Neti Panchatantra

"Fifty Sixty years ago, convincing parents to educate their kids was a challenge.They didn't know what education was. Even now it is difficult to convince them, they still don't know what it is! But they put in all their money into it. What will a parent not do for his kid's future? This  is why the coaching mills are surviving". dialogue by a characer-Dr Anjaneya Prasad.

Princes were educated by Vishnu Sharma, through Panchatantra.He tells them stories and talks about the economy at that time. Can we get someone like that, for this age? But how can we explain this complicated economy and that "career is something beyond a pay-cheque"? We explore these questions. Kids who can't do high school algebra, are made to clear the JEE. JEE is just a goal shaping a great journey.

It's a story of love, love between trust and confidence and love between idealism and benevolence. Its a war between leadership and dictatorship and its a war between positivism and negative attitude. A dictator is born out of negative thoughts and leadership emerges from positive thoughts.

The Characters

Confidence: Kicku is the male protagonist, with infectious enthusiasm and passion. His attitude and ability can only be compared to that of Lord Hanuman who brought the whole mountain, as he didnt know where Sanjeevani was. He believes that success is more of a journey than a destination. He realized that his real kick is in finding his kick, which is never stable. He loves his heart and so he does what he loves and also learns to love what he does.

Trust: The female protagonist is a medico. She had a self-centered life until a compulsory medical camp had completely transformed her. She tries to understand equality and tries to get  insights into economic equality. She resorts to Adam Smith for answers. Apart from this, she is known for her "namakkam theory".She tells people why trust is important and I think this dialogue sums that up.

"When miracles happen, we won't know. If we could, we wouldn't call that a miracle. We must have faith in architects of those miracles. Trust them and be a creator".

Benevolence: Devaki is a techie and has taken a year off to understand her goals. She is into social service. A person pure at heart can't be touched by anybody.  She believes people waste money, on what they don't need. This could be used to feed the needy and that's what she does, it does make a funny watch. The way she gets people to donate money/food, is entertaining part of this character. Inspired by a character in Sekhar Kammula's Dollardreams.

Perfectionism: Shamil wants everything in life to work ideally. He is inspired by Sekhar Kammula's Leader and a big fan of Rana Daggubati. He is a good teacher and is interested in exploring teaching techniques. Its not possible for everything to be ideal, but this never ending never attainable quest leads to human excellence, if led by a guru's wisdom.

Dr Vishnu Sharma: PhD from Stanford and permanent faculty at IAS Princeton. He has left all of that, in search of spirituality. He takes immense interest in philosophy too. He goes around giving talks, to share this excitement of rediscovering himself. He guides Shamil through this questions of ethics and whats right and whats not.

Dr Anjaneya Prasad: Double PhD in Theoretical Physics and Telugu. He had quit a research career to take up journalism. He had fought against corruption and politics. A symbol of courage, wisdom and his careers makes you feel that money is just a piece of paper. He is the human form of "Simhatatvam" he has everything in him, including the timing. However he is no longer following politics and has been concentrating on a bigger evil, the education business. He is Suryabhai's guru.

Suryabhai: A dictator who feels that its a power which can bring prosperity to this world. He feels freedom comes at the cost of public welfare. He is into coaching business and believes in "student export, money import". He believes in change through revolutions alone and is not patient enough to even consider evolution. Every revolutionary had one man cautioning him and here we have Dr Prasad guiding him. He is pro-capitalism and strongly against socialist thoughts. He says if a Leader could really emerge in a democracy, we wouldn't even need that leader.

Media Murthy: An alumni of IIT and IIM and a marketing genius. He consults for business and mostly coaching centers. He is famous for the rare ads he designs,he is mostly into campaign designing.

Neti Panchatantra is journey involving these guys, united by a common goal-the struggle for existence.


PS:

Trust makes nations developed and it is not that there is confidence in developed countries. Irrespective of who came first, a hen comes out of an egg.

Benevolence and Idealism are "never ending never attainable" quests, but it is this search of our soul within, which leads to human excellence.

Leadership: Hear your Soul

Why does Leadership crash? Are Leaders really self-less? Why do Leaders emerge from revolutions? Such questions immersed me into a journey of great thoughts.

A Leader has a vision, driven by not necessarily money or fame. He motivates like minded people into what would intially be just his cause. People's time,money and effort go in. They follow him,expecting a fruit. Self-interest drives everyone. A Leader must know that and tame his self interest, but not too much to kill his originality.

The apparent need to consolidate his power and to keep his words, is the root cause of misdirected Leadership. False sense of reputation/image is dangerous. It takes experience and character, to rise beyond ego and pride.

Nobody is 'God' and it's okay to have flaws exposed. Facing criticism is quite essential. Iron has to be horribly smelted,to put to use. Best bet is to keep things funny. "If you wanna say something on my back, come to me I will tell you more". This realization kills ego and hence enlightens the soul within.

A Leader must know-"Vision not goals". Leader is one who evolves with time. Goals will either change or just remain goals. Vision guides against time. Goals just shape the journey. Success is more of a journey than a goal. Deep vision helps finding life in the journey and an answer within the question.

The Gita says, "be oblivious of victory and defeat". Vision is above everything and not mere exam grades or money. Work with hunger, but don't hope for result. Expectation is the root cause for resentment. Work and wait for a surprise, deserve but don't desire. Love your heart, keep giving it surprises.Disappoint the disappointment with your efforts.

"A Leader must be self-less"! Not a saint, devoid of wealth and materialistic needs. Selfless means learning to put people ahead of oneself, not to lose yourself. It also means taming of necessary evils like ego and pride within. It's the fire which keeps a train moving,but constrain it to the engine.

Purity is just one side of the Leadership story. Understanding the team is the other. That's impossible by bypassing talking. A Leader must interact and maintain transparency in the troop. People have given in everything, to get something. It is the Leader who must ensure justice to their efforts.

Mistakes happen and optimality is usually not a reality. The Leader must resolve them. This responsibility differentiates a  Leader from a follower. Problem solving is the joy of life. Would the world be so beautiful without a struggle for existence? The Leader absorbs the struggle and shows the beauty. It is easy to get carried away! Remember, Leader's job is not to be nice to people, it is to make them better.

I call this "Simhatatvam". Can you hear it? Discover yourself and listen to your inner voice! If it is all going right, this heavenly sound is comparable to no godly creation but the roaring of a Simham. Heard that? It is this Simham within, which gives a deaf ear to criticism. It provides strength for the struggle. Simhatatvam gets you respect, but beware! The wicked wolf ego lives by its grace. You are either a master or a slave, so tame them.

Inspiring Leadership can make wonders happen. It unites the faculties in people and converts resources into utility. True Leadership is a great feeling. You lose yourself and then find oneself at the "pinnacle of glory". Thank god there are worldly troubles, to return back safely!

Krishnam Vande Jagadgurum Lyrics Meaning

First on net. Please do comment mistakes/refinements so that I could update them. It will need collaborative effort to understand this master-piece of Sirivennela Seetharamashastry garu.

Movie: Krishnam Vande Jagadgurum(2012)
Song: Krishnam Vande Jagadgurum
Lyricist: Sirivennela Seetharamashastry
Story, Screenplay & Direction: Krish Jagarlamudi
Production: Rajiv Reddy and Sai Babu Jagarlamudi
Cast: Rana Daggubati, Nayanatara, Kota Srinivas Rao, L.B.Sriram, Raghubabu, Murali Sharma
Dialogue: Sai Madhav Burra
Music: Mani Sharma

It might be easily mistaken to be an old epic describing a war,
but it is the truth of our lives and this is the essence of the Gita.

Matsya Avataram
Disaster could surpass the sea's tide limit,
and sink the world, which has forgotten the roots of Dharma.
So, he instruced Satyavratha,
and helped in protecting of the world,
A fish showed the naval direction,
and this is the evidence of time's progress being anchored.

Kurma Avataram
The great duty to be performed was not bearable,
frustration of not getting the desired had been swept.
They tried and impatience,helpless swept through
 the patient turtle defeated the defeat.
This is the secret of the Milky Way

Adhivaraha Avataram
Those insane who created shivers,carried the earth and tried to immerse it into the cosmic seas,
were pierced through his tusks
And he blessed the resolute,
The two-tusked warrior's divine sound, the aadhi-varaha(board) form.

Narasimha Avataram
Where?
Why did your Hari hide? of fear!
Ask him to come out
Can he face me and win? By strengthening?
Ask the land on which you are standing
Ask the life in your pulse
Ask the warmth of your blood
Ask the air in your breath
Ask the sky under your step
Join the man and the hari in you
And show that you are the narahari

Unmattha mathanga bangikathu kakavikathi
Hantru sankrathanee krudanee veedanee jagathi
Ahamu radhamai yethike avanikidhe asali nihathi
Aakatayula nihati anivaryamavu niyathi
Shitha hasthi hatha mastha kaarinaka savakaasiyo...
Kroorasi krosi hruthadaya damstula dosi masi cheya mahitha yagnam

This paragraph is about Hiranyakashyapa. His ego had surpassed limits and he began to question the existence of god.

This is the real death for those who ego becomes a chariot and searches the whole earth
Ignorant fools death can't be avoided, its decided.
This is the mahitha yagnam(mahitha means) to burn the cruel,mercy-less evils to ashes.

Vamana(Trivikrama) Avataram
The universe is Immeasurable,Unexpectable,Clear,Endless
A small form of vishwam is this human form
Our half knowledge mirages it to be a dwarf form
Trivikrama had conquered the three worlds with three steps

Whatever is happening is the lord's divine drama
Whatever is happening is the lord's divine drama

Bhargava(Parashurama) Avataram
Sins had grown as a tree, unbearable for the earth
And didn't let the dharmagyanis grow
The lord had become Parashurama..Bayadha-bheema
He remains as the idol of Dharma's existence
Bhargava is Kshatriya Brahmana(Shrotriya)

Sri Rama Avataram
Devoid of glory, devoid of magic,
In a believable manner, without any secrets,
he was born as a human and he lived as a human.
To remain as a jewel in history of the earth,
is possible, and to prove this the lord came down to the earth as Rama.

Sri Krishna Avataram
These many roles these many characters.
The gnana(knowledge)-darpanam(mirror) to introduce you to yourself,
is only krishnavataram, ever since the origin of this universe.

The Ashta Siddhis and the Viswaroopam in you
Animada,Mahimaga,Garimaga,Lakhimaga,Praptiga
Pragamyavartiga,Eesatvamuga,Vasistvamuga

• Aṇimā: reducing one's body even to the size of an atom
• Mahima: expanding one's body to an infinitely large size
• Garima: becoming infinitely heavy
• Laghima: becoming almost weightless
• Prāpti: having unrestricted access to all places
• Prākāmya: realizing whatever one desires
• Iṣṭva: possessing absolute lordship
• Vaśtva: the power to subjugate all

When you recognize these eight siddhis in you,
You will see viswaroopam in your very own roopam

Lose vision over others(stop bothering about others),
Bow down, join your hand and become the student,
you are your own guru, who will end your curiosity.

Vandhe krishnam jagadgurum
Vandhe krishnam jagadgurum
Krishnam vandhe jagadgurum
Krishnam vandhe jagadgurum
Vandhe krishnam jagadgurum
Vandhe krishnam jagadgurum
Krishnam vandhe jagadgurum
Krishnam vandhe jagadgurum
KRISHNAM VANDHE JAGADGURUM

I would post word by word meanings soon. Special thanks to Sharath Chandra for help with some tough words.

Entrepreneurship

I was trying to put some thoughts together.But they just didnt appear to fall into the right place, until I had read "The Mind of the Market" by Michael Shermer. There is a chapter on "Don't think evil", the difference between Google and Enron. It talks about the secret of Google success-"work atmosphere" and the reason for Enron's collapse "corruption and internal degradation due to points system".

A business survives strategizes on (i)a share of a huge market (ii) unique selling proposition. We always went after the second one. We believed that we are unique and are doing something to shatter the earth. Our biggest resource was the team, people who wanted to do something different. People driven by passion coming together towards the mission with a well defined vision. Sometimes the goals were a little too abstract and people were not quite content with the output.

Ideas emerge in two ways-revolution and evolution. I had always believed in revolutions. Works get finished smoothly and rather quickly in that mode. However, the aftermath of revolutions is quite nasty. People somehow got into it looking for something and if they don't get what they wanted, it goes horribly wrong. This is because revolutions are always absorbing and people hate that. Hardwork for nothing is definitely painful. Revolutions create great leaders when succesful, but they also defame the guy.


They say "team is beyond the people". We get carried away by this thought, we go in rather too deeply. I would also like to point out that "team emerges from the people". Contingencies shape outcomes in life and people influence the organization. Real success of an organization comes when several brains work on the task in sync, when you empower people. These thoughts made me stop following Indian test team, they day VVS Laxman had got insulted. That's how I value individuals now. Steve Jobs said "Innovation has nothing to do with how many R&D dollars you have. When Apple came up with the Mac, IBM was spending at least 100 times more on R&D. It's not about money. It's about the people you have, how you're led, and how much you get it."

I remember telling this to few of my friends. The reason we chose you in my team is that you have the skills. I don't buy the idea of rat-race and competition. If someone tells me that I can get a better person. I would tell him that you are our "aadmi" and hence better than the best. Every body is unique and the output is an emergent property and not by individual skills. We want a team of friends not a list of stars. Paper strength is just an illusion.

A Leader is one who reinvents himself from time to time. In these few weeks, I invested my time in studying "people" and "money". They are the pillars of any organization. People, movies,books,ideas reinforced the need to be "nice" to people.

I believe I always had the sincerity and it was only the attitude which created issues. I just wanted to convey my thoughts with you to regain your trust. I would like to be a leader and not a manager. I am interested in innovation and not in business. I am interested in something beyond money and power, in seeing my vision come true. My only aim in life is to follow my heart, learn on the way and do some "good" things along. The confidence and the attitude is what gave me all I have, but it also strains relationships and I believe talking will help amend that.

Dear Dosthulu

Read this, I said. Actually, an SMS said "wl cal u tonite". The call may have been vague too, if at all I did call. So I decided to put this here, something I wanted to tell to two kinds of people.Those who like me and those who hate me, basically those who care.

Some people say I am energetic, some call it over-enthu. What ever it may be, I got into a lot of things. Made lots of friends and some of them admire me, it feels good. I had caused pain to some. That's not nice, isn't it! To add salt to the wounds, the helplessness and the frantic attempts to restore their faith in me. But now I realize, nothing works better than talking, talking face to face.

Transparency and openness are more important than they appear to be. If there is something nice or bad about me, please do tell. You know, I can take insults!(if you don't agree, tell that too). If there is something nice..then too yaar (naaku pogadtalu chaala ishtamga :P). Tell me on the face dude, chalta hain! That's way way better than losing you. Mari antha ledu ani telusugani..edo chepesenu anthe..

If you are planning to say "emaindi bhaiyya" or "em kavali bey". Well this is how my opinion changed.

"Visiting cards, contact numbers never go waste, evadu avasaram epudu padtunde chepalem"
"Be nice, it feels good...Karmani eva Adhikare aste tho full sync animata" 

So stop doubting the intentions now, I can't explain any further. Altruistic feelings coming out you know!

You can't hate me, I know I am not that bad, or am I? I don't see anger in your words, I see caution. Am I am a good guy, not sure! But I know, I irritated you with my attitude. Neetho cheppali ani anipinchindi..Nuvvu great babai..antha ayina ardamcheskunav...(and that's why you cared to read this!). I did learn from your words, just that my internal ego in me didn't let me convey that. I realize it's time to suppress that. Nenu chupali anukunadi dhookudu, kani adi balupu kinda kanipinchi undachu lekapote balupe avachu....odileya mama

Simple, if something is wrong, do tell. It doesn't appear, but I do listen. Consensus and Instinct shape the outcome. Nenu kelakani vadu undadu ani telsuga. Boring kada, but I wanted to write this down for you. Comedy kya, then thats nice..pani ayipoyindiga....punch unte baundediemo... emaina thatinapudu cheptale

My real strength in life are the people and their faith in me. There are two truths from Economics I strongly believe in.

"There is nothing truer than the assertion that there is no free lunch"
"Nations with trust are developed nations and its not that trust emerges in developed nations".

This was for me in you... "Prapancham neelo unnadani cheppey daaka aa nijam telusu kova,Telistey prathee chota ninnu nuvve kalusukoni palakarinchukova..." It took a cost to learn, that manushule shashvatam.....My belief Jagadgurum.. My quest Jaganmaitri


Inka enti....Kummedam ok na ...:) Telusuga manam kicklo RaviTeja typu, ee sad stories tragedies rayatam mana valna kaadu babu...

PS: Language not important, emotion important.

Happy Birthday Krish Jagarlamudi

"I would trade all of my technology for an afternoon with Socrates"- Steve Jobs

I don't know what I could trade! I seem to owe a lot to this man. Tomorrow(10/11/12) is his 36th birthday. Happy Birthday Krish Jagarlamudi. 24 hours seem too less to celebrate your birthday, and so we fans shall begin the festivities a little earlier!



On Life
"Nenu Prapanchanni Choosanu..Paris..London..Ekkada inta daridram choodaledu;
Prapancham Kadu Pradeshalu Choosavu..
Car Windowslonunchi kadu..
baitiki vachchi choodu prapanchanni.."

I have seen the world. I have not seen this much poverty anywhere.
You have seen places, not the world.
Come out and see the world,  not through the car window.

Fate
"Adhrushtam addam thirigithe aratipandu thinna pannu iruguddhi"
When your fate is bad even a banana can break your teeth.

Caste
"Ee prapanchamlo rende castelu ra.. unnollu lenollu."
In this world, there are two castes, the rich and the poor.

Girl Child
"Aadapilla Batuku Kannillamayam boss. Anduke bhummeeda mudontulu neelle"
Girls' lives are full of tears, thats why three fourth's of earth is covered with water.

Poor People's Lives"Illu kattevadiki illu untundha? choppulu kutte vadiki choppulu untaya? maa brathukulu kuda anthe saaru"
Will a mason have a house? Will a cobbler have shoes? Our lives are also that sir

Money
"Thammudu.. manushulu nakili notlani thayaru chestharu..kani notlu nakili manushulani thayaruchesthayi.."
Brother people create fake notes...but currency also creates fake people"

Fools
"Aambothuki mundhu nadavakudadhu kommuddhi, gadidhaku venaka nadavakudadhu thannuddhi..nee lanti vedavalaku yeh vaipu nadavakudadhu."
Don't walk infront of a bull, it will attack. Don't walk behind a donkey, it will kick. Don't walk with a fool.



He taught me a great lesson in life. Sharwanand tells naxalites, "I am filthy rich and I couldn't see the world. I thought life was about me. So are you! You have guns and hence power and you can't see the world. Come out and see the world."

Pride is one of the most dangerous things, it makes you too self-obsessed. See the world and realize that Life is Beautiful! Thank you Krish :)

Branding yourself

Lots of enthusiastic ..what to say fellow entrepreneurs, volunteers, artists etc ask me a few doubts, which I think are related to marketing. Anybody aiming to showcase their creativity will find this useful. I am writing this article as another student, who had recently(3yrs) into events and branding.

There are many talented "artists" aspiring to showcase their skill to the world. However, most of them lack adequate skills to market their talent. Marketing is often confused with selling, it could be actually called the process which avoids the need to sell your product.

It is quite important to let others know about what you are working on. This could help you find collaborators. I had formed most of my team through facebook updates about the work we have been doing. People want to associate with like minded individuals.

Now, once you agree that you need to let the world know. You must be having long-term plans, principles and there is a way in which you visualize the offering. It is quite important to try to explain this to others, it helps in refining the description. You should develop good descriptions, diagrams and analogies. This can help people in connecting with your dream.

A picture is worth a million words. Try to upload relevant pictures and videos to describe your activities and goals. The choice of medium is quite crucial too. Facebook can help you in letting people know that you are into "something". Those interested in your activities, could be diverted to a website and those who observe you closely could follow your blog.

It takes time for the brand to develop. However, one must make steady progress. Someone had said that "not advertising" is like staring at a women in dark, without letting her know. If you were to convince someone into dealing with you, it is quite important to establish a good atmosphere before the negotiations. Branding and reaching out can help you in this regard.

I emphasize again that this is not supposed to be an expert opinion of any kind. I wrote this to share what I felt, had worked in my favor. I hope to keep updating this post with more thoughts I come across.

Film Production

A useful checklist(on set) to make sure that you had gathered enough footage to edit and make the movie. In short films, shortage of manpower makes us multi-task. It is not really essential to have fancy designations, but it is quite important to entrust responsibilities to the crew. Everyone can contribute, but there should be one ensuring quality control in each of the departments. If one is looking at a good quality production, apart from content(ofcourse "content is the king") these will be crucial.

1- Direction of Talent:
Making sure that the talent's body language is appropriate. One must be well-versed with the complete story, to be able to judge that. The scriptwriter should ensure that he does give the extra-bit of description to make the character sketches really really clear.

2-Action Cuts
On the screen, its a movie! There are cuts with respect to time and space, you need to glue the right ones together. Think about the scene before and after this one, to ensure scene to scene clarity. Are we moving across time,locations,people? Are we showing something new, if yes how do we establish it. He needs to make sure there are no issues on the editing table, due to lack of footage. Having good footage is one thing and having enough is another issue. This will also include choosing and appropriate camera movements and verifying them. You would like to give yourself freedom on the editing table, but not nightmares due to compatibility problems amongst the shots. Rule of Thumb: Don't cross the axis.

3-Frames Composition
A painter or a photographer understand this well. The color schemes, warmth, aesthetics, depth etc must be looked into, to give the right feel and mood. Editor, Art Director, Director of Photography, Light-boys must work in coordination.

4-Audio Recordist
Minimize sounds on the set, to reduce dubbing as much as possible. Also observe extra sounds which we may have to add to give a realistic feel to the film. Ex: Sound of the hand rubbing across a shirt, moustache etc.

5-Lights
Lighting sets the mood and more importantly, to highlight the key objects in the frame. It is to be done in sync with Frame composition, but the required skill-set may be different. Low-budget lighting requires good skills. Three point lighting is a nice scheme to start with. Make sure that the sense of direction of lighting is maintained throughout a scene. You are usually better off trying to enhance natural light, rather than trying to dupe a source.

6-Dialogues and Story
It is quite difficult for a starter to conceive a well formed story, and hence you will have to bank on "on set" enhancements. Ram Gopal Varma is one of the preachers of this and Puri follows this quite closely. Dialogues can be made crisper and may be in a way suiting the artist, if they are reworked on the set. 

Piracy: Game Theoretic Perspective

This post is about piracy in general(in films, computer games, music,software etc). I don't know how much of game theory would come up, but I'd like to maintain the catchy title :) .

The edge which the pirates have, is the enormously high ratio of prices of original products as opposed to their "cracked" counterparts. Low production costs are actually a bane of sorts. The price ratio does a lot of psychological damage, it destroys altruistic feelings within. Producers usually work on the assumption that the customers would think rationally. It is not quite true, they ignore what we call "animal spirits". You don't always pick the right product at right price. Random factors (like your state of mind) play a very significant role in the decision-making process.

Several solutions have been worked for this. In the software/tech industry, "Donations" seem to be the answer. This actually tries to build back confidence and restore altruistic feelings in the customers. It kinda makes the customer feel involved with the company. Wikipedia is a very well known example of that. The developers had come with an emotional message. They could have actually made a lot of money through advertising, but they decided to keep the portal clean.


And a rule of thumb: If it's a "hit and run" case, the pirate is always at an advantage. It is very difficult to prevent him or to discourage the customers from buying it. So, the process must get dynamic. The company should offer post product services which are unique and which can't be offered by a pirate. Any good research lab never buys pirated software for simulations, one of the many reasons is need for quality service.

We need to note that the real evil is actually the low production cost. The producer has an edge over the pirate in terms of volume of business. So, the producers should modify the process so that there is some uniqueness. Only their company should be able to deliver the product at a low price given the quality. Volume of business is the edge that they have. This also means low royalty to the creators, but that can be covered by volume again. If the pirates are operating at large levels, then the producers have a real good chance to curb those activities and also impose "damages".

To cut the long story short, I would like to emphasize on "screw the pirates with the business model" and "reinforce altruistic feelings in potential customers". Continue activities to curb production, keep remodelling to reduce scope for "quality pirated products" and most importantly keep your customers involved and make sure they hate the pirates and not you. Keeping the "robin-hood" feelings away is the most important part of curbing piracy and that could be done only if the producers maintain good work-ethics and not hurt anyone in any way. Windows is a victim of piracy because many don't seem to like the principles of the company.

Film Piracy

Everybody knows that the biggest evil haunting any "creative" industry is piracy. We had seen some innovations come up, to counter this. In this post, I would like to explore this interesting topic. This comes from a person, who used to download hell lot of movies himself.

Three important reasons are currently favoring film piracy.

1. Black Marketing by Theatres themselves
2. Getting 3 movies at Rs30 itself
3. Convenience of watching the movie at home

However, I feel it is more to do with a better revenue model than any of these innovations the producers have come up with. Setting aside the customer point of view for a moment, let us see the picture from a producer's perspective.

The producer makes a movie with a budget ranging from Rs80 lakhs(Ee Rojullo) to Rs40crore(Telugu movies). It is a well known fact that high budget films usually make a return ratio of 20-25% and low budget films have made 200-300%(Source: Allu Sirish blog). These huge numbers can come only if theatres are granted exclusive access to the film and piracy doesnt help in this regard.The fact is that people would like to watch the film.

In order to counter points 2 and 3, the makers of Golconda High School had offered the film online. But that actually messes up the revenue model completely. You are taking the risk of a good quality "piracy print" hitting the market very soon. There are those who talk about Cryptography, but that just doesn't work. If you can see it, you can steal it. But, of late makers of Julayi,Eega,LIB had partnered with an anti-piracy organization specializing in hacking. Dynamic monitoring can definitely curb pirated prints from spreading on the internet.

There are some who suggest advertising with in the films. But, I guess that's already goin on. However, it doesn't seem to be fetching significant numbers. Sekhar Kammula always had tieups with corporates to reduce production costs. Right from Anand, he had tieup with Kala Niketan for costumes. He had partnered with Audi for "rich" look in Life Is Beautiful.Satellite Rights fetch a lot of revenue for films(Rs1.5 crore to 8crores i guess) and I am not sure if the television channels would be happy with in-built advertising already done. Another issue is that advertising can be enhanced if pre-planned, the ads can be embedded within the script. Any advertiser would have a tough time in deciding whether to invest in a film, prior to the production of the film.

Another important reason which gives the "Robin hood" feel to the pirates is "Black Marketing by theatres". Every body would like to watch the movie in the first week itself and very few turn up in the second week. The theatres try to cash in on that and they undertake selling in black. That's because the price of tickets is always fixed. Another reason could be high spending in production of films, makers like Ram Gopal Varma had been saying that the budgets can be reduced further. There are many who suffered through distribution, but are quite a lot of people who made fortunes too. A sweeping statement from a "pro-piracy" guy was "If you are singing in the bathroom and someone says its good, will you charge them?". They are calling for a model where the revenue is based on performance. Quite a few mediocre films made good money through opening collections alone, due to star cast involved.

For those who are not aware of the initiatives by producers. There is a unique number allotted to each theatre and it is displayed along with the movie. So, the theatre from which the "piracy print" comes out is sealed. Thus, it offers a credible threat to the managements of theatres and makes them monitor piracy. After all, no body can sneak a decent camera so easily. It is usually done in small villages. Most of the initiatives are also taken by fans. They report the prints to producers and block links online. Fans along with the "anti-piracy hackers" can curb torrent also as well. Fake Torrents are another strategy.

I don't seem to have made any point through this post. But, what I actually wanted to convey is that this issue is a lot more complicated than what we are all imagining. These strategies may be saving a little revenue, but it is like a tom and jerry fight. The innovations should give a complete edge to the producers. See my next post on that for more.

Business Relationships

I had seen a lot of movies on Human Relations in the last few months. This blogpost was motivated by that. I wanted to share with you, my experiences in the last couple of years.

Sciensation was started in 2011, while I was still a 2nd yr undergraduate student. However I had an idea about event management, printing etc as I had worked for a few college activities. Working for own banner was a different ball game altogether. I had pitch myself , the brand and only then would I garner essential collaborations.

Most people mistake business relationship to be negotiations and bargaining. It is very important to maintain long term relationship with your suppliers. The product or service which you are offering, is influenced by the supplier. You need to have a good rappo with the supplier. It is not just the pricing but quality, flexibilty and speed of delivery which matters. Someone who understands your style of working will be able to add to the product. In short you need to realize that your supplier knows his bit better and can help improving the product, if he understand your product concept properly.

If you had conceived a new production, its your "baby" for a good amount of time and others can't read your mind. So, its important to have good descriptions, diagrams and analogies for those who need the details. Agreed that you would like to keep details confidential, but you should have this info with you. Only the relevant details would reach every supplier. It takes some effort to explain your concept and so you may want to maintain one supplier and do good business with him.

In business, the biggest of enemies is uncertainities. I often exclaim "Certainty is the most expensive product in the market, if available!". Errors can occur from your side or the supplier's side and that might slash your profit or even worse take you into losses. Most companies estimate this well and price their accordingly. However, starters have issues with at as they need to market products at low prices to compete in the market. It is important to make sure that such things don't affect your relationship with the supplier. I had once faced such an issue. The error was clearly on the side of the supplier and he offered to re-produce the product. I had decided to pay and collect, Sciensation took the blame. He has impressed with our commitment and had reduced the prices. He always provides best prices and a few complimentary services too.

There is a comedy scene in a movie called Businessman(releasing in Hindi with Abhishek as the lead). Mahesh Babu does service for free and when offered payment, he says "I did coz I love you. Do I look like a goon. Treat me like a girl friend, you know na what to give girl frends. Bank Balance, Bunglaw etc". It is funny but it is closely related to what we call opening relationship. You don't always try to level the cash/barter on a balance. At times, you may not be able to get much. But the relationship which you are building is going to be important. You need to note that most probably both of you would operate at different scales eventually and it wont be amongst equals. Like in close friends, you don't keep accounts but they get balanced kinda.

There is a saying that market is to blind to everything except money and wealth. It is true, but I have believed that you would enjoy doing business if you are friends with your staff, suppliers and customers. Great brands have always taken efforts to ensure the relationship is good. The legendary Dr C.K.Prahlad had said "Employees First, Customer Second", you can deliver only if backed by excellent crew. Steve Jobs said its the R&D Dollars which matter but the innovation and the people, for IBM had 100times higher budget than Apple. Quite unorganized, but I hope I have conveyed what I had in my mind.

From a scientist to a marketer

I find more joy in being the "reason" behind other's success than in own events

Marketing isn't mere advertising it actually adds life

Since school days, I wanted to be a "'scientist"'. Was called a "focussed" kid, who made a 15year study plan...BTech at IIT, PhD abroad, post doc and then of course "become" a scientist. My blogspots reminded me of this and the change in plans through the last few years.

I realized that "Gamaname na Gamyam...". Journey through great thoughts is my goal,  my destination...After all change is the only thing which is constant in life.

I had ventured into popular science activities due to passion for teaching. And the events required marketing to potential collaborators, audience and generous sponsors. I enjoyed that and I am now an aspiring marketer.

Three years of event management experiences. A great feeling it is, to pull off an event succesfully. Experiences,feedback,suggestions and  a lot of philosophy after the remains after flop. You would be badly waiting for the next event, for a comeback of sufficient magnitude to restore your brand image. But eventually you rise beyond success and failures.People trust in you and your abilities more than anything else. Its the honesty in the attempt which wins trust, after all those who dare to think different must have a big-heart to see their thoughts convert. They can understand you, they will back you.

Sekhar Kammula expressed his desire to turn to a producer and convert dreams of his assistants into good films. Perhaps this applies to anyone who worships his work. I find more joy in being the "reason" behind other's success than the fame through my own events. May be a bit too much, but marketing for others is serious fun and it gives a lot of satisfaction, difficult to compare or express that. There are many talented people aspiring to show the world something they found to be really really cool. But, they may not  poccess skills or may be they don't invest as much time in marketing than in innovation. Associating with such people and bringing cool thoughts to light is something satisfying.

People often see Marketing as something secondary. An MBA is a gateway to nice pay perks and it is seen as a money making profession. But several innovations would have never come to light unless a marketer puts his time and efforts into it, at least not to the scale to which a marketer can take it to. And ya I idolize Steve Jobs. It was his marketing genius, his packaging and the way he presents a product that makes "the" difference. Ipad and Ipod were not innovative products and the whole world knows that. But he had manipulated the tech-business, I salute that. I would personally never buy an apple product though!

Marketing isn't mere advertising it actually adds life to the product. I guess it would require a complete blog post to describe. Its Leadership,Innovation, about the people, the face of the product designs and descriptions which make the product more intuitive.

For now I guess I am happy meeting nice people and listening to their ideas. I was once concerned about achievements and scores. But now, I am love with life. New excitement and a whole new approach towards what I believe will be "kick" filled life.When VVS or Sachin are on fire, anybody would just want to be relishing the artistry from the non-striker's end. This post was about the excitement induced by really amazing experiences during the last few months.