Thought Shots

I was fortunate today to be able to watch a great film like 'Dead poets' Society'. The film stars Robin Williams in the role of a teacher who inspires his boys in class to think for themselves, not conform, but freely express themselves. He leaves the school seeing his little students taking the path giants are made of. Mr. Keating, as played by Mr. Williams, has a singular belief that the purpose of education is to enable young minds to think for themselves. So, he asks the boys to follow their heart without worrying as to what the society has to say. Mr. Keating's character reminded me of Mr. Emerson who once wrote, "Society everywhere is in conspiracy against the manhood of its members, the virtue in most request is conformity." Truly inspiring. Another strong message conveyed by the movie was that of seizing the day, "Carpe diem". Basis this message, Mr. Keating's boys find themselves daring to do things they normally wouldn't even ...

I love the movie 'The Social Network'. Watched it today all over again. The power that an idea has is ably described in the film. You have a kid right out of his teens who takes this thought of his to a billion dollar business. Although some doubt whether the idea was actually his, the film also shows that ideation without execution is hardly the stuff success is made of. And thus, the guy playing Mark says in the movie, "If you guys were the inventors of Facebook, you would have invented Facebook." Facebook is not just a site today, it is a place where people connect with friends that they normally wouldn't find the time to connect with. I remember once my profile stalking some of the friends I once hung out with, just one comment on their status rekindled our contact. It really allows one to permanently stay in touch with our friends, so-called friends, colleagues and relatives and that is a blessing in this age of speed. What's more, it gives u...

An ad doing the rounds on the telly these days is by OLX wherein a husband mourns to his wife that their big fat car has turned into a tiny tot...that is because their next door neighbor now boasts of a new mean driving machine. The couple decides on getting a new set of wheels on OLX. A classic case of jealousy. Navjot Singh Siddhu calls jealousy "a sickness of the soul". I don't know about that but what I certainly find remarkable is how people can feel miserable by seeing others in joy. A story we've been told since our childhood is that of the spoilt lad who stopped lamenting on not being able to own a new pair of shoes after seeing a legless man. What are we trying to convey here? Compare yourself with those who are inferior to you, feel superior and eventually happy having sufficed your egotistical thirst? We need to accept that nothing makes anyone inferior or superior. That the universe has an incredible sense of equality to it. Everyone, who is anyo...

That day is not far when people around the world will start their day with a plateful of worms. That's right! Worms are now the new fad in food. They are full of protein, less in calories and way too friendly with people's pockets. There are over a thousand varieties of edible worms to choose from. And they can be cooked in over a thousand and one ways. The only challenge is how to transform something that is yuck into something that is yum. I saw on the BBC World  the other day how chefs with expertise in worm cooking fried locusts like it was your classic indian bhooji and topped it with various sorts of spices. The very sight of black colored earthworms going from the saucer into the frying pan was enough to make me feel nauseous. But unfortunately, that is the kind of food the world has to start getting ready to eat. To market the same, the proponents of these food items have thought of roping in celebrities. They will give a helping hand in making the gross acceptable. ...

The idea of risk taking is inspiring. consider that the greatest risk we have taken is that of taking birth on this earth and thereby sealing the fate that we shall die one day. One day, everything is going to be taken away from us anyways, so why fear? Take risks, spark the spirit of adventure for that is the only way to see our visions come to life. I love a quote by Steve Jobs that says, "Remembering that I'll be dead soon is the most important tool I've encountered to help me make the big choices in life." Osho's grandmother used to be very concerned about her grandson traveling in trains. She would make newspaper cuttings of all the train accidents that took place to persuade him to stop taking the danger of journeys. Then one day, Osho said to her, "You show me these statistics to discourage me from traveling in trains but do you know that 95% of deaths take place while people are in their beds." Since that day his grandmother stopped trying...