Today, when I switched on the TV, I saw three news items each one enough to shake me completely from within.
The first one mentioned that Mr. R. R. Patil who famously quipped, "Only a few people died.." while describing the unforgettable disaster of 26/11, has been rewarded with the Home Ministry in the newly formed Maharashtra government as if his removal in the aftermath of 26/11 was just meant to give Patil Saab proper rest before the taxing assembly elections.
The next one informed me that four goondas of MNS (who also got elected as MLAs) slapped Abu Azmi in the Maharashtra Assembly for daring to take oath in Hindi, supposedly the national language of this nation, also referred as Hindustan. When an MLA is not safe in an Assembly, who can dare to raise voice against these hoodlums of Raj Thackeray ? God save the people of Mumbai who brought him the second largest vote share in this region.
But, it was the last news that felt like the hardest slap on the face of the judiciary and the common man of this country. The infamous Manu Sharma (son of famous politician Venod Sharma of Congress party), convicted for life imprisonment in the Jessica Lall murder case has been released on parole (on sincere recommendation of Delhi CM, Mrs. Sheila Dixit of Congress party) to take care of his critically ill mother, Shakti Rani. But, to everyone's surprise, Shakti Rani is all hale and hearty, addressing a press conference in Chandigarh while Manu Sharma is visiting the elite nightclubs in search for his next hunt, another Jessica Lall !!! Does Manu have a license to kill at will just because he belongs to a privileged minority of politicians with power and money?
I am still trembling with fear and am unable to reconcile with the fact that I am continuously breathing under the reign of terror and lawlessness. I am bemused by the fact that most of us think we live in a free and independent country whereas in reality, we are nothing but constantly waiting preys for the carnivores of this jungle, who have turned mad in their glory of power.
Monday, November 09, 2009
Sunday, September 06, 2009
Private Equity and Marriage
Some of you might be thinking this guy has gone mad, what is the remotest relationship between the two subjects - Private Equity ("PE"), an investment discipline meant for so-called wizards of the financial world and Marriage, a process of tying two souls together for a lifetime (Mind it, this is just for public display, I know that Marriage is an irreversible (for most cases) binding contract by which a person enters into quarreling, cribbing and bickering for a lifetime.)
But, I being in the midst of both these subjects simultaneously, could not help but notice a close resemblance between the two.
In PE, after initial discussions and meetings (which is similar to pre-engagement meetings between the two sides in a marriage), people sign a non-binding Term Sheet which usually has a no-shop clause stating that the Company would not meet any other potential investor until the time this process comes to a successful or unsuccessful end. In marriage, we have something very similar, which some people refer to as Engagement (or roka or sagai in some parts of the country) - post which people agree not to meet other potential brides (or grooms) - the no-shop clause of marriage contract.
Post term sheet, PE investors conduct due diligence on the Company. In marriage, there is a two-way diligence process during the courtship period in which both the parties try to understand each other better (and possibly prepare themselves for a lifetime of quarreling and bickering :P).
On completion of diligence, PE investors sign binding definitive agreements and transfer the money. Once money is gone, the investor is married to the Company. In marriage, you do the wedding ceremony in place of definitive agreements.
Unlike the engagement which is non-binding (yes, people can break engagements without going to a court of law just like investors can walk out of the deal post term sheet), marriage is legally binding post wedding (That means,you are stuck out here for rest of this life, hence better behave).
PE process differs from the marriage one in one significant aspect - Exit Clause. PE agreements generally have a well-defined exit clause for all possible future scenarios(though truly speaking, things always turn out better or worse in future but never exactly the same as envisaged), it is a blasphemy to talk of exit during marriage.
Thus, PE and marriage are similar to each other in a number of aspects. I sincerely hope that I have a long, successful and happy inning in both PE as well as marriage.
But, I being in the midst of both these subjects simultaneously, could not help but notice a close resemblance between the two.
In PE, after initial discussions and meetings (which is similar to pre-engagement meetings between the two sides in a marriage), people sign a non-binding Term Sheet which usually has a no-shop clause stating that the Company would not meet any other potential investor until the time this process comes to a successful or unsuccessful end. In marriage, we have something very similar, which some people refer to as Engagement (or roka or sagai in some parts of the country) - post which people agree not to meet other potential brides (or grooms) - the no-shop clause of marriage contract.
Post term sheet, PE investors conduct due diligence on the Company. In marriage, there is a two-way diligence process during the courtship period in which both the parties try to understand each other better (and possibly prepare themselves for a lifetime of quarreling and bickering :P).
On completion of diligence, PE investors sign binding definitive agreements and transfer the money. Once money is gone, the investor is married to the Company. In marriage, you do the wedding ceremony in place of definitive agreements.
Unlike the engagement which is non-binding (yes, people can break engagements without going to a court of law just like investors can walk out of the deal post term sheet), marriage is legally binding post wedding (That means,you are stuck out here for rest of this life, hence better behave).
PE process differs from the marriage one in one significant aspect - Exit Clause. PE agreements generally have a well-defined exit clause for all possible future scenarios(though truly speaking, things always turn out better or worse in future but never exactly the same as envisaged), it is a blasphemy to talk of exit during marriage.
Thus, PE and marriage are similar to each other in a number of aspects. I sincerely hope that I have a long, successful and happy inning in both PE as well as marriage.
Thursday, August 06, 2009
Made to Order Wives
Here,I am a mid 20's guy whose all weekend conversations revolve around listening to his friends about the troubles they are having in finding their matches. I thought about it and came to the conclusion that this is nothing but a serious Operations Management (OM) challenge.
In OM lingo, there are two types of items: off the shelf items and made to order items. And, as you may be aware off the shelf items are standard, mass produced and very commonplace - one size fits all kinda things...whereas made to order are customized, personalized and very special.
Given the fast pace of today's world and chalta hai attitude, we are fast moving from special made to order items to ok types off the shelf ones. For example, I duly remember in my childhood, getting a shirt stitched was a whole week exercise from selecting and buying the fabric, giving measurements to the tailor and finally collecting your very own and special made to order shirt. Today, the world has changed - the guy enters a showroom in one shirt and comes out in another.
Given the fact that Marriage is generally only once in a lifetime affair in India, a wife should ideally be under made to order category - right? But, unfortunately, the high cycle time of 20-25 years makes made to order system an unfeasible solution (I would like to remain away from topics like men never grow old, second season etc :P). Hence, we pick our matches off the shelf - now in off the shelf system, the more shops you visit, higher is the probability of getting a better bargin, nicer fit and trendier look.
So, my friends get imbued with biodatas every night when their moms serve them dinner along with list of prospective brides. Almost every prospect is so known and familiar with credentials like - "yeh ladki apne pados ke ratan chachaji ke mama ki niece hai, dekho achchi jaani pehchani family hai, ek baar mil to lo".
And, this means your precious weekend evening (for which you had made extensive plans for hanging out with your pals) will get ruined in meeting some stranger where both of you will take first half an hour to break the ice.
On the other side, the moms of my friends are just getting tired of finding new prospectives for every weekend - just like the salesmen who has got exhausted after showing you first 20 shirts. This is what led to online marketplaces for match making like shaadi.com, bharatmatrimony.com etc.
They are so worried because their sons have made such a long laundry list of specifications for their to-be life partners that satisfying all the conditions in an off the shelf system is really challenging.
Wishing them all the best, finding suitable wives is really a tough OM challenge in some ways :).
In OM lingo, there are two types of items: off the shelf items and made to order items. And, as you may be aware off the shelf items are standard, mass produced and very commonplace - one size fits all kinda things...whereas made to order are customized, personalized and very special.
Given the fast pace of today's world and chalta hai attitude, we are fast moving from special made to order items to ok types off the shelf ones. For example, I duly remember in my childhood, getting a shirt stitched was a whole week exercise from selecting and buying the fabric, giving measurements to the tailor and finally collecting your very own and special made to order shirt. Today, the world has changed - the guy enters a showroom in one shirt and comes out in another.
Given the fact that Marriage is generally only once in a lifetime affair in India, a wife should ideally be under made to order category - right? But, unfortunately, the high cycle time of 20-25 years makes made to order system an unfeasible solution (I would like to remain away from topics like men never grow old, second season etc :P). Hence, we pick our matches off the shelf - now in off the shelf system, the more shops you visit, higher is the probability of getting a better bargin, nicer fit and trendier look.
So, my friends get imbued with biodatas every night when their moms serve them dinner along with list of prospective brides. Almost every prospect is so known and familiar with credentials like - "yeh ladki apne pados ke ratan chachaji ke mama ki niece hai, dekho achchi jaani pehchani family hai, ek baar mil to lo".
And, this means your precious weekend evening (for which you had made extensive plans for hanging out with your pals) will get ruined in meeting some stranger where both of you will take first half an hour to break the ice.
On the other side, the moms of my friends are just getting tired of finding new prospectives for every weekend - just like the salesmen who has got exhausted after showing you first 20 shirts. This is what led to online marketplaces for match making like shaadi.com, bharatmatrimony.com etc.
They are so worried because their sons have made such a long laundry list of specifications for their to-be life partners that satisfying all the conditions in an off the shelf system is really challenging.
Wishing them all the best, finding suitable wives is really a tough OM challenge in some ways :).
Friday, July 31, 2009
Mallya - The Billionaire Businessman or The Big Blackmailer
Vijay Mallya - the liquor baron needs no introduction for each one of us has either drunk his beer, flew by his airlines or simply envied him for his calenders and swimsuit models.
Till few years back, Mallya had only one business of minting money- Selling fermented water in the name of good times. Slowly and gradually, he expanded his empire to make United Breweries one of the largest liquor companies not only in India but whole of the world - now, what next?
Mallya spotted an opportunity of selling the fictious dream of good times further by launching "Kingfisher Airlines", the five star comfort in the sky. He is a master in understanding and exploiting the psyche of Indian male - having made them drink beer for ages, now it was time for beauty. So, here comes Mr. Mallya with all his air-hostesses dressed in deep red tight skirts - luring the Indian males into closed cabins of Kingfisher Airlines.
Now, that the first fort of building the brand image was conquered, he needed to build the size. Just in case, if you thought he was going to do that by lining up Airbus 380's, you totally missed his business sense. He spotted a bakra in Capt. Gopinath of Air Deccan struggling to barely keep his aeroplanes flying (in a literal sense).
Now, here is the irony at its best - Kingfisher, the symbol of luxury and comfort combines with the airline of common man, Air Deccan - also known as Air Dhakkan for its lowest fares and highest delays (I know of cases where people reached earlier by train than Deccan). But, Mallya the Magician does it all and colors the Deccan red - Kingfisher Red.
Whoa - he gains a large fleet, presence on more routes than even Air India and a significant influence in the private airline industry, all of this overnight by a stroke of pen and some pittance to Capt. Gopinath. The airlines industry which was dominated till now by some unknown Marwari businessman called Naresh Goel of Jet Airways (who was getting fooled by Subroto Roy into paying an astronomical sum for an ailing Sahara Airlines), gets its new father figure - Mallya.
Next, he teaches the tricks of the trade like cost cutting to Mr. Goel (who stupidly fires all employees next day only to get reprimanded by the govt, later Mallya taught him lobbying too :P)and buys out the competition to be on his side - not only, Jet Airways but also Air India (otherwise why do you think our own minister Mr. Patel is justifying the demands of Mr. Mallya in public :P). With this part of the act done, the private airline market comes under his full control because it is largely a duopoly system controlled by Mallya and Goel.
Now, he plays the final trump card - STRIKE. Yes, all the private airlines who were killing each other for every extra passenger will go on a strike together on August 18 bringing the total air system to a halt. Mr. Mallya has demanded the government to bail him out, put in capital to buy his expensive equity and reduce taxes for his luxury - what a great idea to earn not only a free meal ticket, but a full feast at the expense of poor taxpayer's money. I guess he missed out on mentioning about why the government bailout money is essential for buying another yacht for him so that he can relax there (ofcourse with all his hot models) while thinking about making flying affordable for the common man.
It is a clear blackmail to government from Mallya - I will bring whole of air traffic to a halt and will hold you to ransom until you agree to bow to my wishes.
I believe this entry and control of airlines industry in India by Mallya is one of the best examples of amazing execution of well thought out business strategy which is taught in no business school around the world. In my view, Mallya is an astute businessman who does not mind wearing any hat including that of a blackmailer in order to achieve his goals.
Till few years back, Mallya had only one business of minting money- Selling fermented water in the name of good times. Slowly and gradually, he expanded his empire to make United Breweries one of the largest liquor companies not only in India but whole of the world - now, what next?
Mallya spotted an opportunity of selling the fictious dream of good times further by launching "Kingfisher Airlines", the five star comfort in the sky. He is a master in understanding and exploiting the psyche of Indian male - having made them drink beer for ages, now it was time for beauty. So, here comes Mr. Mallya with all his air-hostesses dressed in deep red tight skirts - luring the Indian males into closed cabins of Kingfisher Airlines.
Now, that the first fort of building the brand image was conquered, he needed to build the size. Just in case, if you thought he was going to do that by lining up Airbus 380's, you totally missed his business sense. He spotted a bakra in Capt. Gopinath of Air Deccan struggling to barely keep his aeroplanes flying (in a literal sense).
Now, here is the irony at its best - Kingfisher, the symbol of luxury and comfort combines with the airline of common man, Air Deccan - also known as Air Dhakkan for its lowest fares and highest delays (I know of cases where people reached earlier by train than Deccan). But, Mallya the Magician does it all and colors the Deccan red - Kingfisher Red.
Whoa - he gains a large fleet, presence on more routes than even Air India and a significant influence in the private airline industry, all of this overnight by a stroke of pen and some pittance to Capt. Gopinath. The airlines industry which was dominated till now by some unknown Marwari businessman called Naresh Goel of Jet Airways (who was getting fooled by Subroto Roy into paying an astronomical sum for an ailing Sahara Airlines), gets its new father figure - Mallya.
Next, he teaches the tricks of the trade like cost cutting to Mr. Goel (who stupidly fires all employees next day only to get reprimanded by the govt, later Mallya taught him lobbying too :P)and buys out the competition to be on his side - not only, Jet Airways but also Air India (otherwise why do you think our own minister Mr. Patel is justifying the demands of Mr. Mallya in public :P). With this part of the act done, the private airline market comes under his full control because it is largely a duopoly system controlled by Mallya and Goel.
Now, he plays the final trump card - STRIKE. Yes, all the private airlines who were killing each other for every extra passenger will go on a strike together on August 18 bringing the total air system to a halt. Mr. Mallya has demanded the government to bail him out, put in capital to buy his expensive equity and reduce taxes for his luxury - what a great idea to earn not only a free meal ticket, but a full feast at the expense of poor taxpayer's money. I guess he missed out on mentioning about why the government bailout money is essential for buying another yacht for him so that he can relax there (ofcourse with all his hot models) while thinking about making flying affordable for the common man.
It is a clear blackmail to government from Mallya - I will bring whole of air traffic to a halt and will hold you to ransom until you agree to bow to my wishes.
I believe this entry and control of airlines industry in India by Mallya is one of the best examples of amazing execution of well thought out business strategy which is taught in no business school around the world. In my view, Mallya is an astute businessman who does not mind wearing any hat including that of a blackmailer in order to achieve his goals.
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
The rays of hope at the end of the dark tunnel
Since the time Lehman went burst last year, the markets all over the world seemed headed for a bottomless pit. The impact was felt by everyone and it was easy to see how the plight of the rich bankers got transmitted to even the last strata of society including the maids and washermen who too knew that it was
recession time .
It seemed to be a dark tunnel with no end in sight. I personally knew a lot of friends who became the victims of this crisis and lost their jobs within the first few months of their joining. Some of them were into the first ever job in their lives and were totally clueless about how to find another job, specially in geographies like US and UK. The same geographies which were indulging in reckless brain drain from India few years back were keen to throw all the unwanted rubble back to the poor nation without delay lest they eat up the resources meant for the original citizens. I guess those legislators demanding reservation of jobs for nationals are nothing but the American avatars of Raj Thackrey.
Everything seemed to be headed for doom with even the IIM campus placements being dismal to say the least. Every month, I got to hear about some batchmate or the other losing the job...really tough time.
But, just as they say - Change is the only constant in this world. Even this stage was not going to last long but the battery always seems to be running out too soon.
In the meantime, a black man for the first time in the history of the world reached the White House promising the world only one thing - "Change". But, in our own nation, the junta janardan reaffirmed its faith in the honest Sardar who ushered in the era of liberalization.
The economy world over has started showing the signs of revival and I too am happy given that my friends have started getting the appointment letters instead of retrenchment ones.
Let us hope things continue resurrecting from hereon and this does not remain another deadcat bounce.
recession time .
It seemed to be a dark tunnel with no end in sight. I personally knew a lot of friends who became the victims of this crisis and lost their jobs within the first few months of their joining. Some of them were into the first ever job in their lives and were totally clueless about how to find another job, specially in geographies like US and UK. The same geographies which were indulging in reckless brain drain from India few years back were keen to throw all the unwanted rubble back to the poor nation without delay lest they eat up the resources meant for the original citizens. I guess those legislators demanding reservation of jobs for nationals are nothing but the American avatars of Raj Thackrey.
Everything seemed to be headed for doom with even the IIM campus placements being dismal to say the least. Every month, I got to hear about some batchmate or the other losing the job...really tough time.
But, just as they say - Change is the only constant in this world. Even this stage was not going to last long but the battery always seems to be running out too soon.
In the meantime, a black man for the first time in the history of the world reached the White House promising the world only one thing - "Change". But, in our own nation, the junta janardan reaffirmed its faith in the honest Sardar who ushered in the era of liberalization.
The economy world over has started showing the signs of revival and I too am happy given that my friends have started getting the appointment letters instead of retrenchment ones.
Let us hope things continue resurrecting from hereon and this does not remain another deadcat bounce.
Sunday, March 22, 2009
The big drama of Indian Politics - ELECTIONS
The Indian politics stages a big drama called Elections at an interval of every few years - ohh, you wondering how do they decide the interval, no big deal - just a few fat ladies like Jaya, Maya and Mamta decide to flirt around with old but eligible bachelors like Atal.
I know what you are thinking, I am writing this post - few years too late, how is it relevant - are we not living under the government of the religious sardar Manmohan Singh ??
If you are under any illusion that the gentleman with blue turban has any power whatsoever, you definitely have no clue of Indian polity. Everyone knows that this is a great remote control system with remote in hands of Madam. I have great respect for Manmohan Singh, the man who heralded the era of liberalization in India (thanks to him, I am working in an MNC) but today he seems to have even less power than Lalus, Paswans and Pawars of the world who are making him dance at the tunes of 10, Janpath...
And now that the elections have come, every party is demanding its own pound of flesh - the fight over the seat sharing is a precursor of the trouble brewing in. From the political commentary by pundits, it appears that the regional parties and alliance politics are going to play a decisive role....so much that someone like Mayawati can even dream of being the PM of the nation !!!!
With Rahul baba taking active interest and harboring the aspirations of the PM post, her mom would leave no stone unturned to gift the nation to her son. But, the country needs to rethink the question - are we as a nation nothing but the family inheritance of Gandhi family? Have we just replaced monarchy with the facade of democracy with a big drama known as ELECTIONS.
On the other hand, the saffron guys seem to have lost every sense of responsibility and are returning back to the commumnal agenda. Even the first time contestants like Varun Gandhi are trying to project themselves as the next Modi with Pilibhit becoming Gujarat. I had expected a better sense from someone who represents the lineage of Sanjay, Indira and Nehru.
And, the other Sanjay who was running from pillar to post to save himself from going to jail is now dreaming to do another Munnabhai, this time in real life with the famed Amar Singh as the director. Let us see how does junta like the new film.
Then, there is the set of Karat, Yechury and Vardhans who have successfully implemented the Cholbe na, Korbe na in West Bengal for last few decades with the latest being the ousting of Nano. I am sure it is a great idea to increase the short position on market with every seat going in CPM account.
But, to be truthful, I have enjoyed watching this drama since childhood. It involves thousands of crores of rupees to construct the set, lights and action (haan is movie mai sab hai - maya-mamta ka pyaar, UP-Bihar ke bahubali netaon ka war, love proposals, breakups, mystery, twist). Let us see how does the drama unfold this time.
Though while spending these billions of rupees on this drama, the politicians forget that thousands of people go back to bed hungry in this country and for them, this drama is utterly meaningless.
Janta Janardan really has no role to play in deciding who sits at the helm of Delhi Durbar.
I know what you are thinking, I am writing this post - few years too late, how is it relevant - are we not living under the government of the religious sardar Manmohan Singh ??
If you are under any illusion that the gentleman with blue turban has any power whatsoever, you definitely have no clue of Indian polity. Everyone knows that this is a great remote control system with remote in hands of Madam. I have great respect for Manmohan Singh, the man who heralded the era of liberalization in India (thanks to him, I am working in an MNC) but today he seems to have even less power than Lalus, Paswans and Pawars of the world who are making him dance at the tunes of 10, Janpath...
And now that the elections have come, every party is demanding its own pound of flesh - the fight over the seat sharing is a precursor of the trouble brewing in. From the political commentary by pundits, it appears that the regional parties and alliance politics are going to play a decisive role....so much that someone like Mayawati can even dream of being the PM of the nation !!!!
With Rahul baba taking active interest and harboring the aspirations of the PM post, her mom would leave no stone unturned to gift the nation to her son. But, the country needs to rethink the question - are we as a nation nothing but the family inheritance of Gandhi family? Have we just replaced monarchy with the facade of democracy with a big drama known as ELECTIONS.
On the other hand, the saffron guys seem to have lost every sense of responsibility and are returning back to the commumnal agenda. Even the first time contestants like Varun Gandhi are trying to project themselves as the next Modi with Pilibhit becoming Gujarat. I had expected a better sense from someone who represents the lineage of Sanjay, Indira and Nehru.
And, the other Sanjay who was running from pillar to post to save himself from going to jail is now dreaming to do another Munnabhai, this time in real life with the famed Amar Singh as the director. Let us see how does junta like the new film.
Then, there is the set of Karat, Yechury and Vardhans who have successfully implemented the Cholbe na, Korbe na in West Bengal for last few decades with the latest being the ousting of Nano. I am sure it is a great idea to increase the short position on market with every seat going in CPM account.
But, to be truthful, I have enjoyed watching this drama since childhood. It involves thousands of crores of rupees to construct the set, lights and action (haan is movie mai sab hai - maya-mamta ka pyaar, UP-Bihar ke bahubali netaon ka war, love proposals, breakups, mystery, twist). Let us see how does the drama unfold this time.
Though while spending these billions of rupees on this drama, the politicians forget that thousands of people go back to bed hungry in this country and for them, this drama is utterly meaningless.
Janta Janardan really has no role to play in deciding who sits at the helm of Delhi Durbar.
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