Rahul Desai's Blog

To Himalayas, via McDonald’s at Lonavala: Just like all my previous whacky trips, this too had to start on an odd note. For the flight at 6 AM from Bombay, I was still at work in Pune at 1 AM. With the grace of God (and pressure/torture from Dipal, Nirav and Kaushal), we hit the highway by 1:40 AM, reaching Khapoli Highway Foodmall by 2:50 AM. Deadly ‘Tum Tum’ tea with some fries, pizza-puff and a few egg-do’s, we suddenly realized we only had an hour and a half and crouching Bombay-traffic before reaching the airport. Kaushal and Nirav were already sleeping on the rear seats, Dipal was also sleepy; I didn’t have anyone I could confess to – that my situation was no better. We still made it to the airport by 4:30 AM. I’m good! So far, no pictures – we actually didn’t have any time for that.

Torture: As direct customer-facing representatives, what could possibly be the toughest ‘handling’ situation for the onboard staff? An irate customer crying for a seat-change (for a completely unreasonable reason); or a group of terrorists politely disclosing their ‘goodwill’ to hijack the plane? The onboard crew is trained to handle such situations. But how about a kid bursting into a ‘loud’ cry every time the airplane is in motion? Can you beat that – that kid had a problem with the airplane moving? (“It” probably belonged to the airport and NOT the airplane.)

With an hour and a half advance arrival at the airport, this was just turning into one of my most-well-executed travelling plans so far. I was the first to clear security check, almost first to board the plane… for WHAT? This ‘crying machine’? S/he just wouldn’t stop!! I had to catch some sleep. I had earned it.

Surprise: I was struggling for some good sleep, when I suddenly witnessed the greatest combination of colors. I realized it’s just not easy to capture the beauty of the dawn – especially when there’s a bright full moon right on the top! With the proud smile (for my photography skills) and a great sense of satisfaction, I gracefully fell asleep and also started dreaming – I was on a plane from Bombay to Delhi when the captain decided to emergency land in Jaipur (for some ‘confidential’ military reasons). (Dreams – they can get really filmy!) It’s less than two hours from Bombay to Delhi anyway. It’d be better to fly back, than emergency land in Jaipur. Jaipur just didn’t make any sense to my limited available-senses in the dream. And I suddenly felt a massive jerk!

The plane had actually landed in Jaipur – in reality – due to heavy fog in Delhi. (Air traffic issues in Delhi during winters are pretty similar to flood issues in Bombay every monsoon. They know the problem - somehow it’s not on their priority list to fix, as yet.) So we landed. In Jaipur. In reality. We weren’t the first to commit this crime – there were 13 others in queue awaiting a landing opportunity at Delhi airport. What followed was to be my surprise encounter with Jaipur – and what a time to be here – my mobile-free-computer-free-just-with-myself vacation! Not that they allowed us to walk out, the pink city looked equally pink even from inside the airplane. Felt like calling up my Jaipuri friend Vaibhav Goswami! (Which reminded me of the sad fact that I had lost my mobile just a couple of days ago. :-| )

Coming back to Jaipur, maybe it was the pleasant 14° C morning out there (Gulaabi thandi), I was feeling fresh and energetic. Positively. Unfortunately, the pleasure was ephemeral, for the captain consistently kept reminding of the fact that it was just not the fog; there was also some serious technical failure in Delhi. On any other day, it would have added to the fury. But I was enjoying the unanticipated sight out of my window! By the way, I realized one ‘good’ thing during this halt here – Pune’s Lohegaon airport isn’t the smallest one in India. We also have Jaipur!

Two hours, two A4 sheets, one sandwich, one tea and one coffee down, we were finally ready to take off again. I must thank my whatever-duration life in Bombay (and Pune, for this instance), I don’t get furious on traffic-jams and flight-delays any more. Say I’ve adopted the reality, or given up on any hopes of improvement. I just don’t get disturbed/panicked on such situations – which is the good part. (I still can’t tolerate irresponsible and rash driving. To me, rough driving and traffic jams should be mutually exclusive, and NOT symbiotic.)

Final call for take-off. 5 minutes before “ATC” gives clearance, I deserved one more coffee. I had ‘written’ (and not ‘typed’) a lot, in long time. (I’m still equally-good at cursive writing!) Pens down!

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Article title courtesy: Symantec Road to Cutting Edge ’09.

The big difference being, when I write ‘Road’ I actually mean ‘Road’. Lately with my highly conscious efforts to get into some good shape (other than ‘round’ shape), I had to make some serious commitments. One of that happens to be my daily (evening) visit to Air Life Studio (the gym) around 7 PM.

I now know what they mean when they say ‘road to success is not easy’. My 3 km journey from my current residence to the gym is ‘that same road’ they’ve been talking about. While I can be home in less than 5 mins on my way back, reaching the gym during the evening peak-hours takes me at least 25-30 mins. ‘Deadlock’ jams at Parihar Chawk traffic signal (one of the most prominent, busiest, narrowest junctions of Aundh suburb) starts testing my patience and willpower. If waiting at the signal for ages and crawling at less than 10 kmph were not enough, the other day a bicycle-rider gladly slipped through small gaps, bumped onto the pedestrians’ path to ‘cycle-track’ and disappeared. While I was still stuck in the traffic at the same place and envying  thinking how lucky he was, he passed back in the opposite lane – probably done with his work (out).

Pune. Poona. The cultural capital of the state of Maharashtra. IT-hub, Auto-hub, and what not. So where do we stand as citizens of such a significant city? Even after overnight facelift of the city (God bless Commonwealth Youth Games 2008 committee) the situation isn’t that different. With new wider roads, we have wider traffic jams. Honking seems to be a habit, and people seem to get some blissful pleasure in blowing horn even during a normally moving traffic. I was once reading this age-old article in Times of India and I’m afraid the situation is no better.

Stepping out to the city streets is a courageous task. And after all this struggle, you don’t just reach the gym - you practically achieve ‘Nirvana’ every day.

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Talking of Dilemma, a few things hit my mind:

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dilemma 
• http://www.howstuffworks.com/morality-located-in-brain1.htm
• That monophonic Dilemma – Nelly ringtone on Afshaan’s mobile, back in early college days. 

The context in this article is slightly (or completely?) different. It’s the dilemma whether to stay back in Baroda or go back home.

This must be a great deal; it motivated me to ‘write’ after a long time – more than five months. I’m on my way to Baroda (Vadodara) Railway Station from Chintan-Bina’s residence. On one hand, it’ll let me spend one extra day with my parents before I conclude my three weeks long vacation. On the other, I’ll get to spend one more fun-filled Uttarayan celebration in Baroda.

Overwhelmed by their hospitality, it made more sense to stay back. This isn’t the first time I got an opportunity to spend quality time with Chintan’s family, at their residence in Baroda. And it’s always gotten better. First opportunity to familiarize with Bina in her ‘Bahu’ avatar and let me testify – she rocks! Or should I give credit to Chintan’s parents? Or does Chintan run entire show? Whatever it is. I loved it. Touch wood! In all senses, a reason to stay.

Another reason, Uttarayan in Baroda! If you know about it, you know what I mean. If you don’t, you’ve been missing on something. Uttarayan in Baroda has a lot more to it, than just kites! Really loud music (barely annoying on the given day), absolutely all citizens on their roof-tops or out on the roads, sky full of kites (despite not-so-great wind) and everyone screaming to the peak, assaulting their vocal chords. I had never seen this celebration-aspect of this festival before. (It’s not even a public holiday in Pune, for that matter.) With Bina-Chintan’s BIGG friend circle gathered in a not-so-BIGG terrace of an old tall building, it just couldn’t get better! The kite-flying continued even after the sunset. A never-ending bash of fireworks followed, which took over the kites covering entire sky with light and colors! A whole new experience.

All the good reasons to stay back, the choice was simple. I had already made up for all the missing fun with Bina-Chintan, in last fifteen days. It was time to share the joy with my parents. But, this certainly was the best Uttarayan ever. And it’s likely to remain so!

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Disclaimer: When I say Bombay, I mean Bombay - and NOT Mumbai. And that's unlikely to change. Neat? Back to the article.

With a dense humanity of tens of millions, there’s barely anybody who can claim to be somebody here. Everyone’s in hurry and of all, everyone’s priority is the highest priority at any given time. Someone’s in the auto, some in the bus, some on foot; everybody approaching the railway station, and they all will catch 6:23 AM Virar-fast to Churchgate (which would already be filled and over-packed from Virar itself)…

On the same time, there are some fortunate ones who don’t have to deal with the crammed railways at all. I leave by 8:20 from home, reach the office at 9:00 passing through one of the greenest areas of Bombay - Aarey Township. Unless there's some unusual change in plans, I reach back home by 7 in the evening, and have all the time under the sun, all for myself. For any localite, my life is lousy or slow. Trust me, it’s not.

And interestingly, with hundreds of thousands issues, there’s no stopping here. There’s something in it for everyone. If you observe the crowded buses and trains, students apart, everyone in there is making a small or big effort to make some livelihood. (If you can locate someone apart from these two categories, it has to be some outsider, and most likely some jobless visitor from South Gujarat).

There’s a stiff competition, but a great market on the same time. Everyone feels that Bombay is hers/his and s/he runs her. It’s true and valid for everyone on the same time. Shanghai or no-Shanghai, there’s something about being a Bombayite. I’m not sure about my future with the city, but for today at least, I’m very proud to be a part of one of the most-lively-glabal-metro-mechanism…

Kasa kaai, bhankas?

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Titles can really be deceiving. The ideal article-title here could have been “Traveling by Raj National Express”. I basically wanted to write about my recent journey from Pune to Bhopal by bus. A great new experience altogether! Like okay, I used to have 24 hrs bus-journeys from Bangalore to Mumbai and Pune to Indore and so. But gone are the days. Lately my super-delicate body has left me with no option than train/air route or on occasions, NO route! More than 4-5 hrs, by road, that too in a bus (let it be Volvo whatever), it’s just not my cup of tea any more.

However, beliefs are made to be broken I must say (or was it theories?). I was left with no option, had to take a bus to Bhopal and guess what? I know at least three airlines which offer cheaper air-fares than this bus fare. Against less than two hours journey to Bhopal (for Rs 950Air Decaan, Rs 550 Go Air, Re 1 Air Deccan FF-Bonanza Bid), I opted Raj National Express (formerly Raj Travels) with a 15 hours alternative for Rs 990.18 (inclusive of all taxes). However, it wasn’t NOT worth it.



For the people with that airplane journey phobia, and some poorer opinion for Lalu Prasad’s Indian Railways, this is the option! There are some commitments associated with this 990 bucks lottery ticket: you leave on time, reach on time, and get everything and anything in between this! The flight (oops! The bus) left sharp at 7 and hit the highway just to stop for its dinner halt after three and a half hours. More than one TV screens, your personalized headphones-thing, movie/music selection, on-board attendants, unlimited eating options, a bagful of complimentary stuffs – a blanket, a pillow, a pair of headphones, some fragrance tissue-sort of a thing, designer sleeping eye-mask, about a billion chocolates (okay if you aren’t impressed yet, this (the Service!) is still rare in buses in India.), and on and on. An ultimate airplane experience, without flying off the land! Hey hey… if you observed, I actually wrote acomplimentary blanket! Believe it or not, they gave me a blanket and asked to take it along. Now that’s an interesting marketing gimmick, since this is something new in buses (to me, at least).



Though the bus reached late by more than an hour, it was Good. The respected government of Madhya Pradesh decided not to cooperate, the roads were all dug every here and there and some scenic accidents sites to add fragrance to the gold, there was little the bus-driver could to drop me on time. So it was a happy ending overall. And the bonus, the bus’s last stop was Habibganj Railway Station - right at the doorsteps of my house!! What else do you need out of your life? I learnt they have online booking system. So next time, before clicking on flykingfisher.com and airdeccan.net, do visit www.rajnationalexpress.in for an unusual change.


Related Article: Of all places, why Bhopal?

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Sarfaroshi ki tamanna ab hamaare dil mein hai!!

Why Bhopal? The answer is simpler than tougher. However, the issue is severe: Why start a business in Bhopal?

And that makes this article more interesting and complicated, since the facts about the city are flatly unknown to the most of non-Bhopalis. Through this, I also mean to touch the root of the definition of a city. It apparently is the motive behind our local information portal: What is there that we want to bring into Bhopal as a city which it doesn't have (a defined medium), through what it already has (the human and the technological resources). Any ways. Question still exists: what is a 'city'?

Relying on some dictionary-meanings and some definitions from renowned institutions, a ‘city’ stands for: A large and densely populated urban area; includes several independent administrative districts; has cultural diversity; is more politically important than towns and villages; has some degree of self-government; or conglomerations of self-governing units. One very interesting definition read: a city is where you should be able to feel somewhat anonymous, and be able to do things without the whole place knowing about it before your own family knows. Makes complete sense to me. Who wants to live a celebrity life in a small-town? And between this, comes in Bhopal: A city spread over an area of more than 285 sq km, with a large population of almost 15,00,000 (in words, approx one and half million human beings. Or 1.5 M prospective customers?).

Unfortunately people outside know little about Bhopal. Worse, they know the ‘city’ only for the Bhopal Gas tragedy (1984), and for no other advances ever since. Though a massive gas-leak entirely being a considerable phenomenon, there’s a lot more to the history of this place. Bhopal - being setup in early 11th century by a Hindu-king and then re-founded by an Afghan emperor - it has the combined beauty of the two different cultures (and eventually, the better out of the two). Though not really being a point here, for a prejudicially a city-biased dumb like me, Bhopal has it ‘all’! A royal city-infrastructure and a well governed administration system (being the capital of the state of Madhya Pradesh), along with the best scenic beauty, green roads and a pollution-free climate accompanied by almost 26 registered big and small lakes inside the city!!

Considering the aspect of starting a business here, it leads me to one more dictionary-meaning that finds a city as ‘center of population, commerce, and culture’. Madhya Pradesh (excluding Chhattisgarh) being not the most developed state industrially, there’s a lot for an entrepreneur to do. Growing infra-structural and IT industry is a healthy sign for new comers (like me, my partners and our company) to flourish. There’s always an advantage to late-comers of learning from the predecessors’ mistakes. When not all your clients are the at par with all the technologies and concepts, you have your own margin to err and a considerable room to correct yourself as well, all in time. For establishing oneself as a business-individual, what better place would you prefer? Our company is recognized at the local level. However as individuals, we have our own free social space. What more you need out of your life? It’s like being ‘a big fish in a small pond’ than fighting for the survival and existence in bigger places (to start with). You see, it means something when I introduce myself as a director of a company and that is considered, and looked upon with respect. At least it feeds my ego well.

Cost-effective routine solutions, cheaper labor, prime geographical location (absolute centre of the country) giving the best connectivity to any corner of India, a big human-base constituting the right prospective-customer-platform for our dotcom product, unlimited technical human-resource (from 24 explicitly recognized degree-engineering colleges in the city - any other form of colleges apart), are some to list the key reasons to be in Bhopal. If this was less, recently, the CM (Chief Minister of the state of Madhya Pradesh – Mr. Shivraj Chauhan) called for a direct-meeting with the IT-people from and outside Madhya Pradesh. It was a meet for inputs from the corporate-officials as well as local small-big IT-players, for redefining the IT-policy of the state. The IT-minister of the state was personally taking inputs from all and this means SOMETHING. For those who can’t appreciate it, it should be known that bureaucracy and complex-political system in India is at such an extreme that it’s next to impossible for an entrepreneur to ever have a direct conversation with the CM of a state. It was so motivating! To add to it, Madhya Pradesh happens to be one of the most respected states for its e-governance initiatives and implementation in urban as well as rural areas.

Back in late-2003, our very own Mukesh Dhirubhai Ambani told while addressing an internationally esteemed delegation in India Today’s Concave India: 2003, that: “Some say India is a country with a billion problems. I say, India is a country with a billion opportunities!” It’s how we look at things. Let the glass be half empty or completely so: there’s always a scope to fill some space!

As one gentleman recently said, “an Indian not in India today, is missing on something”. Not very sure, about the life outside India. But yeah, an Indian in India, not contributing to the development is missing on an opportunity. An opportunity, which will never turn back to you, since India-2020 is going to be the India - with no looking back! It’s the chance to correct the past and pour your maximum for the perfect future, bringing the golden history back. And what better fun, than working on a developing field (of a not-so-less-developed area) for developing with the nation?? Find me a better place than Bhopal, and we start working there from tomorrow!! (Okay, I’m joking. Not completely though.)

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