The charm of learning a new language!

‘English Vinglish’ – A lot has been written, a lot has been said and a lot has been discussed about this film. May it be the impactful dialogues or the nuanced screenplay – director Gauri Shinde has done a commendable job. Much acclaimed for its relevance across audience categories, the film is a complete delight to watch, as much for its appealing content as it is for the charismatic performance of Sridevi. What I am going to talk about however is a related yet slightly different topic i.e. ‘The charm of learning a new language’!

Language, ya Bhasha, gives life to life. While the expression of love may not need a language yet the same expression of love becomes so much more enticing when done with a beautiful set of words. Many a times we are able to remember certain events or cherish certain moments not for the way they happened but for the way a particular person said a particular thing. Language also helps in connecting people across boundaries. All it takes is a few minutes for two strangers, who hail from the same country, to become friends in a foreign land. I remember meeting a Fijian old married couple when going to a desert safari in Dubai. While we were watching the belly dance performance, the Fijian lady commented ‘Waise toh rule laga ke rakha hai ki short kapde mat pehno; ab yahan pe aise dance chal raha hai toh koi problem nhi hai in logo ko :P’. Now, without endorsing or subscribing to the viewpoint, there was an instant connect. It felt so great; in the sense, you have somebody from a country that is thousands of miles away from India yet so close when it comes to culture and language. What followed was a memorable discussion. We talked about a lot of things ranging from their traditional attire to their cuisines. I was especially delighted to hear about the Hindi writers in Fiji.



Language is the foundation of culture. Our understanding of a culture can never be complete unless we know its language. There is a famous Czech Proverb which goes like ‘Kolik jazyků znáš, tolikrát jsi člověkem’ meaning ‘You live a new life for every new language you speak. If you know only one language, you live only once’. Not sure how many people will agree with this but learning a new language is therapeutic in nature. It is an engaging activity that not only is fun to pursue but also enhances the positivity in the learner’s attitude. And you do get to learn so many new things as well. Honestly speaking, my idea of a Romance Language was that of a language which probably has some relation with poetry or has lot of literature written around the feeling of love until one of my friends who is learning French told me that it actually refers to the languages that have derived from Latin e.g. Spanish, French, Portuguese, Italian and Romanian.

However, I would agree that much of what I wrote above doesn’t hold true when it comes to learning English. I think a lot of it derives out of the fact that English is not really seen as a foreign language in India. Lot of Indians can speak very good English. And those who cannot are often looked down or picked for the incorrect usage of grammar. This not only takes away the whole charm and fun related to learning a new language but also leads to a huge amount of insecurity amongst the person struggling to learn the language. What is even sad is the fact that a huge chunk of population in India now values knowing English far more than knowing their mother tongue. Sadly though, it only takes the younger generation away from their native culture. How many of us do read books written in our mother tongue? How many of us know the name of last year’s ‘Sahitya Academy Award Winner’? Rather do we even know that such an award exists in our country?

But we feel amused when we come across a foreigner who can speak even a little bit of Hindi (or any of our Indian languages). We would even go out of our way to teach him/her a few new words. Well if we can be so appreciative of a foreigner trying to learn a few words of our mother tongue, why can’t we be appreciative of somebody amongst us who is struggling to learn English. I think this is one of the major points that Gauri Shinde has wonderfully depicted in English Vinglish and hopefully we all will be able to realize the importance of it.

Just so that the charm of learning a new language doesn’t get replaced by a gamut of insecurities :)

A 'Nano' for the 'Student of the Year' ???

I, initially, thought of posting this article on a new blog that I have been planning to start for quite a while now i.e. ‘lifeatiimr’; however, while organizing the various thoughts that I was planning to pen down, I felt it is better that I post it here only.

Let us start with a question. What do you think can be a good reason for you to join a particular company/organization? A lot of organizations that I come across nowadays claim that they are very different from other companies and the argument that they have to support this claim goes like ‘We have a really diverse workforce. We have a drummer and a writer working in the same team’. While a lot of people may like and appreciate this, I always wonder why it should be such a great Employee Value Proposition at all. I don’t think diverse workforce can be a great reason for me to join a company. After all I don’t join an organization so as to get a chance of being in the company of a music enthusiast or an upcoming writer. I would rather join an interest group if at all I wish to inculcate any of these talents. With due regards to the respective talents, the most compelling reason for a person to join a particular company should rather be getting an opportunity to work on a project of his/her area of interest wherein he/she can make a meaningful contribution and enhance some of his/her professional and personal skills in the process.

While it is true that having a diverse workforce enhances creativity and leads to interesting discussions at times, it should not be the prime reason for joining a particular organization nor should it be the prime EVP from the organization’s point of view. The most important reason should always be the nature of work opportunity and a clear description of associated roles and responsibilities. Why I say so is because a lot of my friends often tell me that they feel like useless in their current roles at their respective organizations. And most of these organizations are renowned MNCs. So the point is, while things like diverse workforce, creative outlook and other fun activities are important, work is the most important thing that one should focus on while selecting a particular organization. The satisfaction derived out of having made a meaningful contribution at your work is immense and that's what matters the most in a longer run.

Moving on, let us talk about the marketing strategy of Tata Motors’ much talked car ‘Nano’. I often wonder whether it’s the marketing strategy that is lacking or is it the product that has some problem. Well to me the problem seems to be located at the marketing front. Attempt after attempt the promotion just seem to be going wrong. For example, the latest marketing campaign wherein they have associated Tata Nano with the movie ‘Student of the year’ and have invited the students across campuses to participate in a series of competitions. 

As per the information on web, the Nano Student of the Year will be awarded with a Rs. 3-lakh scholarship, the first runner-up will get a Tata Nano and the second runner-up will receive a Macbook Pro. Now the whole concept seems completely at fault. First of all ‘Student of the year’ is a glam packed movie featuring a school so posh that such a school might not even exist in real in the entire country; and where the students on the very first day of their joining come in some of most luxurious cars available out there. Now attaching what was meant to be a common man’s car to such a film seems a little odd at the very thought of it. Secondly, why would you give a Tata Nano to the first runner up and not to the winner of the competition while the whole reason behind the competition is to promote the car?

Look at the promotional campaign of the recent season of KBC. ‘Gyan hi aapko aapka hak dilata hai’! Simple and clear positioning! I think KBC is one of the best positioned products that everyone can identify with especially the common man. In my opinion the marketing team of Tata Nano should have associated themselves with the current season of KBC rather than a glamorous movie like ‘Student of the year’. Giving away a Tata Nano instead of Rs. 200,000/- cash prize or may be a Tata Nano + Rs. 800,000/- instead of Rs.1,000,000/- would have been a good way of marketing the car to the right customer segment through a right channel.

In the end, just came across this nicely written article on 'Pagalguy.com' - 'Swapnil Dharmsktu, only female student at IIM Kashipur is 'most wanted' during group assignments for 'other' view point [http://www.pagalguy.com/news/swapnil-dharmsktu-only-female-student-iim-kashipur-most-wanted-during-group-assignments-other-view-point-a-29367]'. The poor gender ratio at most of the Indian BSchools is saddening so to say the least. In an era where more and more women are joining and leading the corporate workforce, lack of healthy gender ratio limits the overall learning experience to a great extent. Hope the situation will improve in the coming years!

Don’t quite agree with the above opinions? Well then leave a comment and let us discuss it further …

#1 Hypocrite?? Naah ... may be #1 Blogger ....

With lot of fanfare I would like to take this opportunity of introducing the first guest writer to this very special blog of mine ….. “Shruti Carol” …. Taliyan J J ….. A wonderful person and a very dear friend, Shruti is an extremely talented writer. She writes about fashion and enjoys a great fan following at her blog Ramp or' Not!. Recently she won ‘The Versatile Blogger’ award for the inspiring work she has been doing all this while. Pictures that are an essential part of all her writings (as you might have seen by now) make her blog come alive. Many thanks to her for she has been sport enough to add grace to my blog with yet another lively picture of hers. Now, without any more ado let us find what Shruti has written for us today …..

This post was planned about a week ago, except that there was no content. Considering the fact that I don't write that often I have been looking for some inspiration. Inspiration is a freckle thing, comes and goes. You'll find it when it is least expected like it has happened to me today. I got down from the warm layer of my blankets, slipped into my favorite sweatshirt, grabbed a big cup of coffee and walked around the balcony with nothing on my mind.

And then I thought I was bored with my life. It had turned monotonous. I wonder if it's just me or many other twenty-something people who look back at the years passed and feel that they haven't really done anything. The frustration of that moment runs through my veins and makes me restless. I feel I am wasting my days as if I could retrieve all those days I named ‘wasted’. Which were gone! I succumb to emotions and forget that I am wasting more time and energy pondering over things that are physically impossible to change. I, for a moment feel like running away from things around and not return for five years (just a random number, don't pay attention to my figures) as if that could get me freedom forever. But then, I do a favor on myself and stay back.

Freedom is so individualistic and changes with time. Right? When we were kids, a holiday from school would mean freedom for that day. Freedom was to not apologize for coming late to school or for not doing home work. As teenagers, getting away from scolding for scoring less in the exam or even spending a day at a friend's place away from home meant freedom. Spending all day playing video games and not fearing being watched was freedom. We joined college and became rebellions. We thought freedom was to bunk classes whenever we wanted and not be punished for it. We claimed freedom to speak our mind, freedom to protest a wrong doing, freedom to decide our future and what not. Then it all comes down to where we are now. Freedom from the angry boss, from overwhelming responsibilities, from marriage, from a nagging partner or anything and everything a general survey would bring up. This is us. This is our nature. Feeling dissatisfied with what we have and trying to grab things beyond

I want to run away from the monotony of life but what happens when I come back? It's the same me and my life. Who am I running away from, some silly problems? What about the other happy things? And I feel…you know.... sometimes random is good :)

I am not complaining. There are things that weigh heavily on everybody's minds.

Mine is just a lot heavier right now but trust me, there are many MANY times when my mind has weighed lighter that you can imagine. With the genetically inherited factory of mixed emotions I own, I get surprised every time I put up with myself. It is so easy for us to succumb to emotions, to speak/act without thinking, to get frustrated, to want to give up on life (translated - run away in my language).

I will move on… like I always have. Honestly, right at this moment it is this awesome cup of coffee I hold in my hands which I am grateful for ... it raised me all the questions about the purpose of my ‘existence’ and answered them for me. And guess what is written on the cup?


'If it is important for you

You’ll find a way

If not you'll find an excuse' 

That makes me look like a #1 Hypocrite! So, I will stop here and allow you to judge :)

Hypocrite?? Naah ... Read more from Shruti at Ramp or' Not!

Thanks Shruti for this wonderful post!! :) :)

Better Late than Never!

Who would have thought that a guy for whom Kannada music used to be nothing more than noise, just two years down the line, will spend more than half of his 32 hour long journey thinking ‘Wish I had just one more Sandalwood song in my play list!’. I always knew leaving Bengaluru was going to be tough but it was only after boarding the train that I realized how much the city meant to me. And what a city! Jitni taarif karo utni kam. They all say its the weather of Bengaluru that makes it so special but believe its not the weather; its the people of Bengaluru who make it the best city of India. Weather comes second!

Gaadi aage chali main peechey!

Bengaluru mein bitaya har ek din aankhon ke saamne tha. The first time I travelled by air, the first job offer I got, the first salary credit, first authentic South Indian dosa, first trip abroad, the city gave me everything I could have asked for. And of course ‘Pace’. You might have heard a lot of actors and politicians say that they have the best job in the world. But do you know even a single software engineer who does claim that? Well here is one. Cribbing apart, J being in Pace was a privilege. I don’t think there ever was a Monday when I found it tough heading to office. I have had some of the most memorable moments with Pace and made lots of good friends. Not just this. Weekends! It used to the best part. Catch up with your friends, eat out at your favorite places, watch movies, go to Forum or may be just sleep. Sounds like usual stuff. Doesn’t it? In fact you must be thinking ‘Why the hell is he pointing out such trivial things?’ Well, I know its usual stuff. But the same usual stuff looks so much more exciting and worth it when you land up in a position like mine. I mean 26^th of every month I can’t stop but check my account balance again and again. Who knows when Citibank may make a salary credit into my account by mistake? No matter it is no longer a salary account. After Bengaluru, its salary I miss the most.

Today as I sit and write all this, there is a strong desire to come back and be able to relive that entire time once again. Thanks to Rahul, Mohit, Nitin, Ayush,Kamal, Kanak, Jojo, Palaxa, everyone. Its because of you people that I had such a wonderful stay there. Wish all you guys’ dreams come true and God bless us all!

Wondering how life here is? Well it is fun. Kannada music has finally find a substitute and I have started developing a taste for Haryanvi songs ;). Last week we had a theatre festival in the nearby university. Heard a really nice song there. Unlike other Haryanvi songs it is a soft song with nostalgic lyrics that go like:

Bin tension ke thay din bachpan ke ...

Buddhi dadi ki kahani mein
Raja ka man tha Rani mein
Jab Rani nay Daanav kha jaata
Hamein neend ka jhoka aa jata

Ek master topi aala tha
Uska thappad bada chala tha ....

Abhi ke liye itna hi. Will write more about this place in my next post.

P.S: I were to post this around a month ago but got delayed cause of my laziness. Fir maine socha 'Better Late than Never!'. Hope you guys will like it.

Chup ek Biwi thi, Bol Maa rahi hai!

Kabhi kabhi life mein break lena kitna jaruri hota hai ye hamein tabtak pata nahi chalta jab tak ki hum asal mein break na le lein ..... Well I know its easier said than done given the never ending work pressure, ever increasing peer pressure and various other pressures we have in life(including the gastric ones for a few ;) ) but then kuch paane ke liye kuch khona toh padta hi hai. Meri mano toh is baar Diwali (or whenever you might be planning to take long off from your office) pe ghar mat jao, apne liye time nikalo and do all that you have not been able to do for so long. Its more than worth. Infact its superb!! Am all happy :) :)

hmm tob ab jab ki main khali hun ... ekdam vella .... kuch kaam nahi ... toh maine socha ki movie dekh li jaye ... magar kaun si?? Aaajkal Bollywood mein toh koi dhang ki movie aa nahi rahi ... khair main kaun bada bhari critic hoon ... apan ko toh jo free mein dekhne ko mil jaye wahi sahi. So I got a DVD (read pirated downloaded version) of Patiala House and started watching it. And to my surprise the movie is not really bad. Thodi dramatic hai but the subject is quite relevant especially in today's world of globalization. Waise bhi HiFi (Hindi Film Industry) movie dramatic na ho toh maza nhi aata. Coming back to the subject, the movie is about a big joint Punjabi family settled in England with Rishi Kapoor playing the dominant head. His son Akshay Kumar likes cricket and is a very good bowler. Infact he plays so well that he gets a chance to be a part of England's national cricket team. But Rishi Kapoor due to some unfortunate racial incidents he did face in past has a problem with the very idea of his own son playing for 'Goras'. Thereafter its the same old stuff like how the family convinces him and how everything falls into place eventually.

I think agar iski jagah yeh dikhaya hota ki kisi aur country se aayi family India mein settled hai aur unme se koi Indian National Cricket team ka part banne ke layak hai toh it could have had a far better impact on audience. Globalization has really changed things and changed them for good. On a personal level I don't think there is much difference in me getting settled in Bangalore or me getting settled in Europe. Thoda bahut discrimination toh kabhi kabhi apni country mein bhi face karna pad jata hai. I am sure most of you will disagree with me on this point. But as the world becomes more and more connected and as the boundaries fade it will become rather apparent.

Waise hamari country bhi ajib hai ... On one hand we talk about women empowerment and on the other hand we have dogmatic dialogues like "chup ek Biwi thi, bol Maa rahi hai"! This is the explanation that Dimple Kapadia gives to Rishi Kapoor as to why she was silent for so many years when Rishi Kapoor didn't let Akshay Kumar play for England cricket team. Arre main poochta hoon Biwi kab bolegi yaar. 70s ke decade ki movie hoti toh thik tha. Ab toh bol lene do yaar ussey. Pata nahi kis ne likhe thay dialogue. Ye bhi nahi sochte ki these films are seen across the countries. Anyways, jab itna kuch badal raha hai toh dheere dheere dialouge bhi badal hi jayenge. Meanwhile, picturization of the song "Beeba tere haathon mein ..." is quite innovative. Same song being played simultaneously on two floors of the same house in two different genres adressing two different generations; Good attempt! I must say.

Ab mujhe bhook lag rahi hai ... so I am gonna go grab some delicious burgers. Tab tak you keep listening to the song "fire ige mis use eni Miss Fire :) Miss amma Miss amma Miss misuse aagidrey big mistake" ... mast gana hai yaar ;)

Chak de India!!

Kehte hain ek achche din ki shuruat achchi subah se hoti hai. Probably that’s the reason, every morning we all do something special which marks the start of a perfect day. In fact over the time it becomes a habit and we don’t even realize we are practicing it until one day we forget to do that and end up saying ‘aaj maine Bhagwan ke aage hath nhi jode na isiliye sara din kharab ja rha hai’! Aisi hi choti choti aadatein, ummm my neice for example, she would not step out for school until she has said ‘bye’ to every single person in the home. Usey toh kirayedaaron ko bhi bye bolna hota hai. Probably that’s her way of starting a beautiful day. But not just her there are thousands of us jo nashta karna bhool sakte hain magar ek chammach misthi dahi khana nhi bhoolte. Similarly my ideal morning starts with an energy filled inspiring song. I indeed have a separate play list in my music player consisting of numbers I would start my day with. Aur is play list mein se bhi kuch gaane thode jyada khaas hain and comes first in them is ‘chak de India…’

Dhamakedar movie ka dhamakedar song, listen to it and within seconds you can feel the adrenalin rush. Remember, how this song had become the anthem in the sports world? Yes we have not been doing well for quite a while now, when it comes to the performance of India in international Hockey tournaments but still this movie had sowed some rays of hope in that small corner of our heart that one day we will also be able to win loads of medals in Olympics and various other events of similar repute. Ah! How I wished for the Commonwealth Games 2010 to start as soon as possible and see various sports persons of our country to come up with flying colors. I would listen to this song and imagine it being played on television with pictures of Indian players getting loads of medals, at the backdrop. But alas! We are about to miss the deadlines of completing the preparations itself. And above that there is plethora of useless debate going on whether we should be holding such events. Things couldn’t have gone worst than this. If no one else, we should have learnt something from our neighbor country China at least, which made full use one single opportunity and turned itself to the world’s second largest economy. Not sure how the players who would have been practicing day and night must be feeling. But amid all this chaos there is one more person who, if had taken a small step at the correct time, could have contributed to the success of this event however small that contribution though it might have been. A few months back I had got a mail from some educational institute to be one of the volunteer in CWG organization committee but I replied very late thinking whether I will get leaves or not, kuch aur kaam aa gaya toh and blah blah. Probably by that time they were done all the selection. Yesterday I read in newspaper that the volunteers and not well trained and it is a major hurdle that might hinder us from putting up a grand show. Wish I had been a bit more responsible and taken the initiative at correct time:(.

Anyways one small thing I am going to do now is to include “successful organization of this long awaited event” as one of my requests to God in my Morning Prayer. And I request you all to do the same kyonki hamare desh mein kai baar dawa se jyada dua kaam kar jati hai. So Chak de India…….. chak de!

PS: Kuch logon ka perfect day morning se jyada evening pe depend karta hai. For example hamari Makan Malkin jinka din tab tak poora nhi hota jab tak who Star Plus pe apna favourite show Pratigya na dekh le. Loll!

Paife ka Khel!

“How much money would I need to live in the US, without having to work for the rest of my life?” Well, before you start any calculations or reach any conclusion, let me clarify that my intention is not at all to find an answer to this question; rather this is one of the thousand of responses that you get when you search for the word ‘money’ in ‘Google’. Perhaps, even Google knows it well that no one is interested in thy definition or meaning.
After all it is Money – introduction not required.

We all know the importance of money and the power it brings with itself. That is the thing we are all running after and that’s what make the world go round. After all it’s all ‘paife ka khel’. Such is the charm of money that even the founder of the website ‘Secondlife.com’ (whose main intention was to provide a world where people can live a life of their dreams without giving a thought to the never ending rat race of real world) couldn’t do without a market place and of course – ‘money’.

But do you really think money is what makes a person rich? No doubt we can’t do without it as well, still how right is it to give it the utmost important and losing on the opportunity of enjoying various small moments of joy that come our way every now and then. Life is what happens to us while we are planning the future. So, let us all make it a point to appreciate the infinite small gifts that God gives us in the form of family, friends, nature etc.

And as far as becoming rich is concerned:

“If you really want to feel rich, count the things you own that can’t be bought by Money!”