Frankthoughts

A few members of the Marketing and Communications team at Tata Consultancy Services in 2006 Way back in October 2007 as a part of the Master's Degree at Deakin University, we were asked to write a detailed assignment on the 'Future of Work'. The report I had written was long forgotten, until a few days back when I was having a discussion with my wife on this very topic. I remembered discussing remote and virtual work in the report, and it only made sense to dig up the assignment to recollect what I had written. It was written as a part of my 'Communications Entrepreneur' module. Today, as I opened the document to read it, I literally got goosebumps with what I read. I had spoken about 'Virtual Office Space', 'Shared Office Resources', 'Office Technology', 'HR hiring practices and policies', 'Communicators of the future'.  The Deakin University Art Department Exposure launch team of 2007 While there are many predictions that I ...

It has been a while since I noted down my frank thoughts here…459 days to be precise! That is a long time I know…what I don’t know is, why it took me so long to get back to writing this. Well what matters is that I am back…and I hope it is for good! A lot has happened while I was away…relating to me as well as in the world around me. It is perhaps these that have egged me on to pen it all down. The senseless terror attacks in Mumbai…the Indian cricket team beating the Australian team hollow in their tour of India…my recent holiday to north-east India…the birth of my niece…the election of Obama as the future president of the United States…the completion of my studies in Australia…and my return to Mumbai are just a few of the things I need to express my frank thoughts on. I could start off with any topic…but I think I need a little more time to ponder on where to start. I must confess that I don’t write regularly and hence getting back in to the flow might take a while. So patience ...

The tragic passing of my cousins Ashish and Akshay in the recent Fox glacier accident last month has affected not only me but all who knew them. Till date, I still await the odd email or Facebook message from them. Them not being around is a hard truth that we all are still trying to come to terms with. I was fortunate to get to know them better and share some wonderful moments with them. Growing up in different cities (Mumbai and Pune) we hardly ever met, except for the odd family gathering…they moved to Melbourne and I met them after almost 12 years in 2007. They looked very different from the last time we met, and I am sure I would not recognise them if I ever bumped in to them anywhere else. Both were tall and lanky six footers and looked like regular 20 year olds. That evening we discussed family, our plans for the future, sports and even world politics. Ashish was vociferous about his love for cricket and his support for the Indian cricket team, while Akshay defended his fav...

Australia isn't all that bad! I have been here almost a month now, and am kind of getting used to the place. Before I came here, like any person moving to a new place, had my preconceived notions about how it would be here. I thought the people here would be uptight and unfriendly, I thought the food would be bland and insipid and I thought I would not be able to adjust completely. The journey to the land down-under was a long and tiring one. I was in transit for almost thirty hours, with a stop-over at Kuala Lampur. I came from a wet and humid Mumbai to a cold Melbourne. It was quite a drastic change in climate!  The first thing that struck me when I got out for the first time was the scenic beauty. One can see the horizon (actual land and not buildings appearing to touch the sky) almost all throughout the city suburbs.  The people here keep to themselves, but unlike my assumption, are extremely approachable and polite. I think it took me some time to get used to ...

As I sit staring at the computer screen wondering what to write, some random thoughts run through my head...have I nothing to say? Have I nothing to communicate? Has writing a few words become so difficult for me? Am I suffering from writers block? Have I become so addicted to online games that I cannot sit in front of the computer unless there is some animated activity going on? What the hell is wrong with me? Let me try and answer all these questions and try and figure out what the problem is?  I do have stuff to say and do have things to tell!  Here goes... I have just put in my papers at my current job and am going to be in Melbourne this July. I will be starting my Masters in Professional Communications at Deakin University! This will be the start of a new era in my life...I will be in a completely new environment...an entirely new country! I am going through such mixed emotions currently...I am excited about the newness I am going to experience, am anxious about wha...

Scenes of a few Australian cricketers gesturing to the president of the Board of Control of Cricket in India (BCCI), Sharad Pawar to leave the podium after the ICC Champions Trophy presentation had been flashed across all media worldwide. Pawar declined initially from commenting on the issue and dismissed it as something trivial. He however later, asked for a formal apology from the Australian team, because, “If they apologise, it would be a good signal to the people of this country (read India)”, as he put it. As per reports, the Australian team captain sent his formal apology to Pawar and has even tried to contact him personally. All this is fine…but was the Australian demeanour just Aussie arrogance, as perceived by the host nation, or were they just eager to receive the award? If so, then is this freedom of expression universal? Are there any limits to it? Or is just a matter of perspective? Who decides this? Almost all democracies have signed the United Nations, Universal De...