E-Wars

Indians seems to be on an e-commerce spree now-a-days. With revenues of e-commerce companies swelling like our pot bellies, I always wonder what will happen when this euphoria is over and sensibility will start settling in. Right now mudslinging is happening in the top rung and down the line new start-ups are fighting in that mud for survival. Every other new venture is in e-commerce and now from onions to diamonds everything is available at just click of a button. Will this golden era keep on going for ever or will this threaten to disrupt the equilibrium of the society in near future, this is a debateable question which I don’t want to put forth as of now but one thing is sure that consolidation will happen soon enough in this segment.

Let us see according to me where top contenders stand in this race as of now:

Flipkart: The Prime Mover

Flipkart is the first company which can be truly credited with e-commerce revolution in India thanks to its founders Sachin Bansal and Binny Bansal. With revenues touching almost US$ 5 billion, it is far ahead of other players as of now. Excellent customer interface, huge product portfolio across categories and exclusive deals such as Xiomi products are some of its major advantages. There may be some hiccups recently such as ‘Billion Dollar Day’, which earned huge revenue but huge criticism as well; you cannot count Bansals out of the race anytime sooner. Profitability may not be a concern at present but it will be sooner or later in future so they should keep a check on the same. Takeover of Myntra.com will also help them in securing a large pie of fashion space which can prove to be a very big advantage in future. I guess if they can keep on maintaining creative deals and innovative services in the loop, they can remain prime mover of Indian e-commerce industry for long.

Amazon: The Challenger

Amazon is a known name in e-commerce jungle worldwide and with extra deep pockets plus army of technical and creative minds at helm; it can be true challenger for numero uno position. With already revenues topping US$ 1 billion within a year, you can expect some solid ground work from them and then serious ground breaking in near future. Since they have everything to gain and nothing to lose, Flipkart will have tough time to save its territory and its customers from this e-commerce giant. Strategically, with sites such as Junglee.com in their kitty, you can expect some heavy fine tuning by Amazon in terms of deals and offers. Nevertheless they are also facing same constraints as our prime mover and it will be great to see who finds the key to everlasting success among them.

Snapdeal: The Innovator

I had always liked their philosophy of doing business and Snapdeal can be credited with start of innovative deals in e-commerce segment in India. Kunal Bahl and Rohit Bansal started on the right track but could not overtake Flipkart since stiff challenge was at their doorstep sooner than expected. But now Snapdeal has also thrown its hat into the ring and seems to be fully prepared to take the blows as well as inflict damage to the competition. However, customer interface and product range across portfolios need to be improvised in order to stake claim for the numero uno position.

Indiatimes Shopping, Homeshop18 and Ebay: The Invisibles

Roots of both Indiatimes Shopping and Ebay in India can be found even prior to Flipkart and Snapdeal. Started as market places for online selling, these sites had great potential but I guess lacked the hunger to conquer. They have every asset at their disposal to make it big in Indian market space but god only knows when they will start firing on all cylinders. Homeshop18 even have their own 24 hours channel to promote products but they still have to find the right combination of television and internet selling to make it to the top.

Quikr and Olx: The Resellers

So customer base is large, following is large, product range is infinite (since mostly people sell their all sorts of old used items) which means the scope for them is also quite promising. You can also see few people selling brand new items on these sites as well but mostly individuals and not organised retailers. However, any of them can be a big player in e-commerce space if they choose to enter the big arena of branded new items through retailers as scalability will not be a big issue with them.

Others: The Niche Segmenters

Jabong.com, Yepme.com, Yebhi.com, Pepperfry.com, Zovi.com, Naaptol.com, Tradus.in, Lenskart.com, Caratlane.com, Bluestone.com, Infibeam.com, fabfurnish.com, futurebazar.com, babyoye.com, localbanya.com, inkfruit.com, bigbasket.com, and so on, the list is never ending. Everybody has got the funding, everybody has got the advertisements and everybody has got a niche segment or may be niche customer base. However, most of these players will look for consolidation with big players at some point like what Myntra did with Flipkart until and unless they are happy with their limited reach or they have guts and resources to fight the big guns.

Whatever is going to happen in future that does not matter since as of now the customer is the king and we can reap as much benefit as possible till funding is coming to these companies. But let us beware that this will happen only till a certain point where equilibrium or ecosystem of business is not in danger so enjoy till then and that is what my heart whispers to me………..

Giants of Indian Car Industry – Battle for Supremacy or Survival

Prior to the year 2000, Indian car market used to be a sellers’ market and was majorly dominated by few players such as Maruti Suzuki but since then things have been continuously hotting up in this auto segment. As on date, customer is the king with plenty of various options in each category and a battle of supremacy or survival is being fought at the centre stage. Let us look at few of the giants who had played a major role in the past and every one of those who are bound to be a key player in the future.

 

Maruti Suzuki: The Numero Uno

With almost over 45% market share, Maruti is the undisputed NumeroUno of Indian car industry and there is nobody in sight who can challenge its might in near future. Maruti can boast of the best after sales service and one of the most economic vehicle line-up in their armory. With blockbuster products such as ‘Swift’, ‘Dzire’, ‘Alto’ and ‘WagonR’, Maruti not only rules the entry level car segment but hatchbacks and entry level sedans as well where currently most of the big numbers are. But luxury sedan and SUV are the two segments where Maruti has faced not only stiff competition but they have failed to even register their presence significantly with all the models from ‘Baleno’ to ‘SX4’ and ‘Grand Vitara’ to ‘Kizashi’ proving to be duds. With models such as ‘Ciaz’ and ‘XA Alpha’ in pipeline, I hope that auto major will be able to stir upper segments as well but as of now it seems customers relate the brand with more of economy type of vehicles rather than the luxury type of vehicles and changing this perception will be a major task for our NumeroUno. Still the way market is changing with every new launch, Maruti needs to be on their toes in order to safeguard its position and further cement it in the market.

Hyundai: The Successor

When Hyundai launched ‘Santro’ in September 1998, nobody thought this company will be a major force in India but since then this Korean major has never looked back. Hyundai has always been holding its number two position and with stylish products as well as excellent service network, they have maintained this position in Indian market for long. With product range such as ‘i10 and i20 Family’ as well as recently launched ‘Xcent’ and stylish ‘Verna’, there is less doubt that they will have any threat to their number two position but with Honda hot on their heels who knows they may be in for a surprise in future. I feel Hyundai needs to address the growing demand in entry level SUV and MPV segment soon or their number two position can be in jeopardy in future since I can see that their fan following is not as loyal as people may think. But all said and done, as of now they are true successor to Maruti Suzuki and currently sitting pretty firmly on their runner-up position.

Honda Cars: The True Challenger

From starting itself Honda has been a very strong brand in Indian market and has been considered synonym to superior quality. It had legendary products such as ‘Accord’ and ‘Civic’ as well as all time heart throb ‘City’ in its stable but till last year with all petrol line-up they were never able to churn the required sales volumes. But with launch of models such as ‘Amaze’, ‘Mobilio’ and ‘City’ diesel, it seems their worry days are over. They have now almost perfect vehicle line-up (entry level SUV is still missing though), superb brand value and excellent after sales service to back their grand Indian dream. Honda is the one I believe every other manufacturer is currently worried about. It has already surpassed likes of Mahindra, TATA Motors and Toyota in less than one year and must be eyeing number two position in near future but I am sure the competition will not be sitting idle and Honda’s journey to stardom will definitely be no cake walk. Another challenge which I believe with Honda is that their products are not only competing with other manufacturers’ products but somehow they compete with their own products as well. Like for example one reason for sales volume of ‘Amaze’ going down is that of increasing sales volume of ‘City’ and I am sure ‘Mobilio’ will somewhere dent their numbers as well. When a customer goes to their showroom they go to purchase a Honda car and with easy financing available they tend to opt for a vehicle they like most even if that means stretching the budget a bit. So it clearly means that they still have to create a market pool of individual models like Maruti or Hyundai has and this may prove to be the winning stroke for them in the longer run.

 

Mahindra: The Niche Leader

Mahindra has always been known for their SUVs and Utility vehicles and is undisputed leader of this segment from quite long. Whether it is iconic ‘Scorpio’ (which definitely marked a new era for the company) or it is ultra-reliable ‘Bolero’ or uber cool ‘XUV500’ they had mastered the art of SUVs. Here by art of SUVs I not only mean making but selling as well but as you can see I also used ‘had’. There are few reasons for my scepticism and primary reason being not a great response to ‘Xylo’ family vehicles whereas it should have been another success story for the home grown major. Secondly, with introduction of many new models in SUV segment and some like ‘Duster’ and ‘Ecosport’ which are still going strong, somehow Mahindra had left enough space in the segment for them to flourish. I believe they have yet to master the mind of urban clientele where expectations are high and lot of other factors such as excellent customer service do matter. I feel it is time for another revolution and lot of introspection like they did during introduction of ‘Scorpio’. Another pain point for Mahindra has been entry to lower segments such as sedans. Whether it is ‘Logan’ or rechristened ‘Verito’, sales registers are not ringing and this is another proof that they are not urban customer ready yet. All said and done I do not see the niche leader as sleeping giant and with slew of upcoming launches and few strategic changes, leadership dream can be round the corner for our home grown SUV leader.

Toyota: The Consistent Performer

When you talk about Toyota in India, one can easily see consistency in performance. In terms of sales volumes, Toyota is neither in the top rung nor in the bottom and has consistently maintained its 4th or 5th position. Toyota products are always termed as reliable no-nonsense machines and customer service is nothing less than excellent. I am somehow always surprised why this global leader never seemed to be aiming for leadership in India. As per them, whether they are not able to find right fit mass products for Indian market or it has something to do with deep rooted appeal and approach of Maruti and Hyundai, with full packed armoury at Toyota’s disposal I strongly believe Toyota has not reached where it should have been. Somehow it seems focus is always on MPV segment and no doubt ‘Innova’ is still the market leader in its class but with so many new models in the pond this strategy seems risky in the longer run. Anyways Toyota is always known for that as they had taken everybody with surprise in the past when they suddenly stopped selling their best model ‘Qualis’ in 2005. I still believe they shouldn’t have stopped ‘Qualis’ as till date Toyota has not been able to launch anything in SUV segment and this segment is definitely churning good numbers in India at present. Nevertheless everything happens for a good reason and I feel Toyota is happy with the current going. Since both ‘Fortuner’, ‘Innova’ are front-runners in their segments and ‘Etios’ family, ‘Altis’ are not doing bad either, Toyota has plenty to gain and nothing to lose. With right strategy and approach, this global leader can be a serious threat to the current leaders as I feel its path is clear cut and well defined provided Toyota realises this itself.

TATA Motors: The Defender

With almost a drop of 40% in domestic sales volumes within last two years, this home grown major is somehow defending its turf mainly because of its saviour JLR (Jaguar Land Rover). Even with plenty of weapons in its armoury, everything either fails to fire at the right time or misfires altogether. I contribute this mainly to some wrong decisions as well as lack of creative approach and strategy. ‘Nano’ was positioned so badly in its initial phase that what could have been People’s car today is now reduced to Poor Man’s car. I am sure that the current sales volume of ‘Nano’ would not be more than 10% of what TATA would have anticipated when this dream car idea was formulated (I had predicted this in my earlier blog “TATA Nano: Has the dream gone wrong?” written on 10th July 2009 just after two months of its launch). I still hope that TATA Motors will find a way to get this dream car back on track soon and will not let it go down in history as a failure. Another model which could have done better was ‘Aria’ but the decision of launching it in 4×4 variant only and that is with highest price tag in its category was a very long shot and definitely it has missed its mark. Moreover, even though ‘Indica’ and ‘Indigo’ are good vehicles they failed to generate and garner consistent good response from the customers and mostly after sales service needs to be blamed for that. Now comes curious case of ‘Safari’, it is one very good vehicle with excellent reviews but unfortunately sales numbers are not so promising. This model was always overshadowed by models like ‘Scorpio’ and TATA never did anything out of the way to come out of it. This is probably true in case of all their models as one fails to see any innovative or creative branding and marketing campaigns. But you cannot count them out yet as with new models such as ‘Zest’ and ‘Bolt’ in launch phase as well as many others in pipeline, revival may be round the corner for our this home grown major and I firmly believe that this is one company which always had and will always have the best shot for the leadership position in Indian market provided they play their cards perfectly.Chevrolet: The Bystander
Chevrolet is another manufacturer which has all the fire power in its arsenal but they refuse to use it. Sales volumes are dropping consistently but they seem to be acting just like bystanders and doing nothing about it. All the models ‘Spark’, ‘Beat’, ‘Sail’, ‘Cruze’, ‘Enjoy’, ‘Captiva’ and ‘Tavera’ have good reviews but somehow there is no push from the company to revive the sales or even network for that matter. This is one more company which I believe can do much better than what they are doing currently. There are certainly few gaps in the offering such as entry level SUV and entry level luxury sedan (space created because of discontinuation of ‘Optra’ model) but I guess that they will be taking care of it soon with models like ‘Trax’ and ‘Trailblazer’. According to me this will not be sufficient if Chevrolet really want to be in the top rung and they need to focus more on ‘Tavera’, ‘Enjoy’, ‘Sail’ and ‘Beat’ where currently sales volume are in the market.

Ford: The Veteran
Ford is no new to Indian market and its roots can be traced back to as long as 1907 which makes it literally the first auto player in India but that innings lasted only till 1954 and Ford re-entered Indian market in 1995. Since then it’s a satisfactory journey for them but it cannot be termed as outstanding since even with calibre Ford was never able to break into top three rankings. After a long time Ford launched ‘Ecosport’ which has proved to be its most successful launch till date but with so many players eyeing this segment journey can be tough in future. Apart from this we had already seen three avatars of ‘Fiesta’ and barring the first one sales volumes have been sluggish since then. Again ‘Figo’ was a success in initial phase but it is now content with sales of around 3000 nos per month but I feel it has the potential to do lot more. ‘Endeavour’ is a good vehicle but sadly there are hardly any numbers worth mentioning. ‘Classic’ again is slow in terms of sales but it has survived rough weather and will continue to do the same until there is a drastic strategy change from Ford. I have observed that customers perceive Ford as a costly maintenance vehicle which may not be true and company needs to change this belief as soon as possible. With ‘Ka’ and ‘Figo Sedan’ in pipeline, Ford still have some aces up its sleeve but these models will succeed only if ground work is done perfectly.

Renault / Nissan / Datsun: The Musketeers
Whenever I think about them I can only recall siblings, ‘Duster’ and ‘Terrano’, ‘Micra’ and ‘Pulse’, ‘Sunny’ and ‘Scala’. One may always feel that what is the point of same models with cosmetic changes fighting with each other in the same space but it depends on the strategy of the companies and I feel reason behind it is to increase shelf life of a particular product. Among all the products launched, ‘Duster’ was the only noticeable success whereas most of the others have fizzled out after initial phases. Though products are good somehow they do not linger for long in customers’ mind. Even ‘Datsun Go’, ‘Evalia’ and ‘Fluence’ have failed to garner sufficient numbers and hence probably it is time for company to think of some new strategies or major shift is required in the approach. All said and done, one thing is very clear that this trio is not here to go out meekly and bounce back may be on the cards anytime soon but something needs to be done or losses will keep on mounting at dealers’ end.

Volkswagen / Skoda: The Global Giant
This global leader would be thinking that how come best products always fail to sell in India but that is the peculiarity which makes Indian market stand apart. From the beginning itself Volkswagen always tried to do something different, whether it is innovative marketing or creative approach they did all. I still remember opening newspaper on one fine morning and music coming out of it from Volkswagen creative ad. It is not that they have not tasted success in India but they were not able to keep the momentum going. I strongly believe that there were some basics which went wrong during the journey and company is trying its best to reverse its effect but the major point here is whether their understanding of Indian market is still right or not. Japanese and Korean companies have found that pulse as of now but as we know life changes every moment provided you have it in you to change it. Technically speaking all the products from their stable, ‘Polo’, ‘Vento’, ‘Jetta’, ‘Passat’ are superb except for few nook and corners or dwindling sales numbers. Even Skoda have fantastic products in terms of ‘Rapid’, ‘Octavia’ and ‘Superb’ though not much focus has been given to ‘Fabia’ and ‘Yeti’ but sales numbers are not as it used to be. So probably it is time for a rethink over strategy and a change in approach so that they can challenge the current market leaders and if Volkswagen fails to do so then I will be highly disappointed. With models like ‘Up’ and ‘Taigun’ in the pipeline, I hope things will change for this global leader.

Fiat: The Supplier
Fiat vehicles are always synonym to reliability but only with ‘Punto’ and ‘Linea’ in offering it has been a tough ride for the auto major. I am always surprised that a company which supplies diesel engines to many of its Indian counterparts is till now happy and content with its market position as vehicle OEM. I believe Fiat is maintaining its slow and steady approach and with introduction of its urban SUV ‘Avventura’, things will start rolling in its favour but it will be some time before Fiat will taste some major success in Indian market. One observation though that ‘Avventura’ as I can see is in its sporty edition and there should be an executive edition of the same as well or Fiat will be restricting its pond size to some extent.

Audi  / BMW / Mercedes: The Big Guns
These three players had launched more models / upgraded versions of their vehicles than even some of the full range players in Indian market which clearly demonstrate the upswing in ultra-luxury car segment. With 30000 odd vehicle sales among them, this segment is expected to grow in healthy double digits and these three may be able to literally affect course of Indian Automobile industry few years down the line. Moreover they are themselves launching vehicles in lower price range so that they can cater to bigger clientele and share a bigger pie. I am keeping a tab on them and waiting for the right time to bring their battle royale on paper.

In the end I can only see that none of the above players are at any disadvantage and only few have edge over others, so Indian auto sector is bound to have lot of action in near future. Players will move up and down, loyalties will change, models will come and go and a simple Indian family will be spoilt for choices. So it will be very interesting to see how these auto giants react to situations and what cards they play and at what time and how. This is going to be hell of a roller coaster ride of supremacy and survival so fasten your seat belt to enjoy and that is what my heart whispers to me…..

A Society Losing its Morality

When we hear or read about brutal acts of rape around us in our so called society, we always wonder how people committing such heinous acts can go to such low levels of morality which no religion, no caste and no education approve of. Is being a female or a girl child a curse in itself? How a society advocating equality between the genders even has appetite to let such acts of brutality happen? Why females like Nirbhaya have to succumb to their fate or live in constant fear throughout their life? Why even a 5 year old is not safe in her childhood? Why instead of shame and anger we feel more of helpless? Why we are unable to punish the guilty who are well connected and why people are still playing the passing buck game? Questions are plenty and answer none. Moreover nobody actually wants to answer, neither police department which is meant to protect the citizens nor the politicians who are responsible for the law and order. Instead they pass comments which only add salt to the injury.

It is true that such crimes happen everywhere from ancient times and thanks to media come out in open more often now than in past but the main question remains that whether this is helping the cause and whether we as a society able to find a solution to this menace. We have yet to understand that whether these acts are committed just for pleasure or for the elated feeling of power over the weaker gender or both. On one hand our law makers are struggling with question of whether prostitution must be made legal or not on account of morality of the society and on the other hand by displaying such horrible acts of rape the society has already lost all its levels of morality and further going down with each passing day. Where people are demanding death penalty for such crimes without any concrete law still in force, such cases are piling up with alarming rates and law makers are still struggling to decide how heinous such crimes are.

With a society losing its morality at such pace and lawmakers entangled in their own red tapes, parents like us only feel and pray to god that does not give us a female child as we will always be scared for her safety and well-being. These thoughts may not be doing justice to the already unjust society and its pole bearers but that is what my heart whispers to me…………….

The GODS of HOLLYWOOD

Movies have always been great source of entertainment, inspiration and way of living for most of the viewers over their entire life cycle. More gossip is enjoyed over them between friends than any other subject and it has always been who sees it first race among the followers. I am myself a great follower of Hollywood movies and my viewing averages 12 to 15 of them per month and I have always wondered about the people who had made it happen. I would like to mention and credit the work of twelve Hollywood directors/producers who according to me are true GODS of HOLLYWOOD.

 

Steven Spielberg: He has always been experimenting with various ideas on science fiction, war stories and special effects including aliens or monster creatures. He is best known for his Jurassic Park series, Schindler’s List, Jaws, E.T., Minority Report, Indiana Jones Series, Transformer series, Men in Black series (as executive producer) as well as war stories such as Saving Private Ryan, War Horse, Black Hawk Down and Enemy at the Gates. Some of his work on the lighter side which can be counted as commercial success include Catch me if you Can, Adventures of Tintin and The Terminal. His other movies which won him critical acclaim are Munich, A.I. and Amistad. Truly one of the most gifted personality in current Hollywood fraternity who had truly added the word great ahead of Hollywood films.

 

James Cameron: His every outing is as grand as celebration of life. His canvas of movies stretches beyond imagination and he always taken viewers on a journey of fantasy and visual treats. He is best known for his Terminator series, Alien, The Abyss, Titanic and Avatar. Even though he has always been in his own different league, Titanic and Avatar (creation of whole new planet) had immortalised him in the world of Hollywood.

Clint Eastwood: He is one personality who had successfully donned the hat of Actor, Director and Producer in many Hollywood masterpieces and can easily be termed as one of the most versatile personality of the motion pictures. He will be always known for his work in Unforgiven, Million Dollar Baby, Mystic River, Flags of Our Fathers and Letters from Iwo Jima. Some of the other critically acclaimed work by him worth mentioning is Changeling, J. Edgar, Invictus and Gran Torino. He clearly displays the true never dying spirit of Hollywood.

Christopher Nolan: According to me he is the master of intelligence. The Dark Knight Trilogy, Inception, Memento and The Prestige are shear brilliant works of intelligence. All these have garnered standing ovation from the movie buffs like me and I have always believed that somehow this gifted personality missed on his due credit from the world of Hollywood even after changing the game of how motion pictures are created.

Quentin Tarantino: He is master of blood and gore. He is best known for his work in Reservoir Dogs, Pulp Fiction, Kill Bill series, Inglorious Bastards and Django Unchained. Even though his creations are coming after long durations yet his crafty work cannot be ignored easily. He has given true meaning to the world of raw action but with a heart filled sorrow.

Ang Lee: With his recent success at OSCARS with Life of Pi, he has been termed as one of the most promising creator of movies with a heart. His truly amazing works include Brokeback Mountain, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, Life of Pi and Hulk. Leaving apart his great work in the past, much more heart filled work at grand canvas is expected of him the coming years.

Tim Burton: He is the master of horror tales and thankfully most of them had happy endings LOL so there is always a heart-warming twist for good. His creative works in the formidable league are Batman series, Sleepy Hollow, Alice in Wonderland, Planet of the Apes, Big Fish, Mars Attacks, Corpse Bride, Sweeny Todd, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Pee-wee’s Big Adventure, Dark Shadows, Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter and Frankenweenie. Johnny Depp has lately featured in many of his horror adventures and essayed the grey roles quite easily. According to me he can be easily termed as the one who has given meaning to the world of dark movies.

Peter Jackson: How can we forget the adventure of The Lord of the Rings which he had given to the world of movie buffs. Every instalment is a masterpiece in itself and I am sure it will continue with the on-going prequel series of The Hobbits. King Kong, Tintin, Heavenly Creatures, The Lovely bones and District 9 are some of the other brilliant work from him. Dreams and world of fantasy will always have name of this personality written in golden words in their hall of fame.

Martin Scorsese: The moment you hear his name associated with any movie, you are sure you are in for a helluva ride. Shutter Island, Gangs of New York, The Departed, Hugo, The Aviator, Raging Bull, Casino, Cape Fear, Goodfellas and The Age of Innocence are some of his masterpiece works over decades. His movies always manage to keep you at the edge of your seat with story folding at its own pace. You can just sit and watch the marvels he has created. His liking for Leonardo DiCaprio is quite visible in his recent works and the gifted actor has also never let him down in any of the outings.

Ridley Scott: Although till date he has only done selected work but he has always been able to churn out heart felt stories or science fiction treats. Best known for his work in Alien, Gladiator, Black Hawk Down, Prometheus, Robin Hood, Kingdom of Heavens, American Gangster, Matchstick Men and Blade Runner. He has always shown his affinity with the history and science and we can expect many more heart-warming stories from him in the future.

David Fincher: He has always been a balanced story teller and created some of the fine works of art. His noticeable pieces of works are Zodiac, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, The Social Network, Seven, Alien 3, Fight Club, The Game, Panic Room and The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. He has always knitted intelligence and suspense brilliantly in many of his works and his contemporary way of storytelling has won him many followers over the years.

Steven Soderbergh: He has always been known for his controversial subjects and treatment of tales from the neighbourhood. Some of his famous works as director include Traffic, Ocean’s Eleven series, Contagion, Haywire, Erin Brockovich, The Informant and Out of Sight. As producer also he has developed masterpieces such as Insomnia, Syriana, Michael Clayton, Solitary Man, Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, Criminal and The Jacket. I am sure he will continue to give us more thought provoking movies in the coming years but as of now according to me he is one of the most prominent members of Hollywood hall of fame.

 

These twelve personalities have given much more to the viewers than they had given to Hollywood itself. These intelligence minds have created worlds of their own and truly can be termed as GODS of HOLLYWOOD. Sometimes they are inspiration, sometimes they entertain, sometimes they make you think and sometimes they give you pain. Whatever it is, you live a whole new life during their movies and forget about your problems just to live in the moment and that is what my heart whispers to me…..

WikiLeaks: A Non-official Political Whistle Blower

It takes guts to reveal your own secrets but to reveal secrets of people in power requires something even more than the guts. WikiLeaks has continuously achieved this by showing unending resilience and they have survived the toughest of situations as observed by most of us. Today WikiLeaks have become the biggest non-official political whistle blower our history has ever witnessed and I am sure they will continue till there is no political secret left to share.

Here is the big question; why people in political power corridors are afraid of WikiLeaks? Why they are trying to destroy this website at any cost? Such things happen only when there is something to hide. I am not saying that actions taken by various governments are wrong but probably they were not presented in the right way to the people and now when WikiLeaks is bringing it in front of the people, they are afraid. I am only afraid when I had done something wrong and I will do whatever I will to hide it from my wife. Hence, if politicians are trying to prevent WikiLeaks from publishing their secrets then it is no rocket science to understand that there is something fishy in the old dockets.

I do not understand why people try to do more mistakes in order to bury their past mistakes. We all are human beings and mistakes happen and everybody understands this fact. The best way is to except them and clear the name forever but our politicians always choose the longer way and want to silence everybody forgetting that truth will uncover itself at some point of time. Anyways let us see what happens in the future but as of now I am relishing the secrets brought forth by this brave website and waiting for the time when my heart will whisper to me………

The MOBILE WARS

With new age mobile phones or so called the smartphones literally doing job of a phone, a computer and a companion (by keeping you informed and entertained), it was but natural that there is bound to be a horse race between world’s top manufacturers to dominate this segment. But in recent times in India, because of this segment gaining huge popularity among the helpless population succumbing to these handheld attractions, this race has turned into a war among the top players (with host of models or in our case ammunitions) which I think is the biggest after ‘The STAR WARS’…LOL…So that’s why I thought I will cherish few facts and fiction on this on-going saga of ‘The MOBILE WARS’.

In this epic battle (raging within the Indian market), main characters are obviously Samsung, Apple, Nokia, Micromax, HTC and Blackberry.

Apple: The Inventor

Apple has all its current and outdated models in its current ammunition namely ‘iPhone’ – 3, 3S, 4, 4S, 5 and soon there will be 5S for sure. So you can see the barrel is same but bullets keep on changing…LOL…SIM is getting smaller while budget is getting bigger. Pride of ownership remains but otherwise it is very hard for a normal user (until and unless you spend more time with your phone than your regular work) to actually experience the change. Screen size has just got bigger but still feels less than the Samsung canons. Nevertheless it still has best and trouble free application store as well as the user interface. Even with all its hits and misses, Apple will always be Numero-Uno of the game because it has actually invented the world of smartphones.

Samsung: The Reigning King

There are so many models or ammunition with them in entire price band spectrum that one will actually lose count of all the types. Samsung Galaxy Y, Y Duos, S2, S3, Note, Note 2, S Advance, S Grand, Ace, Ace Duos and god only knows what else. Largest screen to host of functions, to best brand image in affordable pricing or you can say any band of pricing has made it click for Samsung literally. Moreover Android application store is not much behind the inventor and almost all the necessary or commonly used applications are already available in it. So if nothing drastic is done by any other contender, Samsung is bound to be on top for a long-long time.

Nokia: The Fallen Legacy

Even though Nokia is trying to break its jinx in this smartphone market but it is still considered as a poor man’s device and such a brand image is hurting it in positioning as well as in matters of pride of ownership. With Nokia Lumia 510, 610, 710, 800, 820, 900, 920 (God only knows on what basis they keep name of the phones) and Nokia Asha series, it is still far from the top of the range. Even though user interface is good, lack of functions and applications is further hurting their chances to reach on top of the branding matrix. Something drastic and more innovative approach is required to penetrate the mind of the users as well to create good old times.

 

Micromax: The Sleeper Challanger

Micromax started on a good note by providing smartphones to the general public at the most economical prices but lost the plot in between and suddenly there was a dearth of new models from its stable in the market. Once seen as the real contender for Nokia’s place in the Indian market, it just remained a challenger only. Recently there were some really good surprise launches suddenly and with its A90, A110, rumoured upcoming A116, things are again falling in place for the ingenious manufacturer provided there is enough availability of its models to sell.

HTC: The On-Off Contender

Even though people knew about its mart range before they knew about Samsung or Apple, the manufacturer has been in on-off mode in Indian market. Suddenly there were no new models and recently there are many in the market. Suddenly there was lot of marketing and suddenly there was none. Even though the products are good and reliable, the brand image fails to appeal to the masses as of now and something dramatic has to happen if they really want to create a mass appeal. Product range is fairly balanced and covers lot of price band, so there is a very good chance that it may play a major role in the on-going mobile war.

Blackberry: The Survivor

Blackberry even though was one of the most preferred model of businessmen and professionals (due to their BBM service) lost the initial plot in smartphone game. The earlier launched models in a hurry, failed to steam up the market and upgraded versions took too much of time to make an appearance and still not in sight soon. So if only Blackberry is going to survive and flourish in the Indian market it will be because of its BBM service only and nothing else. They will surely be hoping that applications like WhatsApp must not take that advantage away from them otherwise it will be an uphill task to crack the tough nut called Indian market once again.

Anyways the consumer is always in a dizzy while current ‘MOBILE WAR’ is going on. You set your heart on a model and next day there is another one better than that in the market. You purchase a tiny wonder and tomorrow it is available at a cheaper rate somewhere else. Since you cannot own each and every great wonder available in the market today and tomorrow as well as cannot upgrade your device every month, it is better to be content with what is available with you today and wait and watch for the right time, right device to upgrade and that is what my heart whispers to me………..

OSCARS: Time to Re-invent Magic

Hmm…. so the grand OSCARS this is year went as expected and most of the winners were almost quite easy to guess. Best movie ‘Argo’, Best Director ‘Ang Lee’ for ‘Life of Pi’, Best Actor ‘Daniel Day-Lewis’ for ‘Lincoln’, Best Actress ‘Jennifer Lawrence’ for ‘Silver Linings Playbook’ (though I would have voted for ‘Jessica Chastain’ for ‘Zero Dark Thirty’), Best Animation movie ‘Brave’, Best Visual effects ‘Life of Pi’, Best supporting actor ‘Christoph Waltz’ for ‘Django Unchained’, Best supporting actress ‘Anne Hathaway’ for ‘Les Misérables’ and so on.

Now here is the surprise, the most popular and successful movie last year ‘Avengers’ failed to get any OSCAR and top of it they were able to earn only one nomination. ‘Zero Dark Thirty’ even after so much acclaim and its controversial plot failed to create any ripples. No new debutante stars ever felicitated for their performances. No life time achievement award was given to anyone. So may be its time for OSCARS to re-invent magic and plug such voids because awards are not for few distinguished ones but for the gifted ones. It should propagate feeling of triumph rather than the feeling of loss.

A nine year old kid like ‘Quvenzhané Wallis’ (for her superb and heart moving performance in ‘Beasts of the Southern Wild’) would have gone home triumph if there would have been a category for best child artist. ‘Avengers’ would have at least got most popular movie award if there was such a category in the OSCARS. While watching a movie, we live a life with it and just imagine how many people would have lived that life how many times while making it. So according to me OSCARS should be celebration of that life which means it can be more grand on scale in which people can believe and not only dream and this is what my heart whispers to me…………….

3 Laws of Wealth

Recently while revisiting Newton’s laws of motion; somewhere back of my mind I was also bickering over the current economic condition in the country as well as in the world. Both the stream of thoughts got merged (god only knows when) and I was surprised by the similarities between the motion and the wealth of an entity. Unable to contain the growing desperation, I thought it will be wise to pen down the 3 Laws of Wealth which my mind created but with strong references from our great Newton’s laws of motion (so please do not charge me with plagiarism):

First Law: If there is no net effort (mental / physical / social / political) behind an entity or an individual, then its wealth will remain constant. The entity or individual is either enjoying its inherited money (LOL) or its income is increasing at a rate (meagre salary increments) getting negated by the inflation and rising costs.

Second Law: The increase in wealth ‘I’ of an entity or an individual is parallel and directly proportional to the net effort ‘E’ (mental / physical / social / political) generated by the entity or the individual, is in the direction of the efforts, and is inversely proportional to its expenditures and borrowings collectively called as liabilities ‘L’. E = LI

Third Law: When an entity or an individual creates a wealth W1 in the economy, somewhere in the environment a second entity or an individual loses a wealth W2 = -W1. This means that W1 and W2 are equal in magnitude and opposite in direction.

These 3 laws of wealth holds true considering that at a given point of time, the overall wealth available and that can be generated in the entire world remains constant. Just see the simple application of the above laws: If you purchase something, manufacturers, dealers, government (LOL through taxes) earn that money which is spent by you. If you will not put any extra efforts, you will not be able to earn extra money. The more liabilities you have, more efforts you have to put in to generate that extra money. I am not sure what will be your take on these laws but they are fully applicable to ma and that is what my heart whispers to me……….

Honey, I Shrunk the Budget

Turbulence in economy never ever fails to bring the turbulence inside your own home. Increase in prices will always turn up in your home as increase in tensions. For most of the earning individuals (barring those who have silver spoon glued to their mouths from birth), pay packages keep on becoming lighter where as bills keep on becoming heavier in such times. Cutting costs at every juncture becomes everyday mantra for every poor soul struggling for survival with dignity.

Since we all are accustomed to adjustments cutting costs is not a major issue, the major issue is how to convey this to your wife without hurting her as well as without compromising on your own status at home. Our irony is that, some people sitting somewhere in the power corridors are making some mindless decisions and causing economic slowdown which in turn is ruining your life and unfortunately you have no control over it. For example, to rein in increasing prices and inflation, our government is increasing interest rates so that demand can be reduced than supply but in turn fails to understand that this way both demand and supply are reduced but increase in interest rates have still caused increase in prices and inflation even in short supply (both put together actually create the scary term ‘Recession’). They fail to realise that short supply is still a favourable situation rather than reduced demand since supply can be increased but demand is reduced solely because of household budget cuts which a person will do only in desperate situation.

As helpless as in any other grave situation, as a common man I also decided to convince my wife rather than the government since once wife can listen to you but governments never listen. With heavy heart and all my courage, one day I went home and announced to my wife that dear since our government has decided to inflate interest rates and in turn inflate the prices, honey, I shrunk the budget since we have no choice but to do this in order to stay afloat in these turbulent times. Seeing her worried face and tears in her eyes, I was just able to tell myself that good times will come soon when government will start taking wise decisions and that is what my heart whispered to me……

Apple iphone: the journey begins…………..

Like everybody else I was also pretty excited about the launch of Apple iphone in India and in the process became one of the first few who had purchased this device in initial days. Why I am saying first few is because by the time this product was launched already critics had labelled it as overpriced gadget in India and no doubt a price tag of Rs 36100/- can definitely stir a muscle in the mind. Because of such cost conscious reviews only, my wife also started jumping when I expressed my desire to buy the iphone. Her furious gestures and price tag of iphone somehow kept me away from Airtel Gallery (where iphone was available) on the first day. But old habits die hard and like a dog’s tail which can never be straight, on next day while praying to god to keep my wife in good mood when I reach home, I purchased this engineering marvel.

I know how much I have to listen that day for it but trust me the moment I took iphone in my hands it is the beginning of a whole new journey. Even though almost one year has passed by I am still wondering how more is remaining to explore. With so many exciting applications added daily you will feel that entire world is at your doorstep. This iphone has not only become my personal assistant who can keep all the information handy whenever I need it but it has also become my personal entertainer. Now whether I want to know my flight status or a train schedule or hotels in a particular area, everything is available on iphone. What else, I can see movies, read books, play guitar, check email, listen to music, watch latest news, play scrabble and other interesting games on this little device. There are so many etceteras with this iphone one cannot really explain. All this has to be experienced in order to enjoy the endless fruits of this engineering marvel.

In the end I will just say that after iphone so many new models have been launched on same platform but iphone nevertheless has become legend in its category and definitely marks the beginning of a new journey. This is the first gadget which has become so close to me that sometimes I feel this iphone can listen to what my heart whispers to me……………………because whenever I wish for an application it comes alive on this iphone.