Book Review- AQSON Level 1

Captivating....enchanted...enigmatic

There are few books which don't give it away till the last moment and this is the one. It is non formulaic writing which delves into the characters and very deeply. There are so many layers that as a reader, you would be spellbound. 

Aqson ( name derived from Aqua and Crimson) is a game played between God and Lucifer (a Satan) and revolves around a battle to determine future of the nature. They have their own "weapons" to play the game. From the political bout to become India’s Prime minister to the union fracas in the historical Kolkata, the book captures all.

The characters, especially Yuvrani is endearing and you can connect with her at so many levels. Another superbly sketched character is Toya, who is timid but dexterous too

Though is starts in Athens, but to bring out that Indo element with intersperses of the Greek mythology concoction. Sreejib works as a true craftsman to take us to Delhi and Kolkata introducing us to relatable characters albeit underlying fantasy.

The game for me wasn’t about the winner but whom will you support and that is where the beauty of the book lies. The book without much divulgence leaves you at crossroads as to where to go and which side to support. 

Part political, part mythological, the story is a thriller. Kudos to author for going with such an imaginative concept and using lucid language to unravel the story for a non-fantasy reader like me. Eagerly waiting to read Part 2. 

I don't want to divulge more for the fellow readers as that may act like spoilers but Aqson Level 1 is a fabulous read for all fantasy connoisseurs out here.

This book review is a part of The Readers Comsos Book Review Program and Blog Tours , for details log on to thereaderscosmos.blogspot.in

Women Entrepreneurship

“Aerodynamically, a bumblebee shouldn’t fly, but then she doesn’t know about that handicap and goes on flying anyways”

-Anonymous

courtesy- webopower.com

Entrepreneurship is essentially a ubiquitous term in today’s economic as well as social landscape. It has been trending for a few years now and ever since the millennial found a way to be job creators rather than seekers, the term has gained increasing significance.

So, what’s the great fuss about entrepreneurship. It is commonplace. Correct? Yes, to a certain extent. But when the question of women being at the helm of startups and creating a new product or a service, it does raise an eyebrow or two. The world is still under a bit of patriarchal mentality when it comes to women heading new businesses. But, as the saying goes, “Good thing come late but stronger”.

The world coughed when they say an Indira Nooyi heading a global MNC or a Sheryl Sandberg taking strides with Mark Zuckerberg. Women occupying executive positions in leading MNCs and rubbing shoulders with the who’s-who of the industry doesn’t come as a surprise. The world indeed worships meritocracy and if a woman can topple men and be competitive, so be it. This however, sounds utopian. The reality is starker, when viewed from an ethnographic perspective and a regional lens.

If we look at women entrepreneurship in Indian context, there is still a lot of work to be done. Not just in terms of the governmental policies and framework but also the mentality. Women are traditionally viewed as beings with less risk appetite and fear of failure. They are emotional beings who will eventually succumb to the viscitudes of family life and won’t go all the way with their ventures. Well, the Government of India has done its it bit to make the access of capital easier of women to start small businesses and be economically independent but the other obstacles still persist. One of the issues that comes to mind is the mental clot of not being able to make it to the proverbial table. This attitude of low self-esteem and not backing their abilities hinders the risk taking ability in the feminine gender.

The probability of women creating businesses in counter-intuitive. Men led businesses have failed more spectacularly. For women, it is the lack of options and the added burden of family- related responsibilities that hinder their businesses to thrive. A Sheryl Sandberg rightly said, “If Option A doesn’t work out, kick the shit out of Option B”. This is the kind of attitude that budding women entrepreneurs require to succeed. If they keep wallowing for job security and the need of liberalism, it won’t fetch them the success they need. They need to think big and long-term.

The statistics and the personal attributes support women. Women are naturally more imaginative and intuitive. They have superior communication skills than their more famed counterparts. Women also need not be clouded by the “tech surge” and feel that they’re out of place. We can take the example of Shehnaz Hussain and Ekta Kapoor- two women who have made it big in the glam world which are conventionally easier for women to venture into.

The icons of women empowerment like Oprah Winfrey and Angela Merkel dwell on the citadel of aggressive entrepreneurship and urge women to try and build a next Apple or Microsoft and not stay limited to an in-house pickle manufacturing unit. In India, the starts would be small, the steps would be tiny but then the aforementioned examples show the capability and potential in store. Federation of Indian Women Entrepreneurs (FIWE), is a dedicated governmental organization to promote self-dependence leading to economic and social liberation among Indian women. In addition, the Skill India program being run by the incumbent government further consolidates the confidence of women vying to enters MSMEs etc. There are several Self-Help Groups (SHGs) and Stree Shakti Schemes which offer credit and platform for women to collaborate and network with respect to business. The need of the hour is to think beyond the social stigma and vagaries of feminism and embrace the new economic landscape that is glittered with opportunities.

The American and the European notions are more inclined towards ambition and this is something the Asian women can learn. It is their right to sit at the table and not the sidelines. They need not be apologetic about devoting more towards their work and dreams rather than kids. They need to pay that opportunity cost if they are to succeed. As Charles Bukowski said, you need to die a few times before you can really live.

“The day isn’t far when the dollar will have a female printed on it”

Written by:

Udit Bhatia

MBA (IB)

2015-17

Indian Institute of Foreign Trade

Violence and Women: What remains unseen

Where do we lack? Are Indians just a bunch of people suffering from perennial amnesia? We behave like unruly citizens struck by a blazing streak of indignation trying to turn the tables on the hapless law agencies and spark a revolution. Hundreds of women commissions and volunteers blurt out in public but why does these voices debilitate in a few weeks? Why this ire is extinguished precociously?When will this rhetoric have an answer.

We start with zeal and chutzpah but our end is anti climatic, a stalemate.

Repetitive incidents of assaults and brutality against women blot the dailies, it garners a lot of despise from the society, condemnation from the government and empathy from the past victims. Some senior leaders and ostentatious sadhus blame the victim and the western culture instead; inexplicable and utter nonsensical in the contemporary world. But, this platitude never leads to any action. This is where the source of the problem lies. The protests are important but do we critically analyze whether they actually serve any purpose other than creating a volatile environment and fragile law and order. 

The 16th December rape in Delhi garnered a lot of media interest and varied sections of society came out on streets demanding exemplary punishment for the culprits. The government just assured justice to everyone and promised better law and order. But, as we all know, sexual assaults and harassment haven't ceased at all. 

If we persiflage from rape, there are other crimes, though not as audacious and ignominious as rape but equally shameful. There are thousands of cases of gender discrimination right from birth: female foeticide, restriction on secondary education, dowry and domestic violence. So, as WHO implies, violence can be mental as well as physical and by a stranger or an intimate partner. The bruises caused by the latter are deeper.

What has the common man learned and imbibed by these menaces? People have come to terms with the fact that they can't curb the violence until the government takes stern measures against those accused of crimes against women. So, they have started to evade from those errands where their safety could be compromised. It is imperative, at this time, for women to discern that all men are not with a criminal psyche. They are also victims of this violence but in this patriarchal society, it is the women who are categorized as the oppressive sex. Men have time and again came out to support gender related issues. Raising our voice, using our democratic rights, protecting our, mothers,sisters and wives of any unforeseen incidents to an extent are some exercises that we can pursue to achieve a degree of safety. The tunnel is long and dark and the light is sputtering, but a billion people together surely have the grit to bridge the chasm and bring about a defining change is the paradigm of the society.

Centenary of Indian Cinema (Part II)

Continued from Part I

To read Part I, click here: http://uditbhatia.blogspot.com/2013/02/centenary-of-indian-cinema-part1.html

As the Indian Cinema entered into the retro phase with the resurgence of the Manmohan Desai’s and the Yash Chopras, the inception of college romance took place. The formula turned out to be such a tremendous path-breaking success that it has made some of the most dumb and decadent directors into millionaires. Loads of clichéd dialogues and chessy antics were commonplace during this era. “Meri mummy ne tumhe chai pe bulaya hai” was considered a blast of oxygen. Girls in shimmering colors with tons of make up and gallons or glycerine romancing boys (some of who resembled uncles) donning bell- bottoms and over-sized aviators, singing in public places; hands-hands; what a gala time it was. Though, on one side, there was the urbane Rishi Kapoor- Neetu Singh pair which was considered poster couple for any sexually starved couple those days, on the other side there was a simpleton ,boy-next-door Amol Palekar trying to succeed in his “pyaar ka izhaar”  but in vain. Hearts broke, marriages annulled…”yeh hamari izzat ka sawaal hai”. The period saw some welcome changes in not only the idealogy regarding love, sex and marriage from the film makers but the audience also was broadminded to digest movies like Silsila and Kabhi Kabhi with the former based on extra-marital affairs. The boy fighting the girl’s father, bodyguard followed by unrelenting rona dhona and than fortunately happy endings. The Kashmir ki Kalis either eloped with their Dharam Veers or in a sudden turn of events, the family complied..”beta, tumhare pyaar ne meri aankhe khol deen” *where’s my tissue paper*…

As the Indian cinema turned 75, the cynosure shifted from colleges and conventional locales like Switzerland to slightly more unconventional ones like Bangkok, Mauritius and Greece. Searching their long lost loves, our leading lovers crossed all boundaries and restrictions , crossed harshest of terrains to eventually win the war of love. If earlier the directors used the mingling of flowers to symbolically portray love, this era witnessed full fledged sensuous scenes burning the reels on fire. Liplocks and getting heavy on the bed were no longer a taboo and love scenes became the usp of a successful love story. Films like 1942, a love story; Chalte Chalte, Saathiya and the entire shebang were cute love stories which are exponents of the risky ishq! With Yash Chopra donning the director’s hat, it was the time to finally witness the evolution of the Indian love story plots take a prudent turn. The erudite veteran made DDLJ, Dil to Paagal hai, Veer Zaara and more recently Jab tak hai Jaan. Though the latter did not have that strong script, all these movies put one perennial doubt to rest: when it comes to love story, no one knows it better than Bollywood. Chopra’s protégés ala Karan Johar (kuch Kuch hota hai, SOTY) and Farhan Akhtar (Dil Chahta hai) brought an urbane angle to love, there is an entire fresh crops of young directors who have the baton to make this emotion the backbone of the filmdom. 

What started with the Dilip Kumars and the Dev Anands with the Wahheda Rehmaans and the Sharmila Tagores, passing on to the Shahrukhs and the Kajols and now with the Ranbir apoors and the Katrina Kaifs, relationships hovering over love as portrayed in our cinema have changed a lot. Scripts change, the protagonists change, the times change, but is there anything as timeless as love?

As  Anupam Kher aptly says to Shahrukh Khan(in DDLJ), beta yeh mohabbat hai, ye naa badli thi, naa badlegi…..

Udit Bhatia