Consumer Notes
No cheers to this one!
Some time ago I had written about contaminated cola drinks and mineral water, for which manufacturers refuse to accept any responsibility. My argument was and still is -- why do we consumers buy a cola drink or bottled water? It is because we are comfort
ed and persuaded by the companies through their advertisements. We are subtly made to believe that if the film star or whoever is campaigning for the drink enjoys it, we too should.
Corporate
In the hiring line
There comes a time in your life when you are in search of a job and you are faced with interviews. You have no way of knowing exactly what you will be asked or how it will be asked. So, you try to get help from people who know anything about interviews.
It is then that you come across approaches that have been found most effective by successful job-seekers. Here are some strategies or general rules that will help you ace just about any question that comes your way.
Keeping smiles intact
Abha Negi, 31, has a lifestyle that could be the envy of any professional woman. A high-profile PR executive she takes in five meetings a day. Plans project reports, organises press conferences, liaisons with journalists, plays hardball with publicity ag
encies and has power meals lined up daily. Yet, she manages to charm everyone with her smile all the time.
Health
Beat the blues
When Jignesh was cheated by his business partner, he suffered a heart problem and underwent a double by-pass. Simultaneously, Jignesh's wife Mala's skin broke into a red, scaly, itchy rash that rapidly darkened to resemble burn-blisters. ``Stress'', conf
irmed the doctors.
Information Technology
Playing music master
This will be music to the ears of those who want to learn to play a musical instrument but either have no time to attend classes, or find a music teacher too expensive a proposition.
Miscellaneous
Meet the `Mantriji'
Farooque Shaikh, the man who had created a niche for himself in parallel cinema with films such as `Chashme Badoor', `Katha' and `Sath Sath,' seems to have hit a chord with the Indian television audience in the political satire, `Ji Mantriji'.
Dipped in vitriol
Any attempt at adapting a firang movie or TV serial is fraught with the danger of being compared with the original. More often than not, the adaptation is found wanting. So it must have taken some courage for Alok Tomar and Monisha Shah to attempt a desi
version of the BBC classic, `Yes, Minister'.
A typical Twain twist
Is there a budding author in you waiting to emerge? If so, are you ready to take up a challenge put out by the legendary author Mark Twain? If your answer is yes, it is time to get introduced to one of the strangest story-writing competitions ever concei
ved. Read on....
The `coolest' trends
Vada pav and `cutting' chai -- what do you know, they are supposed to be the coolest things going when it comes to Indian youth. Not burgers, not liquor, and mercifully, not drugs. In fact, vada pav and cutting chai -- those quintessentially Indian items
-- are such symbols of cool that they were even served during the tea break at the swish hotel in Mumbai where the MTV-Brand Equity Youth Marketing Forum was being held. What an irony -- all those VJs trying to set trends and then the trendiest thing of
all turns out to be exactly what the average Indian has been doing for decades!
Travel & Places
A trip to fairyland
The Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, which claims to be the ``green heart of Europe'', is bordered by France, Germany and Belgium. For, one-third of the country's 999-sq.mile area is still under an unexploited forest cover. But this small country has attracted
several tourists, their interest being disproportionate to its size.
A date with heritage
Every step you take on the meandering stone path ahead leads you on a journey through time. As you make your way, there is an overpowering sense of deja-vu and surprise - you have been here before, yet it all seems so new.
Standing tall over time
Visitors to Madhugiri, located about 44 km north of Tumkur town in Karnataka, cannot miss the huge rock that grazes the town. But not many are aware that this lonely Goliath is the second largest monolith in the whole of Asia; and the fort nestling in it
s steep slopes, with an ease that appears unworldly, is considered one of the finest of its kind.
