Why don't we have an Indian cuisine chain like Mcdonald?

Why can't India have a brand like McDonalds?

The food industry of India has seen a massive up-rise in the last few years. Be it the fast food industry or just Indian food in general, there are many Indian restaurant chains that have made a significant name for themselves, in India that is, with a 'few' managing to build a brand outside of India too. Earlier, all that an Indian foodie wanted was 'samosa', 'chaat', 'pakora' with a hot cup of road-side tea - aaah! Delicious. This however has now changed. The samosa, chaat, pakori, has been taken over by the Mcdonald ka burger at a very reasonable price, similarly a pizza for 4 at 200 and a world-class coffee ranging from 35 to 100.

This change in Indian food industry has been a massive boost for the country, if we consider it from the perspective of employment. A reputed group like Jubilent is co-owning Dominos in India which certainly gives it a brand value and with it, also creates job opportunity for the Indian citizens.

The above said means a happy customer and a boost in job employment - well, that's all we want, right? Maybe not 'just' what we need. India is a country which has a massively divine food culture. Be it the maach of Bihar and Bengal to Cholla Bhatura of North India, Vada Pav of Mumbai or the Dosa of South India, we're a country of great taste matched with great spices, of which the whole world takes a note of.

Even with such a rich history of Indian cuisine, why don't we have a food brand of our own ruling on the hearts of people, throughout the world? An Indian food brand that enriches the world with our authentic Indian taste, there are few but they're restricted to a particular country, none of them are truly universal. Bikanvervala & Haldiram's are 2 food brands from India that have a great reputation among NRI's and foreigners - at least something to be proud of as an Indian foodie.

Having the rich cuisine that we have on offer and the traditionally rich spices that have been used in families for generations, what according to you, do we lack to make India a 'food-brand' giant at the world level? 

Review : The significance of Indian television industry

It all began from a simple channel in 'doordarshan', showing shows like 'krishi-darshan' - which emphasized on farming. Chitrhaar, was another beloved show in the early days of television and apart from these 2 popular shows, there were only a few tv-drama shows that were on-air back then. Gradually, the amount of tv shows increased and the quality of the shows reached new highs.

Indian television, especially in the last 10-12 years has seen a massive boost, in terms of the audience it has managed to attract. I write this post to emphasize on one very important point which the majority of the Indian tv shows emphasize upon i.e. women empowerment. Be it the story of a bahu-saas in Tulsi or the struggles of a girl, fighting obstacles of her life like an iron-lady, a girl who got married when she wasn't even 18 - Anandi of Balika Vadhu. Indian tv shows have reflected the strength of an Indian women.

Alongside this, Indian tv shows have also emphasized on Indian mythological stories (Mahabharata and Ramayan). I personally had very little knowledge about the stories of Mahabharata and Ramayan until I saw both the tv shows, one that is currently on-air and one that was on-air just till a couple of months back.

We've got a great mix of tv shows but the most important similarity in majority of them is that of - women empowerment. We are all aware about the power that 'media' beholds with itself. TV shows are very much a part of this media and it's very satisfying to see that they're going/persisting in the right direction, highlighting the wrong doings in the society and at the same time, highlighting the importance of empowering Indian women.

A show like Satyamev Jayate which has taken up several society issues having a host like Aamir Khan, who has a terrific fan-following and a very-generous brand-value, for a personality like him to do a show like Satyamev Jayate; no doubt attracts more viewers, which spreads these issues into a mass variety of people and this is just what we need.

It would be unfair if I leave out Indian news channels in this. 2G, 3G, Coal Scam, Aadarsh Scam - none of this would have come into people's eye if it wasn't for an honest and truth-speaking Indian media. The role of media is often under-appreciated but no one can deny the importance of an active media in a democracy.

Credits - Google for the images

NaMo : Story of 'winning' billion hearts

A tea-vendor, chai-wallah, what could be the career prospects for a kid whose upbringing is in a very modest family - where money was earned through 'selling tea' in rail compartments. A kid who helped his father whenever he got free from school and then during the night, found some time to study. For such a kid, one thing's certain - he'd start 'valuing' life. It's easy for us 'middle-class' people to think and appreciate someone for the challenges that someone may had to face because of their poor family background but it's only and ONLY them that know how they overcame these challenges.

By now, you'd know that I'm talking about none other than the next Prime Minister of India, Mr. Narendra Damodar Modi. Since he was named the prime ministerial candidate of BJP, I was very keen to know more about his family background, at that time I had no idea what family background he had come from and once I did come to know, I started highly respecting and admiring this man - not necessarily only as a politician, but as someone whose had a very 'self-independent' and 'hardworking' life. Nothing comes easy in life and nothing came easy for Narendra Modi.

He had to leave his house at a very young age to pursue his education and a career in politics and with the political structure in India, he had no other option but to start being part of Indian politics at a very young age. Few things that you may not know about Modi is ; he was great in debates in school, loved drama and was a very 'active' student. 

Modi's tenor as the CM of Gujarat was one that has led him to this great success. I will not tell you what I've heard 'in the news' but what's the reality on ground is. My father was recently in Gujarat and as they say, 'check the mood on the ground' and my father did. The autorickshaw driver which took my father from the airport to his office was like every other Indian - a enthusiast of Indian politics. He asked my father about the mood in New Delhi and my father asked him about the mood in Gujarat. Of course the mood in New Delhi was very positive and the autorickshaw driver said the same for the mood in Gujarat, he said that the development of Gujarat in the last 10 years has been massive and that's to be credited to Narendra Modi. He added on "Modi works for 16-17 hours a day and is a extremely dedicated worker."

If I had to pick 1 positive thing about Modi, it'd be his 'close to the roots' speeches. He knows the problems on the ground, he doesn't talk in 'air. When he speaks about development, he talks about it's shortcomings and he talks about how India can pursue towards the direction, where development will be 'gainful'. Be it establishing of industries to improvement in the education sector to the improvement in health sector, Modi knows what he's talking about.

Farming I believe is the 'heart' of India and in his rallies in Bihar and UP, Modi emphasized largely on the electricity issue, which is so essential for good 'farming'. If Modi can implement the same that he's implemented in Gujarat - in terms of massive development in power sector, the future of Bihar and UP - which is equally proportional to the future of India because these 2 'big' states are particularly the judgement criteria for the country's development. The development in these 2 states in the last 10-20 years has been nothing, not even 'par', it's been standstill and hence if Modi successfully acclaims success in these 2 states, it'd really be something commendable and astonishing.

Coming to yesterday, after the poll results started coming out - where was Modi! He was with his mother, taking her blessings, with kids around - if that's not simplicity, I don't get what is. He could have so easily started his celebration alone, come to New Delhi and gain the 'limelight' but NO, for him, he knew what was important and as he says in his speeches 'Bharat Maa ki Jai'.

His speech last night in Ahmedabad was very key as it was more of a farewell speech to the great state of Gujarat. 'Main kahin bhi hun, agar aap mein se koi pukare gaa, to main samajh jaaunga ki mere parivar ka koi mujhe pukar reha hai, aur main haajir ho jaaunga' - and the crowd chanted 'Modi Modi', such is the emotional connect of people with Modi and that's what I admire about this great man, it's his emotional connect with the people, he's loyal to them and they're loyal to him.

This country of ours doesn't require the 'rich class' to run it, we need someone who has come from 'our background', who understands our 'real problems' and has ;real solutions' to them, someone who has faced 'hunger' in his life, hunger for success, hunger for flourishing, hunger for improving, hunger for tolerating and hunger of stomach - only such a man could 'run' this country and I'm proud that Narendra Modi is one such man.

His worst of the critics have to admit that the way he's won 'people's hearts', this man has to be special and we must appreciate his 'specialty'.

Vande Mataram! Acche Din Aane Vaale Hain! :)

#HappyTravelling is #HappyLiving

Childhood is the best part of one's life, why do we say this? Further, do you firmly believe this? Well, I do. I just cannot help but remember the summer vacations during my childhood when I along with my parents used to visit my village in Bihar. We just cannot stress enough on the fact that the best part of our life is one that we cherish throughout the life span, the times I spent in Tamuria (Bihar) are the golden times of my life and to this very date and forever would cherish those times, these days of #happytravelling. 

I'm writing this entry for Yatra Holidays contest on IndiBlogger. I'm quite aware that most of the writers would opt to write upon some "fancy" holiday places. Perhaps mostly abroad but for me, I'm going to choose the less taken option i.e. our villages. Through this entry, I will take you to the journey of an Indian village, my village, Tamuria. 

Information about my village, Tamuria:- Tamuria is a village located in Madhubani, Bihar. It's nearby to the city of Dharbanga. Like every village of India, this village too holds with itself a very rich heritage and many stories. I'm truly in love with it's beauty and through this blog entry, I plan to make you experience the beauty of my village through my writing. :)

We've to some extend forgotten the simpler times that we experienced earlier. Moreover, holiday is the time that you want to enjoy with your family, it doesn't necessarily need to be a fancy place, it just has to be a place that you like/love travelling to. For me, as I said, it's Tamuria and I'd tell you why...

Living in the capital of India, I've been living a life more or less very modernistic; drastically different to the life lived in Indian villages. Each year I would wait for the summer vacation to start so that I could go and visit my village in Bihar. I was/am not a huge fan of a life without radio/tv/computer hence when I had to travel to Tamuria (my village) I always hesitated. Agreed, I was excited to meet my grandparents and cousins and I was very much in love with the nature beauty but I always wondered, how will the time-pass, won’t I get bored? 

To my exception though, all this belief of mine that village life would to some extend be "boring" was totally incorrect. Just as I would reach to Tamuria after a 24 hour tiring train journey, my grandfather would wait for me at the train station along with his friends and a lavishing arrangement done to welcome me and my parents. It's a sight I will never forget, all these people gathered just to see me and my parents, with "maalas", different sweets, giving me "money" as a sign of blessing, my staying time in Tamuria started on a very high note.

The nature beauty :- As it's pretty obvious, the nature beauty in villages is far superior to the one we get in metro cities. Who needs AC when we have the liberty of experiencing the naturally fresh air (purwa hawaa). I'm a very city life driven kind of a guy, I cannot bear living in villages and yet for some reason village life impressed me. Before going to Tamuria, I would always complain but once we reached the place, I would be the most delighted person among all.

The art of swimming :- In village we call small lakes as "pokhar". During hot summer afternoons, I along with my brothers would go to the "pokhar" and enjoy the feeling of "swimming pool", at least it was no less than a swimming cool. It was a blessing in the hot summer afternoon and after that, what followed next was a lavishing meal that awaited for us back home.

I'm a foodie, food matters  :- The food we get in villages is remarkable. A simple potato "bhujiya" tastes so tasty with the "paratha's" that are truly satisfying to the soul with a bit of butter on the top of the roti, you just cannot help buy say “umm”... :D What more can one ask for! :D 

A holiday is a time that is spent with the family, the laughs, the smiles, the stories, the memories, the time-pass chit-chat, the food, the travelling, everything included, the trip to my village Tamuria is one that I will forever remember. I've never taken a road trip to a nearby place to New Delhi, I’ve travelled to plenty of places in India but I can say this - my trip to Tamuria is one that I'm sure is and forever will be unparalleled. 

Holiday is a time that is not routine, something very unique and an experience that must be felt to be believed. If we look at it from the perspective of merely spending money, that's not holiday. If you look at it from the perspective that regardless of how much money is spent (high or low), the main aim must be to travel to a place that you love/would enjoy to visit. My trip to Tamuria is one such trip that I truly enjoy. :)

I've written this entry to solely apprehend the point that holidays in villages can be equally enjoyable as compared to travelling to abroad or other cities of India. Fact remains, you just have to feel the experience of travelling to your home village because the love and affection from the people, the surroundings, the simplicity of life- everything adds up and makes the holiday one that certainly make you say "kya yaatra hai". :) 

Life is a yatra, enjoy this journey. :)

Android Game Review : Virtua Tennis Challenge

Android games have made a significant name for themselves.. Whether you're on tour, travelling or basically just bored at office and need to relax a bit - android gaming is the way to go. Just unlock the front screen, go to menu > switch on the game. It's as simple as that. Easy to install, easy to play. Android games have a bright future ahead, considering the huge number of users of this technology.

Sega, a well respected company for computer games, stepped into the android zone with it's already established gaming franchise for computer i.e. Virtua Tennis. Been a already reliable source of gaming for it's customers, the hope from the android users was high and let me frankly say, they haven't disappointed.

On Google Play, Virtua Tennis Challenge costs around 305 rupees, which isn't a lot. Fairly priced and belonging to a very respected gaming franchise, the hopes were ought to be very high from me.

The only drawback of the game is that, unlike the PC version, the players aren't licensed, hence you play to play against virtually created players.

Features of the game : You can play the exhibition matches and if you win, you earn 200 gaming points, these points are extremely vital in the "SPT tour" feature of the game. In this, you have to create a new player and take him to the glory of world tennis. You start from ATP rank 50 and from there, winning matches will earn you money - which will help you in joining tournaments, you earn money by winning the tournaments and along side this, your ranking keeps on increasing. As per the value of the tournament, the gaming mode changes. Easy, normal and hard are the 3 levels.

In the exhibition matches mode, you can also play "doubles", which I've personally found better/more enjoyable than singles but that depends on a particular user but this certainly shows the variety in the game. Along side this, Sega just like the PC version of this game, provides you with 2 camera angles - either you can go with tv mode or dynamic camera angles. This can easily be changed by going to settings in the game.

You can play multiplayer with your friends via bluetooth, I haven't tried it but it does sound very interesting. If you're new to the game/franchise and have no idea what's going on, you can try the training mode which will easily make you understand how the game works. You play against a player, you're given a challenge and if you succeed, you're rewarded with 200 gaming points, again very helpful in SPT Tour feature of the game.

The gameplay is fantastic! Don't worry, I'm not exaggerating. For a android tennis game, the gameplay is very realistic. Backhand, smash, top spin - are certain shots you can play in the game. The voices are very realistic and enhance the whole game.

There are variety of stadiums in the game. Grass court, clay court and in total, there are 18 courts to select from/play on. The courts/stadiums are very realistic and for the first BIG Game of tennis on android, this is some impeccable graphics from Sega, who have set the standard very high for the upcoming tennis games on android.

My verdict :- Go for this game. If you're a tennis enthusiast, on android, right now there's no other better alternative and even if there were, you just cannot miss this experience. The game doesn't cost much and is worth trying.

I hope you find this review helpful. Do let me know your experience with the game.. :)

Credits : Google, the images are taken from there..

Effectiveness of time management

Time management helps an individual effectively manage their tasks and give themselves the leisure time that they require to energize themselves. Having said that, the routine life of today doesn't allow one to lay-back and re-energize. In today's competitive world, being on your toes at all times is a key and hence multitasking is the only way to reduce the stress and complete your work efficiently, right! WRONG.

A timer for instance at work is a good way to keep a track of time and manage your work. Similarly after work, if you've a set routine at home i.e. when to eat, when to relax, when to go to sleep then you are in fact well in check with the time. 

A timer is a clock ticking for you to ideally finish your task in a given time and seize the time off that you need to relax and rejuvenate. What happens in reality though is, employees of today tend to put in long hours at office because the boss just wouldn't leave his/her cabin and so how could the employee go home! Therefore, it's better to sit idle and finish work under the pressure of a pressure-cooker at late hours of office instead of effectively managing the tasks. 

The essential quality of any successful person is their time management. There are star personalities who have a fixed time to go to work and come back from work and this is all because no matter how many hours you put in each day, it's the end result that counts. If you can deliver the same work you deliver in 10 mins, in say about 5 mins, then you have the liberty of 5 mins off and that does help a lot in today's competitive environment. 

Consider this for instance, you're in your office and you've got pile of files lying in front of you that have to finished by end of the day i.e. in 9 hours. Now considering that you take 30 mins for each file and there are 15 files in total, the estimated time you need to finish all the files is - 7 and a half hours. This means you would have finished your day's work even before the close of office, in fact way before, you'd still have leisure time of 90 minutes. This sounds easy because time management helps you to put your task into perspective. For instance, had we not known the average time it takes for one file to get completed, who knows how much time it would have taken for all the files to be finished! 

A timer is equally important to have at home because time-management is absolutely key to keep yourself fit and healthy. Due to immense work pressure and work load, we tend to cut on sleeping hours, this must be strictly avoided. If you ask any trainer of time management about sleeping hours, the advice you will get is - the minimum sleeping hours necessary to wake up fresh everyday is 8 hours. Also "early to bed, early to rise" is the motto one must follow in order to lead a healthy life but today the quote has become "late to bed, late to rise, I don't know how but I almost get it right". We must not allow the work load to get the better of us and that's why we have time management to manage each of ours tasks effectively. If we allow ineffectively time management to get better of us then we sure are not in for a great time in near future. 

Set goals and visions for the next day, do not let too much work come in your way which can perhaps lead to too much pressure and non-quality work. Take small assignments in one go and finish them, do not go for bulk of work at one given time - multitasking sure is helpful but it isn't when it comes in the way of quality work. Remember, "quality is always priority" and giving time to quality work is equally important. 

Let me share a story with you about time management. I will not be taking name of the business in this story but you must know that this story is absolutely real and this happened about an year or two ago. 

A businessman ran a big corporate firm which was going well and could be regarded as one of the better profitable organizations of the market. The owner of the business was a tall and fit man or so his colleagues and employees thought. The owner was in good habit of going on a morning walk every day at 4:00 AM. One day on his morning walk, he suddenly collapsed and was rushed to the hospital, the doctors made it official that he had a heart attack and was no more....

The reason that the doctors gave for the heart attack was too much work pressure, less hours of sleep and most importantly - poor time management. Even though the business owner woke up at 4:00 in the morning every day, he in fact slept for only about 2 hours and had a tight schedule at work. What this story tells us is that it is good to be loyal to your schedule but until and unless your time management isn't helping you in managing your tasks effectively, what really is the point! Surely you need to reconsider your time management and set one for yourself again - this time giving yourself some leisure time in working hours and giving yourself the much required 7-8 hours of sleep. 

One of the world's most renowned poet William Shakespeare puts time management into perspective "Better three hours too soon, than one minute too late."  

Time management is a skill that you must sharpen in order to achieve your goals. It's best to maintain a gap of 5-10 mins between your work and re-freshen your mind. A timer helps you to keep in check with your schedule and give yourself the liberty of knowing that you're either on time, before time or late - which you can then effectively manage because without time management, we're all like a mobile without a sim - we're aware of our capabilities but cannot fulfill them because of ineffective time management. Hence, time management truly is an essential key to success. 

Anil Kumble : A Legend We Admire

The genius of Kumble : an inspiration for the gen next of Indian cricketers

In the early 1970’s, Indian team wasn’t recognized for it’s batting, it wasn’t yet considered a strong side on a whole but one aspect of their play that stood out was their spin bowling. After that era of Indian spinners ended, for about another decade the hunt to find a good spinner didn’t see any success. Plenty of good spinners came in the side but stayed for a little while and then made way for another new spinner. Amid all this, an engineer was hoping to make a career in a respective corporate organization, little he would have expected at that time, that one day he would be regarded as one of the best spinners to play this game. Yes, I’m talking about the great Anil Kumble.

A simple yet humble man in spectacles, very dedicated towards the game, knowing his role in the team, these are a few characteristics of Anil Kumble in his earlier days playing for the Indian team. India was not essentially considered a strong side when Kumble was brought into the side, since the retirement of Gavaskar, India was looking to rebuild and during this process, several young player were given a chance to showcase their talent at the international level.  As a keen follower of Kumble’s game, I’m persuaded to believe that his decision to leave a career in engineering wouldn’t have been an easy one. It’s fitting to say then, the decision that Kumble took at that time to opt for cricket over engineering, has had a significant on Indian cricket and we all admire him for his brave decision which certainly gave him the fruits.

Kumble certainly knew how much talent he possesses and how much of an asset he can be for the Indian team in the time he plays for his country. This is undoubtedly what happened. Kumble has never been regarded as a good spinner of the ball; having said that, his tendency to confuse the batsmen with his variations certainly left the batsmen clueless. During his career, one would rarely find an incident where Kumble didn’t respect the “fair play”. Kumble always conducted himself very well on the field and equally well off it. This makes him a player certainly to be respected, when someone gets fame and recognition it isn’t easy to get used to it but Kumble never let all this change him as a person.

Let’s talk about some of the key moments in Kumble’s career. The very first milestone that comes to mind is his 10 wicket-haul at the Kotla Stadium vs Pakistan. This was a spell of bowling where one didn’t only see Kumble confusing the batsmen with his variation but also with his sensational spin on the ball. Kumble proved on this day that he is a special talent and left everyone spell-bounded.  Another milestone of Kumble’s career will be his rare classy show with the bat, his first and only century that came against England in Engalnd, in the 2007 series. In this particular innings, those who watched the match would certainly know how crucial an innings Kumble played and just to add here, he was also the captain of the side. Not only did he make a century but made a century that helped India get out of a crisis situation in the match. A knock of the utmost excellence, one just cannot praise Kumble enough for his contribution to Indian cricket for more than a decade.

650+ wickets in test matches is not an easy task, Kumble is behind just two greats Warne and Muralitharan as far as leading wicket-takers stats is concerned in test matches. What always left me surprised about Kumble is his down to earth nature, which is to this very date, still the same. He’s still the cricket enthusiast that he was when he started playing. This very year, another milestone was added to his illustrated career i.e. Mumbai Indian’s IPL victory and this time Kumble was rewarded as a coach. Subsequently it makes an Indian fan think - perhaps a role we can see Kumble also playing for the Indian team in near future too. Kumble’s calmness and great knowledge of the game can certainly make out to be very handy for the Indian team.

This article hereby apprehends a simple point “Anil Kumble, a legend we admire”. We certainly appreciate your tremendous contribution to Indian cricket and without you; Indian cricket wouldn’t have been the same.