Money, I hope I didn't need any

Note: I risk writing this and being ridiculed for my ignorance, but I, with my almost naive thought process want to get this out of my system.

All these scams around me are supposed to make me insecure and they are making me insecure, unhappy and most importantly making me feel stupid. Last night while watching the perennially acrimonious debate on a news channel I began to think of something that existed long long time ago, and am sure the people back then were happier. These days we accept the currency around us as supreme power and would like to have more of it by any means possible -- we evade taxes, pay bribe to pay less fine or pay bribe to get more out of the deals, or we just don't pay and save more for ourselves. These are all signs that we have used and abused money as means of transaction way too much. We have begun to love the idea of owning it so much that we are not able to see beyond ourselves, for all the destruction that this moolah is causing on its way. One simple example in our fast growing cities like Mumbai. Builders, to make money, are eroding mountains, grabbing mangrove lands or even grabbing kids gardens to make housing complexes, making us display our vulgar stashes of cash balance. The direct result of all these natural and social calamities caused by builders is leading to erratic rainfalls, disturbances in the animal life, and kids sitting home when they ought to run free and play.

Somehow we are all looking through macro lenses of our lives' cameras and are happy at the momentary joy that this act is bringing, and are conveniently ignoring the harsh truth in the blur of the background -- that we are abusing our socio - economic system a little too much. Some day all of us are going to get ourselves the zoom lenses with wide angles and will realize that we are already too late. I wish to somehow change this from happening. I very honestly don't know how but I attempt at addressing at least one problem.

The problem I am going to mention is going to make a lot of banks look at me in disbelief and even make me a laughing stalk. According to me, the root of a lot of our problems is Money. We have given it way too much importance in our lives and society, and are becoming slaves of it. Even little kids understand the value of money when they with their joyous smiles accept money as gifts from relatives. Money is, according to me, the current day caste system and like the caste system that prevailed couple of centuries ago is making us weak as a society. Every time we run behind it we give it that much more importance in our life and we make it that much more glamourous than it is. A gentleman on one of the TV debates mentioned that when we buy a house it is an unsaid rule that we have to pay black amount of cash to own the house to the builder or to the seller of the house. Now some might say it is form of corruption encouraged by government by not at all intervening in these matters. But if you look at the issue from a little different point of view, you will notice it is the greed for more money that sellers ask for more so that they can spend more and they can do more in life. I am averse to the idea that I will live all my life making money to make my life happy, but the truth is our families and our society will make us believe so.

I suggest we go back to olden days when people worked because they liked to, they slogged because they wanted to and they bartered their goods with others for necessities. This way we make our current supreme ruler Money obsolete. This, according to me, would bring about a lot of peace in this world and would also make our standard of life better. I know you must be thinking, "but this is a digressive thought! How on earth are we to make any development, break frontiers and make advancements without money?" I have a simple answer to all of that. I think life should be simple with all our needs being fulfilled, just right with no excess. During the cave men time they all lived together and hunted together. Take the examples of some tribes around the world who live without any means of currency with their own belief system and are happy living like that. We have evolved as human beings and have gone so ahead in areas of how we have structured our society and its rules. We can leverage all of this and make our lives so much more simpler for all of us, by helping each other in what we want to do. Remember even before money was intended humans had ways of developing by exchanging ideas, services or products in return of other such benefits.

Also let me mention that none of the scientific or technological advancements needs to stop. We can have all of it and make ways and means for interested people to make and use these opportunities. I consider myself too small a human with very limited knowledge to propose ways to make this change happen, but I am mighty sure if thought leaders in our world came together for this purpose we can have better meetings than our 'peace talks' and more fruitful than the meetings of UN or NATO or SAARC.

I want you to do me a favour by just thinking about ways this can work and means to make it happen. In our lifetime we might not see that we get pay our doctors by giving him a silver plate or we buy a house with rose made delicacies as a gift to the builder (These thoughts as strange as they might sound now were the way of life for our forefathers) but maybe just maybe our grand children or their children could lead a life which is more pure than what we lead right now. Think please.

Zero and One

When I was taught about computers I was told of how computer understands everything in the form of Zero and one (0 and 1). At that time I just mugged it up as Computer understands binary language. This binary language came back to me while I was doing my graduation in IT, there during some of our classes we were explained in detail what that exactly means. During the course of last few days I have encountered situations and things where I noticed the binary language creeping in the surroundings and in my life and made me think of some thoughts (obiviously) that I thought i’d put in my not-so-widely-read blog .

The shouting man at the Vodafone stores these days is no rare sight infact in all of my visits to them I have seen people shout or heard my own voice raise as I speak to the so called ‘Happy to help’ customer executives. So the man shouting that day kept saying ‘that I have lost my wallet and so all my identity proof including my driving license, PAN card are lost. It takes 15 days to get a replaced one and in the mean while i lost my phone and want a new SIM card of the same number as my clients are going mad trying to contact me” for which the not-so-happy to help customer executive kept telling him that if you have no identity proof how do i believe that you are the real owner of the card”. Now I got thinking if it was some 10 years ago this man could call some of his influential friend who would have told the lady that the man was telling the truth and he would possibly get the SIM card immediately. But because of the computer system which stood between the Vodafone lady and the customer she had to abide by the binary rule: 1 means he has the documents and he gets the SIM card and 0 means he doesn’t have the documents so tell him to stop impersonating.

Our country is known for Jugaad but this computer fella in the middle makes it extremely difficult to do any of it. Like in the passport office it is no longer enough that you are an MLA’s son you have to produce all the documents to get your passport. You might have it easy when you have to break the line for the passport but when the computer sits between the passport office man & the MLA’s son binary language again kicks in (kappaw!!).

Of the profound knowledge that I have gathered watching some really cool movies I gather that the world is not all black & white there is a grey area that we all live in. For the lesser movie buffs it means that not everything can be judged right or wrong as there is always an area where this perceived right or wrong has a reason that could make even the smartest man ponder if the situation is wrong or right. Let me give you an example, so that I feel like I have passed on my knowledge properly, imagine if you got barely passing percentage in your 12th grade board exams and the reason for it was that your father had a heart attack a day before your exam started. Now tell me are you bad that you failed or are you good that you tended to your father and he is now getting back to his feet. I hope you got it.

Anyways, human brain has a room for compassion and empathy but the binary language in front of him makes him behave in a uni dimensional way. So as our world is taking up the ways of a computer in their functioning I see that we would be very heavily dependent 0 and 1 and with project like UID in India one pick pocket by a thief may cause you to be ‘anamika’ the no-named & non-existent. To be very frank I am all for this binary-isation of my being but for the less initiated hope you get your act together.

And by the way you favourite college just turned down you application into the degree college. Tough luck!

 
 
 
 

Listening

Some songs hit just hit the chord so right with us. I wonder is it just the word or the melody or the music in the background, I am still to decipher that, though all I can say is that these songs make me smile or feel sad or make me head bang. I am currently listening to 'Abhi Nahi Aana' by Sona this song is about how this singer doesn't want her beau to come so soon as she wants to enjoy the distance between them, it is strange how I just cant smiling as Sona sings those notes.
There are songs like 'Gimme some sunshine' from 3 Idiots which I can totally relate to and so when I like such songs there is no surprises but I remember listening to Rabbi and his 'Bulla ki Jaana' again and again even though I didn't understand what he meant in most of the part of the song but I listened and felt happy and heard it again.
Singing acording to me is one of the most difficult arts to master as emotions are expressed through not only the words that they read from the lyrics sheet but in the voice, the pitch, intonation and what not that makes that song great listen. Try listening to some Sufi songs they kind of get a grip on the concentration part of your brain and all you do is stay in raptures without possibly understanding a word but still understanding what cannot be narrated.
I can confidently say that good breed of musicians make our lives pause for a while and take us through a ride of emotions anytime, any place voluntarily or involutarily.

Humara Bajaj

Bajaj will phase out its last scooter, Chetak, next month. I for one feel very nostalgic about this scooter. This was the first vehicle that my father owned (not counting the bicycle) and was very proud of. I still remember back then, when my Chetak was brought home we all very so happy. I used to feel very proud when the Bajaj Chetak advertisements of ‘Humara Bajaj’ ran on television.



My father learnt riding it with a neighbor's help on the 100 feet road in Bangalore and how when he first went to office on it, we all were thrilled to wave bye from our first floor balcony. That was the time when all the members in the family were thinner than and smaller than now, so we all fit on it well, with my younger brother ahead of my father as I sat between my father and my mother. When I think of it now, I just can’t imagine how we managed. We were always so thrilled to travel on our Chetak!


Out of the excitement of buying a Chetak, I had developed a special skill of sorts. I could, from a distance, just hear a two-wheeler and tell exactly which vehicle it was. I agree there were very few two-wheelers back then, but I as a 9 year-old took great pride in my skill.


During those days I tried and successfully rode a Kinetic Honda, a gearless scooter, but never dared to ride my own Chetak. Not until I was 13 year-old (that was in 1998), when my friend Balaji told me that he could take the responsibility of teaching me to ride it (his elder brother had taught my father to ride the scooter). I knew all the theoretical knowledge one needed to know to ride the bike except for actually riding it. So when I started to ride it the very first time, I thought it would be too easy. But it was far from easy, and anything but a smooth ride.


It all started with my friend Balaji explaining all the procedures (which I've said before I already knew and thought of him as a sucker ;)) in the presence of my father. He told me all the small things -- how to release the clutch and accelerate and stuff -- and then I started the scooter. My first few attempts to get the vehicle in motion failed and I once even managed to do an involuntary and scary wheely (damn clutch!). I finally got the scooter in motion and after going a little ahead, there came the big issue of changing gears, which I could hear Balaji screaming at me to change, but I decided to scream back at him, “Balaji, I will ride only on first gear for now”. I was so scared thinking I would have to start the bike again in case I screwed up that I stuck to the first gear all through. I rode the entire circle of about 300 meters on the first gear.


After that, there was just no looking back. I would take my scooter with a very springy seat to any place around my neighbourhood. I rode this vehicle till 2006, by then my younger brother also had learnt to ride it and we also had a car and a Royal Enfield Bullet as alternative modes of transport for the family. I don’t remember the price we sold it for second hand. I think it was about 7 – 10 thousands rupees or so. Since I had a new Bullet to my self I didn’t feel much of a pain to part with it but now when I think of it I remember the good times we had on it. There was this one time during school, when I took a triple seat on it and I can guarantee you neither me nor the other two will ever forget the pain and the joy of that ride.


I started riding really early in my life and take pride in saying that not once was I ever caught by the Traffic Police (like a true Indian can never pass a chance to boast about how we break the law and get away). All said and done, I am sure the next generation is definitely going to miss a trust worthy vehicle which uncannily needed a 45 degrees tilt before kick starting it.


Humara Bajaj!!

Day Dreaming

There are 9 zeroes in a billion and Slim comes with double digit ahead of those 9 zeroes. 1-2-3-...9

Looking at the list of the Uber-filthy-wiping their face with dollars-burning cigars with dollars-cleaning their ears with Rupee earbuds-coating their cars with Gold rich people like Carlos Slim from Brazil made my mind boggle for sometime like a TV not receiving reception but I recovered soon being a strong man. And while I tried to get back to normal a flood of thoughts came to mind, please continue reading I didnt pen down all of them but just a few, as only very little made sense anyways.

Stream of my thought went through how I first my first cycle made me feel like the luckiest person in the world to now where I am writting down my thoughts on a blog with little food, money or shelter (compared to the uber-filthy..... rich). Without further digressing into some inane topic I will get to the point. Some of them.

Flashback (imagine thundering of clouds)

I started following the richest people list only by the time I reached 10^th standard. I remember this was possibly the first time I wanted a lot of money and felt like my hard work for something might just get me lot of money (How Naive I was stressing about 10^th standard result).

Well that was the time I was a fan of Mr. Gates who made my OS (Ok I’ll accept I didn’t know properly what OS meant back then but what the hell! At least I knew that Mr. Gates made My Computer for me) Also at the time there was this whole thing about how many dollar can Bill Gates give to every person on the Earth and still have some left for himself. I can’t remember the amount but I do remember how awe struck I was to know this little trivia. Till this day I have not tried to confirm the authenticity of that claim but I seriously don’t care now as I am not getting any ;(.

Digressing from the topic, so pulling my self back to what I actually came to write. And it is about how I am proud to be a world citizen in this era and time. How is that related to my start of this blog, well not very but little, I’ll admit. So to take things ahead I used my special powers granted by Google & searched for 2000 list of Forbes most rich people & compared it with the current 2010 one.

I keep 2000 as the point of reference simple because this was the time I started growing my intelligence repository (it has been filling for 10 years damn!! I still feel dumb at least once a day on most days) any ways!!. To me this is an indicator of shift of wealth from Just USA to the rest of the world. From 8 out of top 10 richest people in the world coming from st="on"USA in the year 2000 to only 3 people in 2010.

This list has not yet hit the equilibrium as people from all continents of the world do not figure on the list but I am sure it will once be true. Very importantly my country men figure twice in the list NOT that it makes me swell with pride but makes me happy that wealth is been distributed around the globe. I fail to understand how people from rich European countries do not figure in the list considering they are high on individual wealth like st="on"Norway which figures 2^nd on the list of highest GDP in the world. These countries also claim to have the best living standards but do not have anyone amongst the top 10 richest people in the world. They surely figure somewhere down the list but the top 10 is the place all the billionaires want to be in.

That brings me to this question. ‘Are people in the happiest countries so content that they fail to figure on top slots of richest people in the world or are these countries a classic example of Inclusive growth?” I request you to answer this question in the comments please.

Anyways all I wanted to tell you all is that I wish for a world where the richest people in the world come from all points on this round earth. Imagine the 3^rd richest man in the world from the flood hit country like Bangladesh or the 7^th richest man in the world from the genocide infamous st="on"style=""Republic of Rwanda. When this happens the wealth would have possibly percolated to the perimeter of this world. Then I am sure I would be glad I am in this country working my part in improving the economy of st="on"India (every drop makes an ocean) and not for development of some other country (at my patriotic best).

As I stopped my diahorea of thinking I was with a anxiety if I would ever figure on that list..even if not i'd be happy (not).

(There are many more thoughts from where this came if you want a piece of my mind dont ask me I possibly might bug you with it if I met you..So long folks!)

Click happy - My first DSLR Canon 1000d

1st Feb 2010 would probably be amongst the most memorable days in my recent life. On this day I have got my camera which i have been yearning for so long. My wallet has become so light but I am filled with excitement that cant be contained in me.

I got the delivery of my Canon 1000d in my office and just cant wait to reach home and start clicking my way through.

Fantasti-click!!