Rocket Singh,Corporate governance and Ethics

I have been bored and aimless for the past 3 weeks. The kind of aimlessness which is bound to set in after the trauma of an horrendous xat result and 2 months of preparations from Cat in last week of November ,then university semester exams in December and then a campus recruitment drive in the start of the new year.After having somehow screwed myself out of the above trials and tribulations, finally, there was nothing more to strive for, no next exam looming over my head and hence no pre-exam night deliberations with my conscience ....to keep me awake in bed till 4 in morning.
One of the things which i have been unable to find a solution to and whose solution i knew - only i would have to find ... was that the mask the future me would have to wear in the workplace and how my little conscience can never come to terms with that as this mask often becomes us .... Something that scares the shit out of me.
Secondly , the corporate atmosphere is by most accounts a dirty , wretched place where one has to adopt unethical means to climb up the ladder and where most often honesty and hard work are overlooked for people who are good at doing the boss "favours". Where you have to kiss up to the son of a bitch/ bitch who is your boss and adopt unethical means to survive ...let alone get a promotion .... where you always have to wear this kissing-up mask ( unless you are an asshole by nature in which case the point of this post will be completely lost on you ). This mask ... is in essence a form of you which would best equip you to deal with your work surroundings ,ensuring your financial security by donning a mantle ...at the same time belittling the self that was you. I do not want to wear that mask .
IT was with the above problems still unsolved by my measly little mind that i started the watch the latest Ranbir kapoor starrer Rocket Singh - salesman of the year . As dubious as the name may sound... it was actually a very fascinating and inspirational movie ...one that answered my above problems.
Hardeep Singh is a straight old fashioned guy ...who still believes that business should be without corruption and bribes ...and is also bit slow to catch up with the conniving ways of the his sales world . Hardeep is recruited as a sales trainee in a big computer selling firm and is shocked when his boss berates him for not obliging an important client who asked for a bribe.
Hardeep's conscience wont allow him to cheat his customers ,make huge profits on sales from small customers and give that profit as bribes to the big corporate honchos. At office he has become the joker in the pack , the dumb trainee who has ruined his career , the straight honest guy, whom the ruthless corporate world wont allow to succeed.
Hardeep has become and is feeling like an ignominious employee and is faced with a choice.Whether to adopt the ways of the business world... to put up that mask and contrive people of their hard earned money and lose his character in the process .............or to leave the job . Hardeep decides on a third option . He is going to stick with the company and change the way it does business from within.
Soon Hardeep starts a small parallel company with the aide of other disgruntled colleagues and calls this company rocket singh sales.Rocket Singh sales has ethical business practices and provides computers to its customers keeping profits low..and concentrating on the human aspect of business more than the profit involved. Soon, Hardeep's parallel company eats into the profit of the mother company . Hardeep's boss finally realises that it was his own employees running this rival company,criminal proceedings follow...and soon Hardeep has to lose his company and his accomplices fired from their jobs .
Hardeep's company is merged with the mother company. But , the brand of Rocket Singh sales had become so reputable and its customer relations were so unique that its customers refuse to do business with the mother company once Hardeep and his pack leaves.Finally , Hardeep's erstwhile boss...the corrupted manager of the company begs Hardeep to return .. Hardeep refuses. The manager is forced to give back Rocket Sales to Hardeep .
Out of the above drawn out discussion ..what i am trying to say is .. one need not change just because the world needs him to ... follow your heart ...ye job chala gaya ... to koi aur dhund lenge yaar ... but i will always stick to my beliefs. The mask need not become me...will never become me.
As a parting note - the genres and storylines in hindi movies are fast improving... which is a great sign and bears testimony to an educating audience and nation. It is not often that i find answers from hindi flicks . :-)

To my dearest Erin

I owe this to you . How strangely we met , how strange our first conversation was and how often have we come to talk ! I remember almost every one of those weird conversations ... some bordering on the insane ,some more practical , some comforting and some even inspirational ... but above all ...all of them fun filled. Let me state it outright , that even though we have hardly seen each other a couple of times , i consider you to be one of my closest and dearest friends ... whose advice i have come to depend upon and whose smile has made me smile ... and given me a reason to smile when i had none ...you have been the one who has taught me to be happy ... appreciate life ... and take all challenges which life can possibly throw my way in my stride.
Your childish craziness has been infectious ,your words ,smile and charm have uplifted me through the darkest of emotions ...and your unbridled enthusiasm has given my soul wings to fly ....and my heart a bond to cherish. Your advice and practicality have tempered my emotions when i have felt disgruntled with society and life in general.You have made me feel wanted.U have made me into a better person and for that am i forever indebted. You saw me when i was invisible... and for that am i forever indebted.
The ways of the world are strange and we have proved that we can be stranger still.We may never meet ...and I may not never be there by your side ..to hold your hand when you cry , and I may not be there to laugh with you in your moments of joy ..which i am certain life will shower upon you and God bless you with blessings manifold, but i will always be there with you in spirit ......with all my heart and with all my soul .
I do not know the destination of this friendship.... bonds are brittle and that makes me skeptical and insecure.... but what i do know...what i am in no doubt with whatsoever ...is that i am a better person ... a stronger entity ...a more wholesome individual ...a more dignified man ... a more loving,caring and gentler angry young man ... than i was before i met you ... and its all because of you ...every fiber of my being screams out its allegiance to you for making me a better man . For you , your wisdom , friendship and the hours that you have dedicated to me.... i can this day stand up and say ...truly ... Life is beautiful.
Maybe its the strangeness and randomness of this friendship that makes write this in honour of you....It takes years to know a person .... As time goes by... i may know more of you .... but i am in awe of the idea of you....of your personality.....your strength ,wisdom and beauty which is there for all to behold ...and the lucky ones like me to appreciate... and this idea of you is everlasting.One that the tides of time can never wash away.
Mere words are insufficient to repay the debt i owe you...and to quantify my feelings for you ...Maybe if one day i can do justice to the trust that you have shown in me ... i would do justice to myself and you ... And all i can say for now .... is thanks for being my inspiration , for putting a smile on my face and renewing the hope in my heart ... the hope i had when i was a child ... thinking that the world was an exciting place and Life a beautiful gift ...You have rekindled that hope Erin...and i will never let my heart lose that again. You and your idea will inspire me...will protect me .. Erin with this i depart.

Destiny's child

I don't know what to say really . It has been one of the most eventful weeks of my life ..... The gut wrenching feeling ,the agony, the pain ,waking up with a heavy head and not being to get out of bed till late afternoon ... followed by another daylong ordeal but the ending was sweet. It has been a steep learning curve , one i will treasure for the rest of my life . They say all's well that ends well.. but life does not seem a fair game to play at the moment . The insanity and harshness of it crying out ... the anguish of that unfairness burning the cloak enswathing that initial euphoria of success.
Every man has but one destiny. One of the more famous quotes from Mario Puzo's classic The Godfather. Never has this statement seemed so true ...never have i felt its true power until the events of this past week. We live a life we do not choose , life never works out the way we want it too.... pessimistic statements they may sound ... but such,in effect, is the harshness of that dreaded word ... Destiny.
More than the day of triumph(if i may call it so ) . The penultimate day will hold greater value to me. I learnt hope is a wonderful thing , i saw and felt how a ten minute chat from a friend can inspire and take your load away .... i learnt how happiness really is a state of mind...an art ...so simple... that its simplicity is hard to find ...and hence tragically lost amongst the complexity of our mundane or elaborate thoughts .
I do not know what to say. I do not have to say anything. You and I both now know that life is a game of chance ...we are all but Destiny's children ...be not worried .... for one day lady luck will smile upon us all...Keep the faith.If my friend , you may read this now , and judge me wrong ... forgive me ... for i have erred. Take care and may God Bless.

simple is divine

simple is divine -So it goes
Not all questions have answers they say
Have only one teacher in my soul
Look and you shall see - the truth
Don't distract the mind from its goal

Don't complicate me , simple is divine
I am an empty cup , that'll be filled in time
Guided by only passion and truth -
is what i want to be

At night, I hear the whistling winds and you call out to me
Don't get any closer or I shall have to leave
If i choose to stay , I'll die silently

Caged by agony and conditional lies
I don't want to be that guy
An open prayer and not a silent song am I

Broken and plundered by the promises of time
Don't get any closer or I shall have to leave
In search of truth and truth only am I
You truly love only once in life
Everything hence ...a compromise.
simple is divine

It's Complicated

The world says ..it cannot be ....
but i do believe in fantasy

For what is a man without hope ?
She's the sacred spirit that guides my soul.

The world may laugh ...
call me an idealistic fool ..
"she's not for real " they say ..
"it'll never be" .....


She's an answer to my prayers
but an idealistic notion to naysayers

whatever the feeling i do not know
she makes me grow .. gives me life ...
love and compassion when i have none to find.

The sum total of all i hold dear ..that's her ...
Wherever i may be ..she'll follow me .


Everyday this bond i share ...grows stronger
out of the struggles of day -to-day life
Nothing life can bring can surprise me
As long as she is near... i'll be me.

My heart says ..i do not deserve her
I do not deserve a feeling so pure...
Trapped in the world of insanity
She is all i have ... and that's enough for me.

She makes me grow stronger everyday
i'll say it once?... i'll say it clear ...
I think i love you ..my dear
Wish i never lose this feeling ..
That's all i have to say ...tonight.

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systemised

Running away ..
but you got a debt to pay ...
if not today ..it'll swallow you whole some day ...
Crashed and burned ..
broken down...stop the rewind...
don't let it take your mind.. accept the grind
engulfed by darkness ... desperate search for light
don't rewind ... the alley is blind
where shadows congregate ...
where the mind has ceased ...
rest in peace.

Do you need some time...on your own
Do you need some time...all alone
Everybody needs some time...on their own
Don't you know you need some time...all alone

The cold November rain brings with it a promise ..a refreshing air ...As if , Nature soothing us to coax us out of our self imposed shackles.

Imagine all the things you wanted to be ...dreamt of being when young...when your heart and mind weren't restrained by surroundings and the world as you knew it then was still a mysterious place ....one brimming with opportunity ...and there was an exciting fear about every new day ...a strange happiness out of not knowing ...not worrying about what the future might bring .. and what vocation you are best suited for .... a time when you didn't feel burdened with the weight of responsibilities .... when you knew that you were special... and unique... and you had a destiny ... your path had been chosen .... drawn out for you.... and everything would fall into line ... cause you believed... cause you trusted in yourself... everything would work out fine .


Sometimes I need some time...on my
own Sometimes I need some time...all alone
Everybody needs some time...on their own
Don't you know you need some time...all alone


That my friends.. is greatness... that unbridled enthusiasm ..that joy of living. that thrill of adventure of what the future would bring. Yes , our souls were great once ....cause we had that passion for living ....
We were great once.... Can we not be great again ?

I know it's hard to keep an open heart
When even friends seem out to harm you
But if you could heal a broken heart
Wouldn't time be out to charm you

We need not be shackled by the vagaries of our surroundings ..the filth and distrust which society has inhibited us with . Cause we are special and are the masters of our own destinies.


Cause nothin' lasts forever
And we both know hearts can change
So never mind the darkness
We still can find a way
'Cause nothin' lasts forever
Even cold November rain

Botticelli Angel

Like cherry cakes and milkshakes...
My Botticelli angel ... Like the flowing waters of rivulets
you carry me to distant shores
And keep me longing for more...


Like flowers and sunshine ..
I am afraid to call you mine
The genie that purged my soul
And purified me to the core

Yet I do know...that wherever I may be ..
Your memory will comfort me ..
This has been long due..
Ever since the essence of you I knew ...
We help the other when one sighs
Let it be so ... for now ...
and forever more..


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part plagiarized from "before sunrise"

I have meaning to fill this place with some more of my pseudo intellectual inconsequential ramblings for a while now ... but as with any that's well written ......... it has to come as a spurt and without cause... a moment of inexplicable propulsion into the stratosphere of meaning..... i wait for that moment.
I am being compelled to accept the conclusion that luck plays a major part in life. If something good and worthwhile has to happen it'll just happen ....something that would bring one unprecedented amounts of joy and happiness ....... then it would just happen !! As dumb as that may sound ... this in fact is the truth . Goodness happens out of the blue . (Yes, right , this is dumb ..... but the truth ).

WE(and by we ,I mean I ) tend to over-think things ..over complicate simple matters ..... which need not be treated and thought about more than their face value deserves... Most times ..things are indeed .... what they look like ... Think in real terms more .... keep things simple.

Traveling has an important role to play in our lives . The more we travel and get acquainted with different cultures ... the more we enrich our own characters. The changing landscapes ... and the expanding social boundaries impart a lot of strength to anyone's character ... hmm.... i wait. signing off. :-)

Clueless

These vague strings are pulling me ...
The sound of silence is magnified ...
Negativity is being amplified...
The dearth of common sense is astounding
Silence is resounding ...
The pleasure in the pain is compounding ..
The hollowness and emptiness is confounding

The proximity to reality is blaring
The headlights of the past are glaring
I try to pull myself free... of responsibilities and history
They have a hold over me...
They won't let me be ..
Its a sad sight indeed... Where will this lead ?

The questions are many .. The answers too few ...
What will I form ... Which color ..what shape and hue ?
I don't have a clue ...
I need a little spark ... But it's raining too hard ...
The fire wont start ...

Soaking wet ... In reality ...
Clueless Indeed.