New Frontiers for Ecommerce

Ecommerce has taken the world by storm. Its not-so-new 'sister concern', m-commerce is turning a new page in online buying, with Myntra, India's largest online fashion and apparel company, going app-only last month. However, we might be on the verge of seeing new platforms, which most of us didn't think of going the ecommerce way, changing the way we shop online. Some prominent among these, in the very near future, will be Google, Twitter and Pinterest.

1. Google: Google recently initiated talks of featuring a 'buy' button in its search results, thus enabling a customer to buy from the search page directly. Google's most important service to the world has been its ability to organize the world's knowledge and the company makes big bucks through advertisements on its search page and AdWords. But, this side of the business could very well be witnessing its biggest competition so far, shopping apps.

Nearly, every company has moved over to promoting its app for buying anything and everything available on its portal. Taking example of India, its ecommerce market is slated to touch US$ 300b by 2030, according to a recent report by a global bank. If consumers go to native apps of ecommerce players for searching and shopping, it could become a huge opportunity lost for Google if consumers bypass its services. All the AdWords and other features won't do much good to Google if people don't really go to its site for their shopping needs. And this is why, Google is planning to incorporate the Buy feature in its search results. They already have put some aspects of this feature while searching for flights in India (on google.co.in). Currently, if you search for a flight on Google India, it will give you details of the prices and timings and button for booking the flight. Clicking on the button takes you to the site of the airline, with another option to look for other prices on Goibibo (only aggregator listed as of now). So, although payments and other options have not been provided currently by Google, but they sure are going to focus on this now. With mobile wallets slowly picking up (courtesy PayTm, MobiKwik, Airtel Money etc), Google Wallets won't have to work too hard for customer acquisition, when you can use the wallet for any purchase across categories. Ecommerce players like Flipkart, Amazon will be wise to see this happening sooner rather than later. They can buy slots on Google search pages for their products, with consumers getting all different options to buy a product of his choice without having to download a lot of apps. Also, the recent Google I/O conference talked about how the company is planning to use its biggest weapon in its arsenal, Android, by allowing the OS to read the user data from all the apps installed on a phone and tailoring the search accordingly. Google is increasing the bar and defending its territory, for sure.

2. Twitter: Any company which is focused on serving its customers has taken the twitter route. This platform has helped them be in touch with their customers to solve their concerns, launch new products, launch new campaigns and do just about anything. How about enabling the companies to sell on Twitter as well? Twitter did come up with a plan to introduce a Buy button in US last year, it hasn't seen much traction there, or any other markets globally. Imagine buying stuffs directly from tweets, with just a few clicks. An artist just launched a new song and the music company has tweeted about it. Along with the RT and Favorite buttons, there is a Buy button as well alongside the tweet, from where you can legally buy the new song without the need of an iTunes or other such service. Or think about buying the newly launched book for your Kindle, without leaving the Twitter interface. Extend the idea to any product you see these days. This service will be a pure-play marketplace as Twitter is not going to hold inventories and sellers can sell any item they wish. Combine this with customized offers through the 'big data' which gets generated on Twitter, brands and companies can target their customers with pinpoint accuracy. Some months back, ICICI Bank, India's largest private sector bank, introduced transfer of funds through the use of tweets and DMs. With Indian ecommerce growing at the pace as it is currently, a lot can be done in products and services through Twitter. As such, the potential of Twitter is immense for a market like India, which has one of the fastest growing user base who tweet day in and day out.

3. Pinterest: User-generated and curated content has been garnering quite a lot of talk lately, with some startups in the 'Silicon Valleys' of US and India already grabbing VCs' attention and (more importantly) money. Although this is still at a nascent stage for India, Pinterest is not for brands. A lot of brands have very active accounts on this website (a prominent example being Myntra). Pinterest, however, is monetizing now. It has begun testing and piloting 'Buyable Pins' in US, where customers can buy an item while just browsing pics. The logistics is handled by the sellers themselves and (currently) payments are handled through PayPal and other leading services in the US. Pinterest is still to gain a lot of traction in India, but going by the trend of other platforms, a focused approach towards India can make it one of the fastest growing and leading markets for any platform (prominent examples being LinkedIn, Whatsapp, Facebook, Twitter and more recently, Amazon). Pinterest through its Buy buttons (or pins) in the Indian market can aim for the disruption that it might be seeking. Indians, most often, don't really shop when they have to. For apparels, people keep browsing (window-shopping, a few years back) and buy a dress when something suits the eye. This nicely mimics how people interact on Pinterest as well (apart from the buying part). They browse through images and post or pin the ones they like. Pinterest can ideally up the game a little bit by adding that 'buy' button next to the 'pin' button.

In one of my earlier posts (read here), I had talked about how the app-only strategy is here to stay and why Myntra's latest move deserves appreciation. I still believe most of the other players will try going this route sooner rather than later, as it can result in customer stickiness. However, the 3 platforms explained above, can be the shot in the arm that the (current) offline players need. A Bharti Retail or a Future Group might get more interested in selling through Google or Twitter than an Amazon or a Myntra. This will give them a lot of traction right at the beginning of their game, and not worry a lot about customer acquisition and discounts.

The ecommerce game has only begun for India and other countries, and a lot of new chapters are yet to conceptualized and written. Sit back and witness the changes and uncertainties. One thing which is certain, however, is that the end-customer will be the final winner.

Comment your thoughts below or on twitter @NishantSinha88.

The Evolving Automotive Space in India

The growth story in India is a story with few parallels in the world. Not long ago, in late 90s and early 2000s, India was just a kid on the block staring at an already-developed West and its Northern neighbour starting to move very fast in terms of GDP growth. Mid-2000s saw the pace of growth accelerate for India as well and today, we are a force to reckon with. The reason for this, apart from the policies and governments, is the rising income levels of the middle class consumers. So much so, that now there is a very distinct upper middle class and a lower middle class of them.

But, according to me, no factor can highlight the above in India than the purchase patterns of 4-wheelers (4W). 4W have always been more about social status for families in India rather than for transportation purposes. A car in home means that you are well-off. Period. It doesn't matter if you take out your car every day or once in 15 days. Car purchase has always been one of the 2 most aspirational purchases of an Indian family, the other being their own house. But this purchase of a car has seen a lot of evolutionary trends.

Not long ago, there was a distinct difference between a hatchback and a sedan. Late 90s and early 2000s had a lot of compact car models. The prominent among OEMs was Maruti Suzuki, with brands like Maruti 800, Alto and Zen ruling the roads. Other players were not behind, and Santro from Hyundai and Matiz from Daewoo were quite popular among car buyers. One of the lesser popular models was Fiat Uno in the compact car segment. Distinctly above this segment in comfort, size and luxury were the sedans with cars like Honda City, Honda Accent and Hyundai Sonata being among the top choices for buyers. Many of the foreign car makers had not tried to explore the Indian market aggressively till this time and the only prominent American brand was Ford Fiesta. Very rarely, one could also see an occasional Mercedes being driven on an Indian road.

However, things started to change suddenly during the second half of the first decade of the century. Different car manufacturers had started to take notice of the fast pace of growth in India and companies like GM, Audi and Mercedes started to put more investments in the country. One of the most important trend was identified by Maruti Suzuki in the Indian market during these years. This was the aspiration of an Indian buyer who was not very satisfied with just a compact hatchback and wanted something more. However, he was not able to afford a City or a Civic as well. This insight led to the development of Swift, which is one of the most successful cars in the Indian automotive space. This car was longer (around 3800 mm) than the ubiquitous 800 or Alto and offered similar comfort levels of a sedan, although with a limited boot space. The success of this model opened new doors for other companies as well and thus was born a new segment called 'premium hatchback'. Hyundai launched its upgraded version of i10 in the form of i20 for this segment, Honda came up with Jazz. But none were able to catch Swift in the race of ever increasing sales. Jazz lost the battle quite early due to its high price and i20 was always the 2nd choice after Swift. However, the line had started to blur in the Indian automotive space in terms of hatchbacks and sedan.

Currently, the biggest competition to entry level sedans are the unexpected premium hatchbacks. Hyundai has launched i20 Active and i20 Sportz in this segment which compete with a Swift Dzire and a Honda Amaze, both in terms of price and looks. The Hyundai models are actually priced higher than the 2 sedans mentioned above. Toyota also has launched Etios Cross, which competes with so-called entry level sedans like the 2 models mentioned above. There are still takers for compact hatchbacks, with Hyundai Eon, Maruti Alto 800, Maruti Celerio, Ford Figo, Datsun Go, Nissan Micra working hard to capture the markets in Tier 2 and below.

So, what will be the next big change in the Indian market? We are already seeing compact SUVs being positioned between a sedan and a full fledged SUV like those from the Mahindra's stables. Models like Nissan Terrano, Ford EcoSport, Renault Lodgy, Renault Duster have become very prominent on Indian roads and companies like Maruti Suzuki are going to bring these "crossovers" very soon as well. With more foreign brands slated to come to India in years to come, and with frequent updates in designs to suit the status and luxury needs of the Indian middle class, we are set to see more models in newer segments in the Indian automotive market.

Comment your thoughts and suggestions in the section below.

@NishantSinha88

Cricket is for batsmen AND BOWLERS!

So the season of test cricket starts. Brendon McCullum and some of his countrymen have left the Indian shore and are already playing against the English at Lord's. And this time, the play is not only for batsmen. This time, its test cricket, or as the purists say, the highest form of competitive cricket.

Hang on a second there. What made me say 'this time, its not only for batsmen' for T20 cricket, the Indian version of which has reached the playoffs by now. But, isn't that the case with cricket all along? It has always been more about the batsmen than the bowlers. And this has been like this since the advent of one-day cricket.

The reasons for starting a limited overs version of cricket were simple. People were not turning up for test matches in the huge numbers they used to in the 50s and 60s. They were getting bored by the 'slow' and 'drawn' games lasting for 5 days. Everyone wanted results and quick and fast cricketing action, like boundaries being hit on a regular basis and results coming out after a day's play. The ICC wanted cricket to stand up to other sports and we gradually shifted to ODIs and other limited overs domestic tournaments and leagues. Time moved on and even the ODIs started to seem long enough to search for even shorter formats and we have T20 on our hands now, which has really caught the attention of the crowd with towering sixes of Gayle and AB de Villiers and with some small bowling marvels once in a while.

But somehow, during this whole transition, we forgot about our bowlers by constantly limiting their armoury. There have been many debates over a lot of points on how to bring more 'equality' in the game of cricket. One of the major ones being allowing 1-2 bouncers every over (depending on the format being played). But a lot of benefits still are in the batsman's favor. He can go for a switch hit whenever he wants, but a bowler has to tell the umpire before delivering which side he wants to bowl from (over the wicket or round the wicket). A batsman can shuffle in the crease all he wants, but a bowler can't be an inch outside the bowling crease, otherwise he runs the risk of conceding a 'free hit', which in turn, again gives the batsman an edge. These points have been discussed over and over again by the pundits and it cannot be outrightly denied that some of these batsmen-friendly rules have helped the shorter version of the game.

The point which I want to put across is regarding the over limits for bowlers. Test cricket gives a batsman and a bowler to play to his strengths and keep going on. A batsman can play one whole day in a test match and similarly, a bowler can keep bowling as long as he wants (by taking appropriate breaks in between). But when we shift focus to limited overs cricket, batsmen still have the license to keep going for the entire duration of the innings, whereas the bowlers just can't. Every year we are seeing new boundaries being breached in cricket, the highest individual score or the fastest 50/100/150/200 and so on. The latest world cup itself saw 2 double hundreds, one from Chris Gayle and the other from Martin Guptill, where they single handedly took the game away from the opposition by batting for 40-50 overs (Guptill actually batted through the entire 50 overs - watch https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=NGkG6-02yHg). But do the bowlers ever get such a chance even when they are bowling well. Take for instance Wahab Riaz during his game in the QF against the Aussies. The spell he bowled to dismiss Michael Clarke and literally terrify Steve Smith and Shane Watson has been dubbed as one of the most lethal bowling spells in the history of modern cricket. Even the greats of yesteryears, like the Akrams and the Chappels and the Bothams hailed it as one of the best spells ever (watch https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=zmkBKY7CAjE). But even though that contest was a great one to watch, how many overs would it have lasted for, at the maximum? 10 overs and that's all about it. Do we ask the batsmen to retire after they have scored a century or played, say 150 deliveries in a one day match? No. Then why do we limit the bowlers who might be really bowling well in a particular match. Why can't we allow, say, 2 bowlers who won't have the cap of 10 overs (ODI) or 4 overs (T20)? This will give the bowling side something to play for when a Gayle or a McCullum is going all guns blazing. I believe this would definitely tip the scales a little bit towards the bowlers in a match. Also, it would be adding another exciting feature in the game and keep the batsmen wondering if they can really play out a bowler by just defending him.

If we analyze other team sports, we don't see a limiting feature on certain teammates, like the way it exists in limited overs cricket. We don't see a pitcher getting only 10 pitches in a baseball match. We don't see a goalkeeper in a football match being replaced by someone else after he has saved 5 goals. It just doesn't exist in competitive sports. Its time that the ICC and other national boards look into this matter and some of the other long-standing points which have kept the bowlers as second grade citizens in a game of cricket. They can probably look at instituting the above modification in domestic tournaments and see how it goes there. If successful, we can take this to the international arena and enjoy the gentlemen's game a little more.

Comment in the below section as to what you think. The more the discussions, the better it is for the sport.

App-only Strategy: Here to Stay

A lot of chatter happened this week on apps and ecommerce. Myntra, which had decided to go app-only, executed its plan and on 15 May shutdown its website. Some of other major ecommerce players were asked what did they think of this move and if they too will take a similar road. The answer was a resounding NO from the likes of Snapdeal, Jabong and Amazon India.

So what exactly is going on here, with one player betting everything on an app-only approach, whereas others summarily rejecting this move in the near future? For starters, its a very bold move by Myntra in an industry which is still in its infancy and none of the players are yet to show sustainability in cash flow and profits. There are 2 major aspects why this move can be called a bold one. Every company has been going all guns blazing for the past couple of years for acquiring new customers and thereby increasing sales. No one wants to leave any stone unturned in customer acquisition, be it through websites, apps, social media interaction. You name it. Given this relentless push for customers, some have argued as to why force the customer to go to the app, and why not get them coming through website as well.

The 2nd reason is Myntra's product groups i.e. apparels. Shoppers do get a better experience on a larger screen of a laptop when buying clothes and other apparels. An image on a 5-inch or so smartphone will not give a laptop-type experience to shoppers especially while buying the above kind of items.

Let's analyze the above from an objective eye. The largest customer chunk for any established player in India is coming through its app, and not its website or mobile-site. Each of these companies has been doling out special offers on app since the beginning of last year and before. So, its safe to assume that every company wants its sales to go through its respective app. If that's the case, a hue and cry over closure of Myntra's website is on a very weak footing. If every company is betting high on apps-based shopping, there is no place for halfhearted efforts. One has to see the larger picture and go all-in and that's why, Myntra's move is not just a small change in strategy, its a move towards the future. More so, its a move towards creating the future, just as what its parent Flipkart did when it pioneered ecommerce in India in 2007. And we already have examples of services which are app-based solely, rather than having a website (eg, Uber, although one can argue its a completely different model and industry).

The 2nd point as has been mentioned above about small-screen shopping of apparels can also be looked more objectively. We all agree that ecommerce is here to stay. However when it had all started a few years ago, people used to argue that shoppers need to have a 'touch and feel' experience before buying and ecommerce seriously lacks in this. Fast-forward to today, and there is hardly anything which people are not buying through ecommerce. Similar analogy can be drawn for the above argument as well. Small screen or not, mobile and wearables are the future and merely talking about it won't cut the ice. We need companies like Myntra who believe in walking the talk. And those who still want to stick to argument of no-small-screen, they should take a look at Apple Watch and some other companies who are already developing apps for smart-watches.

Skeptics will always be there, but as I said Myntra's move is bold and a very smart one towards building a new future. And I haven't said a word about leveraging customer data and personalizing the experience. There will be hiccups along the way for sure. Myntra will probably need to provide an app-experience which is more than just 'browsing-selecting-paying'. But kudos to Myntra and I believe this move is a potential game changer and I won't be surprised if other players too join the bandwagon.

Please feel free to pitch in with your comments.

A More Meaningful Cricket World Cup

The one event all the fans of the cricket playing nations wait with bated breath. The one event which comes every 4 years. Yes, the 50-over World Cup of cricket. Currently, the 11^th edition of the World Cup is being played in the beautiful grounds and locations across Australia and New Zealand. 14 teams started the competition on 14^th February 2015, and one of these 14 will be crowned the World Champion on 29^th March on the historic ground of Melbourne, the MCG.

The format of the current tournament is similar to the one played 4 years back in the last edition in the Indian sub-continent. The teams have been divided into 2 pools of 7 teams each. Each team in a pool plays every other team and the top 4 teams from each pool proceed to play the knock-outs, consisting of 4 quarter-finals, 2 semi-finals and 1 final. That makes a total of 49 matches to be played over a span of 44 days. The teams reaching the final have to play a total of 9 matches, and only then one of the 2 finalists is crowned as the winner. Comparing this to the FIFA world cup, the two teams which play the final have to play a total of 7 matches (including the final). By this data, a cricket world champion seems a more deserved champion of the world, playing and beating more number of teams than even the ‘Beautiful Game’s’ champion.

When we are talking about football and cricket world cups, we can look at some more basic data as well. Football world cup features 32 world-class teams which have qualified after beating a lot of teams in their respective confederations. These world cup qualifier games generally run for around 2.5-3 years eventually producing 8 pools of 4 teams each. These 32 teams vie for 16 spots in the pre-quarter-finals, with the winners advancing to play quarters, semis and the final. This whole event generally runs for around 30-35 days and is one of the most-watched and most-followed events in the world. Around 200 nations worldwide start their campaigns, the better of the lot keep advancing forward, and the best wins the Cup. There have been cases when even the best of the teams have failed to qualify for the mega-quadrennial event.

Coming to cricket, it’s a well-known fact the game is played by a handful of nations across the globe. There are many leagues and divisions in which these handful of teams compete in and eventually 4 out of around 20-25 teams gain the 4 spots available for Associate nations in the World Cup. For the 2015 edition, the 4 teams that made the cut are Ireland, Afghanistan, the UAE and Scotland. It is also known that traditionally there are around 7-8 teams only which are given any chance of winning the Cup (or even coming close to reaching the semi-finals). The cricketing super-powers are so strong that in most of the cases the Associate nations hardly stand a chance of creating a dent and making their presence felt, barring an upset or two sometime in the month-and-a-half-long tournament. Ireland is one team which has always created headlines in all the 3 World Cups it has been a part of (2007, 2011 and 2015). Apart from that, there are hardly any team whose name comes to mind when we talk about world cup success (Kenya in 2003 sprung a surprise, although it was mostly due to non-cricketing reasons than the cricketing ones). And quite frankly, the small lot of cricket fans like us around the globe care little about UAE defeating Scotland or Bermuda putting up a brave show against Ireland. No offense to any of the teams mentioned above.

In a World Cup, for which we wait for 4 years, we want to see meaningful matches and close contests. We don’t want an Australia putting up 400+ runs on the board against an Associate nation and then bowling them out and winning by 250 runs. This doesn’t do justice to the sport and certainly not to the morale of the Associate nation, whom the ICC wants so much as it looks to expand the reach of the sport. We want matches in a World Cup between evenly-poised teams. And we want a good number of these matches, not just 7 (4 quarter-finals, 2 semi-finals and 1 final). The format for the World Cup should be such that the nation which comes out as the Champion should have beaten most of the world-class teams in its wake and emerges as THE team to beat in the world of Cricket.

A Solution In Sight?

There have been many calls during the past few months on overhauling the format of the competition for the 2019 World Cup and include just 10 teams. Equally strong have been the voices which have sternly opposed this idea by voicing their concerns for more international exposure to the Associate nations for the ultimate betterment of the sport. At the end of the day, ICC has to propose a solution which takes care of both the concerns in world cricket today. One, the ultimate championship should feature meaningful games, and two, the Associate nations and other smaller cricketing powers should get more exposure on the international platform for them to develop. The question is how do we accomplish this task.

I don’t think we need to look too far away for a probable solution and football and FIFA, once again, can serve as a benchmark for cricket and ICC to make the World Cup more relevant. We can start by dividing the cricket playing nations (big or small) in zones or confederations. Currently we have around 10 Full Members of ICC in cricket which can be said that they compete on equal footing when they meet. Given this, we can have 5 confederations and ensure that 2 of these 10 teams are in each confederation. So, we can have something like the following:

1. Oceania: (Full Members) Australia, New Zealand
2. South and East Asia: (Full Members) Bangladesh, Sri Lanka
3. Central Asia and Sub-Continent: (Full Members) India, Pakistan
4. Africa: (Full Members) South Africa, Zimbabwe
5. Atlantic: (Full Members) England, the West Indies

Each of the above confederations can be divided into 2 tiers or divisions, one main league and a feeder league. Based on the geographical location of a country, it would be put in one of the 5 confederations listed above and play the other teams in the same confederation. The main league of the confederation which will serve as the World Cup qualifier will constitute of 6 teams (2 full members as listed above and 4 Associate nations). The top 4 teams of the feeder league will join the 2 full members and play the qualifier games for the World Cup. In other words, say in the Oceania confederation there are 10 teams in the feeder league (or Division 2). These teams will compete against one another and the top 4 teams will qualify to meet Australia and New Zealand for the Oceania World Cup Qualification Championship. Finally, the top 2 teams from the Confederation World Cup Championship will eventually play the World Cup finals. This is essentially on the same lines as FIFA World Cup Qualifiers and Finals and it solves one of the 2 problems of Cricket currently, that of Associate nations getting more exposure. The final round of Qualification matches can be evenly spread out by ICC and national cricket boards by making necessary adjustments in the international calendar.

Coming to the 2^nd problem plaguing the Cricket World Cup, that of more meaningful matches to be played between equally matched side, we can have a look at the 1992 World Cup. This was played in Australia and New Zealand and was won, deservedly, by Pakistan. Most of us know these details, but something which we don’t know much is the format of the 1992 World Cup. This edition initially featured 8 teams and they were slated to play each other during the course of the tournament, thus totaling to 28 games in the group stage. South Africa was later inducted in the World Cup after the nation freed herself from Apartheid and hence the World Cup featured 9 teams which were supposed to play each other (36 group stage games). The important thing to note is that this World Cup did not divide the teams in Pools and each nation was supposed to play the other at least once. This same format can be inducted in the next World Cup along with the above Confederation system.

The top 2 teams from each Confederation will make a total of 10 teams qualified to play the quadrennial event. These 10 teams can be pitted against each other, thus ensuring each nation plays the other in the 1^st round (round-robin). The top 4 teams from this round will qualify for the next round and the rest 6 will be eliminated. In the format which is being followed in the IPL for the knockouts, the teams placed 1^st and 2^nd will play a qualifier (Q1), with the winner earning a place in the Final. The teams ranked 3^rd and 4^th will play an eliminator (E1), with the loser bowing out of the tournament and the winner to meet the losing team of Q1 (the match being called qualifier 2, Q2). The winner of Q2 will meet the team already in the Final and the winner of the Final will be crowned the World Champions.

The total number of matches in this particular tournament will be 49 (45 matches in the 1^st round, Q1, E1, Q2, Final), the same as the current edition of World Cup being played in Australia and New Zealand (42 matches in group stage, 4 QFs, 2 SFs and Final). The foremost benefit of this new method will be to the audience and fans who will get to see meaningful contests between top teams, who have made the cut after a rigorous Confederation Qualification championship games.

And as is the norm, more interesting games for the fans means more revenues to the host countries, the organizers, the media and ICC.

The Cricket World Cup has seen a lot of changes in the format since 1987. It is high time we try to concretize our way this grand event is conducted. As cricket slowly becomes more global, the number of teams in the Confederations can be increased and we can re-look our strategy for our two issues: One, to keep the World Cup interesting, and two, give Associate nations more exposure to international level action. Hopefully, ICC and national boards will take some steps in this direction soon.

Nishant Sinha

Comments are welcome.
Twitter: @NishantSinha88

A Ride in the Delhi Metro

I was reading a book the other day and found an intriguing sentence which made me ponder about the present state of affairs. It said “Good questions are always better than trying to give the right answers”. To start with I am again at the same place where I first had the flash of thought to write this. 

Scene :

Delhi Metro, travelling on the Yellow line from Rajiv Chowk(CP) to Huda City Centre in Gurgaon.

People say one should go to villages as it is the place where true India lives. I beg to differ a little here, with the burgeoning population of our beloved country and the aspirations of a flamboyant lifestyle, the expansion and the diminishing boundaries between the rural and the urban, it presents with the side of the story that has been staring one and all in their faces for quite some time now. 

Confused!! Are you?? So before any more digressions let me come straight to the point, which at first place prompted me to write this. With due respect to all the intellectual readers here I am going to make an attempt to highlight the plight, pardon me I mean the real situation in actual light. People of NCR region are well versed with what awaits them when they start their day. One wishes or not but is forced to think about the traffic situation, the hustling crowd of office going people in the Metro, those queues at the bus stops. You name the mode of transport and if I am not wrong one part of your brain is thinking “ I wish no more lines of cars moving at snail’s pace on the well built flyovers”. “ Will I get a seat in the metro today ?”. Will the bus be a little less crowded today? And mind you the day has just started yet, not to name the work place responsibilities are already on one’s mind. Our government says to use the public transport to ease the traffic density of the roads and partly to contribute in the energy savings.

But be rest assured, we may have seen the turnaround of NCR with the coming of Delhi metro but the hassles do not seem to lessen a bit. The voice in the metro announces” Next Station Rajiv Chowk” and people are ready, one doesn’t need to actually make an effort to get in or out at a station. You see people are actually quite helpful and you will be thrown out or taken in. And yes “Caution : Please keep a check if you are not getting down at a changeover station, you need to make your way around the crowd before your destination arrives.” 

Imagine the scene : You are a statue and can’t move your hands even if you just want to wipe those drops of sweat that have come on your forehead. Did somebody say that Delhi Metro is Air conditioned and this guy is a nutcracker, the situation inside metro coach doesn’t make me feel so. Forget about keeping a vigil from the pickpockets, you are either helpless like s statue or so busy moving along with the crowd that you hardly pay any attention to your pockets. This is not my far etched imagination but the reality, one of my friends has not once but twice lost his Ipod in the metro, the remains of which were just a pair of dangling earphones. Crazyy isn’t it!!!

With so many rules in place what is one supposed to do, in a six coach train one is reserved for ladies and no offences, but a substantial amount of fine is levied on one for committing the crime of travelling in the ladies coach, I totally agree on the safety point for women but just give a thought for the poor hapless creatures who are jostling for an inch of space in the adjoining coach, so I say the guards shouldn’t come swashing their rods for crossing the “ Lakshman Rekha” of one metro coach.

Rather than looking for solutions, fine implementation is what is necessary on the government’s part and to follow simple ethics is what is required from our end. 
Everyday is like going to a mini battle and returning victorious in the evening. Kudos to the spirit of the “ Common man” who braves such an ordeal to make it successful.
Cheers!!! 

P.S. I am well aware that one is not allowed to click photographs in the Delhi Metro but I couldn’t resist myself from clicking and posting it.

Life, like poker has an element of risk

In Stanley Kubrick's Cold War black comedy "Dr. Strangelove," the Soviets have developed a devastating "Doomsday Device," to be triggered by a nuclear attack on the U.S.S.R. It's supposed to act as a deterrent, but has been kept a secret. Asks an exasperated American president of the Russian ambassador: "Why didn't you tell the world?" To which the ambassador replies: "The Premier loves surprises."

With my two year MBA nearing its end and me at a crucial juncture with final placements coming up, i just wanted to step back before the short but seemingly long apocalypse arrives. I have been a movie buff since my engineering days when there was a ferocious demand on my side and a endless supply and time to fulfill it. Over the course of the past one and a half year due to the rigors of MBA, i somehow haven’t been able to keep my usual pace and of late have watched very few movies, restricting myself mostly to reviews of new releases. I was browsing for some new upcoming Hollywood movie trailers when i came across a trailer of ‘Birdman’ and a glance of one of my favorite actors Edward Norton caught me by surprise. I immediately went back in time in my mind trying to remember my first encounter of him, albeit in the world of movies. I had just began watching various genres of movies to expand my understanding of world cinema in my first year of engineering, when i watched a movie “The Illusionist”. The plot blew me away and the actor portraying the protagonist drew my attention. I immediately went back to the net to find out about his filmography and watch more of this actor. And boy did he surprise me with each of the movies i watched next. His portrayal of a troubled altar boy in his first movie “The Primal Fear”  was simply brilliant according to me. The next movie of his that i watched is according to me one of his and cinemas finest performances. “American History X”- i watched it more because i learnt that the young John Connor in Terminator 2 (a movie which sticks with you from your younger days) was also in it. The plot is brilliant but the portrayal by Edward Norton and his transformation in the movie is simply breathtaking. He next played second fiddle while Brad Pitt and dialogues stole all the limelight in the famous movie “Fight Club”. He also appeared beside Anthony Hopkins portraying the character of Hannibal Lecter again in the “Red Dragon” a lot similar to the 1986 movie “Manhunter” and the movie technically a prequel to “The Silence of the Lambs”. Over the years i have watched his entire filmography and have loved almost all his movies barring the bizarre “The Score” and a couple of his recent works. Of course my issue is, of late he has limited himself to cameo appearances mainly focussing more on charity work. Those who haven’t watched his movies do watch the following as well- Rounders(especially for those who love Poker), The Painted Veil, Red Dragon, Leaves of Grass. One of the most underrated performances of his is in the movie “25^th Hour”. Do check out a scene of the movie in the following link. Pardon the profanity in it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TgL_5QcZCMo

According to him “It is better for people to miss you than to have seen too much of you”. But I hope and wish he makes movies more often.

I have tried to just bring out my thoughts about the works of this wonderful actor and a good humanitarian. Pardon me as this is my first shot a blogging...hoping to continue it and would be glad for your honest feedbacks.