Mass Customization may seem like an oxymoron. When you think of something as individualistic as career choices, it begs the question how far such a thing is possible. Organizations have long defined successful careers to represent a ladder. Ladders were for lads and too bad if the ladies chose to opt out of it. With the changing demographics, all that is changing at a reasonable pace.
Director Abhishek Choubey first assisted Vishal Bhardwaj when Vishal was shooting for the children's film Makdee in 2002 and then was the Asstt Director for him in The Blue Umbrella, Maqbool and Omkara. Ishqiya is Abhishek Choubey's debut film as Director. The much acclaimed Kaminey last film by Vishal Bhardwaj (Kaminey) also had Abhishek doing the screenplay. ISHQIYA sees Vishal and Abhishek teaming up with Sabrina Dhawan to write a crackling screenplay that makes for a film that is will remind you of Omkara and Maqbool in terms of its stylised story telling and powerful music.
I moved to Bangalore last October. To be interviewed for the city's website mybangalore.com was the equivalent of the neighbors peeking over the fence to check how you are settling in. It just feels good. That is just how I felt when Dhanusha Gokulan spoke to me. To be counted on as a Bangalorean felt good. The conversation was free flowing - from books to my meeting with the Dalai Lama in Dharamshala, India. Just what was it like to meet His Holiness, she had asked. The fact that you do not know what to say to someone of his stature. Seriously, can you think of one really smart question to ask?
What do you get when you take an author like Chetan Bhagat who writes bestsellers, a director like Raju Hirani who directs hit movies like the Munna Bhai series, an actor like Aamir Khan who knows not just how to act but also can teach many MBAs a thing or two about how to market a film to the masses? The answer is 3 Idiots.
Some books never lose their relevance. This is one such book. This book written in Feb '99 continues to be relevant even today. Ethan Rasiel, an ex-employee of McKinsey, gave us a peek behind the curtains of McKinsey, arguably the world's most high profile consultant. Like all things high profile, there are myths and legends that are borne out of such larger than life reputations. More than 18,000 of their alumni work across every sector in 80 countries - they have no central office! They boast of alumni (see list here) like Kenichi Ohmae, Tom Peters, Helmut Kohl to name a few. At Business School campuses across the world they remain a coveted (and controversial) employer. They So what makes The Firm (as they like to call themselves) special?
Raga Khamaj is a late evening raga and is brought out rather elegantly in the light classical form of thumri. It has been a popular choice for film music as well. The romantic nature of the raga is brought out by this delightful composition of Salil Chowdhury O Sajna Barkha Bahar Aayi. This song is supposed to have been set to the swishing of the wipers of an Ambassador car when the composer was caught in a torrential downpour. The original version done in Bengali called Na Jeona was also sung by Lata Mangeshkar.
Ghar is what the Gulzar-RD Burman-Kishore magic is all about. I have always wondered whether this is a film one should watch because it shows the transition of Rekha as an actress or just listen to the music. I think I'll vote for the music.
And so, Bhaduri’s hero, Abbey passes out of IIM, Jamshedpur, gets into Balwanpur Industries, works at the township, chafes at the fishbowl existence he has to live there out of necessity, marries, gets estranged from, romances a woman or two, and slowly climbs up the corporate ladder. There is no discernible line of wit in the book; at best it is a collection of puerile jokes; the IIM gang comprises the usual suspects; the career climb is predictable, the women all coalesce into one another, come and go without leaving much impact. So what is the leavening factor in this ‘MBA’, a tenuous title at best? It’s lessons learned on the job which Abbey/Bhaduri imparts in a chatty tone that loses no relevance in the telling.Human Resource/Human Capital Practice/Personnel Management, whatever the term du jour is, it’s a fast moving track, creative and exciting, a track where you think as you run. To that extent, Bhaduri’s case histories with their solutions, make for interesting reading. The way Abbey handles the enforced VRS scheme initiated by the MNC that takes over Balwanpur Industries, is both informative and entertaining.
The quizmaster's question to you is, "Which fictional character lived at 221 B, Baker Street?" The answer is Sherlock Holmes. You know that. Of course you do. Created by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the first public appearance of Holmes was in 1887. Sherlock Holmes birthday is generally deduced to be Januray 6, 1854. Holmes lived with his good friend and chronicler Watson, before his (Watson's) marriage in 1887, and again after his wife's death. Traditionally, the canon of Sherlock Holmes consists of the fifty-six short stories and four novels written by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. In this context, the term "canon" is an attempt to distinguish between Doyle's original works and subsequent works by other authors using the same characters.
