Age and Friends of All Ages

 I am quite amazed that I have friends of all ages. I am 65 as of now (early 2026).

I am able to connect with toddlers I have met without them throwing a fit, mostly. The slightly older kids I can have some conversation with, if they want to have one- I did with a kid about books, recently. Amazing, ain't it?

Of course, twenty-somethings and thirty somethings are usually my students from a faraway time zone, but to their credit, they do talk to me still- both online and offline. Not sure why, but they do. Of course, I try to engage online through DP awards, commenting on their posts, or forwarding memories from the time when everyone was on Facebook. Now, they are divided between FB, Insta and Linkedin, as I am not on X.

Some share success stories of their lives/careers, some just comment regularly with some witty answers to silly questions I pose, etc. And best of all, some make an effort to meet up with me when I suggest it, on a visit to their city. For example, Pratima Gaikwad and I have met several times in Hyderabad now. And Abha in Mumbai and Delhi. And Sheetal too, in Pune and Mumbai.. Shafique in Indore, and Bangalore. You get the drift.

Will also meet two young people, and their spouses in Bangalore soon. 

And that is what makes life beautiful.. in 2026 too, it should.

Creative Pursuits

 I always liked photography, as my parents introduced me to it. I have many memorable pics taken from places around the world. Some good, some that could have been better, but great memories usually.

Writing I got introduced to in college magazines as an occasional writer. I am proud of a piece I wrote about 100% attendance- a rule at IIM Bangalore. I titled it- "Of Godliness and 100% Attendance." A satirical piece, of course. It evolved into writing a lot for the wall magazine and Year Book, and later, books of two kinds. Technical, as in Marketing related, and an autobiography- self-published, unlike Chetan Bhagat's books. And of course, this blog..

I like punning too, and PJs. Many are spontaneous, and related to the conversation going on. I also ask questions on Facebook that test the creativity of friends, drawing them into answering the (sometimes silly) questions. My 'engagement' score is pretty high, I am sure.

A combo of all these is good for being social, at least on social media. 

Industries That I am Helping Sustain

 First is social media. Facebook in particular. If not for me and some of my friends, Instagram would have taken over the world, and FB would have shut down.

Scotch labels from Scotland. The malts I consume are 50-60% Scottish, helping their industry thrive. Glenlivet, Laphroaig, Ardbeg, Caol Ila, and occasionally others like Glenmorangie, Lagavulin etc. 

Indian makers of Single Malts like Amrut and Paul John. 

Pan masala makers - rather, the ones who make those that taste like real pan. Also, one masala supari from Satara called Bhave supari.

Golf ball makers, by losing balls regularly, whenever I play Golf. 

The airline industry, by taking unnecessary flights.

The tourism sector, by taking unnecessary vacations. 

The restaurants wherever I live.

Bookstores, likewise.

After Anna Hazare, I think I am the most socially useful guy alive.

My Likes and Dislikes

 I never tried making a list, but let me try. 

Likes

Food, friends (students included), Thumsup (sorry, not the last.. just came from their ad)

Travel (now, flights are not exactly a favourite.. they take too much time pre- and post)

Moderate temperatures, except the chai- I like that hot!

Puns

Single Malts, especially peaty, smoky ones

Music- Kishore Kumar, in particular. Radio, as a medium to listen to them..without ads, preferably.

Facebook

Dislikes

Politics..most kinds

Noise.. high decibel, even more.

Winter.. unless I can hibernate under a heavy quilt.

Government offices, Visa processes etc..

Phoney research

Instagram

Instagram

 I finally joined Instagram, at the urging of a couple of friends. I did not feel the need, so far, but a lot of friends have migrated from facebook. But FB will continue as the mainstay, because I have 3000 plus friends there, at least a third of whom are active.. we old-world buddies. And a few great communities I am a part of on fb too. The latest on fb is a page dedicated to fans of MAD magazine- the funniest satirical mag!

I am a late convert to tech platforms anyway. I find a real bookstore far more invigorating, and still buy books from the brick and mortar ones. So also most shopping, except where absolutely necessary. Convenience is good, up to a point. But we also need physical exercise, and social interaction with the sabziwala, or other humans, to keep us sane. 

The impact of social media has been tremendous. I look at it as a tool to meet people also, not just remain in conversations online. To a large extent, I have succeeded too. LinkedIn has also helped build new connections. So I am not complaining. Just pondering..

Categorising People on Social Media

 Whatsapp

People who hate WA.

People who think it's the ultimate based on Forwards..

People who Leave a WA group because they got offended

People who threaten others or get into long, nonsensical debates.

Grads, postgrads and Ph.D.s of Whatsapp University.

Facebook

Lurkers who only read posts

Post-ers who post

Those who like others' posts

People who use fb to form communities

People who use fb to actually meet people real time

LinkedIN

People who give gyan

People who listen to gyan and respond to it too

People Looking for Jobs

HR guys looking for guys looking for jobs

Fan Mail to Self 2

 Why stop with one? Now that I have got started, let me write about other good qualities. (Ahem!). 

Dear Raj,

You always try and keep in touch. I like this quality in you. It's very old world, like the media you use - facebook, for instance, which nobody of the young generation uses any more. But I must say you use it to good effect on those who count. I realise you have managed to engage people by some really creative means, like your DP Awards, and Awards for Quizzes that you seem to have almost on a daily basis.

Not just that, you are available for chats on Messenger at various times of the day, even if it's a simple hello or an answer to a question that someone has. Also, to meet, when you travel. You seek out old students, friends and share a chat over chai (will not say Chai pe charcha, it's copyrighted :) )

You are also quite funny with your posts, and routinely bring a smile to my face, and many others too, I am sure. In a world full of gun shots, migrants and wars over nothing, we need a calming influence of some kind to keep us sane. I am glad you are doing your bit. It might not change the world, but it helps.

I am happy to be connected, and occasionally, meet up. 

Yours truly..

Google Plus

 We often concentrate on the positives, and successful products. But there are a few products that have failed, after having had a great pedigree, and a huge initial success, or interest from many users.

I am not talking of airlines, though there have been a few of those too. Maybe Yahoo, and others like Yahoo. In particular, this is about Google Plus. Seemingly, this product had everything going for it. A good pedigree, being from the Google stable, and a good interface for connection, easy access through a Google account, as another app.

Why did it fail? Was it just a poor conceptual imitation of facebook? Since facebook was already a platform of choice for most, was there a cool reaction to another similar product? But then, Instagram did succeed in taking people away from FB, so why not Google Plus?

I don't have a ready answer, but I personally was never enthusiastic about it. May have tried it, but unlike Google Photos, or Blogger which I continue to use, I found no motivation for using this one.

Timing and Technology

 Why is it that Zoom became the big new thing (Cisco and videoconferencing had been around for ages)? Or Netflix? Or before them, Facebook, Or Google Search, Yahoomail? In India, Rediff.com and mail?

There is this matter of correct timing. Technology is usually available somewhere, but the timing has to be right. One day, there will be electric cars everywhere, though today they are not.

You may call it luck, but evolution, word of mouth and circumstances like COVID may push everything by a few years. Like Work From Home. I heard about this concept from IT companies around 25 years ago, but it happened only last year on a large scale, and may stay on in some industries at least.

Will humans be replaced by robots? Could be if the time is right! I might buy a few in the meantime, to massage my aching feet or do my laundry. 

Forwards March

 Sounds like a marching order, but it's not. It's about forwards and forwarding things virtually.

I am part of a growing tribe of Forwarders- in my case, of jokes, or memes most of the time. Sometimes, a challenge too- strictly, not a forward, but a chain-like thing you perpetuate, like a species. Like the 10-year challenge, and so on. (there's a pati-patni challenge, but not a PP aur Woh challenge as far as I know)

Well, WhasApp forwards are a totally different ballgame..not sure who are the game designers, but many of these are in bad taste, inaccurate, inflammatory, unresearched, fake or all of the above. Mostly, what tears WA groups apart are the political posts from someone, leading to a war of words, and withdrawal of a few offended folks on either side. The original purpose of the group formation gets forgotten/sidelined.

WhatsApp groups can also quickly run out of steam or fizzle out, unless backed by physical meetings with group members.

Remembering Students- Roll Call

Thanks to Zuckerberg, I have reconnected with so many, it's hard to remember all...will give it a shot.

Most recent ones were Rohit Kumar, Bhuvneet Raheja, Akshat Surana, Nishka and Vikram Rathi, Sapna Patni, Anam Nuhi, Arshia Mulla, Ravi Mittal, Kedar Muley, Surbhi Mehta Chadha, Meghna Sinha, Kanika Mhendiratta, Sheetal Garg, Abha Kulkarni (Spice Girl 1), Ishan and Ankita, Keyur Bhalavat, Shraddha Nigdikar, Savitha, Bharath Shenoy, Harshad Sachani, Tamros Mondal, Pratima Gaekwad, Padmapriya, Sunil Kataria, Shweta Agarwal, Sharmistha Singh, Nikita Kumar (I owe her some chocolates!), Shruti Sharma and Aditya Naag, Latha from PGPMX, Tosha Dubey (Spice Girl 2), Anuj Mathew, Sirisha (does not like spice!), Khyati Jha (author), Abhinav Kamal (film-maker), Punyashlok (budding prof.), Manjari, ...

A bit earlier, Neha Adiga, Anushka Mishra, Divya Singh, Garima (Gary S), Dwipa, Sampark, Sheetal Srivatava, Shweta Sinha (my first taste of Vietnamese food was with her, in Bangalore), Sreeram, Anshita Abhishek Chetty (an able party organiser and from Indore, I must add), Aashish and Anusha Mamidanna, Shafique, Zargar Basharat, Pallavi, Vrinda Khanna, Arvind Joshi, Pragya Singh, Urvashi Anand, Shatakshi Tripathi and Varun, Sowmyashree Gonibeedu, Shveta Sahu, Jogeswari, Mrunal, Anant Ajmera, Vishal Golchha, Vishal Tibrewal, Animesh Jain, Supriya Jain, Shreyashi ( a prof, now), Meghana Joshi, Vikas Jain, Varun Somaiya, Swathika Selvam, Bhawana Sahay,

A bit before that, Swapna and Vidya TC, Dheeraj Mohan, Smita (named after the Patil, I learnt) Mohan, Anu Bhoopathy, Akash Gupta...

Some just-misses- Ishita Modi (Modiji se milna mushkil hi nahin,..etc.), Pallavi Sharma (she preferred Goa!), Bhavana Daga, Palak Narang,..

Of course, online chats or Nok-jhonk are on with many more..

Amar Photo Studio- A Play With Substance

This is a very inventive play (in Marathi) that I saw yesterday. Proof? Here it is, clicked by Amey Wagh, a key actor, at the end of it. We are at the left end, first row. I am second from left.

Did I say inventive? I will say it again. It had elements of the classics (V. Shantaram appears as a character, making one of his films), mid-70s ( a character played by Parna Pethe dances to the song Mehbooba, Mehbooba, from Sholay), and today's selfie-obsessed generation that is trying to define love in the time of breakups.

Brilliantly cast and directed, it's a must-watch in my view. Nipun Dharmadhikari, the director, proves he is nipun with many things- the time travel, the representative characters from each age group, and the handling of the story and the dialogues, were all of a level that was impressive. Participative elements, with the heroine and hero both coming into the aisle and pulling in audiences, aded zing to the proceeding. The humour is ROFL.

Amey Wagh, and some others too, played multiple characters, not easy to do in quick succession. Hats off!

Engaging With People- DP Awards

Engaging with people on social media and real life may have some similarities. You have to think like an advertiser who fights the clutter, particularly on social media where there are a zillion distractions, and you have to cut through them.

An experiment that I started a couple of years ago, was to select Nice DPs from among my Facebook friends- note, these are not called the Best DP Awards-just Nice DP Awards. There is a difference. You can have a nice DP without it being the best on any one parameter. Of course, my judgement is what counts, as in any list, but many of my nice friends from around the world have been winners.

I am asked often by some friends when I meet them in person, what the criteria are for my selection. I don't have any specific criteria, but just an overall impression- sometimes it's the look, the location, the quality of the smile, or the humour inherent in the pic, or just creativity that grabs attention. So there's no formula to it, you gotta just keep trying out different things.

It's been a great success (52nd edition running), and though trawling through 3000 DPs is not exactly easy once every 3-4 weeks, I enjoy the process of looking at what people are up to, in terms of presenting themselves.

I Wonder...

Sometimes, I wonder if..


1. I had not cleared that interview for IIM Bangalore admission into the MBA program,..

2. I had not got a scholarship to go do a Ph.D. at Clemson, USA...

3. I had not returned to India after a couple of years' teaching,..

4. I had not worked in Marketing Research and Advertising,...

5. I had not written that book..or those books..

6. If I had not started blogging,..

7. If I had not got a single friend request on fb,..

My life would have been poorer, for sure. I am happy it turned out the way it did.

Create Something That Americans Want to Copy

Guy Kawasaki (a favourite author of mine) said this in reply to a question from an Indian interviewing him on TV in India recently. He also said the following-

On Fake news- It is whatever news you disagree with-only sometime later do you really know if its fake.

On the origin of Facebook- Facebook started because Mark wanted a date, and not because he thought the world needed a new method of communication.

On Entrepreneurs Selling Out- They want to make money, and improvement to people's lives is a by-product.

On Big Data- Big data does not have all the answers-it can also be all lies.

Successful Investing- Most investors don't know which idea will succeed. In retrospect, they claim that this idea was backed by a good team, blah, blah, blah.. For one (investment in) Google that succeeded, many failed.

Wonders of Social Media

If someone had told me while growing up that there would be free communication avenues to keep in touch with friends worldwide, I wouldn't have believed it. Being in a people-intensive profession (teaching), I also have students who are spread across the world, and ex-colleagues. Some of them have remained in touch since email days (they seem numbered, the email days). Many more media have appeared on the horizon since then that are better, with my favourite being fb..I know, the youngsters are groaning, again..but half the world's population can't be wrong, right?

Here's just one couple (and their cute kid) I met again due to our being in touch on social media.

But such wonderful technology was made possible by innovations in hardware and software by hundreds of different innovators, and funded by governments who may have originally developed some of it for military uses (spying, in other words). Whatever the origins, it has definitely been a Godsend for many people who like to stay in touch with people across the world. I keep saying though, that periodically, these virtual friendships benefit from a real handshake and looking into each others' eyes (not romantically, necessarily). I have had lovely meetings with students, colleagues, friends (new and old-some I met first on FB) over the last few years only thanks to their being in touch on facebook. Hope that silsila continues.. Zuckerberg bro, I am a Fan!

An aside- wherever I go, people tell me they need to win my DP Award soon, or complain about not winning it ever..my words of advice would be listen to the Gully Boy and believe in his song..Apna Time Aayega.

Friends- A 2 x 2 Matrix

Ok, since people understand 2x2 matrices best, I decided to make one about Friends- not the TV show, but real life ones. These are the four varieties.

Ones you met in real life first and then on Facebook. (1)

Those you met in real life and don't want to meet on FB. (2)

Those you did not meet in real life before but are FB friends with. (3)

Those who you did not meet ever, either on FB or in Real Life. (4)

All the celebrities that I admire- scientists, sportsmen, music directors, singers, movie stars, dabbawalas, etc.. are in Quadrant 4. Naturally, coz why would they want to meet me?

Quadrant 1 is a natural consequence of a mutual liking which translates to Likes on FB.

Quadrant 2 is also understandable-it's the opposite of Quadrant 4, except that I am not a celebrity, and I still don't want to meet them.

It's Quadrant 3 that is interesting, because I am now starting to meet a lot of people that I had only known from FB. And hitting it off too. 

Things I Did Not Do in 2017

This is a recounting (wrong word, actually) of things I did not do.

I did not go to the Dominican Republic to present a paper, because of visa and travel hassles. I did go to Colombo, though, proving that visa processes really affect travellers.

I did not look all around while crossing the road and ended up with a broken wrist. A lesson there, somewhere.

I did not exercise my wrist enough, playing Golf..mostly resting on my laurels last December when I got a Hole-in-one. This pic is from that trip to Coonoor/Wellington. Hope to make up in 2018.

I did not react to the aggravating stuff on facebook. I use fb to make connections with friends, and have some fun..and I succeed.

Stages in a Facebookie's Lifecycle

These are observations based on some bookies (not those!) I know.

Jealousy- Watching friends go on vacations to Goa (and post pics), while stuck in a boring job.

Enthusiasm- Off you go on a new vacation, and trigger-happy. Creating or curating an album, after some hasty posts. Ditto for marriage, honeymoon,..

Follow the trend- Do what everyone does-pout, take a selfie,..take your pick.

Mourning- Watch others get into relationships, get married, etc..make snide remarks (not always on fb)

Quizzing- Attempt the amazing quizzes (I am excluding mine) that are a shameless attempt at capturing user data, and actually test nothing.

Watching your face melt- into a Queen Victoria, or a Cumberbatch, or a Katrina..Eeks, melting faces give me the creeps!

Crib about fb, join another Social Media platform, repeat..

A Wedding Party in Nagpur

Went to her wedding and met Abha Kulkarni, a former student (of IMT), for the first time there- I was the bride's guest. Must have happened for the first time. Thanks to Facebook, though, I feel that I know her pretty well. She's been a winner of some of my awards on fb. Anyway, the feeling of meeting someone in person (and seeing the radiant smile in this case) is much more than a facebook friendship. I highly recommend meeting some fb friends regularly when you can, and multiplying your joy. I try my best to meet one per visit to any city, at least. My own alumni meets of sorts.

In this case, of course, I was accompanied by my ex-colleagues Vijayakumar and Anant Ram who had taught her at IMT and told me she was a great student. It was a coincidence that her husband Rohan is from Nagpur, and enabled me to be here for the event. Found out from chatting with her parents that they have lived in Bangalore for many years. I am a fan of Nagpuri stuff like Oranges, and I also like its clean roads in the newer parts. Of course, the speedy Metro construction is causing some traffic issues, but they won't last long, as construction is progressing at 'Gadkari speed'- defined as 20 times the average Indian speed. If he'd been in charge of the economy in the 1960s, we'd never have had to face the "Hindu rate of growth".

I was also happy it wasn't too cold- I am not a fan of sardi-Dilli ki ya aur kahin ki. Just the right medicine for ending the year- Food, Friends and Thums Up, as the old ad said. Thumb's up, totally.