Cries of the child

A minor change in plans  early in the morning, is what made me write this article. Normally I leave on time for college, but today I decided to start a bit early. What that resulted in was that it made me witness a sight which reminded me of my own school days i.e of a child being reluctant to go to school. While there are  children who have access to all the facilities,comfort and needs,  there are also some children, who cannot afford to meet their basic needs forget about their dreams. They toil day in and day out only to get a morsel of food and survive.

India is sadly the home to the largest number of child labourers in the world. Poverty, lack of social security, irresponsibility are the main causes of child labour. The video attached (below) to this post is a short film (pictorial) that was prepared by me and also won me and my friends (Ajit & Abhi) many awards and appreciation. Therefore, I considered it apt to name the post after the video.

You will not be surprised if I tell that children are being used as domestic workers and street vendors/sellers. I would also like to relate this with an incident. I was returning from my swimming session ( an year ago) and as I stopped at the red light, there came in a group of little kids with some toys, flowers and hair clips. They started knocking the windows of every car and also requested people like me who were on a bike to purchase something from them. When asked why, the response was - "Agar bechega nahi to khayega kaise saab ? " ( If I dont sell, how will I eat) . There are many organisations who are currently protecting childrens rights and their childhood and I could recall one such organisation/foundation at that moment i.e Child Line and I dialed 1098 and gave them the details.

So the next time you come across any such activitiy, you know the number. Lend a hand, there aren't many helping hands to hold the needy ones.

Haleem at its Best

It was around 8’o clock in the evening and I was going through a city magazine, probably hunting some places where I could go for shopping this year. It was only a couple of minutes that I was into the magazine that an sms from my friend interrupted me. It said “Let us grab a haleem at Shah Ghouse”. To those wondering what ‘haleem’ is ….haleem, is a stew composed of meat, lentil and pounded wheat made into a thick paste. Blended with regional traditional spices, it formed a unique Hyderabadi haleem, becoming a popular food and is mostly prepared during the month of Ramzan.

Ramzan is probably the only month when people savour the dish. A battle is on every year to judge who stays at the top of the chart with Pista House, Paradise, Hy-Line, 555 café, City Light, Bahar, Sarvi, Niagra in addition to Shah Ghouse being the major players (possibly I could have missed some names here). Every joint has its own specialty and taste to offer. For example, the haleem served at Hy-Line is pretty lite and not too spicy. 

Quickly realizing that we had not tried the haleem there this year, we set off to Shah Ghouse Café. We crossed Pista House which is enroute to café and we were not surprised to see the Pista House guys standing right in front of the main joint, taking orders quickly to avoid congestion and traffic. Pista House like last year had setup its stalls at various places in the city for easy accessibility. And for those who don’t know, it is also going places i.e. you can now order a Pista House Haleem from anywhere in India (www.makemygiftz.com).  

So as we approached our destination, around 100 metres away from the café I started noticing these guys dressed in red, an army of them, scattered in small groups. On close observation I realized that these guys were from the café itself, selling boxes of haleem away from the main café in order to avoid traffic hassles and too much crowd which is quite eminent at Shah Ghouse. Finally, we ordered two plates and as usual it was a treat. The haleem was rich in content, the ingredients, the taste, everything perfect, worth a lot more than the hype that was created. Normally I don’t pick, but if I have to select the best, I would go for Pista House only because of the easy accessibility factor. Not to forget the other joints who are unique in their own way, because differentiation is important and we have our own tastes and preferences too. 

Not been there, never done that, but its fun

We come across various situations in our lives where we look at with awe the remarkable work done by some great people. The very next question that might pop up is that how did they do it. How was that business empire built, how did a couple of college dropouts change the world, how did an idea change the entire landscape, the complexion of social media. It happened because they wanted to do it and we can too if we have the potential to convert that tiny spark of ‘willingness to do’ into a wildfire of learnings.

This tale is about me and my friends from Aurora’s Business School who decided to start a cafeteria in our college campus. Initially, none of us had, in our wildest dreams ever thought of setting up something like a cafeteria. Everybody shared a similar agenda – complete your MBA, get a job and live happily ever after. But there was a twist in the tale. After our summer internship programme we had a gap of a couple of weeks before regular classes commenced and we were getting bored because this ‘Dil always wanted more’. Then came the idea from our Dean, to set up a student run cafeteria in the campus instead of a regular canteen walla running the show. This is where we come into the picture. We were still in two minds and were not sure whether to go with it. We made a list of all the items required, the menu and a business plan was made. Slowly as things began to unfold and the café took a proper shape we realized that we were taken over by a force that motivated us to keep marching.

It has been only a week now that we have managed to convert an empty room into a room full of gossip, refreshments, entertainment and fun which we call ‘Go Nutz’. A café where the students can relax, sip some coffee or grab a cup of hot lemon tea or some lip smacking soups. After all only a student realizes how another student feels after a long long session and what is needed to beat the stress. To cut it short and not speak much of planning, organizing, budgeting and marketing. We have  learnt how to make money and if there is any other venture that we wish to setup, it is going to be a cakewalk for us now because we know how it has to be done.

The journey has been incredible so far only because of the DIVE Philosophy of our college which encourages students to learn how to earn with a practical approach towards education. Though this is a very small venture that has been started but this has laid the foundation for other activities to build up. Like I said in the beginning, those who have the willingness only require a spark to ignite. And if you look at some of the most popular hangout places in the city and wonder how did it start. It started with a “ Chal kuch karte hain yaar !!”. We are generation next, let’s make things happen. 

Life Skills and their importance

Blink and you miss. That is how things are today. Everything happens in a matter of a couple of seconds. It clearly implies that the world around us is evolving and getting smarter, quicker and sharper day by day. And when the world evolves, the most superior species on Earth too have to evolve. We live in a social environment where it requires us to interact with people and be able to cope with life’s challenges. Under such circumstances it is important that apart from the formal education that we acquire, we also need certain life skills to bring out the best within. What are these life skills ? Read on.

Life skills are the abilities that one derives through practise that helps to develop positive behavior and deal effectively with the problems and challenges in life. It helps individuals to balance their knowledge, attitude and skill to help them develop their behavior. Therefore Life Skills.

Life Skill is not a definition or a book which can be read and considered as a ‘been there done that’. It comprises of certain essential skills which helps one understand his strengths and weaknesses which consequently help to explore the opportunities available, weigh the pros and cons and make rational decisions in solving problems as they arise. The skills are as follows :

I.     Critical Thinking/Decision Making/ Problem Solving: The most common mistake that most of us do is that we don’t think twice before taking any decision. What happens ultimately is that we have to repent for it in the future (under worst circumstances). Looking at the good side and also the bad side of things before making any decision is equally important. Looking at a problem from different perspectives not only helps us asses the problem in a better way and its influence, it helps to improve upon our decision making skills.

II.            Communication: Considered to be the most important skill. Communication can be verbal or non-verbal. How would you feel when you cannot express something to the audience? The main objective of communication is to pass on the message effectively. Communication skills require some practice and cannot be learnt/improved within a short span. It also includes active listening, and the ability to express feelings and give feedback.

III.          Creative Thinking : In simple words thinking out of the box. The ability to think of new ideas and think of doing things in new and different ways.

IV.          Developing Interpersonal Relationships : There has to be a shift from ‘me’ to ‘us’ and to do that, we need to develop our interpersonal relationships. An interpersonal relation is an association between two or more people. The relationship can be within the family, in the society, workplace or any other sort of commitment. Interpersonal Relationships can be built through trust and honesty, loyalty and faith, confidence and confidentiality.

V.           Empathy : Empathy, which is the ability to listen and understand others’ needs, is also a key interpersonal skill. In other words, the ability to identify and understand what another person is thinking and feeling and to accurately communicate what you have understood through a response that makes the other person feel that you have understood them. It is important that we understand what the other person is feeling and act accordingly.

VI.          Self Awareness : Having a clear perception of your personality, including strengths, weaknesses, thoughts, beliefs, motivation, and emotions. Self Awareness allows you to understand other people, how they perceive you, your attitude and your responses to them in the moment. If you are wondering why this is important, Self Awareness helps in mastering your focus, your attention, your emotions, reactions, personality and behavior, to determine where you go in life. Close your eyes and imagine yourself in any situation. Now, what is it that you sense, think, feel, want and wish to do next. As you begin to explore more about yourself, you tend to make changes in the interpretations and thoughts in your mind.

VII.        Coping with stress and feelings : Stress is an individual’s perception and assessment of the environment. Stress occurs when there is a lot of pressure and we are not able to cope with it. Basically there are three types of stress i.e. Eustress (positive stress), Distress (negative) and Understress (negative).  And the only way to cope with it is to calm down, organize yourself and seek support. Feelings on the other hand deal with your emotions and how you respond to various situations in life. For example, you may be angry but you do not wish to express it. It is always advisable to not overact or underact to any situation.

Life skills should not only address knowledge and attitude change, but, more importantly, behavior change. Traditional "information-based" approaches are generally not sufficient to yield changes in attitudes and behaviors. For example, a lecture on “safe behavior” will not necessarily lead to the practice of safe behavior. Individuals learn best which they can associate with their experience and practice.

You Just Don’t Buy a Bournville, You Earn It

At Bournville they have a tradition that you are supposed to open the pack gently, listen to the snap, and take in the aroma. But before you eat it, you have to ask yourself “Have you earned it?”

It was a fairytale come true for my friend. He opened his pack of Bournville. Gently listened to the snap, smelled the aroma, looked at it carefully and when he was just about to enjoy the delicacy, a thought sprang up his mind-“ Have I earned it? No!!! But I am going to eat it anyway”

And as the saying goes, You Just Don’t buy a Bournville, a worm sneaked out from his next piece and he was amazed at the incident .So amazed that he had to inform the local newspaper about the happening. A week later he received a “Caution” Letter From Bournville warning him to be ‘Earn’est  the next time he enjoys a Bournville.