From Zero to Thirty


When every i come across places, people or situation it takes me back to the memory lane and these days it is happening too often… So i wanted to see how good i remember things that happened all these years year wise;

1980 : Couldn’t remember much. But it is a special year because that was the year i was born.

1981 : Couldn’t remember anything.

1982 : Vaguely remember walking with my grandpa’s & running round my granny’s house.

1983 : Remember vaguely about the beginning of my schooling & how my mom use to pick me after school hours.

1984 : Same like 1983. But I lost my Father’s father. I lost him at a very young age but I was his favorite. Miss him a lot.

1985 : This time i remember i was in class I and i was changed school after a 3 months in my old school. As a kid it was a the first time i was made to adapt change where culture, people & process everything were different. Since was too small I quickly adapted to the change.

1986 : A very special year. I got a cute little sister who has been my strength till days. We moved to our own house far from my school. Enjoyed going gardening with my mother. My Father use to drop me in school in the morning & my Mom’s father use to pick and drop me from school.

1987 : Lost my Mom’s father. We had to come back to grandma’s home to be with her. Again it was back to the place where I was born.

1988 : Came back to our house at Porur. Again my father use to drop me in school & his colleague will pick me from school. I leave home by 7.30 AM & come back home by 5.30 PM. Too much of a kill for a 8 year old.

1989 : Changed school which is less than a kilo-meter from my house. Got a class mate who was my neighbor Mr.Balaji & I was at cloud 9 as I’ve always studied is school where I didn’t have a class mate to access. In my old school mates use to meet and play at each others home during weekends and my chance came only during this Year.

1990 : Changed another school & I owe full credits to this school for what I’m today A.V.Meiyappan Matriculation Higher Secondary School. My responsibility started here. Use to take my sister for lunch & bring her back to home from School. For the first time I was exposed to football.

1991 : Started a Cricket team in my area.

1992 : Started becoming independent as I started visiting friends who are far from my house. This is the time where studies have started to become a burden on me.

1993 : My father went abroad and started getting lots of new gadgets. Use to play more & yell at studies. Golden year in my sporing career was a de-facto brand for my school. The year marked the beginning lying parents & going to movies with friends.

1994 : Failed in class IX in spite of excelling in sports. That marked the end of my short sporting career. Had to switch school in order to save a year and joined class X. This year was very special because I studied in a school for 3 months and again changed school. This time was the the beginning of golden period in my life. I was the Don in the making & my dream then was to become a big Don. Bunked school to watch movies & stole money from home to watch movies.

1995 : Somehow passed my SSLC (Class X) & rejoined my favorite school AVM. This period was full of studies.

1996 : Again studies was my priority.

1997 : Joined college. Again the start of my second golden period. Went to Bangalore for the first time. For the first time saw girls smoking, roaming with guys & sew a lot o girls drinking. Climate was awesome. Loved this place & even thought of settling there those days.

1998 : Golden period at the peak. Exposed to internet & didn’t realize that this is going change my life for ever. Visiting Bangalore was a routine. My familiarity with Bangalore was mainly because of roaming with my fathers colleagues those days.

1999 : Continued with my golden period. For the first time started doing my own petty jobs.

2000 : College life ended. Started my first Company.

2001 : Struggled & cracked the way to hunt for projects.

2002 : Special year because Business grew, Moved to own office & was the golden period of my Entrepreneur days.

2003 : Start of getting exposed to People problem & for the first time started facing turbulence.

2004 : Attrition was at its peak. Took some gamble of moving to a Cozy office by over-stepping. The move clicked. Got a good friend Mr.Major Karthik (Who has been my strength till date.).

2005 : Beginning of bringing structure into the company. Got a special companion who & was flying high.

2006 : Joined MBA @ Great Lakes Institute of Management & I consider this to the the best choice & investment (I paid my fee for the first time) i’ve ever made. GLIM gave me enlightenment & gave me lot of answers. I transformed from a Blind Entrepreneur to an Entrepreneur with Vision.

2007 : Good business, Good Friends, a Companion and I thought life was settled.

2008 : The year of biggest Turbulence. One fine day I lose most of the thing which made me think I was settled. That is when I came to know True & Fake friends. Major Karthik, Balaji & Bala Murugan were people who Stood by me during those days. Today I’m thankful to god because i felt i was a failure & my life has come to an end. Today i realize with all these friends i can conquer the world. Started Cogzidel this year.

2009 : Developed new hobbies & experimented things I wanted to do. Life has become more meaningful. Got a lot of new friends who filled the Gap for the lost ones.

2010 : I turned 30. Can’t think how days have ran like a jiffy. Particularly from 1994 – 2010. Everything looks like it happened yesterday & it looks like it all ran within minutes.

Over all I must thank God for giving me good & bad experience witch all made me only strong. When I look back all bad / sad situation stood for a better / good future. Let me run couple of more years and will share my new experience and let this blog be a document for my future reference to enrich my mind with the memories of past.

Charles Schultz Philosophy


The following is the philosophy of Charles Schultz, the creator of the ‘Peanuts’ comic strip. Try answer the questions, read the e-mail straight through, and you’ll get the point.

  1. Name the five wealthiest people in the world.
  2. Name the last five Heisman trophy winners.
  3. Name the last five winners of the Miss America.
  4. Name ten people who have won the Nobel or Pulitzer Prize.
  5. Name the last half dozen Academy Award winners for best actor and actress.
  6. Name the last decade’s worth of World Series winners.

How did you do?

The point is, none of us remember the headliners of yesterday. These are no second-rate achievers. They are the best in their fields. But the applause dies. Awards tarnish. Achievements are forgotten. Accolades and certificates are buried with their owners…

Here’s another quiz. See how you do on this one:

  1. List a few teachers who aided your journey through school.
  2. Name three friends who have helped you through a difficult  time.
  3. Name five people who have taught you something worthwhile.
  4. Think of a few people who have made you feel appreciated and special.
  5. Think of five people you enjoy spending time with.

Easier?

The lesson:

The people who make a difference in your life are not the ones with the most credentials, the most money, or the most awards. They are the ones that care.

Traveling in Mercedes Benz Multi Axle Bus


Travelling on Mercedes Benz would be a bream for any normal person & I’m no exception to it. Sadly I’ve never travelled in a Benz vehicle.

Yesterday when I went to Parveen Travels website to book my tickets back to Chennai I saw an update telling new mercedes benz multi axle bus from Trivandrum to Chennai. Then after searching for ticket I came to know that bus goes through Madurai. I got thrilled & decided to travel on the bus at any cost.

When I checked the cost it was Rs.700/- only. I paid Rs.685/- for a Volvo multi axle to come to Madurai. But that extra money isn’t an issue as;

  • They are making our dream of travelling on Benz a reality.
  • They gave a paper carry bag with 500 ml water bottle, a Maa mango juice, a biscuit packet & wet tissues. They give us the feel of flying on an aeroplane.

I must thank Parveen Travels to bring elite things to common man. Also they keep innovating new things to attract their customers.

For sure Parveen Travels is going to be no.1 private player when it comes to travel. I’ve changed my loyalty from KPN to Parveen Travels.

Bid Aideu Murali


I remember it was 1994 (I was 14 years then)and i went to visit my uncle in Trichy. Since my uncle was busy he left me in one of our family friends house & asked his friends son to take me for a game of cricket with him. That new friend of mine told me they will play cricket only by evening and he said we can watch India vs Sri Lanka test match.

Those days Sri Lanka were underdogs & I was not interested to watch the match because it was a test match and second it is a Indo Sri Lanka Match. But had to watch it as I didn’t have a choice. That is when i came to know through that new friend that there was a lone Tamalian in the team and that was Muralidharan. That is when i came to know this legendary guy. I didn’t know then that this guy is going to create records in his career. Though I supported India & admired Sachin I was happy to watch this guy bowl when this guy bowls.

Then whenever I see Sri Lankan scorecard (they use to loose most of the matches then) I see for Murali’s bowling figures only. But this team went on to become a great success during 1996 world cup and contribution of Murali in bowling was phenomenal along with Vaas & Wikramasinghe and batting was taken care by Jeya Surya, Ranatunga, Aravinda De Silva, Mahanama & Tillakratne. He was one of the core member of the best team Sri Lanka has ever produced till date.

From then the guy whom i admired has become the guy I mostly hated as Sri Lanka started winning matches & Murali would be one of the striking force for the victory. But I think India in the one of the team which has hammered him a lot. But his 100 wickets haul can show he was a success against India. Many times i supported the decision of banning him for chucking not because of logic but because I wanted to get rid off matches against India.

Second thing I got upset was him getting married to Madhu Malar daughter of Malar hospitals and I felt like i lost a fortune & a beauty :(. Still i envy him for that.

Today again he is one of the reason for India’s loss. But we must accept that this guy is a genius cricketer. It is not a joke for someone to be leading wicket taker in both ODI & in Test matches.

When I saw his farewell I instantly remembered the day when I first came to know about him & how he has changed the fortunes of a small island nation & his own image.

At this moment I would Thank him for entertaining us for all these years…

Give people a Chance!!


The person who painted these pictures wanted to attend the Viannese academy of Fine arts and become an artist, but academy rejected his application.

If he had been accepted by the academy, may be the world history would have been much different …

because,

That applicant’s name was…

ADOLPH HITLER

Milaga Review


Day before yesterday had dinner with my friends and they said the movie MILAGA was good. After dinner I straight went to Meenakshi Bazaar to buy the CD and then came back to office and worked till 12.30 AM…

After reaching home found Kannan watching Ravanan for second time… Immediately stopped him and I started watching the movie… To my surprise;

  • The movie was on the lines of Madurai Sambavam but this movie is a comedy one. I felt bad that I missed watching the movie in Madurai theatre as it is a movie based on the city.
  • Screenplay is too fast and not even a single scene were boring.
  • There is no tragedy & that makes the movie worth a watch.
  • Characters & team are from same as Mayandi Kudumbathar & Koripalayam.
  • Most comedy scenes were hilarious & even otherwise it was not boring.
  • Hero Natraj has done a good job. He is natural when it comes to acting, comedy & stunt.
  • Over all it was worth watch movie. Not sure why movie went unnoticed.

Fortune using currency


Normally I don’t copy other articles in my blog. But I thought this one could be of value to my readers. Here is a new avenue to hunt for an opportunity;

Old is gold. More so, if it is an old rupee note. Ask Mehraj Quraishi. Two years back, Quraishi, a trader in old coins and notes, purchased 30 one-rupee notes — the first ones printed by the government after Independence — bearing the signature of the then finance secretary of India, K R K Menon. He paid Rs 1,350 for each note.

But when Quraishi wanted a few more of these notes a few days earlier, he had to dole out Rs 10,000 for each — a 640 per cent increase in value in just over two years, something not many investment avenues can boast of.

There’s more to it. Some of the Re 1 notes printed in 1964, bearing the signature of the then finance secretary, S Bhoothalingam, are at present available on ebay.com for Rs 25,500 each.

However, all old currency notes do not appreciate as rapidly in value. The availability of the note in the market is the main factor. For example: the Re 1 notes printed in December 1964 and signed by Bhoothalingam are very rare, but other notes signed by him in the subsequent months might be available in the market and may not fetch the same value.

Jayesh Gala, a collector and dealer of notes and coins, has some tips to help customers identify rare notes. “Check the period for which a particular RBI governor has been in office. If it is a short period, chances are that notes bearing his signature will be few and hence would command a high price.”

The physical state of the note will also determine what price it can fetch. An uncirculated note, or UNC as it is known in numismatic parlance, will command a higher price compared to the used ones.

Collectors are interested not only in currency notes which are out of circulation but also those which are currently in use. Of course, they must have some special feature to be of interest to a collector.

Like the Rs 10 ‘star’ note, or replacement note with former finance secretary and present RBI Governor D Subbarao’s signature and a series number 000001. This note was bought for Rs 50,000 by Kishore Jhunjhunwala, a numismatist.

Each note bears a unique series number. For example: your note may have the following number printed on it: 01A 124578. Here, ‘A’ is the prefix letter and 124578 is the series number. You will also find a letter in the background of the series number, known as the inset letter, that identifies the mint it has been printed in.

The combination of the prefix and the series number or just the series number creates the fancy number. For example: a plain series number like 123456 or one that comprises the same digits like 111111 or an interesting combination of the prefix and the series number – 11B 111111, may be of interest to collectors.

The possibilities of a fancy number are endless. The value of a fancy number note cannot really be ascertained, says Gala. It depends on what value the likes of Jhunjhunwala peg it at.

So next time you come across a note with a ‘fancy number’, don’t be in a rush to spend it. It may be worth much more than its face value.

Error Notes

Usually, people are eager to palm off a misprinted note to an unsuspecting person. But if you find yourself in a similar position, don’t rush to rid yourself of the error note.Error notes are notes that are misprinted by the RBI and are supposed to be destroyed. But somehow they find their way into the market and in the hands of money changers and collectors. 

Again, the value of an error note cannot be determined but it is certain that it will fetch you a decent amount.

‘Star’ Notes

These notes are also known as replacement notes. During the printing of a certain series of notes, one of the notes in the bundle could be misprinted. The note which replaces the misprinted one in the bundle will not be serially numbered like the rest. To identify such a note, a star sign is inserted in the number panel between the prefix letter and the series number.

“Such notes are rarely seen in circulation as they are in great demand from collectors,” says Arun Sanghvi, a money changer. Not surprising that even an ordinary Rs 10 star note with no fancy number or a particular governor’s signature can be sold to a money changer for Rs 30. If you ever come across a star note, know that you are richer by a few rupees. Moral of the lesson: do keep a close watch on all your notes henceforth. The value of the Rs 10 note in your wallet may actually be worth a few extra zero’s.

Courtesy: Masoom Gupte

Source: Business Standard

Facts about India Rupee Symbol


Now Indian Rupee has a new symbol and this is how it looks. This new symbol which has been shortlisted through a contest run by Finance Ministry of India. You can read about that Rupee design contest here. The basic aim of the new symbol is to provide the Indian rupee international recognition as the country’s economy exerts more influence in the global space, the unique sign will also help isolate the currency from the current abbreviation ‘Rs’ which is used by neighbouring Pakistan, Nepal and Sri Lanka.

The winning designers concept was based on the Tricolour and “arithmetic equivalence”. While the white space between the two horizontal lines gives the impression of the national flag with the Ashok Chakra, the two bold parallel lines stand for ‘equals to’, representing balance in the economy, both within and with other economies of the world. The winning designer is an IIT post-graduate D Udaya Kumar.

Along with the announcement of the result, there have been a number of controversies as well. One of the RTI activist had revealed that the panel took less than 20 seconds to go through each of the design and analyze. This is what the activist revealed according to RTI Documents :

  • Non-eligible candidate was shortlisted in top five finalists. As candidate had submitted four designs.
  • One finalist was in contact with Finance Ministry and RBI prior to competition.
  • Design concept or brief was not put in front of jury along with Indian Rupee symbol design.
  • No marks or grades were allotted to selected (2644) candidates design entries, in the process of shortlisting top five finalist design entries.
  • Jury had spends less than 20 seconds on each design entries to analyze it .
  • Three jury member were absent in two days long meeting dated 29th Sept. and 30th Sept. 2009.
  • One jury member from Ministry of Culture was absent on the day of final presentation.
  • All seven jury member had never meet in this whole selection process in any given time.
  • No records are available with Finance Ministry which could indicate how many total design entries Finance Ministry had received!
  • Advertisement was only published in English language.

Keeping aside all the controversies, I am happy that there is a new symbol for Indian Rupee!

Watched Vinayakudu


Long back when Vinayakudu was running at Satyam Cinemas I missed watching the movie on theatres. I read a lot about the movie’s review. For some reason I forgot about the movie.

After a nice sleep yesterday & a long nap by evening made me fresh & after spending some time Major & after some mobile blogging, I decided to watch this movie in my DVD.

• The movie was very natural & I never had any break in-between.
• There were lot of connect with characters for the urban audience. • Hero has really rocked & he gels well with his character.
• Also must mention about the background score. Which is another boost to the movie.

I heard the movie’s Village to Vinayakudu is a flop. But will definitely watch that movie.

Weekend Plans were Screwed


After a long time I’m having a bored weekend at Madurai. After relocating back to Chennai a year back I use to complete my trips during weekdays & return to Chennai to enjoy weekends.

This time I planned to mix my trip with a weekend because planned for a trip to Kuttralam or Kumily.

But all plans were screwed by a friend who spent major part of his previous week at Kodaikanal. Also he never hinted that he is going to screw the plan.

Last 3 days we met for dinner and dispersed. Some spice were missing in our meetings. Even today we went for lunch & had a afternoon nap & they went back home.

Finally I had Major for rescue. Went to Coffee Float, a walk at race course road & a walk in our area. It was a nice 4 hour where we were sharing out personal life experience, some official & some nostalgic discussions.

Some how I passed the weekend & its time to concentrate & finish my visits purpose in next two days.