Hazare : Khwaish Aisi...

Reading a tweet from a well known and responsible senior journalist made me think deeper into the less ordinary life of the so-called middle class hero whose selfless service elevates his stature above that of an ordinary man. While it is unanimously accepted that India needs educated leaders to lead the country, when a responsible, learned and worthy person advocates that media will do disservice by showing Anna as a Mahatma, not only the traits of the leader who unified the country for a noble common cause are questioned but the middle class fraternity is also sympathized for ever remaining the same merciful middle class.

Apart from Cricket or perhaps a New Year celebration, any other joyful occasion when India is truly unified, irrespective of demographical, geographical or communal bias, is hard to find. Unlike political rallies in which people camouflage as volunteers either for free meals or for some induced causes, multiple rallies across the nation supporting Anna witnessed true volunteers with causes of their own. Corruption in India has become so pervasive that its tentacles have grappled even the most revered institutions. It has seeped into the social culture and is affecting umpteen masses. No wonder Rajiv Gandhi once bemoaned that ‘Out of every 100 crore allocated to an anti-poverty project only Rs 15 crore reach the people. The remainder is gabbled up by middlemen, power brokers, contractors, and the corrupt’.

While people talk about corruption reaching monstrous dimensions among public servants, individuals are no less different. Recall Harshad Mehta, Ketan Parikh and now the case of Hasan Ali, the examples are only those few who couldn’t cope with lying below the surface. The more recent 2G scam appears as Public-Private Partnership. Corruption is not only a powerful inhibitor to economic progress of the country but also a moral issue which if addressed maturely will ease the economic prosperity and might also help in narrowing the rich and the poor divide. The stand that Anna has taken and the conviction that he has shown in his endeavors have aroused the nation leading to a new movement. People, media, bureaucrats, politicians and many more have positively acknowledged both Anna and his movement. If the motive is that imposing, the person behind needs an hats off and no surprises if some compare him with more notable personalities whom the history has witnessed.

Campaigning for a bill is only a fledgling step into a mass movement. True success cannot be ensured until the Indian mindset accepts it as a moral responsibility not to indulge in any act of bribe irrespective of its magnitude. This is something very difficult to accomplish. However, well begun is half done. Anna’s power to mobilize the public may partially be accounted to impactful digital social media. The more prominent factor that has propelled Anna to marshal the nation for various social causes, frighten the power goons and shake the government, is perhaps because he has nobody in his family to cry for him. Otherwise, a plebeian is more concerned about his family, his daily wages and thus by choice opts out of contributing to these social causes. Nevertheless, it is the plebeian who either suffers the most from corruption or indirectly contributes significantly in aiding this epidemic. Not to forget, the power of masses endures forever. Until the so called middle class or a common service man bursts out of its cocoon and espouses Anna’s cause without condoning, the wishful success is still a distance away!!! 

An Incredible Captain - Mahendra Singh Dhoni

For the first time I felt as if ever confident Ravi Shashtri's voice was little fumbling during the presentation ceremony. It was the joy that made the country scream with cheers. Madness could be seen all over the streets. World Cup 2011 was a special memento to Sachin Tendulkar who shouldered the team's responsibility for such a long time. I would have been happier if the players would have spoken even a line about MS Dhoni. Good that media is talking much about him.

What differentiates a good captain from a great captain are the traits of Mahendra Singh Dhoni who has been tested several times by the critics all over. Each time he faced them bravely, stood by his believes and took tough decisions in favour of the team. And now he slapped every one to keep his mouth shut with his skipper innings at the much required time - an unbeaten knock of 91 in the World Cup Finals.

History has witnessed on several occassions when a great batsman has taken over captaincy and has then failed to maintain his batting form. MS is no exception. I recall from the movie Iqbaal that how much technicality, focus and determination is required to plan a winning strategy. While consistently handling this immense pressure, probably the skipper's focus shifts from batting techniques or bowlers' analysis to game's strategy. Yet, MS proved himself at the most critical situation he can ever face in life. He was not playing for the audience but to win the game for his country.

Recall SRK's super-hit Chak-De-India; one wrong shoot and he repents seven years to prove himself. Dhoni's moving up the order at this critical juncture of World Cup Finals, an event that the nation was holding the breathe for and expecting it to repeat after 28 long years, was no less an analogy. Any mistake could have cost him a great deal. It is the ability of a leader to put his stakes at risk, abide by his belief and take tough decisions. Fortunately, fortune favoured the brave.

World Cup brings in special memories & pride for India. India had some turbulence time in the beginning of the series. With each passing match, the team improved upon hurdles and peaked at the occassion demonstrating a complete cricket. Everyone had hold his or her nerves as Malinga struck Sehwag and hopes were in despair as it repeated with Sachin. Thankfully, mature innings from Gambhir, Virat, MS and Yuvi paved way for the party. Kudos to team India and Kudos to each one of you!!!

A Mumbai Morning - A LOCAL Morning

I hail from the rural viscinity of Patna but have never been fortunate enough to stay there for long. From the little that I have seen into the lives of Bihari people, I do recall my memories of the local office commuting shuttle running between Buxar and Patna. I hope things would have now improved after Nitish regime as this local was then more known for running behind the schedules. What reigns my thoughts is the unorganised crowd that made me belief nothing could be more crowded unless I witnessed the stuffed locals in Mumbai.

Morning commuting is always a problem for me as I thrive for my comfort space. One local missed and you don't need a visit to spa. Furthermore, I can't even thurst myself into the mob and I had already missed the last two for their overwhelming crowd affinity. Glancing through the coaches I was evaluating whether it's any benifit paying more for a first class ticket. This one had started crawling when I realized little space on the next entrance of the coach. I quickly charged into the mob not to miss this much awaited opportunity.

The sudden jerk this uncle on the gate gave me to push me in was unpleasant. I gazed him awfully as I tried settling among the crowd. He must be in his late forties with scarce grey hairs. Yet, he deserved to be called an Uncle for his gesture. An young companion next to him was reading a neatly folded newspaper. There was indeed enough space as standing near the gate he could manage to glance through the lines. The newspaper edges were flipping a little with the airblow of the speeding train. The restless, uneasy Uncle stared this companion whenever the pages brushed near uncle's face, though distant enough not to touch him. May be Uncle had some acerbic discussions with Aunty in the morning, I assumed.

I usually have high respect for elders and people around me. However, this Uncle was seeming like a villian when I was all focussed to somehow quickly reach office. Once I even thought it good if someone gives him a little push or a blow in the natural process of offboarding rush on the crowded platforms. Came the next station and the Uncle got off softly. I was again lost thinking about day's schedule until I got a bad push from people behind. I hate Kurla for its atmosphere; I don't have any option as this is the closest to my office. I was cursing the morning as I had to wait a little more seeing the herd crawling on the foot overbridge. And then, an angelic aroma attracted my attention as a beautiful young lass talking on phone passed by me. Her sweet smile made me forget everything and suddenly my morning was worth it!!!

Celebrating the National Festival - Cricket World Cup Semi Finals - India Vs Pakistan

When all roads were leading to Mohali, how could the traffic sustain in Mumbai. Mumbai seemed deserted today. Scarcely filled locals, less traffic, no taxis, and all eyes glued to screens whether office or homes. Cricket World Cup Semi-Finals, India vs Pakistan, an event at which both countries, irrespective of any discrimination, look forward to. Indeed, it was a connoisseurs delight, a complete powerplay and not limited to a couple of overs. There could be no better combination of Cricket and Commerce which this time went a step ahead encapsulating brotherhood, diplomacy, celebrities and power.


Sehwag at his natural best provided the magnificent punch India needed for a great start. India cheered as he repeatedly forced the ball beyond the boundary. Cricket could have attained another extravaganza and India could have practically scored 300+ if he could have stayed for another few overs. Even the pitch did not like Sehwag's dismissal as it gradually paved way for spinners and India's run rate declined. Sachin could also have followed Sehwag to pavilion had it not been Sachin's luck acting as a blessing in disguise that helped Sachin help India attain a defend-able score. Yuvi couldn't even open his account, drifting away from his consistent batting performance during the series. MS tried his part but it's Raina who needs an extra pat on the back for driving India to 260 in 50 overs. Towards the end of Indian innings, the country had a mixed reaction on the fate of match.


Bowling and fielding both were superb. Perhaps, Indian batting was also at its best but for the changing behavior of the pitch. As the pitch had become slow and favored the spinners in the first innings, once it seemed that India might have made a mistake with only Bhajji playing as a spinner with little help from Yuvi. However, pacers were not only consistent on their line and length but they also used deceptive variations in speed to take wickets. While both Zaheer and Patel kept the Pakistani batsmen under pressure, I am extremely happy for Nehra who at last got the wickets after an extremely spell-bounded  economical bowling. May be it was the haunting criticism that he received for his last over in the previous match that made him put the much needed extra effort. Fielding couldn't have been better and it's appreciable to see it improving with each game.


As India beat Pakistan with 29 runs, all Indians are happy. But there is a South African too who is celebrating it with much joy and contentment. Gary Kirstan would be much delighted to see a complete team India ready for the finals as first India's batting got tested against  Australia and now bowling again Pakistan. In my last blog I had criticized whether Indian team can exhibit a complete cricket. With no better expectations than this in fielding, it's a happier moment to see India attaining that momentum before the finals.

Victory is never smooth. Loosing the battle makes it worse. Afridi congratulated India with lots of grace. Yet, billions of eyes witnessing each moment as naked truth will raise their own questions. I see it as an opportunity lost for Pakistan as you cannot be rewarded for dropping six catches in a single match including four of Sachin Tendulkar. Could a batting powerplay taken when Afridi was charging his skipper innings with Misbah have altered Pakistan's fate? When Misbah could hit those boundaries in the last overs, why did he wait for the eleventh hour?  Alas, whatever you think now, roads are now leading towards Mumbai where India takes on Sri Lanka in the ICC Cricket World Cup Finals 2011. All the best to both the teams.

Actionable Insights - Rising to change the game

There are those who accept things as they are and those who Rise to change – Any entrepreneur would relate to this tag line of Mahindra Rise campaign. Specifically one who has risen from rags to riches is certain to flashback into his memory lanes. Ironically, RC Agarwal who took 24 laborious years to build Vishal Retail from a small shop in Kolkata to a 170 store chain across the country would not be so happy about it. The company once valued at `2,200Cr is now sold for merely `70Cr in a slump sale transaction.

Vishal Retail was not the only company effected during economic meltdown of 2008. Indian retail industry was adversely impacted in 2008-09 and goliaths including Reliance Retail and Future Group were forced to halt their expansion plans and shut several shops. Subhiksha had to close its nationwide network of 1,600 supermarkets. But then there were those who thrived during the uncertain struggling times and now are gliding the waves smoothly. Recently Shoppers Stop successfully experimented with a well thought of strategy by launching non-metro outlets with full fledged counters of cosmopolitan premium cosmetic brands that were unseen in the region.

I am not here to debate on the management mantras of these companies varying extremely in their numbers. But for sure the businesses want to see their numbers growing in the positive sides. For any industry such as Retail, FMCG, Banking, Insurance, Telecom, Aviation or Railways for that matter that has millions or billions of customer records, it is imperative to have actionable insights into customer behavior. One size does not fit all and customers look forward to individualized experience. It is vital to identify key customer segments, understand deeper into the most profitable customers and then take small but strategic steps to attract them through focused campaigns or specific merchandising moves. Although you cannot follow your customer within your shop, you can track your customer in this technologically advanced social world. Furthermore you can even get into the head of your customer to understand his buying behavior in case you have relevant data available.

Gone are the days when Information Technology was merely a support system. With cutting edge analytical solutions available, Information Technology is playing a key role in formulating business strategies and driving major decisions over pricing and promotions. If one segments and promotes top 10 percent of the products that are attractive to its most profitable customers and simultaneously attempts to reduce 10 percent of least attractive products, it’s more likely that revenues and profits will have positive impact. Such an attempt with proactive personalized campaigns build more loyal customer and strongly position the brand in a specific target segment. No wonder that analytical approach and fact based decisions are greatly influencing the changing face of marketing.

With emergence of Facebook and Twitter, social media has evolved as a platform that no marketer can afford to ignore. Leave apart the business houses or celebrities, it’s now the political parties leveraging the power of social media to target netizens. Can anyone afford to neglect the impact of Facebook which provoked the uprising in Egypt? Customers are increasingly getting prone to evaluate product features and customer feedback over the web. Any positive or negative media sentiment not only significantly impacts the brand positioning but can also impact the stock performance. Fortunately there are powerful tools available to listen to the masses and respond accordingly.

Actionable insights, targeted personalized campaigns and the power of social media are the surest tickets for marketers to reap economic value out of customer information and prevent a business moving from boom to doom.