Again....

A slumber did she slip into
They wrenched her soul apart,
Scream’d aloud, she saw the cloud
She fumbled in the dark.

They saw her there, they didn’t come
Reaching out a palm,
She picked her up she straightened out
Never to be torn apart.

The light that was, stared at her face
She blinked a dreamy lash,
She saw that smile, she cared no more
She’d make another start

Advertising brings them to the bank, maybe they’ll stick a finger in too; but they’ll dive in only if they’re sure that the water’s nice n deep.

[post on a concept I had found interesting long back (read at ur own peril :D )]

As someone once said, “….Behaviour is controlled by the consequences of behaviour itself”.

This is the 1^st brick in the foundation of the concept ‘Operant Conditioning’, also known as ‘Instrumental Learning’. A concept that the classic ‘A Clockwork Orange’ is based on, its implementation on intended subjects, is vested on the crucial aspects of role and timing of the reinforcements on them. You must see the film to really get this!

The process, unlike that in Conditional Learning, induces voluntary behaviour in the desired direction, and subjects make necessary changes, and quite willingly so, in their environment to incorporate the same.

Revolutionary work of Edward Thorndike and B.F. Skinner, both American psychologists, unveiled the possibility of inducing voluntary behavior transitions of intended beings (human & animals alike) in a specific direction. The concept was transfused into the core of advertising, by Gerald J. Gorn. Persuade them; make them choose you amongst a host of competing alternatives, unaware of the directing wheel that you turn. However, advertising cannot sustain you: ‘coz, behaviour when followed by positive experience is typically reinforced, whereas behaviour when followed by negative outcomes are quit.

Advertising can just make them try…..keeping them locked in is a task bred deeper still.

"When you're in jail, a good friend will be trying to bail you out. A best friend will be in the cell next to you saying, 'Damn, that was fun'."

Came across this saying by Groucho Marx, and I so loved it. It got me wondering, do I have any such friend? And then I found 2 names….almost instantly and I knew they fit.
[Well, I left my parents out of this, ‘coz, well they’d do anything to keep the evil away from me, 'coz they are the best parents in the whole world]
The 1^st one’s bhai, my little brother, who’s my best pal. He has stuck to me through all thick n thin. He’s taken care of me, pampered me, loved me so, and he’s always been there for me – to listen to me, help me, advise me. He's the best!
The 2^nd one is Banani, my childhood pal. We went to school together for 11 years (KG to X) and she was just awesome. We weren’t friends from the 1^st day…..somehow it grew into us with time. I realized that I simply loved her, after my board exams got over. I started missing seeing her pretty face every morning, when I knew school was over and now she was so far away. We studied in different schools after that, but I loved her and she loved me too. Now, 13 years after we grew out of school, I still miss her, and I so love it when we talk over the phone and feel it that she still loves me so much.
You know what’s the most amazing thing about both these friends of mine? They love me, they’d do anything for me, and they are so cool about it. They never say 'love us back'! They don’t demand anything from me in return for the undying love that they have for me. And most of the times they don’t even say it…..I just see it in their eyes, their voice, the little notes that they send me in email, orkut, and on my birthdays and special occasions like bhai-phota. I love them so much!

Unusually long-drawn Haikus .... :p

I am barely awake now. It’s 4 in the morning; my eyelids yearn to touch each other. This reminds me of a particular Tom n Jerry cartoon that I had seen ages back.

I so want to write. Life is a big piece of jig-saw puzzle right now; thesis – likewise!

I feel like I am frantically chasing fragments of a dream I had. Like all of my dreams it was big, beautiful, and bold (in the sense it was too hard to be true). An amazing story that I so loved then and so fear to let go now.

So here in dark of the night, I am scribbling something which closely resembles haiku; but believe me…..I am actually trying to gather my thoughts together before they shatter in the morning light. Slowly but for sure, the tide brought in by the sun rays will wash away the remnants of my memory.

It makes me a little sad and frustrated to lose the grip I had on this story. What am I writing? Somehow I want to get transported back through time. This time I’ll make sure I am not lost but placed in a spot where I will eventually come to feel my dreams.

I always did that…before now. How did I misplace it this time? I couldn't tell you how I got here. Well….frankly, I am not exactly sure why. I just know that it has something to do with trying to forget the existence of a few souls who lost their lives that day.

Well…..this is a bunch of crrazzyyy haikus! Kudos!!

Dorm 2 - decked up on Diwali 2009

This year, we decked up D2 with a theme: 'Save the Animals'. It was awesome! The girls did a beautiful job making Rangolis that didn't look like the usual ones....they were sweet animals that looked cute in colors. I just loved it! Will miss this from next year :)

A “Dear Diary” Moment

I try not to spend too much time thinking about the past. But, being a Libran, that’s almost impossible for me; and to top that, I am sentimental and nostalgic. I love to flip by old photos and flash back. But I believe that I will make the best of what I have. And believe me, it works…..’coz I believe it will.

Two days back, I turned 30. My best friends aren’t on campus, and I’m miles away from my family. So, I expected a lousy birthday that would not sparkle if I didn’t add the spark. Moreover, I am a senior doctoral student on campus, have been out of campus throughout later2008 and almost entire 2009, so don’t know many of my current dorm-mates. Most of my fellow doc students are either at home celebrating Diwali, or aren’t around. My PGP batch-mates (who actually form the bulk of IIMA) are no longer on campus, except Vibro, who I haven’t seen since ages. So….. a lousy, dead birthday was inevitable. “Naah!” I could let that happen. Birthday is my happy day :) so, I’d have to grab reins, and make a day of it.

At 23:45 on the 15^th, I picked up the one streamer I had and hung it on one side of my room. I was set with the décor ;). But, I didn’t have a cake, or even a chocolate bar, n CT isn’t keeping chocolates anymore. “Okay”, I said to myself; a cake isn’t always necessary. I would have to make sure that I had an awesome b’day. Decided to catch the Ahmedabad Heritage Walk at 8:00. called up Ma and asked her to wake me up at 6:00. then DK came over wished me at 00:00 J, I got a zillion calls too. Bhai, parents, friends, they wished me :). It wasn’t going bad at all. So what if I didn’t have a cake. That’s how probably it would be post 30 :)

Slept late, woke up late, so missed the walk. Rrgghhhhh!! Well, what now? I decided to make this day meaningful, wanted to find a place where people needed love and happiness. I’d spend my day with them, I thought. Looked up the web for an orphanage or old home, where I could share my happiness, at least for a day. It was Diwali, on the 17^th, would be great if I could get them some happy sweets, chocolates, and goodies. Couldn’t get enough info, so called up one of my seniors, Bhammo. He suggested some places and I loved the concept managed by Sulekha. But children were on their Diwali break and I could only catch them 10 days later. Hmm…..so? It was way past noon, and the day hadn’t picked up still.

Then I got a call, from some of my colleagues, and they had planned something at 17:30. They also wanted a little party in the evening. Ok! I reached the old FPM LAN on time, and there was my 1^st b’day cake. It was my favourite upside-down fruit cake. I was happy. We had so much fun! They had also arranged for a small round of snacks. There were veg puffs, which I usually don’t like, but believe me I loved them at that time. I slurped it up and it was absolutely delicious.

In the evening we went to Cellad eatery….an awesome salad bar. We had absolute fun, and the food was yummy! When I reached back, my dorm floor-mates had organized a little something, and this time I wished over an awesome rich chocolate cake with yummy chocolate shavings on top. It was 24:00. I had enormous fun entering my 4^th decade, as Abhishek joked ;)

Thanks everyone! I had absolute fun. It was a flawless birthday; more so, ‘coz it was so unexpected. I actually did absolutely nothing to make it happen, you guys did, and I’ll always cherish it.

Hiji-biji

..............%%$@@!$!!!! Yep...that's 'hiji-biji'......in bengali.....any outburst of nonsensical scribbles is hiji-biji.
Currently, that's the God of All Thingsthat adorn my life. Well.....we could make a Hollywood movie out of it. Crazy equations eating people's brains....they suck human brains! YUK!!! If you want to make this movie [ great concept ...huh?? ;) ], the sets are ready! Enter my room.....you'll see a sea of non-sense equations flowing incessantly all over, on almost every thing that you could rest your eyes on.
This is what I tell myself....every night...before I surrender to sweet slumber...."tomorrow morning, I'll wake up early, jog, have breakfast, and solve this huge mess of equations that I'm in right now. But holla....I wake up late (obviously...'coz I slept late....n well, that's the only good thing going on in my life right now). I skip all the healthy planned preludes that were supposed to kick-start my day, and I dedicate myself to creating some more of the c*** that's going to drown me one day....n beware....if you're one of my neighbours....you could be sucked in too!!
By afternoon, I feel I've done it! Yoohooooooo! But, my sweet celebration is nipped at its prime by a damned realization that I messed up a sign somewhere, or just deleted an important denominator, or something....that's gonna take a hell of time to be spotted.
Today was no different! I spent the whole day.....diligently taking care to stick to the routine....n now I have a closed-form expression for my problem. I never got that...ok...once I found one....but that was only b'coz I had messed up some where (as usual). That day I was excited....I was almost skipping around the LAN (the FPM lab on campus) going Eureka! But then I re-realized what a dud I am! So, today I'm skeptical....I know I've gone wrong some where. I tried so hard to prove that I had made another mistake....but nope....not found 1 yet! So it'll take another day....phew!!
KILL ME! KILL ME NOW!! :p

Radha

On my way back from Nal Sarovar, Gujarat, I was hogged by a swarm of kids mostly tots, begging for alms. This one was shy, almost embarrassed to beg.....I asked her name. "Radha", she smiled and reached out her little palm, "Please give me 5 Rupees. I've been hungry for 2 days". Then she stole a glance and looked back and smiled. That's what she'd been trained to say to strangers, the rest was oblivion.

some things don't budge !!

there are some who just don't budge...however much you try to measure up !!
check this out ... if you don't understand :)

Shotguns in the world of Advertising ;)

First it was Coke and Pepsi; sometimes Burger King took a shot at McDonald's, Kingfisher Airlines aimed at Jet Airways, and recently Horlicks & Complan, two health-drink majors in India, slung mud at each other. And now we have the newest entrants in the arena of Comparative advertising. Well, these are more vague in terms of what they are trying to sell, but they are big players and assuming people already know what they're selling, they could take this risk.
It's a lovely set of ads, witty and serving their apparent purposes of attempting to deface each other in front of their target consumers. Take a look.

Ridiculous Ads Again

ahh.....the sadistic critique in me has risen once more. Well, don't blame me....I have food for thought ;) While last time it was the 'Extended Stay Hotels' group this time it's a candy ad (in print) for Marbles sour candy (from Mentos). Have a look at the ads below.



I'm surprised at the idea of beings puking as an effect of the candy, which ironically has the USP of being an extremely sour candy. The ad was designed by Ogilvy and Mather, Mumbai, India, one of the wittiest pros in creative advertising. They had a sour candy campaign earlier for a gum named 'Centre Shock' and it was simply terrific. Witty humor punched into a punky storyline was blended absolutely perfectly with the product USP.

This is a funny concept; sure it is.....but not for a product that we are trying to entice people to eat/chew/whatever. Yukkkk!!
I love the idea of getting creative and wild with concepts when designing ads for not-so-serious products like gum, but hey, let's tug-on somewhere.

Hate mess food :(

That's a glimpse of some yummy food that I had prepared for bhai and me about 2 months back :) yeah ...i know ... i burnt up the fish a bit......but believe me it tasted good....'coz the condiments got so well-mixed inside the real stuff (that's baked salmon, btw :p ). Then there's a healthy mixed veg item with some italian seasoning tossed in, crunchy lettuce, baby carrot, and tomato salad, with a light vinaigrette dressing, and baked yam, cut up and seasoned with a light brush of olive oil and salt, roasted on a tawa...tikki style, and served with a dash of lemon-pepper dressing.

Ahhhhh.....that was one of the happiest months of my life....I simply had fun....unadulterated.....sans wrung-up thoughts and worries about the serious questions in life....life was like it used to be about 4 years back.....happy :)

Everything was magical.....I was with bhai :)

Surely You're Joking, Mr. Jatua!!

Mr. Jatua, the Minister of state for Information and Broadcasting, said that he was aware that quite a few of the present day ads in India are "deceptive"; e.g. fairness cream ads, and that they would be dealt with, under stipulations of the 'Cable TV Networks (Regulation) Act 1995', whenever issues were raised. Well, have we seen the Advertising Standards Council of India (“ASCI”) terms of regulation on ads? AMBIGUITY is the keyword. The job of the ad guy is to make a cute ad, just ensure it's saleable in the market at which the ad/product per se is targeted, and relish the ecstasy of success. NO RULES in the ad world here ;)

As long back as in 1928, Braithwaite (wrote that the primary motive behind a producer’s advertising decision is that advertising has the potential to concentrate demand upon the sponsored brand and hence provide the corresponding producers with increased monopoly power in the market; in simple English....the ad should be able to ease the product in to the market. The Economists Advisory Group (1967) and Batra, Myers, and Aaker (1996) referred to this potential in advertising as persuasion. Since we can't go about coaxing the potential buyer into purchasing the product we have to hit the right chord in their head, so that they feel the need for the product, while also believing that this one's the best bet for them. When the market is flooded with umpteen no. of look-alikes, what does the poor ad guy do? Spend the bucks and say "ME TOO"? Well?
Hmm....so they go about deceiving in some way or the other. Remember the funny Fairglo ad? "Yeh hai Mr. Kale, Mrs. Kale" (well Kale is a Maharashtrian surname, and PUN INTENDED, it also means black in Hindi, the language in which the ad spoke); and then we are introduced to Ms. Gore, the FAIR young daughter of the Kale couple, who apparently got bleached?? into a fair shade by a Fairglo soap. Somehow the ad was funny, the creative team managed to make the characters look thus. Well, the ad was ordered to be discontinued by the ASCI, under recommendations of the Consumer Complaints Council (CCC) that it was discriminatory and offensive. But well, all the other fairness creams work the same way.....they break just as many rules that the ASCI and the Cable TV Networks (Regulation) Act 1995 flaunt and which Mr. Jatua swears by. However, I understand, since no one has raised the issue yet ...they won't regulate the ads or their resp. contents.

Arererere..... Shahrukh bhai.......Aap bhi??

The recent ad wars between Horlicks and Complan also break the rules...BIG TIME. They are hugely deceptive, and to a more vulnerable clan of consumers. Well, the Coke & Pepsi ads can get away under terms of being ambiguous in naming the brands they were fighting. However, the issue here is not about taming ads and stripping them down to the boring product-detail levels....Yawn!!...but at least remove these pretentious stipulations when they are never conformed to.

if nature could speak

the Optimist


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Hidden Fairy


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Miles to go before I sleep

As Management Academics Can / Should we IGNORE the gaping cleft between Industry and Academia?

Yes, there is a gap, and the reason, I believe, lies in the way we work at both ends. I work in the field of advertising and recently met a few experts to gain insights on a concept that I am working on presently. During my talks with them, I could categorize them into three types, in terms their orientation to academics.
* While some of them are aware of what's going on in the academic end of the field, they are wary of applying our recommendations because they can't think of how to operationalize them.

* The 2nd group was unaware of what happened in academia. Believe me these were celebrated creative heads in big advertising companies, and they knew what they were doing. When I pressed on "how do you know what to do and what not to do?", the almost unanimous reply was, "we have a 'gut-feel' that is pruned by years of experience".

* Finally, the 3rd kind was experts who thought that we hunted down research problems since we didn't have anything better to do. As much as I disliked this, I couldn't ignore them completely when I looked at how consistently successful they were, w/o our help, and when they pointed out how theoretically fine but operationally inapplicable quite a bit of our work was.

Solution? During the 70's, Prof. Little set the example of working on a problem and stripping it down to the level where it becomes, well manager-oriented, if we may call it that. Sharing the views expressed by some friends, Mr. Denis and Prof. Erera, "Dumbing down the report or presentation is NOT the answer". While we select a problem for research, we must screen it through the relevance filter, permitting proposals that would be of worth to practitioners in the field. Of course we can work on hypothetical ideal situations, which can serve as the reference levels for ensuing normative work. However, we shouldn't forget to add the bit where we elucidate on the "How to apply it to problems stacked up on the managers' desk".

Wittgenstein’s Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus: Can we Know the Truth?

Ludwig Wittgenstein, in his famous work ‘Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus’, enunciated that there is ONLY ONE TRUTH that occurs with mathematical certainty (e.g. 2+2 =4); if we can’t speak it we’d rather be mum about it. I believe him. There is ONE OBJECTIVE REALITY; going round-and-round uttering otiose statements about a phenomenon, claiming them to be subjective explanations of the same, is akin to gibberish to me. However, I disagree at the last bit of his argument.

Wittgenstein argued that the world is made of independent atomic facts or elementary states of affairs from which larger and composite facts/ phenomena are constructed. Language however, begins from the atomic state like the world itself, but then conglomerates into complex propositions following logic. Finally, thoughts are generated as expressions in language to capture the aforesaid facts. Like some screenshot?

So what Wittgenstein’s work propagates is:

If your thoughts aren’t able to picture the elementary states of affairs, or the ultimate truths, they are not worth being expressed. A commendably bold statement! Don’t you think? But, I have a little tussle in my head about this. How do I know that my thoughts mirror absolute truth, unless I test it out? And how do I test them if I don’t express? When I started reading Wittgenstein, I was impressed, and believe me, he’s worth reading. Not once, but multiple times; well, I say that based on my experience with his work. Going by the intellectual abilities I hold, I didn’t get him all at once, but I was hungry for more. He keeps you panting and lusting for truth. What is the ultimate reality? But it all moves like a suspense thriller, sans the revelations in the end. Disappointment? No! What I experienced was an eagerness to read it again, hoping to unravel more this time. However, this time the rush that I felt was different. At the 1^st read I was amazed, almost bowled over but his masterpiece, his ways of thinking; now I didn’t agree at many points. Well I didn’t have the alternative bits of absolute truth, but I could prove by contradiction that what was expressed was not absolutely true. While I agree that subjective musings are not permissible unless one is sincerely trying to construct explanations to phenomena, bit-by-bit, I don’t agree that if you aren’t expressing absolute truth, all at once, you should practice silence.

Now I feel that I’m going gibberish! hehe....

The only thing I’d like to say before concluding is that as a researcher it is the constant expression of my work, irrespective of the accurateness of arguments, to guides and peers that is pushing me closer and closer to the construction of an explanation of truth. Everyday, I begin by testing my reasonings and 100-lines of scribbles with my guide. I express and he points out the flaws in reasoning. I go back and reattempt to bust it, using logic, of course. I talk to peers, we brainstorm at the little flawed expressions that we have thus far, with an invincible optimism that we’ll find the explanation.

Wittgenstein was a genius and I almost cherish the moments when I read him and felt almost enlightened. However, I believe that it is only persistent and humble Expression and not Silence that has the potential to pave the way to the ultimate revelations of truth.

Valentine’s Day!

Hehe….kaka’s brief post on how “Table for One” is a very very sad expression, kinda happened to me today. Well, with a wee bit of alteration in the taste of it. It wasn’t sad at all :)

In the morning, when I woke up, I felt no extra excitement. No big celebrations lined up for me! As usual, I was greeted by a desk loaded up with a crowing pile of work….most of which yelled out to me “attend to me today, my dear, it’s been my turn for sooo long now”. “Sure”, I said and rushed to get ready for work. I made myself my usual cup of steaming honey tea, spiced up with lemon n dried ginger, and sat at my desk to start with my emails. None…..Sir hadn’t replied, so no meetings today. As I was opening Orkut I took the ^st sip from my cup & as always, I burnt my tongue and cursed myself “Every Day!” Just then Banani’s scrap flashed in front of my eyes….”Happy Valentine’s Day Patru…from me n Punkoo”. “Oh Wow! It’s Valentine’s Day today…..the BIG Day of Looooove!” :D

I remembered Pk…..my friend from college who had been my V-Day companion during most of my grad n undergrad days. We would turn up for classes, but due to the extremely low attendance, the Profs would dissolve classes for the day. Hence, we’d start with “Oh No!” but then make an impromptu trip to some place. She’d be all “let’s go to some place close n safe", n I’d be all “Shut Up….we’ll make a day of this n go to some place awesome”. Needless to say….my plan won and we would end up making fabulous trips to old temples, deserted dams, etc, nibbling at village junks from dhabas, n road-side pan shops. All the while however, Pk would be excited about the amount of fun that we were having, but was damned scared about….. “if we get into any trouble, my parents will kill me” n the likes :) & I’d say….. “don’t worry….I’m Here; I’ll protect you”. Somehow she believed me….n I felt as if it was my duty to take care of her :D

‘Twas fun!

Today I remembered all of that n thought le’me have some fun. I also decided that at the end of the day, I’d pen it down in my journal or here…..so it must be Gooood fun :)

How’d I have fun? I find Ahmedabad a bit starved of places that are like sweet nothings that aren’t hyped, where there’s no need for pockets loaded with money; there are Malls and big fancy tourist spots. I didn’t feel like any of that. Kankaria Zoo? Naahh….

So I stepped out, bought a large bar of chocolate n kept munching on it for some time while I wondered about how to Treat myself to a V-Day dose of fun. ordered a small-sized pizza (yeah…for one), a Coke (unlike me) and watched F.R.I.E.N.D.S. …… again...about 3-5 episodes. Hehe…..then I made this piece of something on MS Paint and named it ‘Dreams’….with a hue for every feeling & emotion. Call'd up mom n dad to remind them of V-Day...so that they don't miss out on their share of fun for the day :)

I Didn’t study at all :p

I'm sure most of you would think...what was fun in this? But I enjoyed myself....it felt like treating myself to some goodies. Off Work.....phew :p

Maybe will work a bit now….. :D ..... or read something nice? fun is intoxicating & addictive :p
"God save me"....must get back on track....Today? :| tomorrow maybe :p

Happy Valentine's Day!!

the best summary of my Dream Resolution for 2009 :p

Reflections .......

5 years ago I was....in a mess. Had no time to think about my studies. Dad was sick, and all we wanted was to get him back and be happy!

5 months ago I was.... all over the place with my dissertation. I was working on designing my experiments that was kind of getting into the final mould

5 hours ago I was...enjoying a happy dinner at CT :)

5 minutes ago I was...replying to a dbab msg from a junior

5 things on my to-do list today...meet profs n discuss my work, finish revision of the proposal submission, talk to VVR, meet MICA students and guide them on the remaining work with ad designs, and Exercise!

5 things I would do if I became a billionaire... buy a pretty house for us, save up a bit for the future, build an animal care farm and hospital, buy a BMW Sedan, build a swimming pool for us :)

5 of my bad habits.... procrastination, am overtly finicky about my loved ones, love being pampered by my loved ones, love chocolates so much that I have a bar everyday :p , irregular sleep hours 5 good memories... my childhood spent with bro and parents, school days, stage shows in dance and music, day when I got call from IIMA, and happy times spent with my best friends – Banani, Rosy, BU gang, and Jhalbagan playmates :)

5 films/TV shows that I watch over and over again... Friends, Sholay, Mr. India, Baby’s Day Out, and Gone with the Wind

5 places I've loved and can revisit... Jhalbagan (where I grew up with my childhood buddies), my School (A.G. Church, Asansol), Kanya Kumari in Tamilnadu, IITD, and Ranigunj

5 activities I love... Music, Dance, Reading and Research along my interest areas, Writing, and Cooking

5 things most people don't know about me... that I freak out at the thought that I’ll grow fat again :p , I am absolutely obsessed with the thought of being famous and successful in academics and music, …. That was 2 together,3 in all!!..... I love to eat (good stuff), and I am a big fan of some of my teachers and never want to go away from them :)

5 weird wishes/ fantasies…. I wish I didn’t need sleep….that’d save so much time, I wish I could read and work all day (not getting tired), I wish I could remember all the stuffs that I read and worked on, I wish I could meet John Nash, JDC Little, Dilip Abreu, and APJ Abdul Kalam and work with them, I wish I was a famous singer and dancer

5 things that I’m senti about….. mom, dad, bhai, best pals, and my aims and inspirations

5 things that inspire me….. Work done by great people (Nash, Little, Chakravarti, etc.), Lifestyles that some of my idols maintain (DT, APJ Abdul Kalam), Sujoy Sir’s encouraging discussions and pep talks, Discussions with my parents, bro, and best pal, and my Ultimate ambitions and wishes

5 books I love to death... Dockner, Long, etc.’s Differential Games in Eco and Mgmt Sc., Mitchell’s Gone with the Wind + Ripley’s Scarlett, Ken Follet’s Jackdaws, Tirole’s Industrial Organization, and Goon, Gupta, Dasgupta’s Outline of Stat. Theory

5 things I love to eat... Chocolates (the darker the better), Salads, Fruits (esp. Kiwi fruits, plums, oranges, apples, pear, papaya, …… Godddd..u name them!!), fish, and coolers (ice candies included)

5 destinations I'm dying to see... Australia, Kashmir, My brother’s place (now), U.K., and Niagra falls (bro keeps praising this one….he’s been there thrice already)

5 scents I love... food that mom cooks, scent of my Dad, roses, scent of fresh rain after dry summers, and dark chocolates

5 things I want to do before I die (my Bucket List)….. publish is ace journals in my field, be a famous singer (at least one hit album :p ), learn French Ballet, perform a fusion no. at least once in front of a huge live audience, and be absolutely satisfied with the way that I’ve spent my life - before I shed my last breath :)

Reply to ......

......Sudhakar's post
In your list u miss'd the recent Ahmedabad, Delhi, Mumbai, serial blasts, in which at least 100 civilians lost their lives.....n still the list managed to look so long n sickening that by the time i reached the end I felt fatigued, nauseous, disgusted, helpless, n crammed with so many more such feelings that I couldn't even identify. Are we zombies? Of course not! I feel all these things every time an innocent is killed by a silly terrorist. What do I do for it? NOTHING! n I'm sure this statement holds for most of us.....WE DO NOTHING ABOUT IT!
I get your exasperation n disgust at such incidents, I feel the same, I feel weak n heavy at heart, but are u sure we can question the good souls that are tirelessly trying to keep our borders safe? India is a huge nation n surrounded by land on 3 sides. How are we supposed to ensure absolutely zero infiltration? Something like 1 army-man at every foot of land at the border? Even if we think crazy for a while n implement this....have you pictured the kind of terrain that we have at the borders? Yeah....Infiltration is a problem. But I guess what's ailing the system is us and not incompetent forces. They are clearing the filth that we strew every time; they save us out of our own mess, n in the process lay their own lives.
You wanna see why I say that we are the main culprits?
Look at the malls, some of our airports, the railway stations. It's easier to guard smaller places....agree? Hey we were talking of the lengthy borders of our country!
We enter w/o even stepping on the metal detector boards in railway stations, n nobody cares.....nobody...not even us! In flashy malls the security personnel stand with their metal detector gadgets and carelessly run the things over our bodies, not even caring to inspect the millions of beeps that emanate. I feel disgusted every time....but I admit I never went up to the security head out there to report this callousness. I mean hey...we're talking about Taj n Trident.....how could such huge loads of ammunition seep in? Can't we implement a check-system even for luggage? I mean c'mon the whole country's security has been at stake for so long now. Just a bit of flashy security to signal that we are on the alert every second. N real security....not mere pretense that anybody can see through. Like I could see in the malls n some of our airports.
Can we take one small step at a time....OURSELVES? But hey....no 'Rang De Basanti' stuff.....as much as I was touched by the movie....in retrospect I felt it's silly to even think that way. Let's take small sensible steps to ensure our own safety! For beginners.....I pledge to talk to the security head in the Ahmedabad & Kolkata malls, next time I spot this callousness.....Will you too? He'll be adamant? n tell us to mind our own business? We'll lose 5 precious minutes? But u know what....they'll tighten up the system if they see that we care n are ready to get serious if they fool with us.
Let's do this! Let's try for God's sake! Let's wake up n save ourselves!

Sequel......

As the 'Divine Mother' peeks through the clouds, I can feel her.
She's all excited and has started packing for herself n her kids n yeah the sweet Lord Shiva too.....'coz by now she has known that he's going to come down too and play peek-a-boo with us, while he makes sure that everything is safe for all that he cares for: 'us' :)
I can't wait to see you all here; happily blessing us all and partying for five days, while we run around you trying to make you happy.
Come down quickly O' Dear Durga, come down and enchant us with your divine beauty, your sanctity, your eternal love, your faith on us that we will be good no matter what we've given to you thus far! Come and bathe us all in your holy divinity and bless the world as always!

Assessing ROI from blah…blah….blah….

‘Word of Mouth’ (WoM) is the buzzword today. What and How do our customers think? What are their beliefs? What do they value most? What would they like to have? ….are just a few questions that every business needs to keep track of in order to be out there. Simple as these little questionettes sound, they are the hardest to answer. A customer’s WoM can provide a gist of answers to all of the above. So, let’s go for it! Companies today are effervescent with ways to tack down every WoM that directly/indirectly relates to them. The Idea is to invade the coterie by becoming a part of it, or to just create one, to figure out what people think. Given that consumers are more expressive to a larger audience now, tasks are simpler now than how they were even a decade ago.

Expressions are ON: blogs, social networking sites and groups therein, RSS, chat threads, you name it! So, the catch is to keep track of any conversation that involves the company concerned, assess it, and register it by feeding it back on the relevant ROI measure.

Johnson & Johnson, Nike, Reebok, Horlicks, Sunsilk,…are companies that have taken to hold reins in their own hands. They’ve created interactive sites where consumers can choose their preferred segment (e.g. Reebok – Women – Style – etc.), engage in an activity of their choice, or just chat with fellow consumers. The activities available for consumers in such sites are most often designed to extract information on what they like, or would like, in disguise of a fun-game or an activity that interests. Check the Sunsilk ‘Gang of Girls’, Horlicks Women site (http://www.indianwomenshealth.com/index.aspx), or Reebok site for instances. The purpose is simple and the process runs in cycles: read their minds, reflect and entice them, re-read them, ……and stay on top forever. It is after the re-reading exercise that ROI assessments can be made. There are several ways to gauge ROI from the ‘blabber’.

• # of times your brand was uttered in a thread/forum/…
• - An evaluative assessment of ‘in what light was it uttered’ (+ve, -ve, neutral), and accounting likewise.
• An assessment of where the brand stands vis-à-vis what consumers want from a particular product (class/type)
• What is the spread?
• How many different types of people/communities have shown interest in your brand?
• Consumers’ intention to purchase the brand
• For the 1^st time
• Repeatedly
• Conclusion from a specific discussion (mostly relevant for assessing chat threads)
• Simply tracking the # instances where a particular brand was searched for on Google, Yahoo, and the likes

There can be other ways, or a mix (2 or more) of the above ways (whichever is more relevant for the brand concerned) to assess ROI from discussions on the web.

The bottom-line is: We have known and respected the value of C2C ever since competition crept in and we knew that we had to aim for the customers HEAD and HEART. However, that we are going for it and incorporating it in our performance metrics is a recent phenomenon (though quite sparse till date) and it definitely gives us a more assuring image of where we stand, not just today, but also in the near future. Knowing what consumers are looking for has become a lot easier now, and whoever gives that a miss is going to be missed soon in the rat-race for enticing and befriending the smart info-savvy consumer.

Advertising.....at it's Worst!

"Over the line? You're so far past the line that you can't even see the line. The Line is a Dot to you!" ...... Joey (F.R.I.E.N.D.S) to Chandler when Chandler was trying to apologize by saying how he realized that he had gone over the line.

Well, this could be said to another set of people too :-)

I recently read this article in ‘Advertising Age’ about a particular viral ad on air for the Extended Stay Hotels (ESH). I couldn't wait to come back to my room and check the ad myself. You know how ads are supposed to be Attractive? Yeah … that’s the word…. ‘ATTRACTIVE’ = Interesting & hence, Rememberable, for the featured product/brand/….

I guess the creative team at Mullen, Winston-Salem didn’t quite get that link. As per one of their creative pieces for the ESH, an ad should be just Rememberable……by hook or by crook. So, when they were at there ridiculous best, they designed this ad where a pretty brainless lass enters an ESH room, heads straight for the sink and cutlery area, opens the drawer and picks up a spoon. She takes a keen look at it and….. Golly…..she licks it, front and back and?????? You tell me what next!
Yeah she keeps it back, from where she had picked it.
Yukkkk!

Then she moves around the room, licks everything that she could lay her hands on. No one has spoken anything yet in the ad.
To the horror of people who are still watching the ad, she enters the bathroom. Yes…she does! She licks the bath curtain, looks naughtily at the camera and starts licking the toilet seat and bowl. The ad ends when she looks, very happily at the camera and says “Very Clean!” Next she displays her palm to us where we read “extstay.com”.
I said, “What????”

So, these “creative” bunch of people went over the line [Yes creative in QUOTES ….. if whoever makes an ad is supposed to be tagged as creative; I’d tag them Stupid, and so Stupid that they didn’t realize that they should’ve buried this shameful evidence of their bizarre heads, as soon as they had seen what they had made]! How could they make it, and how could the ESH group buy it and, worse still, Air it?

The ad is on the internet; no background music or fancy backdrop. The idea was probably to make it look original, aiming to give the audience a feel of the cutting edge ‘Word of Mouth’ impact. Yeah they have done their home-works in reading ‘what’s IN’, but have happily chucked out ‘what’s Sensible’.

People would hate this ad so much, that they’d remember ESH alright, but whenever they do, even when they’re trying to pick one hotel, they’d wince at the gross display of licked stuffs….EVERYWHERE at ESH. Who’d buy them?

What the Bling was worth…..

The best brains of the world were riding the bling of working at the fancy designer back-office. Floating on this back-office bubble since the late 1990’s, we were wrenching and writhing our brains in shuffling and reshuffling papers and trading them between pockets. A whopping 200,000+ work at present in the securities industry, in the NY state alone. What we desperately need at all times (not just at times like today) is a fair delegation of our grays (young and old) amongst both back and front offices. Engineers, entrepreneurs, VCs, …. we need them all: synchronized and complementing each other, in every heave with the macro-tunes. In following the lust for the mint, we had lost focus from the invincible laws of sustenance: ‘Create AND Manage’; we were all hogging at the latter. As an article in Wall Street Journal signed out today…. “The market has indeed spoken……It’s time to get back to work. Real Work”.

short of the last buck ....

The sky's been roaring today; since morning.
"Why are you angry?" I asked him. "& who're you angry at?"
"Myself!" he snapped back, wearing a pout.
"Why? What did you do?"
"Nothing" he sighed and looked at me, still pouting.
I tugged at his grumpy cheek and asked - "Then what makes you angry my dear?"
He looked at me, confused now; "ahh.... I want to clutch myself and colour me so loud that the world would shine in my light. But I'm so bored!"
Someone had said that Success is 99% inspiration and 1% perspiration. Its that last little buck that my friend is short of. I can't find that last buck either. How should I help him?

Inspired......

Today, I started off in the lousy way that has been usual for me of late. At 2:30 I headed for the LAN (that’s what we call our FPM workstation). Completed some regular chores and headed back toward the Wing 11 Committee Room, where Solo’s Thesis Seminar was to be. Solo is a very sincere n down-2-earth doctoral participant here, working under one of my guides.

I sat there, yeah I knew he was sincere n everything, but didn’t hope to get this inspired by the end of the SHOW. He did an excellent job; had answers to everything, even the small little technical untenables had been backed up so well, or at least acknowledged! He sure has worked hard n sincerely so; and it came out all through the talk.

I wish I can work with such immense sincerity. Great patience and modesty goes behind this kind of output. Hats off Solo! Wish you all the best in life :-)

My current Roznamcha......

.....has been reduced to scheduling, n rescheduling….'coz I’ve been erring a lot lately in keeping up with my schedules. Blame it on……
yeah…..me :-\
I’m pathetically lethargic these days;
I don’t want to work….but I’m dead serious about sticking to the deadlines.
I have to…Really!

My days have been reduced to tea, F.R.I.E.N.D.S., a little bit of leafing through the planned work, some more tea, some more F.R.I.E.N.D.S., n gallons of guilty consciousness.

Helpppppp!

Celebrating Independence......

I am Independent enough!
Going by the eidos of our community, I am independent enough:
I expect much, I give some, I get quite a handful, a mouthful, and a soulful;
I am quenched enough!
As goes one of those million pep-sayings, "Reach for the skies! If you happen to miss, you'll still be among the stars";
I kinda stick at least to the 1st 1/3rd of it :-)
So, who gives a damn about the beau monde; whatever keeps my adrenaline kicking, my pulse ticking, & me - significant enough!

Happy Independence Day!

There's no looking back

Who am I, where am I headed?
When I cry, I melt less and freeze more;
I freeze so strong, I'm almost virile.
My mind's a one-way traffic lane now -
There's no looking back;
There can't be any.
I look ahead.
I can see my guiding light again;
The divine glow that has steered me thus far.
I'm happy that my little car doesn't have a good rear-view mirror.
The one that hangs in front of me is tarnished -
with the moisture that was shed uncouth.
This mirror gives me the creeps; I don't look back!

My life's always been a colorful wardrobe that belongs to some celeb; like.....well.....David Beckham. Destiny decides what I'm going to wear today.... & believe me she's moody; n she's unannounced; gives me no clue as to what I'd look like on any day; n sometimes, she's whimsical - giving me a myriad set of looks on one particular day. God help me!
Recently one of my most colorful hawaiian shirts got wasted :-(
coz this stupid destiny of mine came n blew its soggy monsoon nose into it. It was such a beautiful shirt; gave me the carefree holiday look whenever I wore it; n yeah....it was priceless :-(

want to write something.....something nice....ok something palatable?
something........anything?????
but no more about life n its huge fundaas
phew......life's more worth than that :-p
so......let's face it -
not much fun happening these days :-|
well.....am happy n working ......day n night
yeah....what did you think....i'm some crazy blogaddict to be typing in at around 3 in the morning?
just wanted to write something before calling it a day :-)
hmm.......well.....just a few minutes back .... i kinda yelled at kaka for typing some c*** on his blog :-p
n here i am filling the world with some more of that :D
but ..... who cares ;-)
whatever makes me happy.....or .....happy?
neways...this is getting too confusing
i've typed it....so i'll just put it on
as i said...."who cares?"
u still reading this?
whoa.....this is the c****iest thing i've ever typed....i guess :-p
i mean :-\
i hope :-p

a tiny tale....

There was a mouse, a tiny little one,
Lived in a hole, furnished retro-style;
That wasn’t her style, that’s who she was,
Ready to embrace the world in arms flung wide.

Tiny as they were, not much caught the hug
But she was so happy, she hugged tight;
So tight that she missed a few breaths
But she was happy; What’s a breath worth?

This tiny mouse, the mouse that hugged us so,
Didn’t know where she was going wrong,
A hug so tight and arms so small
At one time not much remained with her.

One by one they slipped and went,
Cursing her that she’d hurt them so.
Ahh…she said, I can’t live less
I want to live like Ulysses;
I want to hug so tight that it’s all mine
& I’ll live like this, I know I’ll be fine.

So our little mouse, who lived retro-style
Is happy clinging to - a few that remain;
The few that don’t care how much her hugs hurt
They’re just happy that they can stay close,
They’re just fine that she’s a happy mouse,
They’ll be there whoever comes and goes.

So let’s just hope that our little mouse
Learns to hug less tight, so that at least her owns
Aren’t ever hurt, ‘coz she doesn’t want it so;
She’s a silly mouse, a mouse we can cling to.
She’ll care, she’ll love, but she’ll hurt unaware,
But the lord will help her learn, let that be our prayer!

"The Bucket List" (2007)

“Live life to the fullest” or “drink life to the lees”, or something else that rings the same, were sayings that I thought I understood n well….liked too. But today I watched this Rob Reiner movie, n now I guess I know I understand better what these strings in “__” mean.

Want to know what would be the ideal way to live? Watch this movie! Man…..I loved it!

I guess it’s one of the most wonderful & touchy stories ever narrated. & with the cast as in this one, it couldn’t have gone wrong….Jack Nicholson (JN) & Morgan Freeman (MF). I loved the way this story was gradually loosened into me. The theme is a damn emotional one…..but could it have been any more subtle?

Two cancer patients, Cole (aged about 80 n played by JN) & Carter (aged around 70 and played by MF), about to die in 6-10 months meet in a hospital; they were sharing a room there. Well, Cole is rich….filthy rich, to be precise; standing as the sole owner of his bn dollar empire, which he himself had built from scratch. Carter, a walking encyclopedia, is more of a simple family guy, with a huge n loving family. He, once while sitting on his bed, scribbles down his crazy ‘bucket list’…..a list of everything that he wanted to do/accomplish before he “kicked the bucket”. Cole, the naughtiest kid I’ve ever been told of, gets hold of this, adds his bit into the list, and very ‘matter of fact -ly’ proposes to Carter that they do everything that is on the list – n do it together! Sounds Crazy? Here’s the list……it’s crazier than almost everything else in this world.

1. Experience something majestic
2. Help a complete stranger
3. Kiss the most beautiful woman
4. Go Sky-diving
5. Get a tattoo
6. Drive a racing car
7. Get in touch with the person that matters most
8. See Taj Mahal, Pyramids, Great Wall of China, Hong Kong,…

& I didn’t imagine the majesty of each of the items until I saw it get executed. 1, 3, & 7 were the most beautiful ones. U must see it to get the feel. It looks like a touchy theme, but believe me…..it’s amongst the cutest stories ever told.

Cole is so cute u’d want to grab his cheeks n say “O, u naughty little baby!” Carter on the other hand is majestic, elegant, gracious, calm (perfectly suited for MF)….Cole started calling him “Ray” later; he didn’t explain why…..but Ray he was! Cole is cute, impractical, n lives by his impulses; Carter, more practical….hence, u know….. more fearful of stuffs like sky-diving with a lung cancer on. That part was a fun watch. I dunno,….I can blabber on n on about this one…..but guess u should catch ur own fun n experience of this helluva story.

Loved it n will cherish it :)

Ain't he adorable?

Calvin! The cutest kid ever :) I guess I can never get enough of him, no matter how much I keep collecting his stickers. Well, although the Calvin comics are referred to as sardonic, I seem to differ. I feel that he's extremely cute, albeit smart for a 6 year old, and completely adorable. Yup.....6 year old; look at the 1st strip here n you'll se why :)
And then there are these cute statements that he makes so often; one which I almost cherish, "You don't get to be mom if you can't fix everything just right!" Haha.....he said this to Hobbes once, when he was in a fix.....n I promise, I could go on and on......with Calvin n Hobbes (his cute stuffed tiger). Some other features of C&H which gets me into fits of laughter are his Get Rid Of Slimy GirlS club (main target Susie Derkins), his snowman games, his reactions to food (see the 2nd strip above), the completely crazy games of Calvin Ball, and his cute interactions with Susie Derkins.
Some sources say that Watterson portrayed the French theologist John Calvin in the form of our little buddy......dunno.....but yup Calvin's cute questions on the existence of God and then his immediate fear that he might have offended Him do insist on his belief in Him; but hey, aren't we going too far in interpreting that in some complex philosophical light? He's a kid, and his concerns are so innocent, wonder how we can't see that clear!
Whatever......Ilove Calvin.......n he's simply a very cute, witty, naughty, n really curious little kid to me :)
I pray Mr. Watterson.....please resume your Calvin creations. That's why you must've been sent to this world. Please, please come back :)

& my WORLD waits for me.....

Before today, I was continuously slipping the fact that I had come to the world due to just two people.....well not quite so alone (as someone hath said); but as far as my life's concerned, it has almost entirely been endowed with selfless blessings/wishes, sound guidance, and abundant friendship (be it from my little brother, my schoolmates, or my parents).

Recently, my dear baba had a pulmonary crisis. According to the ABG and lung capacity tests, only 22% of his lungs is functional, with a CO2 level of 46 (the upper-limit being 45) and O2 levelof 65, instead of 95+. But take a look at this gem of a man and he's oozing optimism, tons of love for ma, bhai, & me, and sincerity toward his people (that includes practically everybody that is alive). He's asmile always; never complaining about anything, and mentally so active, that if he's exhausted his to-do list for the time being, he'll be planning some pranks to pester ma :) That' s baba - completely adorable & oh such a kid!

Today while returning to Ahmedabad, I felt as if baba wanted me to stay back for a wee bit longer; to play and react to his pranks, listen to his little friendly pep talks (that are always so alive that I am never tired of hearing), play a game of ludo with him and fight like kids over who eats up whose pawns, or just pamper him with a few tingly strokes on his back to lull him of to a sweet siesta. I wanted to stay too, but I had to leave - have "miles to go" - before I can huddle back to him and stick by him forever.

Friends.....

Well….I admit I’d been away for a whi…le :p
But anyways….I’m back now ….. & this is what brought me back:

Was trying to find one of the very important articles on Comparative Advertising, & this is what I found in the pile:-
An (apparently) useless piece of paper, with some scribbling on it. Whatever had been scribbled in also had a title – Personal Relations
& golly I was pushed back in time…well….some 15 days back when I had just had a silly fight with one of my closest pals :(
Matter? Don’t remember….just that ‘twas too trivial. Anyways, we had different opinions on some matter & were trying to show each other our resp. points of view. While this was continuing for some time….we suddenly entered a cold war kind of situation & yup, that was it. We resumed our resp. works with uncanny walls of ego getting taller & itchier every second. I went up to my pal, offered him a sandwich that I had got for lunch, and said “let’s forget this silly fight” …. pat came the reply “there’s nothing wrong; you’re simply pulling it too long for no reason”…..& though my head said “forget it”, my silly heart couldn’t & kept telling me “settle it or let it sulk at the back of your heads growing heavier n itchier”.

Ah….women! : ….. why can’t we let things be & move on? You know what …… it doesn’t work that way …. If you don’t solve a problem – however puny – it’s sure to stay there …. It definitely can’t solve itself. Well….if you can afford to let it be don’t juggle your head off on it ….. but if the person or matter is important ….. you need to disentangle the whole DAMNED thing ….. phew!
Well this is what I believe, guess this is what most women believe ….. that explains why we’re fussier :p
But that also makes us SMARTER :)

Anyways….I was restless…..I wanted to resolve it & my friend (obviously a male, who couldn’t see the importance and pleasantness of the solved state) chose to mum-up to the matter. So, I chose to vent it out on a piece of paper; & this is what I wrote:

PR
Well, many would believe that some things are best when left unfinished. Hah…..I don’t believe this when the aforesaid “some” crosses all bounds of “some”ness to reach the universal set. Well, I don’t mind quitting a lifeless project halfway or even 99/100th way (for that matter) when I see that ‘twas a mistake to get started on it; but I need to see stout reason why ‘twould not work. & when it comes to PR, when some things have gone wrong, I need to clear up the clutter (however small) before I can rest – at ease.
This silly fight with my dear pal has stretched on to a brawl of words, & before things could be settled, what’s come in the way is our dear set of egos….

I hadn’t finished …when my dear friend came up to me & snatched this paper off me n read it. & here’s what he added
“Fight is over & now we are eating sandwiches. No ego can come between us!! That’s what makes our friendship so strong; & it will only grow stronger!!! AMEN!”

Happy ending! :)

The Silver Gleams of William Shakespeare

"The earth that’s nature’s mother is her tomb;What is her burying grave, that is her womb" …. Father Laurence, 'Romeo & Juliet'.
William Shakespeare, apart from Rabindranath Tagore, Dante Gabriel Rossetti, Rudyard Kipling, and Robert Frost, has been a major philosophic inspiration to my life. Shakespeare saw the beauty of the corollaries and expressed the essence of every feeling or character. Be it virtuous or viced, Shakespeare had the eye to enjoy the beauty of it all.
"from hour to hour we ripe and ripe,then from hour to hour we rot and rot" …. designed to be mouthed by Touchstone, As You Like It: Shakespeare created picturesque characters in his plays, sometimes framed as the court jester Touchstone or at other times as the melancholy Jaques, in ‘As You Like It’, or as the foolish Greek Champion Ajax, in ‘Troilus and Cressida’: characters that spoke the bare essence of life.
“What a piece of work is man! How noble in reason! How infinite in faculties! In form and moving, how express and admirable! In action how like an angel! In apprehension, how like a god! The beauty of the world! The paragon of animals! And yet, to me, what is this quintessence of dust? Man delights not me; no, nor woman neither, though by your smiling you seem to say so.” …. spoken by Hamlet, when he is fickled about deciding whether man is noble or evil….is one of my favorites. What inspires me in Shakespeare’s work is his ability to realize the silver lining even behind the darkest of clouds, his ability to make smiles out of the gravest of graves, and his ability to inspire so well through petty fiction. He can mock life and admire it….all at once, and express his gratitude for being what he is even when he is mouthing his inconveniences. Hail thee!

Something in my soul tells me that I am drifting far away from where my aim lies. So far away – that I let myself drift off to virility – where I’m more than the mere me; I’ve free wings n I can soar higher n higher....

An Ode to Researchhood......

Finally I'm through with the hectic compre season, studded with miles 'n' miles of bits to study, n aeons spent in front of subjects I detest muggin'up, but have to....'coz this is what will draw me closer to the ultimate work I've been wanting to do for so long now :)

........... Research ~ on the field, that interests me most .............

Research: What of it?
To me, research starts everyday – in the little queries we have and the endeavours we make to quench them. Sometimes it’s as trivial n playful as wondering why the little bird comes and coo’s at my window sill everyday, or, why those little squirrels chirp so shrill n loud when they’ve managed to lay their puny hands on the best nuts they could spot. See? Research is fun! It’s like looking for the perfect answers to the most interesting questions we could imagine.

Well, the definition of the term research says that it’s a “systematic” endeavour, into satiating some kinda quest for knowledge. Ahh…..now the definition drains out all the fun….Damn!
But whoa…..let not silly dictionaries swivel our foci!

Ever since I got over with the muggin’ portions of our ‘compre’, I, for the first time was granted the official n unofficial luxury of embedding myself full-fledgedly into THE research topic that interests me most [P.S. this condition, in me, had been diagnosed some 7-8 years back, n I am yet to satiate this little inquisitive lump in me that I’d been quelling all this time]. Man….am I happy!

Research is fun n it’s a challenge when you embrace it officially. It’s like getting married to someone you never had known before….n now that it’s official you’d have to strive to make the best out of it. If you succeed, the fruits are all yours n if you don’t…..u’re dead meat! ;)

The fun part of doing research is that u’re workin on a topic that inetersts u most; what’s funner - is that when u’re tryin to quench this interesting interest in u, u find urself getting into some kinda ‘chakra-vyuh’ studded with more interesting stuff. The way out is to stay focused (ofcourse u can designate some of those interesting encounters as ur future quest topics) n to look at the whole thing as some kinda jig-saw puzzle – fit the right pieces together, n EUREKA u have urself enlightened with the solution. Ahh…..now comes the funnest part of researchhood: u’re in a happy trance - completely satisfied - sometimes jeopardized - but that only loops u deeper into resarch - further tanced, it’s some kinda viscous intoxication….marijuana? whatever…..but it’s absolute fun; n the best part is that people don’t shun u for ur intoxication….haha…..they just admire u……Nuts!
Haha……try it folks…..research is the best thing u could do to allay ur wandering intellect, forget ur fears, bid adieu to ur tears, & earn a ransom in pennies n Crowns!

Mother~~~~

She's sensitive, she's beautiful, she's an epitome of grace n passion - her heart the subtlest of God's creations.

She is a believer, her naivette due to her faith on emotions - she makes herself the sacrifice, in pursuit of smiles for her people.

She adds hues to the world; hues that touch n sprinkle on the days n nights - weaving in strings of love, faith, and life all around.

She sacrifices herself for her passions n emotions; her breaths entwined in the smiles of her loved ones, her concerns whirling around the well-being of her dear.

She smiles to herself, when she's struck by our hardness, n forgets it as another naive mistake that we made; never a complaint or frown doth mark her face then.

"Why do you not look after yourself, n care for all that's good just for you?" I ask with surprise.

"That's what I'm doing child" she says.

All of a sudden, I remember the ol' mother in Bhisham Sahni's 'The Boss Comes to Dinner'. I fly back to that tender age of mine n wince at the rememberance of how I had hated the son who had just cared for himself n his own interests! No, his mother had not featured in his list of interests; she was no more than a pest in his posh n aesthetic house; atleast that's what he felt in the story. I never wanted to be like him. Never, ever!

Today, when trying to define grace and feminism, with my new-found passion of creating art on the computer, I drew this beautiful lady. Ahh.....I smiled, she's beautiful! I had imagined that she had caught her sari on something, some prickly bushes? Ahhhh.....she's my Mother, n the bushes - us, clinging on to her, while she walks us ahead to a glorious dawn, compromising the pace of her advancement for the sake of bright tomorrows of her dear ones - us!

Unbelievable, wondrous, mystic, n absurd, or should I call you simply irrational?! Whatever it is, probably I'll never understand completely; but I love you Mom, n will rush to the warmth of your lap as soon as I can!

Water, water, everywhere.......

a spectacle......

A canon-ball sent by the Gods,

Gleaming through the woods divine,

Has landed at my humble door

N' washed my heart with ruthless whine.

"Arise, awake, n off u go"

Whisper my friendly woods to me,

"Don't dare look up at the canon balls,

Or u'll set off in the poetic spree"

"hehe....i say, poet? me?

Have i ever heard you crazier than this?"

And lo-behold, now that I can't stop scribbling,

Lines 2s and 4s meet a rhythmic kiss.

Awash.....................

It has finally started raining here in Ahmedabad.
Phew.....what a relief!

The balcony to my room overlooks this beautiful tree-couple ~ KrishnaChuda n RadhaChuda ~ nature's own replicas of the passionate lord-lovers ~ Sri Krishna n Sri Radha.

Decorating my little balcony everyday, as if it were a lush palanquin, these two trees have become real dear to me now. They lend me support when I'm depressed, share my smiles when I'm happy, pose for me whenever I'm haunted by the pangs of my little camera, and bless me all the time. I must be having almost hundred beautiful snaps of them.....dressed in the lovely hues of the different seasons.

This.... is the season of the 'Showers'. The lords are awash with glittering droplets of water, and they look beautiful.

KrishnaChuda.........this is what we Bengalis call the Gulmohar (delonix regia). Well....KrishnaChuda would literally mean dark-topped.... or does it have something to do with Lord Krishna's head-decor? Krishna, mostly sported this beautiful little crown, adorned with the top of a peacock's feather: well....that makes sense.....KrishnaChuda (as the name of the flower is) must be meaning this ornate band on Lord Krishna's forehead.

More often than not, this tree is seen alongside another beautiful tree RadhaChuda (again a bengali nomenclature), and the two trees are imagined together as Cupid's hit on the lords - Radha 'n' Krishna. 'RadhaChuda', also known as the 'Golden Shower' tree has smaller and subtler flowers, and it looks beautiful mostly when coupled with the KrishnaChuda. Ahhhh.....the wonderous art of Nature! Many beautiful streets in Kolkata are flanked by these beautiful fiery lovers and it's a splendor when the lush Bengali breeze lulls the blossoms off their branches, into unision, to the ground beneath the huge trunks.

My room feels so Bengali (or should I say bangali?) under the splendor of these two new friends of mine ~ n they've been pamperng me with these beautiful gifts everyday. Waking up, every morning, to a beautiful spread of petals greeting my room, only to end the day with sweet goodnight kisses with yet another bevy of lush blossoms.....boy, am I pampered?