Go IC 2006!

The AIESEC International Congress 2006 begins today. While I write this post, delegates from accross all over the world must be streaming into an opening ceremony excited, nervous, and ready to have a ball.
While the CC scurries around behind the screens pulling all the last minute strings in place to open for a show of a lifetime.

Seeing this website makes memories from last year all seem real again. The thrill, the last minute tension, the sleepless hours, the triumph and that wonderful feeling of completion...

All the best CC 2006! I hope youre able to pull off an even better show than last year ;)



Can you guys believe its been a year already???

On Another note, Congratulations to my dear Cousin Shilpa who delivered a bonny baby girl- Baby Zara- We are all waiting to meet you here in India!

Here's to you

Every now and then, we are faced with uncertainty in our lives- a point when the options surrounding us seem to have their lucrative pros but undeniable cons.

In such a situation, there are various things that one might do-
- One could carefully weigh out the pros and cons analysing carefully what the outcomes of the different choices could be
- One could seek the advice of friends, family, teachers,and seek public opinion
- One could turn to the stars and and listen to what they say
Or...
- One could choose the road less followed, and just listen to the calling of your heart, trying not to thing of the conscequences that will follow.

She was a fresh graduate from one of the top business schools in the world- With a thousand “to die for” opportunities for her to pick from. And she chose a path with that not too many thought was smart- she chose to take a small company to the country she came from- India.

Meet my boss, Ishani Chattopadhyay- a brilliant woman whom I greatly respect. A woman who goes against convention in everything that she does- and bravely and confidently lives the conscequences of her choices.
After a year and a half of herculean effort, she has managed to setup a “now well respected” office in a market that has everything against it- competition, speculation, misunderstanding, and a little bit of double standards.


Now once again, she is faced with lucrative choices, but chooses to follow her heart.
I wish you all the best in living your choices and hope you are successful in whatever you do.Here’s to you! You’re one of a kind!
Bon voyage on your world trip!

A tribute to men!- haha

Saw this on a friends blog and had to reproduce it here:

Too late??

The United States is probably one of the largest contributors to climate change and global warming. It also isnt signatory to the Kyoto protocol which binds countries down to targets to reduce their greenhouse gas emmissions because of the Bush administrations disbelief in global warming.
The cause seems to find support in the US, but it seems to be coming from people who dont really have true decision making power.
Is displacing the issue the answer??
Read below ..


FORMER PRESIDENT CLINTON LAUNCHES CLINTON CLIMATE INITIATIVE

Los Angeles, CA - President Clinton today launched the Clinton Climate Initiative (CCI), a Clinton Foundation initiative dedicated to making a difference in the fight against climate change in practical and measurable ways.

Urban areas are responsible for over 75% of all greenhouse gas emissions in the world. Therefore reducing energy use and greenhouse gas emissions in cities is fundamental to any effort to slow the pace of global warming.

The Clinton Climate Initiative will assist the large cities in the group in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and increasing energy efficiency by using the same business-oriented approach that has made other Clinton Foundation initiatives successful. The Clinton Foundation has made a major contribution to the global fight against HIV/AIDS over the past four years by building efficient and effective systems for procurement and distribution of medicine and tests, thus drastically reducing the cost of treatment. More recently, the Clinton Foundation used the same business-oriented approach to make strides against childhood obesity, working with major beverage manufactures to take high-sugar drinks out of the nation's schools.

Nesting in Jaipur

Living in Jaipur and my perceptions here remind me of orientalist writings of foreign adventurers in British India- where Maharajahs fought battles and Hindoo warriors ruled the land.
Elephants and camels walking across the streets like they own the place, women in brightly coloured sarees resplendent with jewellery at even to the visit to the grocery store,Tall and handsome men with their regal way of talking in Hindi and saying “Namaste” every time they see you.How quaint!

The city is a treat to the eye- from the beautifully adorned walls of houses and bridges, to the sudden glimpse of a palace in the middle of water, to a pearly white temple and a fort on top of a rocky hill. Absolutely charming!

Setting up shop here has been interesting to say the very least and Im confronted by realities that I know so little about all the time. For example – when I was trying to find a house for myself here, speaking to a landlord he asks me in Hindi, “Which caste do you come from?”
I say, tell him Im from Kerala, to which he seems completely blank. So I say again in Hindi- “Im a Madrasi ( meaning from Madras-a place quite geographically removed from where I truly hail from,but, relatively close enough to put my self on his geographical radar).
So he seems to have a sudden flicker of recognition in his eyes and says; “Ah yes, but I mean which caste?” My team mate from these parts tells me- “You know, Sneha- Brahmin, Kshatriya…etc, etc”
I am a little dumbfounded but nevertheless respond recollecting some childhood grandmother stories and said, “Kshatriya”. To which, the broker seems ecstatic and says with a beaming smile on his face, “Ah Kshatriya. Just like the Rajputs.You are welcome here”
For a second, Im one of them, and it seems like all doors of landlords will open doors for me as I am (slightly removed) from their noble warrior clan.

Living in Mumbai city, terms like caste are so obsolete and ancient- one of those many things that we study in Sociology in great details as some form of ancient religious story of society originating from different parts of a god’s anatomy.
It then turns out that since Im a non- vegetarian, the other half of the city- the “marwari” community would prefer to lock me out without a key considering me unclean and impure!

Of course I knew things were like this and a large part of Indian society lives under the caste system, but in a faraway sense, now here I am living in an India that is “faraway” to my own mind.

Anyway, property issues are resolved now and Im settled into lovely appartment in the heart of the city and, I almost forgot to mention, theres a beauty parlour just below the building! Hehe

Do come and visit!