Tushar Mangl Media

Touted as one of the biggest bank deposit mobilization schemes in recent times, what is Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojna? Nothing. Yes, its just a Prime Minister asking banks to do their jobs, which is all being camouflaged in a PR stunt. Banks in India are notorious for their anti customer behaviour especially if they have less money. Such people are just wasting their time. They are not valuable clients with promises of good diwali gifts. In 1970s all banks in India were nationalised by government for reasons best known to people of those times. But one of the reasons of course was to make banks work for politicians and big businesses. Banks did as masters in Delhi told them and this culture still remains. Customer service is least of priority of any bank.  So if they did have some soft corner for their customers, it would have been easy for people to open bank accounts. And we wouldn't have a Prime Minister, lending the title of his post to a scheme to increase bank accounts. ...

Mrs Majumdar dreads big cities. Its been three years since she came to Gurgaon from her home in a tiny hamlet of Madhya Pradesh.  She was not very enthusiastic about but after death of her husband, it made sense to shift with her only son, Rakesh who has a job here. But as her son  and daughter in law are at work, she feels helpless at times, especially when one time she needed a plumber to fix the kitchen faucet and she couldn't find one. Rakesh had called in someone and all the haggling over price had her mentally drained. Reema is a recent divorcee and she is loving her new found independence. She has moved in recently into a new flat with her daughter and is busy furnishing the new house. But sometimes she feels she could just hire a driver for a day or two, especially when she has to go over to her mother's sister's house in Noida. She likes going their for the change and longing for family but driving through is tough for her at times. Mr Pathak has a house in Gu...

Its been years since I started blogging and joined IndiBlogger but until today I never got a chance to attend the IndiBlogger meet  a much awaited event for bloggers. I remember, at the very beginning of setting up the blog network, Renie had worked on ideas of meets and they have all been a success. Today, I finally got a chance to attend a meet held alongside the launch of Asus Zenfone2, the world's first smartfone with a 4 GB RAM.The venue was the amazingly designed Kingdom of Dreams in Gurgaon. In it's auditorium the launch of the Asus Zenfone was organized with Bollywood actor Said Ali Khan making a special appearance. Aditi Singh Sharma opened up the show with melodious songs. Asus CEO Jerry Shen launched the new phone  with 'Incredible Comes to India'. This was followed up by top executives from Asus and Intel highlighting features and functions of the new phone. Oh yes, it really sounds like a great phone.  Especially the pictures Robert Jahns a renowned pho...

 You would say, it’s so simple. It is so routine and so routine. But for her it is a special story, a story of magic. That changed her life. Malati was born into a simple middle class family. There was just ever enough for her and her three siblings to eat and wear. This irked her to no end. Why  couldn't they have fancy clothes and the latest cell phones? She always pestered her mother with these questions. Every time Malati would see her closest friend Swati in new clothes always being driven in chauffeur driven cars her heart would burn with envy. All her friends in the colony and even in school seemed to have more money than her. Now she wanted a new mobile. She was using an old handset passed on by her father to her mother to her elder brother. She hated it for it was used and old. She had asked for a brand new mobile phone. Her mother always dismissed her request with a shrug. It was if to her this was just a passing phase. She did not understand how important it ...

By virtue of their operational plans, the DMRC or Delhi Metro Rail Corporation people make sure that the metro trains are always full. They increase time interval between trains or decrease coaches in trains so that even during off hours you get the feel of tightly filled metro train. On one such journey which was a long route from Gurgaon on yellow line to GTB Nagar on the same line I saw her. Of course I recognized her. Though I had been standing on the platform since some time, I can swear I never saw her there.It was only when the jostling crowd was swallowing us in the very packed coach I saw her. Would it have made any difference if I had seen her before? Well it had been four years since we last spoke. Or was it five? Distant time seems so abstract so lost. My first reaction would have been to scurry away. But the train was packed and the way to the next coach was where she was standing. I looked the other way and was suddenly conscious of two eyes following me. So, she had...

The first thing I noticed about her were her shoes. They were boots that ran till her knees and were adorned with an elegant fur lining. I travel long distances through Delhi Metro for its cheap and fast. So basically you are stuck with hundreds of others looking for cheap transport. It gets arduous and boring at times but the story teller in me often inspires me to look for characters, for stories. She was pretty. Leaning on the pole in front of pole I noticed this beautiful girl in long boots seating in front of me. But what struck me about her were her brown eyes underlined with thick black kajal. The eyes overflowed with love as they stared the man next to her. He was tall, appeared a little older than her and had a thick beard. He took her hand as quickly as she offered to him. As both looked into each other's eye I looked around for love deserves privacy in a crowded metro coach as well. It lasted just a few seconds as I gazed across the couple to the  glittering street ...

Life is good. At least it looks good. I am residing in the capital region of India these days and its turning out to be a good ride. Back home Punjab is a wealthy state. Here the glamor of money is different. Its like India was never a poor country. But I miss writing. Really do. Shifting here has paused development of all my upcoming books. And it makes me very sad. Soon however a new book would be launched. I am scraping away time and collecting my focus. Spring motivates you to write like nothing else. I wrote both The Thakur Boy and The Avenging Act in spring of 2007 and the weather always makes me yearn to write more. Food here is awesome and I have rediscovered the foodie in me.

 "So, I have more than 20 years work experience now." The man was boasting to a his companion and fellow traveller about his work. The speaker was short, plump and wore a shirt that might have been in fashion in the 1970's. I suddenly woke up from some thought as I realized my station was near and in this crowded train I found this story interesting. The man went on, "So in Secundarabad I was working in this PSU years ago, when they offered me VRS." Now VRS is the voluntary retirement scheme offered to employees to take some money and retire. The listener was a young man, in polos and jeans and was simply awed by this elder personality. " And after a year or so, I got hired back to my old post." I was amused at this. Retired and back. "But how could they hire you back? After retiring you I mean?" And what happened to that money you took for VRS from govt coffers? I wanted to ask him. The man just gave a sly smile. His oiled moustache sudd...

I was reading the first book of Ramayana By Shubha Vilas for the second time when I received the email that I had been chosen to review the second book in the series as well. My first reaction was like 'finaly' the book is out. The first book was simply great but it was just the beginning of a story that changes your life. The second part starts off with King Dashratha deciding to abdicate his throne in favor of his son Rama. What follows is a series of jubilation and unfortunate heart breaks. This is the beauty of Ramayana. We know how it starts and ends still love to read it again and again.  Also interesting are the facts and stories that are in between. Shubha Vilas masterfully narrates and explains these to us. He has weaved in various forms and versions of Ramyana, from Valmiki's Ramcharitmanas to Kamba Ramyana and other popular versions of the legendary tale. As in the first book I liked the idea of footnotes. They are something to look forward to. Each of th...

 When I was reading the details of the activity at BlogAdda, Use Your And, one thing that instantly struck me was Rajeshwari and her story. It seems apt for me to bring it here to share it with you all. Hers was an arranged marriage. There was love and long vacations. Life was good and Rajeshwari enjoyed an enviable social position.Her husband was a well known industrialist. Until one day wh  en an accident claimed Sunil's life. Her world was shattered. Not even in her wildest dreams she could have imagined being a young widow. Coping up was extremely hard. She shut down the doors of her heart and home to anyone who came knocking. What she didn't know that the worse was yet to come. Bankers, not confident about Sunil's company anymore started calling in the loans. There were rumors about financial bungling by some company officials. Up til now, Rajeshwari hadn't even bothered to know much about her husband's business. As a habit he seldom talked about his work...

She had been working at our apartment building for months and still I never knew her name. Yes, our paths did come across but I seldom talked to her or even gave instructions. They way she wished to clean and wash, was OK with me. One day Mrs. Bannerjee who lives on the third floor (I think) met me on the stairs and asked, "Did Lila come to work today?"  I do not know the Bannerjees well enough, and her striking a conversation seemed odd to me. I just said a no and moved on. It was only when I had entered my apartment did it strike to me, Lila. So her name was Lila. Maybe the watchman had told me her name, when I had hired her. I was not even paying attention then. All I needed was my apartment clean, my utensils and crockery washed. As if on the cue, she knocked and entered the apartment. I couldn't help but notice that her eyes were puffy and red.Now as you know by now I have a very impersonal relation with the maid. Its not about employer employee thing, its just ...