Merry Christmas

I look at everyone rejoicing around me and wishing Merry Christmas to each other with a bottle of champagne or a  cigarette in hand. Not sure if this is how Mr. Santa wants all of us to enjoy this day.

But what I really miss is the pair of socks that I used to hang outside my room along with the wishlist, hoping that Mr. Santa will come and fulfill all my desires. With my age, the size of the socks started increasing and so did the wishlist. I still remember, on one of the Christmas Eve's, I had hung my sister's slacks so that the entire cricket bat could fit in. Thank you Jesus for such wonderful sister who always gave me gifts more than what I desired.

Today I sit alone in my room, waiting for the same Santa to give me a magical wand so that I can make my life simpler. I miss my childhood when my ignorance used to get me gifts whereas today my knowledge about the same makes me sit alone and create a wishlist for which I would have to be the Santa and fulfill.

Merry Christmas!!

Life is...

Once upon a time, there was a girl who could do anything in the world she wanted. All she had to do was choose something and focus. So one day she sat down in front of a blank canvas and began to paint. Every stroke was more perfect than the previous, slowly and gracefully converging to build a flawless masterpiece. And when she eventually finished painting, she stared proudly at her work and smiled.

 It was obvious to the clouds and the stars, who were always watching over her, that she had a gift. She was an artist. And she knew it too. She felt it in every fiber of her being. But a few moments after she finished painting, she got anxious and quickly stood up. Because she realized that while she had the ability to do anything in the world she wanted to do, she was simply spending her time moving paint around on a piece of canvas. She felt like there was so much more in the world to see and do – so many options. And if she ultimately decided to do something else with her life, then all the time she spent painting would be a waste.

 So she glanced at her masterpiece one last time, and walked out the door into the moonlight. And as she walked, she thought, and then she walked some more. While she was walking, she didn’t notice the clouds and the stars in the sky who were trying to signal her, because she was preoccupied with an important decision she had to make. She had to choose one thing to do out of all the possibilities in the world. Should she practice medicine? Or design buildings? Or teach children? She was utterly stumped.

Twenty-five years later, the girl began to cry. Because she realized she had been walking for so long, and that over the years she had become so enamored by everything that she could do – the endless array of possibilities – that she hadn’t done anything meaningful at all. And she learned, at last, that life isn’t about possibility – anything is possible. Life is about making a decision – deciding to do something that moves you.

 So the girl, who was no longer a girl, purchased some canvas and paint from a local craft store, drove to a nearby park, and began to paint. One stroke gracefully led into the next just as it had so many moons ago. And as she smiled, she continued painting through the day and into the night. Because she had finally made a decision. And there was still some time left to revel in the magic that life is all about.

Business Of Brands

Not sure how many of us noticed the new commercial that Revital is running on the TV sets with their new brand ambassador Salman Khan. And even if you have seen the TV ad, I am not sure how many of you actually questioned the change in Revital's brand ambassador who was earlier Yuvraj Singh.

Revital, a daily food supplement that has a combination of vitamins, minerals and ginseng, is a brand of health supplement owned and marketed by Ranbaxy Laboratories. Revital as a product has been positioned as keeping the consumers healthy and fit.

But recently it has suffered a great damage to its positioning, the former brand ambassador himself is fighting his 1st level cancer. To counter act and keep the business in safe boundaries, Revital withdrew it's earlier commercial featuring Yuvraj Singh and quickly signed Salman Khan, another big name that claims to be fit and strong, to shoot a TVC that is very similar to their earlier TVC (with Yuvraj).

This smart move may have helped the brand to walk un-noticed infront of millions of it's consumers but falls flat on the face when properly analyzed/examined. This incident not only questions the brand's credibility but also tells us how hollow is the sphere on which such brands are rolling.

Hope we learn from what we see if not from what we hear.

An Evening With Friends

It was an evening with friends when I spotted her on the adjacent bench.
She was wrapped in pink and was holding a drink.

Her lips blowing the smoke and her eyes twinkling in the night. I approached to talk but the words dried, so I kept quite and admired the sight.

I gathered some courage to walk up when I saw her settling the bill. She gave me a look and It felt like falling 100fts from the hill.

Finally we spoke and we spent the night. I enjoyed her craziness and her dancing strides. I was living the moment when she made me realise, that she wasn't an ordinary girl with whom I could easily survive.

She threw me out of her flat at 4 in the night, I walked all the way home thinking what I din't do right.

We met again and spent a fabulous time. Was up till 11 in the morning and wished to spend my lifetime.

A weekday at work suddenly became special as I had a juvenile smile. But the happiness was short lived as she asked me to delete her from my mind.

I sit here, miss her and wish to see her again. Hope she comes back to me and we can share the craziness again.