KAVIPEDIA

"Wag"-a-"Bond"

2008-01-10T01:34:00.000-08:00

The biggest chicken n egg story in my life will remain this mystery: did I always love travelling and hence land up with this current lifestyle I lead or am I just soooo used to travel that I think I love it?!!!

I still remember way back in primary and middle school when M used to just wait for summer hols so that she could travel looong to meet her grandparents while I used to look forward to hols just to read tons of comics, enjoy icecreams, cycling, cricket and watch loadsa TV...yep, travelling to meet cousins / visit hill stations was fun, but not for more than 5 days...holidays meant lazing around in home sweet home!!!

Anyways, the crux remains that I've discovered over the last few years that I truly enjoy travelling...and I do get quite a lot of opportunities to travel and further reinforce my thoughts...

The most charming mode of travel will remain trains to me...Chn and B'lore railway stations have become second home...(like I keep telling S, anything more than 6 hours I get, I'm in Chn...and like I keep telling everyone, if Laloo has turned around Indian Railways, he definitely owes atleast a small thanks to me ;))...

While I'm usually gloomy on the way back to B'lore, the journey from B'lore to Chn is greatly looked forward to...everything right from the hurrying home from work, forgetting to take the ticket printout, getting reminded by family, gulping down a fast dinner, breaking my own records for speed of packing, contemplating on the mode of transport to the station, fighting with the auto fellow, fighting the auto noise levels and screaming over the phone, running into the station, having that hot cup of milk, saying hi to those invariable acquaintances you run into and alas, putting that middle berth up and juuuust crashing...whew...

Off late my exposure to sub urban trains has increased too...and thats not just through real travel in them but through "virtual travel" as well!! Almost everyday, I experience the train journey from Chetpet to Tambaram and gosh, I do look forward to it :)...overcrowded common compartments, sometimes crowded first class compartments, women who jump off the train before it comes to a complete halt, drunken men who tell you their life stories, bad networks and rough handoffs interrupting an engrossing conversation, the flower girls at the station and the woman's voice over the speaker that doesn't seem to tire of the monotonous anouncements it has to make...

Like S told me recently, its not long before I stop travelling alone all over...hmmm, it's been a joy ride so far and its only going to get a lot lot better!!! Can't waaaait :)

3 hours to go for my next train journey ;)!!!...

Technically Tactical...

2007-09-20T01:31:00.000-07:00

This one goes to Arjun, his undying love for technology, and to all the techie stuff he has got for home, to all my friends who embrace technology and to Tillis (Technology Illiterates) like Vishak and me ;)!!!

“Love technology” – that’s what my bro has to say about himself in Orkut. This statement has led me back to my old belief that my brother got mixed up with some other baby in the hospital when he was born. For, the statement is as far away from my heart as it can get, or so I thought till around 6 months ago…

Mind you, I am an electronics engineer. But I am one of those engineers who always knew at the back of her mind that she would not end up doing anything concerning microprocessors, electromagnetic waves and the works. One of those people who flamboyantly turned down IT jobs because of the “monotony” of the job profile and the “bonds” they came with (read the scare of getting stuck up with something you can’t stand). One of those who shyed away from technology so much that she didn’t take a single IT / systems paper during her management studies and convinced herself with self induced logical reasoning (“Who wants to get stuck up staring at a computer screen for 8+ hours everyday?”… “IT jobs stagnate beyond a certain level”…)

…And I happily strode into the world of sales. All was well till April 10th 2007, when my boss sits me down explaining the next assignment the organization has thought of for me. Spearheading technology initiatives for the organization. Why me? Because they feel, amongst other things, that I am comfortable with technology. This was the joke of the century to me. I candidly admit that all I do with technology is e-mail, chat and use MS Office applications…not to forget the “effective mobile technology” usage of course. I am told by our VP that all they are looking for is above average IQ. The little amount of self respect I have doesn’t allow me to wriggle out of the situation. The only thing I thought to myself was “Kadaiseela ennayum IT professional aakittaangale” (vis-à-vis Satyaraj’s trademark dialogue in “Amaidipadai” where he says, finally he too has been made a politician!!!)

To my credit, I took the role up with a positive mindset and thought to myself that this was the right time to get over the “technology aversiveness” I had developed over the years. Better to be forced into getting comfortable with something than try to evade it all your life. Plus at this day and age, it’s a shame to say that you are technophobic :P…

Looking back, the last few months have taught me a lot of things about technology in general…lemme sample a few…

Garun’s Golden Rule: “Using technology effectively is simple: All processes that are redundant need to be automated. This should be the guiding principle.”

I have found this rule very useful, atleast in my project. I simply look at tasks that keep repeating and then think through how we could get the work flow associated with the task automated. Is it always possible? I initially used to ask this question to my vendors and techie team and after some time, the answer to this question led me to my second important learning.

Kavi’s Gyanoday: “In technology, nothing is impossible”

Once in a vendor meeting, I requested a particular change in the application to which the tech support guy immediately said, “That is impossible”. He was immediately corrected by his project manager who butted in with, “Don’t say it is impossible, it is extremely difficult.” Requirements might be difficult, might involve unimaginable number of man hours of effort but they are almost never impossible and there are alwaaays ways to work around.

If I am not traveling, I sit in front of my comp for 8+ hours everyday. I send a lot of forwards. And I blog. Welcome to the world of IT, huh?!! ;)

Cricket...Crazy Kiya Re...:)

2007-03-21T05:23:00.000-07:00

We thought it was all over. Post the Hansie Cronje, Azharuddin n Jadeja episodes and all the controversies over betting and match fixing, we saw a dampening of enthusiasm and fan following among cricket lovers of "our times"...

And then came the Soccer Mania! Especially after last year's World Cup, we thought everyone had switched loyalties from Cricket to Football...

Well, thats what we thought. With World Cup 2007, here we go again...Cricket is back...back with a bang...and you, me and everyone else is finding the game too charismatic to stay away from!!! Its a pleasure seeing all those TV showrooms with crowds peeping inside to follow the match!...and everyone you know who is out of home is calling and smsing to family and friends to get match updates!! Guess somethings jus don't change!!! (thank God!!!)

The other day, in a train, I noticed that co-passengers were all celebrating that India was all out for a measly score of 191...was really wondering whats wrong with them...I mean whats in that to rejoice about? Then I heard on and figured out why everyone was so happy...it was because Pakistan was bowled out for an even poorer score...was actually shocked seeing the "Indian Mentality" first hand...Again, guess somethings JUS DON'T CHANGE!!!

Have fun watching the "Gentleman's game"!!!:) And heres wishing the "Blue Tigers" all the best!!!

Prayers n positive thoughts...

2007-03-09T04:55:00.000-08:00

Do prayers really work? If something happens what makes it happen?? Is there something called destiny??? If we write our own destiny why do somethings that we yearn for happen while others don't, however hard we may try?????

I have perpetually been seeking answers to these questions...n true to my Libran nature, I find myself oscillating betwen contradicting viewpoints...

One of our "Electromagnetic and Field Theory" professors had once told us something very interesting...that according to the "Electromagnetic theory of the Universe", everything on earth is either positive or negative energy...and "God" is powerful because God is the conglomeration of all positive energy on earth...a "Temple" gives you immense peace of mind and makes you feel confident and happy because a Temple is a place where all prayers accumulate and prayers are nothing but positive thoughts, or in other words positive energy. In other words, a high level of positive thoughts, positive energy and prayers could very well cause the objective (say, (doing well in an exam, getting something done) of that energy or that prayer to be achieved...

Another perspective is that everything on earth is predetermined and how much ever you want something to happen or not happen, what has to happen, WILL happen (to quote Murphy)...basically Destiny...

Yet, there are many a time when one feels all you require to achieve something or to get something is very strong will power and confidence...you don't need to pray for it, just execute what your heart desires and it will be yours!...your life is how YOU write it...

While I continue seeking some light, I can only "hope and pray" some of you could bring in more clarity with your views...

Khalbali ye Chulbuli...

2007-03-03T21:45:00.000-08:00

Talk about effective advertising! Guess Levers have (atleast at a small level) got their act right with the new Clinic Plus Chulbuli promo... for one thing, you can find the "all new" (well am sure nuthins new abt the product!) Clinic Plus with a free "Chulbuli" doll and on top of that, the ad has appealed across age groups...found a girl last week in a store pulling her mom's saree insisting she gets herself a Chulbuli!!...now thaz still ok, I was shocked when my dad suddenly started calling me Chulbuli (just because he likes the cartoon!...though I do run around a lot like Chuls n as a result my hair does get real dirty real soon!!)...

So how did they chalk out Chulbuli? Heres something interesting I found...

Madurai, Feb. 22 Hindustan Lever Ltd (HLL) recently held a painting and cartoon competition around an imaginative character `Chulbuli', representing the quintessential Indian girl, in 10 schools in the city. Cash prizes totalling Rs 2 lakh were awarded besides participation certificates and gifts. According to the General Manager of HLL, Mr Rajaram Narayanan, the competition revolved around mother-daughter relationship and was aimed at inculcating good habits in children. Initially the competition was introduced in Karnataka covering 2 lakh children. Encouraged by the success, the company held the competition across six cities in Tamil Nadu, including Madurai, reaching out to 2 lakh children, he added.
© Copyright 2000 - 2006 The Hindu Business Line

Anyways, I noticed that off late a lot of advertising has been targetted at younger audiences and, a lot of it has clicked! BIG TIME!! Levers again did a great job with Pears Junior soap (with the toy free n the catchy jingle!). You can still see the non-offer stock lying on the shelf, while kids are trying to expand their "Pears toy collection". Even products where the kid is nowhere close to being the consumer a lot of "kid appeal" has been used like in Surf Excel (the Daag Achche Hain 10/10 campaign), SBI Life Insurance (with the naughty grandfathers and the "mature" grandsons) and tons of other such ads (given my limited exposure to TV)

Guess its to do with the inherent charm n cuteness kids bring with just their presence!!!

And...I fell in love again...

2007-02-14T06:39:00.000-08:00

Valentine's Day...its always been spent quite interestingly...not in the way you might imagine, but simply because, every year its been a different setting, different company (or no company at all!) and the day never ceases to amuse and amaze me...this time was no different and I simply could not imagine heading home without writing about it!!!

This morning I woke up just in time to get ready and run out of home and it was only in the bus that I discovered that I was wearing a green salwar...now for those of you who don't know, colours have a special significance on V day...will give the "Colour Coding Guide" after this post!!...this realization made me laugh and took me into a flashback...

V-days in college were aaalways spent with the 4 of us "Kadalais" (thaz m, j , s n me) color coordinating and spending the day roaming around campus, doing nothin!...can never forget the final year V-day when we spent the whole day lifting benches from our classroom to an auditorium as CTS was visiting campus and had this massive "aptitude test" in that hall...the whole batch was involve in this "activity" and it started off with a lot of grumbling but very soon we learnt how to have fun doing the job!...that sure was a wierd way of spending the day though!!...

I caught myself smiling at those times and the bus stop brought me back to the present...well, today was spent at work, the whole while, but did notice some cute things thru the day...

It happens only in India...
First there was this traffic policeman at the signal where I was to meet my salesmen and I ask him "Yeshwantpur Police station elli?" He informs me that I am standing right outside the place and I jus give a sheepish smile..."hehehe"...

Guess the guy was really bored in the morning, he begins to chat up...he compliments me on my knowledge of Kannada language and asks me where I am originally from...post the Cauvery verdict I am paranoid about spelling out my origin and so I say "Kerala" hoping he doesn't know much Malayalam!!...he goes on to say "Only these Tamilians never learn our language, all others are very flexible..."...the Tamilian in me gets highly defensive and I regret my earlier lie...grrrrrrrr...

It is amazing how even strangers in India can ask the most personal questions...I am taken aback when the traffic cop asks me what my salary is and I have had enough by when he asks me "who I am waiting for on V-day"...gosh...I cross the road...

Post a short meeting with my salesmen, 1 of them asks for a minute of private talk with me...he starts off saying "Madame, today is Valentines Day" and pauses dramatically...I roll my eyes wondering whats comin up (c'mon, its human tendency)...then he goes on "Can I get off work early? I badly need to meet my girlfriend...its been months..." I find this highly amusing and obviously ridiculous and just tell him he can buzz off after finishing whatever work hes been asked to do...

2 hours later, I am walking by the road and find a postman struggling with a couple of heavy bags, overflowing with cards...he pants his way thru and irritatedly picks up a few envelopes that had fallen down from the huge bags...I cannot control saying "Valentines Day alwa, adhe..." (Its because of V-day) and hes like "Havudu" (yeah thats true)! I really had no idea V-day had penetrated so much into Indian culture!!

Life is so full of love and laughter. Just when you think everything around you is dull and boring, just when you are very down about life, life has a way of bouncing back and surprising you in some small way...I got my share with a wonderful day of sales! To finish off heres one of my usual Sales Snippets that made my day...
There was this particularly grumpy medical shop owner this a'noon(one of those "know it alls" who can't stand anyone telling them what they should do), a real biggie I badly wanted to crack... after a lot of persuasion and my stereotype tactics, I manage to get a decent order from the guy...and then when I was about to leave, he says "Aap aisa hee sales karte rahenge to..."
I begin to frown and interrupt "to?"...he continues..."to sales bahut acha ho jayega"...

Obviously, I smile...Hmmmmmmmmmmm...
...And....I fell in love with life again!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Happy Valentines!!! God Bless!!!

Its been ages...

2007-01-27T07:58:00.000-08:00

Its been ages since I updated my blog and its been ages since I wrote this piece I have posted below... basically had time off at home after very long so just ended up finding lots of stuff I had written as a teenager... was laughing over all the articles, poems n even this short story I once started writing!!! :)... anyways heres a poem I wrote around 1999 or 2000... I wrote it just before our exams and mailed it to some of my close friends!!... its the unedited ORIGINAL poem so u can join me in having a hearty laugh...

BEST OF LUCK
There are times when life has made me wonder
"God ,do you really like me?"...I have pondered
These are the times when life has been hard on me
...the times when Almighty's power I fail to see

Then when I'm in a clearer state of mind
I reassure myself that God is very kind...
It's just that sometimes things don't work our way
Thats God's way of reminding us that we have to pray

To help him out,God has given man a gift
A special thing,which could give your spirits a lift
A gift that would love and care till the end
And that, is what he calls a FRIEND!!

All those times when I've needed support
When I need to sail thru the mighty ocean with my tiny boat...
My friends have helped me cross the tide
They serve not only as my friend but also a reliable guide.

I don't know how good I am at giving comfort
But I would like to tell you I'm always there when you are hurt
And when things eventually work out
Thats when our friendship has born it's fruits!!!

So,here's wishing you all the very best
Put your efforts and hardwork to test!
And at the end when you acheive success,
I'd be really proud of you I must confess!!!

Here's wishing a REAL special friend best of luck!!!

Aati Nahin...# HIGHLY CENSORED #

2006-11-20T01:58:00.000-08:00

The following post is based on true life experiences of you, me and everyone else...not meant to gross u out!!!

Imagine...You are alone at home and go into your cozy tiled bathroom to attend to an urgent call of nature...yep, its just a normal thing and you walk in humming the latest Himesh Reshmaiya number...(ok, if you don't like him you could choose the latest whatever number)...5 minutes pass and you get bored of the whatever number...ok be patient, you tell yourself...10 minutes pass and you begin to get a bit restless...the only interesting thing thats happening at that time is the hide and seek the big black ant is playing with your foot...impatience gives way to irritation and irritation leads to a mixture of panic and frustration...its over 15 minutes now...grrrrrrrr...

Now most of us have heard of toilet seat ideas, but not many of us have heard of toilet seat traumas and toilet seat trials and tribulations...imagine the above situation and think of all the things that might go through your mind at a time like that...

"What a royal waste of time...I would have rather slept/watched TV/read that book..."

"Oh God...Meha must be expecting my call and I am stuck in here..."

"Aaaaaaaaa...what if I get stuck here forever"

"I am sure my salesmen have tried calling to report exactly now. They must've tried a couple of times. Now they have a good excuse...I should have got my cell in here..."

"They say deep breathing is good...lemme try..."

"Gosh, I should practise yoga more often..."

Then you realize that the more worried and tensed you get, the worse the situation is going to get. "Just relax", you tell yourself. Then you start dreaming. "Let me think of pleasant things...hmmm yeah, its been ages since I updated my blog, but what do I write about?". And then it dawns on you. You could just write about the quick succession of emotions you have experienced all at once in the last 20 minutes...very few times do such a lot of emotions play together in a human's mind...a smile develops across your face as you think of what you will write in there...its a toilet seat idea alright!!!...suddenly the smile translates into a sense of excitement and you can't wait to get out and start typing!!!...the third minute from then you see yourself walking out of the bathroom door triumphantly...relieved and happy :)

Kavi's takeaway: Don't get tensed unnecessarily, stay cool ;)!!!

Learning things the hard way...Burning my legs...

2006-11-10T00:22:00.000-08:00

I don't believe that the way the nine planets n the sun were positioned the instant I was born determines every minute of my life...

If I remember right Lord Saturn began his seven and a half year period of traverse with me when I was in my 12th standard. Popularly called the "Shani Dasha" this is supposedly a phase where one should take care, be precautious and remain humble in order to lead a problem free life. It is also supposed to be immensely rewarding if you remain a believer and follow the path of "karma". Minor slips and hiccups here and there are bound to happen but you are to be grateful that a bigger accident was avoided. And leg injuries are said to be very very common...

After adamant persuasion, I got my first motor vehicle in my final year of school. It was a TVS Champ (known for its "safe big wheels" to quote daddy) and I was immensely proud of it. But big wheels aren't supposed to skid are they? The day of my counselling for admission into Engineering, I was tracking behind this giant Tata Sumo on a narrow road. The Sumo I guess doesn't really need to care about those stupid speed breakers...they are just too small to bother the behemothal automobile...but poor me n my Champ, our breaks weren't strong enough to make that sudden decision to stop n we just screeched flat on the road...the whole of my left leg was badly bruised...but ok guess I was lucky my head was intact...
(Moral of the story : Leaders and masters aren't to be blindly followed...use your brains...)

My Champ had a long steel exhaust on the left side...it was like this place where my Champ would vent out all his irritations n frustrations on his rider n her irritating friends pillioning behind...now obviously that would be hot...n I always knew it...still I have managed to burn my leg there atleast a dozen times, a couple of times the burn causing dark scars that were to stay with me for the next 3 years, a time longer than my Champ himself remained with me...
(Hmmm...don't we always keep making the same mistakes? N the more times we commit the same mistakes, the deeper we suffer due to them...)

A group of us had gone to one of our favourite hangouts during MBA to have some chaat...as always Meha n I stuck to Pav Bhaaji n I think we were a wee bit hungry...I grab the plate of hot Pav Bhaaji from the waitress n do somthing funny with it...the entire plate spills and all the Bhaaji falls over my right leg...the whole leg is burning...I immediately wash my pyjama hoping thats the end of it but discover back in the hostel that I sustain burns once again...
(Sometimes things aren't what they seem to be, you need to look in deeper to actually find out, n what you find out might not be what you were hoping to see)

Then there was the time when I drop a heavy rice cooker full of boiling water on my feet and sustain swelling and reddening for the next few days...
(Oh please don't do things which you just think you can do, or atleast take necessary precautions to ensure you do it right)...

Not to mention the 100s of shoe bites I have had or the mini accident I faced a couple of days ago where a bike almost ran over my toes...

To put a long story short, all of life is about making mistakes n learning from them, the more we look into how we burnt our hands (or in my case legs!) n the more retrospection n reflection we do, the more we learn...(aaaaaaargh...tooo much ain't I??;))

Btw, I still don't believe Saturn caused those leg burns...but am sure he likes the fact that I am learning from them...:)...here we go with a dramatic finish...

Nilajana Samapasham Raviputram Yamakrajam

Chaya Marthanda Sampootam Tham Namami Shanaishwaram

The selling spirit...

2006-09-26T03:31:00.000-07:00

This one is dedicated to the job I do...

You know you've had an overdose of sales when...
...the word target drives you mad!
...your dreams as well as your nightmares feature you struggling making a sales call in Kannada/ Telugu or basically any unknown language (oh I hate those nights)
...you are taking a walk and your legs automatically turn left when they see a shop
...even your "Dr.Scholes" shoe soles look like a road roller just ran over them
...sitting and eating is considered "leisure"!!
...even better, eating with company is considered "celebration" :D
...your leg is soo tanned it looks like a zebra...

On the brighter side, sales has taught me many things in life and many a time has given me reasons to smile...some quotable quotes...

"Sales and salaries should always go up" - Boss

"First rule in sales: You don't sell how much you can, you sell how much you want to" - Boss again

"M (my salesman) to retailer: Aapne 6 piece Talc ka order diya tha ab ek hi piece hai...
Retailer: Idhar dekh 5 piece padhe hain
M (immediately without hesitation n with a grin): EK THO GAYA NA...
The way M says it brings a wide smile to both the retailer's and my face. Reminds me of the "Glass is half full" dialouge! Once we are out of the shop I tell M that I really liked the way he handled the retailer.
Me: Keep this positive attitude always...it will help in sales n in general in life...
M: Barabar hain Madame. Insha Allah"

Insha Allah alright!!!

Try TRAI to test ur patience...

2006-09-11T07:14:00.000-07:00

It is 6 o'clock in the evening and I have just boarded a bus after a tiring day of doing the market. Finding myself a nice seat by the window I prepare for the 45+ min journey. As always I daydream for the first 10 minutes retrospecting on the day n the happenings. Then of course, its time to check my cell for any message or call I missed while daydreaming (no no that doesn't happen often!)...I take my Nokia 2600 out of my bag and press a key...shocking, there is absolutely no signal...now that is not a very rare occurence especially given the rough handoffs between cell zones that most GSM cellular services offer but it is definitely a momentary occurence...but now its a whole 10 seconds and there still isn't any signal...I switch off my cell and switch it on again...still no luck...I start "panicking"...I immediately ask a couple of people around if their cell phones have signal, both have the same connection as me but both have signal...then encouragingly a third person says his signal has disappeared too...finding solace that my instrument is not screwed I breathe lighter...and then I jus wait...

Somehow it is a period of unrest..."How long is the network gonna stay clogged?" "Oh I badly need to talk to mom, she will go out in half an hour" "If this damn thing doesn't work in the next 2 hours, how will I get my sales reports done on time"...All such thoughts crowd my mind...As a result I repeatedly glance my cell every 5 to 7 minutes and switch off and on my cell multiple times...In between I also try manually selecting the network etc...all in vain...

The network suddenly appears on my pink screen at 7:35 pm...WHEW!...I am filled with relief and happiness...I make my inaugarative call home and as usual begin by cribbing about the network...(I think I spend half my phone bill talking abt how bad the connection is...the other half on calling back people with whom the line gets cut)...

Its been just 2 and a half years since I have owned and carried a cellphone. But looking back, it seems like a lot more than that...these couple of years have made me addicted to the instrument and life pretty much revolves around it. Especially now that I stay away from family and most friends, my cell phone means much more to me than jus a mode of communication, it is my way of socializing, my way of staying in touch, my way of connecting with the world, and off late, my way of doing business too...

But the mobile telephony systems in India are far from perfect. On the network side there is SOO much of scope for improvement in network capacity and connectivity (esp. in GSM) and on the mobile service providers side too things are just totally messed up.

The mobile service providers enjoy a kind of oligopoly and the industry is heading towards consolidation with a few biggies and a bunch of other smaller players. "Ditch It...Yessir" (popularly called Ditch) and "Bear with us Telecom" (BearTel) are some of the more popular national players. My first connection was from "Hard to Hear Cell" (HearCell) a major operator in the southern states of the country and I had a very hard 2 years with HearCell... the only saving grace being their efficient free sms that made amazing economic sense to us BIMites! The whole B school literally ran on free sms, with everything from having lunch to fixing meetings to just generally chatting up happening thru the mode...

Irritated with my bad network experiences with HearCell, I decided to switch to Ditch once I took up my job in B'lore...words are not enuf to express my frustration with this service...for one they give a very arbit "credit limit" then sudden suddenly u will get these smses warning you about reachin 80% or 90% of you credit limit...and even though you hurriedly pay your bills online from time to time to avoid "barring" all of a sudden you will not be permitted to make any calls just because Ditch's system didnot get updated...this is only a sample problem I have faced with Ditch...there are SO many more...one other major one being the fact that Ditch shares (or rather sells) your phone number with many Banks, Insurance Companies, Consultants etc. etc. and if you have taken a corporate connection from a Ditch Shop you can be assured that your privacy will be invaded...

Embittered by my B'lore experiences I went to H'bad with major hopes and expectations of finding a "perfect" connection there...I decided to try out BearTel and got my prepaid connection 4 hours after landing there with no major hassles, just had to submit a copy of my license and a passport sized photo...was thrilled...
Just 48 hrs later the problems began...I kept getting messages that I needed to submit a local address proof by the weekend. Got a letter from my HR supporting my local address and rushed to the BearTel office only to discover they require another photo and copy of license...had run out of photos and was forced to take a new set of them...In the meantime, I had topped off my recharge card with a 75 Rs. top off card which gave me local calls at 50 p. Discovered while "re submitting" my form that I could get local@50 p + STD@1 Re for a top off of Rs.150 (had not been informed about this deal earlier)...but guess what, after I pay this in excess of the 75 Rs. I had already burnt and after waiting for 48 hrs for "activation" there is another sweet surprise...You cannot use 2 deals at the same time, even if you are willing to pay more and even if the second deal is only an extension of the first...

All I can say is...hope someones hearing this...probably the Ambanis???

"Sharing" a story of share autos...

2006-08-30T07:39:00.000-07:00

Rewind to say, 1997...
There are these 2 guys standing in the bus stop, and they've been standing there for the last 45 minutes. Frustration has crept in and they restlessly keep looking at their watches n the road alternatively, desperate for some kind of action. There is no cell phone, no free sms to keep these guys occupied. They glance at each other and then turn away thinking to themselves "Great! Even if a freakin bus comes, the whole stop is gonna get in"...then they continue getting frustrated...

Then like an oasis in a desert, a small yellow three wheeler chugs along the dusty road. One of the guys looks skeptically at the "auto" which is manually driven (ok, that was a bad one!) and considers fledding the boring bus stop but then shrugs the thought away..."Its just too expensive on a daily basis, I took one even day before"...

The second guy has the same thoughts running through his mind. The auto driver halts at the stop hoping for some temptation to set in. He looks longingly into the first guy's eyes (now don't let ur imagination run wild, he just wants some savari yaar) and then in the second guy's direction. 4 minutes pass by and our men are still contemplating. Then suddenly, as though telepathic, both of them shout out to the auto "Thiruvanmiyur"... the auto driver nods ecstatically and the 2 guys look at each other with surprise. Now luckily for us, 1 of them was smart enough to say "Hey, you need to go to the same place? Shall we share the auto fare?" Guy 2 is thrilled by the idea and they both jump in feeling radiant about having saved some money...

The auto driver is not as thrilled. While driving, he replays the entire sequence of events and starts scheming a business plan. "I came from Mount Road to Mandaveli with noone in my auto. Then these 2 guys engaged the auto till Thiruvanmiyur. Now I need to get back to T.Nagar to go home. God knows if I will get any savari from Thiruvanmiyur or not. Hmmm..." Once he drops the dudes, he scans the bus stop for potential "savari" ... theres this girl who wants to go to Adyar, an elderly man who wants to go to Kotturpuram and a middle aged "mami" who needs to go very closeby. A fast calculation runs in our autowallah's head..."Thiruvanmiyur to T Nagar will cost me atleast 30 bucks (remember its 1997)...instead of taking one of these 3, let me take all of them...what do they get?...a reduced fare...what do I get?...4 Rs from "mami" + 7 Rs from the girl + 11 Rs from the man + say, a minimum of 4 Rs each from atleast 2 other persons who might want to go from somewhere to somewhere on my way back...cool, I'll break even!!!"

He ended up with more than just break even...and no one was complaining...like our mami puts it "The comfort of auto travel clubbed with bus rates...this is simply a boon"

The Share-Auto concept was hence born...and has taken several avatars ever since...

To share or not to share...

I still fondly recall the days when M,J,S n I used to take the bulky 7 seater Chennai share autos in different parts of the city...Chennai operates (or atleast used to operate) on a flat share auto rate...from anywhere to anywhere was usually 5 bucks...used to suit us vagabonds jus fine :)

Hyd of course would truly be the Nawab of all share auto systems...the city is sooo well connected by share autos that they make an independant public transport system all by themselves...of course the pricing is very very arbit...

But don't ever try the concept in B'lore...auto drivers here just don't understand, or maybe in their case, ignorance is bliss huh...have tried to "share" an auto voluntarily with strangers on several occasions and the response from the auto wallah is always irritatingly the SAME "Aapka meter alag hain aur unka alag"... here sharing means double income for the auto driver...

As usual have crapped aplenty :) Would love to hear abt share autos in other cities...so do share stuff here...:)

PRE BLOGGING ERA...Post 4

2006-08-27T04:15:00.000-07:00

Hyderabad Blues, Blacks n Reds...

Dated: August 7, 2006

Am writing after quite a while, probably because of no ready access to a computer the last couple of weeks...have missed bugging all of you but right now, just like the Hyderabad monsoons, am in FULL SWING :)...so here goes...

This mail is dedicated to Aastha n all my other Go...oops sorry, Telugu friends and to this rocking city...Hyderabad...(no offense meant guys, in spite of all that I have written below, I love this place n have had too much of fun here both last yr during summers n this time around!)...

Wheres the party tonight?...
Monday, 17th July 2006, Secunderabad Railway Station
I was walking near Secunderabad Railway Station, and was shocked to see that people on the road were occupying more than half the breadth of the road and striding by in a rhythmic way, swinging to some loud Telugu hit... I thought there was a procession or somethin...n then with subsequent visits, I realized that thats jus the way people walk on the road!!!
This city never fails to amaze me!!...the very first thing you will notice, esp. if you visit the market, is that here in hyd, everyday is a festival...the shops will blare music, the neighbouring shops will blare music even more, and people on the roads will sing along...if not dance along!...And of course, you are invited to join the party!!...Needless to say, you can wear ANY colour of your choice...you will never feel out of place...nows the time to take out all those fluorescent pinks n oranges...(hehe, H'bad is jus as colourful as any other city in this country but its good fun to make fun of the colours here ;))

Work HARD Party HARDER!
Come rains, come sunshine, the city will not halt for a thing. Yep, we've heard a lot abt Mumbai being like that, but H'bad is no less...n the spirit is contagious...
27th July 2006, Jubilee Hills
I was drenched in the rain on my way back from office (thats from one end of the city to another) and jus managed to catch an auto...was big time grumbling and feeling yucky and wet all over...but was pleasantly surprised with the autowallah's bindaas attitude...the guy jus blasted his favourite numbers from Devdas (Telugu not Hindi) n was in a hyper enthu state jumping along with the song...the mood catches up with u...soon I found myself enjoying the music n the rain as well and am now determined to get some good Telugu songs on cd...
Tollywood has a huge influence on people's day to day lives here...around 50 to 60% of all city billboards are advertisements for movies...the ad spend and promos for movies are sky rocketing and it is well supported by a good theatre network...

Love thy neighbour n laugh with the stranger...
The people have been absolutely crazy AND absolutely amazing...
Wednesday, 21st July 2006, Bata Road, Secunderabad
Hyderabad wakes up late. My bus unexpectedly took me 20 mins early to my destination (the stockist point) and I was wondering how to while away time. Tried calling a couple of friends, but we Salespeople should realize not the entire world is as jobless as we are! What better thing to do than to eat!! Was looking around for bananas but nope, they are not too common in this part of the country...then was looking for tea stalls...saw this huge board saying "All kinds of tea available here"...Yippee! I ran there...Once inside I discovered that it was not a tea stall but a tea powder shop...my face bore immense disappointment and the words jus spilled out "Chai nahin hai kya..." Was jus turning away when the shopkeeper exclaimed rushingly "Beti, Chai chahiye? Ek minute tehro" and ordered his assistant to fetch some tea...I obviously stopped him but ended up havin a nice chat with the shopkeeper n gave career counseling for his son :)...hehe, u must've seen his face, he was sooo happy, n everytime I pass his shop I say a hello which he acknowledges with a blessing...Well, as is obvious I love getting blessed :D !!

Its not jus this guy. Be it the bus drivers n conductors, the co passengers or even people on the road, everyone is (mostly) always cheerful n has a good word for u...can write on and on abt SOO many stragers who have absolutely made my day almost everyday during my stay here...am truly gonna have Hyderabad Blues when I leave this place!!

This test i took...

2006-08-27T02:27:00.000-07:00

Esu suggested this test n it was loadsa fun...thought I'd publish my results!

What Famous Leader Are You?
personality tests by similarminds.com

Try it out too...:)

PRE BLOGGING ERA...Post 3

2006-08-24T06:40:00.000-07:00

Of sweet nothings & nice somethings...

Dated: July 11, 2006

Those of you who have known me for long would know that the subject to this mail was my online name in msn messenger once upon a time...
anyways this one is a bit philosophical but has been on my mind for quite a while now, so jus penning it down...its all about what we call the "feel good factor" and is based on my recent experiences...

Say a li'l prayer...
What I mean by a prayer is not necessarily sitting in the Pooja for long n "slogging it out" with God...a prayer, in more simple words, would just mean wishing someone or even yourself good...we are all so held up with our day to day lives that we often forget to thank God and thank everyone around us for making us the persons we are today...but even today, there are a few who genuinely mean good not just to people they know, but to the world as a whole...
One such man lives in the same street as me. Every morning he is either seen going on a walk or exercising in his balcony by the roadside. And he cannot do this silently. To every one of us passersby, this uncle HAS to shout out "Good Morning! God bless you! Have a nice day!" in the most enthusiastic fashion possible! The world has come to such a stage that a sweet gesture like this is looked upon with doubt by ppl, I have seen a few who look at him suspiciously n hurry away, but most others, including me, have always found this a very pleasant way to start the day as we are hurrying to our workplaces / schools etc.

Spread the smile, spread the happiness...
It was Monday morning. I am not one of those who experiences Monday morning blues, but I must admit the day didnt start off too well. I had managed to get this bus after waiting for a good half hour in the stop and thanks to the long wait, the whole stop decided to get into the bus along with me...for probably the first time I literally was on the footboard with no other choice n just the thought that this journey was to last a good 1 hour made me real grumpy, was showin my grumpiness to the harmless fellow passengers making all kindsa irritated gestures when they accidentally stepped on me or fell on me...then suddenly this small girl Khushi (I actually don't know her name. This is an assumed fictitious name but it suits her jus fine!) from behind me reaches out with her hand and takes my heavy cumbersome bag and puts it on the gear box. It took a moment for me to realize what had happened, but instantaneously my frown was replaced by a smile! The rest of the journey was grt and I found myself humming along with Radio Mirchi's early morning superhit numbers and smiling at all the co passengers! Ever since, i have made it a point to offer to keep people's bags when they are standing and I have the luxury of sitting and ever since have seen the number of smiles increasing!! We seriously need more Khushis around us everyday...

"Loka Samastha Sukhino Bhavantu"
A few days ago, when I was in a Food Bazaar setting up a display with the merchandiser, there was this elderly man who began to interrogate me as to who I was and what I had studied, blah blah...in conversation he jus asked me "So is your family here with you?" and I jus told him "No Sir, they r in Chennai"...he goes on "You must be missing them"
"Oh yes, I really do, and so do they, I am just hoping and praying I get my final posting in Chennai..." The man looked at me very empathetically and said "I understand, my daughter is working in Mysore and I miss her a lot too. Don't worry, you will definitely get to stay with your family soon. I will pray for you..." Whether he meant those words or not, they sure lit my face up for a long long while :)...
I was thinking of this later n realized that this person was nice to me as he saw his daughter in me. The world becomes a much nicer place the minute you start seeing everyone as someone close to you, be it family, friends, colleagues or otherwise. This also goes on to explain why it felt SO nice to help an old couple choose a pastry at the Sweet Chariot Cafe. Jus a minute b4, I was wondering what I shuld take myself, but just as I saw the indecisive couple, I saw my grandparents in them and instantaneously became the pastry expert telling them "Take the cherry one, I've tried it b4, its really good". Like my mom n grandma often say "I love doing things for children your age, hoping that someone else will do something nice to you in the place you are."
Trust me, it really works... :)

PRE BLOGGING ERA...Post 2

2006-08-24T06:26:00.000-07:00

Glimpses of life from the eyes of a marketer...

Dated: June 20, 2006

Disclaimer: It may appear that this mail might interest only those who are into marketing, but for people who believe that most of life is all about marketing yourself and selling your ideas, do read on...

While many of us in sales and marketing spend our lives thinking of how exactly to "connect" with the customer, there are many to whom this comes naturally...this mail is dedicated to all those "natural marketers"!

CRM in Medicine...
I recently changed my Dentist in Chennai. My previous Dentist stays pretty far away n one of our neighbourhod aunties couldn't stop raving about how good this Dentist is, so Mom n I decided to pay him a visit. Well I have this unique recurring dental prob which most Dentists "study" and "investigate" and other than scaling there appears to be no permanent solution they have found for my problem till date. Dr.Ashwath has been different though. Not that he has found a remedy for my problem as yet...but its the way he has handled the whole thing that makes a difference. He has listed down 10 possibilities and is "ruling out" each of them one by one. Knowing well that I can see him probably only once a month and that too only on sundays doesnot stop Dr.Ashwath from providing me with his "Service level differentiators" ... he mails me reminding me about my next appointment, sends me text and videos on possible causes for the kind of problem I face (its nuthin much, its some kind of staining) etc etc...whats more I believe he regularly calls his local patients up in Chennai...and, he doesn't charge you anything close to premium...now THATS Customer Relationship Management at its best!

Cyber CAFE...
Yep, they all call themselves Cyber "Cafes" but I happened to visit one which came very close to it...
This one is in Jay Nagar, B'lore near where my aunt lives. The entrance to the internet parlour looks more like a bakery or a supermarket, for as you enter the aroma of baked items warmly welcomes you...soon the Kwailty Walls refrigerator with huge icecream posters might just catch your eye but watch out for the adjacent coffee machine and the counter with soft drinks, chocolates, et all...it is very difficult to walk past all this without buying a thing and soon you find yourself licking an icecream and getting into the place...the best part is that you have a couple of helpers around who occasionally ask you if you would like anything more!!! ...for ppl like me who write mails like this sometimes from internet centres, such cyber cafes are bliss!! now THATS what I call Customer Delight!!

Push vs Pull Marketing...
Finally, I caught myself thinking recently of the people who have suggested that I start blogging since I anyways spend a lot of time writing...and then I was asking myself, so y am I not doing that?... The real reason of course is that I am extremely lazy to start a creative blog n maintain it n do justice to it...but thinking objectively, I thought to myself, blogging is more like a Pull strategy where ppl choose to visit ur blog as and when they please (of course, if your blog is as good as Shakky's u'll have loadsa visitors, not to worry!!...ok, for those of you who are curious to see his happening blog its toiletseatideas.blogspot.com and no, he is not paying me for this advertisement!...though I think he shuld!!!...now thats PR for u ;)), while what I am doing here is more of a Push strategy wherein I am forcing ALL OF YOU to see this mail and hoping for a conversion rate of atleast 10% of ppl who might end up reading it...

Did you???...
Well...thanks :)

PRE BLOGGING ERA...Post 1

2006-08-23T20:46:00.000-07:00

Nanku gothilla...only God knows

Dated: May 23, 2006

Bangalore = Social Life for me...it was friends, cousins n new friends in summers, n now with my nice new job, it has also begun to mean auto drivers, retailers, co-passengers, bus conductors n jus abt anyone on the road (REALLY... ask my friend Paras!)...

"I lost my address...can I have yours?!!"
For those of you who are familiar with that pick up line, well try it at B'lore it might jus work!! My experience says that, if you happen to get really lost in Bangalore (which is very very easy considering that there are SOO many layouts, n layouts within layouts with umpteen main roads each having a handful of crossroads)...ok think ur quite lost now...anyways, like I was sayin if u r lost n u want some free entertainment so that u can laugh at yourself try asking someone the way... they either give u such bad directions that u even forget where u wanted to go or there are these ppl who will ask u SO many questions abt urself that its so difficult escaping from the spot...or worse still there r these ppl who will behave like u were actually talkin to urself n they jus happened to be there!

PG accomodations...Adithi Devo Bhava??
Before coming here, I always thought Paying Guest accomodation meant a nice family n nice home where u culd be one among the family n stuff...well the place I stay in is close to that, atleast for most of it (except that it is too much in the interior n power cuts r frequent when it rains) and I really believe I am lucky after seeing some other PGs with SriVi(for those of u who dont know thats my friend from BIM who stays with me)...my God how commercial can ppl get man...they actually have 2 beds (sorry 3, 1 with a bunker) in 600 sq. ft. of space...soo soo lousy, jus looking at those "hostels" which are called houses made me feel homesick...
sooo much that I was telling SriVi that if we really wanna look for acco we should probably advertise in Free Ads as follows:
"WANTED: An elderly couple who have space in their home and hearts for 2 working girls who want nuthin but good food and company. Money no bar."
Hopefully that shuld work...

Orkut...
All this brings me to think i should start a community "I hate Bangalore"...ok ok all u Bangalore lovers, thoda zyada ho gaya, I should make it "I hate Bangalore roadways"...and roadways includes the road, the traffic, the congestions etc...zaroor hoga already, I jus need to search!!

2006-08-12T20:16:00.000-07:00

Hi all! Yep this is finally Kavi's apna blog! Enjoy maadi n feel free to leave ur thoughts (n smiles!)...
For starters, heres something I scribbled recently...
Wrote this last week when I was as usual daydreaming...

A few microseconds to see...
A few more seconds to watch...

A few seconds to hear...
A lot more effort to listen...

A few minutes to smile...(smile more than that)
A few more minutes to make someone smile...

A few hours to talk...
Many more hours to listen...

A couple of hours to think...
A lot many more hours to dream...

A few days for work...
Many more days to "experience"...

A few months for transition...
Many more months to change...
Many many more months to keep changing...

A few years of learning to live...
A lifetime of continuing the "learning"...

One life is simply not enough...Live life to the fullest...Life is too short to be spent worrying...Keep smiling :)