MurTheories

Super Singer 3 Grand Finale 23 September 2011 with videos

2011-09-24T12:23:00.000+03:00

AirTel Super Singer 3, the very popular music talent program of Vijay TV has atlast reached the last lap with the Grand Finale on 23 September 2011.

Pooja, Sathya Prakash, Sai Charan and the affable Santhosh were the final contenders for the Super Singer 2011 title. The grand finale as expected drew big crowds at the venue and Star Vijay made arrangements for the live telecast of the program.

The winner as expected was selected by popular vote and as I thought, Sai Charan who has been passionate about the title has won.

The surprise however was however in the runners-up result. Unbelievably, even for himself, Santhosh won the second place, surprise surprise Sathya Prakash was below Santhosh and the only girl in the finale Pooja, was pushed to the last spot which, atleast on stage, she took it gracefully.

G V Prakash, seemed disappointed that his favourite Sathya Prakash didn't get popular vote. He showed displeasure subtly on the stage.

Watch the complete video.

Reliance gas output falls?

2011-04-08T10:56:00.002+03:00

Power Ministry has expressed concern over the fall in natural gas production at Reliance Industries’ eastern offshore KG-D6 fields as the shortfall may hit electricity generation this summer.

Earlier this week, the ministry had written to the Oil Ministry pointing out that power plants are getting less than allocated gas from KG-D6.

“The short supply of gas by Reliance to the power projects is a matter of great concern mainly due to the huge requirement of electricity during summer season,” it said.

Natural gas production from KG-D6 has fallen to 47.5 million standard cubic meters per day from 61.5 mmscmd output the block had achieved in March 2010. This fall has led to Reliance making a pro-rata cut in supplies of all its customers.

The power ministry said only 24.5 mmscmd of gas was supplied to power plants in February as against allocation of 33 mmscmd on firm as well as fall back basis.

The short supply, it said, may be “construed as non compliance of the decision of the EGoM.”

Mark Douglas's five fundamental truths

2011-04-08T10:49:00.001+03:00

1. Anything can happen. Translated – you have no control over the market.

2. You don’t need to know what’s going to happen next in order to make money. You don’t need to be psychic, or try to predict the market. This is not to say that you cannot predict what the market will do next and be correct, only that you don’t have to, and that by trying to predict you shackle yourself to ‘the need to be right’ and the associated ball and chain.

3. Wins and losses are random – You will never know when a trade will be a winner in advance, only that the conditions that define your edge are present.

4. Your edge is nothing more than a higher probability of one thing happening over another. Your edge is no guarantee of a winning trade, just of winning over time.

5. Every moment in the market is unique. Just because a similar trade won last time does not mean it will this time, and by treating each trade as totally unique you can see the truth of the trade without relating it to ‘what happened last time’.

These beauty in these theories is that they take the emphasis off any one trade, and turn your trading into a big picture endeavour.

Motivational speech of Shiv Khera

2011-04-08T10:46:00.002+03:00

I like motivational speeches. Even if some of them tell you what you may already know, it helps to refresh one's knowledge and also refocus oneself.

See this motivational speech video, thanks to youtube.

Trading Theory

2011-04-08T10:44:00.000+03:00

Trading can be mastered if you concentrate your efforts on how you will react to price rather than desiring to predict it. Reacting is a business decision, predicting is an ego play.

Traders want to make money. Losses in the long run don’t matter. Forecasters (prophets) want to be right (ego). And that’s all that they are concerned about.

Don’t decide anything (ego), let the market do that job for you (business).

Like any other business you have a business plan and the financial portion of that plan is the most important.

In this business your inventory is stocks, bonds, futures or options. Like any other business you define what an acceptable loss is on an item and what is an acceptable profit for the risk undertaken. Like any other business if the item of inventory doesn’t do what you expected it to do, you put it on sale and liquidate it to raise capital to purchase inventory that will do what you want it to do. Your acceptable loss is your stop. Your money management system tells you how much that is. Your mark up is dependent upon your trading system and trading style. It doesn’t make any difference if you are a day trader or an investor. Like any business, some turn their inventory 10 times a day, some 20 times a year and some only twice a year. Your trading style and inventory volatility will tell you what your turnover rate will be.Trading is a business and if you treat it as anything else you will be a loser.

When PC got booted

2009-04-09T09:57:00.001+03:00

Indians are quick learners. In the olden days we only thought the Chinese and Taiwanese copied.

But, these are post liberalization times in India. So, when we see something good happening outside of India, we either get that by import or copy in double quick time now.

In the olden days, if something new got invented abroad, it would take years for us to get that in India. Even Hollywood movies used to get released with a few years' delay in Indian cinemas.

But thing have changed, that is, post liberalization. A new computer virus released abroad is immediately in India now. (If it is election time, you can get these virus even more fast because there will be lack of security due to Home Ministry headed by PC will not be in a position to provide security for anything or anyone other than for gundas contesting elections).

Thus, within about three or four months of the introduction, the fresh idea of showing protest by throwing a shoe during a PC (press conference) has hit the Indian shores. And we already have a shoe hurled at our PC during a PC which you can now monitor on your PC.

You will notice from the video that unlike in the Bush episode when Bush got a pair, PC just got one shoe. You will also notice that the shoe was not actually hurled (like in the Iraq incident) but lobbed at PC. (It was also lobbed so wide that even Steve Bucknor would have called it a wide; even if India was batting - Comment of Chitralaya Sriram, famous playwright of superhit Tamil Comedy stage plays)

I was thinking of the reasons for the lob instead of a hurl:

1. The Sikh might be actually a South Indian, specifically from Chennai and should have also played gully cricket; because, only in Chennai we play cricket bowling underarm deliveries (It also appeared that Mr. Chidambaram is not that good at Cricket as you see him ducking at something not even near him. That probably explains his IPL hate).

2. The Sikh might have been coached by Greg Chappell to do a Trevor Chappell?

3. PC was just "a shoe's throw away" from the journalist and so the journalist didn't want to waste his energy throwing.

4. PC might have come to the PC wearing just one shoe and the journalist might have brought the second shoe to give to PC

5. The Sikh might have noticed that PC was unsuited for the conference so he thought let him atleast be booted

Was the Election Commission watching this incident? Better they did. This might well turn out to be a " Shoes for vote" scandal. Congress can embark on distributing free shoes to the voters in the guise of returning the hurled shoe back.

The Central Government should order a probe into the incident and commission a commission and allow politicians and officials earn some commission in the process.

When the Iraqi journalist threw the shoes at George Bush, Bush was smart enough to note the shoe size and quoted it in his post shoe conference.

I do not know whether Mr. Chidambaram noticed the shoe size. He will not be upset, I think, if the shoe size was No.10 bought at Janpath.

If it was the west, the brand of shoes would have become even more popular by now. I can already think of the slogan "The shoes we make, are the shoes you throw". Or a PC Company can advertise with the Sikh as the endorser "Our PC is always booted"

Now, it is showtime of the shoe times - click the links to view them.

The Shoe Throw

The Eye Witness account

The Bushoe video

2009-03-22T11:55:00.003+03:00

But is it really such a great historical achievement?

While I have no hesitation in congratulating the M S Dhoni and his men for this victory I do not think it is any great historical achievement as is made out in the media which is blaring headlines that we have won there after 30+ years.

In the seventies and early eighties, New Zealand was not considered as a stong team as it is considered now. Before the admission of Zimbabwe and Bangladesh into Test cricket, New Zealand used to be the team considered the weakest amongst the world test teams.

That despite having some great cricketers like Sir Richard Hadley, Glenn Turner, Martin Crowe, John Wright, Mark Greatbatch, Geoff Lawson (thanks Loshan for pointing out the error), Jereme Coney (again thanks to Loshan for reminding this great's name) and Evan Chatfield in their ranks.

Despite being considered as the weakest team amongst the test playing nations, New Zealand always fought hard. Especially in matches against Australia they gave their very best.

I remember their 1981 ODI match in the World Series Cup against Australia in which to avoid a tie (not defeat) Greg Chappell stooped to the level of asking his youngest brother Trevor Chappell to bowl the last delivery underarm. Still it remained that they were lowly ranked as a test playing nation.

Thus, it comes as a surprise to me that India has not won a test match in New Zealand in 33 years.

The last win came in 1976 in Auckland. Going through the scorecard at www.cricinfo.com I noticed some interesting similarities between the current match and the 1976 one.

1. In both the matches New Zealand batted first

2. In both matches India chased down a small score (less than 100) in the last innings.

3. In both matches, in the Indian second innings, the opening batsman taking strike scored the majority of the runs for victory and remained not out. (Sunil Gavaskar with 35 in 1976 and Gautam Gambir with 30 in 2009)

4. In both matches Little masters scored a century in the first innings. In 1976, it was Sunil Gavaskar with One hundred and Six-teen and in 2009, it was Sachin Tendulkar with one hundred and Six-ty.

5. In both matches it was a off-spinner who bundled out the Kiwis. It was Erapally Prasanna with 8 for 76 in 1976 and Harbhajan with 6 for 63 in 2009.

I noticed that it was one of those rare matches in which both the great off-spinners of India Prasanna and Venkat played and Bishen Bedi didn't. In that match the two off-spinners together took 12 wickets, with Prasanna taking 8 wickets in the second innings.

As if it is a repeat of history, in the current win, Harbhajan Singh our off-spinner took 6 wickets.

While in this win Sachin Tendulkar scored 160 in the first innings of this test , in the 1976 match, the original little master Sunil Gavaskar scored 116.

The 1976 match was probably one of the few matches in which Sunil Gavaskar scored a hundred and G R Viswanath failed and still India won the match. :)

This looked odd to me. Hence I wanted to do some number crunching to see the statistics of India - New Zealand matches in the past 33 years and compare the same with the matches played by India against other teams. The following interesting statistics emerged.

Thus, while this win did come after many years, it is not that great history because we have not played often enough against NewZealand to day that we have not won often enough the said team. We seem to be playing more often against Australia and England or for that matter even Pakistan (with whom we have a off on touring relationship) than against New Zealand.

In fact, amongst the test nations that are playing test cricket 32 years back the least we have played is against New Zealand.

In the olden days atleast we used to make it a point to tour New Zealand whenever we toured Australia, combining the tour schedules. Now, since BCCI has become more monied and since travel is not that great a hassle, we seem to have deliberately ignored touring the Kiwis regularly. It might be because the BCCI thinks that a series against Australia, England or Pakistan gives more revenues than a tour to New Zealand.

This thinking is also proved by the fact that we have not been playing many matches even against Sri Lanka which is nearer home - we have played just 29 tests in 26 years.

Watch the latest videos on YouTube.com

கடலோரம் செய்த வாக்குப் பதிவு

2009-03-17T09:45:00.001+03:00

தலைப்பில் இருப்பது - ஆங்கில Walk-u :)

எனக்கு சர்க்கரை நோய் இருப்பதால் தினமும் நடக்க வேண்டிய கட்டாயம். நான் குவைத்தில் வசிப்பதால் வீட்டுக்குள்ளேயேதான் Treadmill என்ற இயந்திரத்தில் ஏறி இருந்த இடத்திலேயே முப்பது முதல் நாற்பது நிமிடம் முடிந்தவரை தினமும் நடப்பேன்.

தினமும் நடக்கும் கட்டாயம் இருந்தாலும், விடுப்பில் இருந்தாலோ, அலுவல் காரணமாக வேறு நாட்டுக்கு சென்றாலோ, நடப்பது நடப்பதில்லை.

இம்முறை விடுமுறையிலேயே சென்னைக்கு வந்திருந்தாலும், சர்க்கரை நோய் பரிசோதனை செய்யப் போவதாலும், டாக்டரிடம் இருந்து திட்டு வாங்குவதை தவிர்க்கவும் பரிட்சைக்கு முதல்நாள் படிக்கும் மாணவன் போல் கடற்கரைக்கு சென்று நடக்கலாம் என்று முடிவு செய்தேன்.

கடந்த சில வருடங்களில், பல முறை மெரினாக் கடற்கரைக்கு சென்றிருந்தாலும், நடக்கவென சென்று வெகு நாட்கள் ஆகிவிட்டன. என் சகோதர்களுடன் அதிகாலை 5.30 மணிக்கு மெரினா கடற்கரை சென்றேன். ஏறக்குறைய ஏழு வருடங்களுக்கு முன்பு நடக்கச் சென்றபோது, கடற்கரை சாலையை ஒட்டி கலங்கரை விளக்கம் முதல், கண்ணகி சிலை வரை சிவப்பு வண்ண டைல்ஸ் பதிக்கப்பட்ட அழகான நடைபாதை இருந்தது. எனக்கு தெரிந்தவரை நன்றாகவே பராமரிக்கப்பட்டு வந்தது.

இப்போது, தேவையில்லாமல் (அல்லது யாருடைய காண்ட்ராக்ட் தேவைக்காகவோ) அது முற்றிலுமாக தோண்டப்பட்டு கிரானைட் கற்களால் புதிய நடைபாதை போடும் வேலை நடந்து, மன்னிக்கவும், நகர்ந்து கொண்டிருக்கிறது.

நடைபாதையில் பதிப்பதற்கென்று, கிரானைட் கற்கள் பாதையோரம் போடப்பட்டு எந்தவித பாதுகாப்பும் இன்றி கிடக்கின்றன! யார் வேண்டுமானாலும் இரவோடு இரவாக சில பல கற்களை கிளப்பிக்கொண்டு சென்றுவிடும் நிலையில்தான் இவை உள்ளன. இந்த பாதை பள பள கற்களால் முன்பைவிட அழகாகும் என்பதில் ஒரு சந்தேகமும் இல்லை. ஆனால், நடையர்களுக்கு இது நிச்சயமாக ஆபத்தானதாகவே இருக்கும். வழுக்கும் தரையில் வேகமாக (brisk) நடக்கமுடியாது. விழுந்துவிடக்கூடிய வாய்ப்பும் அதிகம். அதுவும் வழ வழப்பான கருப்பு நிற கிரானைட் கற்கள் நாலைந்து அடிக்கு ஒரு முறை பார்டர் போல் போடப்படுகின்றன. அது நடப்பவர்களுக்கு இன்னும் அதிக ஆபத்தை தரக்கூடும்.

இந்த அழகு ”படுத்தும்” வேலை பல மாதங்களாக நடந்துகொண்டிருக்கிறது. ஒரு 3 கி.மீ. தூரத்தை அழகு படுத்த இத்தனை நாட்கள் தேவையா என்ற கேள்வி எழுகிறது. தகவல் அறியும் சட்டம் மூலம் அரசாங்கத்திடன் இந்த வேலை பற்றிய கேள்விகளை கேட்க தோன்றுகிறது. (யாருக்கு காண்ட்ராக்ட்? காண்ட்ராக்ட் மதிப்பு எவ்வளவு? எத்தனை நாட்களுக்குள் முடிக்க வேண்டும்? யார் யார் போட்டியிட்டனர்? எவ்வளவு நாட்களுக்கு ஒருமுறை காண்ட்ராக்டின் வளர்ச்சி பரிசிலனை செய்யப்படுகிறது? கால தாமதங்கள் உள்ளனவா? கால நீட்டம் கொடுக்கப்பட்டுள்ளதா? எத்தனை முறை?)

சரி. விஷயத்திற்கு வருவோம்.

வழக்கமான நடைபாதை கொந்தியிருப்பதால், நடையர்கள் அனைவரும் இப்போது கடற்கரை மணலையொட்டியுள்ள உள்சாலைக்கு மாறிவிட்டார்கள். மணலில் சக்தி வாய்ந்த மின்விளக்குகள் பொருத்தப்பட்டிருந்தாலும் காந்திசிலை அருகில் இருக்கும் ஓரிரண்டை தவிர வேறு எதுவும் எரியவில்லை. அதனால், நடப்பவர்கள் முழு மற்றும் அரை இருட்டில்தான் பெரும்பாலும் நடக்கிறார்கள்.

இத்தனை தொந்தரவுகள் இருந்தபோதிலும், இன்னும் சூரியன் எழாத காலையில், அரை இருட்டில், சில்லென்ற கடற்காற்றில் நடை ஒரு சுகானுபவம். நெஞ்சுக்குள் சில்லென்ற இன்னும் அசுத்தமாகாத காற்று உள்புகும் போது நடையில் ஒரு துள்ளலும் வேகமும் (ஆங்கிலத்தில் "spring in the steps" என்று சொல்வார்கள்) வந்து நடந்துகொண்டே இருக்க ஆவல் கூடுகிறது. போனஸாக, நோகியா உபயத்தில், ரேடியோ மிர்ச்சி பண்பலையில் இருந்து என் காதில் இசைத் தேன்.

எங்கள் நடையை விவேகானந்தா இல்லத்திலிருந்து துவங்கி, வடக்காக கண்ணகி சிலை வரை சென்று திரும்பி கலங்கரை விளக்கம் வரை நடத்தினோம். 35 நிமிடங்கள் பிடித்தன. 35 நிமிடங்களும் எனக்கு பிடித்தன.

கலங்கரைவிளக்கத்திற்கு அருகில் இருந்து மீண்டும் திரும்பி மகாத்மா காந்தி சிலை அருகில் வந்து வசூல்ராஜா MBBSல் போல் உரக்கச் சிரிக்கும் குழுவுக்கு பக்கத்தில் சூடான, சுவையான வெஜிடபிள் சூப்பும், மணத்தக்காளி, வாழைத்தண்டு, பாகற்காய், நெல்லிக்காய் இவைகளின் ரசம் கலந்த ஒரு புது ரசத்தையும் பருகினோம். மூன்று பேருக்கும் சேர்த்து மொத்த செலவு ரூ. 100க்குள்தான் என்பது வெளிநாட்டிலெல்லாம் நினைத்துக்கூட பார்க்கமுடியாத ஒன்று.

இந்த சுகத்தை தினமும் அனுபவிக்க மனம் தூண்டுவது தவிர்க்க முடியாத ஒன்று. அந்த சில நிமிடங்களில் என் மனதில் குவைத் கம்பெனிக்கு ராஜினாமா email தட்டச்சி, (அதுவரை பொறுத்திருந்த மூளை விழித்துக்கொண்டு, பொறுப்புகளை நினைவுறுத்த) ”send button" அமுக்குமுன் "discard" அழுத்தினேன்.

இந்த பதிவுக்காகவே ஏற்பட்டது போல் கடல் அருகில் வசந்த விழாவை ஒட்டி தீவிரவாததுக்கு எதிரான மணல் சிற்பம் ஒன்று ஏற்படுத்தப்பட்டு இருந்தது. அதை வீடியோ பதிவினேன் (கீழ் காண்க)

உடல் ஆரோக்கியத்திற்காக நடப்பவர்களையும், சிரிப்பவர்களையும், (என் கை ஆட்டத்தினால்) வெறும் மணலையும் எடுத்த வீடியோ பதிவு கீழே.

My blogs are in my own domain now

2008-12-31T13:48:00.004+03:00

Welcome dear blog reader.

My latest blogs are posted at http://www.sathyamurthy.com . The site is enhanced with added features for visitor interactions with me.

All the blogs that I have here in this URL have also been ported to that new site.

I welcome you to the new site.

Thank you and have a great day!

Click here

Some predictions made in the field of technology

2008-12-11T19:06:00.001+03:00

"Nobody would ever need more than 640 KB of memory on their personal computer." – Bill Gates in 1981
"No need for a computer in the home." – Ken Olsen, founder of Digital Equipment Corp in 1977
"Spam will be solved." – Bill Gates in 2004
"The iPod will never take off" – Sir Alan Sugar (English businessman) in 2005
"TV won't last because people would soon get tired of staring at a plywood box every night." – Darryl Zanuck (American producer, writer, actor and director) in 1946

Indian IRONY - Post Mumbai Terror Attacks

2008-12-03T17:17:00.001+03:00

Post Mumbai Terror, there is a new found, but very justified love for the Indian Army. They are at last kept at the esteem they deserve. Here is a question to ponder that I received on my email.

An Olympic shooter wins Gold (Only a game) & Government gives him 3 Crores

Another Shooter dies, fighting with terrorists (Saving our country and our live) & government pays his family 5 lakhs.

Another irony of India is that the Chief Minister of Kerala, who ridiculed the father of slain Major Sundeep Unnikrishnan, went to the Late Major's house with his security guards and sniffer dogs to ensure that the place was secure enough for him to visit. When that is the case why should the Late Major's father allow this Cheap Minister get in?

Hamareliye Koyi Mushkil Nahin Hai!

2008-11-29T08:17:00.001+03:00

At the end of the terrorist cleanup operation at Taj Hotels in Mumbai, seeking a sound bite, a Times Now TV reporter asked a Commando of the Indian Army "Kya bahut mushkil tha?" (Was it very difficult?)

The Commando, all smiles, replied her back "Hamareliye Koyi Mushkil nahin" (Nothing is difficult for us)

That is the attitude we all must have.

When you attempt something and show commitment as if your life is at stake and remain selfless, nothing is difficult.

Chaos Theory in action?

2008-10-23T17:23:00.000+03:00

No, I am not talking about Kamal Hasan's magnum opus "Dasavatharam". Its all about Nano that Mamta said "Nah, No" and Modi said "Wah, Aah".

Anand in Sanand while sadness in Singur

Nano has moved out of Singur and with it, the hopes of landowners in and around Singur. As per reports, real estate prices have come crashing down in this town of the state of West Bengal on account of pullout of the project. A handful of brokers that had cornered a huge chunk of land and had rode the wave of prosperity over the past of couple of years are now finding it hard to sell the same even at vastly reduced prices. This has however proved to be a blessing in disguise for people owning land near Sanand in Gujarat, the new home of the project. Despite lying on the outskirts of the city of Ahmedabad, where real estate has taken a real beating, some brokers are hopeful that the relocation of the plant would give a much-needed boost to the real estate scenario even in the heart of the city. This is indeed a testimony to how one big thing could lead to another. Some politicians in West Bengal however chose to go the other way.

With the net, everyone of us is immortal

2008-10-18T13:17:00.001+03:00

Its a holiday and I was just browsing around the net. I wanted to see what results I get by googling my son's name.

I was pleasantly surprised to find these two poems written by him almost eight years back. It brought a smile in my place. This also establishes the fact that like the scriptures we find on stone the messages that we post on the web get some kind of immortality.

Reptiles - by S. Niranjan, V - D, Vidya Mandir, Mylapore, Chennai.

With sticky tongue,
They wander around the sun,
Let us see them and have some fun.
 
Let us see the reptiles,
How they change their color,
They look so scary,
But not hairy!

They can change their color to the color of everything
They can change their color to including the color of tin
 With poisonous tongue,
Look out everyone!
See the reptiles and have some fun.
************************
************************
New Little Baby Brother - by S. Niranjan, V - D, Vidya Mandir, Mylapore, Chennai.
 
Cuddly and cute,
Sleeping in my mother's lap,
Lay a pleasant surprise,
For my father, and me
A little baby brother.

Sweet tiny baby,
For me and my father,
When he woke up,
With his small little eyes,
 Like cute little moles.

I gave my sweet brother,
A loving gentle tap,
And a small woolen cap,
As he cuddled in my mother's lap.

We have to just google with the name of our relatives and friends, live or dead, to get what is engraved about them or by them on the net. Interesting.

Wanna trade places with your wife?

2008-10-18T09:12:00.001+03:00

A man was sick and tired of going to work every day while his wife stayed at home.

He wanted her to see what he went through so he prayed, "Dear Lord, I go to work every day and put in eight hours while my wife merely stays at home. I want her to know what I go through,so please create a trade in our bodies."

God, in His infinite wisdom,granted the man's wish.

The next morning, sure enough, the man awoke as a woman.

He arose, cooked breakfast for his mate, awakened the kids, set out their school clothes, fed them breakfast, packed their lunches, drove them to school, came home and picked up the dry cleaning, took it to the cleaners and stopped at the bank to draw out money to pay the power bill and telephone bill, drove to the power company and the phone company and paid the bills, went grocery shopping, came home and put away the groceries. He cleaned the cat's litter box and bathed the dog.

Then it was already 1:00 p.m. and he hurried to make the beds, do the laundry, vacuum, dust, and sweep and mop the kitchen floor. He ran to the school to pick up the kids and got into an argument with them on the way home. He set out cookies and milk and got the kids organized to do their homework,then set up the ironing board and watched TV while he did the ironing.

At 4:30 PM he began peeling potatoes and washed greens for salads, breaded the chops and snapped fresh beans for supper.

After supper, he cleaned the kitchen, ran the dishwasher, folded laundry, bathed the kids, and put them to bed. At 9:00 PM he was exhausted and though his chores weren't finished,he went to bed where he was expected to make love, which he managed to get through without complaint.

The next morning, he awoke and immediately knelt by the bed and said, Lord, I don't know what I was thinking. I was so wrong to envy my wife's being able to stay home all day. Please, O Lord please, let us trade back."

The Lord, in his infinite wisdom, replied, "My son, I feel you have learned your lesson, and I will be happy to change things back to the way they were. You'll have to wait 9 months, though. You got pregnant last night!!!"

Go Sachin Go!

2008-10-11T09:10:00.003+03:00

Dear Mr. Tendulkar,

You have achieved a lot on the cricket field. Whatever you have achieved so far is fantastic. You have done lot of good things for the Indian Cricket. You have given so much pleasure over the many years to millions of cricket followers around the world. You have received rich accolades from greats such a Late Sir Donald Bradman, Sir Sobers and many many more contemporary cricketers.

Lot of records have been made by you, number of centuries, number of man of the match awards, world cup appearances and runs etc. etc. The list is endless.

However, it is undeniable that in the past two or three years you have clearly shown signs of fading. You seem to be not accepting that you have become a pale shadow of yourself on the field. Too many injuries, too many lay offs from active cricket and too little trouble to the scorers off late prove the point.

You are no more the authoritative batsman you were say about three years back. The decline is very visible. You deserve to go out on a high and with good respect.

There is no big deal in achieving the highest test run getter post. When it appears very clear that it is not going to stand for long. Because, much more aggressive, authoritative and still in touch batsman like Ricky Ponting is just breathing down your neck to surpass you within few tests of you achieving it. In your current batting form and ability it does appear to many of us that he may even reach that post earlier than you though you only required 175 odd runs when you went to Sri Lanka and now only require just 67 runs to reach there after the first innings of the ongoing Bangalore Test.

In your prime, 67 runs would have come probably come in a single session of a test match with the help of may be 8 fours, 1 six and some intelligently run singles and ones converted to twos. But, in the current form? I am sorry to say, but it appears that it might take six or seven test matches.

You deserve to go with respect. So go now.

You will not be one day late.

Have you seen my other blog?
And another blog?

"Fall" Collection

2008-10-07T09:16:00.001+03:00

I got this mail from one friend:

**************************
I am sad to share with you untimely demise of our beloved dynamic duo SENSEX and NIFTY

They were unwell since last few months due to constant fluctuation of Oil and $ count. Though recently it stabilised and was improving but last weekend they got sudden blow from bankruptcy virus called LEHMYAIG. It's a deadly combination of Lehman, Merill Lynch and AIG. The blow from this virus proved fatal. Coupled with epidemic effect of the above and Wa Mu, Wach and Goldman infection SENSEX and NIFTY just could not be saved.

May god give peace to soul of their beloved family members.

SENSEX & NIFTY - 1970 to 2008

Children: Reliance, Infosys, ICICI, Bhel, L& T and 40 others
Cousin: Hang Seng, KOSPI, NIKKEI
In laws: Dow Jones and NASDAQ

You are requested to pay tribute to them by looking at your portfolios for 5 minutes

**************************

I replied back to him this:

If only they heeded to advise of elders and "Exercised" caution regularly, they would have lived for some more years. But they were "Banking" too much on "Power" and had little "Healthcare". The body looked sound but the internal "Infrastructure" was very bad may be because of "Engineering" faults or "Cellular" problems. Some even felt that "Biotechnology" could have saved them with the support of data gathered using "Information Technology" which in turn used "Computer Hardware". They even tried to "Outsource" some of the life support systems and by "Auto"mating some organs but nothing could strengthen and "Cement" the situation. But despite the efforts every "OTHER" thing tried failed.

The "real estate" left behind them are staring at us in our portfolios as strong immovables.

We can only look to buy some "Capital Equipment" to build a nice monument for these departed souls and make a ever burning light with some "OIL" and pass "Gas" looking at the monument.

May their souls rest in peace.

What they don't teach you in B-Schools

2008-09-18T06:45:00.002+03:00

You don't have to study in B-Schools or turn to the B-School experts to know how to save your money, earn better returns and enjoy your life.

Good advice comes from people who have lived their life in a disciplined way and have followed simple but effective rules.

I was watching today on Television an interview of Mrs. Raja Sulochana one of the famous actresses of South Indian cinema who is now retired.

She said that she leads a happy life and is comfortable following what her father told. Here is what her father told her:

a) Set aside a per centage of your earnings for your old age. Think that you never earned it.

b) Set aside a per centage of your earnings for paying your taxes to Government. It is what you contribute to the society.

c) Then don't think twice about spending the balance. Spend that amount to get the fullest happiness that you can afford with that money

Mrs. Raja Sulochana is not and her father was not B-School graduates. But, they seemed to know what is good and what is bad.

How simple and easy our life will be, if we followed these simple rules.

Have you seen my other blog?
And another blog?

Let this dream see the light of the day

2008-09-14T20:59:00.003+03:00

Engineering student’s solution to power crisis

Invention: The windmill developed by K. Senthilkumar

SATHYAMANGALAM: Of the 400-plus computers at the Bannari Amman Institute of Technology, 20 are greener. They do not run on the conventional power the college gets. Powering the machines, instead, is a small windmill, put up by K. Senthilkumar, a second year engineering student.

The wind turbine is designed to run in winds blowing at three miles an hour. The regular ones operate at 23.5 miles per hour. “I wanted the windmill to run in low speeds, be small, compact and home-usable,” the budding engineer explains.

At a wind speed of three miles an hour, the turbine makes 60 rotations per minute, which is enough to generate around 850 watts. Greater the wind speed more is the power produced.

Mr. Senthilkumar, pursuing computer science and not mechanical or electrical engineering, says with the wind speed, all household electrical equipment, including a two-tonne air conditioner, compressor for drawing water and grinder, can be operated. “In my calculation, a household requires about 1,000 watts a day, which the windmill can easily provide. The excess power the windmill generates is sent to a battery with an eight-hour backup,” says the boy who pursues computer science and not mechanical or electrical engineering.

He says the windmill can be set atop any building and in open space as well, as it requires only 16 sq.ft. “It will work even in congested residential areas because it has been designed to operate at low wind speeds.”

Designing the windmill took him about a year and Rs. 75,000. “I got the idea at my farm, on seeing the water flowing out of a compressor. Initially it started as a water turbine and then became a wind turbine.”

He did it as part of an engineering competition.

Source: http://www.hindu.com/2008/09/14/stories/2008091454880600.htm

Have you seen my other blog?
And another blog?

Retiring gracefully

2008-08-14T05:29:00.004+03:00

Navjot Singh Sidhu has said several times on air that only two Indian Cricketers have retired gracefully from international cricket, Sunil Gavaskar and Javagal Srinath. They retired and people asked "Why?".

Those two were quite surely unlike many other cricketers who announce retirement for the record.

I said retirement announcement for the record since overlooking them from team selection usually precedes such retirement announcement. And despite that "overlooking" these cricketers still nurse hopes of a comeback failing miserably in self-assessment. These guys test the patience of the talented youngsters waiting in the wings. And probably frustrate some of the youngsters to announce retirement.

I think these aging cricketers, past their prime, continue to crave for records and that is the reason why they announce their retirement for "record". They go not by making people ask "why?" but when a chorus (which might include voices of their own die-hard fans) erupts asking "When?".

The very same cricketers who in their prime make people travel miles to watch their talent at display travel miles and miles and miles to score those extra few runs or take those extra few wickets. They look a pale shadow of their past but still drudge on. At the very least it looks ugly.

And to think that they come from this country of philosphers and Gurus who preach to the world the benefits of containing desires, is surprising.

Mr. Sachin, Mr. Rahul & Mr. Saurav - "When?"

Have you seen my other blog?
And another blog?

Warne admits he was not a good husband

2008-07-27T17:11:00.002+03:00

Successful people are not successful in whatever they do. World has seen many examples of people who are extremely successful and popular in professional career come a cropper in personal life. However, very few have the courage to admit that they weren't as much successful in personal life.

Share Warne, the legendary leg spinner, seems to be an exception. It takes enormous courage to accept one's faults and it takes even more courage to accept it in public. Hats off to you Warnie! But, this time, off the field.

New Delhi: Australian spin legend Shane Warne has revealed that he maintains a "good relationship" with ex-wife Simone but accepted that he was never a good husband.

"My kids are unreal; I've got a good relationship with my ex-wife, Simone. I've always been a good father. I may not have been a wonderful husband, but even during the difficult times, Simone always said I was a good father. Brooke is 11 now, Jackson 9, Summer 7, I love them to death, would do anything for them," Warne was quoted as saying by The Sun.

Warne, who quit international cricket last year, had a string of affairs with women while he was married to Simone.

The wily leg-spinner has been involved in several sex scandals during his playing days, including a romp with models while on tour to England during the famous 2005 Ashes series, which Australia lost.

The champion Australian, who continues to play first-class cricket, was a huge hit when he led his IPL team the Rajasthan Royals to victory in the inaugural event.

Now he says he is in better shape than he has been for a long time and feels he is in a good place at the moment.

He says looks forward to the Champions League with the Royals and to next season's IPL.

Warne added that if he stays fit and stays on top of his game, he would continue his stint with the Rajasthan Royals for the love of the game.

Have you seen my other blog?
And another blog?

Airlines shed weight as fuel costs soar

2008-07-07T13:44:00.002+03:00

Savings start on Board

NEXT time you take to the skies you may find there are fewer pages in your in-flight magazine, your fork is slimmer and your plate feels different. Blame it on soaring oil prices.

The seat you are sitting on may be lighter. Perhaps there's less water on board for the bathroom taps and toilets. The drinks trolley coming your way probably weighs less too.

It's all part of efforts by airlines to shed weight and conserve fuel, running in tandem with more radical steps such as cutting routes and capacity.

"Individually they may sound quite trivial but they all add up," said Andrew Herdman, director general of the Association of Asia Pacific Airlines.

"Obviously, the more expensive the fuel, the more the savings translate into. Given that oil prices are at a record high and have quadrupled over the past few years, there's even more effort" to reduce weight, he said.

Japan Airlines (JAL), Asia's largest carrier, is among carriers that are putting fewer pages into their in-flight magazines.

It has also slimmed the handles of its forks and spoons, reducing their weight by two grams each, said JAL spokesman Hisanori Iizuka.

The weight of a freight container has been cut by 26kg, reducing the burden of a flight by one tonne.

Even the porcelain in business class on international flights is 20 per cent lighter since the manufacturer put tiny bubbles inside.

"It's important to make every little effort, which matters when you carry hundreds of passengers on a flight and operate 365 days" a year, said Iizuka.

"The heavier the plane is, the lower its fuel efficiency. This is part of our efforts to slim down everything possible."

It's not the only airline looking to shed weight. Qantas is also considering similar steps to conserve fuel.

"We don't want to compromise our product or service," but the carrier is looking at lightweight meal carts, alternative packaging and examining "what we carry to remove waste, that type of thing," a spokeswoman said.

Singapore Airlines has introduced lightweight drink trolleys and serviceware on board new aircraft such as the A380 superjumbo and the Boeing B777-300ER.

"These carts and serviceware will be on all new aircraft which join the fleet in the future. As for magazines, based on crew feedback, titles not in demand were removed," a spokeswoman for the carrier said.

All Nippon Airways has also been reducing the weight of seats, tableware, trolleys used by cabin attendants and other items.

"By introducing lighter porcelain for first and business classes, we have reduced the weight by an average 66kg on one flight," a spokeswoman said. "We're always looking for items whose weight can be reduced."

Even paint adds weight to an aircraft, so some carriers have been experimenting with only polishing the exterior, particularly for cargo planes.

Airlines worldwide face total losses of at least $2.39 billion this year due to soaring fuel costs, according to the International Air Transport Association, which says the industry is in "crisis".

At least two dozen carriers around the world have gone bust this year.

Some carriers have begun charging passengers a fee for checked luggage.

And there is even speculation that the passengers might eventually have to step on the scales before boarding a plane, with heavier travellers paying more to fly, although experts say that day is not here just yet.

"I don't think we've quite got to the point of passengers being weighed," said Herdman.

Have you seen my other blog?
And another blog?

What to buy now?

2008-07-01T10:46:00.003+03:00

When greed is high one has to sell and when fear is high one has to buy is a wise advise from share investment gurus.

Still the problem remains of identifying what to buy and what to sell during fear and greed times. Easy way out is to look for the underlying value offered by the scrips. That will help you to get out of the useless scrips that have multiplied due to greed and fantastic scrips that get undervalued in times of fear.

Since the current market is one of fear, it makes sense to look for some valuable buys. I am not going to specify here what to buy. Rather, I am trying to give a guide for selecting the scrips:

a) Low Debt Equity (when rates are going up, these companies will be least affected)

b) Market leaders in their business (irrespective of the market condition, they will continue to stay on top)

c) Continuous dividend record over a period of say 6 to 8 years (this might exclude new companies but it is better to go for some company with a track record than some thing that is still not proven). Six to eight years track will help us to identify the consistency over a period of time by which one can expect a company to have seen one bad cycle and one good cycle.

d) A company may have a policy of not distributing dividend and instead use that cash to fund their business. One can identify such companies by looking at continuous period of profitability (once again 6 to 8 years)

e) See the book value, market price and 52 week high and low besides what was the price of the share before the bull cycle started. How far or near is the current price to that price? If the business has grown from the time bull run started and the price has gone back closer to the price at the beginning of the bull run, it is a must buy share.

Happy investing!

Have you seen my other blog?
And another blog?

Small walk is useful, small talk isn't

2008-06-26T06:42:00.001+03:00

Tips to incorporate exercise into your lifestyle

A healthy lifestyle is an active one. As well as planned exercise (e.g. 30 minutes three times a week) you should also incorporate activity into your day-to-day life. The following are some ideas to help you to incorporate physical activity into your lifestyle.

Take the stairs instead of lifts or elevators.
If you work in a large office, walk to talk to your colleagues, rather than picking up the phone.
If you use buses, get off a stop or two earlier and walk.
Don't worry about finding a car park next to the supermarket or shop entrance. By the time you have found a close park you could have walked from a further, empty and less stressful space!
For small amounts of shopping or other errands use a bicycle instead of the car, saving you money and the hassle of finding a park. If you live in a town, you will probably save time and if you live in the country you can enjoy the countryside.
If you have a cordless phone, walk and talk.

Best of walk!

Have you seen my other blog?
And another blog?

The Ant & The Grasshopper - A modern Indian View

2008-06-21T10:17:00.001+03:00

What the political parties and media do in India and whom they protect or detest is difficult to understand many a times. While it is important to protect and help those who really deserve it, when it becomes a right or some kind of default entitlement people may just tend to take it for granted and may not work hard enough to excel.

Read this interesting sybolic story.

Ant & Grasshopper

The Ant works hard in the withering heat all summer building its house and laying up supplies for the winter.

The Grasshopper thinks the Ant is a fool and laughs & dances & plays the summer away.

Come winter ,the Ant is warm and well fed. The Grasshopper has no food or shelter so he dies out in the cold.
Indian Version

The Ant works hard in the withering heat all summer building its house and laying up supplies for the winter.

The Grasshopper thinks the Ant's a fool and laughs & dances & plays the summer away.

Come winter, the shivering Grasshopper calls a press conference and demands to know why the Ant should be allowed to be warm and well fed while others are cold and starving.

NDTV, BBC, CNN show up to provide pictures of the shivering Grasshopper next to a video of the Ant in his comfortable home with a table filled with food.

The World is stunned by the sharp contrast. How can this be that this poor Grasshopper is allowed to suffer so?

Arundhati Roy stages a demonstration in front of the Ant's house .

Medha Patkar goes on a fast along with other Grasshoppers demanding that Grasshoppers be relocated to warmer climates during winter .

Amnesty International and Koffi Annan criticizes the Indian Government for not upholding the fundamental rights of the Grasshopper.

The Internet is flooded with online petitions seeking support to the Grasshopper (many promising Heaven and Everlasting Peace for prompt support as against the wrath of God for non-compliance).

Opposition MPs stage a walkout. Left parties call for "Bharat Bandh" in West Bengal and Kerala demanding a Judicial Enquiry.

CPM in Kerala immediately passes a law preventing Ants from working hard in the heat so as to bring about equality of poverty among Ants and Grasshoppers.

Lalu Prasad allocates one free coach to Grasshoppers on all Indian Railway Trains, aptly named as the 'Grasshopper Rath '.

Finally, the Judicial Committee drafts the ' Prevention of Terrorism Against Grasshoppers Act' [POTAGA], with effect from the beginning of the winter.

Arjun Singh makes 'Special Reservation ' for Grasshoppers in Educational Institutions & in Government Services.

The Ant is fined for failing to comply with POTAGA and having nothing left to pay his retroactive taxes,it's home is confiscated by the Government and handed over to the Grasshopper in a ceremony covered by NDTV.

Arundhati Roy calls it ' A Triumph of Justice'.

Lalu calls it 'Socialistic Justice '.

CPM calls it the ' Revolutionary Resurgence of the Downtrodden '

Koffi Annan invites the Grasshopper to address the UN General Assembly .

Many years later...

The Ant has since migrated to the US and set up a multi-billion dollar company in Silicon Valley ..

100s of Grasshoppers still die of starvation despite reservation somewhere in India ....

As a result of loosing lot of hard working Ants and feeding the Grasshoppers, India is still a developing country!!!

IPO prospectus for better insight

2008-06-05T10:02:00.001+03:00

Time to time you may want to read an IPO prospectus of a company that you are researching. Below is the link for downloading prospectuses of companies that have made a public issue or planning one.

A prospectus will be a great source of information and disclosures and will give you very good insight into the company, besides disclosures about all risk factors one may need to consider. Though these risk factors are tabulated for information of the investors considering investment thru the IPO it will also be very helpful for those who are planning to buy the shares of the Company in the secondary market. It will also be useful for the investor to contact the Company and ask relevant questions regarding the plans and prospects, armed with the information contained in the prospectus.

Happy Investing!

http://www.sebi.gov.in/Index.jsp?contentDisp=Department&dep_id=1

Mistakes of stock market traders

2008-03-10T17:33:00.001+03:00

Interesting and informative article

"7 Big Trading Mistakes"

The following is a list of things you want to avoid at all costs. Anyone of them can literally destroy your financial dreams and goals!

1. Trading with money you can't afford to lose

One of the greatest obstacles to successful trading is using money that you really can't afford to lose. Examples of this would be money that is supposed to be used to pay the mortgage, bills or your child's college tuition. This is sometimes referred to as "trading with scared money" and there is a very good reason for that. Ultimately what happens is that when someone knows in the back of their mind that they are risking the borrow money, they trade out of fear and emotion versus logic and no emotion. If you are in this situation we highly recommend that you stop trading until you earn enough to put into an account that you truly can afford to lose without causing major financial setbacks.

2. The need to be "certain"

We all have the need to make sure that the trade we want to make is going to be a good one. Therefore we look for signs that will give us a confirmation to enter. This can come in several forms, for example… Tuning into any Busniess Channel or the Newspapers to give us news that our script is on the move or waiting for a couple of extra days to make sure that the script is really flying and just not on a false breakout. Other traders will get opinions from friends, family or broker. Others will wait for ten technical indicators to line up and give the "green light".

All of these are okay to a point, however the big mistake to avoid is taking so much time that you let the trade take off without you. Interestingly, what ends up happening as a result of waiting too long is that you actually increase your risk. This is because as a script moves higher and higher there are fewer buyers left in the market and it can come tumbling down until more buyers step in. It is like a game of musical chairs; eventually someone gets caught without a chair.

Traders who wait and wait and wait to make extra sure are usually the ones buying the top tick just before the stocks sells off. They then beat themselves up thinking they picked the wrong script.

The thing to keep in mind is that there can be no absolute certainty in any given trade. All we ever can do is take a very educated risk along with a leap of faith!

3. Words that will kill you! HOPE---WISH---PRAY

If you ever find yourself doing one or more of the above while in a trade then you are in big trouble! As We have already said, the market doesn't give a damn. All the hoping, wishing and praying in the world is not going to turn a losing trade into a winning one. When you are wrong just use a simple 4-letter word to correct the situation-SELL!

4. Not Acting on your plan

A big source of trouble arises when a trader starts to deviate from their strategy. Maybe for a week they will trade according to one set of rules and the next use something entirely different. You must never deviate from your methodology once you start. As long as it is a good one statistically there is absolutely no reason to change it. The way to make money from it is to trade it over and over again to exploit the edge it gives you.

5. Not knowing how to get out of a losing trade

It's amazing how many people we have talked to who don't have any clear escape plan for getting out of a bad trade. Once again they hope, pray wish and rationalize their position. As we keep saying the market does not care what you think. It does what it does and when you are wrong you are wrong!
The easiest way to keep a bad trade from going really bad is to determine before you get in, where you will get out.

6. Having an ego

We have seen a number of individuals enter the trading game that were extremely successful in other business ventures. Because of this they had a fairly big ego and thought they couldn't fail. Their egos became their downfall because they couldn't except that they were wrong and refused to bail out of bad trades.

Once again, whoever or wherever you came from does not concern the markets. All the charm, powers of persuasion, number of diplomas or business savvy will not budge the market when you are wrong.

7. Falling in love with a sector or script

Numbers of people are always involved with a particular sector or a script. And they are of the view that this sector or script always proves Lucky for them. And they love trading in that script without managing any risk. They are so much confidant that their every trade in that particular script will always result in to a winning or successful trade. But …………

To avoid the situation after but…, never fall in love with a particular sector or stock, It can cost you dearly!

Note: If you have any question regarding this letter please email us at info@fortunatemangement.co.in. And if you have any comments or suggestions please inform us. We will highly appreciate your suggestions and comments.

Disclaimer:

Trading in Stock Exchange is not suitable for everyone. Past Performance is not indicative of Future Result.

AAADD syndrome

2008-01-31T19:12:00.000+03:00

Anyone else have this problem?

I have recently been diagnosed with AAADD - Age Activated Attention Deficit Disorder.

This is how it goes.....

Its my weekend and I decide to organize myself. I need to tidy up a lot. I decide to start with my Car. It needs a washing. So I decide to wash the car. I walk towards the garage. Then I reaslise I need to pick up the keys, to clean the interior of the car. I go back and remember I kept the car keys on the working table.

I go near the table and notice there are lots of mails that I have to open and read. I decide, I will wash the car, but first, let me clear those mails. I pick up the mails, I decide to first sort out the junk mails. If I clear them then I can go thru only those that are relevant.

I pick up the junk and throw them to the wastepaper basket. As I do I notice the trash is full. It needs to be cleared. I decide to see the mails but before I should clear the trash. I pick the trash can walk and I notice there are bills to be paid, kept on the dining table. Oh, its better I pay these. I will empty the trash, but before that, let me first write out checks for those bills. I keep the basket down, pick up the bills.

Let me go to the working table to write the checks.

Yes, Now where is the check book?

Oops... there's only one check left. Where did I put the extra checks?

Oh, there's my empty plastic cup from last night on my desk.

I'm going to look for those checks...BUT FIRST I need to put the cup back in the kitchen.

I head for the kitchen, look out the window, notice the flowers need a drink of water, I put the cup on the counter and there's my extra pair of glasses on the kitchen counter.

What are they doing here? I'll just put them away...BUT FIRST need to water those plants.

I head for the door and...

Aaaagh! Someone left the TV remote in the wrong spot.

Okay, I'll put the remote away and water the plants...

BUT FIRST I need to find those checks.

END OF DAY: car not washed, bills still unpaid, cup still in the sink, check book still has only one check left, lost my car keys; and, when I try to figure out why nothing got done today, I'm baffled because...I KNOW I WAS BUSY ALL DAY!

I realize this condition is serious... I'd get help...BUT FIRST... I think I'll check my e-mail, I have to clear that inbox.

Realised my condition?

Do you have this syndrome?

Then can you make an appointment with the doctor for both of us?

Wait, first, let us find a doctor. Google? Ah, the connection is fast, let me check the bank account to see the credits and debits....

Invest in Gold

2008-01-26T13:35:00.000+03:00

I strongly consider Gold to be an excellent investment opportunity for the coming years. And my conviction has increased even more after reading Mr. Ajit Dayal at http://www.equitymaster.com/ . He has given the rationale on why Gold should move up.

I subscribe to his views. Besides the various statistics and points put forth by Mr. Ajit Dayal, my reason for "investing" in gold are below: (mind you, I am saying "investing" and not buying the metal for your wife! - that is illiquid and usually make you to make a "spirited" run to the liquids of largely golden color):

1. Its a scarce commodity

2. Two of the world's most populous nations (China & India) and the women in the monied Arab world have enormous love for the yellow metal

3. It has not revalued itself for the inflationary effects - the price is almost inflation neutral for the past 27 years.

4. A scarce commodity with so much demand, must pick up speed in the price

5. If you are someone dealing in Indian Markets, the most important reason to buy Gold will be that neither the Government or the Left front can do anything about a Gold price increase!

I suggest that one takes a serious look at the Gold Exchange Traded Funds and invest in Gold. Some of the listed funds are - Reliance Gold Fund, Benchmark Gold Fund etc.

Have you seen my other blog?
And another blog?

Reliance on Power?

2008-01-12T16:40:00.000+03:00

The markets seem to be powering ahead and attaining the pinnacle of glory from the Reliance Power issue.

The market is being electrified by such powerful issues. Companies with nothing in their books of accounts issue paper (well in demat times, not even paper) for big prices and the electrified investors queue up to gobble the shares on offer.

I read in one of the websites dedicated to stock markets that it is not worthwhile to apply for the impending high priced public issue of Reliance Power as it will get obscenely oversubscribed. So there will be no value in subscribing. (Don't know if they intended pun as regards the "value").

In these charged up times, it is difficult to find or hear sane voices. However, I heard one. Thanks to http://www.equitymaster.com for echoing the voice of the master, as below:

Buffett in his 2000 letter to shareholders mentions “Investors, mesmerized by soaring stock prices and ignoring all else, piled into these enterprises. It was as if some virus, racing wildly among investment professionals as well as amateurs, induced hallucinations in which the values of stocks in certain sectors became decoupled from the values of the businesses that underlay them. This surreal scene was accompanied by much loose talk about "value creation." What actually occurs in these cases is wealth transfer, often on a massive scale. But a pin lies in wait for every bubble. And when the two eventually meet, a new wave of investors learns some very old lessons: First, many in Wall Street- a community in which quality control is not prized-will sell investors anything they will buy. Second, speculation is most dangerous when it looks easiest.”

That was at the height of the previous great boom.

Do we see history repeating itself?

Have you seen my other blog?

Mera Bharath Mahan

2008-01-10T19:28:00.000+03:00

TATA

You have made India Proud

You have made Indians proud

Pehle aap Indica Car banaya!

Ab aapne Indian ca Car banadiye!

(Earlier you made Indica Car! Now you have made Indian's Car!)

We are feeling head and shoulders above in the world

We salute your Engineering Marvel

Hats off to you!!!

Normally we say TATA to say bye

We now say TATA to Welcome.

Have you seen my other blog?
And another blog?

Tata Chem & Orchid Chem

2008-01-01T18:28:00.000+03:00

Happy New Year my dear readers.

For the Indian stock market enthusiasts (Or should I call them old fashioned - Investors?) looking for that great stock or two, here is some choice from Sharekhan.

Bullish on Tata Chem & Orchid Chem: Sharekhan

2008-01-01 15:53:30 Source : CNBC-TV18

, AVP, Sharekhan, said he is bullish on Orchid Chemicals and Tata Chemicals from the midcap space.

Orchid Chemicals exports formulations to the US and Europe, he said. "The company is venturing into the non-antibiotic space. It has identified over 80 products across various segments. Orchid Chemicals has marketing alliances with Actavis, Stada (Dava), and Par Pharma." The company is trading at 17.5 times the estimated earnings of FY08 and 12.8 times the estimated earnings of FY09, he added.

Soda ash prices are up by 60%, which will benefit Tata Chemicals, he said. "The soda ash capacity addition will lead to volume growth. The company has an investment portfolio of Rs 4,600 crore, which works out to about Rs 187 per share." The company is trading at 13.5 times estimated FY09 earnings with an EV/EBIDTA of 6.6 times, he added.

Excerpts from CNBC-TV18’s exclusive interview with Hemang Jani:

Q: Why do you like Tata Chemicals and what is the kind of price target that you are setting?

A: We like this stock because it is one of the world’s largest producers of soda ash. Prices of soda ash have moved up over the last six-months. They have gone up by about 60%. Currently, they are in the range of about USD 260-300 per tonne. Due to this, Tata Chemicals would be able to report a very good growth over the next 1-2 years.

Apart from that, there is also going to be windfall gains because of the debottlenecking of urea capacity. Tata Chemicals also has an investment portfolio of Rs 4,600 crore, which works out to about Rs 187 per share. Currently, it is available at a very reasonable valuation of about 14 times 2009 diluted earnings. We have set a price target of about Rs 535 for Tata Chemicals.

Q: Orchid Chemicals is the other stock that you like. How much of a run up do you think will come in from here? What are the factors in it favour?

A: Orchid Chemicals would do extremely well in 2008. In fact, people are looking out for stocks, which are available at a reasonable valuation and where the growth is going to be quite strong.

Orchid has displayed exceptionally good performance in the first half of 2008, mainly because of its focus on some niche products, where the competition is minimal and margins are high in the generic market. Orchid’s much awaited entry into Europe is very close now. They are going to be launching a Tazo-Pip formulation there, which should be a big blockbuster drug for it.

There will also be a host of Para IV filings. We feel the company should be able to do exceptionally well. Currently, it is available at about 18 times 2008 and about 13 times 2009 earnings. We have set a target of about Rs 375 on the stock.

Q: Any disclosures on both of them?

A: Personally, I don’t hold the stocks. But both these ideas are under our coverage, so our clients would be holding them.

Have you seen my other blog?
And another blog?

Hind Motors to launch LPG-based Ambassador

2007-12-23T11:59:00.001+03:00

Hindustan Motors (HM), the first Indian car company, is planning to launch cars on its Ambassador platform with sequential liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) injection system within three months.

The new car will give the owner the choice of either using LPG or petrol for fuel. The LPG injection systems are a widely used form of technology and the company would not have to make any significant investments in upgrading its existing platform, said Moloy Chowdhury, executive vice president, HM.

The demand for vehicles with alternative fuel technology was on the rise for both economic and environmental reasons, and the production and marketing of the new car would be shaped by market
demands, he said. The cars would be priced slightly higher than the existing models. Chowdhury, however, refused to divulge the pricing details.

In another move, HM launched the Ambassador air-conditioned(AC) meter taxis in Kolkata in response to users' requirements. A section of the passengers were felt to be looking for AC comfort within an affordable range, said Chowdhury. The state transport department has issued permits for 300 such taxis. The city will have a separate counter for AC taxis at the airport and railway stations soon. Currently, around 20,000 non-AC taxis ply in Kolkata.

The first batch of taxis will be priced at Rs 3.79 lakh ex-showroom as against the non-AC taxi price of Rs 3.6 lakh. The fare will be 25% more than the non-AC taxi fare. The car is expected to give a mileage of 14- 16 kilometers per litre on city roads, Chowdhury said.

HM currently produces over 1,000 units of Ambassador cars at its Uttarpara facility near Kolkata running at one-third its full capacity. This was primarily because of lack of demand, admitted Chowdhury. The company targets to sell around 12,500 units by the end of this fiscal.

Of the four business verticals operating at the Uttarpara plant that includes vehicle manufacture along with automotive forging, stamping and castings, the vehicle segment contributes nearly 90% of the turnover.

My other blog: http://mindpicks.blogspot.com

Accountants!

2007-12-19T18:25:00.001+03:00

Love them, hate them, you can’t ignore them

What's the definition of an accountant?

Someone who solves a problem you didn't know you had in a way you don't understand

What's an accountant's idea of trashing his hotel room?

Refusing to fill out the guest comment card

What's the most wicked thing a group of young accountants can do?

Go into town and gang-audit someone

What does an accountant say when you ask him the time?

It's 9.18 am and 12 seconds; no wait - 13 seconds, no wait - 14 seconds, no wait......

Why did the accountant stare at his glass of orange juice for three hours?

Because on the box it said Concentrate.

The accountant's prayer:

Lord, help me be more relaxed about insignificant details, starting tomorrow at 10.53:16 am, Eastern Daylight Saving Time.

Conversation between two accountants at a cocktail party:

".......and ninthly..."

What do accountants suffer from that ordinary people don't?

Depreciation

How do you know accountants have no imagination?

They named a firm PricewaterhouseCoopers

What do you call an accountant without a spreadsheet?

Lost

If an accountant's wife can't get to sleep, what does she say?

"Tell me about work today, dear"

Why do accountants get excited on Saturdays?

They can wear casual clothes to work

How do you know when an accountant's on holidays?

He doesn't wear a tie to work and comes in after 8.30

What does CPA stand for?

Can't Produce Anything

What's an auditor?

Someone who arrives after the battle and bayonets all the wounded

Why did the auditor cross the road?

Because he looked in the file and that's what they did last year.

Why did he cross back?

So he could charge the client for travel expenses.

How many auditors does it take to change a light bulb?

How many did it take last year?

How many cost accountants does it take to change a light bulb?

Hmmm........I'll just do a few numbers and get back to you

Laws of Accounting

1. Trial balances don't

2. Bank reconciliations never do

3. Working Capital does not

4. Return on Investments never will

A fool and his money are soon audited

A lady goes to see her doctor with some worrying symptoms and he examines her.

"I'm sorry," he says "but it's bad news. You have only six months to live."

The patient says, "Oh Doctor. That's terrible. What should I do?"

The doctor says, "I advise you to marry a CPA."

"Will that make me live longer?"

"No," says the doctor. "But it will seem longer."- No offence- hahahaha

An auditor is checking the books of an airline. He is puzzled by the excess use of fuel on a Melbourne to Canberra flight. He rings up the pilot and asks for an explanation.

"It was late at night'" says the pilot, "Canberra was covered in fog and I lost my bearings."

"I'm sorry," says the auditor, "but you'll have to bear the cost yourself."

"The cost of what?" asks the pilot.

"Of the bearings you lost."

Accountant after reading nursery rhymes to his young child:

"No, son. When Little Bo Peep lost her sheep that wouldn't be tax deductible, but I like your thinking".

5-step guide to locating a 'wealth creator'

2007-12-16T19:58:00.001+03:00

The first rule to investing is ‘Don’t lose money’. The second rule to investing is ‘Don’t forget rule no. 1’! It is essential to stick to these rules when it comes to investing, in order to avoid the possibility of capital erosion.

To apply these rules successfully and to create wealth through equity investing, Raamdeo Agrawal, Director & Co-founder, Motilal Oswal Financial Services identifies five parameters that you must evaluate. They are:

1. Assess the entry barriers created by a company

Entry barrier should be preferably intellectual in character

Remember, a stock is nothing but a stake in the company’s business. So, observe the company’s business and the entry barriers created by it. The entry barrier should be more ‘intellectual’ in character rather than ‘physical’. This is because while it is next to impossible to compete with a strong brand (an intellectual barrier), competitive advantage associated with a piece of land (a physical barrier) disappears when a competitor acquires one as well.

Strong brands such as ‘Thums-Up’, ‘Parle-G’, etc. have enabled their companies to retain the top spot. However, at times, there could be exceptions. For instance, the entry barrier associated with TISCO would be its large base of iron ore and coal, which allows it to lower its raw material cost drastically vis-à-vis its competitors for long time to come.

Entry barrier should be long-lasting

An entry barrier should not only be strong, but also long lasting. Such companies will keep making money because their entry barriers keep working for them. For instance, Britannia may not be the best managed company but its strong brand continuously earns money for it.

Buy into such companies at the earliest

As an investor, buy into such businesses ahead of the crowd. If an entry barrier has been established very recently, it may not yet be exploited by the business. Accordingly, the market would not have valued it in the company’s share price.

For instance, when Financial Technologies (promoters of MCX) got its commodity exchange license and launched it, the popular opinion held was that it would be unable to execute the business well. But, today, it has emerged as a premier commodity exchange. Investing in such companies before the market sees their potential delivers best appreciation.

“Though difficult to practice, think ahead of the crowd”

2. Management should be competent and passionate

Choose companies that are led by a team and are competent and passionate. Both these attributes are equally important. Competence or passion alone will not work. An individual with a local degree combined with passion would have greater growth prospects than one who has a Harvard degree but no passion. A company like Pantaloon Retail is a shining example of how passion can create wealth.

“The definition of a great company is one that will remain great for many years”

3. Management should have integrity

Integrity is the most crucial quality that a company’s management must have. Such companies not only run their businesses in an honest manner, but, are honest to all their stakeholders, whether they are employees, the government or the shareholders.

If honesty is part of a company’s DNA, it will be fair to its smallest stakeholders – the minority retail shareholders. Companies such as Tata and Infosys have this quality, which has added to their growth and market attractiveness immensely.

“Without management integrity, no margin of safety can be high enough”

The above-mentioned three characteristics (long lasting intellectual entry barrier, competent and passionate management and integrity) must all be simultaneously present in a company that you choose to invest in.

4. Buy low

The price that you pay for a stock determines your rate of return. So, it is essential that you get your purchase price right. While some companies come out on top with respect to all the first three parameters, the returns falter when it comes to the purchase price.

For instance, HLL comes on top with respect to all the first three parameters but has not delivered as much as far as its stock goes. Its stock delivered a CAGR of approximately just 3 per cent over the last 5 years, when the market delivered a CAGR of approximately 44 per cent over the same period.

The quote - “In the bible it is said that love takes care of a lot of sins. In investments, purchase price takes care of a lot of mistakes” – is very apt. You can make mistakes on assessing the first three parameters, since they are subjective in nature, but getting the right purchase price covers up for all your mistakes. Hence, estimate the expected value / intrinsic value of the company and keep an adequate margin of safety in the purchase price.

“It is much more important to buy cheap than to sell dear”

5. Have patience

When you buy a house you don’t expect it to appreciate overnight. You look at its appreciation over a long period. The same goes with equity. After having bought a company that conforms to all the above four criteria, you need to have patience. Investing in equities is often driven by two emotions – greed and fear. And patience is the mantra that helps overcome these emotions. Patience makes the difference between investing and speculation. It’s like a fertiliser to the investment process.

“In reality, patience is crucial, but it is a rare commodity”

End note

Investing is laying out today’s money for more in the future. Its about performance of the underlying assets. Success in investing is the outcome of a disciplined approach.

Happy Investing !

Raamdeo Agrawal, Director & co-Founder, Motilal Oswal Financial Services

Credits: http://www.economictimes.com

8 reasons why stock market traders lose money by Ashwani Gujral

2007-12-14T15:56:00.001+03:00

Many people think trading is the simplest way of making money in the stock market. Far from it; I believe it is the easiest way of losing money. There is an old Wall Street adage, that "the easiest way of making a small fortune in the markets is having a large fortune."

I discuss below eight ways of undisciplined trading which lead to losses. Guard against them, or the market will wipe you out. I am qualified to speak on this subject because I was myself an undisciplined trader for a long time and the market hammered me into line and forced me to change my approach.

1. Trading during the first half-hour of the session

The first half-hour of the trading day is driven by emotion, affected by overnight movements in the global markets, and hangover of the previous day's trading. Also, this is the period used by the market to entice novice traders into taking a position which might be contrary to the real trend which emerges only later in the day.

Most experienced traders simply watch the markets for the first half of the day for intraday patterns and any subsequent trading breakouts.

2. Failing to hear the market's message

Personally, I try to hear the message of the markets and then try to confirm it with the charts. During the trading day, I like to watch if the market is able to hold certain levels or not.

I like to go long around the end of the day if supported by patterns, and if the prices are consistently holding on to higher levels. I like to go short if the market is giving up higher levels, unable to sustain them and the patterns support a down move of the market.

This technique is called tape watching and all full-time traders practice it in some shape or form. If the markets are choppy and oscillate within a small range, then the market's message is to keep out.

Hearing the message of the market can be particularly important in times of significant news. The market generally reacts in a fashion contrary to most peoples' expectation. Let us consider two recent Indian events of significance.

One was the Gujarat earthquake that took place on 26 January 2001 and the other the 13 December 2001 terrorist attack on the Indian parliament. Both these events appeared catastrophic at first glance. TV channels suggested that the earthquake would devastate the country's economy because Gujarat has the largest number of investors and their confidence would be shattered, making the stock market plunge.

Tragic as both the events were, the market reacted in a different way to each by the end of the day. In both cases the markets plunged around 170 points when it opened, in both cases it tried to recover and while it managed a full recovery in the case of the Gujarat earthquake, it could not do so in the Parliament attack case.

The market was proven correct on both counts. The Gujarat earthquake actually held the possibility of boosting the economy as reconstruction had to be taken up, and also because most of the big installations, including the Jamnagar Refinery, escaped damage. In the case of the attack on parliament, although traders assessed that terrorist attacks were nothing new in the country but the market did not recover because it could see some kind of military build-up ahead from both India and Pakistan. And markets hate war and uncertainty.

In both these cases what helped the cause of the traders were the charts. If the charts say that the market is acting in a certain way, go ahead and accept it. The market is right all the time. This is probably even truer than the more common wisdom about the customer being the king. If you can accept the market as king, you will end up as a very rich trader, indeed.

Herein lies one reason why people who think they are very educated and smart often get trashed by the market because this market doesn't care who you are and it's certainly not there to help you. So expect no mercy from it; in fact, think of it as something that is there to take away your money, unless you take steps to protect yourself.

3. Ignoring which phase the market is in

It is important to know what phase the market is in -- whether it's in a trending or a trading phase. In a trending phase, you go and buy/sell breakouts, but in a trading phase you buy weakness and sell strength.

Traders who do not understand the mood of the market often end up using the wrong indicators in the wrong market conditions. This is an area where humility comes in. Trading in the market is like blind man walking with the help of a stick.

You need to be extremely flexible in changing positions and in trying to develop a feel for the market. This feel is then backed by the various technical indicators in confirming the phase of the market. Undisciplined traders, driven by their ego, often ignore the phase the market is in.

4. Failing to reduce position size when warranted

Traders should be flexible in reducing their position size whenever the market is not giving clear signals. For example, if you take an average position of 3,000 shares in Nifty futures, you should be ready to reduce it to 1,000 shares.

This can happen either when trading counter trend or when the market is not displaying a strong trend. Your exposure to the market should depend on the market's mood at any given point in the market. You should book partial profits as soon as the trade starts earning two to three times the average risk taken.

5. Failing to treat every trade as just another trade

Undisciplined traders often think that a particular situation is sure to give profits and sometimes take risk several times their normal level. This can lead to a heavy drawdown as such situations often do not work out.

Every trade is just another trade and only normal profits should be expected every time. Supernormal profits are a bonus when they -- rarely! -- occur but should not be expected. The risk should not be increased unless your account equity grows enough to service that risk.

6. Over-eagerness in booking profits

Profits in any trading account are often skewed to only a few trades. Traders should not be over-eager to book profits so long the market is acting right. Most traders tend to book profits too early in order to enjoy the winning feeling, thereby letting go substantial trends even when they have got a good entry into the market.

If at all, profit booking should be done in stages, always keeping some position open to take advantage of the rest of the move. Remember trading should consist of small profits, small losses, and big profits. Big losses are what must be avoided. The purpose of trading should be to get a position substantially into money, and then maintain trailing stop losses to protect profits.

Most trading is breakeven trading. Accounts sizes and income from trading are enhanced only when you make eight to ten times your risk. If you can make this happens once a month or even once in two months, you would be fine. The important point here is to not get shaken by the daily noise of the market and to see the market through to its logical target.

Remember, most money is made not by brilliant entries but by sitting on profitable positions long enough. It's boring to do nothing once a position is taken but the maturity of a trader is known not by the number of trades he makes but the amount of time he sits on profitable trades and hence the quantum of profits that he generates.

7. Trading for emotional highs

Trading is an expensive place to get emotional excitement or to be treated as an adventure sport. Traders need to keep a high degree of emotional balance to trade successfully. If you are stressed because of some unrelated events, there is no need to add trading stress to it. Trading should be avoided in periods of high emotional stress.

8. Failing to realise that trading decisions are not about consensus building

Our training since childhood often hampers the behaviour necessary for successful trading. We are always taught that whenever we take a decision, we should consult a number of people, and then do what the majority thinks is right. The truth of this market is that it never does what the majority thinks it will do.

Trading is a loner's job. Traders should not talk to a lot of people during trading hours. They can talk to experienced traders after market hours but more on methodology than on what the other trader thinks about the market.

If a trader has to ask someone else about his trade then he should not be in it. Traders should constantly try to improve their trading skills and by trading skills I mean not only charting skills but also position sizing and money management skills. Successful traders recognise that money cannot be made equally easily all the time in the market. They back off for a while if the market is too volatile or choppy.

Excerpt from: How to Make Money Trading Derivatives by Ashwani Gujral.

We Salute Dhirubai Ambani today!

2007-10-29T23:37:00.000+03:00

What a great news that an Indian is now the richest man in the world. Mukesh Ambani, by virtue of his holdings in India's pride Reliance Industries and other Companies of the group, has become the richest man in the world. He has left behind the enviable Bill Gates and Slim by a slim but important margin.

Number 20 has become some sort of a memorable number for Indians this year. We have won the T20 world cup and have hit 20K on the sensex (which to some appear a sense less x) and at the same moment hit a double of sorts by crowning an Indian to be the Richest man in the world.

Every Indian will be surely proud of this moment.

At this euphoric moment, it is very important to remember and thank that wizard of Dalal Street Late Dhirubai Ambani who changed the India's capital markets around 30 years back. He should be credited with creating the equity cult in India. And how much happy he would have been to see the sensex achieve this feat and his son being crowned as the king of the world.

We salute you Mr. Ambani! Thanks for making us proud.

Mukesh Ambani elbows out Gates, Slim to become world’s richest

Of about Rs 2,49,000 crore, about Rs 2,10,000 crore is from RIL (50.98% stake), Rs 37,500 crore from RPL (37.5%) and Rs 2,100 crore from RIIL (46.23%)

New Delhi: Billionaire Mukesh Ambani today became the richest person in the world, surpassing American software czar Bill Gates, Mexican business tycoon Carlos Slim Helu and famous investment guru Warren Buffett, courtesy the bull run in the stock market.

Following a strong share price rally today in his three group companies -- India’s most valued firm Reliance Industries, Reliance Petroleum and Reliance Industrial Infrastructure Ltd -- the net worth of Mukesh Ambani rose to $63.2 billion (Rs 2,49,108 crore).

In comparison, the net worth of both Gates and Slim is estimated to be slightly lower at around $62.29 billion each, with Slim leading among the two by a narrow margin.

Warren Buffett, earlier the third richest in the world, also dropped one position with a net worth of about 56 billion dollars.

Ambani’s wealth of about Rs 2,49,000 crore includes about Rs 2,10,000 crore from RIL (50.98% stake), Rs 37,500 crore from RPL (37.5%) and Rs 2,100 crore from RIIL (46.23%).

Slim’s wealth has been calculated on the basis of his stake in companies like America Movil (30%), Carso Global (82%), Grupo Carso (75%), Inbursa (67%), IDEAL (30%) and Saks Inc (10%).

According to information available with the US and Mexican stock exchanges where these companies are listed, Slim currently holds shares worth a total of $62.2993 billion, with more than half coming from Latin American mobile major America Movil. Slim is closely followed by Gates with a net worth of $62.29 billion currently.

Have you seen my other blog?

Know wherre to tap

2007-08-11T17:28:00.000+03:00

A small story...that teaches a lot...

A giant ship engine failed. The ship's owners tried one expert after another, but none of them could figure but how to fix the engine.

Then they brought in an old man who had been fixing ships since he was young. He carried a large bag of tools with him, and when he arrived, he immediately went to work. He inspected the engine very carefully, top to bottom.

Two of the ship's owners were there, watching this man, hoping he would know what to do. After looking things over, the old man reached into his bag and pulled out a small hammer. He gently tapped something. Instantly, the engine lurched into life. He carefully put his hammer away.

The engine was fixed! A week later, the owners received a bill from the old man for ten thousand dollars.

"What?!" the owners exclaimed. "He hardly did anything!"

So they wrote the old man a note saying, "Please send us an itemized bill."

The man sent a bill that read:

Tapping with a hammer........................ $2.00

Knowing where to tap.......................... $9,998.00

Effort is important, but knowing where to make an effort in your life makes all the difference.

My Dog Sex

2007-07-03T08:59:00.001+03:00

My Dog 'Sex'

Everybody who has a dog calls him "Rover" or "Boy". I call my dog "Sex".

Now, Sex has been very embarrassing to me. When I went to get his license, I told the clerk I would like to have a license for Sex.

He said, "I'd like to have one too."

Then I said, "But this is a dog."

He said I didn't care what she looked like.

Then I said, "You don't understand, I've had Sex since I was 9 year old."

He said I must have been quite a kid.

When I got married and went on my honeymoon, I took the dog with me.

I told the hotel clerk that I wanted a room for my wife and me and a special room for Sex.

He said that every room in the place was for sex.

I said, "You don't understand, Sex keeps me awake at night."

The Clerk said "Me too."

One day I entered Sex in a contest but before the competition began, the dog ran away.

Another contestant asked me why I was just standing there looking around.

I told him I had planned to have Sex entered in the contest.

He told me that I should have sold tickets.

"But you don't understand", I said, "I had hoped to have Sex on television."

He called me a show-off.

When my wife and I separated, we went to court to file for custody of the dog.

I said, "Your Honor, I had Sex before I got married."

The judge said "Me too." Then I told him that after I was married, Sex had left me.

He said, "Me too."

Last night Sex ran off again. I spent hours looking around town for him. A cop came over to me and asked "What are you doing in this alley at 4 in the morning?" I said, "I'm looking for Sex..."

My case comes up on Friday...

Nagesh The Great

2007-06-28T15:47:00.000+03:00

A felicitation to the very versatile comedy and charcter artiste of Tamil Cinema

Of versatility that's timeless

MALATHI RANGARAJAN

The Kamaraj Hall, Chennai, reverberated with the adulation and respect actor Nagesh commands.

Photo: M.Karunakaran

Recognition for an actor nonpareil: At the function in honour of Nagesh.

Doyens decorated the dais at Kamaraj Hall on the evening of Sunday last. The occasion - a celebration in honour of the inimitable comedian, hero and character actor, Nagesh! With M.S.Viswanathan helming the proceedings, the event was graced by Kamal Haasan, Cho, lyricist Vaali, P.B.Sreenivos, directors Chitralaya Gopu, K. Balachander, Mrs. YGP, C.V.Rajendran and Vasanth - all ardent fans of the actor whose versatility transcends time! The light music troupe, Ganesh Kripa, presented a host of rare melodies filmed on Nagesh, on the occasion organised by Abbas/Sri Guru Kripa. ARS, the emcee, in typical style recalled interesting details about Nagesh in his prime.

It was a mutual admiration society of sorts on stage, because each was an achiever in his own right. While everyone extolled the potential of Nagesh, he on his part revealed his fascination for Kamal Haasanâs multi-faceted cinema skills. âI can never forget K. Balaji who fed me for three years and did his utmost to get me a break, he began. Chitralaya Gopu recalled the skinny young man, who had accompanied actor Balaji to meet director Sridhar. Soon Nenjil Or Aalayam happened. All thats fine. But why am I not able to go beyond the Rs. 501 advance? Like the 501 detergent soap bar, I'm stuck with the number, he would tell me. I'd reply that his time would come. It did and how! Gopu remarked. Because, as Vaali pointed out, there came a time when Nagesh was working round-the-clock and even MGR and Sivaji Ganesan had to wait for his dates, as distributors insisted that Nagesh was an indispensable value-addition to the projects. The only picture you can find in Kamalâs room is that of himself with Nagesh. He reveres him so, Vaali, who had shared a room with Nagesh in their struggling days, observed.

Witty responses

True, said Kamal. I watch his films seriously. I'm so much in awe that I forget to laugh. Such is my admiration. Itâs not jealousy â only complete surrender to this great talent. Crazy Mohan, a few other friends and I celebrate Nagesh almost every day at my office. In fact we go on about Chitralaya Gopu's sense of humour too. Hindi film actor Mehmood once told me, he considers Nagesh his guru, whereas Amitabh gave Mehmood a similar status. So you see where the root actually is? he smiled.

Nagesh stands as a lucid example of the fact that those who follow my advice can never make a mark in life, were Cho's characteristic words. When he wanted to quit his job in the Railways and strive to get into cinema full time, I told him it was a risky move. But how judicious it turned out to be!

You may cry yourself hoarse, but greatness in this part of the country continues to remain mostly unrecognised. That the Padma Sri eludes extraordinary talents such as Nagesh, is a gross omission. But none who can redress matters seems to be concerned. Balachander, who helped Nagesh traverse histrionic domains far beyond the comedy roles he played, said the wrong should be righted. Yet why give it so much importance? The man has carved a formidable niche for himself as one who has regaled filmgoers with his perfect sense of timing in dialogue, and his superb portrayal of a wide spectrum of characters. The huge gathering at the hall exemplified it enough. Now the thespian has reached a stage where laurels from quarters without are absolutely immaterial!

This will be an unforgettable day in my life, concluded a moved Nagesh. The evening will remain evergreen in our minds too!

http://www.hindu.com/fr/2007/06/22/stories/2007062250700400.htm

Have you seen my other blog?

Nothing dirty about it

2007-06-27T06:12:00.000+03:00

The Smiths were unable to conceive children and decided to use a surrogate father to start their family.

On the day the proxy father was to arrive, Mr. Smith kissed his wife goodbye and said, "Well, I'm off now. The man should be here soon."

Half an hour later, just by chance, a door-to-door baby photographer happened to ring the doorbell, hoping to make a sale.

"Good morning, Ma'am", he said, "I've come to..."

"Oh, no need to explain," Mrs. Smith cut in, embarrassed, "I've been expecting you."

"Have you really?" said the photographer.

"Well, that's good. Did you know babies are my specialty?"

"Well that's what my husband and I had hoped. Please come in and have a seat"

After a moment she asked, blushing, "Well, where do we start?"

"Leave everything to me. I usually try two in the bathtub, one on the couch, and perhaps a couple on the bed. And sometimes the living room floor is fun. You can really spread out there."

"Bathtub, living room floor? No wonder it didn't work out for Harry and me!"

"Well, Ma'am, none of us can guarantee a good one every time. But if we try several different positions and I shoot from six or seven angles, I'm sure you'll be pleased with the results."

"My, that's a lot!", gasped Mrs. Smith.

"Ma'am, in my line of work a man has to take his time. I'd love to be in and out in five minutes, but I'm sure you'd be disappointed with that."

"Don't I know it," said Mrs. Smith quietly.

The photographer opened his briefcase and pulled out a portfolio of his baby pictures. "This was done on the top of a bus," he said.

"Oh, my God!" Mrs. Smith exclaimed, grasping at her throat.

"And these twins turned out exceptionally well - when you consider their mother was so difficult to work with."

"She was difficult?" asked Mrs. Smith.

"Yes, I'm afraid so. I finally had to take her to the park to get the job done right. People were crowding around four and five deep to get a good look"

"Four and five deep?" said Mrs. Smith, her eyes wide with amazement.

"Yes", the photographer replied. "And for more than three hours, too. The mother was constantly squealing and yelling - I could hardly concentrate, and when darkness approached I had to rush my shots. Finally, when the squirrels began nibbling on my equipment, I just had to pack it all in."

Mrs. Smith leaned forward. "Do you mean they actually chewed on your, uh... equipment?"

"It's true, Ma'am, yes.. Well, if you're ready, I'll set-up my tripod and we can get to work right away."

"Tripod?"

"Oh yes, Ma'am. I need to use a tripod to rest my Canon on. It's much too big to be held in the hand very long."

Mrs. Smith fainted!!
Have you seen my other blog?

Change the world

2007-06-26T06:37:00.001+03:00

Allow honest answers!

You are in a job interview. The interviewer is asking the below typical questions and if you were honest, you would be giving the answers as given below. Doesn't the interview system that doesn't allow you to give honest answers suck?

1. Why did you apply for this job?

I have applied for many jobs along with this and you called me now.

2. Why do you want to work for this company?

I have to work for some company who ever gives me a job, I don't have any specific company in mind.

3. Why should I hire you?

You have to hire some one, you may give me a try.

4. What would you do if this happened?

Well, it depends my mindset and mood at that situation...

5. What is your biggest strength?

Basically, daring to join any company who pays me well, without thinking of the fate of company

6. What is your biggest weakness?

Girls

7. What was your worst mistake, and how did you learn from it?

Joining my earlier company and learnt that I need to jump to get more money, so I am here today

8. What accomplishments in your last position are you most proud of?

Had I accomplished any in my last position, why do I need to change my job? I could demand more and stay there.

9. Describe a challenge you faced and how you overcame it?

Biggest challenge is answering the question "why are you looking for a change" and I started blabbering irrelevantly to overcome that.

10. Why did you leave/ are you leaving your last job?

For the same reason why you left your earlier job

11. What do you want from this job?

If no work is given but keep giving good hikes

12. What are your career goals and how do you plan to achieve them?

Make more money and for that keep jumping companies for every 2 yrs

13. Did you hear of our company and what do you know of us?

Yeah, I know that you will ask this, I've gone through your website

14. What is the salary expected and how do justify that?

Well, no one will change job for the same salary, hence, give me 20% extra than what I am getting and that is unpublished industry standard (I know you will bargain on what ever I ask, hence, I have already hiked my current salary by 30%)

Have you seen my other blog?

Mutual Fund Insights

2007-06-23T06:03:00.000+03:00

Fixed Maturity Plans (FMP)

What is an FMP?
FMP stands for Fixed Maturity Plan. These are essentially close-ended income schemes with a fixed maturity date i.e. that run for a fixed period of time. This period could range from one month to as long as two years or more. When the fixed period comes to an end, the scheme matures, and your money is paid back to you.

FMPs do not invest in equity. The portfolio is generally invested in debt and money market instruments maturing in line with the tenure of the scheme. The objective is to lock-in the investment at a specified rate of return thereby immunizing the scheme against market fluctuations.

Liquidity
In most open-ended mutual fund schemes, one can redeem oneâs units anytime. However, the structure of the FMP does not lend itself to this kind of liquidity. Invest money you are more or less sure you are not going to need during the tenure of the plan. If you withdraw before the scheme closes, generally a steep exit load is imposed.

The reason for this steep load is to deter investors treating the FMP like a normal income scheme. Though income schemes invest in similar instruments as an FMP, being open-ended and not having a specific tenure based investment strategy, these are subject to interest rate risk leading to fluctuations in the NAV.

What is better --- A Bank Deposit or a FMP?

Lately the interest rates on bank deposits have increased leading many investors to wonder whether a simple Bank Fixed Deposit (FD) would serve better than having to go through the process of investing in an FMP. Though Bank FDs and FMPs currently offer a similar rate of return; the tax impact tilts the scales in favour of the FMP.

Interest on Bank FDs is fully taxable whereas the return from FMPs is either subject to the Dividend Distribution Tax (for the dividend option) or the capital gains tax rate (for the growth option). The Distribution Tax rate @14.16% or the capital gains tax rate @10% are lower than the income tax rate, especially in the case of investors in the higher tax bracket. Tax directly eats into returns, which is why FMPs have the edge over Bank FDs.

To illustrate this point, have a look at the following table. It is assumed that both, the Bank FD as well as the FMP yield the same rate of interest i.e. 10.25% p.a. An investment of Rs. 1 lakh is made in an FMP of 91 days. The corresponding figures for the Bank FD appear alongside.

FMP â 91 days v/s Fixed Deposit
Â		Dividend Option - Individuals	Dividend Option - Corporates	Fixed Deposit
Â		Dividend Option - Individuals	Dividend Option - Corporates	Fixed Deposit
Â	Â	Â Rs.	Rs.	Rs.
A	Investment Amount	100,000	100,000	100,000
B	Post Expense Indicative Yield	10.25%	10.25%	10.25%
C	Maturity Value	102,555	102,555	102,555
D	Gain = C-A	2,555	2,555	2,555
E	Tax Rate	14.16%	22.66%	33.99%
F	Tax	317	472	869
G	Post Tax Gains = D-H	2,239	2,083	1,687
H	Post Tax Annualised Returns=	9.29%	8.62%	6.94%

Are FMPs for you?
As I write this, markets are extremely choppy. Depending upon whom you talk to, either a severe correction is round the corner or the market is going to go up by a couple of thousand points more. Though no one has seen what tomorrow will bring, common sense indicates that a post tax yield of almost 9% is too good to ignore.

If you are looking for a fixed income avenue that yields a reasonable return with minimum risk, adequate liquidity and tax efficiency, FMPs will provide you with an effective shelter.

This article was about how short-term FMPs (of duration less than one year) can benefit investors. Next time, we shall examine how longer term FMPs (of over one year) which yield capital gains benefits instead of dividend income can also be used for investments that have a longer time horizon.

- Sandeep Shanbhag

The writer may be contacted at sandeep.shanbhag@moneycontrol.com

http://www.moneycontrol.com/mccode/news/article/news_article.php?autono=278494&nlid=1

Have you seen my other blog?