The Books I've Read in the Year 2009

Following is the list of books I have read in the Year 2009:

1. Netherlands by Joseph O’ Neill 
2. Maximum City - Bombay Lost & Found by Suketu Mehta 
3. The Enchantress of Florence by Salman Rushdie 
4. Shesh Lekha (The Last Poems) by Rabindranath Tagore 
5. 2 States – The Story of My Marriage by Chetan Bhagat 
6. A Writer’s People by V.S. Naipaul 
7. The Cosmic Detective by Dr. Mani Bhaumik 
8. Sea of Poppies by Amitav Ghosh 
9. Interpreter of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahari 
10. The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown 
11. Count Your Chickens Before They Hatch by Arindam Chaudhuri 
12. Mistress of the Game by Tilly Bagshaw 
13. Poems by Rabindranath Tagore 

Following is my personal take on each book I have read this year.

Netherlands by Joseph O’ Neill:

There is not a single boring sentence in the novel. That’s a great achievement indeed.

The story is about a Dutchman who takes to playing Cricket in New York post 9/11.

The book is not about Cricket, (and thank God it isn’t) it’s about the post-9/11 scenario and coming to terms with it living life in suburban New York. A greater part of the novel is lyrical writing and I wonder why the book was not shortlisted for the Booker.

Maximum City - Bombay Lost & Found by Suketu Mehta:

There is a little story behind my buying this book from Crossword bookstore in Mumbai Airport. Here is: I was flying from Bhopal to Hyderabad via Mumbai on a pre-booked flight. After landing at Mumbai’s Chatrapati Shivaji International Airport, I was headed toward the Departure lounge. I hoped to stretch my legs for a while and catch my breath, then grab a cup of cold coffee (croissants included). Not to forget to keep sipping at the pipe for a little longer and munch on the comfy croissants before I catch my connecting flight to Hyderabad, I began to sense cool relief breezing in from the fine air conditioning vents of the Lounge area.

After a while, as I was window shopping I spotted Crossword and swiftly went in cursing in the same breath at the sheer forgetfulness with which I lost a copy of Orhan Pamuk’s My Name is Red on the flight. Anyway, while I browsed books, I saw the Bollywood film star Katrina Kaif walking into the store and picking up a magazine, I guess, Cosmopolitan. I liked that 'adaa', that slender and elegant Katrina Kaif-style, which is one of fumbling, mumbling, and grumbling - all rolled into a big-time highly celebrity-conscious Bollywood mover and shaker. I would have liked her, even more, had she bought a book or two! Nevertheless, in order to make up for her omission, I went ahead and bought the book Maximum City - Bombay Lost & Found and raised a toast to the elegant Miss Lovely and remember it as a day of my sheer luck to have seen her in the flesh. Well, bumping shoulders with a celebrity is actually a lot easier than I thought it was!

Back to the point - this non-fiction book is an extraordinary sweep of Mumbai city with a pen that is mightier than a sword. It is an intimate portrait of that big, bad, commercial city. The book is essentially a travelogue, memoir, and a fine essence of personal history; it also has stories of under-world dons, dance bar girls, and mafia games. A stunning book really. You will be stoned to know that never has Mumbai been painted in those colours ever before. I’d say one of the best books to have been written by an Indian author.

The Enchantress of Florence by Salman Rushdie:

Salman Rushdie is one of my favourite authors.

I’m so very excited to know that he is working on his memoirs: about the years he spent in hiding from the fatwa issued against him by Ayatollah Khomeini of Iran or some such constipated out-of-work personality.

The Enchantress of Florence is a book of intrigue. It is about Akbar the Great, Amerigo Vespucci, Jodha, and of course the Enchantress of Florence.

Not a great book, but really a good one. You'd be surprised by the number of times the word 'Fuck' has been used in this novel. It's pretty amazing! Un-Salman Rushdie like! But I've had my moments of joy reading it.

Shesh Lekha (The Last Poems) by Rabindranath Tagore,

Poems by Rabindranath Tagore:

The last few poems were composed by the most beloved author of all time Rabindranath Tagore.

The Last Poems or Shesh Lekha are a collection of a lifetime.

So wonderful and lovely. The poems in this slim collection have been translated by Pritish Nandy, himself author of many books, mainly poems. I have dedicated my life to reading Tagore's works.

2 States – The Story of My Marriage by Chetan Bhagat:

It is by far the funniest book written by Chetan Bhagat. Perhaps, a good narrative that he ever wrote was Five Point Someone. It was very near being a good book. Nothing much.

Three Mistakes of My Life is a close second. His books are an easy read and quite simply not to be taken very seriously. People who don't read books at all could start by reading C.B. books.

One main aspect is that he manages to pull off the plot and then the sub-plots quite well, meaning the story propels forward into a simple and logical conclusion (if that’s all there is to it).

Nothing literary about his stories and none should be taken as one. If anybody like him is able to do 'something literary', then half of the battle is won, and voila! you can go ahead and call yourself a writer. (The other half is the publisher’s nightmare!). Tongue firmly in cheek. ;-)

A Writer’s People by V.S. Naipaul:

The most despicable book that I have read this year is this. The way he lampooned India and Indians is highly demeaning of him.

No wonder he is suffering from old age dementia maybe Alzheimer’s!

All his old spark is missing from the recent works that he brought out. I suspect he wrote this book to cock a snook at the people whom he appears to have major contempt for. Really bad.

Of late, V.S. Naipaul has been in the news for his brash and pithy comments made against women writers of repute. I feel pity for this old man. Get a life, Oldie; will you.

Sea of Poppies by Amitav Ghosh:

The first book in the Ibis trilogy. What a book! I finished reading this novel in two weeks and was wanting more.

The main characters of the novel include Deeti, Zachery Reid, Neel Rattan Halder, and Benjamin Burnham, an evangelist trader of opium.

One has to wait for the next book in the series River of Smoke which is due in the year 2011. Read this book and feel richer.

Trust Amitav Ghosh and you will get rewarded with a fine work of fiction. The eminent author is well on his way to getting his Nobel Prize in Literature. He should get the award for he truly deserves it!

Interpreter of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri:

It’s a debut short story collection by the Indian American author Jhumpa Lahiri. Each story is deeply felt.

The book is a Pulitzer Prize winner and is about India and Indian Americans who are caught in the world of Indian culture they have come to know from their upbringing in the West and the western life they are used to living. A must-read and I would strongly recommend it. New York Times review has been fantastic for this book. The writing is of "uncommon elegance and poise."

The Lost Symbol by Dan Brown:

Another must-read. One is not supposed to compare his latest work with his most successful work to date The Da Vinci Code.

Though these books are of the same genre The Lost Symbol is a good book. I liked its racy style.

Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon is a global phenomenon. No doubt, The Lost Symbol is a masterstroke of storytelling.

The plot is highly suspenseful and full of intrigue. I could never miss his books. I read his The Da Vinci Code, Angels and Demons, and now The Lost Symbol. I enjoyed reading all of them.

Mistress of the Game by Tilly Bagshawe:

Overall a good read.

This is the first book I picked up by the author.

The book is on the lines of Master of the Game by Sidney Sheldon and she did a great job.

By writing books with Sidney Sheldon's book titles in mind, the author Bagshawe is keen to keep alive the worldwide phenomenon of Sidney Sheldon's franchise. Tilly Bagshawe is a New York Times bestselling author and her book Mistress of the Game is a sort of sequel to Sidney Sheldon's critically acclaimed novel Master of the Game.

Count Your Chickens Before They Hatch by Arindam Chaudhuri:

This is a good management book he has written. I think I now know how to count my chickens before they hatch! Alas, some skittered away and some found their way into my biryani!

His India-centric Theory i Management is quite appealing.

It basically says that Success does not come to you, you have to go get it. Just like his Theory i Management is India-centric, the theory z developed by the Japanese is Japan-centric. The book is for those people who want to go get success in life and not for those who have a hunky-dory euphoric sense of achieving it.

The Cosmic Detective by Dr. Mani Bhaumik:

A slim book. The book is packed with colour photographs and interesting facts about Cosmology meant to interest readers with many unknown facts about our great Cosmos. How and when did the universe begin? What are galaxies and how far are they from Earth? What is a meteor, a quasar?

This thin little kiddie book gives you a really good account of the Cosmos and is ideal for all ages.

I was attracted to this book mainly because I had read Dr. Bhaumik's previous autobiographical book "Code Name God: The Spiritual Odyssey of a Man of Science". Code Name God chronicles significant events that have occurred in the author's life. The book moved me to the core.

By Arindam Moulick

Pix courtesy: Internet

Farewell & Thank you.

(A Farewell Letter)

It's always hard to say goodbye. Allow me to tell you about how valuable my experience at MT has been. I am going to skip my list of accomplishments as an MTracer - it’s a great list and you all helped to create it. Instead, I want to share a more personal perspective.

Before I pronounce goodbye to you, I wish to reminisce that what a pleasure it has been working for MT these past few months. It has been a prolific association of wonderful pride. But let me tell you, sometimes it is a bit daunting to know exactly how to begin when telling someone about a significant change that has come about in my life; but as I learn that from Mother Nature each year whenever winter sets in and summer go for its seasonal vacation, I have come to know that change will inevitably happen, no matter how you describe it, understand it or even perceive it.

It is with a heart that goes humming now, but knowing minds will know that as I tell you that after 1.3 years of extraordinary English evaluation experience/association, I, therefore, bid ‘adios' to one and all.

But of course, this was not a sudden decisional escapade into something I got ticked off on; I resolved to do this after gathering all information, carefully weighing my professional options, and exercising a considerable soul-searching competency! My first good impression of MT will always be my last impression. That is to say: I seek the pleasure of work and its inherent satisfaction, and I sure have had got the opportunity to experience the comfort of the same right here. Yet, the fantasy of moving on to someplace else and then locating a quiet corner in order to continue my discovery of the vast ocean of a new world beyond just somewhere out there, closing away the distance between us with each passing day and night, could have ultimately made my mind up without an iota of any assailable doubt. I could not have possibly identified its importance had I not spent some quality time at MT and cherished its fruitful association for long; I thought my heart can go on now to delving into other avenues.

Of all other things in the itinerary of my first impressions, I think, my first proverbial taste for an intrinsic success story harks back to the days of induction I went through at the Bangalore office last year during the summer of 2007. Yes, a meritorious induction program I was introduced to and followed by a great stay at its swanky guesthouse was really so unforgettable an experience. Later, during the days when I was pitching along the lines of the numerous English evaluation frameworks after reaching back to Hyderabad, such as PCT, ECT, et al, I knew I was riding a big "summer-job/part-time" wave.

I wish MT edges past other companies who are in the competitive fray of Skills Assessment. Personally speaking, the very reason that MT’s brand value is already so sky-high, and that it has by far outweighed, or rather in the process of outweighing, other comparable competitors as well, is in itself an achievement that it goes without saying that the promising arena is already occupied by a bright Gladiatorial powerhouse like MT! 

This is no mean feat for an emerging company that had started its business to gain acceptance among other ‘similar business varieties’ that are into the conceptual enterprise of “Skills Assessment” only just a few years ago, precisely from the year 2001. A strong mention now of such a unique value it generated for itself in the market arena that it makes it deserving of a token of immense appreciation from all quarters, is hardly a surprise for proud MTracers across locations in our country. In fact, though it is already India’s Largest Skills Assessment Company and had tasted stupendous success in the recent era by quickly winning two consecutive awards like Red Herring and …. awards, we quietly have conveyed that we have come a long way and will go to great lengths to succeed success itself, and how. 

Besides these pieces of contemplation, I fervently hope (well, I am speaking in my personal capacity as an ex-employee of MT now) that it would scorch the road ahead. It already is an attested star on the firmament of English Evaluation (E.E.) skies, so a great standing of its own is just around the corner.

Next Step:
So what happens tomorrow and the next day? The first and foremost thought in my mind is how to substitute my MT experience into a new environment in the midst of a new company set-up! For all I know I think I must just have to fill in the air into my lungs and help conceive the ideas of newness composition into my inner being. (Oh yeah? Right! ;-o))

“As I sit and watch the sunset and the daylight slowly fades.
I’ll be thinking about tomorrows . . . about the friendships, we have made.
I will value them for always and I’ll hope you’ll do the same.
And we’ll see you on the trail and on the loose.”
(Anonymous)

“On the loose to climb a mountain . . . on the loose to where I’m free.
On the loose to live my life the way I think my life should be . . .”

We spent a lot of time together. I've enjoyed so much: my early morning drives to the MT office, watching the sun come up over the Hyderabad skyline of the cantonment valley here, and the journey home again with the tangerine sunlight spilling across the same place with a sweet hint of cool breeze racing past me and my motorbike. Along the roads, in the winds, I have been always cherishing each new day and each new feeling with amusing aplomb!

It has been a great ride!

Thank you all for one and a half great years.

By Arindam Moulick

- Written on Aug 2008

Satyam Is No More! Alas!

The debacle of the much-revered home-grown IT company Satyam Computers Ltd. has brought to mind a maxim “As you sow, so you reap”! (In Hindi, it translates to “Jaisi karni waise bharni”). Mr. Ramalinga Raju’s life would come to such an appalling pass that one could never come to imagine. It's really unfortunate, to say the least.

In fact, during the late 1990s and early 2000s, I was one of the virtuous Satyam employees who has worked for more than 5 years there. I saw Satyam grow by leaps and bounds. To me, Mr. Raju always came across as an epitome of sobriety and dignity. I saw him several times at Satyam offices and his calm disposition continually pervaded his behaviour. Once, I remember, he smiled at me when I greeted him with a good day and I fell into a state of a personal coup for quite a while. I too became one of the lucky few who happened to behold him converse with the ex-Intel CEO Craig Barret when the latter came visiting Satyam’s Technology Centre (STC), a state-of-the-art technology incubation hub.

Alas! Even today it is hardly believable that Mr. Raju could ever fall from grace and likewise suffer execrable, unimaginable disrepute, such as we are witnessing almost every day of the unforgettable company where I had worked with all my heart and soul for many years. His much-cherished success story will now be wiped away for all time to come. But, like me, there are so many others who always will hold him high in esteem and respect. I, for one, still do so because of the unforgettable fact that he brought incalculable happiness to all Associates of Satyam. I am now an ex-employee of the company but I still recount those wonderful days of my life at Satyam.

Today, people are so fretfully concerned about the future of Satyam’s legacy at least; whether or not it will stay put or rather wither away. But as and when things emerge and manage a clear picture of sorts out of this perpetual haze of unlikable happenings, the much-loved much-respected brand name "Satyam" is already in the process of getting erased for good. Thankfully so; it needs a permanent reprieve which has been provided almost on a golden platter by Pune-based Indian software giant Tech Mahindra. Yet, it gives me the deepest of sympathies (and anxiety) at the same time that the exceptionally happy days of Satyam’s great heritage that it supposedly amassed from over the long and apprehensive years of hard work (only of its own ambitious employees though!) are all about to breathe its last, sooner than later. And we all know that the glory of Satyam will perhaps never return.

Thanks to Tech Mahindra, the brand image of Satyam is in vogue though. As an ex-employee of Satyam, today I am in no way concerned whether or not Satyam survives with its brand name intact, but I am more concerned about Tech Mahindra's good image and excellent management skills. Ahoy! Tech Mahindra! Great going indeed! Wish you all good luck!

I wish Tech Mahindra hadn’t used the tag ‘Satyam’ alongside its name. In fact, why the heck Mahindra is hell-bent on using a tag like ‘Satyam’ after all? In keeping up with its famed high standards of corporate governance and “unimpeachable ethics” and all, does it still have to use the word like Satyam? Under what kind of misplaced moral obligation the Mahindra or Tech Mahindra is finding itself? I for one would think they would be far better off without that poisonous word called “Satyam”. I mean, no longer would one, in his clear and present mind, think wise to relate back to that same old Satyam fiasco!

Keeping the Satyam name alive - in whatever form – only smacks of those bizarrely harrowing days all Satyamites had to suffer for no fault of theirs. I think if the time has come to cleanse Satyam of its “asatyam” fame and its corporate accounting fraud then it is now. But Mahindra chose not to heed that.

No doubt, this negative naming convention perpetrated by the great Mahindra group clearly reminds one of those miserably shameful days on the part of Satyam’s accounting fraud caused by the man of no conscience called Ramalinga Raju. I may be speaking conservatively here, but I would like to believe that I am spot on that aspect. I mean, Satyam is no longer what it used to be once.

And a respected company like Tech Mahindra continuing to identify itself with the beleaguered brand name Satyam is a ramshackle proposition, whatsoever. Is this statement irresponsible? So be it. But I want Satyam to be back on rails. It is impossible to even think about that? Yea, I think so; and expecting the former to happen is tantamount to living in a fool's paradise!

By Arindam Moulick

[This article was written on June 2009]

Class X Examination Reforms

Bravo! What a great idea, Sirji, and this is better late than never. It isn't worth seeing students writing Class 10 as board exams. 

One need not worry really, even if the question of regulating admissions into colleges after Class Xth exams comes up for discussion. 

The most important factor in abolishing the board exams is that students become unreasonably pathetic thinking about their Boards even as their overall results and confidence levels get to suffer.

Uniformity in the results will come to the fore. The school results will now vary from school to school and that, thankfully, will become a saving grace for school administrators everywhere. Children will become stern in their studies; at least they don't have to mangle their mind's peace thinking about the Boards and getting goosebumps and jitters all the way to the exam hall.

Anomalies in the form of the various School Boards' initial reactions may come up for an intense debate but they can be stubbed out for everybody's good. Let's do away with the Boards system now. I congratulate Mr. Sibal for thinking out of the box.

Alas, the state governments of our country will be ready to take this up on a war footing as this would save them a lot of money and other pointless work relating to the preparation for the Boards every year; plus, in a way students and parents will never have to face those authorities who think that they have to constantly throw worthless hardships on the student's path! 

At least, in some cases, their supposed high-handedness will die out forever.

By Arindam Moulick

[This article was written on June 2009]

Airtel Is Pathetic!

Airtel’s plan to be a most-admired brand is downright silly! 

Let me explain: I had to use Airtel’s pathetic mobile service for 8 long years of my life: for the most part, it was a professional obligation rather than personal. 

I later got my subscription with them canceled and permanently done away with it for good. I chose Vodafone’s “ZooZoo” mobile service instead, and I am one of its happy customers now: as happy as a laughing Buddha himself would be happy! I may be exaggerating here but so be it.

In my opinion, Airtel is ruthlessly conscious of the “late payment fees” (if you happen to incur any amount even if it is due to a valid reason that you couldn’t pay up) and if your mobile bill is an inflated one for the current month and you could not pay up within the last payment date then Airtel will trouble you, night and day: it’ll keep asking you to pay up, even if you are not in the station and vacationing somewhere where you are hard put to pay the amount.

I mean Airtel might have the legal right to ask for your payment, but then it adopts as if stupid gumption - which is hoary enough in every respect to push you into abject misery and irritation at the same time - with almost all its customer care executives put to use to clinch a useless argument with you as if doing us mobile users a BIG international-type favour! Apparently, they never wish to patiently wait for you to pay up whatever outstanding amount in the next billing cycle.

Resolving not to take any more bull from them, I went ahead and canceled my subscription with Airtel in the month of March ‘09. And thank God I did. Again, Airtel’s crazy-witted customer care crappies replied back “promising” that my refundable registration fee of Rs. 300 /- would be “promptly” returned back to me. (This registration fee was used by Airtel as an initial subscription starter fee.) Believe it or not, the fee was returned to me only in the month of June ’09; that too after I wrote them numerous emails! 

Taking up my case with a renewed interest, I wrote to their Appellate Authority, even to their Nodal Officer, but sadly they all chose to sit on my umpteen requests! Holy Mackerel, it took Airtel over 3 long months to return a refundable amount! I finally got my refund back and a reply too from their Appellate Team, as follows:-

"We sincerely regret the inconvenience caused to you. We assure you that the necessary steps are being taken that a similar situation does not recur.

"We at Airtel, use stringent measurement and control applications to ensure that the service you receive is error-free. On rare occasions, like experienced by you, we fully recognize the shortcomings and assure you of all measures to provide you with error-free services." 
- Airtel (Appellate Authority, Hyderabad)

Utterly sickening and extremely blatant as it were on their part to keep calling me on my mobile-only in order to cuss n no. of times to press for the amount incurred, in spite of the fact that my payment records were always straight.

Look, they can ask me for all the late payment fees that might legally be their prerogative! In fact, to put your protest into the right perspective let me impart this to you: yes, if my salary gets delayed by one day or even by a month (which is what is happening with Air India/Indian Airlines presently!), never would I dart out to an Airtel counter to pay up from my nose! I might jolly well pay up the accompanying “late payment fees” that I may incur by not paying them within the stipulated time, which thankfully do not run into hundreds of rupees but something generously paltry. But the bone of contention is not about being unable to pay any “late payment charges”; it is rather about their customer servicewallas’ hard-nosed adamantine attitude that troubles you, night and day.

Even if you emphatically assure them that you are going to pay up along with the “late payment charges” in the next billing cycle, most often than not they don’t understand it and rudely disconnect their phone!

No, for 8 years I wasn’t “happy” using Airtel. I just had to officially use Airtel for 5 years; for the remaining 3 years, it was a personal choice because of the lack of other mobile operators in town. In the year 2000, one didn’t have Airtel, one had JTM Mobile, which went to Airtel’s command. IDEA and Hutch (now Vodafone) were just beginning to show up on the horizon wanting to command operations in India, but they still were not operating as full-fledged mobile operators in the country. So I was hard-pressed to use but Airtel only; even if my company stipulated Airtel for my official spending! 

Thank God I bought Vodafone for my personal use as Airtel had always managed to wage exploitation and maltreatment on his ill-fated customer base.

I say chaps, Airtel’s customer executives turn out to be such wicked fools that they relentlessly perpetrate a hoodwink-type attitude towards their own hapless customers.

By Arindam Moulick

[The repartee was written in June 2009]

Mamata Banerjee, Bengal's Fire-Brand Leader!

The splendid electoral mandate that has been devoted to the Trinamool Congress party in the recent Lok Sabha elections truly inspires a leading political “Change" in West Bengal. And post assembly polls: during 2011, it will surely seal the peoples’ deal in favour of the Trinamool. 

There is now not an iota of doubt that TMC is certainly going to be the most-wanted beginning for the dismissal of the CPM’s political grab in Bengal.

Ms. Mamata Banerjee, the new Indian Railways Chief, may be conveniently identified as a trailblazing commander, and she may not be, perhaps, as one of the regular women, but whatever her credentials are with respect to her (un)lady-like conduct sometimes, her often what seems to be impulsive behaviour, at least she has been brutally honest all through and sincere to her own promising self and to the people of Bengal who are so very anxious to see an encouraging change at the helm of affairs: political, economic, and social.

Indeed, the Trinamool Congress leader has always dared to take a leap forward to becoming a new champion of a leader: a leader with a clear agenda to exonerate the communist raj before actually bringing about a new decisive arrangement of which Bengal desperately is in need of. Ms. Banerjee has advanced that appeal several notches higher now after her recent triumph in the Lok Sabha elections.

Being a fire-brand solitary woman like the way she is, with no dynastic family advancement whatsoever, has given a royally tough time to the deeply-entrenched CPI(M) comrades of the state. (For that alone I am ready to forget the loss of the Tata Nano project in Bengal!)

Definitely, when TMC forms a state government in Bengal as a first-timer - which seems a given possibility - post-2011 assembly elections then the legislative challenges will be unleashed in full blast on the administrative capabilities of the party. But on the other hand - in the foreseeable future - it’d be really fruitful for Trinamool Congress to precisely identify and understand what the people want in terms of all-round mobilization of the state’s economy which is “at a near standstill”, and address all grievances pertaining to the industries, primary education in the rural areas, create first-class infrastructure and jobs in the state.

The Trinamool party should consciously avoid dipping into any kind of impracticable hard-core party ideology syndrome, which it always did though because it can be said that hard-core ideological stuff may prove to be a staccato factor – which the ruling CPM never could evade such a fixation from its own party histrionics – to draw in the virtues for just doing good work for the people, but not get unduly worried about some kind of hard-hitting ideology that may prevent a political party from carrying out its tasks evenly.

Meanwhile talking of Bengal:
A competent Bengal-centric economic manifesto that equally complements a functionally utilitarian economic agenda (over which everything is dependent really) should be able to bolster the common man’s expectations for a better life in Bengal. In the present set-up though, Ms. Banerjee shouldn’t vociferously worry about her demand for the dismissal of the Left government, because the CPM rule is now destined to end anyway. 

Instead, she should direct all her fiery productive steam engines/energies to enjoy her Ministry of Railways portfolio at the Centre for further betterment of India's dismal-performing Railways.

By Arindam Moulick

The Wonder That Was Michael Jackson

What a tragic loss for the whole wide world. The King of Pop is no more. 

I grew up listening to Micheal Jackson songs night and day. When I was a teenager I aped his dancing style, his trademark moonwalk, mimicked his howls, and faked his accent while half-learnedly singing his great Pop songs. No wonder, those were the best days for us teens to bring the whole world down! 

Not just our gang of teens; everybody literally ate and slept his rasping music. Like Micheal Jackson, I too once wore black shoes with white socks.

He was one of the most awesome sensations, especially throughout the late 1980s and even in the early 1990s when his albums ‘Bad’ and ‘Dangerous’ were out respectively. I remember I rushed out of my house the moment I found out on TV that his brand new album was out! I bought a music cassette (no CDs back then) from a local store and played it at home for hours and hours together. Everybody used to go crazy at home with his superb music played on full-blast volume; even in the local stalls his ultra-modern music used to blare up and could be heard in the entire neighbourhood!

He truly rocked my world big time.

I remember when the album HIStory was released in the mid-1990s, all my friends went into a tizzy to borrow the cassette I bought and brought home to show them; later, of course, each one of them went off to buy their own copies from the nearest cassette shop. We played MJ’s album over and over again on the terrace and played stylish cricket there! Today, when I read the breaking news about his sudden death I couldn’t help but let go of my tears, even as I am feeling shattered and stunned in equal measure to barely being able to say anything except - “Oh dear Micheal, don’t leave us like this. No”.

Alas, an era has passed and passed away forever with Micheal’s death. The world of music will never be the same again. Forever bereft it will remain of Micheal Jackson’s great music and dance. 

We love you Micheal: for all the terrific music we owe you our unshakable gratitude. You were the last man standing in the world of Pop. It was you and your wonderful music that gave us so much to rejoice and wonder about! Your phenomenal musical genius will continually live in our hearts. May your soul rest in peace and find a way to the abode of God's Kingdom. 

Goodbye Micheal. RIP.

By Arindam Moulick

The Impact of Financial Crisis on World Economy: A Personal Perspective

We are living in the strangest of Recessionary times. 

People call it a Meltdown, or better still Economic Meltdown, Depression Economy, Economic Slow Down, Downturn, Crisis, etc. Simply put, the impact of the financial crisis on the world economy came as a huge shock. The fantasy of economic prosperity has gone bust.

A large part of this crisis-laden story that is doing its rounds all over the world like a Damocles’ Sword hanging over our heads has been hardly surprising to us. But all this turned up, nevertheless, as a shocking reality of sorts! Even as we know that the world’s so-called globalized economy is largely supported (purported?), buoyed, or even propagated by the U.S., the very roots of globalization which began germinating in the form of all-round prosperity have been found to be recklessly pounded upon. 

The so-called “trickle-down economics” funda had taken a thorough beating in the hands of our made-up market forces! That great western nation has almost single-handedly corrugated the entire market economy of the world into its own private enterprise; and even as we talk, its evil effects - no less - have been awfully catastrophic for the whole world to bear. It broke the stable economy of several developed and underdeveloped nations into smithereens and in the near future, as we might be able to foresee, the Economic Meltdown nightmare might not be something any nation in the world will be able to come out of successfully, sooner or later.

Instant job losses the world over, companies shutting down, projects getting cancelled and abandoned, pink slips handed out, emotional and psychological disasters befalling, out-of-work sickness, etc., etc. For those people who have withstood or are in some way surviving this continuous turmoil, the meaning of life for them has suddenly become a hopeless burden to carry on with.

Let me relate a small experience to you. I represent a major New York-based software solutions IT corporation. Our company began its professional dealings with a major banker in the US and other financial behemoths from the same country. We fixed software projects such as software financials, web development, and other software product development. Each project was worth millions of dollars. So beginning to labour on these fresh assignments, we settled down to our individual business production practices and, as we did that, a mild tremor of a recessionary slow down picked up a race with us last year in September 2008 and set up a wall of injustices against us. It’s going to gobble one full year now and there’s hardly any sign of it letting go. Decidedly, we moved on to other greener meadows, hoping to be away from the abject misery that seemed hell-bent on destruction. But there too the same miserable story of recession played out, day after day! How much time will it take to subside and eventually ward off its foul iniquities? No one knows, and everyone is enormously confused and crestfallen about it.

Before the advent of the financial crisis, and when things were just as even as we have known, the United States of America lavished money-flows into India in the form of a variety of corporate investments, including perpetual philanthropy. The Information Technology (IT) that India mastered over the long and hard years of toiling work and its world-class production of computerized software for the nations of the world, mainly the US and Europe, has presently gone out of sheen. Loads and loads of project cancellation bills crashed in on us. The funding stopped due to the transient crisis that rose from its own botched-up attempts at loan recovery and the sub-prime financial banking system. India, for good or worse, has always been invariably dependent mainly on the US for its products to be bought. But India survived solely due to its excellent and orderly financial systems.

Is the Great Meltdown of 2008-2009 somehow had to come after the Great Depression in the US of the 1930s/40s? Whatever reasons we might deduce and try to explain to ourselves; it has thrown up some very pertinent questions about the very nature or idea of globalized Financial Markets and Financial Economies; the way it is being handled; the bottom lines the companies keep talking about and go great lengths to achieve by hook or by crook; the cooked-up profit and loss statements, the commodity markets syndrome, the ever-increasing need for the market sources and resources and all their ubiquitous workings and dealings have all crashed like hell upon the aspirations of the common people of each nation involved in this conundrum. All this has been clearly - and undeniably - devastating in their consequences for us to sanely and calmly reflect upon.

So what will stimulate our stagnant economy? What will give this horrible fiscal deadlock a break? Who or what will break the ubiquitous coconut to usher in a refreshing change of economic normalcy? When are we going to be back in business, just the way we were before this monstrosity of a Recession began hovering over our heads? Perhaps, only time will tell.

A fundamental aspect that we can readily understand is that if our country’s strong-willed globalized economy has to get back on track – probably back with a vengeance now – then it is for our foremost governmental agencies and watchdogs to take up the cudgels and react fast to enforce some healthy confidence-building measures for the general market economy to revive. Surely, they did act responding in the way it is meant to be done. 

Our revered Reserve Bank of India - R.B.I. – braved this challenge admirably with all its might and took up several fiscal dealings, even altering some tried-and-tested policy measures, to positively enthuse our country’s financial system with intense capital flows; all for the general spectrum of our economy to come about posting robust results. Therefore, as experts say, creating more jobs, bringing down the food prices, driving the capital markets by offering concessions, discounts, and bailouts, and enduring some practical cost-cutting alternatives, will soon hound the hydra-headed monster called “Recession” to put its tail between its legs and run! It will gradually and effectively seize to exist.

Lastly, the implications of this huge impact on the financial economy, in combination with the major commodity market shocks, and the housing downturns in the US are mighty hard to scale and talk about insane terms! The consensus is that the global economy is set to weaken further. Growth is slowing and it will be so for a long time to come! In emerging economies, like that ours, looking forward to the opening of markets is a tough cookie to savour! The sole concern for developing nations like India should be whether the slowdown will be superficial and somehow be pursued by a steady recovery later, or whether the downturn will be profound and prolonged. The recession is not over yet, mind you.

Yes, as far as we understand, the core issue about this “clear and present danger” called Great Meltdown (Downturn) is that it will have to be addressed eventually of how to thwart excessive risk-taking in the future, without actually stifling the potential (or whatever of it is left now in the present context) of ‘effective financial markets’. Still, hope floats.

Keeping in view of the trying times we are facing, I, for one, truly wouldn’t give cent percent marks to the decaying roots of the idea of Globalization and the trifling concept of Market Economy because of the dreadful consequences of having to keep fresh and rotten Apples both in one basket are far too severely crippling than we could care to imagine before; and all those inescapable degrading effects - such as all the shreds of evidence discussed above - are there for anyone to judge, but, folks, judge for yourself judiciously.

By Arindam Moulick

English Evaluation: A Personal Perspective

At the dawn of the hot summer month of the year 2007, I wondered aloud - a bit contemplatively then - that I should without recoil have to be exemplifying my sense of right and wrong that would go into expounding the entire gamut of English Evaluation dispensation. 

And once into the team of E.E., I stepped onto the novelty of my lingual efficiency of the English language.

A ‘sense of right and wrong’ is pretty apparent a rationale, I know, but a fine combinational basis of deep-set assessment parameters furnished by the company and a sagacious ability to promptly identify or distinguish the best from out of the sizeable (sometimes sundry) restless lot seemed totally different a challenge for me. Furthermore, to be able to judiciously recognize and assess the employable resources for our diverse list of clients is bound to remain a lucky inclination for me as long as I am working at this company.

Based on my personal experiential knowledge, I tend to hypothesize on the lines that few of the job aspirants or test takers who take our wide-ranging tests seem not to realize the fact that almost every step of test-taking is ‘measurable’ by standards (often defined standards) or is at once scalable based on the scores of assorted parameters relating to which we test administrators get on to score them.

Conversely, even if they (test-takers) are superficially aware or are quite clearly knowledgeable about the aforementioned aspects, then they seem to take up all into their stride and score well, eventually ‘coming out’ with ‘flying colours’ and, then, an impending selection process awaits them. But, by sheer happenstance, maybe, or like each cloud is said to have a silver lining, some likely selects most often than not happen to flounder. Well, this too can be reasonably explained as to why they happen to do so as they do! Several reasons have been propounded but let not for the life of this article delve into that reality. That may be for some other time with another cup of tea.

I have had my “laughter challenges” during and after the English assessment procedures I carried out over the duration of the three months. I can’t help but think pretty often and habitually share them with other English Evaluators in my team, and I do so only for the sake of agreeable experiential know-how though! There are so many unheard-of bloopers, slip-ups, lapses, gaffes, and so many meaningless howlers that my personal list has already gone bust and gone out of order, all smacking of some inconsequentially misused and abused English Language terrorism! But there is going to be an article written soon on that subject too in this blogosphere. So, puh-leeze! Hasten to fasten your seatbelts!

There was a significant yet compelling itch to relate a few innocent offenses made by some fresh-off-the-boat aspiring candidates who were lined up for our English assessments, especially for the Spoken English first round, with my equally industrious associates. And I, eventually, could not help but surrender laughing at the often splitting or even atrociously funny, comical bloopers experienced first-hand! God is with me! Innocent mistakes are so sweet to know and almost therapeutically rejoicing! Likewise, there have been some silly peccadilloes and during that time amusing within ourselves became the first point of release of our stresses and strains of our jobs. In the present times, it is more of a been-there-done-that way of thinking that generally prevails upon us, without letting it concede on our deductive capacity. Bloopers or no bloopers, they matter a little less now.

The most significant facet of the E.E. exercise on a more epithelial level – depending upon the assessment criterion, for instance, whether it be Spoken, Written, or Persuasive - is the elemental detection of ‘plausibility’ of the resource in question, besides which - hardly considered necessary to mention - there are other auxiliary technical traits like articulation (for Spoken - SET), sentence formation (both for Spoken and Written - WET), Indianisms, writing abilities (clearly for Written), persuasive abilities (for Persuasive Communication - PCT), etc. (all these based on a defined set of parameters, normally on a scale of 1 to 5). ‘1’ is ‘poor’ and ‘5’ is ‘remarkable.’

On a personal level, I almost always tend to believe that any candidate or test-taker must have to be free from claustrophobic ideas because the answer to the given question should have to be only in accordance with the question asked and not fumbling into anything else unwanted that the interviewer never wishes to give all ears to. Because, if your answer has to be most suitable in its desired effect in that spur of the moment, then it should really have to come within the purview of the question asked and not get “uncomfortably imbalanced” (only an opinion!) with the asker of the fine question! If not, the candidates lose marks and their general gravity is found flaking off the scoreboard! The million-dollar question is how do we do it? Clear the mind from the unwanted pounding that distracts. I think one needs a good night's sleep after which in the morning a nice cool shower and a light breakfast in the belly! This thought is surely unconventional but, trust the good Lord, it helps the most.

‘Events’ is the most popular action-oriented word in the Operations department and in the English Evaluation dept. of this Bangalore-based company (where I worked as a freelancer during weekends along with my other regular job in Hyderabad), is quite a weighty source for a good first-hand learning experience. I dub it as ‘action-oriented’ because it is really so based upon a display of pursuits and activities, what with all its direct surprises and learning expectations from interactive sources and, in fact, be as it may, the opportunity to represent a company of repute at the most fundamental level and that which is happening right at the client’s place is most opportune a moment for English Language workers everywhere. 

For any individual who is looking out for some added bonuses in terms of intermingling with a lot of business customers, then this is it: the right channel for us to represent like professionals our assessment competencies and know-how and to a progressive extent, as assessment executives, our kitty full of comprehensive skills assessment portfolios as well.

I have had my sojourns assessing for different customers where I noticed people performing distinguished work solely on the basis of opportune ideas that get generated while at work. At the helm of affairs were fairly consummate opinions and thoughts in rapid exchange with each other. These ideas were those, which were related to the exercises we all were primarily put out for. The stake of it all was hinged upon our very basic sense of business acumen. There has been a superior sense of belonging to the tasks at hand, by all accounts, to the good ideas and their continual consequences: mainly those which were simply generated at the spur of the moment. These ideas and exchanges most often than not look very logically bare and almost always are unaccounted for merely because they happen every day on a daily basis. But to a generic observer of ideas and thoughts of all kinds, wherever they might exist, in whatever form or substance, they eventually do form a chiseled gem quietly embedded in the chain of a wholesome experience.

I end this critique with bated breath and, therefore, basking in the glory of the English Evaluation sunshine I shall never allow myself to sail my humble boat to the last sunset! The legend of good English language speakers does exist, but the associative contraband myth that it doesn’t, if there was one, has gone outdoors forever!

By Arindam Moulick