Coffee with a War Hero

I usually hate wars. Everyone hates wars. In a war, there are no winners. But it is necessary to protect our own interest. People in the army have always amazed me. Their persona, their dedication, their sparkle in the eye. Their eyes show the immense amount of satisfaction that they get with their personal sacrifice for the good of the nation. Many of these men and women could opt for lucrative jobs in other vocations. They do not have to go to the border, stay away from the family, put their life at risk, earn lesser than their peers in other fields, but they do. These breed of men and women are of a different kind – I realized after meeting Col. Ramesh Sharma over a cup of coffee at Costa Coffee at Connaught Place, Delhi.

Col. Ramesh Sharma is retired from the army and is now in the corporate world. What does he do? He turns around failed companies. He says passionately about his days in the army. ‘I enjoyed every single minute of my life in the army. And what I do today is also the same. Turning around situations that hang on the brink of failure.’ Col. Ramesh Sharma, for people to have an easy connect was the real life character Amitabh Bachchan had depicted in the film Lakshya.

Speaking about those decisive days of the Kargil War, he says - When the first attack of the battalion failed, I was asked to take over a new battalion and recapture Tiger hill. I refused a new battalion. ‘If the failed battalion would have not got a second chance, they would have had to live in shame for the rest of their lives for their failure.’

He went out and asked the jawans, how many of them were ready to launch another attack on the infiltrates. Each one of them put their hands up. He went to his senior and told them, he would continue the attack with the same battalion. It didn’t mattered if he was court-martialed. 12 hours later, he was given the permission. He went back and faced his battalion. He gave up his gun and refused to wear the bullet-proof jacket. He told his men – I will be walking in front of you with nothing but a chadi (a thin bamboo stick). Save me if you can, from the bullets of the enemy.


Nevertheless to say, in the battle that followed, Tiger hill was re-captured, one of the key moments in the Kargil war. A war that was standing on the brink of failure had turned around. He now does the same with failed companies. It is not much different from war, he says. ‘Only here, your life is not threatened by a bullet.’

Colonel now also visits management colleges and shares his experience to teach young people in the art of leadership. We salute to you and to the men who lay their lives for the country expecting nothing but honor!

Homeless in Mumbai

Yesterday as i was returning home after running some errands, I heard a voice calling out from behind a parked taxi. I wasn't sure if they were calling out to me, but I paused to turn back and look. A middle-aged guy, probably in his fifties waved out to me as he walked closer. He had a 'Sundaram' notebook in his hands.

Man: Are you a Mallu Christian?
Me: No... not a chrstian...
Man: There are a lot of mallu christians in this area
Me: Really, I never bothered to count.
Man: Ha ha... you have a dry sense of humor.
Me: Was born like that

OK i must admit that i was apprehensive about this guy. He was clean shaven, dressed well in a white shirt and blue jeans but i was very uncomfortable by his smile.

Man: Can you help us?
Me: How do you want me to help me?
Man: You know we have been homeless... (He pointed to a couple who were sitting behind the taxi on the curb. All of them well dressed.) We are roaming like this since a week.
Me: Why?
Man: We were thrown out of our house, our own house.
Me: So how are you surviving since the last week.
Man: God has been taking care of us.
Me: Well, good for you.

Now i got ths sense that he was going to ask for money and if he did, I knew that this was another kind of a scam a colleague had told me long back. He was duped of a thousand bucks a couple of years back when a couple with a child, approached him and he out of sympathy gave it to them. They promised they will return it and took his address. They never got back and a couple of months later, there was a burglary in his house. They could never link the two, but that incident was tapping on my mind's shoulder.

Man: Can you help us by donating some money? We will return it to you.
Me: NO!
Man: Why such a loud No? People have contributed. I am taking their addresses and will repay them when I earn it back.
Me: there are a couple of reasons. One, Your smile. You look too happy that you have lost your home. Second, if you had lost your home, your friends would have bailed you out, if they have not, then you don't have any friends, and three, if you lost your own home to someone else and didnot know that it was coming, you sure are a fool.

Man: (a little angry) you are cruel.
Me: Cant help it. Have been like that since childhood.

I walked away. I dont know if I was right for not helping them. I dont know if they were really speaking the truth. Probably I might have one more curse on my head now!!

India Vs. Zimbabwe

Would you buy a loaf of bread for 1000$, 1000 Zimbabwean dollars? Well, that is what a loaf of bread costs in Zimbabwe. The country is supposed to have the worlds highest inflation rate - of 11.2 million%.

http://in.news.yahoo.com/139/20080820/882/twl-zimbabwe-inflation-now-11-2-million.html

Gives a little heart to Indians where the annual rate of inflation has grown to 11%. I wonder how survival is possible where the Government does not take any measure to better the situation than keep printing higher currency notes. In such a case, wont printing those currency notes be costlier than the currency note itself? It might be like making a Gold coin of one Rupee denomination.

The Zimbabweans have now resorted to a better system in trading. Its a method which was adopted when trading was a new theory. The Barter system. Exchange commodities for commodities. This atleast ensures survival of the hardworking and denounces the Government currency, which thrives on usage of currency as means of renumeration for their misgivings.

Personally, i feel much relieved that we, the Citizens of India are relatively in a much better scenario than our counterparts in Zimbabwe, but we should take heed from the signs of what can go wrong, if the citizens of India dont check the Governments economic policies from time to time.

Creating the Big Bang!!!

Physicists at CERN are elated. Now that the proton beam has been successfully tested in clockwise direction, CERN plans to send it counterclockwise. Eventually the two beams will be fired in opposite directions with the aim of smashing together protons to see how they are made.

They say this is how the big bang had occurred and the planets and stars were formed out of nothing. The skeptics say that the result of the tests will create micro black holes in the universe that can suck in planets and stars. James Gilles, the official spokesperson of CERN rubbishes this theory.

Now going by the whole big bang theory that I had read in school, the entire universe was formed out of nothingness. Sanskrit texts claim nothing is everything and everything is nothing. I see a link between these two theories which in one line talks about similar concepts in different contexts. The secrets of the universe are far vast than we know, at least vast than what I know. But if the existence of the universe depended on the two theories that have been hammered into my head as a kid and if I believed it to be true, I would be a skeptic. For recreating a big bang would recreate the universe one more time.

Only this time it would be man made. What if huge planets are created, a new sun, new stars… What if everything the theories spoke about were really true? I guess that is why Stephen Hawkins wants the test to fail. It would humble human scientists by letting them know that they don’t know everything. The hunger for knowing all, will fuel them to continue living. It will stop them from being God. But what happens if the tests succeed and they are really able to create the Big Bang. Will it create planets stars etc, one more time? Will the earth explode? If none of these things happen and the physicists call the test as a success, then how would you define that they actually recreated the Big Bang? Would they be lying? Only time will tell… for I am curious to know how everything was formed at the risk of losing everything.

Because, nothing is everything and everything is nothing.

Of Babas and Babies and a Curse

I was waiting for my colleague near my new office in Bandra next to my car when a Mercedes S – Class car went past me and stopped. A man draped in saffron cloth stepped out and hurried towards me. I was a bit startled and then, a bit cautious. I had heard of these fake baba’s who hypnotise you and take all the money you have. But then, I realize I was not carrying much cash anyways, so I relaxed as he reached towards me. Obviously he was a chela of some bigger baba.

Chela: Baba wants to speak to you.
Me: What?
Chela: Baba Something (I don’t remember his name) saw you and felt you were of noble blood, and wants to speak to you.
Me: Me? Noble? What do you want?
Chela: He just wants to talk to you.

Hesitant, I walked to the car. The car had fine leather upholstery and a Baba with a flowing beard and sparkling eyes looked at me.

Me: Yes?
Baba: You are of noble blood son!
Me: I don’t know if the blood is noble, but I know it is B positive.
Baba: Don’t make fun of a holy man. My curse can ruin your life.
Me: Sorry.
Baba: You should do a yagna with milk blah blah blah blah (I did not understand a single word he spoke)

After a while of talking or rather babbling, he paused, and I looked at him with amazement. He must have thought I was amazed by his forecast which I hardly understood, but his smile made me realize he thought I agreed to what he said. I turned around to his chela.

Me: What was he saying? I did not understand a single thing.
Chela: He said your son will make you a proud father.
Me: I think I shall be proud if I become a father.

Baba (angrily): You are mocking a messenger of God.
Me: I am sorry if you are a messenger of God, but it doesn’t take a messenger to tell me that I shall be a proud father, and now if excuse me, I have other work to do.
Baba: (looking towards the other side) blah blah blah…

Chela: You don’t understand, Baba doesnot talk to everyone. He chose you.
Me: Well thanks for choosing me, but what does he want?

Baba: Its only some thing so that my disciples can eat something in the afternoon

Now this was some news to me. A man travelling in a Mercedes S-class car wanted money for lunch!

Chela: You will earn blessings from the Baba himself. Just give him whatever you can
Me: I have a five rupee coin, here it is (I handed it over to him)
Baba: How dare you insult us? Do you think we are beggars?
Me: Then what were you just asking? I thought that is what is called begging.

Well, to cut the story short, he cursed me and left.

Honesty is the best policy!

I was driving through the city right from dawn break. Personal commitments at home made me drive across the city from one corner to the other, making my way through potholed roads, unruly rickshaw drivers, and crazy truck drivers. The drive through a crowded city is enough for my back to cringe in pain. As I reached close to home, an immense urge to reach there made me skip a signal and from out of nowhere popped a man wearing a white shirt and khaki trousers and asked me to park my vehicle on the side of the road. The traffic police man walked towards me with a smile, knowing he had caught a catch.

Traffic police: Look at the signal behind. It is red. You jumped the signal.. Its your fault!
Me: You are right, I am sorry
TP: Show me your license and PUC
Me: (giving him the license) Its a new car…
TP: I will fine you, you can collect your license from the chowky
(At this point he expected me to plead and offer him a bribe)
Me: O.K. Just give me the address, I will collect it.
TP: (surprised) You mean I should fine you?
Me: Yes, I have done a mistake, I should be punished. Please fine me.
TP: You mean you want to pay the fine?
Me: I have done a mistake, so I should pay the fine, isn’t it?
TP: (with a smile) Go! Please give attention to the signal when you drive
Me: You mean you don’t want to fine?
TP: No, Its OK. I know I am doing the right thing!
Me: Thanks dada…

I went back to my car with a smile. I realized that being honest and righteous has its advantage. Now talking about honesty, here is the honest truth – I didn’t have cash in my pocket to bribe him!!!

Contact Established

If any of you have read The Alchemist, you would understand the nature of signs. They are supposed to mean something. A sign that came in front of me yesterday has put me into thinking about what it was trying to tell me.

I have a fixation for number plates. Yes, its a weird fixation, but its a fact. Unknowingly i always read a number-plate and then another weird action takes place in the head of mine which is making sense of the number. for eg. the number plate says MH-02-AY- 4215... My brain would isolate the number 4215 and then a formula is formed 4+2-1=5. If the formula worked, i would feel happy. If it didnt, my attention would go to the next vehicle and it would continued.

Then, I tried to search for a vehicle that would have my PIN number. The password to the ATM to withdraw cash. I kept looking for it for many days and months but it never surfaced. What were the chances of anyone seing the number plate of someone else's car which had the secret PIN number you were using. Looked improbable.... Slowly the fixation faded away and life became normal. Until Yesterday!

Yesterday as i drove to work, A White scorpio cut me and moved in ahead of my 'panther'. I was angry, for the guy was driving rashly. And I looked at its number plate! It was the PIN number i use!!! On its windshield was written 'Contact Established!'

I dont know what it meant, but what got me thinking was - Why did the owner of the car write that on his windshield? The usual writings on a windshield are names, sunsigns, rock band names and messages like - Done mess with me, you are following the leader, etc.... What does Contact Established mean? ??

Is this guy trying to get in touch with aliens and has established contact?
Beats me... but yes the sign works for me.. Contact has been established... but with whom, i wonder!!!!