Globsyn's Software team at Lunch together

The Dinner & the Colas

The 25th of June evening, we gathered together for an adda. What is an adda without good food? So we decided to check out the latest in Sector-V - the RDB Adlabs's own - Wok & Kadai. Needless to say that the main organiser was Rahul and he treated us to a sumptuous dinner over a nice non-office adda. Rup's Synlog Team, the HR and me - that was the group.

Now to the most important factor for the foodies - what did we eat and did we like that place? Well, the ambience was nice and quiet till we reached the place. With 15 people trying to communicate with each other and the staff there juggling plates to dish out our constant orders, I think they managed well. The food was good especially the continental ones. Price: reasonable.

We started with prawns and chicken and ended with italian salad platter and biriyani with more chicken, paneer and prawns being served inbetween. Though we drank only Colas , somewhat by choice and somewhat by default (they dont have a bar license yet!!!), we really enjoyed the evening. It was different for us to go out together for a dinner and go home early & sober ;-) We ended the dinner with Rahul's fav - the indian meetha paan.

But we would really like to thank Rahul for the fun time we spent together and we did really enjoy the evening. Thanks a ton, Rahul !!!


Posted by : Saurav

INDIA SHINING

An Indian-Gujarati man walks into a bank in New York City and asks for the loan officer. He tells the loan officer that he is going to India on business for two weeks and needs to borrow $5,000. The bank officer tells him that the bank will need some form of security for the loan, so the Indian man hands over the keys and documents of new Ferrari parked on the street in front of the bank. He produces the title and everything checks out.The loan officer agrees to accept the car as collateral for the loan.
The bank's president and its officers all enjoy a good laugh at the Indian for using a $250,000 Ferrari as collateral against a $5,000 loan. An employee of the bank then drives the Ferrari into the bank's underground garage and parks it there.
Two weeks later, the Indian returns, repays the $5,000 and the interest, which comes to $15.41.
The loan officer says, "Sir, we are very happy to have had your business, and this transaction has worked out very nicely, but we are a little puzzled. While you were away, we checked you out and found that you are a multi millionaire. What puzzles us is, why would you bother to borrow "$5,000"?
The Indian replies, "Where else in New York City can I park my car for two weeks for only $15.41 and expect it to be there when I return".
*Ah, the mind of the Indian... *
*This is why India is shining *

Sayori

Really Miss You

When Gulli-Danda & Kanche (marbles) were more popular than cricket.When we always had friends to play aais-paais (I Spy), chhepan-chhepai& pitthoo anytime ... When we desperately waited for 'Yeh Jo HaiJindagi' (Doordarshan serial)When chitrahaar, vikram-baitaal, Dada Daadi Ki Kahaniyaan were so fulfilling.When there was just one Tv in every five houses and...When Bisleris were not sold in the trains and we were worrying if papas will get back into the train in time or not when they were getting down at stations to fill up the water bottle ...When we were going to bed by 9.00pm sharp except for the 'Yeh Jo Hai Jindagi' day ...When Holis & Diwalis meant mostly hand-made pakwaans and sweets and moms seeking our help while preparing them ...When Maths teachers were not worried of our Mummies and papas while slapping/beating us ...When we were exchanging comics and stamps and Chacha-Chaudaris & Billus were our heroes ...When we were in Nanihaals every summer and loved flying kites and plucking and eating unripe mangoes and leechies ...When one movie every Sunday evening on television was more than asked for and 'ek do teen chaar' and 'Rajani' inspired us ...When 50 paisa meant at least 10 toffees ...When left over pages of the last years notebooks were used for rough work or even fair work ...When 'Chelpark' and 'Natraaj' were encouraged against 'Reynolds& family' ...When the first rain meant getting drenched and playing in water and mud and making 'kaagaj ki kishtis' ...When there were no phones to tell friends that we will be at their homes at six in the evening ...When our parents always had 15 paise blue colored 'Antardesis' and 5 paise machli wale stamps at home ...When we remembered tens of jokes and were not finding 'ice-cream & papa' type jokes foolish enough to stop us from laughing ...When we were not seeing patakhes on Diwalis and gulaals onHolis as air and noise polluting or allergic agents ...
The list can be endless ... On the serious note I would like to summarize with ...When we were using our hearts more than our brains, even for scientifically brainy activities like 'thinking' and 'deciding' ...When we were crying and laughing more often, more openly and more sincerely ..When we were enjoying our present more than worrying about our future ...When being emotional was not synonymous to being weak ...When sharing worries and happiness didn't mean getting vulnerable to the listener ...When blacks and whites were the favorite colors instead of greys ...When journeys also were important and not just the destinations ...When life was a passenger's sleeper giving enough time and opportunity to enjoy the sceneries from its open and transparent glass windows instead of somesuper fast's second ac with its curtained, closed and dark windows ... I really miss them .. don't u?
Alok Banerjee

A FEW MANAGEMENT LESSONS

A sales rep, an administration clerk, and the manager are walking to lunch when they find an antique oil lamp. They rub it and a Genie comes out. The Genie says, "I'll give each of you just one wish." "Me first! Me first!" says the admin clerk. "I want to be in the Bahamas, driving a speedboat, without a care in the world." Puff! She's gone. "Me next! Me next!" says the sales rep. "I want to be in Hawaii, relaxing on the beach with my personal masseuse, an endless supply of Pina Coladas and the love of my life." Puff! He's gone. "OK, you're up," the Genie says to the manager. The manager says, "I want those two back in the office after lunch."
Moral of the story Always let your boss have the first say.

*********
An eagle was sitting on a tree resting, doing nothing. A small rabbit saw the eagle and asked him, "Can I also sit like you and do nothing?" The eagle answered: "Sure , why not." So, the rabbit sat on the ground below the eagle and rested. All of a sudden, a fox appeared, jumped on the rabbit and ate it.
Moral of the story To be sitting and doing nothing, you must be sitting very, very high up.

*********
A turkey was chatting with a bull. "I would love to be able to get to the top of that tree," sighed the turkey,"but I haven't got the energy." "Well, why don't you nibble on some of my droppings?" replied the bull. They're packed with nutrients." The turkey pecked at a lump of dung, and found it actually gave him enough strength to reach the lowest branch of the tree. The next day, after eating some more dung, he reached the second branch. Finally after a fourth night, the turkey was proudly perched at the top of the tree. He was promptly spotted by a farmer, who shot him out of the tree.
Moral of the story BullShit might get you to the top, but it won't keep you there.

By Alok Banerjee

The Zinger !

The Date : 13th June 2008
The Location : Globsyn Cafeteria
The Time : 6:45pm
The Reason : ..hmmm.. please ask Manashi or write to her at manashi@globsyn.com :)

Fat Kid Singing Nooma Nooma !

In US, in the year 2005, this kid became an over night celebrity with this video. There were one million downloads of this video over a weekend... Its Mad Funny !

If anyone wants this song, let me know... Enjoy!

Romit

Crazy Indian Road

Dear Friends,

See what I came across. We do drive thike this but rarely realize. It helps to see it from a vantage view point. Hilarious!!! Can't help bu share it.


Saurav.

Afternoon Delight…

A sumptuous lunch at a nearby restaurant called “Wok n Kadai” spiced up our afternoon yesterday. A good number of us were part of the plush luncheon, where we thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and had a hearty time. We enjoyed some very delightful dishes from soups, lobsters, chicken and tempting desserts.

Needless to say, we all look forward to enjoy many such special and delicious afternoons in days to come.

Posted By: Sonali, Arunava, Ali

Zero Point

Hi, this is me at Zero Point in December last year. It is 15, 748 ft above sea level and is around 2 hours journey from North Sikkim. I love traveling especially to mountains and if it is an adventurous nothing like it.

The journey to zero point is very treacherous. The roads are very narrow and full of boulders. At one point, we thought we were gone. Moreover, our driver (Zongpo, a sikkimiss) was also traveling with us for the first time. So imagine, the escort himself was nervous and later took an oath that never in his life he will visit this place.

The scenic beauty is spell bounding. It is a plateau covered by mountains all the side and behind which is the China border. The entire area remains snow covered during winter, even the river Lachung. At zero point, you will hardly find any trees or plants due to less oxygen. The beauty just cannot be expressed in words.

Due to high altitude, many people suffer breathing problem. So next time if you are planning to visit places like Zero Point keep few things in mind – sunglass is must, never sit at the back of the jeep as jerking will make you sick, always carry popcorns to avoid dizziness and eat as many chocolates as you can as chocolates contain high calorie which provides energy.

regards,
afsheen

WHO’S BETTER FOR INDIA?

Barack ‘Change’ Obama or John ‘Continuity’ McCain? One of them will be the next president of the US. As the presidential slugfest gets underway, who should India be rooting for?

In April this year, in an informal tete-a-tete at a California fundraiser, Barack Obama casually referred to a visit he had made to Pakistan during his college days, a sojourn that had never been mentioned before in public — not even in his two best-selling autobiographies. It turned out that he had a couple of Pakistani friends during his identity-forming, collegiate years, and on the way back from visiting his mother and half-sister in Indonesia once, he had stopped by in Pakistan and spent three weeks in Karachi and Hyderabad in Sind.
Obama recalled this trip by way of maintaining he had fundamental foreign exposure from the ground up, going back a long way into his youth, unlike his more distinguished all-American Senate colleagues and political rivals, Republican John McCain and fellow Democrat Hillary Clinton. That, in addition to his mixed heritage and composite identity, he suggested, gave him better foreign policy grounding than his rivals, whose knowledge of foreign countries consisted largely of token official visits. In fact, Obama took a dig at the recently exposed ignorance among US politicians about the Islamic world, saying he knew the difference between Shia and Sunni long before he joined the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
But his own staff, despite its considerable ethnic variety, misread his comments (at least geographically), and told the media that he had travelled to Karachi, Sind, and Hyderabad, India. In part, this misunderstanding arose because they knew of another Obama friend from India during his college days, Andhraite Vinai Thummalapally. However, it turned out despite his close friendship with Thummalapally, and his considerable knowledge of the subcontinent, he hadn’t visited Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh. It was Hyderabad, Sind, which he visited.
Today, Thummalapally remains a good friend, besides being one of Obama’s ‘‘bundlers’’, the term used for anyone raising $100,000-plus for his campaign. President of Mam-A Inc, a mid-western company that makes blank CDs and DVDs, Thummalapally recalls how he and Obama discussed world issues and politics when they ran together (for exercise, not for office) even back in the 1980s when they roomed together. The Indian entrepreneur not only attended Obama’s wedding in 1992 but has kept in touch with him throughout his career, and is counted today as one of his close associates going beyond politics. “In his Senate office, you will find a picture of Mahatma Gandhi next to one of Martin Luther King,” says Thummalapally, maintaining that Obama’s familiarity with the region is considerable.
Of course, several Democrat politicians, including Senate and House leaders Harry Reid and Nancy Pelosi, keep Gandhi busts or pictures in their office. The husband-and-wife Clintons, who too are well-read in subcontinental history, also speak eloquently about Gandhi. But here’s a trivial observation that suggests why Obama, because of his eclectic and unusual upbringing, may be different: He’s the only American leader who has been heard to pronounce Gandhi and Pakistan correctly — just like it’s pronounced in the subcontinent (Gaan-dhi, not Gain-dee; Paak-isthaan, not Pack-is-tan). In other conversations, Obama has also referred to Indian success in technology fields, and drawn comparisons between his father (who came to the US “without money, but with a student visa and a determination to succeed”) and the experiences of Indian immigrants.
Such empathy and “connection” to immigrants from the subcontinent is only one part of Obama’s plural multi-ethnic background and wideranging eclectic education (American, African, even part-Asian) that makes him arguably the most unusual and exciting presidential candidate in US history — more universalist than American. In his first book, Dreams from My Father, written nearly a decade ago even before he came to Washington DC as a senator, Obama recalls the wanderlust of his mother (a white woman from Kansas who married a Kenyan exchange student) that took her to marketplaces as far apart as Marrakesh and New Delhi. He recounts his own experiences in Kenya and Indonesia, home of his biological father and stepfather respectively, including the turbulent politics of these boiling Third World countries he saw during his visits. His worldview even in those days was imbued with travels and exposures to such Third World hotspots, a clear departure from the more Atlanticist upbringing of his white contemporaries. To this day, he carries on his person, among other things, a small metal figure of Hanuman, having become familiar with the Ramayana during his days in Indonesia.

DESI DRAW

It’s this kind of exciting, open-minded, expansive outlook and intellectual growth that has drawn droves of young, idealistic first and second generation Americans, including Indian-Americans, to the Obama fold. Despite the common belief that recent immigrants are typically pro-Democrat (the proposition is questionable now, especially among wealthy Indians), and a majority of Indian-Americans back Hillary Clinton, it turns out that Obama has had significant support among Indians in this election cycle. Thummalapally aside, prominent Obama supporters include New York investment banker Anilesh Ahuja and Ohio legal eagle Subodh Chandra. Among his advisers on foreign policy and immigration are policy wonk Parag Khanna and legal eagle Preeta Bansal. South Asians for Barack Obama (SABO) was in the thick of action as much as Indian-Americans for Hillary Clinton (IAHC).
Obama’s idealism and verve has drawn young Indian-Americans like the actor Kal Penn (of Harold and Kumar fame), who confesses an aversion to politics before the young senator bounded on the national platform. “I’m not a registered Democrat, and I’ve never gotten motivated before, mostly because I wasn’t a fan of the political establishment,” the actor previously known as Kalpen Mody explained recently. “But I was really inspired by Barack. I haven’t been that inspired since hearing my grandparents tell stories about marching with Gandhi.”
Indeed, even a hardened political commentator like Newsweek International editor, Mumbaiborn Fareed Zakaria, admitted that he empathized with Obama and his sense of personal identity. “There’s a debate taking place about what matters most when making judgments about foreign policy — experience and expertise on the one hand, or personal identity on the other. And I find myself coming down on the side of identity,” Zakaria wrote in February, suggesting that like Obama he is “truly distinctive about the way I look at the world, about the advantage that I may have over others in understanding foreign affairs...” (the admiration is mutual; Obama was recently seen reading Zakaria’s book, The Post-American World, and some blogs have speculated about a cabinet position for him in an Obama administration).

VIEW FROM NEW DELHI

Such testimonials have to some degree assuaged the doubts of Indian government observers, who for a while foresaw a Hillary Clinton-John Mc-Cain face-off in November. It was assumed to be a battle between two familiar rivals who would each bring their known proclivities to US-India relations. Conventional wisdom in Indian circles is that a McCain win will result in a broad continuation of Bush administration policies, including a possible revival of the US-India nuclear deal in the event of a favourable political alignment and atmosphere after the general elections. Beyond that, US-India ties, at least from Washington’s perspective, would continue to be largely security driven, subject to conservative impulses arising from fears of an extremist Islamist agenda to India’s west and an expanding Chinese influence everywhere. A Clinton administration would not be very different, with perhaps a little more emphasis on non-proliferation objectives (although a recent McCain speech suggests he too will go down the same path). “But with Obama, we are still not sure because he is still putting the pieces and players together,” admitted one official on background, adding, “One thing we know for certain is that he, or anyone else for that matter, will not be hostile to India.”
It is now widely acknowledged both in Washington and New Delhi that the two countries have gone beyond party- or individual-based foreign policy that bespoke closer ties with Democratic administrations and a rough time with Republicans in the old days. Following the tetchy years of the Republican Nixon administration, both Democratic and Republic administrations (Carter, Reagan, Bush Sr, Clinton, Bush Jr in that order) have pretty much stayed on course to improve ties with the occasional spat that both countries can live with, say officials. It won’t be any different under a prospective Obama administration.
In fact, some of the key players in an Obama administration could well be familiar India hands. Hillary Clinton is still a contender for vice-presidential nomination, and should the Obama-Clinton ticket win, she will definitely be a major player. Those mentioned as Obama’s secretary of state include Joseph Biden and John Kerry, both old hands from the Senate with deep interest in the region. McCain too is expected to draw on old hands who will be familiar with the region.
Where New Delhi will also hold its breath (aside from non-proliferation issues) is the approach of the coming US administration to the Islamic world, where the Bush regime is seen to have hit all the wrong buttons. Obama, because of a political vision evolved from a more composite upbringing, has already signalled that he is inclined to engage diplomatically with countries such as Iran, which most “thoroughbred” US politicians treat as an enemy. He was also among the earliest to oppose the war on Iraq and has promised to bring the troops home. Instead, he has indicated that the focus of his war on terror will be Pakistan.
In this area at least, Obama’s impulses are more in tune with New Delhi. Despite his abiding friendship with Pakistanis from his collegiate days, Obama appears to view a military-dominated Pakistan and the fundamentalist monarchy in Saudi Arabia with deep distrust (his Karachi visit happened during the Zia years). McCain, on the other hand, is the author of the long-running Republican coziness with the fundamentalists and militarists in Riyadh and Islamabad respectively, dispensations that India too has reservations about. Indian officials surmise that a McCain administration will be good for India in terms of bilaterals, but could also mean a world fraught with tension. But then, an Obama administration that backs away and hands over any notional victory to Islamists also cannot be good, they add.
In either event, India, as always, will have to tread carefully and tread its own path.


Source: TNN
Author: Chidanand Rajghatta
Contributed By: Saurav

The Doordarshan days...

Its unbelievable today that there was a time, not too long ago, when we had only one channel on telly - big daddy Doordarshan...stuff like channel surfing etc were unheard of and we lapped up whatever was dished up before us along with the whiteboard that kept cropping up "Rukawat Ke Liye Khed Hai" Here are a few Ads from those good all days...

Vicco Vajradanti...



Vicks...



Fevicol...



Note: If you find that some Videos aren't playing just refresh the page (F5 or Ctrl+F5)

The "Bandh Biryani"

Whoever said people do not show up to work on a Bandh day, Think again !

A decent amount of people turned up for work on the second consecutive bandh day at Globsyn, and to add to the spice, the Management decided to buy Lunch for all the employees who showed up ... In case you are wondering what it was, look above !! Yup, you guessed it right !!:)

Special vote of thanks for Bhaskar and Soumya for organizing the Biryani!!

What are blogs all about ?

Contributed by : Romit

Blogging catching up at Globsyn !

Hi everyone,

The blogging fever is really catching up in Globsyn. Kudos to all the people involved. We recently had some media coverage on the Education Blogs we launched few months back. Any feedback on how to make this initiative a more interesting one? Maybe do something else ? Thoughts ? Ideas?

Also, i am looking forward to our next YLF meeting. I hope the caram board tournament and the Treasure Hunt initiative is coming along well.

See you soon...

Romit

Company names risky Web domains (CNN)

SAN JOSE, California (AP) -- When surfing the Internet for safe Web sites, not all domains are equal.

A report to be released Wednesday by antivirus software vendor McAfee Inc. says companies that assign addresses for Web sites appear to be cutting corners on security more when they assign names in certain domains than in others.

McAfee found the most dangerous domains to navigate to are ".hk" (Hong Kong), ".cn" (China) and ".info" (information). Of all ".hk" sites McAfee tested, it flagged 19.2 percent as dangerous or potentially dangerous to visitors; it flagged 11.8 percent of ".cn" sites and 11.7 percent of ".info" sites that way. A little more than 5 percent of the sites under the ".com" domain -- the world's most popular were identified as dangerous.

Source: cnn.com

Contributed by : Romit

Brush up the UNITARY METHOD

A man was traveling to Mecca
At the bus stop, he met a man with 9 wives
Each wife has 10 sons and 10 daughters
Each daughter of the man's wife had 14 sons and 17 daughters
Each son of the man's wife had 9 sons and 8 daughters
Each grand daughter had 11 friends
How many people got to Mecca?

SAYORI

Meet the Smartest Trainers in Town

Managing Change...an interesting video

Taking cue from Romit's previous post here's an interesting video from Youtube...observe how we first fight change and then move into quickly adopting it (if we are are convinced) and seeing it's brighter side...

Enjoy!

Managing Change and Transition - HBS Press

While on my flight to Mumbai from Kolkata last week, i read an interesting book called "Managing Change and Transition" by the Harvard Business School Press. I want to share an excerpt from the book. Its an interesting read and i would encourage all to read it ... !
Link : http://www.amazon.ca/Managing-Transition-Harvard-Business-Essentials/dp/1578518741


Managing Change and Transition :


Although it’s impossible to anticipate the when, what, and where of change, it is something businesses can count on – and should plan for. Accepting the necessity and inevitability of change enables them to see times of transition not as threats but as opportunities – opportunities for reinventing the company and its culture.


Indicators that life at work is about to change include:

1) A merger, acquisition, or divestiture.
2) The launch of a new product or service.
3) A new leader.
4) A new technology.

The fact that organizations must undergo continual change does not mean that people enjoy the process, or that the experience of change is pleasant. On the contrary, change is often disheartening and frustrating, and generally leaves a number of casualties in its wake. Managers often complain that change takes too long or that it’s too costly. Alternatively, some worry that it doesn’t last long enough or cost enough to get the job done. People at the bottom claim that the “top” doesn’t practice what it preaches. The people at the top grouse that the folks at the bottom are dragging their feet. People in the middle blame everyone else.

Change is almost always disruptive and, at times, traumatic. Because of this, many people avoid it if they can. Nevertheless, change is part of organizational life and essential for progress. Those who know how to anticipate it, catalyze it, and manage it will find their careers, and their companies, more satisfying and successful.

Contributed by: Romit Dasgupta
Source (excerpt): HBS Press
Source (image): Amazon.ca