Thursday, December 6, 2007

Om shanti Om and employee satisfaction


The movie has made it to the hit list and the movie buffs would agree with me though the mafia may not. Only those with really high resistance levels (or those with highly obsessive aversion for SRK as well as the "i don't watch hindi movie" kinds) would not have seen it by now. That is fine with me of course. I don't get paid for promoting Farah Khan movies anyway (thats not such a bad idea though, i like the proposal already ;), what say FK? ).


The reason I'm making my readers go through this torturous blog entry is to share an observation i made when i went to see this movie with friends. Noone who's been watching hindi movies in the last few years would be surprised when a complete music video greets them at the end of a movie. Its a new trend that has been picked up by movie makers to make people sit through the end credits. Maybe they figured that if they made that one good song/video for the whole movie, the precious few who bought tickets to the film might just endure it till the end to be able to watch that song. Maybe its their way of thanking cine goers for coming to the movie theater and not watching the movie on pirated DVDs. or maybe they think they will be able to cover up for a lousy ending by mitigating any ill-will generated. Guess this is their way of saying, "Smile please, atleast we have the lead actor dancing with hot women in bikinis for you".


You obviously know by now that I'm going to talk about the end credits of "OM shanti OM". Those who've seen the movie may point out that there are no babes in bikinis in that song. Those who havn't seen the movie may check out the video on youtube and then be quick to point out that there are no babes in bikinis in that song. All you have is the entire cast and crew dancing their way down the red carpet wearing their sunday best. Those who've seen Farah Khan's previous directorial venture (Main Hoon Na) wouldn't have been surprised at all. She did this in that movie as well.


"Geez! Is that your observation? Great going Dewy!" Of course I have to say "Of course not!". Only this time I mean it. Did anyone spot the spot boys? or the dress crew or the light men? or the sundry other characters associated with a film crew? You know the kind of people you don't even know about? Did you see the look on their faces? Assuming of course that you sat through the entire video to watch the "invisible" men of the film industry. Can you for a second imagine what must be going through their minds while they danced down the carpet like movie stars? Ecstacy? Jubilation? or just pure Thrill! What do you think they must've done when they went home after the shoot? Probably told their entire neighbourhood to go watch Om Shanti Om cause it has them staring in it!!! Wouldn't you? What can be cooler than being on screen to be watched by thousands of cine-goers?


But that isn't my observation either. My observation is that there should be a case study on organization behaviour on Farah Khan. I think the lady nailed employee satisfaction/motivation right on the head. I would be even more impressed if I learn to find out that she knows what she has achieved by this move. She made even the smallest member (in terms of work load & impact on the project) of the crew seem as important as a star of the movie. She acknowledged their contribution in front of the entire nation (or even the whole world). Which organization can boast of that? With this promise she gained the loyalty of her work force. She made everyone dedicated to their job and give their best to the project.


The cream of the cake is that, while she did all this, she also made the maximum use of the age old way of film promotion - word of mouth marketing. Its incredible how, with the help of every single member of her crew, she has been able to penetrate all the stratas of the Indian society, from the billionaire to the kickshaw puller. That has to draw crowds if nothing else does.


(This is not to undermine the importance of the dard-e-disco dance number or the special appearance of the entire film industry in the deewangi song.)

Opinion maybe divided on what made this movie do so well. Re-incarnation? Spoof on all the movies of that last 30 years? Karz relaoded? or SRK? Some would say this was one of the silliest movies they've ever seen. Some would call it downright crappy. But all that doesn't matter does it? As they say पिक्चर HIT है भाई! (the movie is a hit man!) Project is successful. The producers made a lot of moolah. The director and the bombshell Deepika Padukone got the cheers. They all featured in Koffee with Karan (although they would still have come on the show even if the movie was a super failure).


I would love to know the answer to one question though. Did Farah Khan know what she was doing when she did this?

Sunday, October 7, 2007

and then i danced



People listen to music, I feel it. I experience it, I live it, I dance to it. My body takes over, I stop thinking. I lose my inhibitions, I lose control. I live in that moment, I exist.

God made man, man made music, and music inspired lives. I am inspired too, in ways I can't even comprehend.

They say that in you life you have to seek out your guru. I seek my guru, the one who can understand what I experience and nurture it. I want to thrive on it.

I'm still looking for my opportunity, I'm looking for my purpose. I hope to find it before long.

Saturday, October 6, 2007

why do I want to stay?

I know not what i am
I know only that i can never really be
what i want to be
or set out to see what i want to see

i seek salvation
i seek admiration
i know i cannot get them
both in unison

i want someone
who can understand me
i need someone to
come and save me

sometimes i want to get up
and leave everything behind
sometimes i want to embrace
the world and everything in it

I think it through
I wonder everyday
I want to go away
But why do I want to stay?

Tuesday, July 24, 2007

The things people say...

Passing by a group of people, you can't help overhearing a few words here and there. Incomplete statements or stray phrases heard out of context can turn out to be very amusing. Especially when the person saying it is also in a state of animation. Such instances give you a lot of insight about people in general. Most of the times the conversations are light hearted, mindless banter. But sometimes you end up hearing something really nasty. Things get worse if the statements happen to be about you. What should you do then? You can't ignore it. You can't act as if it never happened. And you sure can't forget about it. What must you do then?
I say we ought to make the most of the opportunity. You found out something about yourself that you weren't aware of. It gives you a chances to analyse yourself. Maybe, without realising it, you have developed a habit or behaviour that does more harm than good. Or one which needs to be modified. That criticism can be handled.
Now for the next question. What can you do if what you've heard is something you don't have any control over? Some say why worry about something you don't have any control over? But then it does sadden you to know how people form opinions about other people blatantly disregarding their abilities (or inabilities). They openly bad mouth the person or make fun of them. It saddens you to know how insensitive people are towards people who are not like them, or are unlike anything they have ever seen or met before.
Why must we all fit into a known mould to be accepted or appreciated? Why can't we tolerate diversity?

Tuesday, July 3, 2007

Why am I an Athiest?

Why am I an Athiest? is a famous essay written by Shaheed Bhagat Singh while he was in prison in 1930. Its a long essay but worth a read. Those who cannot decide why you need to be spiritual or even if you are spiritual, or even those who need to reaffirm their faith.

The Mahatma or the Martyr?

With whose principles of freedom struggle would you agree more: Mahatma Gandhi or Bhagat Singh?
I came across this question recently and was forced into a situation where I had to answer it. I pondered over it for a long time before attempting to write down my thoughts. A lot of us would be stumped if they had to choose. They were both radical in their own spheres. Both of them put their country before anything else. Both were willing to sacrifice their lives for their country. How then will you choose?

The principles that drove Mahatma Gandhi and Bhagat Singh were similar, if not same. The differences in their actions were governed by the choices they made. The differences in choices were in turn due to the difference in their backgrounds, basic personality and most importantly, age. The outcomes of those differences were results of circumstances.
Bhagat Singh attempted to kill the police chief who'd severly beaten Lala Lajpat Rai during the protests against the Simon Comminssion. He ended up killing J. P. Saunders, the Deputy Superitendant of Police. His decision to assassinate in response to Lala Lajpat Rai's death was prompted by anger and frustration, typical of the youth and driven by his take-action personality. He probably did not allow himself to think of the repercussions of his actions and its possible impact on the larger freedom struggle. When on trial, he admitted to the assassination which shows his conviction towards truth, a well known Gandhian principle. Also Bhagat Singh went on a hunger strike while in jail, a tool largely attributed to Mahatma Gandhi, to fight for prisoner rights.
On the other hand, Mahatma Gandhi's insistence of non violence was a result of a more mature outlook and a better understanding of the people. His "Discovery of India" is a shining example of that. He was known to do extensive research on any subject before adopting it as a principle. It was after such extensive research that he closed on the concept of non violence.

Circumstances forced both these men to modify their principles from time to time. Mahatma Gandhi on one hand called off the Non Cooperation Movement after the Chauri Chaura incident in 1922. On the other hand he did not stop the Quit India movement despite individual acts of violence in 1942. Bhagat Singh was, likewise, driven by circumstances from non violent non cooperation to more radical ideologies.

The Jallianwala Babh Massacre did not occur in Gandhiji's community when he was a child. Similarly, Bhagat Singh was not sent to London during his impressionable years. To me therefore, both these personalities are an essential part of the freedom struggle. They both, together, completed the picture, a wise old man on one hand and an enthusiastic, often impulsive youth on the other.

Monday, June 18, 2007

Jhoom Barabar Jhoom (JBJ)


Don't expect this movie to knock your socks off. Chances are you'll feel like ripping your hair off while watching it. You'll wonder where the story is (its been submerged so well beneath the songs).


Now don't get me wrong. I'm a hindi movie fan, have been since I was a child. I've grown up watching Ram Lakhan and Mr. India and the likes. I'm used to people breaking into a song at the drop of a hat. It is often a welcome digression from the story line (except if its supposed to be a nail biting thriller, that's when you hate getting interrupted, unless of course the protagonist hopes to accomplish something while singing and dancing).


Now JBJ is not a hindi movie. It's been made in hindi of course, but its not your typical hindi movie(I know, I know, that's what they all say). It has got "international" written all over it. With the turn of the century Yash Raj movies has discovered a new market. It is called a home sick-rootless-NRI genre. They first realised (with movies like Hum Tum) that their movies do really well abroad, especially in UK. Now they have started making movies especially for those audiences. JBJ and Ta Ra Rum Pum are two such movies. They don't do well in India. But that doesn't matter. They weren't made for India anyway. They are made to cater to Indians sitting in UK and USA. Anything you earn in India is bonus. They've gotten so good at it, they can now make the foreigners do perfect bhangra!


Who says bollywood doesn't compare with hollywood? Bollywood has more diversity than Hollywood ever did. One one hand we have people making movies like "Aap Ka suroor" for rickshaw audiences(which I'm sure will be a stupendous success). One the other hand we have Yash Raj and Karan Johar making movies for the NRI genre (which can easily spill over to capture curious firangs). My point is that while we still have a long way to go before we make a money spinner as big as Spiderman, we aren't doing that bad either. The need of the hour is not to blindly follow the hollywood way of life but to use our awareness to merge the best of both worlds. We mustn't forget that a hindi movie will always be watched by hindi speaking audiences. And most of them don't know what Matrix is. They'd much rather watch the hero throwing a soda bottle at the villain which finds its mark after turning a bend in the street.

Thursday, May 31, 2007

dedicated to my college friends...

four years of college...
seemed like an eternity when we started out,
they ended in a flash
with a blink of an eye the moments passed

just a few days ago i had moved into a new city
from a remote village you couldn't point on a map
to the capital of the country
it was a huge leap but i made the gap

instead of being overwhelmed
i've made it my home.
i've found friendship
i've found love
i've found memories to fill an album

the memories are so fresh today
they will fade away with time
what will remain
is the euphoria they leave behind

i don't know where i'll go from here
what i have to do in life
i don't know if it'll be a breeze
or if i'll have to strive

i know just that the time i spent
and the moments i lived through
were meant for me as much as you

i loved, i lost, i cried and i fought
its was all worthwhile...
it was everything i sought

more sher-o-shayari

mulaquat ke raaste nazar nahi aate
par vasl ka armaan sajaye baithe hai.N
mudh kar hamain delhte bhi nahi wo
ham hi unse dil lagaye baithe hai.N

[vasl: meeting]

sochte the dil-e-ranjish chupana hamein hi ada hua hai
lekin shayar-e-sanam tujhe kya hua hai
wo ehsaas jo hamne kabhi bayaan na kiya the
unhe tune har nazm main rachaya hua hai

Friday, April 27, 2007

Pray a little...


Excerpt from “It’s not about the bike” by Lance Armstrong, page 116.

I asked myself what I believed. I had never prayed a lot. I hoped a lot, I wished a lot, but I didn’t pray. I had developed a certain distrust for organized religion growing up, but I felt I had the capacity to be a spiritual person, and to hold some fervent beliefs. Quite simply, I believed I had a responsibility to be a good person, and that I meant fair, honest, hardworking, and honorable. If I did that, if I was good to my family, true to my friends, if I gave back to my community or to some cause, if I wasn’t a liar, a cheat, or a thief, then I believed that should be enough. At the end of the day, if there was indeed some Body or presence standing there to judge me, I hoped I would be judged on whether I had lived a true life, not on whether I believed in a certain book, or whether I’d been baptized. If there was indeed a God at the end of my days, I hoped he didn’t say, “But you were never a Christian, so you’re going the other way from heaven.” If so I was going to reply, “You know what? You’re right. Fine.”

In one paragraph this man has summed up the entire philosophy of a large number of people in this world. A lot of people question the benchmark against which it will be decided whether they should go to heaven or hell. A lot of people don’t care about heaven or hell! “You’ll be dead, how does it matter?”

In a nutshell, the one thing in common between all religions is that, if you do good to people you earn plus points. If you do bad, you earn negative points. In the end you need to have a positive balance. That easy enough to understand. What I don’t understand is how these same religions preach that by performing certain rituals you can undo all the bad you have done in life. How can you take back the harm you have inflicted on others by a ceremony? If there is a God that you need to please, and God is everything they say He is, then does performing these rituals to the letter get you off the hook? Isn’t it a bit like saying, I’ve been making a lot of withdrawals on my bank account these days. Let me do something to increase my balance. Then I can go about withdrawing money. That’s because the bank rule says that you need to have a certain minimum balance in the account.

Is that how life works? Like a bank account? Why do we need a group of priests scaring us into doing good? What happens to the people who go about doing horrid things and then at the end of the day just pray to absolve themselves of their sins and then repeat the cycle all over again? Why do good people need to be felt guilty about not praying?

I’ve taken to praying to God for awhile now. I believe in God because I’ve been blessed in so many ways that plain coincidence or luck just doesn’t cover it. I pray to God to thank Him for everything He has done for me not because it will ensure a place in Heaven for me.


I’m sure that if the entire concept of God and Heaven and Hell were taken away, people would still do good for society, that kindness will still persist. But then I guess all of it does have its utility. It might be the only thing keeping a lot of people in check. It might also be the reason why a lot of people turn good.

Tuesday, April 24, 2007

why should i?

It was my turn to get the car in our carpool. I was waiting outside to pick up my friend. He was late so he called me in. He went to get ready while I sat and chatted with his mother. She’s a pleasant lady, like all mothers, lovable and adorable. She was quick to list out why she thought her son was such a slob. Then she relented saying that all guys are like that. Girls are much better at helping around the house, she said.

In the car I told my friend what his mother said about him. He said what his mother had already told me, “Everyone is like that”.

That brings me to the larger question. Why do we always say that? “Everyone is a slob at home, so what’s the big deal if I am too?” or “Why should I work to score high when 50% qualifies you to the next level?” or at work “Why should I work hard if the boss’s pet gets promoted? “All these are the manifestations of the same thing. Why is it that we don’t want to work hard? Part of the answer lies in the fact that some people are just plain lazy. They are only looking for endorsements for their basic philosophy “work only as hard as you need to get by”. You can’t do much for such people except feeling glad that they are at least doing what they need to do to get by. Beyond that, you’d be surprised to find how many talented people with potential get disheartened from working hard. They are not lazy. They just give up after sometime. “What’s the point?” they say. We all go through such a phase. We want to do something but we realize that our efforts are not paying off. Why should we go on then?

They say the corporate world is full of cut throat competition. You work hard on a project, someone else takes the credit. You perform consistently but someone else gets the promotion. What do you do in such a juncture? Should you continue giving it your best shot, to the best of your capability? What’s the point?

The point is ‘you’. You work hard for ‘you’. You give it your best shot for ‘you’. What you learn from your experience is yours alone. Nobody can take that away from you. Working to the best of your potential is also working to your satisfaction. People run around looking for satisfaction and don’t find it. I guess they are too busy looking for it to work hard to achieve it.

another rhyme

if you only knew what i was going through
you'd realise why the skies are blue

its not about the money, the fame or fortune
its about failing at something you really wanted to do
dard-o-gham-o-azaab bhi seh gae kyun ye puchte ho
aab-e-chashm main dhul gai raah kyun ye puchte ho
jis manzil-e-maqsad par chal pade the ghar se
wo manzil hi hame chhod gai kyun ye puchte ho

azaab: anguish
aab-e-chashm: tears

life and human values

What sets us apart as a species is our intriguing curiosity. It is this curiosity which has developed us and made us so different from all the other species on earth. We lead our entire lives wondering and searching for answers. We hope to find it before we die. Find what you ask? Something that will help us understand life and our purpose here.

Biologists state that the purpose of life of every species is to reproduce and give birth to their young in order to propagate their kind. You are born, you grow up, you give birth and then you die. You’ve achieved your purpose in life. But does it hold true for humans too? I haven’t yet met a person whose aim is to give birth to a child. It is a part of life yes, but not the goal one’s entire life is headed toward.

What is life then? Why does it matter so much to us? What is the value of our life? And what do we mean by human values?

Twice in one’s life a person turns philosophical. Once when you are an adolescent and next when you turn past your prime. Once when your life is ahead of you and the other when you feel you’ve lived your life. Both these times you are scared. Either wondering what your life will be like or wondering whether you lived it right.

Having gone through those adolescent years recently, I empathize with those going through it now. I know what they are going through. I wish them well and leave them to their own devices. Why? Because that’s the best way of finding your own answers. It is every man’s quest. It’s a journey best made alone. Not until you experience it yourself can you understand the answers of the questions you seek. That is the philosophy of student-teacher relationship. Teacher epitomizes someone who has experienced life and its contradictions, someone who knows the answers. The student signifies the one looking for answers, for he does not understand what he sees or seeks in this world. But the teacher does not give the answers to the student. He sets tasks for the student to perform instead, because he understands that not until the student has gone through hardship and pitfalls will the student understand the meaning he seeks.

Indian philosophy states that it is the purpose of every human to find their ideal guru and for the guru to find their ideal disciple. I differ from this aspect of this philosophy. I say that every person lives their life in a dual role. At any given time they are both a guru and a disciple. As a disciple, a person seeks answers from those more experienced than them. As a guru they provide answers to those who haven’t experienced as much as they have. There is no one constant guru for everyone. At every stage of their lives people seek out different gurus. They learn from them and move ahead. Today I admire someone for their grit and determination. I learn from that person, he becomes my guru. I inculcate his virtues and move on. I in turn inspire another person with my virtues. But my guru remains my guru.

That is the purpose of our lives. To seek out virtues, to admire those that have them, to influence those that don’t. That is why our lives are important. We enrich lives around us and are enriched in turn. Every person sets out in their life in search of answers and finds them in the values of other humans. Such is the power of human values.

Friday, April 20, 2007

all it needs is music

chandni si chalakti hai niganho main, jaane kis asha ka intezaar hai
zarro se bikhre lamhe samet-te hain, hame un lamho se pyaar hai

ek aas main doobe rehte hai, ummeedon se sansain chalti hai
asha hai us muquaam ki jiske liye ham bekaraar hai

karte hain baatein is dil se, kaash koi sunne wala hota
ek jo samajhta tha hamein, wahi jaane kahan faraar hai

dil-e-hasarat hai kaif-asar ho jain kissi pe
Badamast hamein jo sambhale wahi gam-gusaar hai


kuch mangna chahte hai par rok lete hai dil ko
Rab ke saaye main pale hai,ab aur kiske haq-daar hai

unki baaton main kat-te hai din, har raat main intezaar hai
wo chahe bhool jaein hamein, hamein unke aane par aitbaar hai

yun rukhsat hue wo hamse, wapas bulain bhi to kaise
jis raah se jude the ham ab usi raah main diwaar hai

Thursday, April 19, 2007

news and the media

BJB MP Babubhai Katara has been detained for trying to smuggle a woman and child on the passport of his wife. Incredible isn’t it? But then again if you have grown up watching action movies starring the likes of Sunny Deol and Ajay Devgun, where the bad guy is always a political figure, you aren’t really surprised. You must have already seen it somewhere in some movie or the other. What is incredible is how his lawyers claim that the MP had absolutely no idea what was going on. Now that’s incredible! The poor fellow has a grown woman and a teenage boy tagging along with him all the way to the airport lounge and he has no idea who’s behind the ghunghat! I’m guessing Mrs. Katara runs a really tight ship around the house.

Since we are watching all this on the TV news, have you noticed how many women journos we have these days? We have two women sitting at the studios, hosting the show talking to correspondents on site, who are also mostly women. That’s a trend no-one saw coming and a good one too. A word of advice to those committing or planning to commit crimes against women, “you’d better watch out or you might get swarmed by media persons who aren’t just excited about the scoop.”

Speaking of news channels and the media, who can miss the Ash-Abhishek wedding story these days? When we have such a gala event where all the big wigs of Bollywood are going to converge it does make for good entertainment. Everyone wants to know what the bride wore, what her sahelis wore, not to mention the groom and his friends. Nobody wants to miss a chance to criticize a faux pas especially so if it revolves around a celebrity. Here’s an idea to the movie producers around. Given the market we have for reality TV, why not have a group of professional videographers catching the amusing moments of the days leading up to the wedding and the wedding itself of course). You can get pointers from Mr. Hum Apke Hai kaun-Suraj Barjatia himself! Sell the video to a channel. You’d be sure to get all the sponsors you need. Now there’s a chance to actually make money on the wedding.

I have to add a word on American idol here. The very criticized Sanjay Malakar is finally out of the show. I was saying to myself the last few days, ‘all you need is to put an Indian on the show to reduce American Idol to Indian Idol.” Of course I don’t mean American Idol is a superior show than Indian Idol. How can you even think that?! All I mean is that what we have seen in the last two season’s of Indian Idol (with not so talented guys winning based on SMS votes) was happening in American Idol too. Almost. ;) But that makes you think. What do you think will happen in the next season of American Idol? Do you think the panel of three will refrain from bringing another Indian on the show fearing that he’ll be supported whole heartedly by the Indian community even if he isn’t that talented? Or do you think there will be hue and cry over talented people of Indian origin not being able to make it to the show because of this skepticism? Well whatever it is, one this is for sure. The Indian media will have a gala time reporting it.

Lastly. I offer my condolences to the people who lost their lives at Virginia Tech at the hands of Cho Seung Hui.