eye see

The eyes ..

SafePack (TM)

The Indian Post Office Amendment Bill, 2006.

For people who still might not know what this means, it states that India Posts, the central government’s postal service, will have the monopoly to deliver all letters weighing up to 300 gms across the country.

In effect, it will be illegal to use a courier service of your choice to send across any sort of mail. Urgent business communication, last minute applications, whatever. Time to destination be damned, assurance of delivery be damned.

Is it true ?! You ask yourself. Maybe you rub your eyes a little in surprise. But then you look at other recent happenings .. Reservations in elite educational institutions. Reservations in private sector jobs. Suddenly this monopolistic bill seems trivial, just a peg in the whole scheme of moving towards an inefficient, uncompetitive enterprise.

Ah, who cares !

I just want to evaluate - What would be the market size for 'SafePack' (a sturdy protective envelope for sending letters across) ?

And the best part of the deal is, it would weigh exactly 301 grams. Hey, presto - you are above the Law!

Now you can courier to your heart's content - they charge you the equivalent of 500gms minimum per each letter anyway, so this aint gonna cost you any more.

Except for SafePack, and that will be available to you at a discount, depending on my arrangement with the courier company.

So welcome to the world where you stay assured of the safe delivery of your correspondence. On time; and no waiting at unmanned counters . (err.. which were supposed to be manned, we are not talking about automation here. Not in India post; not yet. )

Get SafePack today ! Available in three different colours: Red, Burgundy and Maroon. With a special limited Burnt-Sienna edition mega-pack of Six for the price of Five! The more you courier, the more you gain!!

And oh, if you are pally with someone who can move a bill in the parliament against competition in the business of envelopes weighing 301 gms, do let me know.

Cobainish Detachment

When my Girl friend asked what is it in Lucky Ali that you like so much, I did not have a ready answer. To further complicate the affairs at hand, she said, a lot of the songs that he croons are the same soporific love ballads as the sonus and the ashas of the game will sing. Later during the dinner I came to realize what it is about Lucky that makes his love ballads lot better than other mushy crooners?

A lot of his lyrics are fluffy and dreamy. Yet only few of them are chocolaty and candy-floss. Some of his songs about love are very passionate, yet none of them border on insanity(even when he sings ‘paagalpan kii siima kya hai’). They always very much are sung by a person who is in absolute control of his emotions, with a definite coat of pragmatism. Even his songs with the romantic airiness are rendered in a groovy voice that is inherently detached. That is the insignia of a happy man who is relishing his moment of being in honest love. Love that is a commitment but not a bondage. Even when they are not anthems of unadulterated bliss, they never hint the incapacity of the man to deal with the turmoil of nascent love.

The sense of detachment in his voice is very Cobainish. Remember ‘My girl, where did you sleep last night?’ May be it is the gifted voice that wafts in a sense of unbounded freedom, even when they are lamenting for their love.

good morning

Woke up today morning with a young early-summer sun in my face.

It felt different. The birds were chirping. Could distinctly hear at least ten different bird sounds. Plus an occasional squirrel, too.

Suddenly, childhood memories started flooding by. It was so much like the days when we had summer vacations.

It was only a few moments later I realised why it felt so good.

There was absolutely no sound of traffic.

IQBAL BALLE BALLE

Munaf Patel is not the quintessential Indian cricketer that you see. He is rustic and uncouth with a dialect heavy accent, yet with a passionate fire in his eyes to excel. His ruthless pace and piercing sharpness, not only ushers the much awaited speed-machine into the growing Indian pace brigade, it also firmly marks the coming of age of the hitherto marginalized economically backward villagers into the mainstream of Indian cricket. At this very moment it is hard to overlook the similarity of his story with that of Iqbal, the fantastic portrayal of the triumph of perseverance and hope, over the daunting odds in the big bad world of Indian cricket. Not long before, a berth in Indian cricket was the bastion of the deals of dalmiyas and the power play of the pawars of the business. Rife with regionalism, it scarcely inspired the youth from such remote corners to strive and make their mark. That thing might not have changed entirely. But the irrfans and the munafs are ample testimony to the fact that the times, that are certainly a’changin. That is very encouraging for Indian cricket, for the longer these fiery youngsters keep their faith, the more is the chance that we discover new world-beating talent. The pinnacle of the pursuit for the cricketing youth from various corners of India is uniform, a coveted berth in the Indian team. The examples of Munaf’s and Irfan’s will keep the hopes alive for these youngsters and will encourage them to hone themselves to deliver for India.

The media has had an undeniable role to play in the ushering of many of these changes in Indian cricket. Stronger and well circulated coverage of the achievements of various players at regional level and the public analysis of selection rationale has certainly helped the selectors, by keeping them informed and vigilant. At the same time the media should not over-sensationalize the achievements of such raw talent. Munaf has certainly a long distance to go, to discipline himself a lot more so as to mature to the level of the Akrams and the Lilees. (Just look at the statement: A storm called Munaf Patel rocked England's cricketing juggernaut in Baroda today, and England's batting ship was left floundering)

A definite breeze of change is sweeping Indian cricket. The office bearers are becoming increasingly accountable and responsible with a national vision. Young talent is forcing the well-entrenched seniors to re-invent themselves to earn their places. The 'I-am-indispensible' haughtiness is being replaced by 'Let's prove ourselves' humility. The media and the advertising agencies will do well not to hijack such emerging talent in their early rawness.