all started with advancement in communication and transportation. Inter galactic optical fibers network changed it all. The same work which was done a decade ago in a single office is now being done all across the globe. With some part done in China and some in Mexico and India. So much has changed that you when you book your Mac Donald’s pizza at a take away and you won’t realize that the actual person taking your order is sitting thousands mile away and taking your order over the phone.
But for a country like India what is the effect at the grass root level is not very clear. Common man has been touched by this flattening resulting in the growth of the middle class. A simple example of the flattening. When ten years back a person wanted to sell his property he would go to a property agent and will be at agent’s mercy to what value he gets for his properties worth. But today the seller is much more aware and has access to the information (internet) that was not easily available ten years back. He is no more at the mercy of the agent. This flattening is caused by the easily available information which was not the case ten years back and the people having the knowledge would often misuse it. They would create an environment of fear and uncertainness in the mind of innocent people. Internet has been a great flattener.
The work environment has flattened. The hierarchies in today’s offices are vanishing. It’s becoming a more level playing field where everyone’s voice is being heard.
The news media of today has also played a major role in this flattening. Taking news to the gullible public and bringing out the reality of the politicians, police, doctors, actors, etc who try to fool or con them.

Global Delivery Model

2006-02-20T17:15:00.000+05:30

Global Delivery Model is at the forefront of outsourcing. It helps a company to diversify and outsource its business to a place where it can be done most efficiently in terms of cost and talent available. Two more terms which come to one’s mind are in shoring and off shoring. China is a good example of the benefits of off shoring. It has huge and cheap population to work in industries. Today it has become global hub of manufacturing. Similarly in shoring has enabled companies in USA to inshore some part of there work to other companies in US itself so that it can be done more efficiently. For example today the courier company UPS will fix your faulty Toshiba laptop in India itself instead of first taking it to US where Toshiba guys will fix it. So the turnaround time has come down form a week earlier to just two days. In today’s world companies are fighting hard to bring down there costs and give best return on there customers money. Its better this way, so that companies concentrate there energies on there core competency and don’t waste time and energy on mundane tasks.

Customer vs Client. Do you know the difference?

2006-02-07T12:20:00.000+05:30

This question was bugging me a lot. So I just typed the question in google and found following answers. It’s a possibility that you may get more confused after reading them.
http://marketing.mcdar.net/38328.php
http://www.translationdirectory.com/article132.htm

Airport Privatization

2006-02-01T11:12:00.000+05:30

Airports are the first impression of anyone coming to our country. Those who have gone there know that they are in a state of chaos compounded by the rise in air traffic over the years. People complain about the bad behavior of the airport employees and also rampant corruption. It also lacks in the use of modern technology for the comfort and convenience of the travelers.
Modernization of airports is being long due but the government does not have enough money and expertise to do it on its own. So the only option left is to privatize then.
Once these private companies come they are going to down size and make them as efficient as possible. Workers are afraid that they will lose there jobs once the airports are privatized. Government has given surety that any employees of AAI who loses there jobs will be absorbed in other sectors. So I don’t understand why they are trying to be a bottleneck.
Government should not bend to the unfair demands of the unions and should go ahead and do what has been long due.

Swades

2006-01-30T12:23:00.000+05:30

26th january our Republic Day and I felt like singing

(Ye jo des hai tera, swades hai tera, tujhe hai pukaara…
Ye woh bandhan hai jo kabhi toot nahin sakta) -2

Mitti ki jo khushboo, tu kaise bhoolaayega
Tu chaahe kahin jaaye, tu laut ke aayega
Nayi nayi raahon mein, dabi dabi aahon mein
Khoye khoye dilse tere, koyi ye kahega
Ye jo des hai tera, swades hai tera, tujhe hai pukaara
Ye woh bandhan hai jo kabhi toot nahin sakta

(Hmm…hmm…hmm…hmm…hmm…)
Tujhse zindagi, hai ye keh rahi
Sab toh paa liya, ab hai kya kami
Yun toh saare sukh hai barse
Par door tu hai apne gharse
Aa laut chal tu ab diwaane
Jahaan koyi toh tujhe apna maane
Awaaz de tujhe bulaane, wahi des
Ye jo des hai tera, swades hai tera, tujhe hai pukaara
Ye woh bandhan hai jo kabhi toot nahin sakta

(Hmm…hmm…hmm…hmm…hmm…)
Ye pal hai wahi, jis mein hai chhupi
Koyi ek sadi, saari zindagi
Tu na poochh raaste mein kaahe
Aaye hain is tarha do raahein
Tu hi toh hai raah jo sujhaaye
Tu hi toh hai ab jo ye bataaye
Chaahe toh kis disha mein jaaye wahi des
Ye jo des hai tera, swades hai tera, tujhe hai pukaara
Ye woh bandhan hai jo kabhi toot nahin sakta
Hmm…hmm…hmm…

Tirupati Darshan

2006-01-25T16:50:00.000+05:30

Tomorrow I am going to Tirumala Tirupati , the most sacred place in South India.Its the first time I am going there.
The ancient and sacred temple of Sri Venkateswara is located on the seventh peak, Venkatachala (Venkata Hill) of the Tirupati Hill, and lies on the southern banks of Sri Swami Pushkarini.
It is by the Lord’s presidency over Venkatachala, that He has received the appellation, Venkateswara (Lord of the Venkata Hill). He is also called the Lord of the Seven Hills.
The temple of Sri Venkateswara has acquired unique sanctity in Indian religious lore. The Sastras, Puranas, Sthala Mahatyams and Alwar hymns unequivocally declare that, in the Kali Yuga, one can attain mukti, only by worshipping Venkata Nayaka or Sri Venkateswara.
The benefits acquired by a pilgrimage to Venkatachala are mentioned in the Rig Veda and Asthadasa Puranas. In these epics, Sri Venkateswara is described as the great bestower of boons. There are several legends associated with the manifestation of the Lord at Tirumala.
The temple has its origins in Vaishnavism, an ancient sect which advocates the principles of equality and love, and prohibits animal sacrifice.
The sanctum sanctorum which houses the awe-inspiring idol of the Lord of the Seven Hills is situated in the main temple complex of Tirumala.

Movies and Buks

2006-01-23T16:54:00.000+05:30

It was high time that I blogged on one of my favourite topics.Movies.
I also read a book or two occasionaly so I thought why not have a blog on that also.You can visit it here

SPAM cycle…

2006-01-20T11:36:00.000+05:30

It’s gets so damn irritating to delete all the spam mails.

Just yesterday a person’s computer (in our company) was infected with a virus when he opened a mail attachment name SeX.mpg. Such virus are created because 5 out of 10 will surely open an attachment named SeX.mpg. But what followed was chaos. Because who ever opened it, the virus automatically sent the message to all people in the address book.

So here was the situation.Many people got the mails containing virus. What followed was foolishness. People started sending mails, with address all in the group , requesting “don’t send any further virus”. If that was not enough people replied to the above mails, with address all, requesting “don’t send any mails of requesting for don’t send any further virus”. Hence it became a vicious circle and my mail box was full within an hour.

Bangalore...

2006-01-17T10:06:00.000+05:30

Bangalore is a name that has acquired global importance. Its the face of India .It has also brought wealth and prosperity to many (but not for those who were ‘bangalored’).
I was just 7 yrs old when I first visited Bangalore. It was the garden city of India. And now after fifteen years I came back. But this time not as a visitor, but for work. I am working in an IT company (like many) and earning my livelihood here. But it was a big disappointment for me when I saw Bangalore .It has given a heavy price for being the IT center of India.

It is perfect example of what other metro cities had been witnessing for so many years. The influx of non natives. Who come here the opportunities that a city life has to offer. The government has failed badly in coping to this pressure. The infrastructure has been badly neglected.

My stay at Bangalore has seen many up and downs. One of the nightmares had been finding a good place to live. Being a north India and that too a Punjabi had me searching for a good north Indian restaurant. Being a veggie was also a disadvantage. But it has been all about scores of sagars (Udupi Sagar, Krishna Sagar, Shiv Sagar, Sukh Sagar, Shanti Sagar, Sri Sagar, and many more) which as there name had the same food to offer with no variety.

But after all this, I think I have started liking the city, because of its warm people, good climate and most importantly a very modern outlook of people of Bangalore.

Where from here?

2006-01-11T16:59:00.000+05:30

Once in my MBA coaching class a question was asked,”Where do u think yourself to be 5 years from now”? And there I sat silently thinking,” 5 years down the line, where I will be tomorrow I don't know”. But then still for there satisfaction I made up a reply which sounded as if I am the most foresighted person in the world. I gave my MBA, didn’t gave it seriously (had a job in hand) and as a result didn't have a single IIM call (didn't fill any other colleges forms).

So that was then. Now one year has passed since then. And here I am thinking, not forced by one of the teachers at the MBA coaching, but my own self forcing me to make up my mind where I have to go from here. The logical me says me to do MBA.As it has lots of money. Finally money is what everyone wants. But my heart says no that is not what you are good at. You can't manage yourself how you will manage others. Do M.Tech then. It does not have money and more over you be wasting 2 precious years, what my heart says me.

The question arises, then what after engineering. Where will a B.Tech degree take me five years down the line? Then I realized that the problem was not, what I have done up till now, but the problem is my not knowing what I will do tomorrow. I am not clear what I want from life, what are my goals.

And what are you thinking a happy ending to my wows; Knowing the truth is not the solution to the problem, it’s just a step towards it. I am still clueless of what I want to do in life.

Why is India an undeveloped country?

2006-01-10T10:08:00.000+05:30

Continuing from my earlier post I wanted to answer one more question which I strongly feel about. Why is India an undeveloped country even 50 years into Independence?

At the time of our independence it was well accepted that for all of our misery,famines and poverty the British rule was responsible. As a consequence we developed a fear for all things foreign (Xenophobia). We adopted a policy which aimed at self reliance. Our exports which at the time of independence were 4.5% of world share dropped to .1 % in late 80’s.
Gradually the standards of our industry had dropped to below world standards and even if we were to export our products were just not at par with other countries. All this time the government was sitting on its laurels of having made India a self reliant country in agriculture but it had all this time neglected education. This meant that many more generations even after independence will still be illiterate.

Another fact in India being undeveloped has been our long held beliefs. For centuries we looked down at merchants as low cast people. Brahmins were the most respected and after that come shatrias and then merchants and finally the lowest level was of the shudras who did manual labor. Hence in our society doing work by hand was never a respected job. We looked down at people who did trade. All this mentality cost us dear more so in this modern society.
But the times are changing. More and more Brahmins are doing MBA’s and also hard work is getting the respect it deserves.

Why socialism sucks?

2006-01-09T11:10:00.000+05:30

Recently I was reading a book called India Unbound by Gurcharan Das.It really hit me hard when I learned some blunders committed by our great leaders .These blunders have left us backward even 50 years into independence. I was always skeptical about the so called socialism practiced by communists. But the book really reinforces my belief that it was one of the major reasons for our backwardness. Nehru after independence had adopted a mix economy design where capitalism and communism would coexist. But it really was a flawed design. It is well said that when an individual fails the whole family fails but when a leader fails the whole nation fails. Later is the case with us.

Socialism means equality for all. But what equality is it talking about. Equality of oppurtuninty? The answer is big no. It talked about equality in terms of our living standards, how much we earn when we grow.

Let us take a simple example of this flawed theory.
Two people are born at the same time. In a socialist society they are to be earning the same amount when they grow up. But in a really democratic society they will get the same opportunities to lead a successful life. But where they will reach once they grow up will depend on there inherent qualities to use these opportunities.

So you see that in a socialist society an individual will not have the inspiration to rise above the rest, by working hard. In short there will be no competition. History is the proof competition is in the blood of any human being and socialism very slowly kills it.

Government of India has been pouring all its reserves to make its loss making PSU running. The tax payers’ hard earned money is being poured down the drain.

But situation did change after the liberalization in 1991.Uptill then there was no competition to these government run bodies. But once the foreign markets opened there was a flood of companies which provided cheaper and better quality then our local industry. And this resulted in competition which ended govt. body’s monopoly.

And there after we await the rising of a new India.