~ Reflections ~

Being a woman is tough.... and I don't mean it in a rudimentary way of a menstural cycle and pregnancy and post partem. I mean the more obvious way of having to deal with a roving eye. I have been raised to be an independent, and (almost!) self sufficient person who can take care of herself come hell or high water ! In all these years in the corporate world an trying to make the workplace a more inclusive place, there is a sixth sense which kicks in when I interact with some people.... and THAT is the one thing that keeps me on my toes ! Am I over-reacting in thinking like this... afterall 21% percent of the workforce comprises of women. We might not be a majority, but it isn't a negligible statistic.  Then what is it that makes the mind cringe on those odd occasions ?  Staying away is not the solution, neither is being overly cautious about it.  What is the solution ? Besides relying on the sixth sense, which suddenly just steps up in sticky situation :)

One of the most impactful modes of communication for companies is advertisements. In most companies, lots of thought foes into what they wish to convey to their audience. While ads from the likes of Tata Group (read Tata Tea, Titan and Tanishq) have always been a cut above the rest, there are few other brands/companies which have consistently managed to break through the noise to deliver meaningful messages. Take for instance Ghadi Detergent, a brand from RSPL Ltd (a Kanpur based company) which has used the punchline #SaareMaelDhoDaalo to deliver beautiful messages, be it about forgetting old grudges , our prejudices about certain professions , the different hues of a mothers or respecting the people who enable us to accomplish our daily work i.e. domestic helps. Brooke Bond (an HUL brand), has also managed to deliver socially relevant messages through the brilliant campaigns like  #TasteofTogetherness  which has managed to shatter many myths, including the recent ad perta...

As a part of evolution, looks like we are on our way to becoming more social people... not that we have suddenly started bonding with our friends or interacting with our neighbours... but by simply sharing every possible event and non-event of our life on "social" media...  Be it Facebook, which seems to have successfully found means and ways to even ruin a special holiday by checking into the resort, or Linkedin, through which Microsoft seems to have taken on Facebook, and created a timeline of its own. What was once a professional network, and again become a sequence of posts.  Whatsapp seems to be the latest addition with its segment on latest status update. Despite creating the misnomer called being a "social" animal, as a society, we seem to be lonelier, more cut off from not just friends but even family. We claim to be extroverts, shouting out to the world, without realizing we aren't even capable of listening to ourselves most of the times. It is as ...

All of us talk about India being a progressive society. That we are catching up the "modern" world.  That women are now treated equally... or atleast will be. It is a good thought to pursue, since India is one of the few nations in the world where we have the existence of a matriarchal society, where the woman of the house has the right to property, money and business. Don't get me wrong, it is not about the money, but more a sense of power and rights, and the notional symbols attached to it by our society. Needless to say, in most cases, the woman is forced to fight for this right, despite being the care giver towards the later parts of life. And again, by woman, I don't necessarily mean daughter... it could well be the daughter-in-law who has been doing what it takes. But what good is all this power, when the same woman is beaten, raped in wide open streets, and then is told that she is at "fault" and is tainted... ironically due a crime committe...

Just whiling away time on the internet, I came across this website Friends2Support , which allows you to list yourself as a blood donor, and also look for one. In today's world of PE's, it makes me feel nice, and reinforces my faith in new ventures... when entrepreneurs take the plunge and not just generate revenue, but manage to touch the needs of our society.. Do go the website & signup....

You and me... we talk.. discuss...  pen down our philosophies.. the challenges we face.... We are the Surplus educated.. And this is what the concern of (what he himself calls), a little educated man can result in... Kudos !!!

A man is free to use the streets as his toilet, and flick out their p**** not bothering who all they are showing it off to.... And the slightest sign of a cleavage is sufficient to say that women don't dress up properly... they provoke the "man"kind... And then we talk about Gender Equality !!!!

There is such a wide gap between the demand and supply of basic amenities like medical services... housing... good schools.... that getting into any of them, doesn't seem to be possible.. atleast not on pure merit... So even in places where you thought there was no possible corruption (and by that, i don't necessarily mean money)... it takes, what is called सिफरिश i.e. Recommendation... What is even more amazing is that most of these places state it very blatantly, that you are not welcome, even if you are eligible... When all of us, today's generation, discuss corruption, and talk about wanting a clean society, free of having to bribe anyone, we tend to forget... that discussing such issues from the comfort of our homes/offices is rather convenient... But when recommendation (which is just a more sophisticated form of corruption) is requested for, even for basic admissions... I wonder how we can plug such things from our society... And if a corruption...