In the land of the Thalaiva and filter coffee!

Any thoughts of planning a family vacation in Chennai, and the first thoughts that pop up are about light cotton clothing and sun screen lotion for the hot Chennai weather. Contrary to our thoughts, it was a pleasant (which later became irritating!!) surprise to experience rains and overcast conditions, when we actually landed there in the month of October. Although this was the season for the north-east monsoon season, it became apparent that Chennai usually escapes the monsoon travails, looking at the absence of any drainage system whatsoever.

Coming from the completely concretized city of Mumbai, it was heartening to see the amount of open spaces and the greenery in this city. The god-like status that is bestowed on the current (or ex-) chief minister, Jayalalitha, was clear on our day of arrival, as it was the same day she was released on bail from the corruption charges and conviction. The traffic jams and her huge supporter base were proof of this divinely-bestowed status.

Contrary to other parts of the country, Diwali in Chennai is strictly an early morning ritual, with the only exception being that of the rising expat population in this city. Chennai-tes are orthodox and deeply religious, what with the numerous number of temples dotting the city. The Hanuman temple at Nanganelluru is a must visit with the 32 feet standing statue of the Mahabali (in black) and the impressive silk mundu neatly tied around this waist.

Being the Diwali season, it is mandatory to do some shopping, with the Pondy Bazaar the place to be in for some serious saree shopping. The unlimited thali at Woodlands restaurant is a veggie delight to savour, after the rigours of saree shopping. Another popular eating chain in Chennai is the Adyar Anandha Bhavan and Shree Krishna Sweets, both known for their sweets and confectionaries (especially the mouth-watering Mysurpa made from pure ghee).

A 3 hour drive from Chennai along the East coast road (ECR) lands you in the union territory of Puducherry (or Pondicherry, as the French would call it). For riders, this road is very picturesque and scenic and passes through coastal town of Mahabalipuram (or Mamallapuram). From all my travel experiences, Pondicherry is a very tourist-friendly (especially for cyclists), as all the tourist destinations are very close to each other. You can choose to take a walk along the Promenade beach (with all its statues and museums along the way) during the day, or even better, at night (when the road is closed to traffic, making it a pleasant walking zone). For French cuisine, there is Le Club, albeit it is a little on the higher cost bracket. For some quiet time, there is the Aurobindo ashram and Auroville with the pleasing architecture of the Matri-mandir (or the temple of mother). Coming back to Mahabalipuram, there is the iconic Shore temple, located right next to the beach (where we spotted some serious beach surfing).

Any visit to Chennai would be incomplete without going to Poes garden, home to superstar Rajnikant and Jayalalitha amma. Driving alongside the Marina beach, you can view the MGR memorial, the Chennai high court building, and the Madras university campus.

Needless, to say, you cannot come back from Chennai without savoring its filter coffee, sir! Escaping the harsh heat would definitely be a plus point, along with the travel memories, in our sojourn to the land of the Thalaiva.

Virtual working - A reality today

One glance at the list of Fortune 500 companies today shows one common trait: All of them are multinational companies, meaning companies located in different geographical locations. The need for any company to go multinational was driven by business objectives like higher revenue generation, potential for creating an overseas customer base, and hiring the best talent available worldwide.

As businesses began to expand, so did the operation cost of maintaining multiple offices. One of the key challenges facing any growing company today is on how to reduce the business cost and increase the profit margins. Virtual working (or remote working) is a reality today for many companies, as it helps them reduce operating costs and at the same time, not compromise on employee satisfaction. It’s a win-win deal for both the company and employees, who benefit from an improved work-life balance.

So what are the factors, which are making virtual working a reality today and for tomorrow?

• The demise of the 9-5 schedule: With companies demanding employee commitment beyond the 9-5 fixed schedule, employees became accustomed and comfortable with the use of technology including mobile phones, laptops, and conference calls outside of the office premises. As employees are in constant connect with their work, flexible work timings became the norm. Hence, when the same employees are asked to work virtually, it is not an impossible change or adjustment, compared to an employee used to a strict 9-5 schedule.
• Costly and time-consuming recruitment process: Any HR person would agree that the cost of retaining an employee is lower than recruiting one. According to Talent Puzzle, the average number of days required to bring aboard a new recruit is 54 days. For any business, this translates to missed business opportunities, extra work load on existing team players, and the cost and probability of repeating the recruitment procedure (in case the new recruit does not join the company). Additionally, the company has a limited pool of talent to choose from, when the recruitment is bound to a geography location. On the other hand, for remote companies (in the case of Customer.io), the company reportedly had a larger (and better) pool of talent to choose from when they went remote. Virtual working helps companies to tap into a larger pool of extremely talented people, which in turn, would make the recruitment process much shorter.
• Technology: Virtual working would not be a reality today without the Internet and advanced collaboration tools. In the Information age, rapid advancements in the way we store and share information (using version control storage systems and knowledge sharing tools) and communication tools (like Google Hangout, Skype, and WebEx) have definitely enabled virtual working. Advancements in the cloud computing technology will reducing hardware costs for information companies, and also benefit virtual workers.
• Employee cost: On an average, allocating a desk space to an employee along with the transportation expenses can cost an employer $2000 to $5000 annually. These costs can be saved for a virtual employee. With increasing office rents and cost of living in major cities, employees working from a remote location save more money because of lower cost of living and have more time for their families and interests because of zero travelling.

So, with virtual working becoming a reality, does it mean that there won’t be any offices in the future? Not likely. Companies will probably shift to smaller offices, with a majority of employees working from home. It is equally likely that smaller companies with less than 20 employees, may opt for complete virtual working. 

How our homes have evolved

As we know, every human being needs food, clothing, and shelter, which are the basic necessities of life. This article is all about how shelter or our homes has evolved since the earliest man started living in the caves, and their importance in the future.

From a modest beginning of sheltering man from the vagaries of outside weather, our homes have evolved substantially over the last few centuries to attain a significant level of importance in our lives. In the agricultural age, man started acquiring land for farming activities and he would have his small house in the same land, so that he could rest and sleep the night after a hard day in the farms. As man became more affluent and wealthy, he acquired larger tracts of land and built houses according to his rich tastes and importance. In the industrial age, men started moving to cities and acquired and built houses with a neighborhood. Social calls and invitations became common as people started inviting each other to their homes. In ancient India, joint families became common because of large ancestral homes where the entire family stayed and bonded together. In the electronic age, our homes provided us entertainment and comfort through the widespread use of televisions, radios, refrigerator, and washing machines. As families became nuclear, our houses provided us the private space to relax and pursue our individual interests. Through the widespread use of home phones, we can talk to and be touch with family, friends, and distant relatives, right from the comfort of our homes.

In the modern information age (or Internet) age, our homes are at the center of our existence. From ordering our groceries, entertaining ourselves with the television and the computer, and pursuing individual interests like gardening, playing a guitar, and home decorations, our home is rightly where our heart (and all the action) is. With home schooling and virtual working (from home) on the constant rise, current homes provide a comfortable and safe environment to realize our potential. While women still dominate the home maker space, today’s man does not hesitate to stay at home to either be a stay-at-home dad or to convert his home space into an office. This is also a convenient trend among nuclear families, where parents do not have the support system for their children in their absence.

An increasing number of companies are willing to allow their employees to work from their homes, as this saves them the business cost of providing office space. With regards to home schooling, the current education system is increasingly unable to provide quality education to all students. With home schooling and distant education, students can learn from the comforts of their home at their own pace, and at the same time, not compromise on their academic future.

With advances in technology providing us smart, intelligent, and green homes, are future homes going to be self-sufficient in providing us much more than shelter, education, workplace, and entertainment? Going by the huge improvements, it sure looks likely.

Here’s looking forward to making our homes our own complete hangout for everything.

Why a healthy breakfast is vital

For a healthy body and mind, the food that we consume daily plays a very important role. Although the number of calories required can vary between individuals depending upon their age, occupation, and environment, a proper breakfast consisting of a balanced diet ensures that you have sufficient energy to meet the demands of the entire day.

The breakfast is probably the most important meal of day, as it provides our body with the required energy after 8-12 hours of fasting, depending on our sleep patterns. For growing children, having a proper breakfast with a balanced mix of proteins, vitamins, and fibres is an important building block in their physical and mental development. In fact, research studies have proved that a proper breakfast can increase the metabolism rate in our body, and enable it to burn calories and maintain body weight. On the other hand, skipping or eating an insufficient breakfast can slow down our metabolism rate and can increase our body weight in the long run. A proper breakfast provides our body with a good quantity of nutrients, sufficient for the first half of day, and ensures that we do not crave for any late-morning meals before lunch time. This not only saves time spent in binge eating, but also prevents long-term weight gains because of our sedentary lifestyle.

Parents face a daily challenge of providing a proper breakfast meal for their school-going chid, during the morning rush hour. In most cases, they send the child to school after drinking a glass of milk. Unfortunately, a glass of milk cannot provide the same benefits as a proper balanced meal. In India, there is no standard breakfast menu, as each part of India has its own specialities. A typical Indian breakfast can consists of items varying from idli, dosa, chapatti, puri, and egg fry to local delicacies like poha, upma, and paratha. Luckily, due to globalization, Indians have also taken to breakfast items from across the world, including corn flakes, whole grain bread (for carbohydrates), fruits, egg varieties, cheese, salads (for proteins), and cereals. Another popular addition to the Indian breakfast are packaged fruit juices, which provide valuable nutrients including fibres and vitamins to our bodies.

Just as the items we eat for lunch vary from day to day, we can vary our breakfast items for each day of the week. This ensures that our bodies are provided a healthy balance of all nutrients available in each food. As children learn eating habits from their parents, we can thus ensure that they also follow a healthy breakfast routine. As a rule, it is advisable to consume our breakfast within 2 hours of waking up each morning. In addition to having a proper breakfast, it is also important to spend sufficient time in consuming and digesting our breakfast. A hastily eaten breakfast can negate the benefits of the morning meal.

While over-eating any meal (including breakfast) should be avoided, a well eaten and digested breakfast always ensures that our children eat less junk food and shows them the value of good eating habits. 

My personal experiences with a credit card

This blog is not a general post on the pitfalls of using a credit card, but rather my personal experiences (highs and not-so-highs) with the credit card.

I got my first Standard Chartered credit card 19 years back, on my second job. Right, credit cards have been around for so long. 19 years of credit card experience!! That should make me a pro in handing out any advice regarding credit cards, right? So, here are some of my do’s and do not’s based on my personal experiences.

Let’s start with the do not’s. Do not:

• Get trapped in the minimum revolving balance cycle: You may have read this many times, but this is the basic golden rule of using a credit card. You completely lose the benefit of interest-free period (52 to 60 days depending on the card) if you have any outstanding (it could be 100/- for that matter). The way it squeezes you out is suppose you have an outstanding amount of 100/- from the previous cycle. In the current cycle, you decide to go on a shopping splurge and spend let’s say, 5000/-, which you plan to pay back when the bill comes, as you have got a raise and are expecting extra cash in your bank account. So you would be thinking of paying 5000/- + 100/- + the interest on the 100/-, right? Wrong, you will be paying 5000/- + 100/- + the interest on 5100/-. This is where the credit card company benefits and makes money from you. Now, imagine when that 100/- becomes 1000/-, and you find yourself in the debt trap. On my first card, I had run up debts to around 30,000/-, which was way above my monthly salary then.
• Use the credit card in an ATM: Do not use credit cards to withdraw cash from an ATM. In the case of cash withdrawals, there is no interest-free period, plus banks charge you a cash withdrawal charge and an interest, which makes cash withdrawal more expensive than a personal loan. There is an alternative, which I have opted for, in times when I have needed small amounts of cash. I would only suggest this if you need small advances of cash (25K to 50K), and you have a decent credit limit on your card. Credit card companies offer you cash-on-call, using which you can take a loan, with the loan amount deducted from your credit limit. You can paid back the loan on a monthly basis with your regular credit card payment. The advantage is the interest rate is around 1% per month (depending on the bank). So, for a loan of 50K and a tenure of 12 months, you will end up paying back 54K (including interest), which makes it cheaper than using credit cards in the ATM or taking a personal loan.
• Buy an army of credit cards: I am comfortable using 3 credit cards (1 master and 2 visa) cards. The number of credit cards you should have really depends on how frequently you use them. There is no point having multiple credit cards, if you use any of them occasionally. Many banks withdraw the issued credit card, when they find that you are hardly using them.
• Pay an annual fee: There is a common complaint among users, that companies are charging an annual fee or joining fee, even after committing otherwise. In instances when I have been charged any such fee, I simply call their 24-hour helpline and request them to withdraw the same. It has worked almost every time, as no company likes to lose a customer.
• Use a credit card when overseas: As a precaution, you should carry a credit card when travelling overseas, but use it only in an emergency. You will be reluctant to carrying a lot of foreign currency, so a better option is to use a forex card, which you can get from your savings bank, or any other bank. For international transactions, credit card companies charge their own conversion fees. Additionally, the chances of credit card fraud are higher when used overseas.

So, enough of the do-not’s with the credit card. Let’s now look at the dos with a credit card and how we can use it as an effective tool. Do:

•  Plan your monthly usage: To get the most benefit, I would say the best time to use the credit card is immediately after the card statement date. In my case, the statement date for each of my credit cards is 15^th of every month. So, all my purchases and usage would be from 15^th to 25^th (maximum) of every month. For the rest of the month, I religiously stick to using my debit card.
• Make your payments on time: As a rule, I have only opted for credit cards, which offers the most convenient mode of repayment. So, no repayments by cheque and drop-boxes for me. Most credit card companies enable you to make repayments through online net banking, or by linking payments only if you have a bank account with the same company. This is important, as credit card companies are known to charge you hefty penalties for late or missed payments.
• Pay your utility bills using credit cards: For the past few years, I have been using credit card to register and pay for my utilities including electricity, telephone, and gas bills. You can add up to 3 utilities with each credit card, which makes the required monthly payments automatically every month. The advantage is you do not need to remember to pay your bills on time every month; the card does it for you automatically and also on time.
• Use for Internet transactions: In this Internet age, you must be comfortable using your credit card online, despite the chances of fraud. I have used my credit card to book train and flight tickets, and also to pay insurance premiums. I guess it is a matter of trust that you develop with sites over years after making payments to them using your credit card.
• Utilize your reward points: As a rule, opt for a credit card that gives you more reward points for every transaction. Also, remember to redeem these reward points after you have accumulated a sizeable number. In several cases, I have opted to use my credit card instead of debit card for high value purchases, simply for the sake of getting reward points.

In today’s times, a credit card with a decent limit can help you in difficult economic times. You can treat it as a friend, only if you can take care of avoiding the pitfalls.

The futility of honking

I think the car horn is the most useless and outdated part of auto technology. Over the years, we have seen technology in our new cars improve to make car driving easier and comfortable, easy to maintain with affordable spare parts, increased mileage and safety. But, if there is one thing which has not changed in a car, guess what? Yes, I would say it is the horn. Seriously, it has more become louder and easier to horn, that’s it. Would you call that as improvements? No, I wouldn't.

I would prefer if the technology can be improved to direct our honking at the object for which it is meant to be. Currently, everybody can hear it, be it the car behind, the car on the opposite lane, and even the pedestrians walking on the side lane. So, if everybody can hear it, it is supposed to be meant for everybody, is it? And hence, everybody can ignore it, including the object that it is meant for. In this scenario, how does anyone differentiate between the honking meant for them and the general honking? I mean seriously, if I walk into a room full of people, and shout out, “Pomm Pomm,” the entire crowd would look at me with insane eyes, but no one would be able to fathom who I was crying out for. But on our roads, all acts of insanity are ignored or forgotten!!

The other problem is that of compulsive honking. The horn to announce that I am on the road, the horns 3 seconds after the signal turns green, and the horn when speeding on a green signal. Imagine the noise level if every driver decide to announce themselves at the same time. Congrats, you have arrived in life by driving your first car or bike, but seriously, who cares? Intelligent signals are a thing of the future, but in India, motorists already think the signal to be smart and not turn red before they cross. Sorry, guys, the traffic signal in India is still primitive, and no amount of honking will influence its colours. In Mumbai, I really do not have to look when the red signal turns green. I just have to wait when the cars behind me start honking!! The most irritating is the honking in the parking lots in malls. Are you trying to participate in an F1 in the parking circuit?

Honking is such a subconscious or involuntary act. It does not take any brain power, unlike let’s say, when to change the gears or apply the brake. It does not take any time or effort, nor does it cost you anything. Hence, the regularity of honking among drivers.

I think the problem of honking will exist as long as there is a human being behind the wheels. The future when driverless cars become popular and are accepted would be when we see the horn as a thing of the past in our vehicles. I may be forthright, but you must agree that honks are currently the dumbest component of the vehicle. I would love to see horns getting intelligent and not remain just a noise machine. How about horns that can be focussed on the target object? In this case, only the target object hears the horn, and not anyone else. Drivers would be in a better state to respond, when they know they are the target. Compulsive honking would also be reduced, as the honkers have to pick the target, and not just honk randomly. As this cannot be done subconsciously, it requires the honker to be alert, and this would reduce the level of honking.

But until then, we will have to put up with the menace of honking, whenever we step out on the roads, either as a pedestrian or as a driver.

10 obsolete gifts for Fathers

It is common knowledge that motherhood impacts most women physically and psychologically, but what is not so common is that fatherhood also impacts men, especially their psychological side. So this is a post for fathers in their thirties and early forties, whose priorities in life have evolved over the last 15-20 years. From personal experience, I can certainly claim that I no longer like most of the things, which I adored in my twenties, and in fact, have gone on repent some of the things (remember the Schwarzenegger and Sunil Shetty action flicks).

So as part of our evolution from bachelors to family men, our choice of gifts have also evolved over time. So, as a safe bet (there will always be exceptions) for all ladies, here is my list of gifts that you should not buy for your man:

• Deodorants: A definite “No” for a first-time (or occasional) user. And definitely not, if you are suggesting that your man “needs” it.
• Cartoon print clothing: We are done with wearing our attitudes on our sleeves, so please ladies, no T-shirts with cartoon prints or messages.
• Men creams and lotions: While it may be an in-thing to look “fair and handsome” and the “metrosexual,” it may not be such a “macho” thing for your man, as he has grown up learning that “tall, dark, and handsome” is what men are supposed to be.
• Gym memberships: Most men like their women to love them for what they are, not for their developed abs. Don’t get me wrong, health and fitness are important for us, but not by going for a gym regime. Believe me, most men think they are fit enough to climb Mt. Everest (agree that is an exaggeration!) till they go on a mountain trek. Moreover, our kids are there to keep us physically fit and active, so why bother?
• Spa treatment vouchers: While most women would love this, it is not such a happening thing for men. While it is true that men do fantasize about getting a spa and massage treatment service from women, practically, they prefer the “professional and complete” treatment. So, on a softer note, if you can afford it, make the spa treatment part of complete package (including other salon services, a 4-star or 5-star hotel stay, and/ or an exotic location). The last thing he wants is to get caught in traffic after a relaxing spa treatment.
• Self-help books: We don’t mind reading the occasional Rhonda Byrne or a “chicken soup” book, but not as a gift from our ladies. And please, after a career spanning 10 to 15 years, we are done with the Dale Carnegies and the Napoleon Hills of the literary world.
• Jewellery: Most men are the worst when it comes to flaunting jewellery, unless of course, you are over-decked with it à la a Bappi Lahiri. We are much more comfortable flaunting our latest watch, smart phone, or our camera. So then, what’s the point in buying an expensive jewellery gift, if your man does not show it off?
• DVD compilation of favourite movies: In the age of free movie downloads using Torrent or WebCrawler or streaming movies, a DVD compilation of your favourite movies can be used for posterity and long memory. But, believe me, with kids around, you can never be sure how long those DVDs will last.
• DVD compilation of favourite cricket matches: In the age of Twenty20 and new skills and improved clothing, would your man (even a die-hard cricket fan, if this one still exists) be interested in a DVD of old cricket one-day matches?
• Ties: If you have to buy this one as a gift, buy one with simple patterns. Nothing too loud and attention grabbing. You don’t want his colleagues at work to be looking at his tie, rather than him, do you?

So this is my list of obsolete gifts to buy for men. I guess “obsolete” would be too harsh a word, as we do appreciate the lady’s sentiment behind the gift, especially if it is not for any special day.

For the published article, visit yowoto.com.

Trends in Hindi film music

A few years back, I had the privilege of viewing a musical concert on "Trends in Hindi Film Music" presented by one Mr. Purushottam  Berde. The program was a tribute to the music trendsetters, starting from Anil Biswas (1945) till AR Rehman (2005).

These included music directors like Naushad, Ravi (who is supposed to be the pioneer in marriage songs and bidaaai-type songs... a trend which was continued later by Ram-Laxman in Rajshree films), Shankar Jaikishen (who introduced the orchestra in Hindi film music), and OP Nayyar & Chitragupta (who introduced fun-based songs). Vasant Desai (I think he was the music director for V Shantaram's hit movie Do Ankhen Baara Haath in 1958) created Hindi film's first meaningless word in the song, "Thaka thaka dum dum"... a trend which continued later on with the popular songs, “Yahoo” and “Aie aie ya suku suku” from Junglee (1960), , and “Oye Oye” in Tridev (1988).

Ashok Kumar was credited for singing the first Hindi rap song, “Rail gaadi” from Ashirwaad (1968). Madan Mohan was the pioneer in popularizing ghazal-based songs including the evergreen “Yeh Duniya Yeh Mehfil” and my favourite “Jaanam Dekh lo” from Veer Zaara (2003).

The presenter also lamented of magic-that-would-have-been, had noted music directors worked outside their preferred productions. If Shankar Jaikishen had provided music for a Dev Anand movie, or had SD Burman worked with Raj Kapoor. Kalyandji-Anandji is credited to be the first musician to provide music to superstars across generations... from a Raj Kapoor/Dilip Kumar to Rajesh Khanna and then to Amitabh Bacchan.

The first "item" song in movies was traced back to a Marathi movie in the 40s titled Maanus. Raj Kapoor started the item song trend in Hindi movies with the song, “Budda mil gaya” from Sangam (1960). Bappi Lahiri is credited with introducing the disco culture.

The concert also introduced a promising trend of non-filmi classical based musicians lending their services to film music. Like the case in Mughal-e-Azam where Bade Ghulam Ali Khan sang the Tansen-like rendition, a trend which never got popular although it stretches right down to Birju Maharaj choreographing Madhuri Dixit in Devdas (2002).

The 3-hour long concert was definitely worth very minute and concluded with the rendition of the AR Rehman hit, “Bharat Humko Jaan se bhi pyaara hain” from Roja (1993).

How the Internet has changed our lives

Change is inevitable in any field of life. As goes the popular maxim, “You cannot escape death and taxes,” I would add to that and say, “You cannot escape death, taxes, and changes.” Either it can be self-initiated change or a forced change, you can be sure it will happen.

In recent times, the Internet has heralded the most powerful medium of change in our daily lives. Gone are the traditional ways of doing things. The Internet has revolutionized daily tasks like getting the current news, and ordering groceries to monthly errands like paying our bills and transferring money.

Here is a list of areas, which have been positively impacted by the Internet:

• Banking: The Internet has transformed the way we do our banking. Banking has become so convenient, gone are the days when we had to wait to get our passbook updated. In this age of 24-hour Internet banking, it is much simpler to do cash transactions, check account balances, and transfer money, irrespective of where you are located. NEFT transfer facility allows you to transfer money between accounts, so much that the bank cheque book has become almost obsolete. 
• Networking and social media: In our busy lives, it has become a challenge to spend time with our friends and to pay social visits to our relatives. Social media sites like Facebook and Twitter has changed that. You can share what’s happening in your life (and also your thoughts) on your online profile, as well as know what’s happening in your cousin’s life!!
• Entertainment: Remember the times when you had to queue up for advance booking to watch the latest released movie. The more desperate ones could buy the tickets in “black.” Today, you can book a movie ticket on the Internet and select the theatre, the show timings, and even the seats. Streaming video sites like YouTube allows you watch your favorite movies, videos, and cricket matches at your time and convenience.
• Freelancing and virtual working: Today, we find multitudes of freelancers and employees working virtually from home. This has been possible only because of high-speed Internet. With increasing rentals of commercial offices and traffic problems, many companies offer the work-from-home facility to their employees, as it allows them to save operational costs. As a freelancer, it allows professionals to select the work (and company) that they want to work for, rather than being dependent on a single company. The Internet has facilitated companies to outsource their work to freelancers, and pay them only for the work done, rather than a fixed salary.
• Paying bills: The Internet has been a real savior in terms of convenience and saving time. Instead of queuing up to pay your electricity and other utility bills, you can do the same from the convenience of your home and office. You can make online payment for your electricity, telephone, and insurance premiums using online banking or credit cards. You can also book train and flight tickets without having to stand in any reservation queue. In fact, you can plan and book an entire family vacation package without leaving your home.
• Online shopping: With the advent of the telephones, you could call up your local bania or vegetable vendor to order and get it delivered to your home. With the Internet, you can now shop for your groceries and vegetables online and get them delivered to your doorstep. Online shopping sites for retail items like amazon, myntra, and snapdeal, which allow you buy clothes, books, electronics, and a host of other products, is the latest Internet fad in India.

I still believe that the Internet can impact our world in more ways than the ones listed above. So, here is my wish list of what the Internet should allow us to do:

• Education: I do admit that the Internet has impacted the education field through online education and as a source of knowledge and information. But there is still a lot of potential and scope left. With quality education still out of reach for most children, I believe that the Internet is the only medium through which we can educate majority of our children. With laptops and tablets becoming increasingly affordable, we should be able to achieve the dream of providing them to every child.
• Online voting: SMS voting is pretty common when it comes to selecting our favorite movie star or Indian idol. Using the Internet, it should also be possible to vote for our next government or preferred politician.
• Corruption: With online transactions and visibility of major initiatives using the Internet, Corruption can be reduced (if not, eliminated) to a major degree.

 The Internet is today available not just on PCs or Desktops, but also on multiple devices including mobile phones, tablets, and TV. It is truly exciting to see the next phase of the Internet evolution.

Parenting tips

Ask any parent, and the likely response would be it is a tough time to be a parent in today’s times. In this information age and with our kids having access to so many electronic media around, it can be daunting task for any parent to take stock of what’s happening in our child’s daily lives.
In our growing-up years, options of entertainment were fewer and life was much simpler, though not necessarily easier. We had to content ourselves with a much less digitized world, and look for simpler means to amuse ourselves.
So what are the fears that parents have to learn to face? I have tried listing down a few:

• Multiple influences on our child: For kids with working parents, external influences can be a major factor in our child’s development. It is fine if grandparents are there to take care, but if not, then we have to look at external support systems (crèche, play schools, or a home matron), each of which will have their own influences.
• Exposure to Internet: In today’s world, access to Internet is so easily available, what with so devices available including the PC, tablets, and mobile phones. No doubt the Internet is rich library of knowledge, but it is also an equally rich source of information about every possible vice.
• Lack of physical exercise: One look around in any Indian city, and you will not miss an obese child. Due to the digital world and school pressures, we find kids spending fewer time with outdoor activities.

As parents, we have to accept that our kids will be attracted to the digital world and no measures of restrictions and parental controls can work in the long term. So how do we, as parents, ensure that our kids grow up into happy and responsible adults and good citizens? Here are a few simple tips, which I think would make a difference:

• Communicate with your child: Kids first learn to communicate with their parents, before interacting with the external world. Keep this communication channel with your kids running even as they are growing. Spend time with them asking about their day, and assure them that you would always be there for them, and that they can share their deepest fears and thoughts with you.
• Avoid confrontation: One of the easiest ways of breaking communication with your child is through confrontation. As parents, we interact with our child (as a kid) mostly through “instructions” (“Come for food,” “Eat properly” or “Talk softly”). As our children enter the “teen” years, instructions can a source of irritation and embarrassment. Try to have talks the way you would have with any other adult. Start treating them as equals once they are in teen years.
• Share simple joys with your kids: It is fine to go for a car ride with your kid or eat at an expensive restaurant. At the same time, go for a leisurely walk or travel by public bus with your kid, or share a bhel or chana-garam with them. This will develop a balanced perspective in them, and they will learn to enjoy the simpler things in life as well.
• Travel with your kids: Ensure that you travel to a new place every year with your kids. This not only ensures family time, but also creates long-time memories to cherish. 
• Think of new activities with your kids: For working parents, spending quality time with your child is more practical than the quantity of time you spend. To ensure quality time, you must think of new activities or experiences that you can have with your child. Travelling to a new place is one way of ensuring quality time, but can be done probably once or twice a year. For other times (for example, in the weekends), thinks of new experiences that you can have as a family. By no ways am I suggesting not visiting your favourite mall and your parents, but need not be done as a weekend ritual. Try avoiding weekend rituals; try different activities like a trip to the old city, a short drive out of the city, or maybe learn and play carrom at home.

Like adults, children like to be loved, respected, and appreciated by their parents. In today’s connected and globalized world, it is inevitable that children are going to be influenced by external factors. Nevertheless, when they need help or are confused about some decision, they should feel free to approach us for advice, or for simply listening them out.
It is up to us, as parents, if we can mould ourselves to fill the emotional void in our children.

Flaws in our education system

The current system of public education in India (or for that matter, in most industrialized economies) is designed to create university professors or to create an educated workforce that can serve in the field of industrialization. Unfortunately, neither of these are lucrative or practical career options for today’s children.

In the next 30 years, more students are expected to graduate from our universities (worldwide) than the current world population. Needless to say, just having a university degree or certification is going to be insufficient for having a lucrative career. Most parents are investing into their children’s education as a career insurance policy, which would guarantee them peace of mind in an uncertain world. The problem is in today’s world, we have no guarantee on what will work in the next 5 years (for examples, in our corporate careers), let alone the much longer spanning school and university terms. So how can we place our trust in a flawed education system to teach our children the skills required for them when they graduate in the next 22 years?

I have tried listing down some of the basic flaws in our current education system:

• Competition: Competition sounds good in an Olympic event or any sporting event, where one individual (or team) has to be better than the other, in order to win the gold medal or the tournament. I am sorry to say that this is an obsolete term in today’s corporates. But educators round the world, have realised that the best universities can only accommodate the best (or top-ranking) students, due to the limited physical space (or seats) available in the classes. Hence, the importance given to grading system, which is the sole benchmark and focus for all under-graduate students. This goes against the basic principal of modern education, which says, “No child left behind.” This has created a sense of discrimination in our classes, where the top-ranking students are the teacher’s favourites, while the bottom-ranking students are made to feel as a misfit.

The education system cannot be run as an Olympic selection committee, where only the best are selected and the rest discarded and left to their destinies. The best in every student must be nurtured and encouraged.

•  Curriculum approach: A common complaint among many parents today are that their children are burdened with too many subjects. I agree with that, and the reason for that is an ever-expanding school curriculum, which is now bursting at its seams and cannot be further expanded without cutting down on student vacation time. I do believe that you will agree with me, that all curriculum content (basic and even advanced) are what I call, the “google stuff.” I think the curriculum approach is based on a false notion that only schools can impart knowledge and learning to kids. Kids (even as toddlers) learn from every available source of knowledge, including their parents and their daily environment. As Sugata Mitra points out in his “Can kids teach themselves?” video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xRb7_ffl2D0), young kids can teach themselves, especially when they work in groups. Personally, I have loved book libraries with a huge collection of books on every available topic, where one could spend hours (or even the entire day) browsing through books of your own choice. Today, we have the Internet, which is the largest library of information and knowledge, and can teach us all the “google stuff.” Why should we then burden teachers and student to teach and learn with a curriculum-based education methodology?
•  Lack of soft skills and education in values: The over emphasis on curriculum has robbed our education system from imparting life skills or soft skills (as it is described today in corporate culture). I strongly believe that children are not intellectually dependent upon us, but they do depend on adults for life values such as happiness, integrity, and ethics. In the previous Gurukul system of Indian education, the guru (or teacher) not only imparted knowledge to students, but also life values, which enable you to live your life with the maximum potential.

Regarding soft skills in today’s workplace, there is a stronger requirement for employees to have confidence and collaboration skills to succeed in the workplace. Hence the education system must encourage collaboration (or team building) and develop confidence (through personality development and class presentations) in their students. Unfortunately, development of these soft skills are mostly not encouraged at all in our education system.

A combination of the above flaws is putting a lot of pressure and creating stress among our children. This is evident from the increasing drop-out percentage of students from schools. Even if they manage the pressure, students (especially in their early teens) appear stressed and the joy and spark that you notice in toddlers appears to be fading away with increasing years.

For a keen learner, learning can be a life-long experience. As adults, we pride ourselves in learning new skills, which could be a new technology, a work-related skill, or even something as trivial as learning to do touch typing. Learning something new is always motivating and increases our confidence. Similarly for children, education and learning can be an enriching experience, provided the pressures associated with our education system can be eliminated. Let me finish with the wise words of Kahlil Gibran with regards to learning:

“The teacher who walks in the shadow of the temple, among his followers, gives not of his wisdom but rather of his faith and his lovingness. If he is indeed wise he does not bid you enter the house of his wisdom, but rather leads you to the threshold of your own mind.”

Election fever

As the election fever reaches a crescendo, it is difficult for the non-interested to also remain unaffected. It has been a high on hype and voltage, and brings happy tidings for the Narendra Modi-backed BJP, who (on the basis of the popular sentiment and exit polls) are expected to form the new government.

Personally, I believe that it is the middle-income (or middle-class) people who have been the catalyst for change in this country. However, I welcome the idea of a Modi-led government, as it has created an air of enthusiasm and optimism among Indian citizens, irrespective of their economic and social background. After the last 3 years of despair and confusion due to non-governance, it is good to see political hope in the people, as this itself can drive self-initiative and positive thinking, which can lead to strong growth at least in the near future.

The stock market rallying to cross 24K mark, is an indicator of this new-found optimism. 

Thought about happiness

Just a thought that came across me this morning... We, humans, spend so much time thinking of what will make me happy. It could be a lucrative career, a promotion, birth of a child, or perhaps something as simple as a bright sunny day after days of gloomy weather or seeing a pretty face. My theory is instead of thinking of WHAT will make me happy, think of HOW i can be happy? Confused, let me explain the difference. Think of the ways in which you can display your happiness if you were to experience something NOW that would make you happy. You may smile or laugh, throw  a party if you can afford one, or maybe just start dancing....The ways are innumerable. The problem most people have is they do not know how to celebrate their happiness...What's the point of being happy inside without showing it outside? Just think about it. My logic is just think of the HOW, the WHAT will follow invariably.

Trip to the City of Lakes

A tour of Rajasthan is never complete without visiting its crown jewel, the “City of Lakes” or Udaipur, thus named after its founder, Maharana Uday Singh of Mewad, when he decide to move his kingdom capital from Chittorgarh to Udaipur. 

Set among the Aravalli mountain range, this picturesque town is famous for its popular lakes and numerous palaces, including the famous City Palace, which looks at its royal and magnificent best under lights. The palace (because of its height) offers a lovely view of the older side of the town. The Light and Sound show in the City Palace is the best History class that I have attended, as we got a glimpse of the pride and honour of Mewad through their sacrifices and battles. The kingdom of Mewad was the only kingdom, which chose to fight the conquerors, including the Mughals and the British, rather than adopt peaceful methods of surrendering their kingdom.

Among the lakes, the popular ones are Lake Pichola (where we went for a leisurely boat ride) and Lake Fateh Sagar, which was close to our little palace hotel, Palace Ram Pratap. The lake-side open air restaurant was a treat not only for the delicious Junglee maas (a lamb-based rajasthani delicacy) but also for the serene view of Lake Fateh Sagar.

Nehru garden is a treat for flower and bird lovers, and is located on an island in Lake Pichola. This garden can be accessed only through a boat ride in Lake Pichola. Another popular tourist spot is the Saheliyon-ki-bari, which literally means, “Garden of the Maidens.” This garden was built exclusively for the Queen and her maidens, who used to spend their leisure time in this garden, dotted by lotus ponds, green surroundings, and elephant fountains.

A short drive from Udaipur takes you to Sajjangarh palace, which is located on a hill top and overlooks the Fateh Sagar lake. The attraction in this palace is that it is surrounded by a wildlife reserve forest and offers a fantastic aerial view of Udaipur city.

A tour of the Maharana Pratap memorial travels you back to the yester years of courage and valour and houses the vintage arms and swords that were the pride of the Mewad kingdom. Another vintage spot in Udaipur is the Chetak Smarak, dedicated to the loyal and faithful horse of Maharana Pratap. 

After enjoying the good food and proud culture of Udaipur, it was time to say adieu to the most memorable history class of my travels.