Reclaim your Life!

[[listen to it with speakers ON]

...well these comments indeed took some while to come, but I "always wanted" to write on the above piece of video! a subtle urge to appreciate the very best!

The above commercial sure provides ample inspiration for one to own an SUV. A mind-boggling compilation! I wonder if there has been ever a commercial like this, which will make you watch it over and over again...somewhere surely it satisfies the "adrenaline" that it creates!

Even though advt far "exceeded" the product itself, it nevertheless gave a boost to the dying Tata Safari a few years ago!

Commercial advts beamed into living rooms, are often regarded as the most critical marketing ploy when it comes to consumer products. They more often than create a sentiment of "purchase" and drive the sales. Tata's Safari was always a non-starter ever since it was born! Nagging issues, poor fit -finish, "drawn down saggy" engine, "not so great" ride quality, and practically everything else with the SUV seemed to be wrong...And every time they had a variant coming, it was no more than the same old wine in a new bottle!

Getting back to the advt, its a flawless work of thoughts put together!
The one thing that makes this advt a masterpiece indeed is the content, way the "content" is put across and off-course along with the sound-track that runs in the background. Though its inspired from the number "Summer Overture", its been re-creating quite differently and almost to perfection!

The built up to the peak, is quite dramatic. The phrases like "I always wanted to quit on Monday morning", "I always wanted to chase the rain"! "Always wanted..."

...doesn't leave anything to be said!

...so how ridiculous are they?

For a hypothetical situation, if politics was indeed a subject of fine “arts”, and there was a university directly under the jurisdiction of a Private Body named Association of Former Member of Parliament, we would have had parliamentarians with graduate degrees like B.Tech (Mud-slinging), Post Graduate Diploma (“Mass” Communication) or maybe some thing like a Ph.D. (“Denial” Practices)!

The most important course offered by such a hypothetical university shall indeed a Management Training Program (read short term crash courses) in the event of a "new" fellow being accidentally elected. This will be on topics like
“Committee Formation”,
“Handling situations by recourse to Inquiry Commissions and Resignation Demands” or something like

“How to handle Law and Order Situation, when your party is in opposition”!

There have been various incidents comical debates between our elected politicians, which quite evidently reveal the obvious even though the denial is pursued till an event of the representative changes his party in the future time. This kind cacophony our Honourable Ministers indulge in, provide more entertainment than governance.

A few of them which I can recollect:

=== “Hamari desh ki Bhasha mein bolo!” by the now, Hon Minister of Railways Mr. Lalu Prasad “ji” Yadav! In his typical theatrical performance demanded that BJP’s Yashwant Sindhi, then the Finance Minister addressing the Parliament on the Budget, should be done in Hindi and not in English! Someone please ask Lalu, if he knows what “inflation” is called in Hindi! I for one have no idea! Off course, Lalu would have forgotten about it, since he was then in the opposition. And it is forbidden by the “laws of politics” to remember any issue which had prevailed during the time when you were in the opposition!

===The ever so confused Mr.Vilasrao Deshmukh has only himself to blame. During every issue he is caught on the wrong foot. When farmers were committing suicide, he was somewhere else. When Bal Thackeray was being mentioned in the Mumbai Riots case, he accidentally mentions that “There is no evidence against Balasaheb”. He must have had a phone call from Delhi, reminding him that it is Narayan Rane who has left Shiv Sena and not Bal Thackeray. Our man immediately corrects himself saying “I have been misquoted and ShreeKrishna Commission has already put in place, and report will talk”. Wonder if BJP-Shiv Sena said this to Congress “Listen guys, you keep quiet on ShreeKrishna and we keep quiet on the Bofors!”

===H D Dewe Gowda, perhaps is the most revered err remembered PM of this country. He seriously was so bored, that he would take long naps in the middle, and would simply sign on Bills, and Acts. Well, now that he has lost his sleep, I sure know why. His son Kumaraswamy definitely must have got a blank cheque signed from HD senior! No wonder father-son seemed to have distanced themselves light years apart in the near past!

I can safely assume that there isn’t any embarrassing moment than to see your own photo on cover page fast asleep. And if you happen be to the Prime Minister, the feeling can just get worse!

===Wonder whether Rabri Devi ever read any “paper” leave alone a “document” when she ran Bihar from her kitchen! Did she ever sign? I have my doubts. Even she did I believe she must have used her thumb impression on Day 1. Lalu must have heard this, and had a rubber stamp of “Rabri L Devi” home delivered! Otherwise why would have you such “respected” Public Figures being called Rubber Stamp Chief Ministers?

===The very recent incident, which I was amazed of, was again with the Gowdas! Kumaraswamy packed off all his MLAs to a Resort! This is not the first time he did that, but second in 6months! Now first, the purpose is to treat the MLAs for their “contribution” to the party. And the real reason being, so that his MLAs could not defect! He is a smart man though, with the fact that he even got mobile jammers installed all over the Resort, so that no other party member could even reach his MLAs. What about the land-phones?

===Our Advani once went to Pakistan. He was so overwhelmed by the welcome he received, that he was all at sea how to thank the Pakistanis. Guess he forgot that such welcomes are a part and parcel of political visits. Nevertheless, Advani wanted to still thank Musharaf so he began to praise Jinnah, assuming Musharaf would understand the indirect reference to him. Or was it? I am sure Vajpayee must have called up Advani and told him “Advaniji, (pause) Muslim vote (pause, pause) Pakistan mein nahi (big pause) Gujarat mein chahiye”!

===This one is fresh from today’s front page. And ridiculous of ‘em all! On the occasion of Indira Gandhi’s Death Anniversary some Madhu Koda said “Today is also Sonia Gandhi's martyrdom day...”! Err he accidentally misplaced Indira with Sonia! You can’t blame him, since his mind was perhaps on counting the number of people attending the gathering. But then the explanation comes "Apna aadarniya neta ke naam to haar waqt leteh hein (I often take her name (Sonia Gandhi), and naturally it slipped out”. Now was that required?

I wonder how and when our politician just about turn so ridiculous, that even personal image is then at behest of rhetoric they practice. There isn’t any substance left, while all they can see, if “recovery” of the money invested by their respective parties for the last election.

Off course the logic goes like this, since we invested for the election “amongst” the people, we indeed need to “recover” it back, with some “reasonable” margin, so that we are back again with fresh investments 5years later! I think such “investments” need to be made legal and rechristened as PIIs, Political Institutional Investors! Is Damodaran hearing?

...it's a classic!

It wouldn’t be too wrong to mention that sportsmen live like an "Alice in Wonderland"...Every move, every act, every word is tracked and finds its way to morning breakfast tables...If this pressure is real, then we have super humans living amongst us in those great sporting heroes...Pressure often is not for the performance, rather for a reputation, pride of a nation, or simply the unwillingness to lose...

Whatever it maybe, we have a new bunch of 11 young kids hailed as the new "guardians" of Indian cricket!
Cant bet on the number of legends in the making from the current playing 11, but what it does is create an amazing “competition” now for full fledged 50overs ODI game.!

What is more important, are the games that followed before the “theatrics” of the final. The manner in which the Ranchi guy, rubbed salt on wounds of many.

It was the game versus England that set it all up. How many times you have the over reading 6-6-6-6-6-6 in international cricket?! For the record it has been done only 4times in world cricket in over a century of history.! It just sets up the tone of the game, and the ones to follow! And out of the corner of your eye, you can see the new Anglo-Indian rivalry in the making!

Beating South Africans in their own game was something special! The chokers stood so strong to their reputation! South Africa is an unfortunate side, since they have perhaps the best team combination for every major series in world cricket, everytime led by an outstandingly courageous skipper who is always at helms of their affairs.

As Harsha Bhogle put it, India out ”fielded” South Africa! These are brave words, but there is no reason to see it otherwise…

Aussies came as they always do…tough on everything and seriously can make world class bowlers look ordinary. I have always rated Australia as the strongest batting lineup in the past decade. This is even above our “decorated” middle order! Putting the Aussies out of match, where they couldn’t chase a target is something not done too often for long now. An aging side? I dont think so, considering the fact that Matt Hayden still ended up the highest run getter! And chasing in T20 was considered easier! I believe Aussies got it wrong in their bowling throughout that tournament (ok SriLanka was a freak game)...I am sorry Ian Chappel, but taking wickets is not always the best way to win...its not that 1 magic ball, but the remaining 23 on the perfect spots, that gets you there...

Spare a thought for Mr.Misbah! That flick was almost finding its way over Shri’s head to the boundary rope. Its one of those “fairytale” classics, which this young lad will have to live with. Wonder, if he will get a chance to redeem himself!

For the time being, its Chak de India!

How about our farming?

It has been some time since I last read about anything spectacular about Agriculture in this country..

"Economic Times" usually does the round around the end of summer to predict the rainfalls and hence the Farm Produce. Politicians keep crying foul on the need to improve the condition of Indian Agricultural conditions and its "sustainability"...and then there are suicides...and the figures so easily seem to fluctuating as if it were an exchange controlled scrip price.

Is Agriculture as a sector in India headed towards something gloomier than it is now?

Or is it just a phase, where most of us seem to have taken for granted that the "food grains" will be kept supplied irrespective of how much attention we paid to it as a country? Only to wake up one day, when the import bill would have become over the roof?

There was a discussion posted on apnirai.com suggesting Agriculture being India's key to growth and this piece of writing is basically in response to the same. Can India's "agriculture" be treated at par with IT and Manufacturing as one of the pillars of our GDP?

Most bearcats in public life talk only about Self-Sufficiency when it comes to the Agri Industry as such. Terming the industry as a potential "out performer" for this country would seem as irrelevant and vague as talking about Indians learning to play baseball... For those who think India should look up to on "Agriculture" to boost and become a sector as IT and Services to be a dominant part of our GDP, please have a look ..

India and Brazil have much in common, (except the people off course) and hence are comparable at most times. China is perhaps the next tall boy of Global Economy while the US still remains as on date the largest one to Benchmark.

• India's share of Agriculture in our GDP interestingly is the highest amongst the four. Standing at 18.3% its contribution is significant. Well that's sometimes obvious, since we need to feed a 6th of the World's population. And we are traditionally an Agricultural dependant Economy (off course not anymore!)


• China has a higher produce (nearly double!) to feed another 6th, and off course end up having a huge surplus and command a cool 3.5% of World Agricultural Export Trade.


• US has a marginal 1% of its GDP as Agricultural Produce and is almost equal to that of India's Produce, which gives you an idea how big the US economy is.


• The US ends up commanding an alarming 10% of World Agricultural Trade. Even though there are huge imports into US, but that shows how much balance of trade the US maintains.


• We have given up most land for Agri Purpose, which is as high as 60%, the highest amongst the comparison countries.


• Off course, we hardly export Agri Produce, least amongst the competition.


• We have an alarming lowest Per Capita Agricultural Produce, being at 1/4th of the US!! 1/3rd of Brazil!! ½ of China!! That’s our efficiency for you!

India’s key is to reach Self Sufficiency, and then begin to target Agriculture as a significant GDP component again. Rising population is keeping the pressure on the demand, while huge development projects meaning giving away land for Infrastructure.
And off course, our systems ensure huge surplus being wasted in Warehouses further diminishes hope of making money on the food we produce.

We seriously getting nowhere with 3% increase in Agri Produce while sustaining a whopping 2.13% increase in population!!

For all those who think, India has a good outlook for Agriculture being a dominant part of our booming economy, think again!

Method in the Madness...

Isn’t it interesting to note that how often the ignorance of not knowing an art is as justified as it were a few chapters you deliberately skipped during school!

Strange enough, there is a "particular" art, rather a skill, often regarded as being anti-social. People possessed with this art being so popularly labeled as manipulators, operators, riggers! If it still doesn’t ring any bells, well then, I am talking about of the "art of investing in Stock Market"

Those bulls and the bears stories. Playing in these “bourses” is like being a “matador” in those Spanish bull fights. For those, who possess this art, “happy investing”, for those who don’t, might as well read on...
What is the Sensex? and what does it really indicate? Sensex (Sensitive Index) was formed in 1979 with a base of 100 and always governed by 30biggest companies as per Market Capitalization (MCAP), taken across the board of all sectors.

MCAP? That is the number of shares of the company multiplied by the share value. In short, if you were to buy any company, that is amount of money, you have to pay.

But that is not all. There is something called as Free-Float in the market. This is amount of shares which can traded on the exchange.

Because off-course, shares held by Directors, Owners, Preference Share Holders are never traded on the exchange. These are held by them and never traded by "matadors" in the bull ring..! Only those shares which are alloted to the public to raise the initial amount of money are traded on the exchange. So now you have Free-Float MCAP.

The Free-Float MCAP of 30 biggest companies was then considered and taken as base in 1979 and the index was given a base of 100...And the weightage of each company on this index depends on their individual MCAP.

So when a share price of any of these companies increase, so will the MCAP and so will the Free Float MCAP. But what about the index figure?

It’s a representation of how much that “100” has grown into today! If MCAP of 30largest companies then was 100, today it 15,000!

In practical sense, if you put 1lakh Rs. in Sensex then, today you would have made 1.5Cr.Rs.!

So, there could be a mixed day, when Reliance share will charge 5%, and say reliance contributes 10% weightage to the index, the Sensex will move up by 0.5% due to Reliance, and so on for the other 29 largest listed companies.

For the number game though, today the Sensex has a Free Float MCAP of around

1.03 Million Crore Indian Rupees!

1 point swing means roughly around 65 Crore Rupees of liquid cash on the line!

Tequilla Vs Scotch Whisky

...who ever has ever had a few shots of tequila down the throat will know what I am talking about...more than the alcoholic kick, the whole process of having it, there is a feeling of being "raw"..having the "shotz" is something like a wild act...
...come down to having a fine scotch of 12-18years, and suddenly realize that its all about being classy...rich with spending a lifetime maturing in those barrels before flowing magically through your gullet...

...the very reason for drawing a comparison of this nature on Sachin Tendulkar, past and present, is the fact that both are absolutely enjoyable, thoroughly effective and each capable of delivering a punch! ...what differs is the mood..
you associate a 'scotch on the rocks' in your coach of your living room, perhaps so because you would know the elements of the drink only when you concentrate on it rather than gulp it down like you would do with a shotz of tequila...

Sachin Tendulkar no longer is the 'Superman' of cricket, rather the adjective could justified as the 'Lord of the Rings'...If there cricket were truly a "Hindu Religion", he would have been the "Shankaracharya"...

He is an epitome of batsmanship in cricket, whos legends will be recalled decades down the line...would be rightly said that he is the 'Soul' of Modern Indian Cricket...But is the 'Mortal' withing slowly being revealed? Just when he began to show glimpses of what he had been, slowly unearthed cruel reminder...

the little man seems aging...the reason I say it seems, is not for his age, but for the time he has spent in the middle...I wonder what playing 600 something International Innings actually mean with 25,000 something runs off that willow!! would be a mind boggling figure if someone were to estimate the number of times a cricket ball has hit sachin's bat!

...as Harsha Bhogle rightly pointed out instantly after Sachin's pull shot, something didnt seem right about it...the innings truly characterized a sort of an "enigma" around Tendulkar...he probably has the same "engine" beneath but somewhere the tuning has been changed...
Sachin has alot of to give to the game as yet, and I wouldnt be suprised if he were to hang around for another 2 years, post the current series..the man is good enough to be in any World XI, truly by the instinct he has, but somewhere he seems dragging his muscles too far...

...maybe still trying to gulp down tequilas, when he knows he can do no more than couple of pegs of fine Scotch..

Finally here..

blog (n). (blŏg)
intr.v. blogged, blog·ging, blogs
an online diary; a personal chronological log of thoughts published on a Web page; also called Weblog, Web log

...I dont quite think, this word existed a decade ago...should be one of those "new entrants" into the English Language Dictionaries, being modified from eternity..to be honest, I would have been looking for a dictionary myself if asked for such a kind of a "word" less than 3years ago..

I guess, this is the Orkut age and that kind of time seems like a mini-generation..trust me on this again, that I would have struggled to reach to this precise "dictionarized" meaning , had'nt I read the above..

ahh, but didnt we engineers always feel, its more important to know the concept rather than the formulas..! So what's in the dictionary meaning, I always knew its some kind of individual writings's on the Web..

Just wanted to make sure, the "equations" are in place, before I set out writting the concepts..