Nishit's Weblog

The map of USA has changed…USA has the best relations with all the countries of the world…terrorist organizations have become ‘bum chums’ of the USA, North Korea and Iran are allies of America, USA has changed to Utopia...no no no…that’s not the ‘change’ or the type of change we witnessed in the history of USA…but, wait, the entire world is talking about a HISTORIC CHANGE in USA, even the brand new President of the US said, “Change has come to America”! Ah, yes, there’s a change in the USA, George Bush Junior is no longer the President, nor is the Republican Party in power anymore. So, what is it? Well, we have the man of the moment, Barack Hussein Obama, America’s latest Prez. Nothing unusual, USA always had a new Prez after at least two consecutive terms (if not one). Here, the situation is ‘different’…Mr Obama is the FIRST, yes first Afro-American President to be elected, rather the 1st Black or ‘coloured’ man to ever come to power at this zenith! Barack Obama owes allegiance to the

Avalanche, Tsunami, Earthquake, Cyclone, Hurricane, Whirlpool...just to name a few...are 'attacking' the 'Markets' worldwide and the Indian Markets can never be left far behind, they can go 1 step further. Bettering the battering...as hearts and minds go shattering on our Indianized version of the Wall Street, aka the revered Dalal Street. It was 'khoon ki holi' (Indianized bloodbath) amidst the festivities of Diwali, wherein ideally people are out on a buying spree, not only shares and commodities, but also sweetmeats, apparels, appliances, jewellery, et al. The 'festival of lights' has certainly become lacklustre for most of the Indians as they cant go on a shopping spree that they are used to! Even though the Wall Street was the epicenter of the financial earthquake, the tremors were felt throughout the world. Presumably the Richter Scale, wouldn't have been in a position to measure the intensity of this 'quake', which will not only go bey

Its bloodbath, mayhem and carnage once again as the benchmark BSE Sensex, headquartered in Mumbai, was battered yet again on October 17, 2008 and its been hammered for quite some time now. Seems it will have to be business as usual for the regular investors(day traders & deliver based), arbitragers, stock brokers, HNIs, fund managers et al as some people survive purely on the financial markets, more precisely the stock markets. Here the question is about survival as thriving seems a distant possibility taking into consideration the almost consistent downfall, the choppy and flat markets. Records show that it took 484 trading sessions for the Sensex to climb from 10,000 (on February 6, 2006) and touch an all time high of 21,207 (on January 8, 2008). However, it’s taken just 191 sessions to collapse to 10,000 and below! Furthermore it was Black Friday again on October 17…17 does ring alarm bells in our systems…May 17, 2005, days before the swearing in of the new Government, when the

Naresh Goyal, the big boss of Jet Airways assumed that he will have the last laugh and/or save his beleaguered company from losing over Rs.5 crores every month...alas his idea and dream went for a toss, as now he's in for a bigger loss, in spite of being the big boss! For the moment, the axed employees are having the last laugh. Naresh Goyal & Co. showed the pink-slip to at least 850 cabin crew members and had planned to retrench another 1050 more across several functions. The employees who were shown the door, were definitely in for a rude shock. However, they decided to take the bull by its horns and approached none other than the firebrand MNS Chief, Raj Thackeray, to bail them out. As expected, Raj gave a befitting reply to Mr Goyal's game plan, threatening to stop Jet Airways operations in Maharashtra if the Airline didn't reinstate the laid-off employees. Surprise, surprise (or was it evident)...Mr Goyal takes a quick sharp U-turn - probably under the spell of a c

With the death (rather murder) of the Australian tourist in Calangute, Goa...Indians have added yet another feather in their cap- for awful, uncalled for and 3rd grade customer service. We are all familiar with incidents of wretched customer service in relation to 'domestic' call centres, some restaurants (even hotels), Government hospitals/offices, etc (as the list is humongous). The highlight here is bad/unprofessional customer service leading to murder, YES murder of the customer allegedly at the hands of the person rendering the service! An Australian tourist in India is murdered in Calangute, Goa allegedly by waiters and a security guard of a restaurant in Goa...sounds ABSOLUTELY shocking, at least to me!! The story so far- Mr John Kelly, the Australian national picked up an argument with the waiter over beer not served in the 'right' way. Let's take it for granted that the tourist was rude or misbehaved with the waiter. But, when were Indian waiters famous for

Cheers may be a long forgotten word, or rather a word spelling luxury for an Indian banker, financial wizard and techie- who would otherwise have been gung-ho about his/her prospects in the USA and even UK! The collapse of financial behemoths in the USA is definitely bad news for the Americans but worse news for the Indians holed up there, with an ‘American’ dream. They were not wrong in dreaming big or harboring great ambitions in their minds…it’s just that (the right) circumstances didn’t give them company. ‘Survival of the fittest’ is definitely the mantra today and for many days to come, moreover, its ‘test amongst the fittest’…not only will the ‘fittest’ win but the fittest of the fittest will only survive…thriving seems miles apart. So much negativity, gloom and distress…one can’t help but be BEARISH as the Bulls have NO choice but to run for cover as the Wall Street…which millions of the world looked upto, is no longer a positive indicator! Of course, Bears had their time too, i

Mr AA Zardari, Pakistan’s President goes gaga, almost drooling at the sight of Sarah Palin, USA’s Republican Party’s Vice Presidential candidate. Looks as if he is keen to emulate ex-Pakistani PM Shaukat Aziz, who unsuccessfully tried to charm Condi Rice, the US Secretary of State, who showed him ‘his place’! Mr Zardari was so much in awe of Sarah Palin that he couldn’t conceal his admiration for her. Zardari went on to say, “You are even more gorgeous than I expected…and now I know why the whole of America is crazy about you” . Sarah Palin was a beauty queen in her yesteryears, though now a mother of five! She reacted blushingly, at his comment. This is not all, when a photographer asked Mr Zardari to pose for a photo-op while shaking hands with Sarah, Zardari said, “if he (the photographer) is insisting, I might hug her” . If he could go this far in ‘public’, he may cross bigger ‘lakshman rekhas’ in private. Interestingly, Mr Zardari is a Moslem and the ‘Islamic world’ is currently o

Many people across the world are panic-stricken and talking about the severe slump in the US markets. More than the many 'talkers', several people across the globe are actually affected by the domino effect (remember the song by Pet Shop Boys, Domino Dancing...watch them all fall down) in the USA. With Lehman Brothers...no longer in arms, acting as the catalyst and opening a can of worms, other financial organizations followed suit. Big names like Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley quiting investment banking, and the fallout of Bear Stearns and Merrill Lynch, are huge indicators of the pace of world's economy slowing. Most of us are aware of the 'Great Depression', which resulted in major economies of the world nosediving. Presumably, the 'new great depression' will cause a greater catastrophe in comparison to its predecessor...definitely sending shivers down the spine of many. The USA was already 'bleeding' since years, its just that it needed a catal

Seems, being a Good Samaritan doesn't help anymore...even if it does, one may end up paying a HUGE price for being one, even amounting to death! Well, this may sound ridiculous, however, its true! You will definitely agree with me if you are aware of the recent terror attack in Sarai market, Delhi. I was, LITERALLY in tears, petrified with grief... A low intensity crude bomb went off on Saturday afternoon (Sept 27, 2008) in the crowded Sarai market, not far from the famed Qutub Minar. So, what's new? Terror attacks are a regular feature in the life of an Indian...though, a high profile politician or the war lords may go scot free, and may be they are in places where nothing and absolutely nothing can happen to them. But it is definitely a matter of fact that the people whom they rule, are consistent victims of terrorism and persecutions. The highlight of this terror attack- a young innocent boy is 'sacrificed'...so? Nine year old Santosh Kumar happened to see two men on

Looks like 'Harry' (aka Amitabh Bachhan) is in a hurry to bury the hatchet...either to save his clan from the wrath of 'regionalism' or the millions at stake...riding on his son's and his movies! The wife messes up and the hubby covers up- pre-planned move or spontaneous combustion? Amitabh Bachhan, popularly known as Big B, went on to say, “ If found guilty, I’m willing to go to jail ”. Guts we must say after all the jeering statements made by his better half earlier. The Big B also went on to say that Raj (Thackeray) is a friend for whom he has lot of respect. The buck doesn’t stop here…expect the unexpected…the ‘phirangi’ Sonia Gandhi, big boss of the Indian National Congress, steps in…filmi chakkar by a member of the political circus, phew! It’s alleged that Mrs Gandhi personally asked All India Congress Committee (AICC) general secretary, Margaret Alva to call up Vilasrao Deshmukh, Maharastra’s CM to inquire about the well-being and safety of the Bach

Jaya Bachhan, an acclaimed Indian actress and politician, more famous as Mr Amitabh Bachhan's better half, and Raj Thackeray , the firebrand and vociferous political figure, arch leader of the political party, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS)...resorted to mudslinging, yet again! Moreover, it seems this embroglio is here to stay, for LONG. As if the regional 'warfare' wasn't enough, Mrs Bachhan pulled out yet another rabbit from the hat and how! Looks like film Drona's music release 'happened' to be the perfect backdrop for her (Mrs Bachhan) to launch another offensive which definitely didnt go well, at least with MNS and numerous people, not only from the state of Maharashtra but the entire country. Several sources (including the media) confirm that Mrs Bachhan, jeering and laughing away, passed comments, which she claims were harmless...she went on to say (after some talks in English by her son and Goldie Behl) that we are from the state of Uttar Pradesh

A good number of people must be aware that the Indian Railways (IR) is one of the largest and busiest rail networks in the world, transporting- millions of passengers across the country plus several tonnes of freight, daily. Although, many people across the globe may not be apprised of the fact that Indian Railways has a total state monopoly on India 's rail transport. This monopolistic domination ain’t any good for the common man, moreover countless people will agree to this- taking into consideration the pathetic state of IR. Dismal sanitation, thoroughly complacent employees, corruption, absolute ineffective communication…are just some of the inbuilt traits of IR. I definitely dread traveling long distances in the 2 nd class category, which I feel is worse than the 3 rd class. And I’m thankful to God that I’ve the provisions to travel by the category which is supposed to be higher than the substandard 2 nd class. It has been long since I’ve traveled by IR, wherein

Pakistan, the breakaway State from the Indian sub-continent is consistently in the news, mainly for the wrong reasons- be it it's political circus, terrorist camps, ISI, Muhajir Qaumi Movement, etcetera. Their political spectacle started right from the times of Jinnah, who was instrumental in the division of India, especially for his selfish motives rather than the interest of common men. The start was certainly disastrous and now Mr Asif Ali Zardari is the icing on the cake of these debacles. Leaders and politicians have risen, rather fallen in Pakistan, hardly doing anything substantial for this breakaway State. Pervez Musharaf, a Muhajir tried to rule over this State...UNSUCCESSFULLY. Ironically, Musharaf was born in Delhi, India! Now, Pakistani people will be literally at the mercy of God as Mr Zardari, more renowned as widower of the assassinated Benazir Bhutto, stands to qualify as Pakistan's President. Not only is Mr Zardari alleged to be a victim of mental/psychiatric i

As if Arundhati Roy’s statements were not enough, here comes another writer and renowned journalist, Malavika Sangghvi, wife of another popular writer & journo, Vir Sanghvi. For all of you who are wondering as to why Ms. Sangghvi is compared to Ms. Roy, for her (Ms. Roy’s) inflammatory, uncalled for and weird statements on August 18, 2008; Ms. Sangghvi has done anti-Indians and rabble-rousers proud by her undesirable piece of writing on page 10 (Mumbai edition), Sunday DNA, one of India’s frontline newspapers. This divisive article is also easily available on the worldwide web. It is definitely a matter of utmost shame and pity as a ‘responsible’ journalist like Malavika Sangghvi is creating furor and chaos to the already worrisome situation in Kashmir, an integral part of India . Why don’t well educated Indians understand that their irresponsible personal statements involve and affect the country as a whole? It is all the more paradoxical as Ms. Sangghvi claims to be a daught

Indian sensation Vijender Kumar, recreated history once again at the 2008 Olympics, as he won the 1st ever Olympics medal for India in the boxing arena. Vijender is the right choice as the country's flag bearer at the closing ceremony. Though India wanted him to go for the gold, winning the bronze is no small achievement as not only did he become the 1st Indian to win a medal in boxing, he 'fought' his way to reach this 'peak'. Agreed that Bronze is no where near the Gold, let us not forget that this lad won the Metal beating his opponents all the way to the quarter finals, at the same time getting good enough doses of physical blows. Abhinav Bindra's Gold is definitely an outstanding accomplishment and deserves the necessary accolades...Vijender's Bronze was a notch above as his game involved immense physical and mental agony, that too over several bouts. Vijender had to LITERALLY fight his way to the top-physically toppling his adversaries and marching ahe

Indians are FINALLY making their mark in Olympics, the international multi-sport event. It is unambiguously a moment of pride, guts and glory, not only for the emergent winners, but also for the entire nation. Abhinav Bindra set the ball rolling by winning the FIRST individual Olympic gold medal for India . Presumably he was the trend setter, and tangibly set the adrenalin flowing… Akhil Kumar, the fearless pugilist, unnerved the current world champion in the bantam weight category and marched on to the quarter finals where he fell- valiantly fighting, may be it wasn’t his day but he did set the standard in the Indian (and international) boxing circuit, emerging as the ‘winner’. Sushil Kumar also made his mark as the Indian wrestler. Even though boxer Jitender Kumar went down fighting in the 51 kg category, he made us proud by registering a quarterfinal berth. Now, the entire nation will wait and watch their hero, pugilist Vijender, perform and excel for another place in his

Seems author Suzanna Arundhati Roy is on a totally different ‘trip’ and ‘high’ on an unusual note! Indian nationals who support the cause for a united India will empathize with this statement as Ms Roy, the so-called activist made absolutely weird statements on August 18, 2008. She went on to say, “ India needs azaadi from Kashmir as much as Kashmir needs azaadi from India ” . Not only are her statements bizarre, they will undoubtedly add MORE fuel to the already existing fire in Kashmir ! Most of the Indians in India and across the globe, plus millions of people the world over are aware about the Kashmir issue, which has turned into a hunting ground for India’s ‘neighbour’, Pakistan, foreign mercenaries and local terrorists. Is Ms. Roy aware that so many Kashmiri Pandits have fled, RATHER were forced to flee from their own homeland? Is Ms. Roy aware of the Simla Pact? Doesn’t Ms Roy know that Pakistan and Bangladesh were parts of India and divided as independent nations for