The Fragrance of Innocence...

This little incident kept me happy throughout last evening and will definitely keep me smiling the whole day today...

I was buried in reading my book last evening and my neighbour's enthusiastic kid came running to me to flaunt off her clean new books of her first year in school. She was in a mood to do something cool, something creative but wasn't able to explain it. I went through her new study material with great interest and accelerated her bubbling interest to explore the colourful pages. But she had other things hovering in her mind. So she came with a piece of paper and a stack of crayons yesterday, stood beside a table and got engrossed scribbling something...
I wasn't aware of what she was upto as I was busy reading. She went on scribbling to her level best and after a few minutes...came to me with a masterpiece...a cute pink and brown house with shades of green here and there!
Actually She remembered that I had gifted her a friendship band (the colourful thing made her damn happy) last week on the much - hyped Friendship day and she did not have anything to give me in return. Hence she thought of putting her creativity on paper and gift me a drawing...really made me feel good! No sooner did I pin her masterpiece on my notice board than she stormed to her home pulling her mother to show her that her daughter did something nice...
Now thats what I call, the Fragrance of Innocence!

Decoding Innovation (Ref: Times Ascent)

Heres the article (Gyan Gurus-Pravin Rajpal- Times Ascent) that inspired me to work better....

“Diamond is a coal that stuck to its job” – Thomas Edison

Innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower. Innovation has lit up every lamp in this world, made it possible for the man to fly in air, reach the depths of ocean, brought the world on the fingertips through internet, made every single discovery and created wonderful products for better living on this planet. Man is still not satisfied. His imagination is now exploring the possibilities of exploring life on moon and other planets.

Man’s brain is the greatest natural resource in this world and innovation is the priceless ingredient for mankind’s progress in future. It is a creative faculty and the ability to fantasize. The history of the business is essentially the history of innovation.

A powerful imagination makes us infinite; in fact it is quite often an excuse when we say that this is not possible. We should instead ask why is it not possible.

Lot of people confuse innovation with labs, labs with R&D and R&D with millions of dollars investment. Great works are the result of great passions. Microsoft and Hewlett Packard are excellent examples, which have emerged from the garage and not from any R&D labs.

Innovation - Paradigms

Many people think that innovation is a lucky flash of inspiration or unique skill mastered by fortunate few. Some people confuse innovation with invention. There is also a popular belief that innovation is tough. Invention is discovering things that have never been discovered before. Innovation, on the other hand, is the discovery of new ways of creating value. Not everyone can be an inventor, but everyone can be innovative.

Innovation is Easy! I have decoded the acronym ‘INNOVATION’ so that the steps to innovation become simpler to understand and remember.

I – IDEAS / Imagination – Start with ideas. Imagine without boundaries
N – New What / How / Why / Who / When / Where
N – New customer needs - Unperceived and unarticulated
O – Obstacles – Obstacles and problems are the sources of innovation
V – Values – Think customer values to innovate
A – Automate – Automate all human activities
T – Technology – Innovation becomes easier by using existing technologies
I – Integrate – Integrate products, technologies, disciplines & capabilities
O – Out-of-the-box thinking – Challenge the conventional wisdom
N – New products in market– The ultimate measure of innovation

For every customer need or a business problem, which can not be resolved easily through conventional wisdom, there exists an unconventional / unusual solution in the form of innovation.

Shootout At Lokhandwala

Finally I was able to catch the much awaited movie of my list...heres my review:

Firstly, you need to shun the typical expectations from a Bollywood flick before going to watch this two - hour show coz Shootout... is beyond the traditional stuff. Its a crude but a successful description of the chilling activities of the underworld of Mumbai in the 1990's when loyals of the King of the underworld were in a spur to grow their units independently. The film starts with a flashback giving a brief idea about the changing face of Mumbai crime and slowly unwinds with powerful dialogues and a decent music score.

The story revolves around Maya Dolas(Vivek Oberoi) and his friends who part ways from the tasks of extortion on behalf of the D company. The movie kickstarts with a flashback of the terror history and continues with the after scenes of the actual shootout with blood flowing out of the Swati apartment where the infamous incidence took place with a decent music background adding effect to the story narrated by Dutt.
There was no need to add a third song I think. But 'Ganpat' by none other than Mika really sounds good.
In short, powerpacked performances, great supporting cast and fantastic dialogues and above all, the crude depiction of the Mumbai underworld scene of the 90s made me add Shootout At Lokhandwala in my evergreen movies list.

Flying with the wind!

The wind was one naughty guy today...it was wild for one moment and the next moment it carried a soothening effect...creating kinda confusion in the air! It was a mini-cyclone today, with tonnes of dust blown away and my eyes got filled with those nasty particles every time i stepped out of my house. Couldn't even balance my poor self once as the wind was in a mood to play some mischeif! At that point of time, I realized that I need to put on some weight to 'sustain' such guerilla attacks in the upcoming monsoons....hehehe...

Think bout it....

Robin Sharma, in his book The Greatness Guide(its more than a book,a goal-reader may be) has said...

'Nothing fails like Success....'

One of my favorite statements to think over....so true!

Heres that little incident that put a smile on my face today....

I was on my way back home, with music plugged in my ears and my tired legs drawing me further. First two autorickshaws whooshed past me,then two trucks from my opposite side, was nearly saved, and no sooner did i began cribbing than i noticed the backside of the vehicles were 'christened' with interesting statements...One truck carried - Mera Bharat Mahan and the other one....Sau me se assi baiman!! One auto was - Raja hindustani and the other carried - Ghar laut jaa. Kinda related to each other....funny!!

Go Goa! Part 3

South Goa:

Margao:

Also known as Madgaon, it is the prime city in South Goa. The Municipal Council is a proud Portuguese structure with its strong red walls and a park at its front. Margao still carries the Portuguese essence in the Church of The Holy Spirit.



Colva:

One of the peaceful beaches, one cannot miss the Colva winds and the milky waves on the silky sand. One of my favorite beaches of Goa.



Cruises:

Atleast one cruise,be it sunset or river or sunrise cruise,is a must to complete one trip to Goa. One can get an overall view of Goan culture, enjoying the Goan music,drinks,food and dance on such cruises.



Water-sports:

Go-yatching,surfing,para-sailing,water-skiing...Goan waters have lots to offer!

Go Goa! Part 2

North Goa:

Panji:

Also known as Panjim,the name means 'the land that doesnot flood',is the capital of goa. It is famous for its carnivals.



Basilica of Jesus:

This contains the tomb and the mortal remains of St.Francis Xavier, the saint who was assigned the work of spreading Christianity by the Portuguese in the east in 1541. The remains are removed from the silver casket every decade. The walls depict the saint's life. The church was built by the Portuguese in 1501 and still doesnt fail to mesmerize every person coming to pay a visit to its structure.



Convent and church of St. Francis of Assisi:

The original thing was built in 1517 and the new structure in 1661. The floor and the walls depict the saint's history. The convent is now an archaeologial museum.



Se Cathedral:

It is the largest church in Goa, its construction started in 1562,completely in gothic Portuguese style. It is famous for the Golden Bell.



Fort Aguada:

It was built in 1612 on the mouth of Mandovi River to protect the shores from the Maratha and Dutch. It provides a view of scenic beauty.



Calangute Beach:

This beach once attracted foreigners. The roads are flooded with stalls of Goan dresses,jewellery and handicrafts. This beach os one of the most crowded ones in Goa and is 45km away from Panjim.



Vagator Beach:

Its is famous for its rock cliffs and reddish sand that wash the rocks clean. It attracts Bollywood industry.

Go Goa! Part 1

Went on a week trip to areas of Goa and Konkan with parents in the early days of June.
Heres a short description of the prime places of my interest:

Chiplun:
The Konkan region is a strip of land with the Arabian Sea to its west and the Sahyadris to its east. Chiplun is located in the heart of Konkan. It its famous for its temples and lush greenery.

Ganpatipule:
As the name suggests this place is famous for its more than 400 years old temple of Lord Ganesha. It is located on the shores of Ratnagiri and provides a heavenly view to the loyal worshipper, with the Creator and His creation - the lovely shores, the tall waves washing the Creator's feet. Ganpatipule, due to its unadulterated beauty, is fast emerging as an all-tourist destination.

pandemonic sky...

The Mumbai sky is turning nastier day by day...it shows signs of rains and then the sun pops up from nowhere. How unpredictable! I stumbled upon some stones and the muddy pool didnot miss the chance of dirtyin my brand new slip-ons...boohoo! Gotto go to enjoy the evening outside now.

the first showerz!

Finally, got a good occasion to kickstart my pending task of blogging..its been months since I've been delaying it...the first rains proved auspicious in this case...hehehe. Had a cooler yesterday than today as the city was cleansed by the first waters and I enjoyed every bit of it. The naughty sky indicated showers today too, but it did not rain. Oh well, looking forward for more showers...