Random thoughts

 The word 'ambition' is a noun and means 'the desire to do or achieve something'. What do you think of this word? Right from the time a child enters school, s/he is asked to find a goal for herself/himself. And the attempts one makes to reach those goals may bring in the label of 'being ambitious'. In short, ambition may be said to be the power people put in to achieve their goals. we should remember not to confuse these goals with a well-paid job! Helping and inspiring others, learning new skills, expanding knowledge are a few of the typical ambitions that one may list.  Is it good to be ambitious or is it a negative thing? Well! there is no right or wrong answer. And this is where I go to Francis Bacon's essay 'Of Ambition'. This is an argumentative essay in which Bacon states that an ambitious person, moving unchecked, will be busy. But the moment there is an obstacle in their path, they become dangerous. To quote Bacon, "So ambitious men, if

Bharat bandh against price hike and FDI and numerous other problems? Ugh! How does a bandh solve all these problems. You'll tell me it's not meant to solve problems but it is a mark of protest against central government decisions. Fine, you protest but at least let me do my bit. Your protest means burning tires, breaking window panes of cars and other big vehicles, hitting people on bikes or puncturing them. You think these are rich people and they should suffer for being rich! But what about the poor rickshaw puller and autowallahs? Why do you target them? Ah! you have no answer. The poor person may have earned a dime or two on this particular day but your bandh leaves them poorer! Yesterday a bandh was called by the NDA and other opposition parties. As luck would have it, I was out travelling. At places scenes of burning tyres greeted us, crowds looming with 'lathis' in their hands forcing people to go back. Whats interesting is the equation in the crowd: young

WHO AM I? This is one of the most important and weirdest question that comes up daily. I have a passport and  a voters' id and numerous documents which list the names of my parents, husband, my address, occupation and other necessary details. But is that what I am? I have been thinking on these lines since my visit to the Passport Seva Kendra, Patna yesterday. When I was sent to meet an official, I found the entire place excited and no one was at his/her desk. Upon asking I was informed that they had 'caught' a TERRORIST. Wow, a terrorist! I was pretty excited. Further questioning brought forth the following information: The TERRORIST was a BANGLADESHI. This information was interpreted by the guards and other staff as: ALL BANGLADESHIS are TERRORISTS! Who will now reason with people who have such a line of thought? When I told that guard that he shouldn't club all BANGLADESHIS as terrorists, he said," Madam, he didn't have any id." My point is why w

I am democracy and I appear at various times like the General elections, the state elections and election to local bodies. People remember me in various ways and one is through the patriotic songs. This time I have again appeared in this extremely hot weather. I am trying to observe how campaigns are organised for electing representatives to local bodies. Outlined here are my observations:  With the temperatures soaring this summer, political fever is also on the rise. The reason is the Municipal elections in in Patna and in the state as a whole. The profile of the candidates is pretty interesting and so is their fervor in asking for votes. From one auto comes the tune;  ऐ मेरे वतन के लोगों ज़रा आँख में भर लो पानी ..... I can understand the eyes getting watery due to the heat and sweat but why should I fill my eyes with water for this candidate? What act of martyrdom has she/he committed for the locals? Yeah one may say the candidate has taken a huge risk at being corrupt. S/he has

We are surrounded with Toll Free numbers. all service providers have one be it the banks, cell phone companies, online shopping forums etc. We, as customers feel happy that we'll get quick assistance in case of difficulties or confusions and our grievances will be easily redressed. Well calling on these numbers may be free of charge but we forget that our time is charged. And I had to face this problem last week. I called the toll free number of a public sector bank. After choosing numerous options and giving all kinds of details, I get to choose the option to speak to a customer care agent. I chose that option and then comes the message: All our customer care agents are busy. Your call will be attended in 38 minutes 40 seconds. I was shocked and couldn't believe my ears. My husband too thought I had made a mistake and asked me to put the phone in speaker mode. When the same message was repeated, we realized my ears were working properly. I was aghast. I didn't want to disc

Year: 2009 - Place: Toronto, Canada - Job: Business Entrepreneur. Very vague labels for a 44 year old Indian who back home would have had many other identity markers like caste and family history. True, Deepak's fore-fathers traced their ancestry way back to the 15th century. He had heard numerous stories from his mother and grand mother about the various estates and princes who had ruled them and had engrained a sense of belongingness through these stories. But these were just stories like any other story. The reality was completely different. He saw his father work for bread and butter; his mother not only managed the household but also worked to manage the finances and give the children a comfortable and good life. Inspired by his parents and grandparents, Deepak worked hard and sincerely to graduate with a degree in Management from one of the top colleges in India. He worked in various firms and after several years of experiences started a firm of his own. Luckily things worked