Modi magic at Republic Day - The lessons I learnt!!!

It was a truly spectacular Republic Day celebration that India saw on 26th January, 2015. Not only was it the most talked about in recent years, primarily because the President of United States, Mr. Barack Obama, was the chief guest, but also because it was out and out our Prime Minister, Mr. Narendra Modi's show. Be it his impeccable dressing style or his closeness with Mr. Obama, everything he did and is doing during the latter's 3-day visit is making news. I will not talk about what Mr. Obama rode and what all Mr. Modi wore. (Not to say that Mr. Obama's 'Beast' and Mr. Modi's sartorial style is the major talking point on the web right now). A lot has been said and shared about it already. I only intend to mention what I actually learnt about Mr. Modi from all of this.

I think, Mr. Modi is a very sharp and shrewd leader who when he takes up a project, interweaves it into everything that he does and takes it to the level from where general public can identify with it. So all over the Republic Day Parade, the stamps of "Beti bachao, beti padhao", "Make in India", "Mission to Mars", "Jan dhan yojna" and the "Swachchh Bharat Abhiyan" were visible. These are the first few projects that he has launched in his 8 months of service. And by including them in the Republic Day Parade is exactly how these will connect with the masses. He involves film stars and sports icons in his projects because people ironically look up to them instead of our intellectual people. No matter if it leads to criticism, but actually all the people are now talking about them and hopefully, it will ingrain in their minds. I think that's a brilliant strategy because governments after governments can keep on shelling money on cleaning Indian roads and rivers and keep on paying 1 Lac each to every girl child but unless the mindsets of people change, it will hardly reap fruits. Now is actually the first time, I have a hope that someday India will truly see "achchhe din".

When Humanity died...

Yes, you guessed it right. This post is about the barbaric attack on a school in Peshawar by Taliban. And I have no words to even condemn it. I had tears in my eyes when I read the newspaper this morning. My emotions brim out when I read people condemning it on social media. No, there are no words that can say in exact terms how so very cowardly and condemnable the attack is.

Yesterday in the middle of a day long training, I opened Facebook on my phone for a breather and saw updates from people condemning the Taliban attack on a school in Peshawar. I instantly felt nauseated. But, then I did not have the luxury to dwell upon it yesterday. Then, in the evening there were messages from concerned mother's of my daughter's school mates questioning whether they should talk to the school authorities to brace up security to tackle such insane attacks. I was surprised. I could understand that they were also affected by the news, but what my mind could not understand - can never understand - is how can one be prepared for such an attack. How can one even imagine such barbarianism from anyone?

Children are the most innocent souls in the world. Does that make them easy targets? Probably yes. And these religious fanatics? Does their religion tell them to kill children? If for one instance, I even believe that all their 'Jihad' is the word of God, or their Prophet, and they should kill all 'Kafirs', I still don't understand how children could be branded as 'Kafirs'.

I am deeply disturbed. It matters not whether they were Pakistani, or Muslims, or Mujahids, or kids of the same army personnel who have fought against my own country. What matters is that they were kids. They didn't know any better. They didn't even understand your war. They deserved to know more, to grow up, to see the world, to see life, to bring smiles to their parents, to make them proud, to... well, I can go on. But, the words that ring in my mind are that they will never come back to their parents now. And their grades won't matter, and their little mischiefs would be deeply missed, and their loud noises will never be required to be suppressed, and their shrieks of laughter will never break the silence of their homes, and everything will go on in the world and Talibans war will continue but the lives of their parents would be forever incomplete.

It's true when they say: "The smallest coffins are the HEAVIEST!"

Pathetic Customer Service by Snapdeal

This is w.r.t. an order I placed with you (Order # 3609980226). I placed this order on Nov 17, 2014 and the confirmation said that the estimated delivery date was Nov 24, 2014. (I must confess this was far longer than my expectation since your contemporaries like Flipkart and Amazon India take much shorter delivery duration, max. 4-5 days for the same product.)

I had been getting 4 mails a day telling me that I can now track the status of my order online and when I opened it, it simply informed me that the product was handed over to Ecom courier service on Nov 18, 2014 and will be delivered to me by Nov 24, 2014. Did it help me with much information? NO.

Anyway, the product did not reach me by the promised date. I was not informed by the company that there would be a delay and the reason therefor. I called the customer care number on 24th evening but I could not get through as the answering machine disconnected after saying, "we have too many customers on the line right now, please call later." (Now that I think, it’s no wonder you get that many calls because you really are bad at service). An hour later, same problem but at least it said that I could select an option to arrange a call back. I did and I am yet to get a call back. I waited for an hour and called again and then waited about 15 mins to speak to a customer care officer who first very coolly informed me that Nov 24, 2014 isn't over yet. I had to remind him that it was 9 pm and unless they deliver products even at that hour, the day was over. He then said that he would register a complaint and that the product will be delivered before 12 noon on Nov 25, 2014.

Then, today when I just casually clicked the “Track Order”, it gave me the same status that said the product was handed over to Ecom courier service on Nov 18, 2014 but the delivery date was CHANGED to Nov 29, 2014.

On a normal course the company sends an apology with an explanation in case a delivery is delayed. AT LEAST YOU COULD HAVE SENT AN INTIMATION. Snapdeal did not care to inform me about the delay and just simply on its own changed the delivery date. Furthermore, when I called the customer care to complain, they simply gave me the no. of Ecom Express and asked me to follow up with them as the delay was from their end. Is that my problem? Did I pay over 40000 bucks to Ecom or to Snapdeal?

I still check with Ecom and they tell me that their records show that the product reached Delhi on Nov 21, 2014 but they need time to deliver the same. I asked how much and the person said that I would escalate this as a high priority delivery so that it reaches you within 3-4 days. Needless to say, I am shocked: High Priority and they still need 3-4 days to deliver it from Delhi to Gurgaon. They need 8 days to deliver a product from Delhi to Gurgaon which on a normal course takes less than an hour? This isn’t even an item of furniture or huge electronics like refrigerator or TV but instead a phone which comes in a very small box. This is ridiculous by all standards.

This is the second time I have faced this problem with Snapdeal out of only 2 times I have placed an order with Snapdeal. That's a record 100%. Someone should tell Snapdeal that you don't win customers by giving full-page strategically placed advertisements in the newspapers, but rather by the quality of service provided. You need to learn that from Flipkart and Amazon India yet as you still have a long way to catch-up. Seriously disappointed.

When did Technology become such a vital part of our lives?

I have been living without a phone since almost a month. Okay, correction: I have been living without a smart phone for almost a month. I do have a functioning phone in an old non-smart handset, but it doesn't have an internet connection and I am off WhatsApp and almost off all social media.

I had recently bought a Nokia Lumia 1520. Needless to say it is a high-end phone and I was more than satisfied with it. Loved it, to be precise. Then, one day I accidentally dropped it and it's screen broke, much as my heart. I thought, "Oh luckily, this time I have bought an insurance for physical damage so I am saved." Little did I know that it was the start of an ordeal. I called the Insurance company, in fact I couldn't even get through on their number for the first two days. Eventually I did, on 10th October, 2014. The lady told me they will pick the phone from my house within 24 to 48 hours. But no, they took full 7 days to do so and that too after scores of phone calls and after involving the retailer from whom I had bought the phone. Okay, not a good start but let's hope all goes well now, at least the person at the insurance company promised that it will. How wrong could I be? Two weeks, daily follow-ups and they hadn't even got my phone repaired. Their excuse? Well, sometimes they don't have staff due to Diwali and then later Nokia service centre doesn't have the part. I called up Nokia Service Centre and they tell me, "Ma'am you bring the phone, it will take about an hour to repair the phone." My Insurance Company had been fooling me.

I try to escalate by talking to the supervisor of the person concerned. He plays the same dirty tricks. Well, on 1st November, 2014 they eventually confirm that the phone has been repaired. But it's today, 5th November, 2014 and I still don't have it in my hand. And today I broke all records of phone calls. Record 53 calls made to the Insurance executives to at least force them to eventually pick up the phone and come up with yet another excuse. Furthermore, their excuses are getting dirtier and inhumane. "The executive who was on his way to deliver the phone has met with a serious accident." What the hell? If I tell them off saying that it's just one of their excuses, I am an insensitive person. Yes, that's exactly what they guy said to me. Can you believe it? Yet another promise of a 110% guarantee of the phone being delivered the next day is handed out.

So much for my physical experience. But, what about my emotional experience. I have been feeling depressed, cut-off from my friends and lonely. In fact, I have been feeling angry, harassed and stressed too. I have been seething with fury since this morning for being taken for a ride and have been unable to calm myself down despite all my attempts. I feel absolutely helpless and feel like crying. And to be honest, I haven't felt like this - so angry, so helpless and so depressed - since a very long time. I tell about this to someone and I sometimes get a reply, "Okay, it's just a phone. We didn't even have them till a few years back." And I feel like snapping back, "Have you lately tried living without your phone for a month?"

We belong to a generation who has done away with stereos, cameras, watches etc. ever since we shifted to smart phones. The first thing most of us look at when we get up in the morning is our phones and some even check it out a number of times at night. True, we didn't have them till a few years back. But, then nobody did and it wasn't just me alone without it. And therefore, people used other ways of keeping in touch. It wasn't like now when you keep in touch through WhatsApp and Facebook. Even office is easier to manage when you don't have to switch on your laptop before going to sleep or after getting up in the morning to check on your mails because you could simply do so through your. phone.

I don't know, I thought I might be able to calm myself down after putting all this in words here. But, for once, even this is not working. Dear God, I NEED my phone. PLEASE HELP! Before I go crazy!! I NEED MY PHONE!!!

Reflections from my Birthday!!

It was my birthday a few days back and to be honest, I was not much excited. I always thought that I have reached an age where birthdays are no more special days. They are just ordinary days. I am neither reverse counting the days before my birthday nor am over the moon in planning something unusual for my birthday. I don't buy birthday gifts for myself any more and usually go around doing my business as usual.

But when I reached an age of nonchalance, my daughter has reached an age of excitement, curiosity and deep concern for all around her. She made my day special by planning a midnight surprise with my sister and mom. My family showered me not only with gifts but also immense love and affection.

Moreover, my phone was broken and I was off Whatsapp and was therefore not expecting many messages. But to my surprise, there was awesome bombardment of lovely birthday wishes from my friends, relatives and acquaintances that kept pouring in on Facebook and SMSes and even through calls, all thanks to Mark Zuckerberg who added a feature on Facebook that reminds all of our birthdays.

Actually, the birthdays are not special days per se. They are ordinary days that are made special by this little touch of persons around you. And I am grateful to God for surrounding me with such lovely people.

A different viewpoint: Of Flipkart sale and Bang Bang review

I haven't written for my blog for a while. The truth is, I have been involved in something else I had taken up. Something that I intend to reveal in a while. But, I would briefly catch up on two recent happenings that made me think a bit. I have a small viewpoint on the Flipkart Sale and the film reviews that Bang Bang received after it's worldwide release.

Much has been said and written about the Flipkart sale. Most of it is pure backlash. While I do feel that they could have planned better, in terms of better anticipating the demand, and accordingly worked around stock availability and server capacity etc., I do not agree with all the insinuations around cheating the customers w.r.t. to the product prices (i.e. the viewpoint whereby customers are creating a furore that Flipkart first increased the prices and then offered discounts). I mean, what did you expect? At the end of the day, they are here to do business and not charity. Who would sell at a loss? To be fair to them, they did not 'increase' the prices of the product; all they did was remove all discounts previously offered and bring the prices up to the MRP level in line up of their 'big billion day sale' when they eventually applied fresh new discounts, which in most cases were equal to if not higher than the previous discounts. Now, what is so wrong with that? Why is that unfair? Wasn't it pretty obvious that it would happen? Don't ordinary retailers and shopkeepers do the same before any sale? They too often remove all previous discounts just before the sale? They sometimes even remove the products from the current collection / stock in the hope of selling it at higher than normal prices after the sale? Why should Flipkart be any different? Just because online market is open 24x7 and the customers have access to other sites that do great business by keeping track of prices at various online retail sites by running an algorithm and no further effort of physically collecting data, is it okay to single out an online retailer for doing exactly what other retailers in the market do on a regular basis? The important part is that they did give huge discounts and whoever managed to get the products they needed, wanted or desired, cannot complain. (On a side note, I liked how Snapdeal was ready and prepared with counter-advertising - very interesting.)

Another happening in the media and the social networks lately was the cringe-worthy film reviews received by the movie 'Bang Bang'. The film which until its release was being hailed and touted as one of the biggest and most-looked-forward-to film of the year 2014, primarily due to its good-looking lead pair of Hrithik Roshan and Katrina Kaif and their previously loved chemistry in 'Zindagi na milegi dobara'; was eventually the recipient of the choicest lambasting by the so-called film critics. Almost all film critics went overboard in writing how the film had no plot and only boasted of the stylized performance and chemistry of the lead couple; and that at least half of this couple (read Katrina Kaif) was only eye-candy and did not having any acting to boast of. Now, if I may question these critics, what were they expecting in the first place? 'Knight and Day', of which makers had formally and very candidly declared it to be an official remake of, was effectively at best a mediocre film with no plot at all and just a good-looking couple (Tom Cruise and Cameron Diaz) exuding great chemistry, dreamy romance and some great stunts. Well, 'Bang Bang' had all that and an icing on the cake in the form of breathtakingly awesome dancing by Hrithik Roshan. Oh man! does he dance? The makers' marketing strategy too was all about promoting the hot lead pair with their screen chemistry romancing dreamily in exotic locations; some slick stylized stunts and Hrithik's great dance moves. So, again, did the critics expect Siddharth Anand et al to cook up a story for 'Bang Bang'? In that case, it wouldn't really have been the remake of 'Knight and Day' because the latter at least did not have a story to boast of. In fact, many of the sequences in 'Bang Bang' were a straight lift from 'Knight and Day' like Katrina being given injection shots which made her tell the truth despite putting her in a topsy turvy state; or Hrithik taking Katrina in front on his bike so that she could shoot the goons following them; or even Hrithik assuming a new identity and leaving his family behind to take up this mission and then secretly sending them money making his Dad believe he has won some lottery he did not even remember buying a ticket for; etc. As for Katrina, I wonder whether these critics were expecting her to come up with an Oscar winning performance. Well, looking at her filmography till date, I am just curious to know which of her films actually raised such hopes in the critics. Let's just be honest: Katrina cannot "act" and the film-makers do not hire her to "act". She is just supposed to look good standing next to the popular 'heroes' of her films who have the responsibility of carrying the film on their broad and strong shoulders. If they needed a 'heroine' who could "act", they would have gone for Vidya Balan but they didn't because they only needed their 'heroine' to look hot in a multi-neon shade monokini in a swimming pool or in a bikini top with a skimpy backless lace dress standing next to the gorgeous topless 'hero' who also can "act" well. 'Bang Bang' was only about two gorgeous good-looking actors and slick action. Period.

But, why do film critics always have to comment and harp about the 'plot' all the time, anyway? Do we really want all movies to have great stories and serious performance oriented lead actors playing complex dark real characters that make us think? No. Different movies serve different purposes. Some tell great stories and showcase great performances (e.g. Black and more recently Haider); some are great edge-of-the-seat thrillers with gravity defying stunts (e.g. Dhoom or Singham series); some are supposed to tickle our funny bone (e.g. Andaz Apna Apna); some are pure romance (e.g. Veer Zaara); some are only showcasing great locales (e.g. Chalte Chalte); and yet some are just pure mindless entertainers (e.g. Dabang or any of Salman Khan or Farah Khan movies). If all movies were serious plot based or social awareness based movies made to please the critics and get nothing less than a rating of 4/5 from them, I think, we the viewers would soon loose interest in movies. Variety, as they say, is the spice of life.

My Top Ten Favourite Books

I am not a book fanatic but I do like to read and often enjoy the best me time with a book. I am also not a fast reader and I delve upon my books for weeks if not months. So, I don’t really have many friends with whom I end up discussing the books I have read or what they are reading.

Thus, when this trend started on Facebook about people listing their 'Top Ten favourite books' and then nominating others to do so too, I did not expect to be nominated. However, it sure was fun reading everyone’s list. What intrigued me was how at least one or two books in each person’s list would have featured in my favourites too.

Then, I literally got myself nominated by a friend to do my list when I commented on her list. So, here I am with my list. I will not go into the cliché where everyone tells how it was so difficult to pin down ten books and how they love so many more, because I know not how to hate a book I read till the end and to be honest there are very few books that I have read wholly and I hadn’t liked. But, I often read by authors or series and one author’s multiple books might hold the same value for me. Hence, you may find some clubbing of books in my list. Please accommodate with me for the same.

Here we go in no particular order:

1. Jane Austen Classics – I am a true blue fan of Jane Austen and have read all her books multiple times with ‘Pride and Prejudice’, ‘Emma’ and ‘Persuasion’ being my absolute favourites. I can pick up a Jane Austen book anytime anywhere and read it. What I love in her books is how all her characters are absolutely real and so perfect in their imperfections.
2. Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling – There are two kinds of book lovers in the world – those who absolutely love Harry Potter books and those who absolutely don’t. I belong to the former category and I too have read Harry Potter books multiple times, despite the fact that when you re-read a thriller or a mystery, you already know the end. Yet, it never allows me to lose interest. Thanks to the brilliant writing style of Rowling. I remember being heart-broken and depressed for at least 2 days after I finished the last Harry Potter book (the only book till date which I have completed within a week) just thinking that there isn’t going to be another Harry Potter book ever now. I even wrote a review of the book where I mentioned a little about my state of mind. (Read the review at 'Book Review: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows').
3. Jason Bourne series by Robert Ludlum – I have only read the trilogy by Robert Ludlum and although I found the writing style very descriptive yet engaging – every fight read in the book seems like a movie happening in front of you – I found Bourne / Webb’s character extremely engaging and nothing short of a superhero. (Read 'Why Jason Bourne is more of a Superhero' for the reasons).
4. Gone with the wind by Margaret Mitchell – I loved this book for two very strong reasons: (1) Scarlett O’Hara for being a very strong woman with a never-say-die attitude; and (2) Rhett Butler for being the rugged but perfect match to Scarlett and yet being her antithesis.
5. To kill a Mocking Bird by Harper Lee – Not only is this a touching story but also a very brave one especially considering the era in which this book was written. It’s also a true lesson in humility.
6. Books by Khaled Hosseini – I have till date read ‘The Kite Runner’ and ‘A Thousand Splendid Suns’ by Khaled Hosseini and ‘And the mountains echoed’ is on top of my list of ‘Books to read’. Not only are his books a very touching account of how life was / is in war stricken Afghanistan but it’s an absolute emotional account of the interplay of feelings. I cannot read two of his books one after the other; it’s just too much of an emotional drain. I have cried at nights when I have sat with his books unable to get the characters out of my mind. But, I have loved them nevertheless.
7. Books by Dan Brown – Although I have read four books by Dan Brown (all but ‘The Lost Symbol’ and ‘Inferno’) but ‘Angels and Demons’ and ‘The Da Vinci Code’ are my particular favourites. Not only did I find the thrills, suspense and twists and turns in the story very engaging but I found Robert Langdon a very interesting character and what is generally referred to as “intellectually stimulating”. I would love to meet him someday if he ever exists, even if just to have some interesting chats over coffee. That reminds me, I also have ‘The Lost Symbol’ and ‘Inferno’ on my list of ‘Books to read’.
8. Love Story by Erich Segal – I first read ‘Love Story’ when I was in school. It was a very short and sweet book and yet it tickles your heart strings (and your tear glands too). As a grown up, I picked it up again, only to see whether I was still moved in the same way as in my teenage years. I was. (Read my ode to Erich Segal on his death here 'The eternal love story'. It has all the references to the book.)
9. ‘Kane and Able’, ‘The Prodigal Daughter’ and ‘Shall we tell the President’ Trilogy by Jeffrey Archer – It’s not really a trilogy. They are actually three different books (especially the last one where the old characters appear very briefly), very intelligently woven with common characters and some references to previous books by Jeffrey Archer. This in itself is truly remarkable – to have three absolutely different stories told with different settings and different plots having common characters. And yet all of them engage you equally. I especially loved the first two books.
10. The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand – I must confess that I did not find it a very easy and comfortable book to read. It took me a lot of time to read it (second only to probably ‘Gone with the wind’) and it needed a lot of focus to understand the so very complex characters (multiple times I re-read various sections of the book). And, therefore, for this very reasons I did not even feature it in my list (was confused between this and the three mentioned below) but then I remembered that after having completed the book, I had a very good feeling about the book and I reflected on the characters for days. Also, I was truly mesmerized by the thought that the book was written in 1943 America and yet it was so very contemporary. Again, ‘Atlas Shrugged’ is also on my list of of ‘Books to read’ but then I need to first have the time to delve and focus on Ayn's style of writing and her characterization.

The books that almost made it to the list but finally didn’t are as follows: ‘The Immortals of Meluha’ by Amish Tripathy (I purposefully didn’t mention the trilogy because somehow the sequels did not live up to the expectation and by the third book it was more of a mechanical exercise to bring the story to a logical conclusion; and that’s the reason I didn’t include this book in my list) and ‘The Pelican Brief’ and ‘The Testament’ by John Grisham (I have read quite a few of the books by John Grisham and I kind of find all of them more or less same, so much so that when I pick up any of his book, I fail to remember whether I have already read it or not; but these two books of his have lingered on in my memory and I remember liking them a lot when I read them, former for the way the suspense unfolds and latter for no particular reason).

Last, as a note I also want to mention two books that I had loved as a kid: ‘Heidi’ by Johanna Spyri and ‘Little Women’ by Louisa May Alcott. Not only did I love them and I laughed and cried with the protagonists, but they hooked me on to books for life. A big thanks to them!