Lights Camera Action

Humor me for a minute.

Lets assume you are 80 years old and some foolhardy director decides to make a movie about your life.

What are the chapters in your story that would make it ?

Would it be a flashback ? or would it be a regular story ?

A love story ?

Or a grand saga like Gone with the wind ?

Or a light hearted comedy like The Holiday ?

Or a story about finding meaning and purpose like Lakshya?

Or will it be all about the journey like The Motorcycle Diaries ?

Remember - you are the most important part of this movie.

For once - atleast in reel life, you dont get to marginalize yourself.

You dont play the ever smiling best friend, or the supportive girlfriend or the flexible co-worker.

You play the unadulterated you...with lip gloss and mascara ofcourse.

What part of your life would make it to the three hour version of it - assuming ofcourse that the idea is not to inspire or humor the audience but to leave them with a lasting impression and understanding of what makes you .."you"

Whats the background score ?

How does it end up - How does it add up ?

You are ofcourse the director and producer of your own life you know.

You call the shots. From take two to the grand finale.

Whats it going to be ?

I think about this.

Actively.

Everytime I am over reacting or getting heart wrung in a situation that threatens to get the better of me.

I take a deep breath and say "Is this something else I am going to have to survive ? ".."Is this something that going to define who I am " ?

Sometimes the answer is yes. The roadbloacks seem unavoidable. So I keep walking.

At other times - The answer is a clear no. In which case, ....jumping over the hurdle seems like the only thing to do.

No - my movie isnt going to be a Sports Romance in case you were wondering :)

I think mine would be a foreign film.

Like Chocolat ..or Amelie ..or Il Postino ..

That sometimes is hard to understand....you cant just start watching it from the middle and expect it to make sense..but ends up just okay. ..in its own wobbly way.

What would yours be ?

Food for thought - Just for the weekend anyways ..:)

Have a good one.

Party Animal

The party was in full swing
Moonlight kissed new faces
The buzz, the excitement, the essence
of many lives from many places

An artist who spoke of the sweet hope in sunshine
A poet who complained of the lack of a good rhyme
The romantic who had shed many soft tears
A historian who had documented even the careless years

An adult who complained of growing up too soon
A child who went on and on about the man on the moon
The adventurer who had just stopped enroute to a new mountain
A diva who was soaked looking for her youth in a fountain

A philosopher with a reason even for the mundane
A writer who confessed to be inspired in the rain
The believer who counted beads in deep prayer
A cynic whose faith was concealed under many a layer

A loner who walked the road less travelled
A reader who just sat back and let mysteries unravel
The girl with a story and a treasure of good friends
An athlete who kept up doing silly stretches and bends

The music grew louder and the night grew still
And yet they all chatted happily, with earnest will
I wondered what they had in common, how could this possibly be
When my ringing alarm pointed out - That they were all me.

Bombay Heritage Walk 2 - Big Bazaar

BIG BAZAAR

The sun was shining so brightly that one could have easily mistaken it for a day in mid May. As we approached the Sand Brown Building of Crawford Market – resplendent with its old clock tower and imposing facades, I could not help but wonder about the journey of our maximum city over the years.

One small city Mumbai, named after Mumbadevi – the local goddess of the Koli’s – made up of an archipelago of seven islands. Guarded by 5 Godesses - Mumbadevi, Sitaladevi, Prabhadevi, Kalbadevi, Gavdevi.
Mumbai was inhabited mostly by fishermen, sailing between the warm bays in lazy boats with flying white sails and rusty orange brown anchors. And watching over all of them was Mumba Devi the patron goddess of their home who they reverently referred to as “Mumba Aai” where “Aai” stands for Mother.
Then came the invaders. First from within and then from outside.
The Portuguese were the first foreign invaders to sail the seven seas and claim the seven sisters. They named the city “Bom Bai” which meant “Good Bay”.
And then there was romance, the common inflection point in many stories…an English King- King Charles II married a Portuguese Princess – Catherine Braganza and got Mumbai as a wedding gift.

The Britishers were quick to arrive and were expert planners and cityscapers. They built a fort on the main island guarded by a moat and a gate. At the border of this fort and the local settlement stood- an imposing market. Crawford Market – named after Arthur Crawford, the first municipal commissioner of the city. This was also the first building in India to be lit up by electricity in 1882. The Crawford market is a stones throw away from the JJ School of Art – that houses the Kipling cottage where Rudyard Kipling was born. Infact, his father Lockwood Kipling designed the impressive structure of the Crawford Market.

The market was utterly lively and resonated with a gregarious vibe, the friendly bantering of vegetable and fruit sellers and a plethora of sounds, colors and smells that infused you once within.
At the center of the market was a fountain, now deserted but that must have once been the crowing glory of this market. I could almost see Englishmen tipping their hats to the ladies, and vendors and sellers sitting and negotiating important deals around the cascading water and secret lovers throwing coins into it and making wishes. I could not help but wonder how shopping in this market and rubbing shoulders with the Bristish and the Indians must have been in the days of the independence movement with the air was thick with conspiracy and resolute.

I especially liked the tall skylights with beaming white sunshine that one could see dust dancing in. And the brown Kurla stones that seem like they would absorb all the negative energy and reflect back hope and enthusiasm which are the only two feelings one must have while picking veggies and condiments for a special meal.

The King of Fruits is here already !

Skylights galore...

Chinese apples which Madhav swore were California apples !

The market is a sight to see at the peak hours. It has lanes that house a Fruit Market, A pet Market, A Cane market, A meat market and a Grocery market. I was unsually reminded of my high school French textbook that has these chapters titled “ Boucherie” “Charcuterie”, “Epicerie”,”Boulangerie”.

I think this is a great place to take kids to. The sheer amount of energy and enthusiasm that resides in this market complete with the different colorful produce and especially the pet market would make it one heck of an interesting trip.
Keeping guard at the periphery of these crowded bazaars is the Jama Masjid and the Minara Masjid.
Infact one of the best moments on the walk was a spot when I realized infact how close the Jama Masjid and Mumbadevi temple actually were. I could hear the sounds of namaaz floating in the air even as I walked into the center hall of Mumbadevi and the temple bells started ringing.

Jama Masjid
The Jama Masjid was originally built at Dongri. It is the first mosque in Mumbai.
However it was demolished in 1770 under British orders that forbade any building from being built too close to the Fort. The present masjid was completed by 1802. You cannot miss the beautiful white minarets rising high above the packed streets– gleaming a whispery silver in the evening light. Interestingly, this masjid is built atop several water tanks.

We walked away from the Crawford Market on Princess Street and turned into a narrow lane with narrower bylanes each that housed magnificent markets dedicated to specific products. I think this is a strong byproduct of the caste system that prevailed in India back then – where based on the caste one historically sold a specific type of product or service.

There was a beautiful Spice Market in Mirchi Galli, Mangaldas Cloth Market in Navi Galli, Perfume Sellers, Zaveri Bazaar for Jewellery, Chor Bazaar (as the story goes – items sold here are stolen)

Ittarwala

The Mistress of Spices ?! ... The yellow ones are what the seller called "Kashmiri Lasan"

Mirchi Seth ?

Madhav at the entrance to Mangaldas Cloth Market.

Inside the cloth market

Dotted Chawls

Red Storage cars near the BEST depot.

Our next stop was the Dwarkadesh Temple. This was the find of the walk. It was one of the most spectacular ornate buildings I've seen in Mumbai. Orange and brightly colored the contrast even more vivid on the grey paved street.
One of the things that I noticed as we made our way through the lanes of history was that it seemed to be a common style for buildings to have clock towers. Dwarkadesh Mandir had a clock tower. So did the Crawford Market. I wondered if that was so as back in the day not everyone on the street owned a watch. Or was it because these buildings were making a declaration saying “Keep an eye on the second hand; I’m going to stand the test of time”. I liked the second explanation better.

Dwarkadesh Mandir

I walked the streets scattered liberally with beautiful old arched buildings, intricately designed chawls and winding alleys. I could not help but imagine Gandhiji, Pandit Nehru and dozens of other leaders followed by thousands of people in Gandhi Topis and Turbans and prayer caps wearing crisp white kurtas and dhotis walking with the Tiranga, protesting against the British Raj, the sounds of dissent and the clank of lathis. In these streets, in these gullis you could almost smell the remnants of Bagawat.

Zhaveri Bazaar

We walked past Pydhonie Police Chowki and several other police cars and patrols.

Winding our way through the decked up and shining streets of Zaveri Bazaar, flower sellers, incense stick sellers, sadhus with smeared forehaeds, bead stalls consumed the streetscape. Almost out of nowhere we saw her. The city’s patron goddess. Mumbadevi.

A tall white Temple Steeple rose above the madness of the galli’s and made her presence felt. Legend has it there was a demon by the name of Mumbaraka who wrecked havoc against the people. Moved by the prayers of the people, Lord Bramha created a 8 handed goddess out of his own being to take on this menance. The defeated demon pleaded the Goddess to take his name and forgive him. She since resides in these lanes watching over the city.

Mumbadevi Mandir

In an almost dramatic way, as soon as we entered the temple, the bells for the evening prayer started ringing accompanied by drum beats and chants. I felt like I was in divine company. It was a sign.
It was overwhelming to say the least. This goddess that the city is named after, all the citizens at her altar, each for a different reason from a different walk of life …all on the road that led them to her. The goddess was beautiful. Orange and with a stunning nath. Next to her was a pleasing Annapurna devi sitting atop a Golden Peacock. The temple complex was big and housed smaller temples for Lord Hanuman, Lord Vishnu and so on. In one corner two brown cows stood quietly and I fed them with some grass that they finished super quickly. It was one of the most peaceful enchanting temples I have been to.

Walking out of the temple complex, we walked through Sheikh Memon Street, checked out the Lohar Chawl area made famous by Mr Gawli and through one lane we came onto Mohammed Ali road – flanked by the enormous Minara Masjid. On our way we passed a beautiful emerald green masjid that we didnt know the name of. Madhav later found its name "Hamidiya Masjid" in his book "Bombay - The Cities within"

The landscape had changed. The food stalls, the prayer stalls, the vendors all selling traditional food - kababs, prayer caps and dhoop. We were in Masjid Gulli.

We couldnt find the name of this emerald green masjid while on the walk. Its called "Hamidiya Masjid"

Minara Masjid.

The famous Suleman Mithaiwala.

A quick stop at Suleman Mithaiwala, some ras malai to-go and a few packets of Aflatoon – which is their in house one of a kind specialty sweet later, flagged a cab and returned back to civilization.

All the goodies from my day at Les Bazaars. Pomegranates, Strawberries, Kesar Ras Malai and Aflaatoon. :)

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Walking through the Bazaars of old Bombay was an amazing experience. It helped me feel the pulse of the city and appreciate the fine balance with which people of all social statuses, political preference and religious inclination co-exist in peace.
It made me feel sad about how some of these areas must have been affected during the communal riots and feel a sense of indignation at the now polarized nukkads and streets.

The thread of moral fiber runs strong in this part of the city and it is these crowded streets and markets that produce almost everything that we depend on for our day to day sheltered suburbian life.

This is the maximum city.

That authors from Salman Rushdie to Vikram Seth to Suketu Mehta to Gregory David Roberts have written moving, appreciative and critical pieces about. And it is in these narrow lanes that History was and will always be written.
Not in the malls, not in the nouveau mill compounds, not in the coiffered gym studded mega building complexes, not on the roads bursting with flyovers.
But here. On terra ferma.

Where grey streets end in bursts of colors above.

Where the city gets intimate with you without asking for permission.

Where planned chaos, car honks, thousands of people, hand cart workers, chai stalls, prayer chants, flower stalls, police bandobasts are business as usual. Where green flags and orange flags flutter together both at the mercy of the west wind and look northward at the Mandir and Masjid both standing testament and guard with their benevolent hands over the heads of the common people.
For it is here, more than anywhere that the Past and the Present collide and turn into something that takes the shape of the future.

I am 30 years old

My city is Mumbai

The Prayer Theory

Over the last year in India, I have frequently met lots of family members, family friends, friends' parents, grandparents and just generally run into a lot many more people than I used to in the US.

Its a great thing.

What even cooler - is the complete lack of inhibition they display in tackling sensitive and seemingly personal parts of my life.

I often resent the intrusion but also love it at the same time depending on the source.

So the top 3 prayer reasons I've gotten from those around me in the last 2 years in India are as follows:

1. Pray to God that you get married soon

2. Pray to God that you find a good job

3. Pray to God that you get a good husband

Note: These may also come with a variant that says "I'll pray to God that you find a good job" so on and so forth.

It got me thinking really hard about the act of praying.

The reality - of my life atleast (and one which it took me a long time to realize) is that I am born with things that I would say over 90% of the world prays for.

So when I stand at a traffic signal - with half a dozen little kids in torn clothes, bare feet, running noses, hunger pangs and smiles to spare .. am I really going to fold my hands and pray that "I get married soon" or what ?

Seriously - what kind of a moron does that make me. The worst kind.

I'm not wasting a good prayer.

I think God has a funnel approach to evaulating prayers that we make.

If you pray for 5 things.

Yeah - in my Theory, God waits till Sunday evening and evaluates prayers on a weekly basis.

By the time your prayers, make it through the dust and the pollution and the clouds, out into space and into heaven. Theres only about a half of them that have survived the long journey.

Some may even go as far to say that the ozone layer has been depleted by too many prayers for too many unnecessary things "God Please let Sachin bat a 100 today" .."God, Please let there be no traffic on the day to work today" "God, please let me get good marks" and so on.

Now there are a 3 of them left.

A billion people in only India. 6.8 Billion in the world. Say 20% of them are atheists.

That brings the sample size to 5.4 Billion.

Now say that another 20% - Do not pray at all. They believe in God but dont pray randomly - so the probability that one of them will be praying at the exact same time as you is say 0.25

So you sample size is 80% of 5.4 and a fourth of 20% of 5.4

Which is about 4.5 Billion people.

So on any given sunday - God receives 4.5 Billion * 3 prayers to attend to.

13.5 Billion prayers.

Now, there might be some that might say, theres different Gods based on different religions - so divide that number. By 4 or 5 of whatyoumay.

Thats still a whole darn lot of prayers for all the cumulative Gods of the world.

Can you imagine - God floating on a silver cloud, Logs on to his computer (wonder if its a Mac?)

and opens his inbox to find 13.5 Billion prayers in it.

Plus those from the week before that he did not get around too.

Now the first thing, he does is eliminate the non-unique prayers.

Very database oriented.

Sort on primary key which is the person and delete non unique subject lines.

Say thats half of them. Assuming that I prayed for a good job on Monday and on Thursday and so did most people.

Wow - still has over 6 Billion prayers left.

Now he says, whats a smart way to sort this. Hmm. What all has happened in the world last week. Forest Fires in Australia, Continental Plane Crash in the US, Sri Lankan Army marches ahead in war, Suicide Bomber in half a dozen places. Lots of crisises.

Lets get to those first.

After he does those groups. He says. Let me also do the countrys where theres drought, famine, floods and which are poor and impoverished in general.

Now lets look at the people that are ill, handicapped, homeless, orphaned etc.

Now lets look at all the people related to all the groups above who will also be in anguish.

He's left with 3 Billion prayers at the end of this.

Wow. Thats a lot of work. Kit Kat Break Banta hai.

Post dinner, he says, this is a good time to take a look at everyone else. But he goes to bed at midnight. So he can only get to 1 Billion of those prayers.

Now the prayers take more time to process - because they get more complicated and need to be evaluated against everything else thats going on in that person's life, what he's done in the past, karma counter, Gods own plan for that person and so on and so forth.

Whats the probability that on any given sunday - my one prayer about " Please let my zit go away by the party tomorrow night" ( And yes, I have shamelessly prayed for this before in my life) ..actually reaches him ?

I can imagine him sitting on his computer and shaking his head in disgust.

Is that really the one prayer that I want him to grant ?

Given the probability that it may be weeks, months even that I'm able to get his attention.

Probably Not.

So here is my thought process around praying

-Use my prayer to say Thanks. As in life, I may not get another chance to say it

-Pray for others around me. Knowing the funnel approach and odds involved, some could certainly use the help.

-Pray for good health. Nothing can be a substitute for it.

-Pray for my parents. They brought me into the world.

-Pray for my family. I am what I am because of them.

-Pray for world peace.

-Pray for the ability to make good decisions and for the strength to accept mistakes and move on (This is what I call a complicated concatenated prayer that requires intense processing)

- Pray that I may lead a meaningful life

Its actually pretty hard to do exactly this. I cant say I'm entirely successful at it. But I want to be. Badly. Its requires a harsh honest look at my life and perspective - which weather permitting can be hard to come by.

I want to be smart about praying.

I once read that our prayers do not end up changing our lives. They end up changing us.

I hope I choose mine wisely.

Amen

Inspiration

Somedays its a cup of warm coffee
On others - its a cutting of spicy chai
A brisk walk through crowded grey streets
As an orange sunset wishes the day goodbye

A dear old song on the radio
A warm hug, an unexpected smile
The smell of the earth as she waits for the rains
Running a fast sweaty mile

Woven Baskets with colorful veggies
Soon chopped up into creative lego
Crumbly Corks from old wine bottles
that reek of love from a long time ago

A solitary burning candle
making eyes at the east wind
A frothy bubbled blue bathtub
all eager to be soaked in

My fingers messy with paint
While Van Gogh drenches my soul
A dog eared yellow paged book
where the story is yet to unfold

A life thats filled with romance
in a mundane ordinary way
A heart thats soaked with hope
at the end of every random day

Its hard to find inspiration
if I only look for her inside me
But on days when I let my mind wander
Its impossible for her to avoid me

Enemy of the State

Dear Madam President,

Last week, a political group called Sri Ram Sene in Mangalore - gathered a group of followers and barged into a pub in Mangalore. They physically threatened and beat up women in the pub, chased them, pulled their hair and tried to remind them that they were "Indian" women and that they should not embrace western culture of clubbing and drinking and smoking.

The court arrested all the activists involved and their leader and subsequently to every Indian woman's agitation and No on'es surprise granted them all conditional bail.

Quoting the leader at a press conference shortly after his release

"What we have done in Mangalore is a big success story in out fight against indecency. We are thankful to our Mangalore cadre for everything that they have done"

I find that appalling and disgusting. Do you ?

We need someone to take charge of the increasing violence against women in India, that everyone decries and no one does a darn thing about.

While we can take any number of harsh stands on cross border terrorists, who is going to do something about the enemy within ?

You need to make a strong statement and take concrete action.

Incase you are wondering what to say, I recommend reading "Lexus and the Olive Tree" by Thomas Friedman.

The Olive Tree represents everything traditional and cultural and ethnic. The Lexus represent the new, the market shaping and market changing and so called western.

Everytime the Olive Tree tries to outwit the Lexus - anarchy usually prevails.

Do a Google search on Taliban if you can. Case in point.

And everytime the Lexus tries to run over the Olive Tree, it fumbles too. Look at the sub prime crisis for example. Fancy new age derivative instruments crushed to their mathematical roots by age old vices and coming back to rely on tranditional lend and borrow.

Are we the Lexus or the Olive Tree ?

What most of us are - is somewhere in between.
Where is this middle ground anyways ? Not in Mangalore for sure.
And who gets to decide where it is ?

I'm adressing this to you, because I feel that you have three things going for you

- You are a woman so I'm banking that you will empathize and agree that NO ONE deserves to be roughed up and abused in any way for doing something that the constitution does not oppose and that does not violate someone else's safety and security. The situation is especially dire when you are female.

- You are the President. I've always thought that the President in India does nothing. This is your chance to prove me wrong.

- You live in Delhi - which is setting a world record in crimes againts women.

Frankly, in my opinion - if we wait long enough - a few more decades going by today's rate of action, there simply wont be any women to save ..because amongst other things India also has shocking statistics of Female infanticide and Maternal Mortality. So the present strategy of our government which can only be labelled as Ostrich in sand ..might actually work.
No women = No crimes against women.
And at that point - we will be one of several countries in the world to have sucessfully deployed this "westernization of women issue through making all of woman kind extinct" strategy.
You can personally invite the Taliban to Rashtrapati Bhavan and celebrate. (Make sure that on that day you wear long sleeved clothes least you not offend them and face their wrath.)

You can rename the country Tali-Bharat in excitement.

But until then, while we still have women in this country - everyday that you sit and not do anything except attend convocations of all the IIT;s in this country (Make sure your pilots know how to land this time though) ..the Enemy of the State runs amock.

Happy Valentine's Day

Yours Sincerely,

Kau

We are like that only

• BOOK :
  We are like that only
  Understanding the Logic of Consumer India: Rama Bijapurkar
  
  
  Review: This book is a must read for anyone who wants to understand and appreciate the India consumer market. Its style is simple and lucid, fact based and yet incredibly creative. Rama displays her thorough command over the nuances of the multi layered multi segmented Indian consumer market and leaves you spell bound with her fantastic insights and practical examples. This book provides delightful insights into the demographic, social and cultural trends that shape the Indian market and makes a very strong case for a “Made for India” strategy for anyone who is serious about doing business in India.
  
  Here are some thoughts discussed in the book that impacted me:
  
  1. Emerging markets today are not what developed markets were in their infancy:
  
  There three ways in which they are different:
  - Emerging market business economics are significantly different because even though the per capita income is less, the significant population ensures large volume markets that are phenomenal opportunities in terms of net value of consumption and demand.
  - Emerging markets need not be not virgin markets. The Retail industry in India is a prime example of this. Indian Kiranawallas (Mom and Pop Retailers) have credit lines with consumers, distribution channels and value added features like home delivery in place – all homegrown but highly sophisticated. Or for that matter – Fashion Street that stocks surplus export garments has a highly developed client base.
  - Consumers in an emerging market exist in real time. They have access to history and information. India will not follow the same path that the American market did. For example – the lack of the Cola market in India to take off as it did in America. This is because Indian consumers have access to far more health information that US consumers did in days long gone by. Indian markets have leap frogged developed markets in ther adoption of technology like cell phones. Intel waits for PC Penetration in India to catch up to decide when to enter the Indian rural market – but now the Indian Rural consumers have access to feature rich internet enabled cell phones and don’t need individual PC’s – not to get on the internet anyways ! Indian markets are bound to follow their own trajectory to development and need an India Focused strategy.
  
  
  
  2. MNC’S will change Emerging markets forever – But its also true that emerging markets will change MNC’S forever !
  
  Being successful in a market like India needs companies to rethink their price performance equations. Indian consumers are value conscious in their DNA and will demand products that are high on value and low on price.
  MNC’s will need to revaluate their business models and shift the focus from “Best Practice” to “Next Practice”
  India is the “Bullock Cart to Business Class” economy. The consumers will demand more sophisticated bullock carts and cheaper business class.
  
  3. Most MNC’s who are considering being part of the India story will ask – “When will India have the per capita income and infrastructure of China, the westernization and per capita consumption of Brazil, Education Levels of Russia and maturity and development of America”?
  
  NEVER.
  This question basically asks when India will be like some other place.
  There are few facts about Consumer India that will stay for a long time to come:
  Consumer India is large. Over 1 billion people.
  What is “Global” … Global is what majority of the world is. And in a few years time – the center of gravity will be titled heavily towards Asia. This is a fact that new age marketers simply cannot ignore.
  India is poor. But getting less poor. This is debatable – because the growing population has neutralized any % reduction in poverty levels.
  It has some rich people – getting richer. The top 10% of Indian consumers have the same per capita income and consumption appetite of 80% of Brazil and 60% of Malaysia. This is the GREAT INDIAN NUMBER TRICK. 10% of 1 billion is 100 million consumers. 100 million India Consumers who are Socio Economic Classification A (SECA) = Three times the total population of Canada = Five time the total population of Australia = A little less than double of France
  Consumer India is Schizophrenic. Indian Consumers will adopt computers easily but will not shun horoscope matching before deciding to marry. They will instead used Software to do the matching. There are oases of development and pockets of extremely underdeveloped markets. India is fragmented in terms of the potential it offers.
  Two different age groups with completely different consumption ideologies. The pre and post liberalization consumers.
  India is though a guaranteed to happen snowball story. Its got 400 million consumers under the age of 21, strong institutions, low country risk and changing shapes of Income Distribution and strong entrepreneurial roots (Organized sector accounts for only 10% of jobs in India)
  
  
  3. “Consumption is like Maternity – a matter of certainty. Income is like Paternity – a question of inference.
  
  India market is multi tierd and consmers follow hybrid models of consumption. A consumer may buy an expensive color TV that is so loud that all the neighbours can hear it – but may not use shampoo to wash his hair. This type of “Category Collide” is rampant in India. So unlike most other markets – looking at consumption and trying to back calculate income – or vice versa is not only troublesome but misleading in the Indian market.
• 
  4. Instead of asking if the Indian Market is ready – MNC’s should ask “whats my target India”
  
  The answer is complicated ..
  Theres IT India – Bright young fresh graduates – immensely forward looking
  There’s Rural India – within rural India, theres agricultural India and then manufacturing India
  Then theres Governement India
  
  While a bad monsoon intensely affect agricultural India – It has no impact on IT India.
  Then throw in variable of socio economic classification, ethnicity, states, culture and what you have in consolidation is a Drunken Man;s walk.
  He will take many paths – may fall down – get up – but he will eventually get there.
  
  5. The Force of change F = MA
  
  Urban India is accelerating at a large speed – but is small in size. Rural India is the exact reverse. The net force stays the same.
  The bottom 30% of Indian market and the top 10% are nearly equivalent in $ terms.
  
  6. There are three popular theories about the next wave of consumption in India
  
  - The new age Indian women
  - The post liberalization children
  - Growth of rural India
  While they all represent significant potential – they are also mirrored with their own contradictions.
  
  The new age Indian woman is a force to reckon with. And we aren’t just taking about women who work here. We are talking about all women who look upon themselves as the “CEO” of their house across all SEC classes. She makes her life around “negotiated tradition” She wants a blend of the old and the new. A fantastic example here was that of the poor penetration of fast ready to eat processed meals in India. While the time savings may be attractive – Traditionally we are a sit down and eat piping hot freshly made food together culture. The Indian woman will not buy a packet of instant eady made GITS idli. She will purchase ready made Idlli batter from a lady down the street. She will find a solution that retains the positive labor (outsourced but home made ) and eliminates the negative labor( processed)
  The teenage market is contradictory in its own way. If you enter the room of a teenage in the US versus one in India – you’ll see the same things .. clutter, dependence of phone, aspiration for the popular. But beyond that – the similarities fade. Teenagers in India, China, Brazil and Russia are no kidding worlds apart when gauged on a Affiliative – Assertive / Expressive – Repressive scale. What this means is that their DNA impacts their aspirations and consumption patterns.
  Rural consumers have their own surprises. A commonly held belief is that 60% of Indias GDP is agricultural. Hmm.. 54% OF Indias GDP is rural – of which 48% is agricultural and the rest comes from non agricultural activity. And this has been growing steadily. However Rural India is also kaleidoscopic across states in terms of their GDP and consumption.
  
  7. Bottom of the Pyramid (BOP) India is a fabulous but complicated opportunity.
  
  It is poor but not backward and has tremendous pent up demand for high productivity products at affordable price points.
• 650 million people who earn less than 1 dollar a day but together account for 30% of national income, 33 % of consumption and 20% of savings. 1 dollar a day goes a long way in India for a family of 5 plus earning members who all live together.
• These are technology embracers – who do complicated value processing. It is essential to understand Spending patterns beyond Annual Income here.
  A classic example here is of the mass adoption of cell phones. With a prepaid card – even a vegetable vendor on the road has a cell phone. He does not make calls on it. Only accepts free incoming calls and this helps him grow his home delivery business 2 fold.
• Another fabulous example here - was the ease with which BOP consumers adopted ATM's. Essentially the blockbuster ingredient here was an intrinsic value that ATM's had in reducing power distance. While a poor man would get a hard time from a power hungry clerk in a banks front office - he could have a fairly simple cordial relationship with an ATM machine that granted him respect and peace of mind.
  
  To conclude – This was a fantastic read. It laid emphasis on the importance of creating the right value –price – performance positioning for the Indian consumers and creating multiple segments even within a segment to target consumers in a tailored and focused manner.

It highlighted the importance of asking the the right questions and defining "A Target India" and then designing "Made for India" products and strategies.

Kala Ghoda Arts Festival 2009

Kala Ghoda is a district in South Bombay.
It is named after a statue of a Black Horse with the Prince of Charles mounted on it that once used to be in the square.

That statue was moved to Jijamata Udyan but the name has persisted over the years.

This street is the heart of Mumbai's Art district. It is home to the Jehangir Art Gallery, the Beautiful David Sasoon Reading Hall, Max Mueller Bhavan, Prince of Wales Museum, National Gallery of Modern Art and the once Regal now in shambles Watson Hotel.

The Watson hotel housed some renowned guests like Mark Twain. Legend also has it that it was being denied entry at this "Only British" hotel, that inspired JRD Tata to build the Taj Mahal Hotel.

One of my personal favorites at this square is Samovar - the cafe within Jehangir Art Gallery. Yes, the Kala Ghoda Sqaure is where History meets Art meets Architecture meets Pride.

Yesterday I visited the Kala Ghoda Arts Festival and Street Fair.

Apart from rubbing shoulders with some of Bombays oldest and most renowned buildings, walking the grey black paved streets which horses once trotted on and taking a deep breath at the David Sasoon Reading Library ..just trying to absorb it all... I also walked the street fair circuit which had NGO's from all over India, handicrafts from Handloom to Pottery to Orissa handicraft, home made soaps and paper mache acessories.

Bright colors and Grey pavements made a pretty sight and a wonderful afternoon.

I was particularly impressed by the some of the art exhibits that were on display at Rampart Row. Here are briefs on some of them.

Made in "Chai -na" : A satirical take at the influx of Chinese goods into the world. "Chai" in Hindi also means Tea and "Na" means No. :) Made me smile.

Scorpion: The center piece of the art exhibit was a giant metal scorpio with baby scorpios crawling all over it. The essence of this exhibit was that Bombay city is like a Huge Scorpio - that hosts a zillion demands on it - the baby scorpios. If the baby scorpios grow too large in number - the mother is no longer able to support them and dies out of exhaustion. This art piece was high on impact - visual and otherwise.

How long can you stand for it: This was a room that depicted the sorry state of affairs for the poor people in Bombay wrt to Sanitation and Personal Hygiene. It showed statstics of the number of people in Bombay without access to toilets who use the streets and creeks for relieving themselves. And then asked the viewers a rhetoric "How long can you stand for it"

Postcards to Pakistan: A wall mounted with postcards that visitors could write to Pakistan. It was very moving and insightful to read some of the postcards written. While I waited - there was a group of school kids filling postcards. It really made me think about the urgency that needs to be woven into political decisions India makes in the days to come.

A Woman's Alley: I particularly liked this one for its impactful depiction of the everyday violence that plagues women in certain parts of India.

The 8th Wonder of the world: My personal favorite at this years fest. The 8th wonder of the world was a three story tall pyramid. Its one side was made of buckets, the other side of taps and the third of bottles. These are all instruments with which we deplete the most precious resource we have - Water. Some say that oil prices be dammed. The wars of the future will be fought over water. I am not inclined to disagree.

I really liked the day I spent at the Kala Ghoda Festival. I definately think that Bombay needs more of these street festivals. We live in a city that has so much history, art and culture. It was a great day to absorb some impactful thoughts and ideas through art - this side of the world.

The air was so thick with the smell of art and fusion you could almost smell it.

Needless to say I loved it.

The Festival continues to be on till Feb 15th. I highly recommend a Dekkho.

Special Mention to Sujoy, Aditya and Madhav who made the trip possible. You'll rock.

Bombay Heritage Walk 1 : Dalal Street Area

BOMBAY HERITAGE WALK 1: DALAL STREET
Bright and Early on Sunday morning, some close friends met up and decided to learn more about the city that they call home. They headed to Flora Fountain to embark on a three hour heritage walk in the Dalal Street area of Fort.
Other than developing an appreciation for brisk walking, this crisp February morning, they also learnt to appreciate the many changing faces of Amchi Mumbai, the beauty in shambled buildings and the contrast between the past and the future colliding in the moment.

Excerpts from their learnings follow:
When the British first arrived in Bombay, they decided to build India's finest city. They fortified the narrow confines of Bombay and built a fort.
Bombay Fort.
This fort span from the East Coast to West Cost of downtown Bombay and to this date that part of the city is called "Fort" Outskirts of this fort - was a moat and four large green esplanade parks to house the many canons that protected its borders.
These are now called Azad Maidan, Oval Maidan, Cross Maidan and Cooperage.

Within the santuary of the fort - in 1600 was built a cathedral - St Thomas Cathedral. It is the first anglican church in Bombay. Tall White towers housing a peaceful structure surrounded by lush green trees. The gates of the fort directly in front of this Cathedral ..was called The Church Gate ..and Bombay's premier railway station - the mecca of downtown commuters - derives its name for this erstwhile gate. Churchgate.
I instantly fell in love with the beautiful and breathtaking St Thomas Cathedral. I was at peace and mesmerized by its white columns, high arched ceilings and wooden architecture.
This was built in 1600's and the the construction was abandoned for a total of 40 years - it was only completed in 1716 and houses one of the most beautiful fountains I have seen at its entrance. The cathedral was opened on Christmas Day and was the East India Company's place of worship. It is built in a Neo Classical/Neo Gothic Style.

Sir Cowasjee Jehangir Readymoney sponsored this fountain that was designed by the noted architect G. Scott.

In 1862 - Sir Bartle Frere was appointed the Governor of Mumbai. He elected to tear down the fort walls, reclaim the moats and let the city grown past its narrow confines. Where the Church Gate once stood - he built a maginificant fountain. There were plans to name this after him as "Fraire Fountain" but the magnificent greek goddess of Flowers who sits atop this beautiful fountain - won over the hearts of all leading to the name "Flora Fountain" . It was designed by Norman Shaw.
The square in which the fountain resides was renamed "Hutatma Chowk" in 1960 after the Martyrs of the Indian Independence movement.

The street around Flora Fountain has some of the oldest buildings in Bombay - The HSBC building, the Public Works Department building, the Oriental Insurance Company building.
Some interesting information we received was:
The Oriental Insurance building used to once house the Cathedral and John Connon school. The school was moved further down the area in later years. The top floor of the Oriental Insurance building has the faces of three old governors of bombay sculpted on it.
The HSBC building and the Bank of India headq's use to house "The Bombay Club"

Walk futher down this street we arrived at Horniman Circle - which is cosily nestled between the Bombay Asiatic Library and the Flora Fountain. It was once called Elphiston Circle and was a favored trading ground for cotton and opium amongst other commodities.

The entrance to this circle is a beautiful water trough with lion head tap faucets.

I had visions of british soldiers trotting up on fine horses that quenched their thirst in the ornate water trough at the gardens entrance.

One of the best views of the tour was that of the Bombay Asiatic Society Library through the iron gates of Horniman Circle Garden. This maginificent pristine white building was once the Town Hall of Bombay City. Time has not been able to diminish neither its granduer nor the massive respect it commands on the streets of Bombay.

Now the part of the city inside the Fort - was divided into a Gora or British part and a Kala or Indian part. Starting from the Flora Fountain was a busy street called "Angrez Bazaar" by the Indians and "Meadow Street" by the British which primarily hosted establishments that served to the British. All the bylanes in this street are named after trees "Ash Street" "Tamarind Street" "Oak Street"

Another important facet of the city was the many diverse people it housed even then. There was a significant Armenian population in Bombay and ther built a small church that is now hidden within the many winding alleys of Angrez Bazaar

Some beautiful buildings that we passed that were once the jewels of the Kala Bazaar - Raja Bahadur Mahal and Narang Mahal - now both in ruins.

Raja Bahadur Mahal(above)

The oldest laundry in Bombay is on this street "The Leech and Ebony Dryers and Cleaners"

• Some interesting things we learnt on the tour - Famous businessman and Banker of the early 19th Century Mr. Premchand Raichand donated money to build Bombay University on the condition that there is a tower constructed that bears his mothers name in the University Campus. This tower was built by Sir Gilbert Scott and was named "Rajabai tower" after his mother ..which over the years ..people started calling: "Rajabhai Tower" . It was sad how such a historic landmark's name would be altered by so many over the years - lost in translation..

• The Bombay Stock Exhange established in 1875 is the oldest in Asia - just a few days older than the Hongkong Stock Exchange. Dalal street was named after the many brokers who used to deal within its lanes.

• On the periphery of Dalal Street lies the State Bank of India building - which is a fine example of Ionic architecture. We learnt something very interesting about the history of banking in India : The first general Bank of India was established in late 17th century. In the 1800's three banks were established -Bank of Bombay, Bank of Bengal and Bank of Madras. There were merged to form the Imperial Bank of India which later became the State Bank of India.
• This street also housed the old Goverment House of Bombay which is a beautiful Portuguese style building.
• This street has a cluster of buildings with Ionic architecture, Classsic Indian, Portuguese and Venetian Gothic style.

The Dalal Street area truly represents the many influences that inspired colonial India and is a testament to their peaceful coexistence even in modern times.
We walked for a total of 3 hours.

I was at once proud of Bombay's beautiful history, disappointed by my lack of knowledge of it and distressed at the ruins that some of these monumental structures were in.

A hot, sultry, informative, exciting morning under a cloudless blue february sky - utterly unforgetable, incredibly romantic and fabulously satisfying.

It was also my favorite day since I moved back.

I am 30 years old,

And my city is Mumbai.

Thank God I have enough.

25 Random Things

25 Random things about me.

1. My number 1 resolution for the year is to go to Morocco and meet Faiza
2. I really want to attend Farzeen and Leanne's wedding in September
3. I love writing my blog
4. I think i am good at keeping in touch with friends
5. I've lived in 5 cities so far - Bombay, Delhi, Hyderabad, Gainesville and Atlanta
6. I cannot survive without Sev Puri and Thumbs up
7. I'm allergic to some types of seafood, sitaphal and lychees
8. My number 1 dream in life is to have a dog as a pet ..I cant remember anything else I've wanted fo such a long time ..yeah ..I even have the name picked out ..
9. My all time favorite movie is "Il Postino " ..The Postman.
10. I like to workout
11. My pet name is Kau
12. I love everything about Bollywood !
13. I think children under tha age of 12 should not be acting in Hindi Soap operas on TV ..or nationally televized singing contests..or anything that requires them to wear 10 layers of makeup ..they should be in school ..or reading ..or playing outdoors ..and having a normal childhood .. and not living their parents dream of being on TV !
14. I really want India to secure its borders and make it a safer place so that I can take my nephews to a mall and not be nervous ..
15. My favorite view of the city is from the park opposite Hanging Gardens ..I bribe the guard there everytime to let me climb into the Shoe ..just to watch the view of Bombay !
16. I'm considering going on "The General Motors Diet" next week
17. I'm worried about the looming credit card crisis
18. I have painted The Starry night over half a dozen times
19. My current favorite book is "Love in the time of cholera" by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
20. I desperately crave a cup of Starbucks coffee
21. I'm presently planning a trip to the Golden Temple in Amritsar
22. I am lucky to have made so many good friends in all the cities I've lived in
23. I like being busy
24. I have a picture frame with 7 slots ..one for each wonder of the world - ..and I;ve filled two so far ..
25. I think everyone whom I tag is going to write this note and tag back ..since this is not on Facebook ..how about everyone that reads this leaves a comment with what the last song that they heard is ?

Hooked and Booked

Books are my first love.

I'm the sort of person who thinks that a good book is great company.

I always wander into bookstores and flip through magazines, fiction, non-fiction, kids books, self help books, cook books, poetry books, large glossy art coffee books and even the tiny bible on a key chain or 50 great cocktail books.

So when a new friend. who has also recently moved back from the US - remarked over coffee that he was having a hard time finding books he wanted to read, I almost didnt believe him.

I thought about it more frequently as the week turned older by a day and then by two until Sunday was here.

I realized that on none of my previous visits to the brand new two storied Crossword right outside my house - which is one of the few big book retailers here - had I actually gone with a list of sorts. I had always wandered in and ended up buying a few books - some of them that turned out to be amazing - like Keep of the Grass or Q&A .. but never with a list.

So I made a list bright and early Sunday morning and went to the bright yellow Crossword as soon as the Rafa -Fed showdown was over.

Like Water for Chocolate : Laura Esquivel

Liars Poker: Micheal Lewis

One hundred years of solitude: Gabriel Garcia Marquez

Six Suspects: Vikas Swarup

I came back empty handed. They had not a single book in my list.

And I was thinking on the way back home what other bookstores could I go to in the area.

In Gainesville - I lived nears a Barnes and Noble, The fabulous UF library, Book Lovers Cafe on 13th ..all short bus rides away.

For 41/2 years in Atl I lived within a 1 mile radius of a Borders, Barnes and Noble, Target and Walmart. All of which stock books. While the latter two definately wont have any literary pearls - just the bestseller and oprah's club variety ..atleast they do.

In Delhi - I lived across from a coffee shop with a small cluttered but fab book store.

In Hyderabad - The ISB library was pretty exhaustive - and I could always carry a CCD takeaway or a cup of chai in there.

My options last evening - were None.

I know theres Landmark - but 45 -60 minutes away.

I could try some vendors on the road by Andheri Station or Parle Station - but wasnt particularly motivated.

The only other option was another Crossword in Juhu. Which did not have my books either.

I'm pretty sure that the books business in India is particularly hard thanks to the widespread piracy that prevails.
Which makes the lack of a coffee store inside the bookshops - even more surprising.
I would think that a beverages business would totally be a high margin one.
Kinda like the Starbucks inisde a Barnes and Noble. ..or the Borders coffee ( Is it Seattles Best now? ..I dont remember)
Last night I craved to go to another bookshop and find my books.
How I would absolutely love it if I were to find a bookstore with a coffee shop.
Fuel for a hungry mind and a sweet tounge.
I'd be hooked and booked.

Allez Roger

Dear Roger,

In 2003, when you won the Wimbledon, you also became the champion of my heart.

Back then. there weren't too many things that made me happy. I guess you can say that I was a very lonely and somewhat sad person.

I didnt know too many people, was dealing with a lot of issues and we all know how long non surgical scars take to heal anyways.

Somehow I met you one night on ESPN.

I remember lying on my couch in my 2119 River apartment, as hurricane warnings flashed and chilled my heart. You took away the fear, if only for a little bit with your magnificent top spin and astounding first serves.

I learnt to ignore the flashes of lightening, the roar of thunder and focused on you instead.

Game after Game. Match after Match. Set after Set.

Uninterrupted.

It was one of the first few things I started looking forward too. At a time, when I looked forward to things far and few in between and dreaded the evenings I spent alone in my apartment.

Yet in a way that I can only describe as fortuitous, you gave me hope and a new routine.

I'd come home and cook and clean and be ready by the time you walked to centre court and unpacked.

It was just the TV, you, me. The Terrific Three.

Slowly, the going started getting good for you and surprising, my life was turning a new leaf as well.

It was the start of a grand love affair.

Year after Year, I have cheered and gotten carpet rash and thumped my fist at every game you have played.

I was watching when you lost the French Open for the first time to Rafa.

And I was also awake way past my bedtime when you lost the Wimbledon to him.

And today, I was also watching when you lost the Australian open to him.

I bet its not easy.

Facing the same opponent, in the same battlefield, time after time.

I just cannot imagine what a nerve wrecking mind game this must be for you.

Its not easy losing the same battle everytime in your life. This I do know something about.

And yet, you are out there, every few months ..taking on this gigantic fight of near epic proportions.

I watched you cry today, and something inside me just broke.

It takes something to breakdown on national television infront of a crowd of millions maybe even billions of people. Like the whole world can see your soul.

A match lost in Tennis is soul shattering. Its like the breakup of a lifetime.

Theres hundreds of missed shots to antagonize and weep over.

I simply cannot imagine what you will go through in the weeks to come.

Dont read any newspapers for one thing. If you do, remember to call up a certain Indian cricketer called Sachin ..I'm sure he had a fairly developed opinion on the astute athletic and sport insights that media people provide.

I really dont have anything smart or witty to say, except for the fact that even though you dont know it ..you were only of the first few friends I made, when I was fighting my own epic battle.

And in this surreal uncanny way, you were there for me.

And I am here cheering for you too.

Allez Roger .. I know you can do this.