Thursday, October 21, 2010

India and its growth story

After a long time I m writing something. I guess nothing interesting enough happens anymore or just that I am going down the lazy path. Well life as a whole is just passing by, kids are growing up, wifey doing her things and prosperity is showing up around the waist. My travels have reduced, limited mostly to Delhi / Mumbai, which is good and bad, good in essence I dont have to face the headaches of travelling to random cities and settle in, and bad because I have not met many folks whom I would like to meet more regularly.

Currently I am sitting on a flight, going back from Delhi to Bombay after a week in delhi. It has been a while since I have done anything on the computer on the flight. Maybe a few years (last I remember did something on the comp, on a flight was in 2007). Challo, my laziness is gradually drifting away. I have started reading up on financial journals and decided to fix up my health (have already made some amends in these past few weeks), and also have decided to fix up my lifestyle. Just read a book by Khuswant Singh, very interesting chappie, hope I can survive as long as he has and seen and experienced so much of life.

The little boy is now learning the piano (yamaha), did not buy a casio, since all the folks I know who learnt on a casio, never grow up to learn any musical instruments, hence a yamaha. He has become a good chess player, beat me in chess (though cant say I am any good at Chess). Girl has started bharat natyam (Indian dance), did not get a chance to see her dance at her first class, but will make up for it on the next one. Wifey is running her childrens book shop, it is coming along well and slowly but surely mommies of other localities in Bombay are also knowing about it.

Last weekend, we along with my sisters family went to BOrivalli National Park, and I must WOW! Did not even know that such a place existed in Bombay and that too within 1 hour from home. It should be marketed better, but then I am selfish, maybe it is good that no one knows about it. Not many visitors to the park, I guess the malls in Bombay get more footfalls than the park. Over the coming year, I am going to explore India as it will be the last year, before my kids start getting into the full swing of things at the school and I should take them as many places as I can before studies / activities suck them into the vicious cycle.

Been reading lots of books these days and have also been watching a tonne of movies (almost 1 a day). Funnily enought I enjoy all sorts of movies, now I actually watch based on specific directors or actors. Maybe that is what happens with age. This month India held the 'Commonwealth Games', it is large sporting events covering around 74 countries. It went well and India won a bunch of medals.

By and large I believe India is doing well, and prosperity is increasing. There is more accountability and power is not being restricted to a few like it used to be 20 odd years ago. Media has become very powerful and the youth even though restless is asserting itself. Prices of everything is going down except food and real estate. Electronics, travelling, flying, clothes, shoes have all become so cheap, heck you can get a saree (Indian dress) for around $1 to $2, I love a free market economy. God bless Narsimha Rao and Manmohan Singh for allowing all this to happen. I wish to see India as one large gigantic country, which can flex its muscle on a global scale and where people dont die of poverty. I am very hopeful it will happen in my lifetime.

And 'Who Said Elephants Can't Dance??', when the elephant starts moving, nothing can stop it and it can cover VERY large distances. India is that elephant. Wait and Watch!!