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The monsoon is here. Lots of families drive around on their two wheelers, daring the sun and rain. This was the typical scenario which inspired one of the great leaders of modern India to design and build an affordable car. Such statements invariably attract media attention and the price of the car was predicted (by those with no automotive knowledge whatsoever) that it would be one lakh rupees. Although there was no price mentioned by anyone at any point of time, Mr. Tata took up the challenge of building a car a one lakh rupees. A proper working car, with doors, glass and all the basics you expect. At the '08 Auto Expo, it became a sensation and took the entire world by storm. Everyone wanted to know about the wonder car, named 'Nano'. I guess they even got the name right! It looked like nothing the world had seen. After "experts" predicting the car to be an autorickshaw with doors, canvas roof, what not. All these were silenced at the unveiling. It's a ...

"I have money. It's people I can trust that I need". It's not the first time you've come across such a line, is it? Yes, as the title suggests, this is an (attempted) sequel to one of my previous posts. Of late, most of the people I know are saying it over and over again. Money and property or borrowing a phrase from philosophy, "materialistic pleasures" are now giving way to belief, friendship etc., I guess it all started with the IT boom in our country, which showed how even the lower strata of our society could afford the then luxuries. It could be something as trivial as coffee culture, going up to shopping the latest in fashion and watching football at sports bars with "mates". Everyone wanted to eat junk at McDonald's and get drunk at some bar just to get high. Soon, this lifestyle was the norm. Engineering colleges mushroomed everywhere in the country and every student wanted the corporate lifestyle; work hard on weekdays and unwin...

I distinctly remember the day I entered JSSATE. It was a picture perfect background with lots of greenery and a pleasantly red building. I reported almost a month late (won't bore you with the details), by which time most of them had spoke to each other and the inevitable "groups" had started budding like mushrooms. As I made my way to the first floor (read IT Dept.), there were a bunch of guys talking casually and lazing around. Very politely I asked one of them, "Where is the 1st IT class?". To my surprise, the answer was a kind of ensemble, as in everyone started directing me and posed questions as to why I was so late, blah blah. As we sat in the class awaiting it's commencement, we got a memo stating that one of the professors had expired and as a mark of respect, a holiday was declared. This is one strong reason why even my friends will never forget the day I entered this magnificent world called JSSATE. Days passed and a majority of the guys became go...

On my first journey by air to Lucknow, I found an in-flight magazine of Jet Airways, which told me that my week would be an exciting one. A week which would create a better bonding with family and one filled with adventure. I would get to know if it was true as things panned out in the coming days. Probably my brother's greatest personal achievement was graduating from IIM Lucknow. It was a very eventful day for all of us in the family, which is why we decided to be a part of it. I guess it was November last year that we made all the travel arrangements and since it was our first visit to the northern part of our great country, we were a bit anxious. Couple this to the fact that we'd never been on an flight and you can see the problem. The plan was to finish the convocation in Lucknow and visit as many places in and around as possible. First off, let me tell you; being in an IIM is a very unique and special experience. Prior to the convocation, a dinner party was arranged for ...

It's been a year since I've started posting here and I sincerely hope I've come a long way since my first post. Those of you who have been following my blog will know that I travel a fair bit. Although the destinations are not very far from my hometown, each journey is an opportunity to learn about other cultures, places and of course, cuisines! February was an eventful month for me. Why? It involved more travelling, that's why! First was in Tamil Nadu, to a place called Denkanikotte with my family. It's a couple of hours drive from Bangalore and is blessed with some of the best roads I've come across. Though it's not a famous place for an outing, TN has some very good infrastructure in the remotest of places. On getting there, we got the usual talk about why the temple is so special, what makes it unique and to my surprise, the violent side of elephants. Honestly, am bored of this. What the priest did not bother telling us is the sheer beauty of the locatio...

Every religious place in India I've been to so far in my life has the same typical setting. You have a series of shops selling traditional art, bracelets, rings, chains, camera rolls, the lot. The next thing you notice is the sheer number of people relying on tourists to provide them with some sort of livelihood. Why should it be so? I mean there are countless number begging for alms whereas another set wants to make money by offering you a tour round the place, explaining the history (which may turn out to be entirely fake!). Just as you park your vehicle, you are surrounded by people who expect you to behave like some "firangi" and shower them with money. And let's not forget shall we that these sights and experiences are savored after driving on highly broken, pot hole ridden roads. Now that the welcome is complete, you step into the place and are greeted by the usual smell of rotten, degraded edibles, half burnt incense sticks, long queues where the person behind...

Of late, many of my friends have updated their status messages indicating they've been placed. Although it creates much controversy, the fact of the matter is that you need to feel good on such achievements specially in these economic crisis and other financial downturns. Quite naturally then, our expectations were high when we got a mail saying that the big names are going to turn up at our college and were looking at good numbers. CTS, one of the well known names in the industry was scheduled to kick start the process on 21st Jan. Inevitable last minute resume updates, copies of marks sheets, the lot were the order of the day on 20th. My only saving grace was my preparation for CAT last year and some gut feeling told me, "Get through the first round, you'll do well in the interview". With this thought, I got an early night and made sure I was fresh. The first round was as expected, with a mix of vocab, math and analytical ability questions. After this was an hour lo...