A dangerous four letter

As we age, we live through different phases of life. The surging hormones change our physique and mind but there is nothing worse than the four letter words that spins oneself out of control. It transports oneself to an oasis in a desert. The world around oneself is transformed into lovely place. One's ears are blocked but it repeats those sweet voice again and again. It changes one's personality, behaviour and demeanour. One is transformed to be less rude, gentler and more helpful than before.

It fills in those empty, lonely, emotionless veins of heart and start to give meaning to beating life. It gives purpose and dimension to life. Nothing bothers oneself any longer, one becomes tolerable to put out any nuisance. This world is empty without this wondrous feel, I call it love like the following short scribblings.

"Like the stranded boats in the river, I wait stranded in my life until love came. Love showed me beauty, care, empathy,  intelligence, courage, literally " everything " and finally the purpose of life. This four letter little poisonous word transcends the borders of religion, creed, caste, nationality, race, language, age, cultural differences and all the differences this human civilization has erected. It is a miracle that evokes the feel of flying butterflies in the stomach, wakes oneself in the middle of the night and makes oneself roam around as a headless human"

I call this eternal LOVE.

Our differences make difference

Imagine, we ask a layman on the street, what are the causes of divorces in marriage and major conflicts in the world, majority of them would say “differences”.  Supposing, we ask a successful multinational company’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO), why do you think your company succeed in a fiercely competitive market place? CEO argues that our company’s success lies in the competence of our employees drawn from different parts of the world with diverse cultures. Why a lay person and a CEO would differ in their opinion on “differences”?  Venerable CEO probably could be a product of popular business school where he / she would be taught on the advantages of diversity but the random person wouldn’t be aware of economics of diversity or differences.

If differences are the root causes of many problems in the society why the companies with diverse employees are always succeeding in the world economy?  There has to be a reason behind any success. Increasingly the world economy is intertwined. The market place that every global company encounter now is more globalized than before. Once the poorer parts of the world is also witnessing rise in disposable income levels. Subsequently there is a ubiquitous market or in simple terms money can be made in any part of the world. The onerous question is “Does the company that is headquartered out of developed market succeed in developing market?” and also vice versa. Companies around the globe particularly multinational corporations evidently understand this conundrum of diversity factor.

Diversity is not limited to people from different nationalities or skin tone or cultures but very often forgotten women at workforce. Gladwell Malcom argues vehemently in his famous book “Outliers” it is the culture of a human being that determines him / her squarely. Any sane human being would agree to the concept of different thinking patterns between Men and Women. Are different values and patterns of thinking good or bad for a company? Business schools charge a hefty amount of fees to prove this simple fact that differences within employees create value. In fancy world of MBAs we could say shareholder values. One ponders more to understand what is this value created out of diversity?

The rocket science behind this diversity factor boils down to priorities or values within different cultures. In case of Men and Women it is differences in perception. Each culture on this planet has something quintessentially “theirs” that make them very special in solving a particular problem. For example, western cultures place strong belief in individualism on the other hand Asian cultures trust their “collectivism”. In any work environment, these differences certainly create initial ruffles but eventually it results in “innovation” if work culture is channelled properly. It is undoubtedly a challenge for companies to create that unique work culture.

Presumably every global company is trying hard to create that unique work culture so that they tap into every employee’s skills. Employees would augment each other by bringing specific example how somebody in their country of origin would perceive something for instance.  Women at workplace would inculcate style and elegance to the products’ offering. The phrase “thinking out of box” inherently ascribes to the notion of employees who can’t be defined into a boxed nationalities and gender. To fittingly finish, the beacon of hope has drawn on us to make the reality “our differences make difference” through several companies embracing diversity as key factor. 

New attempt..

It is generally a rare occasion for me to scribble a poem but I was unconventionally compelled to write one. My poem is tribute to people who saved me from dangers of skiing in pyrenees, France.

I call the title of this haiku "SNOW", here you go:

Strong in precipitation

Shines in light

Slid in a slippery slope

Shallow in sedative sleep

Shutters visibility in wind

Storms while in pressure but

Seduces while in pleasure indeed

Sight of a beautiful pearl

Sings sonnets in the clouds though

Suffers solitude in dark

Sensitive to summer

Sublime when it bursts also

Saturates when it falls, delicately

Slanderous to scandalous skiers, verily

Signorina too behaves like snow 

From foreign correspondance

from the previous article..
http://www.spotalks.com/2011/03/lost-in-translation.html

I begin to write where I left the pen on the observations of an alien who have now matured into an official foreign correspondent. He has transformed from reading books about the country of his residence to practicing the real culture. He begins to examine the meaning of culture. He starts to wonder whether the major practicing religion has any influence on it. What about the fabled education system of a country, does it impact the culture of a country? How does weather influence behaviours of its people? How is the mosaic of culture made of? He finds the intriguing answers to his questions through introspection of his experiences and readings. A learned person would probably define culture as representative thought of people based on their beliefs, values, attitudes and taste. This multitude of definitions makes our foreigner busy to experience cultural pandora box.  He reckons the best way to understand a culture is always starting to debate on any topic and relate to the experience in his country.

As the economist claims even the paintings of a country would reveal the prolific performance of its economy, I kept wandering around the archived museums of my adopted country to paint the economic timeline. My wallet got emptied time and again to traverse the vast landscape of beautiful snow clad mountains, breezed beaches and its tranquil countryside. I deduce the mild romanticism of its people that I am not quite used to from their smile, gestures, dress and sexuality. I begin to find solace in my solitude through sensual relationship. Consequently, I observe my adopted country through prism of my partner. I understand the new found colour and creed of my world around me, eventually embracing its profound delicacies. I listen to the melodramatic description of its history that swallows the distress of war and disease. My intellect then turns to its tradition of music, cinema, literature and other forms of arts to comprehend the compelling thoughts of its elite.

I read voraciously country’s vox populi on the political newspapers and magazines. I debate details of the politics with natives. I indulge myself in the mastery of its traditional sports and dance. I begin to ape the natives in dressing and body language. I even cook the cuisine that everybody in the country eats regularly. The things I once fancied as a foreigner begins to become custodian to the very own customer. As a customer to this foreign land, I have literally amused myself. I explored, enjoyed and occasionally rejoiced of leaving my homeland to report about some alien place. Nevertheless, my love affair with this foreign land is almost complete; I broke the very fabric of my sensual relationship. However, I am convinced that myriad varieties of people around the world are ultimately united by this magical touch of humanity that boils down to simple show of sympathy and sincerity in any relationship. I, as a foreigner in this feigned part of the planet finally have to leave this beautiful paradise.

In dreams....

Solitude, rather a precious moment while often you are surrounded by army of lieutenants in this 21^st century that purported to have crossed 9 billion people. Hence, I decided to write something melodramatic about being alone although not so legendary as ‘Solitary Reaper’ by William Wordsworth. The story goes; I sat down on the empty benches along the river that streams across the city. The wrangling of the mind delves into the problems of custodian life. Why would anybody like to be born into this overcrowded and over competitive society? The picture of a poor boy in one of the poorest parts of the world conjures up in front of me. I ask a question myself, how difficult is it being a poor? Then, the arsenal of questions keeps bothering me that I wouldn’t like to answer. My consciousness starts to switch off, I transform to the character of poor. As a poor boy, I curse my parents for not giving the privilege to enjoy my childhood.

I toil every day at the factory made to stand for 9 hours a day and 6 days in a week while other rich kids same age as me get to enjoy themselves thoroughly. I get scolding, yelling, and even sometimes beating from seniors although I do my work properly. I do not know why is this happening to me? Why do people treat me with scant respect? Why did not my government provide free education? What is this English language? Why didn’t I get the same opportunities like others? When do I ever travel in air conditioned bus? When do I ever get to drive a car? When do I own my house? When do I shop freely? When do I sit on this glittering café shop near the factory and sip a coffee?  When do I dress neatly like others? When do I wear good shoes apart from safety shoes? Above all, when do I ever get married? My little happiness comes from my parents get a chance to eat because I send them money.

I live in a shanty house with some 10 people, located on the outskirts of city’s slum. Everybody who shares the house with me works from dawn to dusk has similar frustrations with life. To escape the daily vagaries of life, I spend my entire Sunday on entertainment. I play football with my colleagues from work. I adore romantic movies mainly because I don’t get a chance to romance in my real life. I wonder how the hero lives his life. I spend my Sunday sleep fantasizing about the escapist things of my life. Suddenly, I woke up from the slumber and realize I’m no poor boy in a poor country. I come to conclusion that solitude teaches many lessons and sometimes makes us, as a writer because we are no more bounded by constraints to imagine. We find answers to difficult questions of our life when we are alone. The debates start to ramble in our minds when we walk on the streets, listening to music mildly, lying on the beach and taking a nap. I did write this piece of blog when I was alone hence it is also reminiscent of my solitary mind. 

Asian Parable through Indian lens

Right now, the world is definitely getting scared of the “Dragon and Tiger” hence it is the perfect time to explore the vast countries through different perceptive. Companies could understand the different dynamics of its people and markets to better structure its strategy. Exploring these countries would be like muddling through the largest river filled with silt that eventually ends in ferocious Ocean. Chinese are as complicated as their language; their culture is as intriguing as Mandarin’s script. I admire something about China that India will find it very difficult to build in the next decades to come for which it to develop socially and economically. That something is being “Chinese”. It’s the only largest country on the earth which has similar culture, understand the same language across the length and breadth of the country. People take immense pride in being Chinese to defend their language, culture and cuisine. On the other hand, India is the only country on the planet that is very diverse with so many languages, many religions, cuisines, etc.

 

Although India and China has been in logger heads over the border issue for several years, there are quite a lot of cultural similarities between India and China. It was India which exported the Buddhist religion and principles to China. Although currently India is majority Hindu, Buddhist values are still alive, for instance the India’s national flag bores the symbol of “Asoka Chakra” that describes 24 principles of human life. Some common values of Chinese and Indian people are respecting elders, parents, and teachers and placing high premium on education. Relationships in both countries are very personal and strong, people tend to compromise something to keep the relationship. Chinese people tend to respect “erudition” because it is also one of the principles of Confucianism likewise Indians. Hence education system in China and India is more or less the same. There is a humungous focus on rote learning to excel in some of the most gruelling entrance examinations.  The creativity in Chinese and Indian system has been suppressed for sometime but it is being revitalised by the influence of American soft power. We can’t presume everything to be similar in Chinese and Indian culture.

Chinese cuisine is completely different from Indian cuisine; almost all the Chinese like to eat meat and fish but most of the Indians are vegetarians. One of the most striking differences is in governance, Indian system is democratic but Chinese chose to be communist with a single party rule. Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen says in his book “The Argumentative Indian” only democracy in India is the natural way to govern because of immense plurality in the society but in the case of Chinese they tend to accept the rule of concentrated elites with market based economy.  This fundamental difference in governance can be witnessed among majority Chinese being “collective” and Indians being “consensual” respectively. There are subtle differences in terms of nationalism, language pride and openness to foreign cultures. Historians agree that India is always a land of immigrants hence anything foreign looks superior to Indians that’s also the consequences of “Colonial Hangover”. China was never totally under foreign rule, so there is a pride of being Chinese hence they may not very much open to foreign culture and language. Chinese tend to place larger premium on creating wealth that’s why wishing prosperity takes over wishing happy New Year on Chinese New Year. In general, Indians might be placing higher premium on happiness over wealth but it is certainly changing in the society that is purely creating wealth through entrepreneurship. These cultural differences are creating totally different dynamism in Chinese and Indian economy.

China and India used to be one of the largest and richest economies in the world before the advent of colonialism.  History might repeat itself if these Asian giants once start to download those necessary applications that west has installed in the past. Those applications are modern science, the rule of law and private property rights, modern medicine, the consumer society and the work ethics. In all of those applications, Chinese and Indians tend to differ in the way they are downloading and also in the way they are implementing it. In terms of installing modern science, Chinese are much faster than Indians; they have built fabulous infrastructure and great universities for research. Although India has one of the greatest elite universities that are on par with ivy leagues, majority of Indian citizens still lack the basic literacy skills. It is the failure of Indian democracy that is rotten with inefficiency but Chinese got those priorities right by educating 94% of its masses. So, future is bleak for Indian economy that has the youngest demographics in the world if it fails to educate its young population then the demographic dividend would turn into demographic disaster.

 Indian system will prevail in the long term in installing “rule of law” because the institutions are accountable to the people but China will face challenges in the future to implement fair system. India is still classified as high risk for diseases by CIA for travellers but China is not that reflects the installation of modern medicine and its implementation. India has a long way to go forward in terms of achieving high health standard. Chinese and Indian consumers are becoming as dynamic as any developed western consumers hence both countries are already reaping the benefits of this downloaded application. Although the work ethics in both countries are respected but the productivity level is one of the lowest. It is one of the reasons of their products is being considered inferior to western brands. It is definitely going to change in the near future once majority of their people start to plug and play with the globalized world.

 As an optimist, the next generation of growth, newer ideas and businesses would definitely germinate from “East” mainly from China and India since they are starting to install those essential applications. The suggestion of cooperation between these two resurgent civilizations could sound preposterous but it is indeed essential for peaceful and prosperous Asian continent. The cooperation between these two Asian giants is very integral to the 21^st century and humanity on the whole because the history has never seen so many people moving from poverty to prosperity.  This massive migration of people to prosperity would create large scale economic opportunities to companies and countries to tap. Subsequently, this so called wealth amassing also creates the superficial ethical standard of “greed is good”.

Although China and India has different political system but they have the same problem of intolerant levels of corruption in public distribution system, land reforms, and business regulation and in any kind of administrative red tapes. In China, state owned companies are creating wealth and also mess by not allowing other companies to become competitive. In general, foreigners could assume that the entire nation is run by the bureaucrats not by entrepreneurs. On the other hand in India, both private and public sector is involving in rampant corruption. Entrepreneurs are the only ones who are milking the benefits of economic boom and there is no trickle-down effect to the bottom of the pyramid. As a matter of fact, both countries particularly India has a long way to go before it becomes as competitive as Europe or USA.  World particularly the developed world of Europe and USA has something to offer to China and India and also get something in return.  

Europe could leverage the growth of China and India to keep its society prosperous. It is not a zero sum game moreover increasing prosperity would definitely create opportunities for trade across the border. The Companies could continue to build capacities in these countries to sell their products. They can also recruit some Asians in the management to inject differences in the ideas. Companies would indeed find it harder to do business in both China and India although it has huge market. In China for instance, companies would be much wary of intellectual property loses. In India, it would be frustrated by the red tapes in the bureaucracy. Hence understanding the observations of similarities, differences and needs of these two countries would definitely give a better scope for refined business strategy. This can be purportedly achieved through very diverse work culture that companies has beginning to launch.

Lost in translation!!!

It feels good and audaciously challenging to experience something new in life. Every second of your life emotes to feel home. Actually, it is being foreigner gives you an unique existence. You figure out the quintessential local that even locals are not aware of; you learn the nuances of language that only their linguistics can comprehend. You walk the life with the heavy shoulder of two faces, the one mired with the lingering home and the other blossoming to be local.

In the beginning, it is like you are utterly lost in the dark woods and you don't know the way to escape the vagaries of ferocious animals. But then, you try to understand rhythms of forest life and learn tricks of survival. Indeed, it is the survival of fittest that would integrate totally with the daily chores of the country. The process to be the fittest is the most fascinating part of experience.That experience include getting to know traffic rules, procedure to apply for any administrative work and value system of the society.

Even traffic rules and driving in the country would say something to you about the culture of the country. Your observation of  new country and picture of home certainly contemplate the mind map. This map in your mind is much powerful and stronger than Google map that you might hold on to. This map has the emotions, noise and dynamism of the country. It speaks about the status of current economy and passion of their people. Inevitably, your learning of their language would read the complexity of people's mind and also paints the picture of their thought process. That thought process makes you feel that your now a qualified "foreign correspondence"

To be continued....

Do you use credit card?

Hey everyone!

Its been actually ages since I wrote anything for Spotalks and I very much regret it. So as I was browsing through it tonight, I thought of writing something that is on my mind for the last few days- Credit Cards!

There is definitely a race out there among banks that offer credit card services! Every day calls, offers, redeemable points, gifts etc etc they can really turn our day into hell. But when I was offered a credit card by my bank, I enquired with some people about its uses and misuses. My findings were peculiarly strange when seen with an analytical eye.

Firstly, entrepreneurs and businessmen who enjoy a luxurious lifestyle (Lets use the Kiyosaki term 'Rich Dad' for these people) advised their kids against using credit cards! Perhaps because the kids are brought up in a 'need preceedes the cost' atmosphere at home (which means if you want something then get it, don't bother about the price) or perhaps they fear that the kids might not understand the need to save, or perhaps something else that I am unable to think of!

When I asked the same thing to my 'Poor dad', he said use of credit card must be encouraged! Why? He said 1) it helps to make the most out of offers and discounts,
2) helps you compile all your monthly expenditure to a single document (the credit card statement),
3) helps you curtail your lifestyle out of the fear of overspending (capitalising the fear of credit),
4) can be used across the globe so saves the forex trouble and also
5) helps you take loan in case of an emergency.

It is surprising that the two identified category of risk takers clearly hold contrasting views on Credit Cards. While businessmen who are considered risk loving people advise against use of credit card, the ordinary employee who is known for being risk averse seems to not care about the risk involved in Credit Cards.

However I feel that since it brings with it a risk of overspending, it is important to develop the right attitude of spending (what is that? the one that validates the necessity before spending) before one starts to use a Credit Card. I also believe that a good spending attitude necessarily does not involve meticulous maintanence of the expenditure down the paisa (or cents/shillings...)

Are you comfortable using your credit card? Or do you fear that you might tend to overspend? And is it correct to relate one's risk aversion to his readiness/inertia to use his Credit Card?

Cheers!
Shyam

the rude boy revelation

Whatever little hope I had of the american pop scene had completely dissolved into thin air(or a nauseous mixture of a various set of not so nice ingredients) when I started listening to a song "rude boy". Let me start with the first line, please bear with me.(dont make jokes about bears)

"come here rude boy, boy can you get it up. come here rude boy, boy is you big enough"

Now, I have nothing against the meaning of the song. I am viciously turned on every time I listen to this song, that my mind starts painting very vivid scenes of, well, scenes of... OK(i actually wanted to write something involving my pants, but i will let it pass). Something else bothers me. "Is you big enough"? Seriously, is this the best you can muster? Isn't the native tongue English? Or has anyone managed to change that to something else, because it was not too democratic enough, and wanted an american intervention? These kids are young, they can be taught to change, and together, we can. Can what?

"buckle up, I ma give it to you stronger, Hands up we can go a little longer, Tonight I ma get a little crazy..."

I ma? seriously? Why do we have a problem of reading normal words like 'am' these days? Selective retinal inversion disorder? I have a serious problem, I know. I fuss. too much. about a language that is not even my mother tongue. Its none of my business. I am not grammatically perfect! I dont care. I will whine when I feel like whining, that is something everybody should be allowed. Its the only thing that we can do for free. So, ma? really?

The last line is redundant. After listening to the song upto this point, it is crystal clear that the singer is crazy and had the audacity to impose this song on us; the song listeners, including myself, are crazy that this song has 30 million hits on youtube. Now, its time to blame youtube for censorship, and moral right violations, and how this can cause a serious dent in the youngster's mindset, and start talking about segregation, and how the singer is black, and how the black people live in too much poverty, and how the american president is black, and how america is not the bit concerned about oil spills and its crumbling economy, and how oil rich countries like saudi dont care two hoots for other religions, and how India is shining for 2 % of its population while none of this ever seems to matter for the millions who have nothing...(I am delusional now, I think I smoked too much weed).

"rude boy"

Oh, wow. Phenomenal. This is the kind of stuff that John milton missed out in paradise lost. This is paradise regained, rehash. This is the illiad of the crack heads. This is the opium of the trivially challenged american urban/semi-urban(?) youth. This is the short lived anthem everyone talks about. This is a song that can buy a meal for some. This is the song, that is meant to be just a song for some. This is the song, that is meant to be make sense for some. This is high school girly crap for some. So much for a song, eh?

For India to be Super power

I have some thought process on what India and Indians have to do if India wants to be super power. Most of the thoughts are Utopian, humorous and some are non sense. There are as following

0. Eradicate Poverty

1. Abolish religion

2. Abolish casteism

3. Eliminate gender inequalities and inequities

4. Educate everyone

5. Don't reproduce (most people should not do it because India has alarming population growth)

6. Move towards open society

7. Free thinking should be embraced

8. Wealth should be redistributed

9. Legalize and regulate every taboos that society think it is...

10. Make English a mandatory language

11. Provide subsidized Healthcare

12. Abolish arrange marriage system too ( Will reduce dowry incidents)

13. Embrace interbreeding ( will improve the IQ of ordinary Indian people)

14. Implement compulsory sex education from primary schools

15. Penalize traffic offenders

16. Abolish nepotism in Indian politics

17. Criminalize racism and casteism

18. Abolish single sex education and embrace coeducation

19. Embrace consumerism and abort socialist policies

20. Make female education a fundamental right

21. Provide full employment opportunities

22. Modernize infrastructure

23. People should become polite

24. Selfishness should become normal

25. Individuality should be embraced

26. Pollution should be curtailed



 List goes on.. Commentators are kindly advised to include their list..

The usual whine. The same old bottle.

http://www.thehindu.com/news/international/article509720.ece

Sirs and Madams,

How much I love India Pakistan cricket matches. Have you seen the excitement? It borders on jingoism. You know why? Sometimes people need trust and credibility, as you rightly pointed out sometime earlier to overcome barriers. Whom should we trust? No offense, we know the pakistani people are a beautiful set of creatures just like us Indians, but do we trust the army that seems to be silently calling the shots? Do we trust the words of ISI that is feeding propaganda to any muslim on the streets of kashmir for azadi? Do we trust the mujahideen who have the patience of a 2-year old, but the military arsenal of a whole nation? Whom should we trust?

Why do you care, is the usual question.

My country, unfortunately doesn't care about serious issues-we are worried about IPL not making enough money to buy poor millionaires yachts and multi-storeyed buildings, we are interested in Dhoni's engagement and marriage because that would feed a family of four, we love spending our money and resources on ulaga tamil maanadu which is exactly what people need given most of them have TV sets donated free of cost, we must concern ourselves with hiking fuel prices every now and then so that the aam aadmi can squirm uncomfortably when he goes to the petrol bunk, and we must ask the vegetable vendor if we could pay by a cheque, since you know, the prices...

Something bothers me. I hate it when people have to die unnecessarily. When people starve and starve, of hopes of one meal a day. When wars are fought for trivial reasons such as mad men's propaganda. When the rains play 'ringa ringa roses...all fall down' with already starved villagers. When women have to face pigs who are high on libido and low on morals in every f**king place. Let's face it, life is f**king unfair. But there should be some fairness in being unfair-some men cannot have all the money. The money, it is of no use when you are dead and eating maggots inside the grave.

Communist, aren't I? Ah, I must the left leaning, arrogant, union creating, work hate mongering russian spy from the cold and snowy hills of kodambakkam...

Am I doing something about cleaning it up? I am sure as hell not going to, so why am I really bitching about something over which I am so indifferent? Because, there is something called justice. I am sorry, I meant to say, there should be something called justice. You know, the balance thing, with the lady with her eyes blind-folded? If she were to see some of the things that people do these days, she would definitely not hesitate to throw the scales at them along with 3 tons of TNT.

Ah, the times...

Over Confidence and Failure - part three

As I mentioned previously I was not doing any tutorials in my first semester mainly due to my familiarity with the subjects. That arrogance really back stabbed me to barely score decent in my first semester.  I contemplated scoring really very well before my exams but I flunked. I categorized my failure due to over confidence and poor judgement over the pattern of NTU scoring. This failure put me into the dark days of my life since I usually been one of the top performers in my schools throughout I could not digest the poor grades. I was totally depressed for a week or so. Moreover, the depression was aggravated by my loneliness in NTU since I was pursuing Entrepreneurship minor during semester break.  I wanted a solid come back with good grades. So, I put myself into the art of reclusion and seclusion.

In the hindsight, those are some of the worst mistakes of my life. I should not have secluded myself from the main stream NTU population since I missed some real good experience of networking and guidance. I realized later that sound career decisions are usually made through networking. It is usually networking which opens the boundless opportunities of high flying jobs. Reflecting on my failures, I consider poor planning and time management are main reasons. My over confidence was the natural product of self esteem I gained from being one of few privileged  blokes from Cuddalore old town to pursue UG in NTU. I became philosophical to realize that failures teach more lessons than success so I changed my mindset to tackle any kind of situations in my life.

At the same time, my first year is not completely about failures but also new dimension of learning in my life. I met people from all over world, learned their cultures and tried to learn languages, experienced international cuisine. More interestingly, my education has become more analytical than rote learning which I was used to for more than 16 years of my life. I don't deny that rote learning happens in NTU but still better than my experience in Indian system. Through failures and mistakes, I was able to understand my interests and more importantly my strengths and weakness. That path of my life gave ample opportunities to develop myself as a good team player and leader. I have participated and also won several competitions during my first years with people from diverse cultures and different backgrounds. So, I consider this might be a beginning of new era in my life towards education.

For part one - Click here
For Part two - Click here

Quantum Leap - A new beginning - Part two

The world has changed in the part two because I have reached the brand new country called Singapore. That was my first air travel experience in my life, moreover I traveled alone. I was anxious in the flight itself, what awaits me in the shores of Singapore. When I reached Singapore, I saw confluence of east and west though west dominated in the eastern part of the world. Singapore, one of the most vibrant city state economies of the world. It has thriving population which accepts people from any parts of the planet and better known for its international cuisine and local hawker centers. My arrival was greeted by my friend Karthik who took a cab, which happens to be a Mercedes ride from Changi Airport to NTU. I was completely awestruck, when I looked at the speedometer and found 110 KM/hr.

Suddenly, I had a feeling of entering a forest in a small state that is none other than NTU. The campus has ample greenery and concrete. I checked into my room to find that my room mate is an Indonesian guy but anyway he was away. I thought to myself that I am gonna experience multiculturalism right from year one. To my surprise, on the next day when I went to hall office to inform my arrival they asked me to change to an Indian room mate. Anyway, he is not a Tamilian like me but a south indian. We gelled together instantly, I got introduced to many friends who had great credentials unlike me. Sometimes, I even felt like I entered some alien land. Then comes the usual Indian identity, I am not talking about food but ragging. I was asked by my seniors to attend ragging sessions every night at some particular place. I used to be a very timid boy from small town hence I was naturally uncomfortable with those non sense.

Moreover, most of them spoke only Hindi during ragging sessions. I knew little Hindi at that time and escaped almost every session because I could not answers those people.  My English, which previously  had heavy Tamil accent was ridiculed by Northies. In retrospect, those ragging sessions helped me a lot in improving my English language skills and people skills. Though, I never stayed in a cosmopolitan city in India but I came to realize the attitudes of Indians in urban India. It was bit uncomfortable for me to open up. As the time pass, I was able to mingle with almost all the races in NTU. Within a week of ragging, I was an expert in offensive Hindi and English language. I got offended initially because I was not called by those words before in my life. Sometimes, I used to think whether I came to a wrong university that admits only rogue Indians. In hindsight, those seniors have better grades and job offer than me. Hence, I eventually realized it is only part and parcel of Indian students' life in NTU.

First year of my undergraduate is one of the most memorable days in NTU mainly because I hardly studied anything. I was exposed to the culture of watching sitcoms and nocturnal habits. Classes are usually conducted in a huge lecture theater that almost resemble Sathyam cinemas in Chennai with all the woofer facilities. Lectures in NTU are presented through beautiful presentation slides, which mostly put you off in sleep. Lectures are usually recorded and posted online on elearning site in NTU. Apparently, NTU is one of the pioneers in elearning facilities. We also have excruciating tutorials classes to attend. We were told to complete tutorial sheets before the class but I never did those in my entire NTU life. Thats fun! not completing homework isn't it?

To read part one click here

Pizzaconomics...

Well... after what can be described as an indefinite break from almost everything in life, I am back to publish a little tidbit of a post- please don't deride me if the subject is not to your taste (no pun intended), as it is about arbitrage opportunities in pizza (or Canadian Pizza, to be more precise :P). So before people begin throwing tomatoes at me and calling me a right c*nt, I will try to explain in more detail.

ar·bi·trage(ärb-träzh)
n.
The purchase of securities on one market for immediate resale on another market in order to profit from a price discrepancy.
intr.v. ar·bi·traged, ar·bi·trag·ing, ar·bi·trag·es
To be involved in arbitrage.
[Middle English, arbitration, from Old French, from arbitrer, to judge, from Latin arbitrr, to give judgment; see arbitrate.]

That is the dictionary meaning of arbitrage- it's a fancy way of saying that I've gotten a free lunch. So this adventure begins with me trying to get a decent dinner, when I stumble upon the two rival pizza joints (Pizza Hut and Canadian Pizza) right opposite each other. The CP joint had an air of absolute neglect, while the PH joint seemed very well done. Through prior experience, I decided that Pizza Hut would be injurious to my pocket so I decided to go for the Canadian Pizza offer. I looked at the pricing list (or "Menu") and then saw the deals. This is what confronted me:


Buy one get one free offer

1) 10" Regular - $23.90
2) 12" Medium - $31.90
3) 14" Large - $37.90

Getting one pizza has a thirty percent discount!!


So a quick calculation on the Large revealed that I would be loosing approximately $12 ( I then refined the calculation to $11.37 while deciding whether I should go for it). So one large pizza would work out to be $26.53. I also realized that the outlet only took cash. On the way to the atm, I worked out that 2 regular pizzas would yield an area of 50(pi) inch sq. I also worked out that the larger 14" would yield an area of 44(pi) inch sq. Now I realized I would get more pizza by paying less if I choose the 10" option. The N.P.A.P (Narayan Pizza Arbitrage Parameter, which is defined as cost of pizza per unit area of pizza)showed the following:

2 regular pizzas: 0.1521
1 14" pizza : 0.1723

Thereby a clear arbitrage opportunity exists in the said Canadian Pizza outlet and thus should be exploited until the opportunity disappears. But since sales (similar to liquidity) is low (it looked like a warehouse really! :P), I doubt this will happen! :D

P.S- I know it is an arbitrage opportunity of 2 cents per sq.inch :D

I also know it's not exactly an arbitrage as well, but somewhat poor pricing :D

A Dilemma - Part one

 As I said, I want to pen down my own journey to Nanyang Technological University in Singapore, I am here to share my dilemma in choosing the right university for my life. Many of my friends might know that I am originally from a small town called Cuddalore, which is nearer to Pondicherry. Though, Cuddalore provided mediocre education for very competitive world, I chose the hard path of switching my board from State to CBSE in 11th. For many who is reading this article will definitely see  this as a weird decision considering the fact that many students go vice versa. The sole reason for doing that is to challenge myself analytically and emotionally to equip myself for some great challenges later in life.

Getting into IIT was my dream, which ended as a dream mainly due to the lack of fundamentals while the kids from privileged background gets drilled from their tender age. Anyway my hard preparation of one year of my life gave me immense analytical sheer. The world of maths, science was not enjoyable for at least one year since I need to internally motivate me to slog long hours in solving some complex problems. I wouldn't say TN state board is bad but certainly it doesn't encourage students to solve problems so I really faced humongous challenge while comprehending the  IIT JEE problems first. Eventually, that experience was a real learning experience which tested my patience, perseverance in learning new things. Since, I was not actually preparing for CBSE board exams for one year I got damn scared before the commencement of board exams. So I took voluntary leave from boring schools and buckled down for exams. My memorizing capacity which I garnered from State board curriculum was a real savior.

I was able to master the theories of all subjects pretty well and confident before board by solving past 5 year board papers. Apart from English, I was able to score  well, particularly thanks to a friend of mine who helped me to score good marks in Computer Science; the subject which I abandoned until the exams. So, I was able to crusade the board mess with my good state board hand writing skills and presentation skills. But, still I have to prepare for engineering entrance examinations particularly AIEEE and JEE. Though, I totally gave up the confidence of clearing JEE, I did prepare well for AIEEE. I also applied to two Singapore universities mainly due to the advice of a Senior friend. After the exams, both the universities called me for pre-assessments.

I went to Bangalore to give my NTU entrance examinations. That trip to Bangalore was made awesome by friends of my Uncle who were damn funny commenting on the girls who wrote the exams. One of the guys during that time got an admit to IIM Calcutta. So he told me to take the NTU entrance exams seriously. Right after my NTU entrance, I had to write my AIEEE exams but I really screwed up the exams since I completely juggled marking of chemistry paper. I was shattered right after the exams because I definitely know that my chances are very slim. So, I returned home with a heavy heart. Then, there was huge fuss about TN engineering entrance. Ultimately, they did conduct it. I received my offer to join NTU, Anna university and also NIT (Some NIT in north).

I always wanted to pursue chemical engineering since chemistry was always my passion in life. I got chemical engineering in Anna but I forgot to put chemical as my first option in NTU. NTU offered me mechanical engineering. I had little guidance about NTU those times. So I called up that IIM dude asked for his guidance he urged me to go to NTU for exposure and learning. I solely decided to come based on his wise decision. I dropped my plan of joining Anna which was my comfort zone naturally. Hence, the beginning of different life in a new environment.

murphy's laws...

I am starting to my college, so it started to rain heavily. as soon as i was inside the safe confines of my department, the rain stopped. The rains are always different when you walk. its rushing into your face, creating a tremendous amount of precipitation right in front the glasses so that you have to take your glasses off in case you need to see the 18 wheel trailer that would have squished you had you not taken them out at the right time. as soon as you go stand in a bus stop, the bus driver knows you are there, and somehow manages to drive slowly (by telepathy,i think), very slowly, so that you are totally drenched. the instant you get inside the bus, your pockets respond normally, by holding the change in. you would find every other currency note except the dollar that is very much necessary; it is usually during this time that you can hear the people breathe very heavily, the whole bus waiting for you. you are responsible for their delay. if they are late for a meeting, its you. if they are late for the flight, you should pay them their fare.

computer labs are god's way of playing chance games on mortals. i am shocked by the utter simplicity of the algorithm though. if you are desperate to do something for your assignment in the lab, you will not get a system, it will be full. depending on the % availability, you have to reassess your assignment's importance. if its very important, sorry man, tough luck. if its not, you just might find a space. if you see an empty space,

#1 there is a person on the other door waiting for the system and he is close to the seat

#2 the computer just crashed

#3 you forgot your password and you hear heavy breathing of the other 'waitees' from behind.

#4 the guy next to the seat has reserved the seat for his girl friend.

just before the day of the exam, you would feel like you have to absolutely sleep, in the absence of which your head will explode into a million and eight pieces. but the day the exam is over, not even a million gallons of cough syrup would put you to sleep.

so much for normalcy in life...

Coming Up

I have plan to write chronicles of my NTU life from May onwards. This 10 part series will have some fictional elements but mostly based on my own reflections of NTU life. NTU has given immense opportunity to network with varied minds of diverse cultures and distinct backgrounds.

Coming soon........

the strange encounter with the fourth kind...

at the rate of seventeen feet per second, my professor was digging a grave for me to be buried in. i had forgotten my report. worse, my professor was in a very foul mood. this is probably the worst combination ever, right after ramarajan's pink and green. i could see his contorted face, it was like seeing the blob, or the thing, or a combination of all the alien creatures ever conceived in those scary movies. the conversation:

blob: rip, tear, kill...

sub text: where is the report?

me: oops. i mean, sir?

explanation: never say oops. never ever use that word, even though its not a word. it cannot be accepted by professors/bosses/anything that barks. the word oops can as well be substituted with "please kill me and feed my arms and limbs to stray dogs".

blob: rip, flesh, blood, tasty.

sub text: what do you mean, sir? what the hell happened to the report, isnt it due today?

me: i know, i mean, i didnt. i mean, i wasnt sure. i actually thought it was.

explanation: that is probably the most stupid explanation a human being with even negligible quantity of white and gray matter can come up with. its hard to think on the feet, it is best to think of a valid lie, that can be validated by all possible means. i repeat, all possible means.(forget that, and you will pay for it dearly.)

blob:grrrrrrr.growl...thunderous sounds.

sub text: you had no idea, what kind of an answer is that? arent you old enough or should we talk about this when you start nursery classes again?

me: hushed silence. head bowed down, staring at the virus-parasite battle on the floor. virus-1, parasite-0 after round 1.

explanation: retribution in life comes at the later stage. you would want to maim him right now, or do something really bad to him like make him eat your dal, but have patience. there is always time to plot and scheme. conspiracies are not successful all the time.

blob: licks tongue on the chin. rolls its eyes.

sub text: now you forgot to talk? or you cannot talk anymore?

me: i am sorry.

explanation: dig your nails into the flesh, bury your face in the imaginary sand, muffle your voice in the imaginary handkerchief, ball your fist and slam it into an imaginary wall, blow out the imaginary steam out of your ears, and apologize. he pays, you live. he doesnt, you sit by the dumpsters, asking for quarters.

blob: subdued. turns around.

subtext: i am very disappointed, gautham.

me: *phew* i will finish it and turn it in today sir.

explanation: time for some tequila shots and jagermeister. whistling *always look on the bright side of life*...

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M F Hussain - The Greatest PAIN-ter of India???

“The Picasso of India” says one. “Pride of India” says Nirupama Rao. Now, is he truly what they describe him to be, i wonder.

Yes, he’s a painter, i agree. And Yes, he’s the best India has produced. No doubt.

Let me just ask you one question. If he had been born a non-Muslim and had he attempted to do the painting of a certain religious figure of Islam, how would the Muslim world have reacted?

The issue here is not about religious tolerance or sensitivity. Soutik Biswas of BBC writes (here)

“The story of Husain is one of the saddest of post-Independence India. It is a story of how the country's most famous painter has been hounded out while the state looked on.”

The issue at the core of his plight is his creativity. My point is Mr. Hussain being such a gifted painter that he is, why was he not creative enough to express his creativity in other ways than to paint Hindu Gods and Goddess in that way. Just because there are sensual and sexually explicit sculptures at places like Khajuraho, does not mean Hindu’s are open to it. Its akin to stripping a woman naked just because she lets her husband do it.

The problem with artists is that they take their Freedom of expression for granted. Mr. Hussain is 93 today and has lived through the most painful periods of our history - the partition, Indo-Pak wars etc. What has he done for the country with his creativity? I have not heard of any of his paintings that portray religious harmony. Certainly the media has not highlighted any of it - The Hindu included.

Certainly Hussain could have used his talent to good use. Not in the way he has.

Do you think he deserves all the accolade he’s getting? I certainly don’t.

I cant but wonder what would have happened to him had he used his creativity & played arnd with his own religion. Remember Salman Rushdie?

Clearly, Mr. Hussain is a smart man that he chose to play with the sentiments of Hindus who are tolerant and who even praise your work towards the twilight of your life.

My anger is not towards Hussain - rather the government and its censorship board for doing little to uphold the sanctity of India’ major religion.

Lord Krishna & Gopiyars

Who is the most influential person in this world? I should say Lord Krishna. Weather a person is good or bad, follower of hinduism or not, materialistic or spirtual, everyone is quoting Lord Krishna.

Numerous literaute, art forms,and actions are moulded after Lord Krishna's life and teachings.

Recently, an article about a prominent Swamiji had been great shock to us. Using the concept of Krishna & Gopiyars, he had cheated on the innocence of many beautiful young people.

The fraudulent Swamji had the intelligence to read what Lord Krishna had mentioned in geeta and mahabharata stories. He had witten and given so much spirtual discourse. He had visited numerous temples, did various noble acts like giving alms and building hosptials.Yet, now his name had been degraded and he had brought great dishonour to himself.

Now again the name of Lord Krishna and gopiyars are mentioned to justify evil acts.Swamiji had thought of himself as playful Lord Krishna and the ladies as gopiyars.

Just to share and clarify with the readers, according to the Bagawatha puranam, Lord Krishna was brought up by the cowherd girls called Gopiyars. For them Lord Krishna was like their son, and best friend. THe girls were enticed by the young lord krishna who was less than 16 years old. When he had killed the King Kamsa, he was only around 11 years. When Krishna was playful with the cowherd girls, he was only around 10+ years. All his playful pranks brought great joy to the people and they were attached to the adorable person. He was a 'theeratha vilayathu pillai'. And he was really a adorable child ( pillai). For many of the ladies, they had sang and dance with the adorable child. Their yearning was to be always with Lord Krishna.

Furthermore, when Lord Krishna had attained his adolescence and youth, he was busy fighting wars and doing high level diplomatic ties admist the highly chaotic situation of rivalry among friends and relatives.

So, I hope next time, no one should use Lord Krishna's lifestyle to justify their wrong deeds. Or come up with misleading comments like, ' thats what lord krishna did'.

Disclaimer: All comments are just for discussion only and not meant to offend anyone or propogate any ideology.