Hold the thought, Get the point

This will probably become a quote in the future. We've reached a point where changing your mind is considered a weakness, admitting you're wrong is a public relations disaster, and listening to the other side is practically an act of treason. A few years ago, a couple of us were sitting around in a group, while our dogs played. The conversation veered into politics, and quickly merged lanes into religion ... and islamophobia and worse - politics. Within minutes, someone questioned the other person's intelligence. Arguments flew thick and center. One chap brought up a WhatsApp forward as evidence. Another went hunting on google for reinforcements. Finally, one guy said “You people don't understand what's really happening.” There is always a you people . The conversation is now officially over. The shouting, however, has only just begun. What's fascinating is that nobody came to the table hoping to learn something. We came to win. No one wanted to lose this 'f...

There are few sentences in life more sus than this one. Whenever a company tells me this, I have the same instinct I have when a date tells I am the most handsomest man she has ever met.  I smile politely and start looking for the catch. Because families, as far as I remember, don't usually require you to update your goals on a performance management portal. They don't schedule a quarterly review of your contribution to the household. And I sincerely hope your mother isn't asking you to demonstrate measurable improvements in operational efficiency before she'll pass you the fish curry. Companies, however, have discovered that calling employees family is a rather useful management tool. It makes you feel wanted. It makes long hours feel noble. It turns working on a Sunday into a demonstration of commitment rather than a spectacular failure of planning. And when things get difficult, it gives someone the opportunity to remind you that everyone needs to make sacrifices. Fu...

Have you ever noticed how difficult it is to have a conversation with someone these days without discovering that they're busy? "How are you?" "Busy, yaar. Crazy busy." "Ah. Good." Photo by Aaron M Varughese on Unsplash END OF CONVERSATION Since when did being perpetually exhausted become a sign that life is going well? We seem to have arrived at a rather peculiar place in human evolution. We've invented machines to save time, apps to organise our lives, food that arrives at our doorstep without requiring us to put on pants, and cars that can practically drive themselves. And yet, we have somehow managed to become busier than our grandparents, who didn't have half these conveniences and still found time to sit on a veranda and discuss why the Raju's son was a disappointment or Sharma's son was a genius.  We have made tremendous progress as a species. Apparently, having a little time to ourselves wasn't part of the plan. Welcome to ...

Every time I listen to a panel discussion about 'Breaking the glass ceiling,' I get miffed by the stories that are told. Not because they are glorified, but more per-say, as they convey only a partial narrative of the privileged minority of the population. And while it is okay that this makes my blood boil, it is time things need to be said exactly as the way they should be. So, here I am, ruffling the hornet's nest and opening the pandora's box. But before you start looking for me – to punch me in my face, hear me out. Yes, I agree, acknowledge, and applaud all modern educated quintessential women within and outside the corporate world. And that is indeed a remarkable feat, considering our history of generations laden with patriarchy. The premise of my disagreement begins here. All these women, whose remarkable achievement we are in awe about – were highly educated, acted on their own will, and powered by their own confidence and determination ventured into a world dom...

Let me be the first to call it - This is a modern tragedy of biblical proportions. No, we aren't talking about the Coronavirus. I feel we are all talking about the virus a little too much while being distracted about the real pandemic in our lives - Corporate greed and Political apathy. A year ago, as governments scrambled to contain the virus and contain us without our homes or in the case of India, throw millions of migrants out of their urban homes, we didn't flinch.  If you haven't realized it, this is a Global War. Countries around the world have lost lakhs of citizens. If this were an armed conflict, people would have been outraged. We would have been on the streets campaigning and baying for the blood of our governments for their apathy. We would not have rested until the system changed.  If this was a Hollywood movie, the American protagonist would have rolled out the big guns and then some to bring democracy and world peace. If this was a Bollywood movie, Salman Kh...

What is that they say about silence? Silence is golden, right? Probably, the reason our Honourable Prime Minister is silent.  While people die outside of his privileged sanctum of calm and health, Mr. Modi is conspicuously silent.  He probably doesn't have much to say.  Or maybe he does, but he doesn't need to say it.  Or maybe he does need to say but doesn't know how to say it.  Or maybe he knows how to say it but doesn't know why he needs to say it now.  The dead aren't helpful to him anymore anyway.  The seriously ill will never live long enough to vote and is thus not helpful to him either. The ones living in fear of getting sucked into the vortex of government apathy and corporate greed will forget in time for the next elections. One biriyani and liquor combo lunch with Rs 500/- will guarantee their votes. The rich will flee to their cocooned fortresses and ride out the crest.  The poor will rather die asphyxiated than of starvation. This lea...