A History

India of today is far different from what Rabindranath Tagore dreamed when he wrote ” Into the heaven of freedom , let my country awake ” . On the contrary , it has been reduced to the state of decadence because corruption , illiteracy , poverty and many other evils .

Economy of India was under socialist inspired policies for quite a long time from 1950′s to late 1980′s . The policies were characterized  by extreme regulation , protectionism and public ownership . These were in turn vulnerable to pervasive corruption and low growth . This in a way institutionalized corruption in the public life . And today , corruption is not just the part of system , but it has become the system itself .

In 2011, India was ranked 95th out of 178 countries in transparency International ‘s corruption perception index . Over the years , India has been consistent with such dismal record . Recent scams like 2G spectrum scam , CWG scam with mind bogglingly large figures are still fresh in public memory . According to news reports , India has more black money stashed abroad than rest of the world combined . Indian owned Swiss bank accounts assets are 13 times the National debt .

Causes

1. In India , spirituality has given way to materialism and consumerism  which figure in the topmost priorities and morals & ethics are at the bottom of the ladder . Willingness to sacrifice for the sake of not getting involved in corrupt dealings is conspicuous by its absence amongst the most .

2. In the lack of effective legislations and loopholes in the system , corruption is considered as the low risk and highly profitable and rewarding proposition .

3.Judicial Process – There is delay in disposing of corruption cases  Corrupt  officials even if caught can manage to get scot free in due course of time by manipulation of system .

4. Red Tapism – Long and complex procedure breeds corruption . License system bears testimony to the fact .

Effects

Corruption has far reaching consequences due to its pervasiveness and scale .

1. Corruption begins at the top and distorts the development programmes and policies .The benefit of schemes does not reaches the target group .

2. Money earned through corruption is smuggled abroad in safe havens . It is often used in anti social practices .

3.Shoddy infrastructure – When there is preferential treatment in awarding contracts , the infrastructure created is of low quality .

4. It hugely hampers the credibility of nations and economic boom .

Measures

Gandhiji once said ” To check the corruption , we require high code of morals and extreme vigilance on part of those who are free from corrupt practices “.

1.Full transparency should be adopted in official dealing . Defense deals and other deals involving large amount of money should be scrutinized by independent bodies rather than in house screening where political pressure can swing the decision .

2.Cases while in judiciary should be accelerated and time bound .

3.Bodies like CVC , CBI and Lokayukta should be headed by people of high integrity and should be autonomous truly with executive powers .

4.Electoral Reforms -Election expenses should not be allowed to cross limits . Money used should be accounted.

5. People and society can play significant role here  We should  not cast are votes on the basis of caste , creed or religion but on the basis of values and character of candidate . RigVeda also says that only ethically pure and intellectually capable people should be allowed to administer the country .

6.E Governance – The official records should be digitized to remove the scope of corrupt practices .

7. All politicians should be made to declare their assets and some measures should be taken to scrutinize the holdings .

8. Real Estate – We should free the economy particularly those administering properties and dealings . MCDs and other local bodies should be overhauled making them more accountable .

(This is the longest and most exhaustive post I ever wrote .Good luck to me .)

The book by David A Vise and Mark Malseed narrates the journey of two PHD students from Stanford  – Sergey Brin an Larry Page who conceived the idea of making internet search an incredible user experience , a market ruled by few but hugely ignored . The book delves into the lives of the co-founders and their academic orientations . Larry came up with Page Rank algorithm to be used in Search Engine which sets it apart from it counterparts . It ranks the search results taking into account  citations or the hyperlinks to the web-page  and gives the unbiased search results .Google’s search results were more useful to Googlers than anything returned by competing search engines, catapulting Google to the forefront of the search engine turf wars.

The book shows you how the duo stick with the idea they begin with  , they made deals with Venture capitalists on their on terms , then their IPO with online bidding , something unheard and undone before . It is hard to believe that Internet Advertising giant did not spend a penny on their own advertising . It was innovation and creativity which saw them through . Authors have described the Google’s work-culture which attracted most sought after talent  and their policy of devoting 20% of employee time for innovation and novel ideas lead to revolutionary products like Google News . It gives a valuable lesson to budding entrepreneurs that in the process of brand building and retaining  , customer experience should be primary focus .

” Hope is a good thing , may be the best of things and no good thing ever dies .”

Few days back when mass revolt in Tunisia ousted the ossified regime  , it was difficult to imagine  that much similar thing could happen in  Egypt .  18 day mass movement with non violent protest culminated into the dawn of democracy and new lease of life for Egypt  as it brought down the 30 year old military dictatorship .  Hosni Mubarak dominated Egypt for 3 decades  . During his regime  , he maintained peaceful relations with Israel who killed his predecessor and he crushed the rising  Islamic movement .  He declared the state of emergency that barred unauthorized assembly , restricted the freedom of  speech and allowed police to jail people indefinitely . He enjoyed the support of US and received $1.3 billion  annual aid from US  .

The most intriguing  aspect of this revolt is that  , Mubarak was toppled  by radically new forces – a largely secular , non violent  , youth led democracy movement which brought down repressive regime. It was more of a digital revolution and was largely if not completely propelled by social media . It atleast partly began from Facebook and gained momentum through Twitter  .  The sheer magnitude of this humanitarian moment and democratic opportunity will be remembered for ages and will give us reason to believe that circumstances will improve  and life will be better .

The other issue which I want to mention here is the incarceration of  Binayak  Sen  .  Many international organization  like Amnesty International  , Global Health Council  , British House of Commons and individuals like Noam Chomsky and Amartya Sen have expressed their disappointment over this trial  . This largely symbolizes the common man’s predicament  and every individual’s democratic right , right to have an ideology and most importantly  , right to have a better society .  Pediatrician by profession and Vice president of People’s Union of Civil Liberties  , Dr. Sen has brought forth his views on human rights violation  and atrocities committed in the name of anti naxalite operations  . Sen has been in touch with Narayan Sanyal, a jailed Marxist ideologue, but this has always been with the formal permission, and in the presence, of the jail authorities. Does this warrant a charge of sedition and life imprisonment? It is reported that he carried letters to the Maoists from Sanyal. These letters need to be published to expose the crudity of the trumped up charges.  Naxalism is a alarm for us to look beyond the soaring GDP growth rates and Stock Market victories and to aim for more progressive and inclusive development  .

Also revelation of  numerous scams  like 2G scam , Adarsh Housing society scam  , Commonwealth games and other big and small scam  has become the order of the day . Currency worth more than our national income has been  stashed away in foreign banks . Such instances of  corruption and crony capitalism  if not dealt with strenuously might land up in Egypt’s situation   .

But there is hope that we will  overcome the challenges coming before us  as our thoughts are  penned in these lines  :

“I find I’m so excited I can barely sit or hold a thought in my head.  I think it’s the excitement only a free man can feel, a free man at the start of a long journey whose conclusion is uncertain.  I hope I can make it across the border.  I hope I can see my friend and shake his hand.  I hope the Pacific is as blue as it is in my dreams.  I hope.”

1. Because we , living in the times of Dabanggs , Golmaals and Teesmarkhans , can’t really afford to  miss this one .  No , it’s not just the “relative factor” .The  movie is based on 1999 real life incident which shook the national conscience and initiated judicial activism in a rare case which could easily have been Open and Shut Case . Film bodes well for Hindi cinema which is not too keen on reality and the very concept of Justice though Aamir , Udaan kinds has kept hopes alive  .

2.Because of  brilliant and soulful music by  Amit Trivedi and lyrics by Amitabh Bhattacharya  who have previously been acclaimed for Aamir , Dev D and Udaan . Song like ‘Dilli’ , ‘Aitbaar’ and ‘Aali Re’ has enhanced the impact of dark and compelling moments of the movie . I have been awed by their consistent brilliance and would like to elaborate more on them in a separate post .

3.Because of power packed performance by Rani Mukherjee  in the role of ‘proud to be bitch’ , fearless journalist with crackling chutzpah . Vidya Balan  has been applauded for her fine portrayal  of Sabrina (Victim’s sister ) .Her silent , subtle and unglamorous  portrayal speaks volume of her talent .

4 .For the sheer brilliance of  director RajKumar Gupta  who did his directorial debut with ‘Aamir’ and deserves applause for making a movie which comments on dark underbelly of Delhi where power is something which is more abused than it is used , be it politicians , traffic cops ,  police or rich socialites which means if you are somebody , then you can even get away after murdering someone .

5. Because this can happen to anyone . The question here isn’t – Who killed  Jessica ? The question is who killed justice in thousands of pending cases which did not receive such media glare and where culprits  are moving scot-free . Each of those cases symbolizes rot in democracy and judiciary .

6. Because I don’t find any reason for not watching it  .

I rest my case .

Well , Reader is not just another Nazi flick . It deals with the deeper issues and is based on a novel by the same name by Bernhard Schlink . It’s really intriguing to see an intimate relationship between two complete strangers with a  large age difference which eventually has a  profound impact over their entire life .  Kate Winslet has convincingly portrayed the character of Hannah Schmitz  who meets a boy , Micheal , half of her age with whom she begins an affair which lasts over a month . Later on he discover while attending  court proceedings   that she was SS guard at one  of the Nazi concentration camps in Aushwitz .  It is a complex film that does not gives easy answers .The story does not preaches anything and lets the audience to draw out what they make out of it  – was the love affair morally  justified  ?  On Hannah ‘s side she was giving sexual favour to the boy so that he reads to her though she didn’t confide in him of her being an illiterate .   Our egos and the  fear of ignominy does not allow us to accept our weaknesses, even if it means the  lifetime of misery . Can the shame of illiteracy outweigh the shame of committing mass murder . On the other hand Michael is torn between a desire for justice and his knowledge of a secret that may save Hanna.

I loved these lines read by Micheal to Hannah from  the book “Intrigue and Love” by Schiller

“I’m not frightened. I’m not frightened of anything. The more I suffer, the more I’ll love. Danger will only increase my love, it will sharpen it, it will give it spice. I’ll be the only angel you need. You will leave life even more beautiful than you entered it. Heaven will take you back and look at you and say
‘Only one thing can make a soul
complete, and that thing is love.’

1) Read some “quality”  literature and move out of  ” my favourite author zone ” and not judging books by their beginning pages n specially covers .

2) Was thinking of revising French .  learnt it once .Well i am not too sure for this one as I dont trust my memory .

3) Spending quality time with family and close friends rather than whiling away my time on idiotbox and  playstation . And yes catching up with old friends as they are precious .

4) Reflecting more on my goals . have been told zillions time by people . Life will be easier if i do this .

5) Learn to drive . Should have done this long back ago . But better late than never .

I  will continue to add and appropriately modify list as things come to my mind .

A  song   for  national  integration  ,  but  nation  nowhere  to  be  seen .  With SRK   doing  his  signature  spread  the  arm  gimmicks  (  would  have  been surprised  if  he  had  not  done  that )  followed  by  Karan Johar ,  Deepika Padukone  seemed  as  if   she  is  doing  some  soap  Ad  ,   Shahid  still  in Chance  pe   Dance   hangover  ,  Priyanka   chopra   and  Ranbir  Kapoor  …. god  knows  what  they  were   doing  .  And  not  to  forget  ,   Aishwarya  Rai wearing  intricate  makeup  with  Abhishek  Bachhan  who   came  in  package  deal  ,  I  guess .   Shyamak  Davar seemed  completely   outlandish  . If   these  are  the   national  icons   we  look  up  to ,  we   are  off   for  worst  .   The  only thing  I  liked  was  Salman  Khan  bit  where he used    sign  language  with  kids  who can’t   speak  or  hear .

The   original  version  with  beautiful  melody  in  6  minute  clean , completely  enthralling  experience ,    depicted  every  region  and  culture  of  India    and   had  people   from  all  fields  including  common  people  as well  .  But  here  it  seemed  more  like  a  trailer  for  a  big  budget  movie  with  Jumbo  caste  .  For  people  who  have  grown  up  watching Doordarshan  ,  it  was  more  of  a  joke  in  the  name  of  national  integration .  Where  were  all  intellectuals  ,  poets  ,  writes  ,  singers   and  for  a  cricket   loving  nation  ,  no  cricketers  .  Would  have  much  glad  if  they  had included  people  like  Lata  Mangeshkar  ,  APJ Abdul Kalam  and  Sachin Tendulkar  .  Well one   good  thing  happened  we  got  to  know  the  value  of original  .  And  for  Zoom  people   ………  please  “  Isko Dekho “  .

Google , the world’s search engine giant has threatened to pull out its operations from China on account of  Censorship issues and Hacking of Gmail accounts of many chinese human rights activists who wanted to shine the China alleged abuses. Given the might of the two giants , the threat involves large social and economical ramifications.

Current Scenario -

1. In mid December Google reported highly sophisticated and targeted cyber attacks on its corporate infrastructure originating from China that resulted in theft of intellectual property in China. It’s not just Google , But at least 20 other companies from different sectors namely finance , internet and chemical have reported such attacks .

2.The gmail accounts of  many American based and U.S based Human Rights Activists have been routinely accessed  by third parties which  is gross violation of internet privacy and cyber security .

3. Though China being the most populated country in the world having more than 350 million internet users is not smooth ride for global brands because of communist red tapism. Internet companies specifically have to adhere to censorship policies dictated by Beijing . Anyone disobeying such rules which prohibit sites providing information on sensitive issues like Tibetan independence movement   get his sites blocked .Goocle.cn for instance blocked search results for Tiananmen Square massacre of 1989 as well as results based on corruption investigation into a company once headed by Chinese premiere Hu Jintao .  The chinese government is one of the most efficient ones in censoring web . The blocking technology has proved to be so effective that it is called The Great Firewall of China .

When a Global Company enters into local market of a country , it has to accord itself with its public policies , culture, traditions  of that country . Now When google entered China in 2006  it had to acquiesce to the strict censorship rules of China to tap rapidly growing market . But in 4 years it could capture 30% of chinese search engine market . Majority 70%  market is still controlled by  local search engines like Baido .  China forms just 1.4% of the total revenue of Google . So quitting China won’t effect it commercially . But further cooperation with China and submission to their unreasonable rules might harm Google’s  ” Don’t be Evil “  motto . It is not just about the security breaches and human rights implications  , but it forms the greater part of debate for freedom of speech .

Global brand do have social ramifications . We cannot segregate the economic, political and commercial aspects here when The brand holds  a strong connection with its user and their culture .

Now , it is pretty much ingrained in our culture the myth of self made man . That a person in order to succeed needs nothing but hardwork and talent and his innate cpacity and vision . Having heard numerous rags to riches stories we believe that a  man can reach anywhere by sheer hardwork . This book  deftly debunks this myth  .  Success according to Gladwell is result of cumulative advantage .    Though hardwork is crucial factor , but things like timing  , circumstances ,  genetic factor and sheer coincidence has  as well contributed to success saga of great persoalities .

Take for instance – Bill Gates .    In 1968, when Bill Gates was 13 years old, his school, Lakeside Academy in Seattle, Washington, acquired a computer, a terminal on which Gates could program non-stop for the next few years, a once in a lifetime opportunity to practice something that would have unforseen value. At the age of 16, Gates learned that a mainframe computer was available for free in the middle of the night at the nearby University of Washington. Unbeknown to his parents, the young Gates snuck out each night to write code between 2 a.m. to 6 a.m. Good fortune played an critical role in Bill Gates’ success by allowing him significant programming practice time that very few others his age had during a critical juncture in computer history.

I think somewhere there were the series of coincidences , circumstances and  oppurtunities  which lead those great people  to greatness . Difficult to digest , bot its true .  Ofcourse their own conviction and hardwork were important too .

Why  some movies do well while others don’t ?

And why a serial like Balika Vadhu became instant while other just fizzle out soon ?

NO , its not just just about the quality , content or the substance as we had always thought . It is about change in perception we always had and triggering an epidemic by changing small details . It is Tipping point , when a simple tinkering with the social pattern , trends and behaviour can bring in dramatic results . Yes this is it .

Tipping point is not just a book but a phenomenon . It tells you how small thing can really make a big difference . We are always biased with are inherent predispositions . But the world around us as much as we want it to does not accord with are intuition . Such eccentricities are as much inconceivable as it is to reach the sun by folding a piece of paper  50 times .

Malcolm Gladwell has supported his rules with well established case studies and researches . In his Law of Fews , he says that in order to trigger an epidemic  only few people are required – Connector ( people who know almost everyone ,  have big social circle and have their influence on lives of their friends ) , maven  ( few know- it- all  guys  , everybody seem to take their advice ) and not to forget salesmen  . By reaching these special people we can  change the course of social epidemic .

Stickiness Factor -  Its all about the way we present our message  and its persistence . By merely manipulating the size of the group we can improve the receptivity to new ideas  .

This book is not just for business leader or marketing guys  , but for every person who wants to change the things the way they are  , who want to make it big in this world .