Personal

My friend’s friend recently started his own social networking site, careeb. He built that, single handedly, from scratch. I had few suggestions for him based on my experience with social networking sites-

1. What’s the aim of this SN (Social Networking site)? There is no dearth of SNs so if something which stands apart from the crowd has to be created. Facebook, was previously meant especially for .edu email holders, gave the visitors an unique platform to interact with like-minded people. An SN meant exclusively for a particular age group or gender group or ethical group or social group would be more successful than a generic one.

 2. If a SN has to be successful then it has to offer practical advantages like jobs etc. Most people join because they want to make more friends–> social advantage. So if a SN has to be successful then it had to offer an unique service to its visitors. The days of orkut style SNs are over. And most of the Indian SNs (bigadda,yaari etc) exposing everyone on a social platform, I have no idea if any Indian Site focuses on professional platform. India has a huge pool of professional who would love a SN site, which will not just be a forum but will also have a personal touch.

3. Myspace was such a huge sensation because they were the first to harness this human tendency to interact and convert that to an online meeting place. Even though people would want to diversify based on their biasness or prejudices, there can’t be another Myspace or Facebook or Orkut!

Its much easier said than done but if you want success then something unique has to be created. I will lay stress on 2 things

• Innovation with service oriented approach
• Catering to a specific group and then diversify

With regard to India, I think the best bet is to create a network of only professionals so as to ease out the professional knowledge sharing. None of the present social networking sites are good places to talk about professional topics, they are more political in nature and thus cater to only extremes. A professional network could work wonders for professionals seeking knowledge and new job opportunities.

What do you think?

I have heard a lot about the Ramdaan in the areas in the vicinity of Jama Masjid in Delhi and I have finally decided to get a feel of it by visiting that place for the weekend. I hope when I return I have a photo story to tell. If you stay in Delhi and really want to see the devil behind Serendipity then you call 9878080992

I will be in Delhi on Friday and Saturday (may be even Sunday)

This is an email I got from my friend, Mohit. His one line really sums up the deplorable state of affairs in Gurgaon

For your information I am buying Alto next week. It may appear to be an extravagant expenditure to you but in reality it has become a need. You are a handicapped person if you don’t have personal conveyance in Gurgaon and buying two wheeler increases the risk of actually becoming handicapped!! I hope you are getting what I am saying.

The concrete jungle looks cozy only from the comfort of multi-storey buildings, its a living hell from outside. I hope the government shows some prudence by having better control over the development. I have heard that the plans to extend metro has been cancelled for unknown reasons (I have no news link to prove this btw..kind of an insider view). The picture below, from the Tribune, is of IFFCO chowk. Just imagine the situation before the flyover was built!

If you really want to imagine the moments before death, then I suggest take a ride of the rickshaw on the highway. I have had the pleasure on several occasions and I hope I get the comfort of Alto the next time I visit Gurgaon

Part 1 

Humiliated by my sudden outburst, I took out my mobile to check emails. Well it was thousands of feet above ground level and only satellite phones work at that level. But I had to show off so I thought of saving the mails as draft. I must confess that I am still not comfortable with either the hand writing recognition or the Qwetry keyboard of SE P1i. I used to type much faster with the basic keyboard of my previous Motorola Razr. But I had to show that I am a professional who really needs to respond emails on the go. BTW I was checking Gmail regarding offers from Nigeria worth 5 million USD. There was another Jack who was claiming to cure my baldness. Jade lancozs had information regarding my impotency. Someone was really concerned about my home loans. Paul was assuring me that small is not the end of the game, there are medical cures. Agnes Ali had my order of V**** ready. And I replied to each one of those mails.

I was losing time in all these show offs. I had to think like a hero because I today was a hero.

Me: So you are going for a personal visit?

Father: Yes. We are going to our daughter’s sasural. So you work there?

Me: No I work in Gurgaon as a consultant. I am going on a business trip…have to meet my clients there. I am still single.

Phew! What made me say that?

Father: Hmm. Excuse me.

He left for the rest room.

Now me and ‘to be’ sasu ma.

Mother: Beti, come here(she calls the air hostess).

She then buys few chips packet and a bottle of water from the Qatar Airways trolley.

I was still confused on my next move. Shall I tell them everything frankly..ik hi ghatke me kahani khatam ? Father returns back to his seat. He then talks with his wife about the eatables she bought. My imagination then took me to my married life. I might be in the father’s position one day and some idiot wanna be hero would be trying to woo me. The mere thought of this made me realise that I should just shup-up and not ruin any chances of acceptance later. I decided to take the very next flight back home. Heroism was gone. And I was back to what I am. I am such a fickle!

The next hour passed without any exchange of words. I was wondering if my ineptness means I am going to lose her. But then what can I do? I suck when it comes to small talk and I was not putting a good impression either.

The flight landed in few minutes with many bumps and jerks, the same that is felt in a road in Bihar. We got down and boarded the bus to the terminal. Father was eager to convey this successful landing to his daughter in Delhi. But there was some problem with the mobile signal. My Airtel had full signal so I decided to offer my mobile. He finally accepted after my continuous insistence. He punched in the numbers and pressed the call button. The screen showed

“Calling

Miss Prospective”

busted! Ho gaye balle balle.

Father: (Bewildered). How is this possible? How do you know her? and Who are you?

I was looking for a place to run but couldn’t find any because we were on a bus going towards the terminal. I was desperately trying to think of all the female friends of Miss Prospective.

Me: Oh, is it? Actually this mobile belongs to my sister, she might be knowing your daughter.

Father: Do you think I am a fool? How long have you been calling her?

He started to raise his voice. Suddenly I felt as if I was about to be beaten for the first time in my life. I cannot even talk to the police because they won’t understand my language. Am I in for a big treat here? And suddenly the bus stopped. By then father had already thrown in lot of curses and the other were gossiping about the possible state of affairs between us. My eyes fell on mother-in-law (I better forget the in-law part now). I really don’t know how to describe those looks but they were deadly, that’s all. I snatched my mobile and ran towards the luggage area. I had no luggage and that was the only piece of luck I had that day. I didn’t even dare to look back and ran like a thief. I went somewhere in the taxi stand and hid myself. Finally after 20 minutes of hiding myself in that dingy place, I came out with a sense of respite. That 20 minutes of jail were the worst moment of my life so far. They were spent in ambivalence of emotions, should I feel guilty or feel like a loser? I couldn’t even throw my mobile in desperation because it was worth half my month’s salary!

I took the next flight back . I am never going to talk about it again. Let this be buried deep in my and your memories.