There is a general perception around that as age increases, our ability to take sound decisions reduces, and we tend to depend on our younger family members (kids especially) for vital inputs every now and then. I have heard many people opine that as they grow old, their confidence to take decisions, that would have significant impact on any particular issue, reduces drastically. Hence they cannot give any sound verdict without consultations.
To me, it is not age alone but also cognition that makes a huge difference in decision making. In fact cognitive abilities have been shown to be a far greater contributor to a person’s ability to take independent decisions, irrespective of age. My mom tells me that her grandmother was one such individual, who would persistently steady the family ship day in and day out single handedly with her strong personality and sound decision making, till she died at the age of 86.
At the end of the day, decision making is about self confidence also. Over the years, if you have had the gumption of taking high-impact decisions independently and successfully, then even at an old age, you would continue to do so, unless of course, you are suffering from some neurological disorder. People like Ratan Tata and Warren Buffet are burning examples of this.
Aging alone is never a hindrance and should never be allowed to be one when it comes to decision making capabilities. Expressing your thoughts cogently with adequate cognition, which would come from experience and prescience, would help you shun diffidence and propel you to keep taking prudent and sensible decisions every time you want to.
Saturday, August 21, 2010
Friday, August 20, 2010
A Vision for my Future…..
About a month back, I dedicated my 25th post to my mother. Today as I write my 50th post, I want to share a vision that I have for myself. It has always been my aim to be versatile in life, to be good at multiple things and harness different talents that God may have blessed me with. I have never wanted myself to be perceived as somebody who can only solve engineering problems in MNCs.
I have always loved to write and hence I created my blog on the 24th of June 2010, but even on 23rd I could not have even thought that eight weeks down the line I would complete 50 posts. Well, that is exactly what I have done. During this sojourn, I have received constructive feedback on the style that I pursue for my writing, the vocabulary I use and the themes that I choose for my posts. All such inputs from my respected elders and my loved ones have encouraged me to harness this skill of mine.
I love to sing as well, although I have never been trained on any form of classical music. There are many people who enjoy my renditions on stage as well as inside a drawing room. When I used to be IIT, I have always sung at every opportunity in front of an audience, not necessarily on stage every time. Such performances have helped me shed inhibitions, and now, I have no jitters when I face 3000 people in the audience here in GE campus. I feel that I have reasonable knowledge of the different aspects in eastern music like beats (TAAL), scales and expressions, and have the confidence to sing any type of eastern song in front of an audience. I want to persist with it for as long as I can.
It has also been my obsession to be equally versed in both English and Bengali, which is my mother tongue. I have always wanted myself to be outstanding at both these languages, by building a strong base in grammar and by having a sound vocabulary and use them effectively in both written and spoken forms. Over the years, I have always made a conscious effort not to overlap the two languages while speaking, as many Bengalis do. I continue to do so.
When I talk of languages, pronunciation has to be one of the talking points, as that is the greyest area among English speakers these days. I have always strived for perfection in this aspect, although there is always scope for improvement. Even now, I look forward listening to speakers like Karan Thapar on television to sharpen my skills.
I would also like myself to be seen as someone who is very comfortable to be with, who is friendly and jolly, and can transform somber moods to ecstatic ones through anecdotes and energy. I never want people to be in awe of my professional achievements, nor I want them to be bogged down by my financial strengths. I want to be one among the many common men around who can give a comfort zone to people, with a smiling face.
In a nutshell, 25 years later, I want to be seen as an individual who not only passed his exams well, but also as somebody who has been outstanding in numerous other soft skills, somebody who has managed perfection in whatever he has done, and somebody who has brought a smile to the faces of people every time. I wish mom’s blessings, God’s hand and Kuhu’s love and affection empowers me to reach my destination.
I have always loved to write and hence I created my blog on the 24th of June 2010, but even on 23rd I could not have even thought that eight weeks down the line I would complete 50 posts. Well, that is exactly what I have done. During this sojourn, I have received constructive feedback on the style that I pursue for my writing, the vocabulary I use and the themes that I choose for my posts. All such inputs from my respected elders and my loved ones have encouraged me to harness this skill of mine.
I love to sing as well, although I have never been trained on any form of classical music. There are many people who enjoy my renditions on stage as well as inside a drawing room. When I used to be IIT, I have always sung at every opportunity in front of an audience, not necessarily on stage every time. Such performances have helped me shed inhibitions, and now, I have no jitters when I face 3000 people in the audience here in GE campus. I feel that I have reasonable knowledge of the different aspects in eastern music like beats (TAAL), scales and expressions, and have the confidence to sing any type of eastern song in front of an audience. I want to persist with it for as long as I can.
It has also been my obsession to be equally versed in both English and Bengali, which is my mother tongue. I have always wanted myself to be outstanding at both these languages, by building a strong base in grammar and by having a sound vocabulary and use them effectively in both written and spoken forms. Over the years, I have always made a conscious effort not to overlap the two languages while speaking, as many Bengalis do. I continue to do so.
When I talk of languages, pronunciation has to be one of the talking points, as that is the greyest area among English speakers these days. I have always strived for perfection in this aspect, although there is always scope for improvement. Even now, I look forward listening to speakers like Karan Thapar on television to sharpen my skills.
I would also like myself to be seen as someone who is very comfortable to be with, who is friendly and jolly, and can transform somber moods to ecstatic ones through anecdotes and energy. I never want people to be in awe of my professional achievements, nor I want them to be bogged down by my financial strengths. I want to be one among the many common men around who can give a comfort zone to people, with a smiling face.
In a nutshell, 25 years later, I want to be seen as an individual who not only passed his exams well, but also as somebody who has been outstanding in numerous other soft skills, somebody who has managed perfection in whatever he has done, and somebody who has brought a smile to the faces of people every time. I wish mom’s blessings, God’s hand and Kuhu’s love and affection empowers me to reach my destination.
Thursday, August 19, 2010
Kishore Kumar was the greatest artist ever…..
If you look through the history of male Indian film personalities, including playback singers, actors, music directors, lyricists and directors, you would come across many names that were exceptionally outstanding in their respective areas of strength.
You had Manna Dey, Mohammad Rafi and Hemant Kumar who were not only mellifluous but also possessed a very sound classical depth of singing. They were technically very correct. The same goes with Sonu Nigam today. You had Uttam Kumar, Raj Kapoor, Dev Anand, Naseeruddin Shah, Girish Karnad, Amitabh Bachchan (especially in the second half of his career, post 2000) and Nana Patekar who were and still are outstanding actors. You had music directors like S.D Burman, R.D Burman, Shankar-Jaikishen, Jatin-Lalit and A.R Rehman who have won laurels from around the world providing music that would cut across generations.
However, among all these great names, it would have been almost impossible for you to find an all-round artist of the caliber of Kishore Kumar. Acting, singing and music direction came to him so naturally that you would have definitely found it hard to fathom which facet he specialized in. It was he who invented the “Yoodley Yoo” in Hindi cinema in the 1970s. He could do almost anything with his voice – laughing in the middle of a song and changing his voice significantly to bring about different expressions. He was equally amazing in romantic songs, melancholic songs and the jovial ones. That is why he won the hearts of the millions around the world, because his style was simple. He reached out to the masses through his songs. You did not need knowledge of classical music to enjoy his brand of songs. After a long day’s work, if you needed to relax with some music, Kishore Kumar’s voice provided you with exactly that. His acting was also beyond the ordinary in films like Padosan, Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi, Half Ticket and Lukochuri (Bengali), just to name a few. He had no inhibitions in front of the camera and his dialogue delivery was truly amazing.
I remember in one of his songs, the female artist had not turned up for recording. So Kishore volunteered to sing the female portion as well, by altering his voice, and believe me, no audience would ever have caught the trick had it not been declared later. I don’t think anybody else would have had the guts to sing in a female voice in an actual film song. Such was the talent of the man. All this he did, without receiving any formal classical training in music. His was a voice that was gifted by God.
If you look back, you would find actors who were better than him and you would find playback singers who were technically superior to Kishore Kumar in classical music. However, you would never find any artist, who could be as versatile as he was. That is what separated him and put him in a different league compared to his compatriots in Indian cinema. He was certainly the most talented artist that Indian cinema has ever seen. I would be very privileged indeed, if I am fortunate enough to witness and enjoy the skills of anyone as versatile as him in my lifetime.
You had Manna Dey, Mohammad Rafi and Hemant Kumar who were not only mellifluous but also possessed a very sound classical depth of singing. They were technically very correct. The same goes with Sonu Nigam today. You had Uttam Kumar, Raj Kapoor, Dev Anand, Naseeruddin Shah, Girish Karnad, Amitabh Bachchan (especially in the second half of his career, post 2000) and Nana Patekar who were and still are outstanding actors. You had music directors like S.D Burman, R.D Burman, Shankar-Jaikishen, Jatin-Lalit and A.R Rehman who have won laurels from around the world providing music that would cut across generations.
However, among all these great names, it would have been almost impossible for you to find an all-round artist of the caliber of Kishore Kumar. Acting, singing and music direction came to him so naturally that you would have definitely found it hard to fathom which facet he specialized in. It was he who invented the “Yoodley Yoo” in Hindi cinema in the 1970s. He could do almost anything with his voice – laughing in the middle of a song and changing his voice significantly to bring about different expressions. He was equally amazing in romantic songs, melancholic songs and the jovial ones. That is why he won the hearts of the millions around the world, because his style was simple. He reached out to the masses through his songs. You did not need knowledge of classical music to enjoy his brand of songs. After a long day’s work, if you needed to relax with some music, Kishore Kumar’s voice provided you with exactly that. His acting was also beyond the ordinary in films like Padosan, Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi, Half Ticket and Lukochuri (Bengali), just to name a few. He had no inhibitions in front of the camera and his dialogue delivery was truly amazing.
I remember in one of his songs, the female artist had not turned up for recording. So Kishore volunteered to sing the female portion as well, by altering his voice, and believe me, no audience would ever have caught the trick had it not been declared later. I don’t think anybody else would have had the guts to sing in a female voice in an actual film song. Such was the talent of the man. All this he did, without receiving any formal classical training in music. His was a voice that was gifted by God.
If you look back, you would find actors who were better than him and you would find playback singers who were technically superior to Kishore Kumar in classical music. However, you would never find any artist, who could be as versatile as he was. That is what separated him and put him in a different league compared to his compatriots in Indian cinema. He was certainly the most talented artist that Indian cinema has ever seen. I would be very privileged indeed, if I am fortunate enough to witness and enjoy the skills of anyone as versatile as him in my lifetime.
Young India sees “Freedom” differently………
A few days back, India celebrated its 64th Independence Day. Our venerated Prime minister was part of another I-day speech along with hoisting of the tricolour. The rhetoric followed that was supposed to cajole the yearning issues of 1.2 billion people. However, the opinions of numerous young, vibrant and energetic Indians did not change. As I can see it, “young” India has a different take on the “freedom” that we are enjoying right now. I am also a part of the bandwagon.
A free country should not only have a government comprising of its own people, for its own people and by its own people. It should also be able to manage its internal strives in a democratic way, and possess the ability to deal with mighty external nations on the economic and political front. It should have an unbiased attitude towards its women and caste minority groups, striving towards their empowerment in every way possible. A free society is symbolized by how independent its women are, and not by how archaic its thinking is, when it comes to honor killings, khap panchayats and discrimination towards dalits and muslims. The right to equality should be experienced by everyone, without facing subjugation.
In some cases, we misuse our freedom also. People indulge in vandalism; there is hardly any civic sense, but there exists widespread corruption. The people with power do whatever they feel like at the expense of innocent civilians, unless of course, bribery is resorted to. Most of our leaders have sweet tongues and sly hearts. Our country keeps getting lost in political squabbles because of this.
I do not think that the visionaries who gave us freedom in 1947 would have envisaged this kind of a future for their beloved motherland. I would have loved to see how fighters like Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, Lala Lajput Rai and Sardar Vallabbhai Patel would have healed the wounds of India as we have it today. They would have definitely thought that real freedom is still a long way to go.
A free country should not only have a government comprising of its own people, for its own people and by its own people. It should also be able to manage its internal strives in a democratic way, and possess the ability to deal with mighty external nations on the economic and political front. It should have an unbiased attitude towards its women and caste minority groups, striving towards their empowerment in every way possible. A free society is symbolized by how independent its women are, and not by how archaic its thinking is, when it comes to honor killings, khap panchayats and discrimination towards dalits and muslims. The right to equality should be experienced by everyone, without facing subjugation.
In some cases, we misuse our freedom also. People indulge in vandalism; there is hardly any civic sense, but there exists widespread corruption. The people with power do whatever they feel like at the expense of innocent civilians, unless of course, bribery is resorted to. Most of our leaders have sweet tongues and sly hearts. Our country keeps getting lost in political squabbles because of this.
I do not think that the visionaries who gave us freedom in 1947 would have envisaged this kind of a future for their beloved motherland. I would have loved to see how fighters like Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, Lala Lajput Rai and Sardar Vallabbhai Patel would have healed the wounds of India as we have it today. They would have definitely thought that real freedom is still a long way to go.
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
A sense of duty may be conflicting at times….
Surprising as it may seem at first, I feel that a strong sense of duty can be conflicting sometimes. This is especially true when loyalties change, for example after marriage. Your spouse expects that you have to be more dutiful towards him/her vis-a-vis your parents, siblings and other close relatives. For you, that is tricky. The worst part is when your spouse has some friction with your relatives on any ground, even if it is not translated into open apathy. You know that your spouse does not like some of your relatives, and you are also aware that he/she does not want you to continue with the affection that you have poured on the concerned relatives throughout your life. In such a scenario, you have to choose between your life partner/your love and your relative, who has loved you since your childhood and in some cases even brought you up. You find it difficult to dismantle the love that you have received for 30 years in just 1 month, simply because your spouse does not want it.
However, if your partner really loves you, he/she would never stop you from loving a relative with whom he/she is not comfortable. He would trust you and assume that you would give him/her a fair deal, understand him/her as a person, and believe that you would back him/her uninhibitedly anyway. He would also know that you love him/her, and that duty would run smoothly only if love greases its wheels. Otherwise it would be a friction. In that case, you have the onus of living up to his/her trust that he/she has bestowed upon you.
Undoubtedly this is a very trivial issue and many would say that is a complete non-issue, but human nature is such that such apparently “petty” matters can destroy families, especially in today’s world of inflated egos, and sensitive minds. One should be extra careful and sensitive if they do face such a scenario.
The best thing for you however is again to follow the lines of the Bhagwad Gita – “If you are unsure about which path to take, whom to support, when your relatives are at war amongst themselves, go with DHARMA, the path of righteousness and truth. Be free from all jealousy, greed and lust so that you can distinguish between good and evil, and choose the good over evil. There is no bigger sin than to be NEUTRAL at a juncture when you have to choose between your loved ones based on their deeds. Take the side of TRUTH even if it is at the expense of a blood relation.”
However, if your partner really loves you, he/she would never stop you from loving a relative with whom he/she is not comfortable. He would trust you and assume that you would give him/her a fair deal, understand him/her as a person, and believe that you would back him/her uninhibitedly anyway. He would also know that you love him/her, and that duty would run smoothly only if love greases its wheels. Otherwise it would be a friction. In that case, you have the onus of living up to his/her trust that he/she has bestowed upon you.
Undoubtedly this is a very trivial issue and many would say that is a complete non-issue, but human nature is such that such apparently “petty” matters can destroy families, especially in today’s world of inflated egos, and sensitive minds. One should be extra careful and sensitive if they do face such a scenario.
The best thing for you however is again to follow the lines of the Bhagwad Gita – “If you are unsure about which path to take, whom to support, when your relatives are at war amongst themselves, go with DHARMA, the path of righteousness and truth. Be free from all jealousy, greed and lust so that you can distinguish between good and evil, and choose the good over evil. There is no bigger sin than to be NEUTRAL at a juncture when you have to choose between your loved ones based on their deeds. Take the side of TRUTH even if it is at the expense of a blood relation.”
Today’s teenagers are lavish spenders….
The spending limits of middle class to upper middle class teenagers have taken off dramatically in the last 20 years. These days, even high school students yearn for a credit card. I have heard a couple of cases where parents give their kids, just to give an example, Rs 2000/- as pocket money for the month, but they have the audacity to spend Rs 1500/- out of that on shopping in the first two days. Hence the yearning need for a credit card, which never has to be replenished, or so the young guns believe.
This is atrocious, in very mild terms. Some kids have two mobile phones these days – out of that one BlackBerry is a certainty. There are others who are obsessed with clothes and believe that if their friends buy a top or jeans, then it does not look good if they do not follow suit. Beauty treatments are also a common avenue to splash money for teens. It may seem risible to many that we did not even have a watch when we were in high school, forget other luxuries. I remember mom gifting me my first watch after I passed ICSE exams.
We used to go to school in public transport in the mid 1990s when the bus fare from Gariahat (my house) to Chittaranjan Hospital (Don Bosco Park Circus bus stop) was Re 1. Dad used to give me a five-rupee note everyday, and I used to save Rs 3 out of that. With those savings I managed to save Rs 2500/- after three years, which is still deposited in a post office account till date with accumulated interests. Today’s kids cannot even think of that kind of disciplined spending and saving. Youngsters today believe that a swipe of a card can buy them anything. Everybody is brand conscious, want to show off and be popular via the short cut. They do not have the time or the will to think how difficult it is to earn even a dime these days.
Affluent parents even go to the extent of providing Rs 10,000/- to Rs 15000/- as monthly pocket money to their kids. That is almost the amount that our PhD scholars receive as stipend in IITs and other renowned research institutes, after they get through a Masters Degree, the NET exams and a thousand grinding interviews. That is the harsh and crude reality of modern India.
This is the worst possible upbringing that any parent can provide to their child. The poor kids lose the ability to fight through a crisis in life because of such over-pampering. Unfortunately such kids, lacking balance in their approach to life, are also a part of the face of an Emerging India.
This is atrocious, in very mild terms. Some kids have two mobile phones these days – out of that one BlackBerry is a certainty. There are others who are obsessed with clothes and believe that if their friends buy a top or jeans, then it does not look good if they do not follow suit. Beauty treatments are also a common avenue to splash money for teens. It may seem risible to many that we did not even have a watch when we were in high school, forget other luxuries. I remember mom gifting me my first watch after I passed ICSE exams.
We used to go to school in public transport in the mid 1990s when the bus fare from Gariahat (my house) to Chittaranjan Hospital (Don Bosco Park Circus bus stop) was Re 1. Dad used to give me a five-rupee note everyday, and I used to save Rs 3 out of that. With those savings I managed to save Rs 2500/- after three years, which is still deposited in a post office account till date with accumulated interests. Today’s kids cannot even think of that kind of disciplined spending and saving. Youngsters today believe that a swipe of a card can buy them anything. Everybody is brand conscious, want to show off and be popular via the short cut. They do not have the time or the will to think how difficult it is to earn even a dime these days.
Affluent parents even go to the extent of providing Rs 10,000/- to Rs 15000/- as monthly pocket money to their kids. That is almost the amount that our PhD scholars receive as stipend in IITs and other renowned research institutes, after they get through a Masters Degree, the NET exams and a thousand grinding interviews. That is the harsh and crude reality of modern India.
This is the worst possible upbringing that any parent can provide to their child. The poor kids lose the ability to fight through a crisis in life because of such over-pampering. Unfortunately such kids, lacking balance in their approach to life, are also a part of the face of an Emerging India.
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Indian sport needs a thorough overhauling…………
Not many people are aware that a movement known as the Clean Sports India (CSI) has been launched by ten former sportspersons of repute in our country. The mismanagement in Indian sport has crossed all acceptable limits of tolerance, as can be seen from Commonwealth Games fiasco, and this movement aims at ameliorating the sorry state of affairs.
To me, the crux of the problem is that Indian sport is run by every Tom Dick and Harry other than sportspersons. The administrators have never played any sport in their lives and this trend is rising. This is precisely the reason why a country of a billion people dishes out only one Olympic medal every four years, although Beijing 2008 was a rare exception where we managed three. Sports have become good money-spinners and there is rampant misuse of funds. Gentlemen, who have occupied the posts of presidents and secretaries of federations and boards for several decades, do not leave these lucrative positions, as there is absolutely no threat from former sportspersons to take up these responsible portfolios. Hence they enjoy a free ride literally.
CSI is bound to ruffle a few feathers amongst sports administrators as the latter would be pulled out of their comfort zones. However it is very unfortunate that former sportspersons are very skeptical in getting involved in administration. They have to be encouraged to do exactly that and run sports like a corporation in India. “Perform or perish” should be the mantra, and ruthless professionalism should be the forte of the system. The challenge ahead for the CSI is enormous, but they have to succeed to revive Indian sport from the doldrums.
To me, the crux of the problem is that Indian sport is run by every Tom Dick and Harry other than sportspersons. The administrators have never played any sport in their lives and this trend is rising. This is precisely the reason why a country of a billion people dishes out only one Olympic medal every four years, although Beijing 2008 was a rare exception where we managed three. Sports have become good money-spinners and there is rampant misuse of funds. Gentlemen, who have occupied the posts of presidents and secretaries of federations and boards for several decades, do not leave these lucrative positions, as there is absolutely no threat from former sportspersons to take up these responsible portfolios. Hence they enjoy a free ride literally.
CSI is bound to ruffle a few feathers amongst sports administrators as the latter would be pulled out of their comfort zones. However it is very unfortunate that former sportspersons are very skeptical in getting involved in administration. They have to be encouraged to do exactly that and run sports like a corporation in India. “Perform or perish” should be the mantra, and ruthless professionalism should be the forte of the system. The challenge ahead for the CSI is enormous, but they have to succeed to revive Indian sport from the doldrums.
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