Beginning or end...

Human brain is a clutter of ideas and thoughts. It depends on us whether we nourish it and give it a new beginning or kill it and give an end. We hear the stories of success of great scientists, entrepreneurs, leaders… and what do they start with???? Just a small idea... I have always liked the marketing punch line of idea ‘An idea can change your life’. Determination added to idea is what that builds empires.

I was going through the continental drift concept and was amazed to know that it is a small thought that created the whole theory, it is as small that you need not be great intelligent or great thinker for the idea to strike in your mind.

Let me start with the theory first which is quiet interesting, and which unveils some of the amazing facts about the world. According to this concept some 200 million years ago all the continents were joined into a super continent known as Pangaea. The map above shows the drifting of continents. Seems quiet interesting, India moved a long way to be in its presents position. It totally got detached from one piece of land moved a long way and joined the present Asia. It seems like our life time is a blink when compared to the existence of world. It took 50 years for the geologists to find evidences and to accept this theory. There are animal and plant fossils in the world showing evidences of Pangaea. This theory was first proposed by Alfred Wegener in 1912. I was surprised on knowing how the whole theory began…with a small thought or small observation. Alfred Wegener observed that the shapes of continents on either side of Atlantic oceans seem to fit together i.e. Africa and South America, the points A and B in the map. That is where the idea kindled that all continents might be joined, and with determination and serious studies the theory is proved.

There are millions and trillions of people who happen to see world map day in day out, but how many of us observed that the shapes of Africa and South America fit each other? Even if we have observed, how many of us started working on it or researching it. I now feel how I couldn’t observe this little thing, which surely does not need great observation power or intelligence. It is because my mind is preoccupied with many other minor things like movies, cricket, parties, dressing…Had I observed it with concentration and interest I would have found out. Most of us feel that inventions and discoveries are out of our reach, but the fact is we are ourselves confining our reach. We are not letting our thoughts cross the borders which are drawn by us subconsciously.

We all have studied about gravitational theory in school discovered by Newton. It is a small incident which made him think… an apple falling on him from the tree. Ideas come from small incidents, which need to be nourished for a new beginning. Many business empires were built by entrepreneurs who start with a small idea and further it with determination.

David Schwartz in his book ‘Magic of thinking big’ said that thousands of ideas strike human brain, which when ignored are forgotten. He advised all to carry a pencil and paper all the time and write the ideas. He said, if offered 2000 $ and a pencil paper to him, he would definitely chose a pencil and paper.

It is in our hands whether to start a new beginning or end it completely.

Thinking big...

David Schwartz in his book ‘The magic of thinking big’ beautifully spoke how ‘thinking big’ would work wonders. It all depends on how you think… whether you perceive a half filled glass as half full or half empty.

People often try to give excuses for not being successful in life… the most common being not having enough brains. David Schwartz gives instances of how successful people can be even without intellectual brains. It is not because of any miracle in their lives, it is just the magic of ‘Thinking big’, instead of complaining about not having enough brains, they started thinking big. It’s all how you think rather than how much is your IQ.

Henry Ford, who had little formal education, was once asked few basic questions about history and wars. He failed to answer them but quickly said he could find a man who could answer them. He feels, the ability to know how to get information is more important than using the mind as garage for facts.

A CEO of a manufacturing firm happened to come across a quiz master who could answer when, where, what of almost everything happened in the world. When asked how much he would pay for the man, he said not more than 300$, the price of an encyclopedia. Knowing and memorizing the facts is just not enough, ‘thinking’ is what matters to be successful. Use the knowledge to create new things, to create new path. Knowledge is powerful, only when used constructively.

The world’s richest man and the founder of Microsoft opined that the Indians are the most intelligent people in the world after the Chinese. Then why is India still a developing country? Why isn’t India advanced in technology or science compared to many other countries in the world? It is because of the lack of thinking. We Indians set boundaries for ourselves and will never try to go beyond that. We study in prestigious institutes, taking over tough competition, learn few theories and finally end up in a job where we can implement these theories and feel complacent about our achievements. Everybody wants to follow a set path. We can find only few people who can explore new directions.

America imports many things from all over the world, and from India it imports ‘brains’, Brain drain has been the hottest topic in India. But we can find only few percentages of these Indians in top management or strategic management in American companies.

Our education system is designed in such a way that we give little or rather no importance to thinking. There is no scope for creativity or practical projects. We memorize things, we score marks and then we are intelligent. The parents and teachers emphasize more on what you score. The ever increasing rate of student’s suicide after the SSC or intermediate results shows the level of pressure our education system creates.

Success can be yours irrespective of whether you have intellectual brains or average brains. It is thinking that is more important. Your thoughts should be extension of your knowledge, then only we can say ‘Knowledge is powerful’. Even the great scientist Einstein couldn’t answer the question how many feet make a mile. He said he did not want to waste his time and brain in memorizing the things he could find out in 2 min by referring to a book, instead he could use the time effectively on thinking. ‘Thinking big’ really can do wonders.

I recommend everyone to read ‘The magic of thinking big’ by David Schwartz, I read only half of it till now, and already this is my favorite book.

The sweetest mom....

To me the most beautiful of God’s creation is mother, and I’m sure this is not just to me, if there is anything the whole world would agree up on then this is it, in spite of religious, social and demographic differences.

I thought of writing so much about my mom but I am short of words now. My mom is my guide, my teacher, my role model. She is so loving and caring,,,, if I get hurt the first tear would be my mom’s, yet she pretends to be tough because she knows her tears would make me vulnerable. She sacrifices her pleasures for us, discovers happiness in small things of ours. She would never forget the day I started walking even after becoming older. Even the smallest of achievements of mine would make her feel conceited. She is very helpful, supportive and is a good decision maker which makes her siblings often look up to her. There are so many things to learn from her.

I love my dad too as much as my mom, for whom I'm still a kid. He is so caring, emotional and sentimental which is quiet uncommon in men. I often feel lucky for being a part of such a wonderful family.

Hollywood Bollywood

I was ‘amazed, confused, surprised, perplexed and finally was feeling proud’. It was an amalgamation of feelings when I heard Bollywood song ‘Chaiya Chaiya’ being played in a Hollywood movie ‘Inside Man’. We were a couple of minutes early to the show, and when the show began with AR Rahman song I suddenly couldn’t understand, at first I felt we landed in a wrong theatre, then thought the sound is coming from some where else not a part of movie, it took few seconds for me to realize that a bollywood number is being played during the titles of the movie. Then my head rouse with pride being an Indian.

Spike Lee’s latest smash ‘Inside Man’, starring Danzel Washington is about a New York Bank robbery. There are wide range of anecdotes over the opening and closing tracks of the movie. Some felt that ‘the opening and closing musical tracks immediately attracted the attention of film critics and moviegoers alike because Lee chose an unexpected piece of Bollywood music as a curtain-raiser for his urban thriller’, some critics felt the music gave an ‘energetic edge’ to bank heist thriller, while some other critics felt that the music is totally out of the movie track, and sounded like a African or a middle east folk music which has nothing to do with plot of the movie. What ever it is, it surely is a big achievement to AR Rahman, but this simple down to earth person is not the one who is going to feel complacent, he said all this means that he has to work even harder, it is also a reminder that one must remain humble even more than ever.

While Spike Lee, who works as professor in New York University’s graduate film school, has his own version of story for choosing a bollywood song. He said during a class of musicals one of his students asked him to see some bollywood, with little or rather no knowledge of bollywood Lee asked her to name a film, She immediately said ‘Dil Se’ and gave him a DVD of the movie next day. Lee happened to like the movie and intensely got attracted to the song ‘Chaiya Chaiya’, he then thought he would play the song in his next movie. This shows the power of Rahman’s music and that one could never get away from his beats.

Rahman’s music in Hollywood movies is not new, his songs are featured in 2001 romantic hit ‘Moulin Rouge’, there are half a dozen of his songs in the movie ‘Lord of the rings’, his haunting theme music from the movie ‘Bombay’ is played for almost two minutes in Nicolas Cage starrer ‘Lord of the War’. While the whole song of ‘Chaiya Chaiya’ in the beginning and the end of ‘Inside Man’ is surely a surprise to me. The track at the end of the movie has mixing of rap to the original Sukwinder Singh number. I was singing the song aloud feeling proud for knowing the lyrics. We stayed in the theatre till the song is completely played, I found that others also are not leaving the hall, don’t know whether it is because of the song or because of the titles at the end. I was eagerly waiting for AR Rahman’s name on the screen, but got totally disappointed not finding his name any where.

Cheers to the man who made an international mark and still is simple and down to earth unlike his counterparts Anu Mallik or any other bollywood musician. When we happen to see a Hollywood or any international music or film with similarities with bollywood plot or music we think that our bollywood has pilfered it from Hollywood (even the name bollywood is a copy), but here is the man who made it other way round.

Ignorance a bliss?

Four of the recent telugu movies Pokiri, Veerabadra, 10^th class, Bangaram are given ‘A’ certificate by censor board, because of the unnecessary exposure and violence, indicating that minors below the age of 18 are not eligible to watch these movies in theatres. But nobody seems to be abiding by any of the rules meant for adult movies. Neither of producers, theatre owners, censor board, police seem to be doing their duty, the reason being ignorance. Well seems like ignorance is surely a bliss in this case.

The censor board after certifying the movie did not do any of the follow ups stating that their duty ends with certification. The producers who are supposed to put ‘A’ mark on the posters displayed every where said that they are ignorant of all the rules. The theatre owners who are not supposed to allow minors into the theatres tell that they did not receive any such instructions. The police on the other hand seem to be relaxing with no complaints received on this.

These films are running in the theatres just like any other movie because of the ignorance of all parties. Seems like nobody has any responsibility towards society. Every one wants their duties to be defined and wait for the instructions or rules to set up.

Unless any of the parties act voluntarily in the issue, nothing seems to be done. The censor board can go little further of their duties to inspect weather rules of ‘A’ certificate are being followed.

This is just one example of people digging the reasons for not following the rules, there are many cases all over where people blame one another.

Learning from nature

I had always been admirer of nature, I loved watching green plants, colorful flowers, mountains, roaring oceans, sun rises and sun sets. Everything about nature is beautiful yet deep inside this adorable beauty are great lessons which most of us tend to ignore.

On one sad lonely day of mine I was feeling downhearted and dejected until something caught my sight. It was so usual, so common, so often, I wondered how I couldn’t notice it all these days. It was a sight of a tree standing still even when its leaves are all fallen. I felt happy seeing the tree stalwart without giving up. I realized that I was not alone, there are hard times in everyone’s life and then said to myself that I would never give up and would wait for the spring full of new life.

It was then I found my new guide, my new teacher. The whole thing has changed my perception towards nature. I started searching for new lessons of nature. I started wondering how every thing is created so beautifully, yet meaningfully. Beauty combined with a meaning is what I started to look for.

I had always known the transformation of an ugly looking caterpillar into a beautiful butterfly by the construction of cocoon, but never tried to understand what it is telling to me, I always thought it was natural. I now know it. Instead of complaining about being you, try to bring a new you by hard work. The construction of a cocoon is not easy task, it has fear of being washed away by rain, fear of being eaten by animals, but still it overcomes the obstacles and dares to construct it with a dream of becoming a butterfly. We all have dreams and aspirations, but would do very little towards it fearing about obstacles, but nature has shown us how hardest of the dreams can come true.

I was standing on shore of an ocean, I could see far off the sky and water touching each other which was quiet impractical, then I learned not to believe my eyes without analyzing.

I loved watching rainbows when sun and rain turned up together. I now know they are the colors of unity.

Oceans being so big are of little use for us. It is small rivers or lakes which fulfills our thirst. I realized that to be helpful to others size never matters. We can always support others even with the minimum we have.

A tree teaches us how to live for others, it bears the pain of plucking the fruit to satisfy our hunger. Why not, that is where its growth lies.