There were pressing reasons why I travelled on what my batch-mates, who received a continuous flow of videos and photographs from me, called Bharat Darshan by rail.    Almost a year-and-a-half at home without travel and a near-death experience in April 2021 with the dreaded COVID,...

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Starting a fitness routine is a tough and overwhelming choice. Especially if you are a beginner and can barely differentiate between a bench press and a cross trainer, let alone know what goals you can achieve with either. Staying motivated to work out may very well be hard, but not...

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On the 15 August 1947, when India awoke to light and freedom, I, a college boy then, was not a citizen of India. I was a subject of the Maharaja of Travancore, a princely state, which had declared independence. The Maharaja of Travancore was a devout Hindu whose family deity was Sri...

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Instagram stories used filters that ASA said misleadingly exaggerated results tanning products could achieve.   Last month, the Advertising Standards Authority banned three influencer ads that applied skin-darkening beauty filters to Instagram stories promoting tanning products that...

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When it comes to Twitter which has become a political battlefield and an arena for troll armies, Indian women are busy sharing their passions and interests the most, talking about fashion, books, beauty, entertainment and food on the service, the micro-blogging platform revealed on...

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Reliance Industries (RIL) Chairman Mukesh Ambani is now the eighth richest person in the world with a fortune of $83 billion, according to the Hurun Global Rich List 2021.   Ambani's wealth increased 24 per cent on a year-on-year basis on the back of a surge in the value of...

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I met someone recently, whom I had known over 50 years ago. We did not stay in close touch—but I had never forgotten him, because when I was in my twenties he had taught me a useful lesson. I had thought it was silly at that time—because why should someone joining a company at the lowest...

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As new professions emerge in the new environment, we become aware of their impact in due course. There are opportunities in the information technology (IT) sector; in the information technology enabled services (ITES) sector; in the business process outsourcing (BPO) sector; in the financial...

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Internet Outrage grew louder as FIRs were registered against Tandav, the series on Amazon Prime. The battle between creative freedom and censorship has always existed which is now taking place on the OTT platforms. Since independence, censorship has found its way into other forms of media...

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In the 1960s and earlier, the arrival in the corner office, was the final achievement. And one stayed there till retirement—whether within five years or 20 years of arrival.    In Glaxo, in my time, the managing director was appointed by the head office in the UK and he came to India...

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On Sunday 17 January 2021, we lost another icon (after FC Kohli) in the management consulting world in India – the passing away of Sharu Rangnekar, a titan for 40 years in the field.    A great thinker; author of books and producer of management videos; speaker at seminars and a...

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Many decades ago, Swamy, who worked at the Air India counter in Mumbai, was asked by a friend who worked in Johnson & Johnson (J&J) for a favour. The international managing director (MD) of the company was visiting Bombay and the local MD thought he would make a great impression if he was...

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In October 1999, I had written about an old building in my neighbourhood, which still exists in 2021, in the same condition. It has been neglected by the owner, who receives just Rs150 as monthly rent from each of the six tenants in this two-floored apartment building, built in about...

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In a year dominated by Covid realities all around us, one absolute truth that emerged is that viewing patterns of audiences all over the world were in the for a change this year. With cinema halls facing closure owing to lockdown, OTT platforms became the primary source of entertainment....

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The city of Mumbai is crumbling under the weight of about 16 million people, that is, over 1% of India’s population. Half of Mumbai lives on the streets or in slums. The road system, the public transport of rails and buses, the water and power supply, and the sanitation, just cannot take...

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My friend Homi told me that his father, the late and legendary CH Bhabha, who was one of the most reputed bankers of yore, kept dinning into the children—that there were only two things worth accumulating in life—education and reputation. Both of these cannot be stolen from you. Both take a...

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There is a new tide seeping into the world of showbiz, with Warner Bros. planning to simultaneously release films in theatres and on OTT platofrm. The decision is subject of much discussion and debate. Many industry insiders have called it a disturbing move for the film trade. In India...

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Top executives in the corporate world are quite often heard interspersing their conversation with 'to be very frank' or 'to tell you very frankly.'  And I find a lot of the time, when they say this, it is exactly then, that they are 'not very frank.'   Why do top executives shy away...

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With almost a quarter of global emissions coming from the transport sector, of which passenger vehicles (cars, buses and two-wheelers) account for over half, targeting personal use vehicles – seen as something that only the rich can afford – has been the easiest way for politicians to score...

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India’s struggle for independence was led byMahatma Gandhi, while Jawaharlal Nehru and Sardar Patel took it up to lead the country’s post-Independence progress. Dr B R Ambedkar, made an extraordinary contribution to this process by writing our constitution.    And there are still...

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