How I explained Entity Management to Amma….

Dear God,

As you know, Amma has the uncanny ability to snook you with her questions. Worse, they come when least expected. Like the other day, she asked what seemed like a fairly easy question to answer – “Exactly, what is it that you do at work?” But trust me, it isn’t.

One of two reasons why - I was dealing with a baby boomer, who is yet to come to grips with the fact that people actually ‘work’ in Facebook or why Google is more efficient than her! What also compounded the situation is that she belongs to a time when education did not receive as much stress (I suspect she can locate her Std X passing out confirmation).

And so, if I’d rattled out a fancy, ‘Entity Management’ in response to her enquiry, I’d have had to deal with another grave problem – her doubts on whether I went to work in an actual office!

Thus began a modest attempt to help her understand how I put food on the table. If the ensuing dialogue and its contents appear very basic (at times, silly too!), you know there is a very good reason. And so it goes….

Amma: Exactly, what is it that you do at work?

I: Amma, this will take a while. Do you have the time to stay with me on this? (Amma is usually busy being part of a local Bhajan group. So busy, we have, on occasions asked her to put up a schedule indicating when she was likely to be home!)

Amma (appears upset): Ok, go ahead.

I: So, remember Arcade Library and the huge collection of books they shelved?

Books = Entities

Amma: Yes, what about it?

I: Imagine walking into one such library. Think of the huge collection of books neatly organized into sections of shelves and clearly labelled. Now why do you think that an organization or structure as such is required?

Entities are meticulously categorized into a thoroughly deliberated, well-laid out structure - Business -> Sub-Business -> Process -> Sub-process -> Input/Output -> Task -> Segment -> SOP -> Role

Amma: Discipline, silly! They can’t have books strewn around like your clothes and accessories.

I: Amma! (chants, “cool it, cool it”)

Amma: It is difficult to find a given book when a customer asked for it, isn’t it?

I: Well said Amma. Yes, it helps to know which corner of what block of which aisle houses a given book. Now, how do you think a librarian knows that sitting behind a desk and looking at a huge collection, sometimes thousands in number?

The organisation houses over 140000 such entities (and still counting)

Amma: I remember the lady at Arcade library making entries of books that came in and went out in a register.

I: Correct. Now replace that register with a computer that can deftly manage books running into thousands.

Enterprise Architecture has laid the path to managing the voluminous entities at MyWork. Access to entities is centrally managed and a UI (in the works as I draft this) keeps a tab on the in-tray and out-tray.

Amma: Ok, so are you saying that you are that guy behind the desk?  Are you a librarian now? Do you realize how much money we poured into your education? This is what you’ve become – a librarian?!?!?

I (red, but covers up with a chuckle): No Amma, stay with me. We will get there in a bit. Now back to the library, what kind of books go into a library?

Amma: Depends on the kind of library it is, doesn’t it? A library can house all kinds of books but if it is a school library, it doesn’t have to house movie magazines, books on fashion etc. Those are not of any significance to it.

Only those entities that are of significance and/or add value to the organisation have been identified as entities. Everything in the world as we know it and conceivable worlds beyond it is an entity. But we chose only those that are pertinent to the organization.

I: Brilliant! There are different kinds of libraries – Public, School, Special (like Hospitals, Corporations, Museums, Military, Government, Private businesses etc).

Amma: Right. Wonder what happens inside a multi-purpose library though, where books of various subjects are housed.

I: That is where theories like the Dewey Decimal System are engaged. So books are classified into 10 broad classes:

            000 – Computer Science, Information and general works

            100 – Philosophy and Psychology

            200 – Religion

            300 – Social sciences

            400 – Language

            500 – Science

            600 – Technology and Applied Sciences

            700 – Arts and recreation

            800 – Literature

            900 – History and geography

55 such classes that cut through the organization have been identified. It is significant to note here that ‘Activity’ provides the fulcrum to the entire Entity arrangement.

Each of the classes is assigned a category number (as above) and a cutter number/s to the right of the decimal point. This is referred to as a Call Number.

Each of these classes has 10 sub-classes and each sub-class has 10 sub-divisions, the objective being to narrow search down to the last book. The purpose of Call Numbers is to group books of the same subject together. So here’s a sample for a book on American fiction literature written between 1861 and 1900 (the highest class being coded 800)

81: indicates American literature in general

811: Indicates American poetry

812: Indicates American drama

And so on…

So for example, Sample collection as an activity has been mapped to Business -> Sub-Business -> Process -> Sub-process -> Input/Output -> Task -> Segment -> SOP -> Role. Some activities have extended headers depending on the scope. Each of these headers are identified by unique codes as laid out in the organisation’s Spirit&Letter and Blueprint

Numbers after the decimal usually indicate the year the book was first written. In essence, 814.4 points to a book on American literature -> Essays -> written between 1861 and 1900. More the numbers, specific the subject of a book.

Sample this: TS-15-01-LRN-KC-10001 indicates the place of origin, year, version, business, entity name, count of a given entity.

Amma (sounding impatient): Ok, where are we going with this?

I: So imagine the diverse and massive knowledge that roughly 1500 people of our organization hold. All of that knowledge is in the mind of each of the employees. There has to be a way to put that knowledge in a meaningful and organized fashion. That way, anyone in the organization can use the knowledge of any function, anytime. See how transparent the entire organization will thus become. Everybody knows what another is doing at any given time.

Amma (appears to submit): Hmm! (That could go either way. Thankfully, her next question saved my day).

Amma: Now how does a library know how to select and shelve a given book?

I: Good question, that’s why a thorough analysis of the subject of the book is required to slot it into one of the main, sub-classes and the several sub-divisions.

Extreme caution has been taken to define an entity and only those entities of significance were taken into count.

Amma (all warmed up now): So what of similar subjects but by different authors – how do they get shelved?

I: So remember when we talked of classes, we talked of the subject, subject being the binding factor. So a library may create sections in aisles that are dedicated to a given subject but by different authors. This is somewhat similar to, let’s say, the aisle named ‘Cosmetics’ at our local supermarket – same product, different manufacturers.

As discussed above, an activity forms the central point of the Entities framework. Its relationships with other entities such as Tasks, Segments, Measures, SOPs, Process etc are clearly laid out. So while a given activity may appear across businesses, its relationships with other entities sets it apart.

Amma: When housefull, how does a library accommodate a new book, especially, a sought after one?

I: So they may move dated and non-moving books to a godown and maintain them in good condition, just in case someone asked for them in future.

Entities that have undergone change in structure, content and/or relevance are decommissioned and archived. Such entities are only a click away and can be invoked at any time during the life cycle of entities.

In toto, EM is all about identifying an entity of significance, establishing its relationships and maintaining (modifying/retiring) it throughout a life cycle. The organization is divided into three distinct groups – Services Businesses, Services Delivery and Support businesses. The preamble to Enterprise Architecture is to capture, maintain and consume (as required) the knowledge cutting across these businesses.

Just when I think the game is over, here’s another one right into the block hole…

Amma: So where do you feature amidst all of this? What do you do?

I: My job is to manage the in-tray and the out-tray. We have a very easy-to-use system that helps keep track of what comes in and what goes out.

Amma: Did you have to identify all of those 140000 whatever you talked about earlier? (One could sense a hint of amazement in the tone)

I: No Amma, we worked as a team, studied each of the businesses, partnered with various people, consulted for content etc. Two years in the making!

Entity framework setup entailed collection of screens, knowledge components, marketing collaterals, messages, drug compositions, consumables, equipment information and many many more grouped eloquently into Hard assets and soft assets, people and Finance.

Amma: Who tells the librarian about new books or books that need to go away?

I: Usually, the librarian is partnered with authors, publishers and so is on top of things. That’s how they know.

Entities will be identified through org-wide projects that may require a new set up and/or changes to the existing ones. Triggers run through to the various stakeholders that initiate these projects, run through QCheck, inform the EM team and release to production from time to time.

I: So Amma, that’s what I do.

Amma: Isn’t this similar to Knowledge Management?

I (Agape): WHAT? HOW? WHO? WHEN?

Amma: O well, our neighbor does the same thing. We had a long chat on this a while ago.

I (still agape)

Amma: Why didn’t you just say it. Wasted my time. Cha!

I (battered and bruised, feels a sudden rush of existential crisis) ….

Disclaimer: Entities Management is only a function of the larger Enterprise Architecture framework in the organization. Additionally, I have not gone into the depths of the various transactions that are interspersed in the process. Several significant and times, draft processes have been deliberately omitted to keep the discussion short. This is only an attempt to initiate one into the organisation’s Knowledge Management structure.

Tomorrow is dying!

Dear God,

About nine years to the month, amidst global recession, I sat in a dimly lit cubicle and wondered, when...when...! The only certainty back then was ambiguity. Every day I went back to work to no work, news of friends who were suddenly let go of and businesses pulling the plug off the hitherto successful offshoring campaigns. Every day I went back to work wondering if it were my last! During the final days of the said, I'd turned numb; almost nothing affected me. And when the day did come, I was a relieved man. Economic downturn had claimed yet another head. At least the ambiguity had ended.

Cut to the day, ambiguity has raised its ugly head again. This time too, owing to another global phenomenon. Only this time, mankind is staring at the onset of a parallel and perhaps indomitable intelligence - AI. As I draft this, some of the big names globally, have been laying off massive chunks of human capital to make way for machines. Only this time, organisations may not be worried about costs; machines are more than equipped to perform repetitive and redundant jobs, in no time and at almost half the costs.

I'd like to reiterate 'onset' here. For this is just the start. And any activity that requires a human being will most certainly be devoured by machines. Look around and everything from a straw to the skyscrapers is man-made. Get the picture? There are absolutely no limits to what AI can do. Funny! we are able to clearly lay out the future of machines, machines that we developed while being egregiously unclear of our own.

In a span of just 9 years, I along with many of my ilk have witnessed two major milestones (devastations? sure). We did recover from the former, paying dearly through possessions, calling off marriages/engagements, forfeiting insurance plans, major savings etc. The latter has only just begun. Wonder what else could happen. Yet, there is one optimism that remains - Hope. There was hope then and there is only hope now.

Thank you for listening.

Where is the kind bystander?

I: "Bhaiyya, yeh kahan padta hai?" flashing out a piece of paper with an address.

The kind soul round the bend: "Siddha jaao, doosre chowraste pe Majjid hai, Majjid kane se right leke kamaan ke andhar se teesra right. Khareeb khareeb 3 km padta yahan se".

Dear God,

A typical exchange when locating an address. Hyderabadi gullies and their unending complexities can be truly overwhelming and at times, scary too. If you were having a bad day, heck! they may seem like points of no return!

Not when the friendly, kind bystander is around though. The dialogue above should give you an idea of how well he knows these bylanes and the precision with which he can lead you to your destination.

But not anymore, Google Maps, SIRI and their ilk have made in-roads here too. Something about men and directions - our egos never let us ask for directions. That is slowly but surely turning true with the advent of the digital era.

Today the said apps take me straight to my destination providing a running commentary through the course, with the same (mostly, better too) precision that the kind bystander was equipped with.

Yet another death, yet another opportunity for communication lost to time!

The kind bystander is no more....

Who the hell is running this place?!?!

Dear God,

Sunday's debate has caused a stir, so unprecedented and of such a magnitude in political circles of not just the US but also in countries that are closely following an impending change at the White House.

A lot is being said for, against and about the sparring probables. The now infamous video that went public last week has gotten the bigwigs within the GOP to distance themselves from Trump. And as I write this, I gather that there are many more who want to keep him at bay.

Less than 30 days from the Big day and with Trump losing faith (swiftly at that) within his party, a few questions piqued my interest - What now, what next, where does GOP go from here, does Trump still continue work and most importantly, who fills in for Trump if his nomination were to be cancelled?

A bit of reading around the web got me a few possibilities. Apparently, there has never been a situation as such and hence there isn't (or so it seems) a clear solution to any of the afore-stated wringers.

It all boils down to three possibilities, as I understand - A) the candidate is rendered incapacitated, B) is deceased or C) withgoes the race by own volition. With less than a month away, fielding another candidate who can amass the kind of support that Trump has from citizens and party workers alike is going to be an implausible task. Be that as it may, will GOP still bet on Mike Pence to conjure up something?

Knowing Trump and closely following his comments after the second debate, it seems unlikely that C) were an option at all. His confidence, I suspect, is at an all-time high. He looks ever-more resilient and unwilling to quit just yet. In recent times, he and his team of medical practitioners have emphatically insisted on his pristine medical condition, weight issues, notwithstanding. And so, dare I say, A) is ruled out too.

I believe, there is another possibility. That Trump runs for office nonetheless and should he win, he is persuaded to accede office to his running mate, who in turn assumes office as a caretaker President with full powers.

That possibility, in the meanwhile, gives GOP the necessary time to huddle up and make some crucial amends.

All of this leaves me amazed at how a perceived, near-impossible event can truly stump even the most powerful nation on the planet and leave its law makers and policy books delinquent and inadequate!

Of morals

Dear God,

Circa 2 million years ago - As per a 2013 post on LiveScience, the earliest evidence of ancient human ancestors hunting and scavenging meat.

Picture heads of two families sparring over a recent kill. Before long, they are at each others' throats over who takes home the spoils. In the meantime, the shrewd and ever opportunistic Hyena is seen slinking away with the prized catch.

As the head hunters watch in dismay, they are compelled to come to a sharing agreement for all eventual kills (I guess, through gestures).Obviously, they realise that it benefits to talk and mutually agree on terms than let either party starve. And thus began the long course of sharing as we know it today.

Such and many more agreements that followed were classified into virtues, morals, codes of conduct etc. 

Begs the following questions:

1. did you design the situation? 

2. were you there as a pacifist propounding that theory of sharing with the neighbour?

3. what triggered the sharing agreement - common sense?

4. did you thus introduce common sense?

One may come to a reasonably sane conclusion that values, morals, principles et al. mostly (I daresay, always) arise out of changing times, circumstances and most importantly, convenience.

As with evolution, all the aforesaid adjectives (values, morals...) always existed. Some will retire, extend and yet others will be born. A trigger was all it required for them to kick in. Of course, therefore, it may be increasingly futile to qualify something right or wrong. Only relevance will remain and count.

To that effect, may I therefore say (with caution) that if one attributes the adjectives to you, as do many I know, they are wrong. Horribly wrong!

Correct me.

Just another working day

Dear God,

It has been a while (more than, actually) since I did anything worth a mention. Amongst several reasons, a catalyst to the preceding sentence is a recent change in work location.

Office has now moved farther by 8 kms. As a result, the distance one way to work is 28 kms. It is no longer a simple "going to work" day. Actually, you will appreciate by the end of this precis why it feels like going to the gallows and back, only to go back again!

As if the number 56 weren't stressful enough, the actual ride makes it worse. Let's start with Traffic, the good old, disciplined Hyderabadi traffic. A 5-10 min deviation from the start time at home means you can kiss punctuality goodbye. Because by 8.30 in the AM, the roads are spilling over with people from all over. Certainly, one in every household is riding to an extreme end of the city everyday.

Back to the traffic situation. So it is like going into battle constantly maneuvering the bike, navigating through tapered lanes and sometimes over namesake roads. A bit on the roads here. They are, as you will know, a facade. Can you put your finger on one good stretch in all of the twin cities? They are perennially punctuated with potholes and speed breakers. Rains just add a new dimension to the non-existent roads here. Islands of stagnated water here, overflowing potholes there, all make for a joyous ride. Appa, on one of those rare occasions quipped that having ridden these roads, it is going to be impossible to ride on a 'good' road, if that were ever to happen!

If that didn't put fear in you, here's who makes it eventful - the good old, Hyderabadi. Pedestrians, drivers and all others in the taxonomy seem to have it taken upon themselves to stop me from reaching on time. Spit missiles, cigarette buds shooting out of car or bus windows is commonplace. Traffic jams on the main lane provide for a rare sighting - motorists plying on walkers' tracks or sidewalks! You know what they say about the Hyderabadi - idhar chala liye, to kahin bhi chala lete - loosely, if you can manage riding here, you can ride anywhere else too. I say, true that! Pedestrians and two-wheelers especially, can interject when you least expect it and worse, when you cannot engage brakes in time! A unintentional nudge here or an inadvertent move can at the least, get you snarls, the kinds that can drain the blood streams, leaving you blanched. In extreme cases, it can help update your expletives' lexicon. Your immediate kith and kin are fondly recalled in sweet Dakhni.

After all this, I get to work in a little over the usual 1h 30m. Battled and bruised, I hope for a smooth day. "Ram! why haven't you completed the document yet?" The familiar greeting of the Boss!

Ciao, until next time!

Of petty jibes

Dear God,

So on one occasion a while ago, at dinner with Mentor, we were going round the table introducing ourselves and sharing our interests/hobbies.

When we got to me, I proudly said that I was learning how to play the Violin. A holier-than-thou, smart Alec quipped, "Even villains in our movies play the Violin these days"!! Yes, that was totally unprecedented and unwarranted. Worse, it wasn't remotely amusing, if that was the intent.

But guess who came to my rescue. Mentor, no less! He was quick to retort, almost like a slap in the face, "But Einstein played the Violin too, didn't he?" The look on smarty pants' face......priceless!

Revelry in mythical rivalry

So, it is done and dusted. Can we now move on please?

Dear God,

I know of quite a few ecstatic people revelling in last night's victory against Pakistan. Some claiming personal gratification out of the record we retained (6-0). In the run-up, jokes were running rife across ads and dissections in news sections. Social media was flooding with trolls of our cousins' dubious WC record.

Going by the news coverage, the entire country seemed to have been smitten with patriotism and overwhelmingly at that. I recall a nasty troll in the build-up to the clash, "Bhai, Pakistan se jeet jao, WC nahi jeet sake to naa sahi" (Beat Pakistan, so what if we didn't win the WC again?).

Begs the questions, what goes on in the mind of the populi that aggravates tensions across either sides of the border during face-off? After all these years, have we still not moved on? Aren't there more formidable teams (like SA, Aus) that constantly pose a threat to our rankings and thereby demoralise our unit? What's with this undying obsession over performing well against each other all the time? How come the gut doesn't work as well with the teams in brackets?

In all fairness, last evening, we met and pulverised a team that was by no measure a WC winning team. Over half of the team was inexperienced. The captain of the ship himself hasn't scored a one-day century yet, even as he stares at sunset at 41. Says a lot about the capability of the unit, doesn't it?Shahid Afridi, the only other experienced campaigner almost always battles expectations of being a pinch hitter.He wasn't any different last evening gifting his wicket away.

Let us also not kid ourselves by our own performance. 300 is not exactly an enviable score given latest one-day trends. Look at Ireland and how they destroyed the West Indies. They made 300 look like a bad joke. We conveniently dashed hopes of touching 325 despite sitting comfortably on good starts by the top order. In fact, after Dhoni, we were a mere pack of cards delivering right the Domino's effect.

And our bowling strength (*sigh*) struggled to clean up the tail (again!!) despite their inexperience. So yes, we can celebrate last night's win but it was to me, Pyrrhic. Our bowlers were clearly exposed and the batsmen beyond Kohli, are for all practical purposes, non-existent.

To all my friends who derive this cheap thrill out of beating our cousins from across the border, might I remind that WC is not only about an IND v PAK encounter. I'd be as humiliated and bruised as Pak is today, if not more, if we didn't truly look like the defending champions. Trust me, we don't remotely look the part as on date.

An acid test awaits us on the 22nd when we meet the mighty Proteas. To my mind, our performance on that day will establish our intent and commitment to retain the cup. Or realistically, even getting through to the quarters. 

Like MSD mentioned at the presser, it is time we moved on from what now seems like a non-existent rivalry, mostly stoked by media and the petty politics in the background.

Abhi pathaakon ka waqt nahin aaya!

AAP se anurodh!

Dear God,

As I file this, I learn that the AAP is hinting at forming a Government in DEL. Whose support, how etc are not in yet.


Kind attn: Mr. Arvind Kejriwal

Dear Mr. Kejriwal,

Trust all’s well.

I am amongst your harshest critics. It has, I assure you, no bearing on your methods or ideology as much as it does on politics and governance in this country.

That I have never written to any other outfit despite the vitriol they have brought about in the country and chose to write to you is testimony; testimony that the country and citizens saw a glimmer, a glimmer of positive optimism and brighter days ahead through the AAP.

It is with that very hope that I feel compelled to write to you about your stance on taking the podium in Delhi. AAP’s mainstay has been activism and relentless opposition to the order of the day – lawlessness, red-tapism and corruption abound! People of this vast expanse walked with you solely on that premise with faith of a better, brighter tomorrow.

Your showing at the recent polls took everyone by surprise, mostly pleasantly. A simple outfit with very simple but focused ideals was long overdue. How you would deliver on the electricity and water problems would make for an intellectual debate on another day. People sitting in the comforts of their cosy couches, especially the armchair critics suddenly took notice.

I think you owe it to this nation and its people. It is time to pay back.

In the wake of the quandary over who forms Government, here are a few observations/questions:

1.    If your agenda pivoted on an anti-Congress and anti-BJP promise, swaying this way or that is clear betrayal. You will be going against people’s mandate.
2.   By leaving a window of opportunity (the 18 points of contention, 10 days to consider etc), you’ve managed to create useless ambiguity.
3.    Do you really see a need to seek vox populi now to help you decide?
4.    On one occasion, you’d rightly pointed out that in Politics, nothing can be unconditional, then why this tentative stand?
5.    Besides, a sway this way would mean pro-corruption and that way would mean pro-communalism. Must I remind you that the country is fraught with communally opportunistic and opportunistically communal forces?
6.    So what if there are fresh elections, so what if it costs the exchequer and so what if you have to seek a fresh mandate? The costs and efforts thus incurred would be toward a good cause. Surely, it can’t get worse than the quantum of money we lost by way of scams.

I’d scarcely worry about fortunes in case of a fresh mandate. You were a big hit at a time when you were a ‘write-off’. A more convincing swing in your favour is the only likely outcome. Also, it is a very beautiful problem to have. Just when you wondered how you’d fulfill your promises, you are getting an extension up until the next general elections.

In my view, this is the time for you to sit back, retrospect and plan ahead. I hope you didn't think Delhi was your horizon. Real conquests lie within the remotest, hitherto untouched regions of our country. It is time to strategise and make public your next steps in governance. Do I need to remind you that you have far too many headaches to deal with, keeping in mind your manifesto?

Summarily, these should be your first few steps:

a.     Meet India Inc., the real engines of growth.
b.     Decentralize AAP, identify and field strong regional forces that carry your message forward
c.     Reinforce your presence on Social media, keep the country posted
d.    Get to know the Country, travel aggressively. India still lives in its villages!
e.     The party’s political inexperience was in full public view with the recent stir that Mr. Bhushan caused. This could also be the time for you to brainstorm on party ideals, bring about a consistency in tone and opinions.
f.      The country is facing grave crises – Sexual offences, gender discrimination, partition of states etc. What are your thoughts on these and various others?

Do give it a thought. Trust me you may not even have begun. There is a long way to go, miles to walk…

In the interim, I remain your harshest critic!

Chennai Express: A man-made catastrophe

Chennai Express: The future of Indian Cinema – crass, tasteless, humiliating and definitely worrying. My polite two bits to explain why…

Dear God,

Let’s start with some good points and the myriad not-so, this fare presented…

Like: Popcorn, Trailers, Interval, exchanging texts, Kumbakonam, Sathyaraj (despite the modicum role), gyrations by Priyamani and Deepika P.

Dislike: Everything else interspersed between the above.

SRK: After Chak de, my respect for him has only dwindled. Chennai Express brought it to a head. Thankfully, this movie establishes his age upfront but his histrionics still make you want to believe he is the tried and tested Rahul from yesteryears. In almost every frame (again!!!!), he turns out to be a damp squib.

Sathyaraj: The delightful but highly underrated Sathyaraj is wasted. What was he thinking when he signed up for this non-existent story!?!

Deepika P: Probably the only part of the movie that looked good!!!! Deepika’s Tamil was hardly convincing. If you thought all Tamilians’ve gotten their masculine and feminine genders confused, you are wrong!

The DDLJ, Antakshiri sequences couldn’t conjure up a smile. Lame lines intended to be funny like SRK’s sheepish, “Woh meri seat hai, my seatum!” or “Lekin, main!” when asked to go to Rameshwaram. “Main” what?

“Don’t underestimate the power of a common man” doesn’t found funny by any means. I guess the maker of this movie understood it and sooner than later replaced it with an even ridiculous “Don’t underestimate the common of a power man” Really!

Overall, the movie was humiliating, especially since the intended and unintended humour was targeted at Tamilians. Tamilians do not speak Hindi the way the movie depicts. Why, most Tamilians do not even speak the national language with all the political shenanigans at play.

What’s up with Chenaai?!?! Or Thaangabali?!?!?

Plot: why bother! Besides if you left your brains at home, does it matter?

That I contributed to the 100 Cr., the movie earned in its opening week irks me the most.

To friends, fair-weather and genuine well wishers, who urged me to leave my brains home before the fare, I pity you! Haven’t we seen madder and yet thoroughly enjoyable movies like Andaaz Apna Apna or Dhamaal?

To some others who provided their highly insightful, “after hours of hard work, I want to relax and watch a light movie”, you’ve gotten it wrong. You endure slime throughout the day and then close it with more slime doled out by a mindless crew. Only in the former, you get paid!

So how does one express ire towards CE and its ilk? – Boycott them or watch the pirated version.                            

                                   
                                                Issued in Public Interest