Jobs yet not done!

Often people from different field prove that the certificates or bookish knowledge is not the thing but it is all about your talent, dedication and willingness that matter. Of-course bit of luck with opportunities also need to make the unbelievable things happen. These two men, both are rich & famous, having so many similarities yet they are very contrasting when you look upon them as a person. Writing about two greats, the Microsoft co-founder, Bill Gates and Steve Jobs the Apple co-founder.

Strange both were born in 1955 and both of them were college dropouts. Bill Gates was dropout from Harvard and Steve Jobs from Reeds College. Gates is mostly devoted to the software while Jobs on both Software as well as Hardware.

Set aside the bit controversies regarding Microsoft, the bullying attitude, its monopoly strategy and the legal hassle with Sun Microsystems, personally you will not find a thing against its former CEO. I considered him as most lovable and the respectable CEO ever lived on this earth. A gem of a person and a genius, very rare combination, always preferred to live pole apart from all sorts of controversies. Steve Jobs may not inherited same human quality as Gates and in philanthropic issues he is never come closure to his counterpart but I am not here to judge him as a person, I salute the man and his luminosity.

Steve Jobs

Jobs was born in San Francisco and was adopted by Paul and Clara Jobs, Jobs' biological parents is Abdulfattah Jandali, a Syrian and Joanne Simpson and having a biological sister, the novelist Mona Simpson. After high school, he enrolled in Reeds College in Portland. Although he dropped out within short period. After dropping out from the college he continued to attend some audition classes includes on Calligraphy. During this time, he stay over his friend place and even slept on floor, earning pocket money by returning Coke bottles and often got free meals at Hare Krishna Temples. Jobs turned to Buddhism while touring India.

In 1976, Steve Jobs, Steve Wozniak and Ronald Wayne founded Apple. Later he designed and developed one of the first commercially successful lines of personal computers, the Apple II series. Steve Jobs appointed John Sculley of Pepsi-Cola to serve as Apple's CEO. Some of his employees from Apple had never like his way and found him as an erratic and temperamental manager. Sales of Apple slump at the end of 1984 and thereafter at the end of May 1985, due to internal power struggle,Sculley relieved Jobs of his duties as head of the Macintosh.

Jobs founded another computer company, NeXT Computer and subsequently bought The Graphics Group or Pixar from Lucasfilm's computer. In 1996, Apple bought NeXT and Jobs back to the company he co-founded and became Apple's CEO.

In recent years, Apple introduced some innovative technologies like iPod, iTunes digital software and of-course iPhone.

Jobs married Laurene Powell, couple has a son, Reed Paul Jobs and two other children. Jobs also have a daughter, Lisa Brennan-Jobs, from his relationship with Bay Area painter Chrisann Brennan.

In mid-2004, Jobs announced to his employees that he had been diagnosed with a cancerous tumor in his pancreas. In April 2009, Jobs underwent a liver transplant and due to this, almost one and a half years he was on leave for. At present, once again he had been granted a medical leave of absence due to health problem.

If go by the recent news then the doctors gave him only six weeks, this news he neither acknowledged nor denied. Hope he will back with a bang to unveil those wonderful gadgets with his trademark style.

!!!Mr. Jobs, looking forward to your new innovation and gadgets, obviously only on your finger tips.!!!

Shining Brightly Above the Stars!

When I wrote my piece “CheckMate”, the revolution in Egypt yet to kick-start but bit ripple was started by the time I posted it on January 27 and finally by 12^thFebruary it was all over for Mubarak. I am little concern about Egypt because I had a few friends over there and once visited and stayed with them as one of them. The transition is not

an easy task because none other neighbouring states of Egypt enjoy a democratic rule, this revolution may backfire after a short period. Of-course full praise for Tunisian and Egyptian, they proved that the revolution never needs a so-called leader. The peoples from all walks of life need to stand up to change the wind, presence of a leader will always there for aftermath exploitations and to grab the opportunities. These revolutions are now spreading like forest fire to other Middle East countries likes of Iran, Bahrain, Libya and Yemen.

Back home, my country is all set to host the cricket world cup and looking forward to it. Last month we lost Pandit Bhimsen Joshi, a rare gem from our rich Indian classical music arena. This is a huge embarrassment for me because this piece should have been posted before. Therefore, this is my little tribute to the great man.

A little ear for good music, apart from this my music knowledge is zero and I am writing about a man with golden voice that ruled the musical scenario over seven decades. Pandit Bhimsen Joshi died on January 24, 2011 in Pune.

Pandit Bhimsen Joshi

Pandit Bhimsen Joshi was born on February 4, 1922 into a Kannadiga family. He was born in town known as Ron in Karnataka. His father Gururaj Joshi was a teacher by profession. He was the eldest one among 16. He lost his mother at a very early age and raised by his stepmother.

When he was only eleven years, he left home to find a master to learn music. Later he moved to Gwalior and enrolled himself to a Music School that was run by Maharajas of Gwalior. In 1936, he was taken under the wings of Rambhau Kundgolkar (Savai Gandharva) of Kirana Gharana. During his learning period, Pandit Joshi stayed at the house of the guru, in the traditional guru-shishya (teacher-student) tradition. In old Hindu tradition disciple used to stay in the house of the teachers while getting knowledge in their respective field and at the same time helping their Gurus in some odd household jobs. There were another famous starlet Gangubai Hangal also was a student of Savai Gandharva and learning at the same time along with Panditji.

At the age of 19, in 1941, Pandit Joshi gave his first live performance and that was the beginning of the golden era. One of his most memorable performances that is remembered till date is of course the national integration song "Mile Sur Mera Tumhara". He also did a few playback singing for films that includes 'Basant Bahar' along with Manna Dey.

Apart from music, his other passions were driving, swimming and football. Among many awards and laurels, he received Bharat Ratna in 2008 and obviously, it was a non-controversial one.

His Bhajans are awesome, some of my favourites are “Krishna Krishna Kahiye Uthi Bhor”, “Ram Kahiye Ram Japiye” and “Suno Suno Sadhoji”.

!!!Great souls never dies, leaving behind unaccounted treasure, they only walked to the path of immortality.!!!

Fishing in trouble water!

Saraswati puja is over and like everything about it, even Goddess Saraswati was never been very kind to me yet if I am respected today that only because of my sparse ideas and paltry knowledge. This day always make me feel like a student, which I am indeed as learning never ends. This day also reminds me about a few things from the past, specially how once study was meant to me like quinine tabs.

Migration is often joyous and often painful. It all depends upon the circumstances under which one had to make the choice. My family migrated from East Bengal or forced to do so, apart from the subsequent trouble that the family had to go through, I have no idea how my granny managed to cope up with the situation then as she was a widow with four kids and a grandson to look after. The area where we stayed were surrounded by people from East Bengal or what you call it Bangals, so it was home away from home for my granny. We were something like a joint family but a very small one, my father was the only son and was having three sisters. My elder aunt was staying in Jammy. Here, I am not going for a headcount of my sibling and the relations between us; all we learnt that, we were staying under one roof and as a single unit. For the first time when we started scribings, it was a very unique way, it was not on a slate or a paper but on the leaves of Asian Palmyra palm (talpata). My grandma scribed the alphabets on the raw leaves with the help of an iron nail and then left those for a few days to dry up, after that, she would overwrite on the same with a homemade wooden pen and ink made out of charcoal. We all started writing on those leaves with same type of pen and ink, her handwriting was just unbelievable, still I have a letter of her with me.

Father was working with Tata Iron and Steel and was staying in Jammy, he used to visit us on holidays. I was naughtiest among all and least bothered about the studies. While studying in class three my elder brother who was then teaching me or tried hard to achieved the unachievable task, finally got annoyed and told me that studying is not my forte and he was very sure that in mathematics, I would get zero. One day he threw my books and copies and vowed that he had enough of me. It was a great insult for me and I took that challenge very seriously but not the way everyone would do. I  had gone through the whole mathematics book without missing a thing, I knew the every question along with its page numbers and also the page numbers of the answers sheet. Today I look back to an eight year old girl, she amazed me, frankly I, myself fail to read her mind. Often, while narrating the same piece, I feel very proud, not because I solved my arithmetic book by reading it as it was a history book but it was the challenge that was thrown to me I took it in my stride, never mind how it was and what it was.

My class four result was horrifying, my all marks were just standing at the minimum required level but I  was promoted to class five. Women in the house desperately wanted us to study but we were not going anywhere and most probably in my granny’s initiative, father took us permanently to Jammy. That was the first time I migrated, not knowing that I would never go back to the house in Kolkata, certain amount of me left behind in that house as lifestyle changed after we migrated, the package that I left behind in my Kolkata house consists of a chunk of my innocence too.

I supposed to go to the middle school that was only meant for children of Tata Employees and it was under CBSE board. After a discussion with the head mistress father informed me to go to the school and get myself admitted. To my horror, my father instructed me to go to the school all alone. He refused to accompany me because of my horrible result; he felt that it was a great insult for him to accompany me. It was all girls’ school and ten minutes walk from our quarters, therefore, most probably I was ten years old, a new place, unknown thoroughfare and all unknown faces, I was nervous and very scared while approaching the school head mistress. The head mistress, an old lady of around fifty-five years asked me to go to a specific class and meet the teacher. When I entered the class, the teacher instantly asked for my report card and it was all written on her face. If she was given a chance then certainly she would have thrown me out of that class. I was holding a fountain pen, which was leaking, she told me to stand away from her as if I was suffering from some infectious disease. It was a new class and in front of whole lot of girls those supposed to be my future classmate, she quietly yet severely insulted me. After I started going to school, our class teacher changed and I never had to face her.

So, I started going to the school, you believe or not I was bullied or rather call it ragged, two girls who were sharing the same desk with me forced me to do their class work before I could carry with mine. Of-course after a short duration I refused to budge under their pressure but it gave me enough confident that I was better than those girls.

After two years, in class seven we had to appear for a board examination and then proceed to high school. It was the result day; the result, most probably was due from either Patna or Ranchi. We all girls were waiting near the teacher’s room and approached to that same teacher who was there at the time of my admission, she too remembered me because she was still carrying that annoying stare, after taking my roll number when she returned her expression was changed, she once again asked  my roll number for confirmation, no need to say that I passed that examination with unbelievable marks.

Until, today I remember her and her expression too, the way she looked at me on our very first encounter and of-course also on the last one. No, I am not holding any grudge against her as once she tried to insult me. May be it was she or that expression, yes that look of her once pinched me hard in my heart, myself then a ten years old very new to that environment but may be it was she who helped me to transform or re-discover myself.

Often I failed to stand up to a challenge but I can console myself that it was not the failure what mater, I never gave up without trying. However, most of the times people leave a task saying it is not worth trying, wrong, no task is worthless no mater how small it is.

Today, I do not know if same courage or fire is left in me or not, but there were many instances which came in my life and I am happy I have taken that challenges quietly and with a calculated risk and executed perfectly. All those are very proud moment for me, feeling proud is not related with arrogance, it is knowing ones limitation and power of execution. Why to hold a grudge when insulted; try to overcome the weakness that is only the fitting reply.

!!!Challenging the challenges, an achievement, fishing in calm water, child’s play, rather opt for fishing in troubled water and definitely try to come out with a prize catch.!!!

Dead once, Living forever!

Since I posted my last blog there was lots of activity taking place in Egypt and Yemen, some of its credit should be given to the media. The protest and subsequent fall of the dictator in Tunisia was extensively shown through the satellite channel all over the world had some effects to other neighbouring state that includes Egypt. The main question is that even if Mubarak goes, will Egypt survive and can form a non bias democratic government or not, only time will tell us. China is taking lot of precautions, the government over there trying to protect their internet gateways that gives access to the word ‘Egypt’, the word is barred from the internet search list.

Back home, things are not good, high inflation and the umpteen numbers of scams are the main concern. India, world’s largest democratic country yet corruption level as good as it is in those non-democratic countries. About inflation, our agriculture minister is too busy with cricket seems hardly having any time for his portfolio. Finally, last week the incident involving the gruesome murder of Additional District Collector of Malegaon, Yeshwant Sonawane, that exposed the one of many naked faces of the corruption.

Kopergaon, a town of Ahmednagar is famous because from here you can easily reach to the famous Shirdi temple and Manmad hardly forty kilometer away from Kopergaon. I traveled many times through these routes and the first time I had gone there, it was a small village with little activities around. Of-course Manmad falls in Nashik district and it hosts a major intersection of four highways. From Manmad most of the oil tankers make their way to neighbouring district and villages. Mafia around this place is stealing kerosene from the trucks when it passed through. Sonawane stumbled upon this while on an official tour and while filming the act on his mobile he was set on fire by the main accused Popat Shinde. On January 26, 2010, Sonawane had stood proudly at the Guard of Honour. On the eve of this Republic Day, his dedication to duty cost him his life. Only, Mr. Sonawane able to punished his as well as our antagonist before he died, he reportedly grabbed Shinde during the attack, causing the burns and Shinde too died form the same fire that he had himself set.

Shanmugam Manjunath

Manjunath was a Computer Science Engineer and had done his MBA from Indian Institute of Management, Lucknow. Manjunath was a marketing manager for the Indian Oil Corporation. He was murdered for sealing a corrupt petrol station in UP. While working for the Indian Oil Corporation in Lucknow, he had sealed two petrol pumps at the same area for selling adulterated fuel. The pump started operating within a month. Manjunath decided to conduct a raid around November 19, 2005. During his inspection, Manjunath had been shot dead. His bullet-riddled body was found in his own car. The main accused, pump-owner Pawan Kumar Mittal, was held along with seven others.

Satyendra Dubey

Public memory is very short, how many of us today remember Satyendra Dubey, the Siwan boy who came from very poor family and also the first one from his village to study Engineering. He was an IIT grad and had done his M.Tech. from BHU (Banaras Hindu University). Dubey worked at the Ministry of Surface Transport in Delhi and then he was selected for the Indian Engineering Service (IES). It is known that while working in IES he once called the police when offered a bribe. His last job was as Assistant Project Manager with National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) at Koderma, Jharkhand. He was responsible for managing a section of National Highway, that was part of the Golden Quadrilateral Corridor Project that involved almost $10 billion. Dubey exposing some serious financial irregularities. Dubey wrote a letter to then Prime Minister’s (A. B. Vajpayee) Office regarding the corruption and irregularities in NHAI. He never signed the complain letter but attached a separate resume along with the letter. He also requested the authority not to disclose his name. His letter may have reached the criminal nexus in Bihar and definitely, someone from PMO leaked it. At dawn of November 27, 2003, Dubey was killed while returning from a wedding, he was only thirty. There were some arrest and police also tried to cover up by putting up a theory that it was a simple case of robbery attempt. However, why no one ever asked the government that who backstab Dubey from PMO, knowing his life was in danger then too they taken great effort to make his name known to the mafia.

Dubey, mafia never able to bought him, if so then his address in Siwan would say a different story. His father refused to accept any cheque and demanded only justice for his son.

Satyendra Dubey, the second son of seven brothers and sisters, was the main breadwinner, supporting his parents his younger brothers and sisters. Shailesh Gandhi, president of IIT-Mumbai Alumni, has convinced the Dubey family not to refuse the goodwill of a public that is determined to help. The IIT alumni wanted to help the Dubeys, decided to raise Rs 15 lakh through their alumni network.

!!!In our great country, being honest mean digging his own grave.!!!