Abhishek's World of Words and Experience!

Sky Diving at Lake Elsinore

2011-10-31T05:22:00.001+05:30

Today I went for Sky Diving at Lake Elsinore with Gaurav bhaiya and Jayant.... it was an awesome experience, full of thrill much more than any roller-coaster that I've taken as yet..... highly recommended for anyone who is fond of roller-coasters :-)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cJ2I9W7kJ9Q&feature=youtu.be

Njoyed thoroughly :)

Rock n Roll Map

2011-05-01T01:22:00.002+05:30

Pundit's 2011 Birthday

2011-03-07T04:21:00.001+05:30

Aneko kala jinko bhent mein mili,

Gayeki, chitrakaari aur Palmistry;

Jinka happy vaala birthday hai aaj,

Vo hain, Sri Sri 1001 Tripathi Maharaaj!!!!!!

Pup's 2011 Birthday wish

2011-03-07T04:20:00.003+05:30

Pappu humaara sab se pyaara hai,

Uska face hi nahi, chuttar bhi dulaara hai;

Kaam to sab karte hain magar,

pups ne logon ko kaam pe lagaaya hai!!!

Gandhi's 2011 birthday wish

2011-03-07T04:16:00.001+05:30

No Corona no budlight,

Humaara Gandhi hai sabse bright;

Chahe ho India, US or Singapore,

Pen uchalte uchalte usne zindagi bitaai!

Contests on Facebook

2010-10-02T12:17:00.000+05:30

Please vote for me !!

Repo and Reverse Repo Hike - Good or bad!

2010-09-18T02:02:00.001+05:30

The hike came at a point when the market was expecting it...so no surprises on that front... but the surprise was the amount of hike...that left people a bit puzzled!! So is it good or bad??

A bit of both.

The good thing is that the banks will "probably" increase their fixed deposit rates.
The bad news is that the monthly EMIs for home loan, auto loans whill go up.

Hope housewifes find it a bit easy to manage their funds... this rise in Repo and Reverse Repo is done to contain inflation.

First Parent-teacher Meeting

2010-04-10T13:44:00.000+05:30

Today was the first parent-teacher meeting of Nandini!!! yes, she is 2 years and 1 month old and going to playgroup of Roots2Wings...
Its so hard to believe that we are already deep in the education system...not only we are getting up at 6 in the morning, rushing with our daily chores, quickly having our breakfast (not to miss it for sure) and making our darling ready, but also trying to cope up with the education system.... with each passing day we are getting more engrossed....for now, let me not talk about the system and the pressure its generating on kids....

Today was a good day and it gave me further sense of my responsibilities... Sweetu has no doubt accepted the school and its satisfying that she is in fact liking the place... One month back when we put her in the playgroup, she cried almost every day after i dropped her to school... but look at her now... when i drop her, she just look back once, gives me a smile and goes running to meet her friends and play with her toys :)

Sweetu seems to be picking up things well, already learnt body parts, sits comfortably on a chair, identifies mumma, papa and baby :) her favourite rhyme is Twinkle Twinkle little star and she gestures good on that...

Overall, it was a satisfying meeting at the school and both we as parents and her teachers are happy.. :)

Understanding Financial Numbers

2009-11-01T13:28:00.000+05:30

Result season is here with lot of data. Market enthusiasts are keeping an eye on the numbers, vying to get the best of the deals. This season has seen a lot of variation with companies like ITC booking more than expected profits, L&T meeting expectations and then some like TISCO with a disappointing show.

Some good parameters to assess Company’s financial health other than PE are:
1. Quick ratio: Quick Ratio is often used as a better test of a company's liquidity position. That is why it is some times called a Liquidity Ratio or Acid Test Ratio.

The Quick Ratio is obtained by subtracting inventories from the Current Assets figure, before dividing by the Current Liabilities.

Quick ratio = (Current assets – Inventories) / Current Liabilities

A ratio of 1.0 is considered good enough. It can be higher for certain industries, but too high a ratio may indicate management inefficiency.

2. Current Ratio: The Current Ratio indicates whether the company will be able to meet its payment obligations that become due within the year. It can do this by using the cash, or by collecting payments from its debtors, or by quickly turning over inventory to generate cash.

This ratio is obtained by dividing the Current Assets figure in the Balance Sheet by the Current Liabilities. A good ratio is between 1.5 and 2. A ratio of 3 or more may not necessarily be better.

Current Ratio = Current assets / Current Liabilities

Current Assets typically comprise: inventories, cash and cash equivalents, accounts receivables (debtors), loans and advances.

Current Liabilities include: interest payments, accounts payables (creditors), provisions for payments of taxes, dividends, retirement and other benefits.

3. Debt/Equity ratio: This ratio measures how much money a company can borrow over the long term without running into payment problems. When a company keeps borrowing, its fixed costs keep increasing due to the interest payments.

Debt/Equity ratio = Total debt / Shareholder's equity

Total debt includes both short term and long term debt, such as, secured and unsecured loans, mortgage payments. Shareholder's equity includes equity shares and reserves.

Ideally Debt/Equity ratio should be less than 1, and the lower the better. But this is a thumb-rule. For certain industries like auto manufacturing, the ratio can be 2 or more. One needs to make peer comparison in a sector or industry to arrive at typical ratios. Given a choice, I'd prefer a company with high equity than one with high debt. Why? There are no fixed costs involved with equity shares. If business is good, more dividend payout may be involved. If business is bad, dividend payment can be slashed. Interest payments due to high debt will need to be paid regardless.

RIL Declares 1:1 Bonus issue - Is it good for me?

2009-10-10T15:11:00.002+05:30

RIL's declaration of 1:1 bonus issue came as a good surprise. People are treatting it as a Diwali gift from none other than Reliance. Bonus shares are considered to be highly beneficial to the shareholders. But in reality, I think, though these bonus shares are free gift on which dividends will be paid in future, but won't the share prices be adjusted downwards? So wont' shareholder's wealth remain the same?
But other view is that since its Reliance, in long term this will surely be friutful! Reliance has always been outperformer, so i hope this bonus will be beneficial to me...

Comments welocme :)

25 Tips for a healthy heart!

2009-10-07T22:10:00.000+05:30

Turn NOTEPAD into a dairy!

2009-10-07T20:32:00.002+05:30

Turn Notepad into a Diary!
Here is a real cool tip for people who use notepad to write down any info on a day to day basis. It serves as a virtual diary. Follow these steps:
->Open a notepad and type .LOG (case senstitive) as the first time.
-> Save and close the file.
-> Double click the file to open it and notice that Notepad appends date and time at the start.
-> Type your notes and then save and close the file.
Each time you open the file, Notepad repeats the process, appending date and time and placing the cursor below it!!

I'm sad!

2009-06-26T21:53:00.003+05:30

Today I'm sad for the biggest show-man is no more with us. The one and only one who showed the world what break dancing is and what it takes to fight against all odds to become world's greatest entertainer, has left for heavenly aboard. Yes I'm talking about none other than Michael Jackson.
This guy is the one who inspired me (and million others) and made me go on stage! I cant forget my freshers' in college where i danced to the tune of Billie Jeans which everyone enjoyed. That was my best performance ever and today I dedicate it to MJ.
May his soul rest in peace.

Real Heroes

2009-03-21T22:33:00.002+05:30

Just finished watching CNN IBN's Real Heroes. This annual award function in colaboration with Reliance Industries brings into lime-light the people who have outlived life and are in turn working for the life and happiness of others. These ordinary people working in an extra-ordinary capacity to make this world a better place for one and all.
I was watching it for the first time; this year being the second year of felicitation. When I heard about the work these people have done, be it education, healthcare, community, sports, environment, its out of this world. One feels inspired and thankful to the emmense work these people are doing with no external support. Most of them are self funded people, trying to meet their ends. Surely, this felicitation and financial help from Reliance Industries will equip them better to carry on their noble work. It was great to see that people have left the corporate world after getting education from IIT to help their society. Also there was a gentleman who refused IAS job and rather started working for the uplift of the rural.

Personally I want to thank CNN IBN and Reliance Industries for bringing these people to the front. Many will be motivated and inspired to live for others! Salute to these men and women.

A Small new family in our backyard!!!

2009-02-08T16:50:00.003+05:30

Family that sleeps together, stays together!!

New born in our backyard!

Simple analogy for Bubble Burst of Oct 2008

2008-10-25T20:38:00.001+05:30

Recently I recieved this in my in-box. Very interesting narration for bubble burst.

Once there was a little island country. The land of this country was the tiny island itself. The total money in circulation was 2 dollars as there were only two pieces of 1 dollar coins circulating around.

1) There were 3 citizens living on this island country. A owned the land. B and C each owned 1 dollar.

2) B decided to purchase the land from A for 1 dollar. So, now A and C own 1 dollar each while B owned a piece of land that is worth 1 dollar.

* The net asset of the country now = 3 dollars.

3) Now C thought that since there is only one piece of land in the country, and land is non producible asset, its value must definitely go up. So, he borrowed 1 dollar from A, and together with his own 1 dollar, he bought the land from B for 2 dollars.
*A has a loan to C of 1 dollar, so his net asset is 1 dollar.
* B sold his land and got 2 dollars, so his net asset is 2 dollars.
* C owned the piece of land worth 2 dollars but with his 1 dollar debt to A, his net residual asset is 1 dollar.
* Thus, the net asset of the country = 4 dollars.

4) A saw that the land he once owned has risen in value. He regretted having sold it. Luckily, he has a 1 dollar loan to C. He then borrowed 2 dollars from B and acquired the land back from C for 3 dollars. The payment is by 2 dollars cash (which he borrowed) and cancellation of the 1 dollar loan to C. As a result, A now owned a piece of land that is worth 3 dollars. But since he owed B 2 dollars, his net asset is 1 dollar.

* B loaned 2 dollars to A. So his net asset is 2 dollars.
* C now has the 2 coins. His net asset is also 2 dollars.
* The net asset of the country = 5 dollars. A bubble is building up.

(5) B saw that the value of land kept rising. He also wanted to own the land. So he bought the land from A for 4 dollars. The payment is by borrowing 2 dollars from C, and cancellation of his 2 dollars loan to A.

* As a result, A has got his debt cleared and he got the 2 coins. His net asset is 2 dollars.
* B owned a piece of land that is worth 4 dollars, but since he has a debt of 2 dollars with C, his net Asset is 2 dollars.
* C loaned 2 dollars to B, so his net asset is 2 dollars.

* The net asset of the country = 6 dollars; even though, the country has only one piece of land and 2 Dollars in circulation.

(6) Everybody has made money and everybody felt happy and prosperous.

(7) One day an evil wind blew, and an evil thought came to C’s mind. “Hey, what if the land price stop going up, how could B repay my loan. There is only 2 dollars in circulation, and, I think after all the land that B owns is worth at most only 1 dollar, and no more.”

(8) A also thought the same way.

(9) Nobody wanted to buy land anymore.

* So, in the end, A owns the 2 dollar coins, his net asset is 2 dollars.
* B owed C 2 dollars and the land he owned which he thought worth 4 dollars is now 1 dollar. So his net asset is only 1 dollar.
* C has a loan of 2 dollars to B. But it is a bad debt. Although his net asset is still 2 dollars, his Heart is palpitating.
* The net asset of the country = 3 dollars again.

(10) So, who has stolen the 3 dollars from the country? Of course, before the bubble burst B thought his land was worth 4 dollars. Actually, right before the collapse, the net asset of the country was 6 dollars on paper. B’s net asset is still 2 dollars, his heart is palpitating.

(11) B had no choice but to declare bankruptcy. C as to relinquish his 2 dollars bad debt to B, but in return he acquired the land which is worth 1 dollar now.

* A owns the 2 coins; his net asset is 2 dollars.
* B is bankrupt; his net asset is 0 dollar. (He lost everything)
* C got no choice but end up with a land worth only 1 dollar

* the net asset of the country = 3 dollars.

A Bucket List

2008-10-21T22:35:00.003+05:30

Unrealistic and still made believable :) Thats how I felt after watching this movie and all the credit goes to the outstanding performances by Morgan Freeman and Jack Nicholson. Also, not to be neglected, the strength of the movie is the ability to create a set of circumstances and interaction to make a rather unbelievable story palatable.

The movie shows strangers Jack and Morgan trying to live their dreams at the end of their lives. Both of them realize that they have less than an year to live. Jack, a billionaire, realizes the "bucket list" of Morgan, a blue collar mechanic and adds his wishes too to the list. Both of them then go around the world fulfilling them. The different places they visit are a beauty to the eyes and definitely in the wish list of many of us too :) The adventures include the heart pumping sky diving, auto drag racing, and trips to exotic locations and foreign countries. Many scenes like the mountain tops and pyramids seem unreal, yet are carried on by the witty and funny lines from Jack's character.

The movie has lot of sentimental scenes which are bound to make your eyes go a bit wet, but as soonas they are wet, the great humour of Jack and Morgan is bound to make you smile. As the movie progresses the strangers get very close and help each other in their personal lives. The movie ends with the ashes of both the friends burried on the top of Mt Everest!!

The movie is a must see :)

Sweetu's growth

2008-08-15T11:18:00.000+05:30

An Angel is Born!

2008-06-04T20:39:00.003+05:30

This is my much delayed post... have been waiting to write something for so long; but was getting no time... finally here's something for my Sweetu...

Little baby on the way,
Making new moves every day,
Kicking mommy in the tummy,
Our lives seem so sunny!

The baby is born, blessings are bestowed,
Naani is excited, and Daadi floored,
Cheeks resemble mommy and forehead of daddy,
Leave me alone, cried little baby!

Eyes so small, lips deep red,
Nimble fingers and tender legs,
Her smile is sure to make you happy,
And her frowns are damn equally catchy!

Our prayers are answered, all wishes come true,
May she grow with love and care all through,
Lord, she's our angel, we pray you,
Please shower blessings and grant her good health too!

Flash

2008-06-03T22:48:00.001+05:30

With cricket fever kind of ended with IPL, or rather a momentary pause, its time to switch over to yet another craze. EURO’08 is about to start from June 7th and all the football fans will be tied to their television sets to watch the same. This time its being jointly hosted by Austria and Switzerland; so guys who are in European countries these days might have the chance of a lifetime! J

Apart from letting you guys know about this major event; my other idea was to share the beautiful site which these guys have come up with. Specially check the page: http://en.euro2008.uefa.com/tournament/

There is a 4-way navigation wherein:
--> you can choose your individual participating COUNTRY and check the venue, dates, the group and the matches.
--> you can choose the GROUP and check all the matches for that group, dates and venues
--> you can choose the DATE and check all the matches between the groups at different venues
--> you can choose the VENUE and check all the matches that gonna take place there.

It’s amazing to see so much of information on one single screen. The data is well placed; screen doesn’t look cumbersome. In fact it’s soothing to the eyes. The four navigators on the sides act as the selection criterion and the centre screen for the details.

Flash is definitely the order of the day in website development.

Have fun….

50, and Still Strong…

2008-04-03T21:35:00.000+05:30

Growing old is all about attaining maturity,
Floating new ideas and working towards them with sincerity,
Everyone grows old, not wise though indeed,
Vision is important, and so are the deeds.

With goals in mind we create opportunity,
Focus on people with imagination and creativity,
With each building block in place,
We empower people to win the race.

The race is long, but the vision is clear,
We are almost there with each passing year,
Determined to make a mark, keeping people up-to-date,
We set new goals, work hard, and leave rest to fate.

This is a special year, a new milestone set,
But we don’t need a crown or a diamond throne for that,
With 50 "printing" editions old and pen still mighty bold,
This is a call for Infoscions to tell stories still untold!

I dream of.....

2008-03-08T13:27:00.005+05:30

being a Show-Man!!

Yes, thats true. My most frequent dream (be it a day dream or while I'm asleep) is that I'm performing on stage before a huge audience. In fact if someone has to ask me about my dream profession it will be being a stage performer, no second thoughts to it! I love singing, though my voice doesnt support me much :-) I also love to perform on stage, but there also I'm not that good. But given those hard facts, I've still done both of them with singing restricted till school. Dancing, I started late in school and enjoyed the most in college! After that also I've been dancing a lot at different occasions, but it was more of a group dance on the music played by some DJ at office or some club. I haven't given any performances as such after the college. At college I also participated in a skit (GOTF will always cherish that), debates and anchored shows.

But whatever, my dreams will still allow me to pursue my passion of being a showman - now and forever! And its not only the dreams, I'll keep on singing, dancing and performing on stage whenever I get an opportunity!! So people, are you ready for the torture? :-)

Life is Beautiful

2008-02-26T10:12:00.000+05:30

It has been a while that I am able to find some time for myself. Again!! I think this syndrome strikes me now and then. Why? Am I slow or am I bogged up with too many things at the same time. Well, I’m sure and my wife also agrees that I’m not slow. It’s that I take too many things in my plate and try to eat them all and eat them in a well organized and systematic way. So if I see the current situation, my “platter” includes:
1. Family attention and frequent travel
2. Coordinating College Alumni site development
3. Helping Fund collection for College sports event
4. Office projects
5. My transfer status between offices
6. Investing and tracking my portfolio
7. Writing blog as frequently as possible :)

So the two key points are:
1. Lot of things at the same time, and
2. Working systematically

Both these two points add to the lack of time in my life (at least assume for now!). But if I introspect, the good thing is that there is room for everything! I mean I don’t see complaining to myself that I’m unable to do something because I don’t have time. It’s always that I say I don’t have time for myself and not for anything else.

So the next moot point is, am I neglecting myself. Well, I think that’s also not correct because:
1. I make sure that I see my face couple of times in the mirror and apply some day/night cream :-)
2. I make sure that I’m eating good and eating right (though my wife will disagree on this!!)
3. I involve in some physical activity – either some sport or exercising at home
4. I involve in some religious activities
5. I make sure that I call my close ones every now and then – this helps in satiating my hunger to remain connected!
6. I’m almost up-to-date in the Hindi movies arena

So why am I cribbing… I’m doing so much for myself. It’s just the perception. Change it!!
Sorry guys for wasting your time… I’ve no complaints whatsoever :-)

Life is beautiful!

New Roof on the top!

2008-02-03T20:31:00.000+05:30

Finally I've moved out of the corporate guest "house" and moved to my new "home"... the feeling is a bit mixed...on one hand i've the pain of leaving the luxury of the guest house wherein I can leave my bed messed up in the morning with my towel lying somewhere and when I come back in the evenig its all spic-n-span!! water bottles filled up, heaters on (a great luxury in such chilly weather), hot water available 24hrs a day... wow... BUT all this cannot belittle the happiness that I've inside for setting up my new place... sooner or later I had to do it and I think this is the right time at the right place... till now I've been out of sync with so many things like getting a gas connection, buying household stuff, maintainig cleanliness etc etc... so many things to do... and believe me I've loving it... I think everyone gets this feeling and its definitely worth experiencing... all those discussions with wife which thing to buy, what color, what size :)) its neat...

There is so much to do.... i better kick start again...... cya...

FEATURE_ERROR_USER_OPEN_NO_ACCESS

2008-01-30T13:58:00.000+05:30

Like millions of users all the across the globe, I tried logging into my yahoo mailbox this morning. but hey whats going on, the application is not accepting my user id and password. I quickly did a sanity check for the CAPS lock. Has my account hacked or something? Noooo :-((

Then the next thing i tired was to change my password. But the application gave me the following error: "FEATURE_ERROR_USER_OPEN_NO_ACCESS". Now what is this? I started feeling a bit of shock and tried to google this message. I found lot many people are facing this issue and are worried. But i was now relaxed since i'm not the only one in the apin and i was sure Yahoo will surely look into this soon.

On googling I found that the error "FEATURE_ERROR_USER_OPEN_NO_AC mean:
FEATURE_ERROR - the feature from Yahoo! which you are trying to use for that particular ID is unavailable
USER_OPEN - the user ID which you are trying to reset the password cannot be opened for recovery
NO_ACCESS - currently you are not allowed to access the specified user ID

With so many important information packed in our yahoo (or for that matter any mailbox), have we ever thought what will happen if suddenly all these mailboxes stop working or the services are discontinued??

Keep yourself ready........

pss.... yahoo mailbox services are restored!!! :)) YAHOOOOOOOOO!!

Productivity Improvement through Reuse

2008-01-25T16:52:00.000+05:30

This is the poster that I along with Divesh and Vikrant made for the above mentioned theme. Still waiting for the results :-)

Changing gears in Davos

2008-01-23T14:45:00.000+05:30

The Annual meeting of World Economic Forum for 2008 is in session at Davos. A lot many distinguised people from finance world, politics, manufacturing, media etc are present there to discuss the issues facing the world right now. In normal circumstances, the meeting would have focused the collaboration that's needed for the peace in Middle East, making use of the latest technologies for fighting against social and environmental issues or to discuss the prospects of Pakistan and Afghanistan. But here comes the thunderball. A lot of energy would now be spent on the US recession and its impact on the economy across the globe.

Till now people have been optimist. Yes, there is a credit crunch due to reckless lending in the subprime mortgage category, and also in property and credit cards - but we will handle it. Another perscpective was that growth is very powerful in India, China and middle east - that will wither the American storm.

But "Decoupling" is not working. The fear has crept in big time. The insatiable desire for cunsumer stuff in US (much of it made in China) is now making the growth charts go southwards. Recession gurus are saying, "we are almost there"!

10 ways to stop those marketing calls

2008-01-17T16:29:00.000+05:30

Disclaimer: These are not my ideas, I got it as a forward and I doing what I do best - "copy-paste".

1. After the telemarketer finishes speaking, ask him/her to marry you.
2. Tell the telemarketer you are busy at the moment, and ask him/her if he/she will give you his/her home phone number so you can call him/her back.
3. Ask them to repeat everything they say, several times.
4. Tell them it is dinner time, BUT ask if they would please hold. Put them on your speaker phone while you continue to eat at your leisure. Smack your food loudly and continue with your dinner conversation.
5. Tell them that all business goes through your agent, and hand the phone to your five year old child.
6. Tell them you are hard of hearing and that they need to speak up...louder...louder...louder!
7. Tell them to speak very slowly because you want to write every word down.
8. If they start out with, "How are you today?", say "I'm so glad you asked, because no one these days seems to care, and I have all these problems............"
9. Cry out in surprise, "Helen, is that you? I've been hoping you'd call! How is the family?" When they insist they are not Helen, tell them to stop joking. This works especially well if the telemarketer is really MALE.
10. Tell the HSBC call center guy to call on your office number - and give him the ICICI call center number.

Any additions??

Bulls have been Chained

2008-01-16T21:09:00.000+05:30

My wife told me couple of weeks back (even before the whole gamut of things started) that this is a KAAL year! She read it that this year is not that great! Have I started believing that? Oops, let me set the context right, though I'm sure most of you guys must have sensed it by the title of this post. But still for others I'm talking about the finance market in India; in fact the whole world market. Where are markets going from here? Is 2008 really a bad year for Indian economy?

These days as soon as I reach home I switch on my idiot box (which doesn't seem to be as idiot to me as before) to listen to NDTV Profit. And the more I watch it, the more I'm getting perplexed. US market as well as Asian market is taking a bit hit. Yesterday's fearsome declarations by Vikram Pandit (CEO of Citigroup) of the huge losses and mammoth write-off's have left me more shocked. The winds of change have finally arrived and it seems the world market gonna make devastating changes. Is it a sign that India will head its way towards becoming the global power?

But right now I dont see the light at the end of this tunnel. Indian economy itself is weak right now. Prime minister with his financial advisors are meeting to find out a way to resolve the issues or rather finding a way to beat the heat. They are coming up with re-structuring the tax slabs, change in indirect taxes, etc. Mr C Rangarajan is still projecting that the growth rate will be 8.5% this year (quite hopeful). I'm sure these guys are thinking hard to make that happen.

For me, things are too scary. I've been into this market very recently and all this is making me learn a lot (well, i'm trying to hide my fear here). But I'll keep watching the market and make my moves as and when required. And surely I wish my wife makes some more predictions; of course in favor of my portfolio :-)

So whats your game plan??

New Ads on the block

2008-01-09T16:28:00.000+05:30

Indian advertisement industry has achieved great height. Someone would say, wow, what a realization. Well, to me its definitely yes. I mean having spent last 2 years in US and watching TV commercials out there, I was damn sure that Indian commerials are great and much much better than what are aired in US. But after coming back to India and watching the recent ads, man, i'm totally overwhelmed.

Two ads which belong to his category are:

1. Airtel ad where two boys across the borders of two countries try and play football. The message is there wont be any boundaries, only if we talk... too much, excellent idea. Hats-off to K. S. Chakravarthy who is the brain behind the ad. The unfamiliar language used (French dialect used by Moroccans) adds to the universality.

2. Latest Canara Bank ad where mother-in-law learns Punjabi in order to welcome her new Bahu! The message is that the bank is adapting in the changing times. The emotions and sentiments behind the ad are worth commending.

Also one more Ad is of Cadbury Eclairs Crunch for which the punchline goes like- "Kuch cheezon ka maza dheere-dheere hi aata hai... ...Jaise Cadbury Eclairs Crunch". Good thought process.

For more TV commercials visit: http://www.indibiz.tv/

Keep it rolling...

Arz kiya hai

2007-12-27T10:04:00.000+05:30

Parakhna mat, parakhne main koi apna nahin rahta,
kisi bhi aayine main der tak chehra nahin rehta..
Bade logon se milne mein hamesha faasla rakhna,
jahan dariya samandar se mila dariya nahin rahta!

Work-Life balance - A good read

2007-11-24T20:15:00.000+05:30

This was a speech made by Pulitzer Prize-winning author, Anna Quindlen at the graduation ceremony of an American university where she was awarded an Honorary PhD.
-----------------------
'I'm a novelist. My work is human nature. Real life is all I know. Don't ever confuse the two, your life and your work. You will walk out of here this afternoon with only one thing that no one else has. There will be hundreds of people out there with your same degree: there will be thousands of people doing what you want to do for a living. But you will be the only person alive who has sole custody of your life. Your particular life. Your entire life. Not just your life at a desk, or your life on a bus, or in a car, or at the computer. Not just the life of your mind, but the life of your heart. Not just your bank accounts but also your soul.People don't talk about the soul very much anymore. It's so much easier to write a resume than to craft a spirit. But a resume is cold comfort on a winter's night, or when you're sad, or broke, or lonely, or when you've received your test results and they're not so good.

Here is my resume: I am a good mother to three children. I have tried never to let my work stand in the way of being a good parent. I no longer consider myself the centre of the universe. I show up. I listen. I try to laugh. I am a good friend to my husband. I have tried to make marriage vows mean what they say. I am a good friend to my friends and they to me. Without them, there would be nothing to say to you today, because I would be a cardboard cut out. But I call them on the phone, and I meet them for lunch. I would be rotten, at best mediocre at my job if those other things were not true.You cannot be really first rate at your work if your work is all you are.

So here's what I wanted to tell you today: Get a life. A real life, not a manic pursuit of the next promotion, the bigger pay cheque, the larger house. Do you think you'd care so very much about those things if you blew an aneurysm this afternoon, or found a lump in your breast?Get a life in which you notice the smell of salt water pushing itself on a breeze at the seaside, a life in which you stop and watch how a red-tailed hawk circles over the water, or the way a baby scowls with concentration when she tries to pick up a sweet with her thumb and first finger. Get a life in which you are not alone. Find people you love, and who love you. And remember that love is not leisure, it is work. Pick up the phone. Send an email. Write a letter. Get a life in which you are generous. And realize that life is the best thing ever, and that you have no business taking it for granted. Care so deeply about its goodness that you want to spread it around. Take money you would have spent on beer and give it to charity. Work in a soup kitchen. Be a big brother or sister.All of you want to do well. But if you do not do good too, then doing well will never be enough. It is so easy to waste our lives, our days, our hours, and our minutes.

It is so easy to take for granted the colour of our kids' eyes, the way the melody in a symphony rises and falls and disappears and rises again.It is so easy to exist instead of to live. I learned to live many years ago. I learned to love the journey, not the destination. I learned that it is not a dress rehearsal, and that today is the only guarantee you get. I learned to look at all the good in the world and try to give some of it back because I believed in it, completely and utterly. And I tried to do that, in part, by telling others what I had learned. By telling them this: Consider the lilies of the field. Look at the fuzz on a baby's ear. Read in the back yard with the sun on your face. Learn to be happy. And think of life as a terminal illness, because if you do, you will live it with joy and passion as it ought to be lived'.

GOAL - nice try!

2007-11-24T19:43:00.000+05:30

My very first movie in Chandigarh - Dhan Dhana Dhan Goal! I went with one of my colleagues AG to watch this movie. Though I was not expecting something great from this movie, but it being a sports movie, I wished it has the energy and humor to hold me there. Well it didnt fail me on any of those two fronts. The one-liners used are cheeky and definitely laughable.

But the two things that I didnt like about this movie are:
1. The 'Billo' song. I guess this was not at all needed in that sequence. At least the location of the movie, London, should have been taken into consideration. The fleshy (can be read as flashy too!) song was completely out of the place.
2. The second point which this movie is trying to sell is British vs South Asians (particularly India and Pak). Why? Why do you need that point to movitate an individual (John) who is already motivated and professional. This was done not once but twice - first when he was being pulled in SouthHall club from Aston and secondly when he ditched SouthHall and joined a new club (the Porche was ravishing for sure!). There were other convincing ways, like the way Bipasha argued saying that he was going against the ethics and sentiments of the people. That was acceptable, but not the color of the skin stuff. Moreover, the point to be noted (which was stressed in the movie too) is that John was born and brought-up in London itself!!

Overall in conjunction with the English Premier League going on, this movie is definitely one time watchable!

Footall Clubs

2007-11-23T18:07:00.000+05:30

Clubs in English Premier League

Clubs in UEFA Championship League

Swadesh!

2007-11-08T07:31:00.000+05:30

Thora sa nervous, thora sa dara hua,
Bahut si butterflies ko stomach mein sameta hua,
Pahuncha mein Bhaarat desh,
apne 'dil' ki aawaaz ko sunta hua.

Airport se nikalte hi laga jaise miss hua kitna kuch,
Kitne maheene se mera immune system raha untouched.
Dilli mien doston se mulaakaat, Lko mein ghar ki baat,
Mein aa gaya mere desh, Inquilaab Zindabaad!

[clap clap clap] :)

Well, i couldn't stop myself from writing such an idiotic prose with poetic qualities! But these were the genuine thoughts that creeped and captured my thoughts. Being back in India. I was already having so much of fun. The whole night spent at Pandey's place with tasty food prepared by Sachi, all the kahaaniyaas by baniya and Nandish, the finer touches by Pranjal and of course the grand 'Oho's of Pandey - all made it memorable. Of course others were missed, but I guess I'll be meeting them soon...

Managing "Lean"

2007-10-27T07:22:00.000+05:30

I came across this term today and was fascinated to read how IT industry (of which I'm an integral part) is trying to use the principles of manufacturing industry to its benefits. The principles which transformed Toyota company and made it a profit making company, have started creaping inside the strong walls of IT indstry. Wipro already seems to have experimented with this (http://hbswk.hbs.edu/item/5741.html). The basic idea remains to either clean up waste (read non-value adding activities) or smoothen up the processes which lead to the product development. The benefis of the lean implementation is three fold - Operational, Administrative and Strategic Improvements.

The philosophy behind this management can be read at:
http://www.mep.org/textfiles/LeanPrinciples.pdf
http://www.poppendieck.com/papers/LeanThinking.pdf

Happy and Sad!

2007-10-26T07:53:00.000+05:30

I’m happy because:

1. My family members and friends are keeping good health
2. I'm having home cooked food
3. I’ll be home soon
4. I’ll celebrate Diwali with my family and friends
5. I wont be facing winters of East Coast
6. I’ll watch hindi movies in theatre
7. I’ll gobble the chat and all Indian food
8. I’ll drink lot of Thumps-Up
9. I’ll use water instead of tissues :)
10. I’ll be having a fully furnished home with couches and sofas

I’m a bit low because:

1. I’ll miss the glitterati of NY
2. I’ll miss the unlimited broadband connection
3. I’ll miss the availability of hot and cold water in my shower all year round.
4. I’ll leave some friends behind
5. I’ll miss the cleanliness
6. I’ll miss the central air-conditioning
7. I’ll miss racing the car at 80 miles/hr (128 Km/hr)
8. I’ll miss Thanksgiving long weekend vacation :)
9. I’ll miss shopping at Target
10. I’ll miss Starbucks Coffee

None of the list is in any order. Sequence is just the replication of my random thoughts!

300

2007-10-16T08:29:00.000+05:30

This movie by Zack Snyder is an adaptation of the graphic novel by Frank Miller. Frank's other graphic series is Sin City, after which he directed the movie in the same name.

Now coming to the movie in discussion - 300. The movie packs a lot of testosterone and is very well directed with a novel color scheme (Sepia) as far as movies are concerned. Further, the war scenes, mostly in slow motion, give a re-firming effect. The special affects are jaw-dropping. Basically, 300 is a fantasy tale based on the Battle of Thermophylae in which 300 Spartans led by the fierce King Leonidas (played by Gerard Butler) made a heroic stand against the overwhelming Persian army commanded by Xerxes (Rodrigo Santoro, unrecognizable as the larger-than-life, pierced and golden androgynous creature). The movie has all the elements - war, eroticism, politics, humor and of course blood, more blood and hell more blood!

The movie is must watch for someone who can withstand some cruel killings, carnage with a difference! People with weak hearts are recommended not to watch the movie! :-)

Want to get noticed?

2007-10-03T01:12:00.001+05:30

Good article from http://www.economictimes.com/

Who would have thought that the essay would come to haunt you beyond the boundaries of school? Yup, it will, if you are planning to apply for a foreign MBA that is. The essay by all accounts has become the killer in the application process.

That is where your personality and passion come through, where you can demonstrate fit and very often it’s the first opportunity for an admissions officer to hear your voice, even though it’s through reading . Should you hire a consultant for the job? While the jury is still out on that one, for those of you looking at an MBA abroad, scoring the right application isn’t easy.

While there are a numbers of things - acads, GMAT score, letter of recommendation, extracurriculars , and yes that formidable essay - that are looked at, when assessing applicants, the story boils down to how well you ultimately hinge them. “There is no ‘one stand-out factor’ that we look for. Our evaluation is holistic.

Impressive accomplishments in one area may balance weaknesses in the other,” says Dawna Clarke, director, MBA admissions, Dartmouth Tuck School of Business. Explains IV Ranga Rao, director, admissions , ISB, Hyderabad, “If an applicant has a strong and unique ‘work experience’ , we may consider a G-MAT score which is slightly less than what is expected.”

While it’s true that many candidates want an MBA to switch to a new career, many aren’t sure what the new career will be. But you still need to write that essay that reveals your plans. Says Dr Janet Shaner, director, MBA marketing, at IMD, Switzerland: ”The applicant has to tell us a good ‘story’ about why he should be accepted into our program, what he has done prior to IMD and what he could contribute to the class, what he would like to do in his career, and why IMD is a good fit.”

Applicants usually fall into the trap of thinking they should write what committees want to hear. “That’s not right. The MBA application process is very introspective, making candidates think about themselves. And the candidates who stand out know themselves well. They are aware of their strengths, their weaknesses. To stand out, be self-aware ,” says Rosemaria Martinelli, associate dean, student recruitment & admissions of Chicago Graduate School of Business.

“Consequently, knowing how you, as an individual , can add value to the class and vice-versa ,” she adds. Which is why colleges welcome students of varied backgrounds. “At INSEAD, ‘diversity’ is one of our key differentiating factors. We look for individuals who add diversity to the class. The largest nationality only represents 10% of the class,” says Antonio Fatas, dean, MBA program.

While ‘work experience’ tops the list of requirements at some B-schools , few of them have dropped this minimum requirement. “At IMD we require a minimum of three years of experience and most participants have between four-10 years of experience. The maturity of our class is one reason why participants select IMD,” says Shaner. “While work experience is important, many candidates are ready to pursue MBA with as little as one year of experience (and in some cases, directly from college). What is important is that a candidate can answer why, now,” adds Martinelli.

Conversely, some colleges are dropping the minimum slab for work experience. Says Clarke: “We have no minimum requirement. But when evaluating experience, we look at the extent to which an applicant has progressed in his/her career , opportunities to manage people, projects, budgets and leadership potential.“

Many B-schools want to see that you’ve made an impact, whether that’s in your career, through extracurricular activities or in your personal life. Demonstrating leadership gives the admissions committee a vision of your potential. Says, Thomas R Caleel, director, MBA admissions and financial aid at Wharton School: “For those with no work experience, any demonstration of leadership , even at the undergraduate level, will be noted in your application.”

Though not exactly at polar opposite, Harvard values experience. Says Deirdre Leopold, MD, MBA admissions and financial aid, HBS: “Some work experience is important, because HBS prides itself on being close to the actual practice of business. But the amount of experience can vary. There is no hard and fast rule.

We urge students to apply when they feel they are ready. The key is quality of experience. We have just announced a special program ‘HBS 2+2’, whereby we’ll offer deferred admission to students at the beginning of their senior year in college, give them career advice and job leads so that they can then work for two years before they actually matriculate here.”

One of the best resources in evaluating a candidate’s work experience is the letter of recommendation. In an article recently, Brandon Royal, author of A Perfect MBA Application: 100 Sure-Fire Tips to Get You into the Business School of Your Choice: writes, a good recommendation is one that provides specific examples: “There are five things that are generally present in an outstanding letter of recommendation. One, the recommender mentions in what context he or she knows the applicant. Two, what the applicant accomplished on the job or in school. Three, how the candidate ranks in comparison with others. Four, what he or she believes are the applicant’s best personal and professional traits. And five, one area of perceived weakness and/or one area that need professional , academic, or personal improvement.

“Rather than making a broad statement such as ‘the applicant has strong team skills,’ the recommender can give a particular event that demonstrates those skills. For this reason, it’s important for applicants to choose recommenders who know them very well,” says Bruce DelMonico , director of admissions at Yale School of Management. Same goes for the essays that are expected from the applicants.

Yet another factor that candidates miss out on are extra curricular activities. “One key element is community service. I see applicants make the mistake of stopping all community outreach once they graduate from college.

Everyone, early in their career or not, can volunteer, and even demonstrate leadership skills by working with non-profits ,” points out Sara Nehar, admissions director at Virginia Darden School of Business.

The competition is tough, but a stellar application will get you a look in.

How I (almost) became a Refugee!

2007-09-27T00:07:00.000+05:30

Trip to Niagara was long overdue and this might have turned out to be my last trip in US! Not that I'm heading back to my homeland, but because I might have been either behind the bars or deported as a refugee in Canada! All thanks to Google maps, I realized it the hard way that how so ever efficient and reliable the system be, one should always be question it and be attentive.

We happily started our trip to Niagara Falls on early Saturday morning from NY. We hoped to reach the destination by early evening, take some rest and then view the great falls at night in all its colors and beauty. But the forces (read Google) had some other plans. We hit I-87N and kept speeding on towards our destination. After 6 hours of drive, we became active and excited to be so near to the falls. But guess what - we were on the Canada border!!! WHAT! WHY! WHAT the HELL!! These were some of our instant reactions. We were still 8 hours away from our original destination!! We looked at the map at least thousand times trying to figure out how can we be here. It felt we were following the map point-to-point. But here it goes, the google map befooled us. Instead of taking us to Niagara within US boundary, it made us go via Canada. At that instant we felt a bit afraid since not all of us had the passport. We carried the valid IDs - our NY driver's license.

We were sure that Canadian immigration will definitely let us cross the borders and also give us the papers stating that they allow us to leave their country. But the fear was what will happen at the US immigration. How will they validate our genuine case? Why will they allow me to come in US with no passport? I started thinking of the prison at this point. So on Canadian side, immigration made us sit for an hour, gave us some papers allowing us to leave their country. Now we were at the US border. Our fingers crossed. As I presented my driver's license to the immigration guy, the first sentence that I heard was - 'I dont care about this. I want passport'. I started sweating a bit. Then started his series of questions - whats your nationality, whats your status in US, why are you not carrying your passport etc etc. I tried to keep my composure answering all the questions. Then finally he asked me to hand over my driver's lincense. Then luckily my wife's passport had my name endorsed on it. So that saved me I guess. Then thanks to the US database where everything is linked to the driver's license, the guy was probably able to validate my identity in US. He let all of us go and cross the US border, but cautioned me to always carry the passport. Did he think that after this scary incident I'll ever travel without my passport?? He must be crazy to think so!

From there we drove like crazy, breaking all the speed limits - our van was running at an average speed of 80 miles/hr! At mid night we reached Niagara, but surely missed the view of the falls at night. Next day we covered all the spots in Niagara. The beauty and might of the falls made us forget the sadness of the previous day. We were so much engulfed in the white water of the falls, that it completely erased the bad experience. We started the journey back home at around 4pm to reach NY at midnight.

The first thing we did the next day was to validate the google map and to our surprise we found that yes it was the fault of the google maps only. We right away mailed the google letting them know of the error they have in their maps. I guess no one else gets trapped in such situation. I narrowly escaped being a refugee in Canada!