Wednesday, January 28, 2009

"Where's your book ?" they say....

Often i have been asked this.... when are you going to write a book .... on the "twisted tales" of tnt ! Of course, i have a standard answer. Most author profiles describe the authors living in a house tucked away in the hills.... or beach houses living a tranquil life writing a few hours a day...

Sigh ! Till i have a house in the hills and a Ramu Kaka to look after my chai needs.... well, my book can wait. But my stories can't ! We have many stories here @ tnt and most of them worth re-telling. Almost prompting me to steal the line from another famous store - "We are not a store, we are a story!"

Since tnt staff is scatterred all over and each one of them know a few stories of their time - i ask you all to help ! please write the stories here - in this blog ... so we can start documenting them. I think i know many, but i also realise that i do not know many ! which i'm discovering !

To start with, i started putting a sequence to - who worked when, what shift @ the store, and realised that i was starting to get dates/ years/ months wrong ! So, please help !

We started with Tejal and Mridula, both part-time, plus Dhiraj and Sanjay and Nirmala. Tejal and Mridula started in Mar 2002, Dhiraj (weekends), Sanjay (thrice a week). Nirmala started in May 2002. Through that year we had Rina, Nandana, Shefali and Shradha - correct ? Shradha - u and tejal need to confirm this.

2003 saw Ashok, Nisha, Samar, Jharna, Saroj and Sameer. Nisha was our first full time employee - joined us in Apr 2003 ? Saroj with Samar and then with Sameer worked on for a year till June 2004 ?

2004 saw Shefali (2nd stint), Rekha, Aarti and Geetanjali.

then i'm little lost. Tia - July 2005 to Mar 2007 ? Now fit the others - Alisha, Akash, Shrikant, Rahul, Sharmista ? the 2 physics boys - friends of shrikant - the 2 Ashishs ?

Now i'm truly lost - Samar, tia, weed, anushree- please put a sequence to this !

Wednesday, January 21, 2009

Mail sent today to yahoogroups.

Message sent to twistntales@yahoogroups.com on 21st Jan, 2009

Hi,

Welcome to another round of some really wonderful books and do stock up for the long weekend ahead. Lots of new releases happening again, and we let you know of them as soon as it happens. The latest from Grisham releasing early next week …. And many many more!

“Outliers – The story of success” by Malcolm Gladwell @ Rs. 399/- (pgs 309)

A new offering by best-selling author of “The Tipping Point” and “Blink”, Malcolm Gladwell takes us on a behind the scenes tour of success, breaking it down through statistical analyses. Environment, where one comes from, affords advantages and disadvantages that determine a flourishing future. Through chapters that uses a wide range of examples such as exceptional hockey players, virtuoso musicians, computer programming whizzes, top corporate lawyers and many more, Gladwell makes it plain that its culture, not genius that maketh a successful man.

“Chasing the rabbit – How market leaders outdistance the competition and how great companies can catch up and win” by Steven J. Spear @ Rs 695/- (404 pgs)

High velocity organizations, always leading the race, apply their magic in the fields of cost, speed, service and innovation. “Chasing the rabbit” details self improvement techniques aimed at weeding out problems and inconsistencies, attacking to solve those problems, learning from the solving process and constantly aiming at innovation. Not merely a book on business theory, aimed at organizations, it is a sound source of practical advice for anyone looking to better themselves.

“Panic” edited by Michael Lewis @ Rs. 250/-

With the help of articles, interviews, commentaries and insights from financial gurus such as Jeffery Sachs, Noble prize winning economist Paul Krugman, Joseph Stiglitz and many of his own writings, trader Lewis of Liar’s Poker fame portrays the bipolar nature of the world’s markets. The frenzied, manic phase before a market disaster and the deep depression after, chronicled with opinions from the horses’ mouths.

“The Accidental Theorist and other despatches from the dismal science” by Paul Krugman @ Rs 500/- (pgs 204)

A collection of essays, devoid of economic jargon, math and graphs, and presented in comprehensive English, to appear as non-threatening as possible to the reader. It is aimed at eliminating fallacious depictions of economics as it has often been portrayed. Noble prize winner Krugman wishes to help the layman grasp the beauty and complexity behind economics and to put to rest the propagated erroneous and simplistic beliefs that pervade in popular culture’s portrayal of economics.

“Blood and rage – A cultural history of terrorism” by Michael Burleigh @ Rs 495/- (545 pgs)
A thoroughly complete examination of terrorism, tracing the phenomenon from it’s infancy to its current stage, helping one grasp the answers to the questions “How?”, “When?”, “Why?” Terrorism had its beginnings in the Irish Republican Brotherhood who created for their ends a cult of Fenians, the first terrorists. With support, asylum and funding from benign foreign hosts, a feature it still retains today, terrorism was inaugurated and carried forward by red Russian Nihilists. Burleigh follows the conflict between Jews and Arabs in Palestine, before and after its partition into Israel and the current jihadi dominated nature of terrorism. Entering the terrorist psyche, Burleigh goes through convoluted modern history with a fine tooth comb, weeding out the events and repercussions that fuelled terrorism, gave it character and led to its growth and spread.

“India with Sanjeev Bhaskar” @ Rs. 295/- (pgs 277)

In this volume Bhaskar, one of the chief propagators of British Asian humour in the UK, comes to terms with an India that has consistently baffled him. Travelling through Bombay, Pune, Calcutta, Rishikesh, pens his individualistically poignant yet hilarious observations on India. A rich heritage, but a mostly poor poverty stricken population, mixing Bollywood masala and traditional fervor with equal zest. A recently partitioned, post Independence India, hurtling into a software boom but where cows still walk (most of) the streets. Here is India from the point of view of a Punjabi NRI, born and brought up in working class London, by a family that fondly remembered a pre- partitioned India, where fish and chips reigned over his heart as opposed to the okra, mangoes and spicy curries of his motherland.

“Memories Gold- Writings on Calcutta” @ Rs. 699/- (pgs 538)

“Memories Gold” is a lovely compilation of poetry, prose, essays and stories that capture the thriving complexities of a pulsating, vibrant city. Each piece in this collection portrays a special facet of the multi-dimensional metropolis humming with so much culture, passion so many people and so much rich history. Gurudeb Rabindranath Tagore’s childhood smritis intermingle with Jug Suriya, Amitav Ghosh, Moti Nandi football, Marxists and Durga Poojo. A gold tome the size of two ingots and filled with treasures on that civilization called Calcutta.

“The Business traveller’s guide to the World” @ Rs. 399/- (527 pgs)

A concise checklist of things to do, items and documents you need while travelling to any corner of the globe. The inner cover of the book is a map of the world that indicates what’s to follow. Whether you’re in a quandary regarding the languages spoken in Cambodia or whether you’re wondering if you need a yellow fever vaccination certificate to visit Paraguay this is the book to consult! Histories, geography, sex ratio, GDP, lists of time zones, Internet codes and ISD codes, currencies, capitals (and anything else that’s even remotely relevant to business travel) all packed into one rather wonderful 500 paged volume (that will fit into any carry all or pocketbook!)

Indian Writing

“Slumdog millionaire” by Vikas Swarup @ Rs 270/- (382 pgs)

An elaborately descriptive book that recalls the writing manner of Arvind Adiga in his “White Tiger”, Slumdog Millionaire is narrated by a Dharavi dwelling waiter who has ostensibly hit the jackpot by winning a reality quiz show. Life in Dharavi is always bizarre but his miraculous win ejects the eponymous Ram Mohammad Thomas into an unprecedented realm of the uncanny. Recounting in ascending order, how he knew the answer to each of the twelve questions we infiltrate the heart of Mumbai and bear witness to a one time tiffinboy’s foray into numerous professions and his brushes with Bollywood glitz, brothels, orphanages and finally the police as he is jailed on suspicion of cheating the show.

“Escape” by Manjula Padmanbhan @ Rs 295/- (419 pgs)

In a futuristic era where women have been all but wiped out, one young girl feels the stirrings of adulthood within herself. Initially considered frozen in childhood, she is now seen as dangerously vulnerable in the General controlled world and turns fugitive with her Youngest uncle. On this premise does Onassis award winner Padmanbhan base her richly textured, philosophy-laced metaphorical examination of the coming of age of a young girl. Beautifully written and intensely gripping with lovely manipulation of the language “Escape” is an out of the ordinary read.

“Indian memsahib” by Suchita Malik @ Rs 195/- (195 pgs)

First offering by Dr Suchita Mehta, “Indian memsahib” opens a window into the world of Indian bureaucracy seen through the inexperienced and naïve eyes of a bureaucrat’s wife. Suchita Malik captures the innocence of a wife so obviously yoked to her husband’s livelihood yet longing to make something of herself, with simple language and everyday incidents that give us both an insight into the complex realm of babudom as well the mind of an introspective woman.

“Indian by choice” by Amit Dasgupta @ Rs 395/- (93 pgs)

Endearing illustrations and a story that will strike a chord with many, this is the story of Mandy coming to terms with his identity as an essentially Indian Mandeep, and Indian by choice. Taking the graphic novel approach to the ABCD (American Born Confused Desi) syndrome that hits many of our NRI cousins “Indian by choice” combines story and satire in a fun way. A rapid read with a moral at the end, it retains a gentle irony and a sense of fun all the while!

“Daughters of Shame” by Jasvinder Sanghere @ Rs 295/- (304 pgs)

“Death before dishonor” being the family motto of most Asian families, even in Britain, they fail to acknowledge that many of their daughters would rather choose death than be married of to strangers and give up the right to choose their suitors. Exposing the torturous domestic hardships experienced by numerous Asian women across Britain, Jasvinder Sanghere pens their silent and hitherto secret sufferings hoping to create a wave of change in their deplorable conditions. Forced into a marriage, she escaped and started a life of her own but not before being disowned by her own mother for wanting to be free. Each of these stories will bring a greater understanding of the value of freedom and the value of empowering our womenfolk.

Nature

“Rumbling Island – true stories from the forests of India” by Zai Whitaker @ Rs. 175/- (pgs 111)

Every writer muses, observes, and has beliefs and morals. What sets the contributions in this assortment apart is that they are all the musings, observations, beliefs and morals of fervent naturalists. Mention must be made about the striking cover art depicting a variety of gorgeous fauna. Zai Whitaker (author of “The Boastful Centipede”) compiled and contributed to this collection, which is as diverse and rich as the Indian wildlife it portrays. From a conservationist wanting to discover the social habits of tigers to another following the survival games played by otters, langurs and tiger cubs this book covers everything from reptiles, amphibians big and small birds, mammals and of course the ever present homo sapiens!

“Wild City – Nature wonders next door” – by Ranjit Lal @ Rs. 275/-(pgs 282)

Wild City penetrates the steel girders of our concrete jungle towns to take a closer look at the urban wild life. We city dwellers too share out space with much undomesticated animal life. From the raptors soaring predatorily overhead to pigeons nesting in our AC ducts to survival tactics of cunning urban monkeys and insects galore, Ranjit Lal profiles each and portrays them as spirited individuals, perhaps as human as you or I.

Young Adults:

“Rigmarole and Other Plays” by Sai Paranjpye @ Rs.199/- (pgs 172)Padma Bhushan awardee, director and writer Sai Paranjpye comes out with a collection of three idiosyncratic and delightful plays each with underlying nuances. The Emperor of the United Kingdom of Feathered Friends decrees a poetry competition but to what end? A bug in the Royal throne? Impossible! Suitable for ages 10+ to read, enjoy and perform !

“The Cosmic Detective – exploring the mysteries of our universe” by Dr Mani Bhaumik @ Rs. 199/-(pgs 92)

Dr Mani Bhaumik enlists the sleuthing skills of his young readers to find solutions to cosmic mysteries. How is it that the area around a black hole is very bright even though not even light can escape its gravitational pull? How many mythological characters populate our skies and why do they reside there? Using gorgeous photos and simple descriptions Dr Bhaumik illuminates the often abstract aspects of space and its wondrous wonders.

New books:

“The Untold Charminar – Writings on Hyderabad” edited by Syeda Imam @ Rs 399/-
“America America” by Ethan Canin @Rs. 875/-
“Breaking Dawn” by Stephanie Meyer @Rs. 550/-
“China : A history” by John Keay @ Rs. 395/-
“The Silver Donkey” by Sonya Hartnett @ Rs. 195/-
“Tandoor Cinders” by Vilas Sarang @ Rs. 199/-
“The Woman who thought she was a planet and other stories” by Vandana Singh @ Rs. 275/-
“Twilight” by Azhar Abidi @ Rs. 399/-
“Me and Kaminski” by Daniel Kehlmann and translated by Carol Brown Janeway @ Rs 425/-
“The Canon- the beautiful basics of science” by Natalie Angier @ Rs 399/-
“The Charlemange pursuit” by Steve Berry @ Rs 295/-
“The marriage bureau of rich people” by Farahad Zama @ 295/-
“The Gaudi Key–Unlock the secret of the century” by Esteban Martin &Andreu Carranza @ Rs 195/-
“Say it like Obama – The power of speaking with a purpose and vision” by Shel Leanne @ Rs 375/-
“Girl ology – A girl’s guide to stuff that matters” by Melisa Holmes & Trish Hutchison @ 295/-
“The 24X7 Marriage – smart strategies for good beginnings” by Vijay Nagaswami @ Rs. 250/-
“(Un)settled: Notes from a shifting life” by Kamini Karlekar @ Rs. 295/-
“Private Eye Anonymous – A graphic novel” by Tejas Modak @ Rs. 250/-
“The Wind from the Hills” by Sethu (trs. Prema Jayakumar) @ Rs. 250/-
“The New Paradigm for Financial Markets – the credit crisis of 2008 and what it means” by George Soros @ Rs. 695/-
“Countries of the Body” by Tishani Doshi @ Rs. 150/-
“My family’s favourites” by Marie Noelle (Chotti) D’Souza @ Rs. 600/-
“I am a Special girl” by Amitava Banerjee @ Rs. 195/-
“Divine Justice” by David Baldacci @ Rs. 460/-
“A Mathematical mosaic – patterns and problem solving” by Ravi Vakil @ Rs. 250/-
“Woodwinds of change – The authorized biography of Hariprasad Chaurasia” by Surjit Singh @ Rs. 600/-
“Superstar Babes” by Narinder Dhami @ Rs. 150/-
Bhangra Babes” by Narinder Dhami @ Rs. 150/-
“The return of Depression Economics and the crisis of 2008” by Paul Krugman @ Rs. 399/-
“The Book of Moinuddin Chishti” by Mehru Jaffer @ Rs. 250/-
“The Great Crash 1929” by John Kenneth Galbraith @ Rs. 399/-

That’s a long list of books that have already arrived in the last couple of days …. Do rush in and pick your favourites. See you at the Store,

From the team at,
twistntales

Congratulations !


Aakash - our "yin"ful guy and Sneha have tied the knot ! and are happy to be a weekend couple :-)) Congratulations Aakash and Sneha, as you set up home over many weekends .... in the meantime, home is always @ tnt !




Monday, January 19, 2009

A few online petitions that seem like just causes - forwarded by friends

Petition 2 :
http://www.PetitionOnline.com/sue4000/petition.html

Please open the above and sign petition against mining in Goa while also adding a strong comment. Please also pass this around to your friends in Goa and elsewhere. It would be nice if we could get about 4000 signatures. Maybe that will make the Chief Minister and the goons in the mining industry sit up and take note! To know more about just what mining is doing in Goa



please also visit http://mandgoa.blogspot.com/ You could also visit http://www.savegoa.com/ You may also like watching the film on mining in Goa made late last year by Kurush Canteenwalla at http://infochangeindia.org/Infochange-documentary.html



Thanks and kind regards, Hartman

Thankyou Saira !

Dear Janaki

Wish you and the family and all at Twist n Tales a very happy New Year. Thank you for a lovely afternoon at Sassoon. The kids enjoyed the program as usual and so did we. Please convey a special thank you to Santa and to Sonali, Geetanjali and Riaz for the story-telling. And Santa's little reindeer for the carol singing. To Kimi for her song and the CD player, blackboard and to all who helped in yet another memorable event.

With love,
Nalini and Saira

A few online petitions that seem like just causes forwarded by friends

Petition 1

Some days ago NCP inducted a person with a criminal record into its party as someone who was considered reformed because of a good track record for the past one year. A reaction from the public forced them to withdraw his name. Read the front page article in the DNA dated Jan 14...
FACED BY MEDIA, PUBLIC CRITICISM, BODKE QUITS NCP.

WE MUST SPEAK UP!!!

Friends

Here's a sharp response to the Tata/Airtel/Reliance Telecom Chairmen's endorsement of Narendra Modi as a future PM of India. I would urge you to read and endorse the statement. While we may have objections to some aspects of the letter, the significant part is it may just work to show India Inc that they cannot take everyone's complicity for granted.

The kernel of this protest is: All those who sign this petition will switch off their Tata Indicomm, Airtel and Reliance cellular phone and broadband connections from midnight (00:00 hours) of January 30th 2009 for 24 hours to observe Gandhiji's assassination anniversary as Cellular Silence Day. This will show up as a gap in billings in the accounts of the brand owners.

A powerful gesture, spread it to all you know!


Dear Friend

The collective amnesia of the captains of Indian industry, Messrs.Tata, Mittal and Ambani embracing Narendra Modi and endorsing his candidature as future PM of India, disturbed me immensely.

This petition is my humble effort to engage the conscience of corporate India and make it known to them that the Indian citizen is not to be trifled with.Just as we can vote for or against the poitician, we can pinch the corporate bottom-line in order to engage their attention to mend their ways.

It is not an easy task for us to keep our cell phones and Blackberries switched off for an entire day on January 30th,- the 61st anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi's assassination.

However, it ought to be sufficient to get the message across to corporate India that we will not tolerate the endorsement of fascists as future Prime Ministers.

May I request you visit the link below to sign and thereafter circulate the petition below, if you feel as strongly about this matter



The petition title is: Cellular Silence Day_30th January 2009.

The petition URL is:
http://www.PetitionOnline.com/30JAN09/petition.html

The petition is directed to: India Inc.

The start date is: ..January 15th, 2009
The end date is: ..January 30th, 2009

The petition statement says:


Dear Messrs, Ratan Tata, Sunil Mittal and Anil Ambani

I am one of a billion Indian citizens.

I am somewhere in the middle of that pyramid that you wish to give voice - from bottom to top - through wealth creation.

I am proud of the brands you represent that have made India proud.

I am one of the burgeoning Indian middle-class that share your aspirations of mutating India from indolent elephant to thundering tiger.

It ends there...

I have hitherto been accused of being indifferent and apathetic, simply because I am overawed and felt overwhelmed in a system replete with Goliaths.

But when I saw you embrace the fascist mastermind of state sponsored genocide as a future Prime Minister and endorse the Modi-fication of India, it was disappointingly apparent that the brands that aspire
to make India rich shall continue to languish in ethical poverty.

While I am filled with revulsion at your endorsement of Narendra Modi, I must respect your right to do so as a fellow citizen. In writing this petition I am a mere David amongst the mightiest corporate Goliaths but I feel empowered to address your collective amnesia - through recollection of the Gujarat pogrom of 2002 by the true Goliath among Gujaratis in particular and Indians in general -

Mohandas Gandhi.

All those who sign this petition will switch off their Tata Indicomm, Airtel and Reliance cellular phone and broadband connections from midnight on January 30th 2009.

It is eminently possible that I might be the one voice in a billion who will observe the 61st death anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi on as Cellular Silence Day.

Then again, there might be close to a billion who could join me on
January 30th, 2009 expressing their solidarity and silently insisting that the captains of India Inc adopt an ethical, compassionate path to wealth creation rather than the single-minded pursuit of the bottom-line.

We shall know that by the end of 30th January, 2009.

Saturday, January 3, 2009

For Shibani


...and when she landed, she was out of breath, and everything around her was different. Strange, bittersweet and filled with joy so sharp it was almost frightening.
Dear Shibani,
Some of us tnt-ians are fiercely possesive of our bathrooms and for fear of having to share them, decide never to get married. We are so glad you found The Man who makes even this fear seem trifling.
Sending you all our love and the warmest of wishes...

Xmas @ Sassoon