astute perceptions

Fall came with falling grace, I thought about free falling, Got a call, someone said, Fall is here to be. Rise with the fall, rise instead, Rise with the rising costs, For if you stay free falling, You’ll only be seen as lost. So with them, I discovered, What rising was all about, To rise with us, you must only Fall in line, or fall out. So I fell out, a nd I’m free Free as free could be Fall comes, brings with it More offers to rise with thee But free I was, free I am Free is all I have. Free to think, write, express, And travel the world a tramp.

The first time I saw this, I was in school. That was the first time I realized the power of words. The power these words had on me. They made me feel powerful. And they weren’t written by an acclaimed writer. They were written by someone not known for writing. They were from a world-champion boxing legend – Mohammad Ali. And no, he didn’t pen these for Adidas. Those were times of finding myself. I was enrolled into science, with plans to be an engineer. I had been writing for as long as I could remember. A release of poetry once in a while. An occasional practiced short-story. The day I saw these words, I wanted to pen something similar. Something this powerful. On closer analysis I realized, it was the thought behind the poster, said in simple words of raw energy, that made the line so impactful. It was superhuman. It was human. It was eye-opening. It was embarrassing. It was inspiring. It was irrefutable. But it didn’t make me want to buy Adidas. It didn’t make me dream of ...

Got an interesting email from a smart guy. It said – ‘Frequently Wrong but Never in Doubt’. And it hit me how far I’ve come away from that. The problem with being wrong in a day job is, sometimes, you can be penalized for being wrong. Often, you are. So the motivation to make mistakes and explore new possibilities loses air faster than a football deflated with a pointed heel. Making mistakes in a job affects one’s growth. Making mistakes in business catalyzes one's growth. That’s the irony of doubt.

While most briefs portray lofty, and often manifold ambitions from an ad, most ads in the newspaper merely do a good job of informing. No paradigm shift in consumer behavior, no ‘creating a buzz’ by an old offering because ‘we tweaked it a certain way’. Just information. And how some of them are better suited to fit your requirements. A new laptop from Lenovo promises to have an 8hr battery backup for SME users. A news story (read, PR) talks about Apple’s new line of iPod Touch, Nano, and TV. A full-page ad of IDBI talks about savings account that doesn't charge banking fees. Now the IDBI ad might create, to some extent, a paradigm shift. Which is to say more shifts to the said bank. It’s the offering that is great, and the ad carries it in a fluid manner. There is a little mess in the boiler-plate area, but that can happen anywhere given the last minute tug-of-war between the client and the agency, so I will give the said agency a pass on the blame. Were there lofty expectat...

Back in the day, there was a railway station in a small village called Buxar in Bihar. People would take trains all over the country from that station, more people would come and drop them, see them off. Most bought platform tickets while seeing people off. Then one day, a guy couldn’t buy a platform ticket in a hurry. While exiting the station, he told the checker that he had forgotten, and the checker, reasonable man that he was, let this guy go, with a promise to not lapse another time. “How much difference can a 5p ticket actually make?”, the guy thought. The next time, he again forgot, and got away. The word spread. Soon, many people were not buying tickets. They were flouting other rules as well, like crossing the tracks on foot, and not on the bridge. Bringing 2 wheelers to the platform. And so on. Today, if you enter the station, and go to buy a platform ticket, people laugh at you for not having enough sense that a ticket is not required. Isn’t that how, over the years, ...

•                      Brief != Underpants •                      ‘Copy’ should be ‘Original’. •                      ‘OOH!’ is a kind of media (It means Out-Of-Home) •                      ‘Positioning’ has nothing to do with the Kama Sutra •                      ‘Bleed’ is a completely legitimate design term. •                      ‘Scribbles’ are meant to provide you clarity. •   ...

"The time has come," the Walrus said, "To talk of many things: Of shoes--and ships--and sealing-wax-- Of cabbages--and kings-- And why the sea is boiling hot-- And whether pigs have wings."

Drivin to Goa from Bangalore, do you have a visa? Sorry, the Himalayas are another country, mate. For Leh, there's a 20-pg permission form to be filled, and a long waiting. Let's figure out the brand strategy for the brand launch in our neighbouring nations's capitals - Chennai, Itanagar, Kolkata and Kathmandu. Sounds Chinese to you? I thought about the Chinese thought with little faith. But I really had to ask myself, how do I feel about this as a citizen? Do most people feel this way, irrespective of where they come from? Does anyone among us feel cheated to be part of One India ? Are we really bound with a tricolour thread that will ensure out nation never splits? I believe we are. Who's with me?

1. Send your entire team out to a rest-o-bar for dinner – company paid, of course. 2. Ask them to order drinks and snacks to their heart’s content. 3. Let them discuss metaphysical eccentricities, North Korean war, best blooper moments, stand-up comics, world’s juiciest butts – anything under the sun but work. 4. Ask them to order a few more rounds of drinks, then dinner, then drinks again. 5. Order coffee. 6. Order 5 few more rounds of drinks. 7. Call them a cab and fill them in the cab safely. 8. Tell them to reach office at 9am, sharp, before they leave, else they’re fired. 9. Next day, at 9, hand them an 18 page agenda that they were supposed to discuss the previous night. Ask them for conclusions. 10. The answers that come then, apart from the obvious blitzkrieg-hit, hangover-marred crap, will hopefully be some of the most creative strategic ideas ever. Of course, this is most effective only 1 in 100 times. If they are really smart. And very very lucky ;-)

I shall be telling this with a sigh Somewhere ages and ages hence: Two roads diverged in a wood, and I, I took the one less traveled by, And that has made all the difference. - Robert Frost

Life’s a circus, and we’re all jokers in various roles. All authorities, in my opinion, are jokers pretending to be ring-masters. And pretending that we are their tamed lions. But bottom-line, we are all jokers. And joke we do, while others joke with us. No joke is good enough to make us stop being what we are. Jokers. While you pretend to be a ring-master, do all that you will. In the end, it’s an act. It’ll only get as serious as a joker’s. No more, no less. And you don’t like that. You hate being called a joker. You are convinced you are not. You are a ringmaster, right? Take another look, maybe you are no different than me. And I am a joker. In this circus of life.

It's never too late to be whoever you want to be. There is no time limit, start whenever you want. You can change or stay the same. There are no rules to this thing. We can make the best or the worst of it. I hope you make the best of it. And I hope you see things that startle you. I hope you feel things you never felt before. I hope you meet people with a different point of view. I hope you live a life you're proud of. If you find that you're not, I hope you have the strength to start all over again. - Benjamin Button

A day at Dilli 6. Chandani Chawk, Khari Baoli, Ajmeri Gate. Chole Bhatoore, Rabri Falooda, Clicking Camera. Holy Qoran, Cleaning Marbles, Bumping Rickshaws.

A committee can never deliver as much as an individual can, in a given frame of time. Godspeed.

not about heart no soul involved selling ideas, products, brands not for myself, but for certain grands, write for my paycheck, don't write for writing, don't think why i give in to this noose that seems tightening. bills to pay, rent, dinner, travel to save for, family, future and after that, i think i'll write - when i'm, content with my current pay-structure. till then my friends, i can but indulge in occasional rhymes on love, angst and grudge i will, often, keep taking this ride, of this thread, of it's soul, of why, we write.

Rosh NoBrains blabs out my name for a role so tard in every regard no hair no height overweight tragic sight public display now its war not play behold sit tight nor plead your plight. you'll pay you'll pay is all I'll say.

Women claim men are too fast, too insensitive and too often too direct. They think we want to be ahead in the equation all the time, and would do anything to maintain control of the dynamics. In our defense, we are scared of uncertainties. Habitual to direct, open conversations ("Pass the beer, dude", "Stop bein' such a wussy!") when we find a friend in trouble, we just say, "Your car got stolen? Bummer. Lets go catch a drink." and spend the next two hours drinking and watching soccer. ("That kick is blanking brilliant!", "Did you see that crazy save?") So when a woman says phrases like "Lets see.", "Nothing.", "Suppose you try to guess.." and "I don't know/I can't say anything now.", it leaves us scratching our head and wondering what we are supposed to do next. Wait? Be on our best behavior till further notice? We know they are talking sense at their end, but it don't make no...

A successful (and hence desired) woman is someone who is smarter than her boyfriend. A successful man is someone who can find such a girl.

Life is a colloid of situations - when it's in motion, we are stressed, when not, we relax.