They finally arrived. The famed Kolkata rains & floods! As my colleague & I made our way to office in our relatively high yellow cabs, we saw people seemingly going about their usual business in knee deep water! It was almost as if the water wasn't really there at all. Our salespersons went about on their rounds selling diapers and shampoo! It was just krazy, krazy Kolkata!
By the time we hit the market, the rains had ceded and we expertly chose to do our rounds in the non-flooded routes :-P
But the real fun part of the day was the evening when we visited the magnificent Belur Math. With calm and serene surroundings, the fabulously crafted & maintained buildings and perfect weather with a slight misty breeze, it made for a highly satisfying visit. We followed that up with a boat ride across the Hoogli and back to the hotel. Turns out we saved a 100 bucks on our taxi fare also in the process! We wanted to go to Dakshineswar as well, but it was too late in the evening, and we couldn't get a boat to go there. My friend tells me its a place where one gets truly lost... and finds himself all over again! Hmm.. Over the weekend perhaps..
Talking about getting lost, I lost my lovely little phone on Sunday evening (on a trip to the Victoria Memorial - more on that in another post perhaps). Slipped outta my pocket in the cab. I walked out, paid the driver, and walked about 15 steps when I realized it. I ran back to the road only to be confronted by a sea of cabs. I immediately called my number from another cell and the damn thing rang.. only to go off after a few rings! Aarghh... I didn't have any hope of getting it back, but my roomie tells me that the police gave a friend got his phone back after 7 MONTHS..! So...
Anywayz, luckily, I had bot along another handset & connection from home so I had a ready backup. Now starts the arduous task of rebuilding my address book! Funnily enough, as I woke up on Sunday morning, I had had this strong feeling that I should backup my database.. lest I lose my phone.. I ignored it outta laziness.. et voila.. by evening I had lost the phone and with it all my contacts. Baah..! So that's 2 phones lost on 2 Sundays for the Cal P&G folk..! Wonder whose turn it'll be next Sunday :)
We have 10 or so more days left in Kolkata and I must say I've enjoyed every moment so far (except prolly the moment when I lost the phone :-P ).. Here's to Kolkata!! May we have more rain and more fun in the markets!! :-D
xx
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Sunday, June 15, 2008
Weekend!! Nightlife, sport et al
After a week's frantic activity, it was finally time to unwind & relax in the weekend. Saturday morning's breakfast at the Hyatt was a fuller one than usual :-)
My menu - Poha, upma, idli, sambhar, grilled tomatoes, fruits - watermelon, papaya, chickoo, smoked salmon(!!), walnuts, kismis, almonds, dates, sauteed mushrooms, aloo mutter... mmm.. :-)
A late-lunch at a nearby McDonald's was the logical choice after such a heavy meal.
I've heard a lot about Kolkata's night-life, and Park Street was the place to be. Luckily I bumped into Mookah, Shreyasss & Andy and we quite literally went pub-hopping. Bar-B-Q, Some Place Else & Dublin, all were explored within the space of a few hours.
It felt great - havin a beer, watchin the game :-) and sayin wassssaap to people streaming in :-P The Villa goal was exhilirating, and it just seems that much more special after a coupla beers :)
By campus standards though, the night was a short one as I was back in my room by 1.30am. And, as luck would have it, I have already woken up at 6.30!
Tiger Woods has always been great to watch and I credit my interest in Golf solely to him. And its been just awesome to see him power a birdie & an eagle at the last two holes to lift the US Open this morning. For sure, it'll make headlines in tomorrow's papers as he fought an extremely painful knee and a determined Westwood to clinch the title.
Hats off Tiger!!
My menu - Poha, upma, idli, sambhar, grilled tomatoes, fruits - watermelon, papaya, chickoo, smoked salmon(!!), walnuts, kismis, almonds, dates, sauteed mushrooms, aloo mutter... mmm.. :-)
A late-lunch at a nearby McDonald's was the logical choice after such a heavy meal.
I've heard a lot about Kolkata's night-life, and Park Street was the place to be. Luckily I bumped into Mookah, Shreyasss & Andy and we quite literally went pub-hopping. Bar-B-Q, Some Place Else & Dublin, all were explored within the space of a few hours.
It felt great - havin a beer, watchin the game :-) and sayin wassssaap to people streaming in :-P The Villa goal was exhilirating, and it just seems that much more special after a coupla beers :)
By campus standards though, the night was a short one as I was back in my room by 1.30am. And, as luck would have it, I have already woken up at 6.30!
Tiger Woods has always been great to watch and I credit my interest in Golf solely to him. And its been just awesome to see him power a birdie & an eagle at the last two holes to lift the US Open this morning. For sure, it'll make headlines in tomorrow's papers as he fought an extremely painful knee and a determined Westwood to clinch the title.
Hats off Tiger!!
Tuesday, June 10, 2008
Market!
My first visit to the market along with a salesperson was fun! It was an overcast day, humid, but not all that hot. One thing I've noticed the last couple of days is the amazing amount of the use of the colour yellow in Kolkata... Its everywhere, cabs, buses, shutters of stores, walls, names of stores, everything! As we boarded the yellow cab in the morning, I wondered how it'd be to go around the market trying to sell stuff for a change. The sales guy knew his work well and was well prepared for every retailer that we visited. Hats off to P&Gs simple yet elaborate systems.
Howrah!
It was great travelling in the little cycle-rickshaws from one market to the next. The rain, meanwhile, kept coming and going but it wasn't much of a bother. Kolkata's timing's are weird. Most stores open at 8 am! And shut shop at 12.30-1 pm.. only to reopen at 4-5 pm. This makes life a little difficult for the sales people as they're left selling pretty much all day as there are still some stores which remain open in the afternoons.
After a longish evening at the office spending time with the various teams, I headed back to an okay dinner at the Hyatt. Tomorrow morning will be an early one again, so time to catch up on that one thing that I've been waiting for ever since I woke up this morning, SLEEP :-)
Oh n btw.. awesome Netherlands & Spain!! They were my favs for the competition n I'm glad they've started off well!!
Howrah!
It was great travelling in the little cycle-rickshaws from one market to the next. The rain, meanwhile, kept coming and going but it wasn't much of a bother. Kolkata's timing's are weird. Most stores open at 8 am! And shut shop at 12.30-1 pm.. only to reopen at 4-5 pm. This makes life a little difficult for the sales people as they're left selling pretty much all day as there are still some stores which remain open in the afternoons.
After a longish evening at the office spending time with the various teams, I headed back to an okay dinner at the Hyatt. Tomorrow morning will be an early one again, so time to catch up on that one thing that I've been waiting for ever since I woke up this morning, SLEEP :-)
Oh n btw.. awesome Netherlands & Spain!! They were my favs for the competition n I'm glad they've started off well!!
Sunday, June 8, 2008
Kolkata!!
Going by what I've seen of Calcutta so far (which the the airport, the Hyatt & the road from the airport to the Hyatt), its a decent place :-P One thing that struck me though, was the greenery around. From the air it looked like Kerala! (Compare that to Bombay, which looks like a beehive of slums).
The ride to the hotel was eventful to say the least, as my colleague realized that she'd left her phone somewhere in the airport. So we rushed back only to find that the thing was gone (obviously!).. then the usual filing the FIR with the police n all that..
Hyatt - first impressions
Finally we arrived at the Hyatt around 5 pm (just in time for lunch..!). The restaurant (Waterside cafe) was bright and sprightly, and so was the food. The lasagna was terrific and I'd recommend it for all veggies! The biryani was also decent but the quantity was a little less. Price-wise, don't even ask :-P , but one thing I did notice that a 650 ml Kingfisher beer was just 250 bucks. Considering a 1L bottle of mineral water was 125.. it seemed like a good deal :D The normal water, though, was outright horrible. It smelled like it was taken right out of a fish's mouth and run through a rudimentary filter.
The room we're staying in is big and comfy, but also rather plain with stuff kinda stripped down to the bare minimum... Nowhere near the kind you'd see at a Maratha Sheraton or a Taj. Its functional nevertheless, and I guess we'll get used to it. :-P
The TV has ESPN showing Euro 2008 with Hindi and English commentary running simultaneously! :| Its extremely hard to watch, worse than watching with just Hindi commentary..!!
The lazy evening was spent on the bed, loitering around on the internet, and watching TV. The bed is made of probably the thickest cushion in history and just sinks under you. Its impossible to just sit on it.. one has to lie down!
The TV part of the evening was disappointing. Federer being annhilated by that Spaniard, whats-his-name-Nadal was heartbreaking. I was hoping against hope that things would fall into place for him today, but it just wasn't to be. It was the most one-sided final I've seen in a long long time. Even Federer's demolition of his opponents in the recent past were lesser so.
Anyways, since it was too late for us to go out, dinner was at Gucci, an Indian restaurant at the Hyatt. Taking my colleague and me for a 'couple', the host led us to a cozy corner, with a candle-light dinner arrangement :-P We said we'd prefer a more central location and plonked ourselves right next to the open kitchen. An awesome veg biryani (again) (here the quantity was decent though) and complimentary (addictive) wafers was our short-n-sweet dinner.
And now I'm watching Germany v Poland with Poland lookin good proving just how they went on that awesome qualifying run of theirs.
Office tomorrow :-) and an inviting bed, so this post shall see no more of the compose mode and the preview pane at blogger.com
xx
The ride to the hotel was eventful to say the least, as my colleague realized that she'd left her phone somewhere in the airport. So we rushed back only to find that the thing was gone (obviously!).. then the usual filing the FIR with the police n all that..
Hyatt - first impressions
Finally we arrived at the Hyatt around 5 pm (just in time for lunch..!). The restaurant (Waterside cafe) was bright and sprightly, and so was the food. The lasagna was terrific and I'd recommend it for all veggies! The biryani was also decent but the quantity was a little less. Price-wise, don't even ask :-P , but one thing I did notice that a 650 ml Kingfisher beer was just 250 bucks. Considering a 1L bottle of mineral water was 125.. it seemed like a good deal :D The normal water, though, was outright horrible. It smelled like it was taken right out of a fish's mouth and run through a rudimentary filter.
The room we're staying in is big and comfy, but also rather plain with stuff kinda stripped down to the bare minimum... Nowhere near the kind you'd see at a Maratha Sheraton or a Taj. Its functional nevertheless, and I guess we'll get used to it. :-P
The TV has ESPN showing Euro 2008 with Hindi and English commentary running simultaneously! :| Its extremely hard to watch, worse than watching with just Hindi commentary..!!
The lazy evening was spent on the bed, loitering around on the internet, and watching TV. The bed is made of probably the thickest cushion in history and just sinks under you. Its impossible to just sit on it.. one has to lie down!
The TV part of the evening was disappointing. Federer being annhilated by that Spaniard, whats-his-name-Nadal was heartbreaking. I was hoping against hope that things would fall into place for him today, but it just wasn't to be. It was the most one-sided final I've seen in a long long time. Even Federer's demolition of his opponents in the recent past were lesser so.
Anyways, since it was too late for us to go out, dinner was at Gucci, an Indian restaurant at the Hyatt. Taking my colleague and me for a 'couple', the host led us to a cozy corner, with a candle-light dinner arrangement :-P We said we'd prefer a more central location and plonked ourselves right next to the open kitchen. An awesome veg biryani (again) (here the quantity was decent though) and complimentary (addictive) wafers was our short-n-sweet dinner.
And now I'm watching Germany v Poland with Poland lookin good proving just how they went on that awesome qualifying run of theirs.
Office tomorrow :-) and an inviting bed, so this post shall see no more of the compose mode and the preview pane at blogger.com
xx
Tuesday, June 3, 2008
What a day!
So yesterday was Day 0 indeed! We had our 'actual' day 1 today with the usual round of presentations from business heads and interactions with the leadership team.. It was surprisingly good fun, especially the gig from the legal team which explained how competition try cheap tricks to upset P&G's product introduction & advertisement plans...
But the highlight of the day was the party in the evening :-D A round of drinks with the team and a ragging session (all on the roof) where my fraud tam bram roots helped me be one of the first in line was thoroughly entertaining and I really had a blast!
And as we were about to head for dinner, the heavens opened up and I was right on hand to experience the first rains in Mumbai this year (unseasonal I agree, but the first, nevertheless). There's something about it that really lifts my spirits into another level altogether. The divine smell just makes me want to find a patch of grass and lie down on it with the cool breeze filtering through!
That rounded off the evening, and a terrific Day 1 at P&G :-)
But the highlight of the day was the party in the evening :-D A round of drinks with the team and a ragging session (all on the roof) where my fraud tam bram roots helped me be one of the first in line was thoroughly entertaining and I really had a blast!
And as we were about to head for dinner, the heavens opened up and I was right on hand to experience the first rains in Mumbai this year (unseasonal I agree, but the first, nevertheless). There's something about it that really lifts my spirits into another level altogether. The divine smell just makes me want to find a patch of grass and lie down on it with the cool breeze filtering through!
That rounded off the evening, and a terrific Day 1 at P&G :-)
Monday, June 2, 2008
Day Zero - P&G
The wait finally ended today! The much, much awaited escape from inaction came as I set out at 8 in the morning to the P&G office at Andheri East. Given the sparse traffic at that hour of the day, I made it in no less than 15 minutes!
The office building itself (which I have visited a few times already) is not that big (5 floors or so). But as you enter, you can feel a sense of spaciousness in the lobby. There's a fair amount of plants around which is pleasing to the eye and cooling too, in the summer heat. The AC is just right, not too cold, and junta were generally comfy.
The day was supposed to start at 9 with a lecture from one of the on-boarding coordinators. But to my disappointment, he never turned up! And we weren't even informed and we just waiting around. I don't know what the reason was but I expected a higher level of professionalism from my company. Nevertheless, it was a great opportunity for us to explore the office and also, to get to know each other (all new joinees). Some of us started playing pool (!!), some table tennis, carrom, and then there was a Sony Playstation too :-) !! How cool is that!?!
Then, finally, we had a couple of chats with HR, IT and some admin staff to get us going.
'twas followed by a nice lil lunch at the cafeteria. It was kinda warm there but then as one of the joinees commented, if they have AC in there too, people will just be there all day :-P
The soup btw in the Nescafe machine was just out-of-this-world! If you ever have a chance to go there, do sneak a cup of this wonderful soup :-D
The afternoon meandered along with arbit form fillings, bank account openings etc. And before I knew it, I was back home by 6!! All in all, a lazy day, but good fun!
The office building itself (which I have visited a few times already) is not that big (5 floors or so). But as you enter, you can feel a sense of spaciousness in the lobby. There's a fair amount of plants around which is pleasing to the eye and cooling too, in the summer heat. The AC is just right, not too cold, and junta were generally comfy.
The day was supposed to start at 9 with a lecture from one of the on-boarding coordinators. But to my disappointment, he never turned up! And we weren't even informed and we just waiting around. I don't know what the reason was but I expected a higher level of professionalism from my company. Nevertheless, it was a great opportunity for us to explore the office and also, to get to know each other (all new joinees). Some of us started playing pool (!!), some table tennis, carrom, and then there was a Sony Playstation too :-) !! How cool is that!?!
Then, finally, we had a couple of chats with HR, IT and some admin staff to get us going.
'twas followed by a nice lil lunch at the cafeteria. It was kinda warm there but then as one of the joinees commented, if they have AC in there too, people will just be there all day :-P
The soup btw in the Nescafe machine was just out-of-this-world! If you ever have a chance to go there, do sneak a cup of this wonderful soup :-D
The afternoon meandered along with arbit form fillings, bank account openings etc. And before I knew it, I was back home by 6!! All in all, a lazy day, but good fun!
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Legen... wait-for-t... DARY!!!!!!!!!
And so the biggest title is back to Old Trafford!!
What a match!! Not edge of the seat action, I say... It was feet on the seat, standing up and jumping, action :-D
Went out to watch the match with Manan, Mahesh, Shubh, ATM & Tomar to a screening organized by the ManUtd Fan Club of Mumbai... and the experience was exhilarating!! http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=21798935844
Pics, videos, et al soon!
What a match!! Not edge of the seat action, I say... It was feet on the seat, standing up and jumping, action :-D
Went out to watch the match with Manan, Mahesh, Shubh, ATM & Tomar to a screening organized by the ManUtd Fan Club of Mumbai... and the experience was exhilarating!! http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=21798935844
Pics, videos, et al soon!
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
One special night!
As I head out to watch the match with members of the Manchester United Fan Club of Mumbai :-D, I shall risk making a prediction for tonight's match..
2-1 to ManU in normal time.
xx
2-1 to ManU in normal time.
xx
A Speedy evening
Of all the millions of hours of cartoons that I've watched, I've not aggregated even a minute of the totally hopeless 'Speed Racer'. With the Chinese dude in the shady outfit and the cheesiest background score with the even cheesier tag-line of 'Go speed racer, go!', this has to be amongst the worst cartoon series ever shown on Cartoon Network... (but its a bittuva cult I'm told)
EVEN THEN, I could not miss the movie version of the cartoon, by The Wachowski Brothers (of The Matrix - God level - fame). So I trekked to local PVR Juhu on Saturday to watch the movie with ATM.
As I was waiting around in line for the tickets, an American dude walked up to me and said "Yo, wassup". I was rather taken aback by the familiarity assumed, but gave a smile and returned the greeting. And then, after staring at me for like 3 seconds, the guy says "You look very familiar". Now, this was getting kinda awkward. Still I managed to keep smiling and crack a silly joke saying "Who do I look like, John Cusack?". I don't quite know why I said that, maybe I was picturing myself in 1408 :-D
But then, came the whole point of the discussion.......
He asked me which movie I was watching.. I proudly said "Speed Racer!"
"Do you recognize me..?" (!!!) I was like what the hell is with this guy!?!
"Have you seen The Forbidden Kingdom", he quipped.
"Why of course!" I replied, having just caught the movie with Abhishek, the marketing dude, the weekend before.
"I was in that movie! You remember the first scene, the guy with the black t-shirt who Jackie Chan hits on the back..? I was him!"
I thought back.... Of course I didn't remember him, but I had to say "OFFF COURSEEE!! Man, it feels great to meet a star!!" The poor guy was beaming with pride now. Finally someone had recognized him it seemed. I looked around for a pen, for an autograph, but unfortunately there were none in sight, or I could have made him even happier!
Then we said our goodbyes, he headed for some bollywood flick and I bought our tickets for Speed Racer.
The movie was quite fun. Loaaads of action sequences as you can expect. Also a story woven around morality, staying true to yourself, etc., again expected from the Buddhist bros. The movie has this whole cartoon feel about it and looks really neat and colourful. Thankfully, the soundtrack from the cartoon itself is used very sparingly. The music for the car races is fantabulous! The movie's a tad long though, with the first break coming after 1 1/4 hour! Nevertheless, it was a good watch and I suggest you catch it if you have nothing else to do this weekend.
After the movie, we rounded off the evening with a sumptuous dinner at Mahesh Lunch Home (the best sea food in the city!! Must try!!) and some delectable ice-cream at Naturals.
EVEN THEN, I could not miss the movie version of the cartoon, by The Wachowski Brothers (of The Matrix - God level - fame). So I trekked to local PVR Juhu on Saturday to watch the movie with ATM.
As I was waiting around in line for the tickets, an American dude walked up to me and said "Yo, wassup". I was rather taken aback by the familiarity assumed, but gave a smile and returned the greeting. And then, after staring at me for like 3 seconds, the guy says "You look very familiar". Now, this was getting kinda awkward. Still I managed to keep smiling and crack a silly joke saying "Who do I look like, John Cusack?". I don't quite know why I said that, maybe I was picturing myself in 1408 :-D
But then, came the whole point of the discussion.......
He asked me which movie I was watching.. I proudly said "Speed Racer!"
"Do you recognize me..?" (!!!) I was like what the hell is with this guy!?!
"Have you seen The Forbidden Kingdom", he quipped.
"Why of course!" I replied, having just caught the movie with Abhishek, the marketing dude, the weekend before.
"I was in that movie! You remember the first scene, the guy with the black t-shirt who Jackie Chan hits on the back..? I was him!"
I thought back.... Of course I didn't remember him, but I had to say "OFFF COURSEEE!! Man, it feels great to meet a star!!" The poor guy was beaming with pride now. Finally someone had recognized him it seemed. I looked around for a pen, for an autograph, but unfortunately there were none in sight, or I could have made him even happier!
Then we said our goodbyes, he headed for some bollywood flick and I bought our tickets for Speed Racer.
The movie was quite fun. Loaaads of action sequences as you can expect. Also a story woven around morality, staying true to yourself, etc., again expected from the Buddhist bros. The movie has this whole cartoon feel about it and looks really neat and colourful. Thankfully, the soundtrack from the cartoon itself is used very sparingly. The music for the car races is fantabulous! The movie's a tad long though, with the first break coming after 1 1/4 hour! Nevertheless, it was a good watch and I suggest you catch it if you have nothing else to do this weekend.
After the movie, we rounded off the evening with a sumptuous dinner at Mahesh Lunch Home (the best sea food in the city!! Must try!!) and some delectable ice-cream at Naturals.
Of Flying Condoms :-S
I came across this article in today's Times of India, and couldn't help but wonder - WHY, o WHY!?
The UN would probably (I sure hope so) have decided to send stuff to help pregnant women out, and also added a few condoms to kinda fill the package. But what gets highlighted in the media (with the 'catchy' headline) is that a quarter of a million condoms are flying out to Burma!
I wonder if people would be even thinking about sex (let alone safe sex!) when there's no food to eat or a roof over their heads!?UN to send 220,000 condoms to Burma
Bangkok: The UN will send nearly a quarter of a million condoms into cyclone-hit Myanmar to help needy survivors with no access to contraceptives, a UN official said on Tuesday.
So far the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) says it has sent 72 800 condoms to survivors struggling to maintain their family planning after the storm hit in early May. A total of 218,400 condoms will be delivered, UNFPA aid advisor Chaiyos Kunanusont said. Flights are also carrying reproductive health kits, which include razors for cutting umbilical cords, clean sheets for delivering babies and enough contraceptive pills and injections to last 3 390 women three months. AFP
The UN would probably (I sure hope so) have decided to send stuff to help pregnant women out, and also added a few condoms to kinda fill the package. But what gets highlighted in the media (with the 'catchy' headline) is that a quarter of a million condoms are flying out to Burma!
Monday, May 19, 2008
Who was she?
But just as she thought that to herself, a gust of wind flashed past her face. She looked up into the sky, and the clouds, were staring back at her. Thundering. Flashing. Threatening to cut loose. There was a loud crackle then, like God had clapped his hands, for the show to begin. Rain started filling the sky from out west. And as the cloud broke, she could see the rain approach her with a swift sizzle. And then, she felt it, the first drops of rain. It was magical. The cool drops on her bare face, the smell of the wet mud, and the wind brushing past her arms in a loving embrace.
But this was no petty shower. The clouds were low, seemingly just an arm's length away. The breeze had really picked up.
She lay on the ground, beside her friend, like her, both twisted, mangled, dead. The storm had claimed its victims, not the least of whom was the first lamp-post, and the next three, on
Friday, May 16, 2008
Wake up!
If it weren't for the amount of sports I watched and played, I could have safely been called a geek. An ardent fan of The National Geographic Channel & The Discovery Channel, I am often frowned upon by my "I love VH1 / MTV / Channel V" brother :-D
The NGC programming is fantastic. The well-written scripts, clear enunciation and breathtaking photography (and off late, digital imagery) make it a pleasurable experience. My favourite programs are nearly always ones which focus on some of the endangered species. I think such programmes deserve special attention from the government as they can go a long way in educating the masses about how grave the situation is. Maybe, it could offer some concessions to the channel for 'x' hours of such programming. There's a lot of stuff about dinosaurs and pre-historic creatures, which although thoroughly entertaining, doesn't fall under the purview of the 'special attention' I mentioned.
Take for example, the Siberian Tiger, the world's largest cat. Oh what I'd give to see it in the wild some day!! A most magnificent animal. I've seen several programmes dedicated to it, each one of them leaving me awestruck, but also sad. Sad, because there are only about 500 left in the wild today. There was a time when thousands of these beautiful creatures roamed the snowy forests of Russia and China. But a century of savage hunting & logging by irresponsible and selfish humans brought the population into double-digits! Its with the support & education by channels like the NGC that this figure is up to where it is today.
I was wondering how it would be to go on a tour to Siberia and its surrounding regions. A quick google search helped me to this link. Its an Australian Adventure Travel company and has a tour which sounds quite exciting.
Noticeably, I couldn't quickly find any Indian companies which seem to organize such exotic tours. Maybe they operate in a very niche market and are not really visible on the net. But this does look like a possible business opportunity. I know there have been b-plans presented with tours and tie-ups for such kind of places within the country, but there is a chance to build like a world-wide brand which does ONLY such kind of tours. If its sold well to the right people, maybe it could do well.
Coming to the Discovery Channel, unfortunately I lost interest once our cable operator started beaming only the Hindi version, which sucks, quite a bit. Earlier, the programmes on Health,
Science and Technology were engaging and informative. I'd go to the extent of saying that I learnt more from the DC than from some of my text-books. Now, sadly, the channel seems to be veering towards sensationalist programming, like one of the several terrible news channels around... trying to make a suspense thriller out of some natural situation, complete with acting, props et al. But that's what the public seems to be demanding.
Look around the newspapers and you'll know what I'm talking about. The Times of India has been reduced to a newspaper with lots of sleazy pics, snippets of gore and some semblance of 'real news' in between. (And not to mention endless ads).
Check out the Pg.4 from today's TOI. This, apparently, is CITY 'news'. When is the world going to wake up!?!?
The NGC programming is fantastic. The well-written scripts, clear enunciation and breathtaking photography (and off late, digital imagery) make it a pleasurable experience. My favourite programs are nearly always ones which focus on some of the endangered species. I think such programmes deserve special attention from the government as they can go a long way in educating the masses about how grave the situation is. Maybe, it could offer some concessions to the channel for 'x' hours of such programming. There's a lot of stuff about dinosaurs and pre-historic creatures, which although thoroughly entertaining, doesn't fall under the purview of the 'special attention' I mentioned.
Take for example, the Siberian Tiger, the world's largest cat. Oh what I'd give to see it in the wild some day!! A most magnificent animal. I've seen several programmes dedicated to it, each one of them leaving me awestruck, but also sad. Sad, because there are only about 500 left in the wild today. There was a time when thousands of these beautiful creatures roamed the snowy forests of Russia and China. But a century of savage hunting & logging by irresponsible and selfish humans brought the population into double-digits! Its with the support & education by channels like the NGC that this figure is up to where it is today.
I was wondering how it would be to go on a tour to Siberia and its surrounding regions. A quick google search helped me to this link. Its an Australian Adventure Travel company and has a tour which sounds quite exciting.
Noticeably, I couldn't quickly find any Indian companies which seem to organize such exotic tours. Maybe they operate in a very niche market and are not really visible on the net. But this does look like a possible business opportunity. I know there have been b-plans presented with tours and tie-ups for such kind of places within the country, but there is a chance to build like a world-wide brand which does ONLY such kind of tours. If its sold well to the right people, maybe it could do well.
Coming to the Discovery Channel, unfortunately I lost interest once our cable operator started beaming only the Hindi version, which sucks, quite a bit. Earlier, the programmes on Health,
Science and Technology were engaging and informative. I'd go to the extent of saying that I learnt more from the DC than from some of my text-books. Now, sadly, the channel seems to be veering towards sensationalist programming, like one of the several terrible news channels around... trying to make a suspense thriller out of some natural situation, complete with acting, props et al. But that's what the public seems to be demanding.Look around the newspapers and you'll know what I'm talking about. The Times of India has been reduced to a newspaper with lots of sleazy pics, snippets of gore and some semblance of 'real news' in between. (And not to mention endless ads).
Check out the Pg.4 from today's TOI. This, apparently, is CITY 'news'. When is the world going to wake up!?!?
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