India have won the inaugural Twenty20 World Cup beating Pakistan in the finals by 5 runs. Congrats to Dhoni and his boyz (it didn't take much time for Dhoni in getting used to calling his team-mates as boys :-) ) Dhoni came out to be a much better captain than I expected him to be. His poise under pressure and innovative bowling changes, with a bit of lady luck's blessing, is commendable. I still feel Joginder Sharma is not the kind of bowler in which a captain can show confidence to bowl the last over when the opposition just needs 13 runs, but Dhoni believed in him and luckily for India, his confidence was not betrayed. Yuvraj was in supreme touch in the tournament- his batting proved that one does not need to slog, instead with immaculate timing and touch of class one can be as devastating as any blind-hitter. However he turned out to be a huge disappointment in the finals. But in a way, it was blessing in disguise for Indian cricket - I believe Indian cricket does not need heroes, but a bunch of performers. If Yuvraj would have been successful in the finals, he would have got the cult status of a hero, and everybody knows what have the heroes done to Indian cricket till now !!! For me, the unsung heroes of the tournament were R P Singh and Gautam Ghambir. They were consistent performers, yet were never in the limelight. RP always gave break-throughs when his team needed and after a long, long time did I see an Indian bowler produce the sweet sound of willow of stumps being rooted out. Ghambir was also the 2nd highest run-getter in the tournament and consistent throughout. Two faces, which have impressed me the most and in whom I think lies the future of Indian cricket are - Uthappa and Rohit Sharma. I'm not impressed by the runs they've scored, but rather the manner in which they scored it. R Sharma, in particular, what a cool head he has got and how sweetly he times the ball. Kudos to these two !! Coming to Jonginder Sharma, I havn't seen as inconsistent a bowler as him for a looong time. He doesn't have line, nor length, nor pace, nor agression - I wonder why is he in the team. Ohh...ohh...I got it - he just has the luck of good timing - he just happened to there when Mizbah gave away the cup to India :-) For me, the real comeback king was Irfan. He reminded me of the Pathan of yester years. He bowled with a lot of determination, bowled the slower one beautifully, rolled his fingers on ball to perfection, put the ball in the right areas - let me tell u guyz, Irfan is back and rocking ! And at last coming to the aged-trio of Dravid, Ganguly and Tendulkar, I don't know why they didn't participate in 20-20 but it was blessing in disguise for India. As Viv Richards aptly puts it - 'This version of the game requires bones which havn't broken yet'. :-) 3 cheers for the Indian team...hip-hip hurray...hip-hip hurray....hip-hip hurray. |
Thursday, September 27, 2007
India is Twenty-20 Champion :-)
Unravelling Pottermania
The release of J K Rowling's latest book - 'Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows' - has taken the whole world by storm,
so much so, that the grammarians had to coin a new term for this wave - Pottermania !! With more than 15 million people
lined to get their hands on 'HP n DH' copy on the very first day of the book's release and JKR sitting on a personal
worth in excess of $1 billion, Pottermainia ranks only second to BeatleMania in the history of cult followings. Wanna
hear what's in-vogue nowadays - kids citing their bicycles to be of Nimbus 2x series and more often that not people
using 'Wingardium Leviosa' to save on their bungee jumping money (make sure you spell the second word as
Levi-OOO-sa, not Levio-SA, otherwise Hermione won't be too happy with you).
What follows now is my humble attempt to understand the success of Harry Potter - unravelling Pottermania as I would
like to call it. But before I delve deep into the Potter maze, I would like to make it very clear that I'm not a
die-hard Potter fan, neither have I read a single Harry Potter novel. On the other hand, I have watched each of the
potter movies released till date. So, the bottomline is - I havn't had too much of HP but just enough to comment on it,
or in other words I'm neither an ardent HP supporter nor do I consider this forum to take out on any personal vendetta
against HP !
Let me start by acknowledging that JKR has done a tremendous job in conjuring the magical world of Hogwarts and wizards
and in creating an altogether new vocabulary - words like slytherin, Gryffindor, Quidditch etc (none of which have
etymology from Latin !!). I havn't read the novel, but those who have, tell me that they had led an all together
diferent life while reading it, they've literally grown with it, turned in their beds with every twist in the narrative,
laughed with Harry and Hermione on every witty/stupid remark Ron makes and clenched their fists in unison with HP when
he is fighting 'He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named' !!! Now that HP readers feel the emptiness that inevitably follows the end of
a great journey, they insist that they have enjoyed the voyage more than the destination. Isn't that the mark of a
great masterpiece ?? Perhaps !!!
The first 3 potter books came and went, they were bestsellers, created huge profits, but didn't have the furore which
they have now !! And then it happened - Harry got two of his best Christmas gifts - first the adoption of HP by Warner
Brothers and second the internet !! Already having a US publishing house and now under the patronage of Warner brothers
HP became an American Icon. As Derek O' Brain aptly puts it - 'America knows how to sell its icons, if it can sell
Marilyn Monroe to the world, it sure can sell HP' !! Backed by some highly creative directors HP movies were
fantastically made which put all HP readers' visions into visuals and got non HP readers day-dreaming about a fictional
universe. And then came toys, danglers and postage stamps to feed HP lovers even more. Potter games like 'Treasure Hunt
in Hogwarts' and the 'Tom Morvolo Riddle's book' sweeped everybody off their feet.Harry got the exposure it was
yearning for (and which many thought it deserved).
Apart from this, HP got the best marketting strategy working for it, the same marketting strategy which transformed
Google from the final year project of two Stanford graduates to the giant it is today - 'word of mouth' publicity! Potter
fans talked and talked and talked about it. But then as Thomas Abraham,CEO-Penguin Books,says -'Even if HP is a
marketting success, what's wrong with it ? That's not like selling some politician through some trumped up whitewash
campaign. True that many good books failed because of the lack of proper advertising, but I'm yet to see a blockbuster
which doesn't stand by its content." Perhaps true - marketting can dress something up, but it's not going to stay the
course unless people believe there's something in it.
So, is the HP series most imaginative ever ?? Certainly not. Philip Pullman's dark materials triology is as enjoyable
and perhaps more imaginative. But still Potter scored the big prize. Why ? On behalf of Jeff Leyhitt, let me make you
aware of a freakingly similar concept to that of freakonomics (Steven Levitt would have probably done it himself if he
was not busy researching drug peddlars and the decrease in US crime rates). The artistry of JKR is an important element
explaining HP's success, but the changing economics of the 'new economy' plays a big role too. Books and movies are
diffirent from other products that we consume, in that quality of our experience depends in part on whether others
experience the product as well. When I eat an apple, my pleasure doesn't depend on whether my co-worker eats an apple,
too. But when both of us have seen the same movie or read the same book, we can delight in conversation about it.
Economists call such interactions 'network externalities' which played an important role in success of HP. When network
externalities are present, the success of the product can snowball once the sales of the product have crossed a tipping
point. As more individuals experience the product, the benifit to others increases, lifting the incentive to experience
the product even more. Why did HP become the focal point ?? The answer is partly quality and partly the luck of good
timing. Externalities are more powerful in the internet age. Potter websites, online chat room and video games offer
fan the oppurtunity to extend their enjoyment and magnify the network. One wonders if Potter would have been such a
success without the internet.
Potter geeks...wat say ?? Food for thought :D
I'm sure the potter-maniacs would be raring to have a go at me...so, shoot !!!!
NOTE: The last paragragh on network externalities is an excerpt from 21st July, Economics Times.
so much so, that the grammarians had to coin a new term for this wave - Pottermania !! With more than 15 million people
lined to get their hands on 'HP n DH' copy on the very first day of the book's release and JKR sitting on a personal
worth in excess of $1 billion, Pottermainia ranks only second to BeatleMania in the history of cult followings. Wanna
hear what's in-vogue nowadays - kids citing their bicycles to be of Nimbus 2x series and more often that not people
using 'Wingardium Leviosa' to save on their bungee jumping money (make sure you spell the second word as
Levi-OOO-sa, not Levio-SA, otherwise Hermione won't be too happy with you).
What follows now is my humble attempt to understand the success of Harry Potter - unravelling Pottermania as I would
like to call it. But before I delve deep into the Potter maze, I would like to make it very clear that I'm not a
die-hard Potter fan, neither have I read a single Harry Potter novel. On the other hand, I have watched each of the
potter movies released till date. So, the bottomline is - I havn't had too much of HP but just enough to comment on it,
or in other words I'm neither an ardent HP supporter nor do I consider this forum to take out on any personal vendetta
against HP !
Let me start by acknowledging that JKR has done a tremendous job in conjuring the magical world of Hogwarts and wizards
and in creating an altogether new vocabulary - words like slytherin, Gryffindor, Quidditch etc (none of which have
etymology from Latin !!). I havn't read the novel, but those who have, tell me that they had led an all together
diferent life while reading it, they've literally grown with it, turned in their beds with every twist in the narrative,
laughed with Harry and Hermione on every witty/stupid remark Ron makes and clenched their fists in unison with HP when
he is fighting 'He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named' !!! Now that HP readers feel the emptiness that inevitably follows the end of
a great journey, they insist that they have enjoyed the voyage more than the destination. Isn't that the mark of a
great masterpiece ?? Perhaps !!!
The first 3 potter books came and went, they were bestsellers, created huge profits, but didn't have the furore which
they have now !! And then it happened - Harry got two of his best Christmas gifts - first the adoption of HP by Warner
Brothers and second the internet !! Already having a US publishing house and now under the patronage of Warner brothers
HP became an American Icon. As Derek O' Brain aptly puts it - 'America knows how to sell its icons, if it can sell
Marilyn Monroe to the world, it sure can sell HP' !! Backed by some highly creative directors HP movies were
fantastically made which put all HP readers' visions into visuals and got non HP readers day-dreaming about a fictional
universe. And then came toys, danglers and postage stamps to feed HP lovers even more. Potter games like 'Treasure Hunt
in Hogwarts' and the 'Tom Morvolo Riddle's book' sweeped everybody off their feet.Harry got the exposure it was
yearning for (and which many thought it deserved).
Apart from this, HP got the best marketting strategy working for it, the same marketting strategy which transformed
Google from the final year project of two Stanford graduates to the giant it is today - 'word of mouth' publicity! Potter
fans talked and talked and talked about it. But then as Thomas Abraham,CEO-Penguin Books,says -'Even if HP is a
marketting success, what's wrong with it ? That's not like selling some politician through some trumped up whitewash
campaign. True that many good books failed because of the lack of proper advertising, but I'm yet to see a blockbuster
which doesn't stand by its content." Perhaps true - marketting can dress something up, but it's not going to stay the
course unless people believe there's something in it.
So, is the HP series most imaginative ever ?? Certainly not. Philip Pullman's dark materials triology is as enjoyable
and perhaps more imaginative. But still Potter scored the big prize. Why ? On behalf of Jeff Leyhitt, let me make you
aware of a freakingly similar concept to that of freakonomics (Steven Levitt would have probably done it himself if he
was not busy researching drug peddlars and the decrease in US crime rates). The artistry of JKR is an important element
explaining HP's success, but the changing economics of the 'new economy' plays a big role too. Books and movies are
diffirent from other products that we consume, in that quality of our experience depends in part on whether others
experience the product as well. When I eat an apple, my pleasure doesn't depend on whether my co-worker eats an apple,
too. But when both of us have seen the same movie or read the same book, we can delight in conversation about it.
Economists call such interactions 'network externalities' which played an important role in success of HP. When network
externalities are present, the success of the product can snowball once the sales of the product have crossed a tipping
point. As more individuals experience the product, the benifit to others increases, lifting the incentive to experience
the product even more. Why did HP become the focal point ?? The answer is partly quality and partly the luck of good
timing. Externalities are more powerful in the internet age. Potter websites, online chat room and video games offer
fan the oppurtunity to extend their enjoyment and magnify the network. One wonders if Potter would have been such a
success without the internet.
Potter geeks...wat say ?? Food for thought :D
I'm sure the potter-maniacs would be raring to have a go at me...so, shoot !!!!
NOTE: The last paragragh on network externalities is an excerpt from 21st July, Economics Times.
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Au revior to my first love !!!
The moment, that comes but once in the long time of the rule of men, had come. The day of the calender read 4 August,2003.
It was on such an epoch that Kingdom of Heaven had just carved out it's niche among other kingdoms as a major power and was thriving and prospering with it's full might. It was on such a night that a bright new star appeared in the sky for the first time, a night when three comrades, weary and fatigued on following the trail of this bright star for thousand miles in search of 'the chosen one',stood facing the bastion of the institute, which was reckoned to be one of the best in the world in producing valiant warriors. And it was in such an hour that a young pupil,incognizant of the forthcoming incident which was going to change his life,was deep asleep inside the walls of that institute after his strenuous trainning day.
"You've been chosen to serve the Kingdom of Heaven my child.You've to leave your land and people to serve them and battle out their problems" -an angel was talking to the pupil in his dreams.
"Kingdom of heaven is having problems ??? Isn't it supposed to be Utopia ?? That's why they call it kingdom of heaven." - inquired the startled pupil.
"Yes, it is Utopia. But currently it's facing some operational problems, problèmes opérationnel as they call it" - replied the Angel.
"But I'm in middle of my trainning and moreover I don't have any experience to do this" - said the pupil with a worried face.
"Fear not my child. I have already summoned Commodor Legalus to help you out. He was leading the armies in the battlefield, but now he'll be spearheading the operational battle. I have commissioned three comrades from Kingdom of Heaven who will select you for this assignment tomorrow.Your job is to earnestly complete the trainning and join Commodor Legalus on 7th-June,2004. You would serve them for a little over one year, and then leave for City of Zion." - explained the angel.
"May I know to which general I'ld be reporting to ?" - asked the pupil.
"General Vitalstatistix" - were the last words of the angel.
As destined to be his fate, the pupil was selected by the three comrades the very next day and he joined Operational Team under Vitalstatistix on the momentous day of 7th-June,2004.The pupil honed his skills under the able guidance of Commodor Legalus and served the Kingdom of Heaven as best as he could have done. Things were tough for the pupil at times when he felt solitary and there was nobody at his side to help him, but he always did his level best to aid Legalus and VitalStatistix in marshalling and manoeuvering the Operational combat.
The pupil always wondered what is it in Kingdom of Heaven (KOH) that makes it Utopia ? This unfathomable mystery beleaguered him throughout his stay at KOH. Things were getting worse for the pupil as his stay at KOH was coming to an end. At the start, it was just an assignment for him, but slowly he was starting to like the place. It was tough for him to leave all the indispensable comrades that he made at KOH, he only wished he could stay longer here.
But humans are only at the pity of determinism, which seldom changes it's course. The day of the calender read 4 August-2005, the night before the pupil's last day at KOH, excatly 2 years after the day when the angel appeared in pupil's dream for the first time. The pupil went to sleep hoping that the angel would again come in his dream.
"My child, is it sorrow that I see on your face ?" - the angel was indeed talking to the pupil in his dream.
"Yes, my Lord !" - answered the sad pupil.
"And may I know the reason for this ?" - the angel said with a faint smile on his face.
"I think I'm beginning to like this place and I wish I can stay longer here." - said the pupil.
"But that is not at all possible. As you already know, your stay was here for only one year.Now you have to move to Zion. I see that you have one more question for me !!" - the angel said with a playful smile on his face.
"It's been there in my mind for sometime. Working under Commodor Legalus was like walking on sand for me.In euphoric times, I can see 4 foot-prints on the sand which I presumed to be of me and Commodor, but in difficult times I can only see two foot-prints ! Why did the Commodor leave me when I was in trouble ? Why didn't you ask him to help me ?" - complained the pupil.
"You are badly mistaken my Child !! The two foot-prints that you saw were that of your Commodor and not your's. I instructed Commodor to carry you on his shoulders when you're in trouble. So, have you unravelled the mystery of prosperity of Kingdom of Heaven ?" - again a playful smile appeared on angel's face.
"Yes !!" - said the pupil. Now it was the turn of the Angel to get perplexed.
"So tell me, what is it ?" - the Angel was anxious to hear the answer.
"It's the people who live in the Kingdom of Heaven. It's not the formidable walls and the inpenetarble army that it has, but it's the people who live inside those walls which make it Kingdom of Heaven. Previously I thought that these people are fortunate to live in Kingdom of Heaven, but actually the Kingdom of Heaven is fortunate to have them." - was the end of conversation between the pupil and the angel.
The calender reads 5th August,2005 and this is the last day of the pupil at Kingdom of Heaven.
It was on such an epoch that Kingdom of Heaven had just carved out it's niche among other kingdoms as a major power and was thriving and prospering with it's full might. It was on such a night that a bright new star appeared in the sky for the first time, a night when three comrades, weary and fatigued on following the trail of this bright star for thousand miles in search of 'the chosen one',stood facing the bastion of the institute, which was reckoned to be one of the best in the world in producing valiant warriors. And it was in such an hour that a young pupil,incognizant of the forthcoming incident which was going to change his life,was deep asleep inside the walls of that institute after his strenuous trainning day.
"You've been chosen to serve the Kingdom of Heaven my child.You've to leave your land and people to serve them and battle out their problems" -an angel was talking to the pupil in his dreams.
"Kingdom of heaven is having problems ??? Isn't it supposed to be Utopia ?? That's why they call it kingdom of heaven." - inquired the startled pupil.
"Yes, it is Utopia. But currently it's facing some operational problems, problèmes opérationnel as they call it" - replied the Angel.
"But I'm in middle of my trainning and moreover I don't have any experience to do this" - said the pupil with a worried face.
"Fear not my child. I have already summoned Commodor Legalus to help you out. He was leading the armies in the battlefield, but now he'll be spearheading the operational battle. I have commissioned three comrades from Kingdom of Heaven who will select you for this assignment tomorrow.Your job is to earnestly complete the trainning and join Commodor Legalus on 7th-June,2004. You would serve them for a little over one year, and then leave for City of Zion." - explained the angel.
"May I know to which general I'ld be reporting to ?" - asked the pupil.
"General Vitalstatistix" - were the last words of the angel.
As destined to be his fate, the pupil was selected by the three comrades the very next day and he joined Operational Team under Vitalstatistix on the momentous day of 7th-June,2004.The pupil honed his skills under the able guidance of Commodor Legalus and served the Kingdom of Heaven as best as he could have done. Things were tough for the pupil at times when he felt solitary and there was nobody at his side to help him, but he always did his level best to aid Legalus and VitalStatistix in marshalling and manoeuvering the Operational combat.
The pupil always wondered what is it in Kingdom of Heaven (KOH) that makes it Utopia ? This unfathomable mystery beleaguered him throughout his stay at KOH. Things were getting worse for the pupil as his stay at KOH was coming to an end. At the start, it was just an assignment for him, but slowly he was starting to like the place. It was tough for him to leave all the indispensable comrades that he made at KOH, he only wished he could stay longer here.
But humans are only at the pity of determinism, which seldom changes it's course. The day of the calender read 4 August-2005, the night before the pupil's last day at KOH, excatly 2 years after the day when the angel appeared in pupil's dream for the first time. The pupil went to sleep hoping that the angel would again come in his dream.
"My child, is it sorrow that I see on your face ?" - the angel was indeed talking to the pupil in his dream.
"Yes, my Lord !" - answered the sad pupil.
"And may I know the reason for this ?" - the angel said with a faint smile on his face.
"I think I'm beginning to like this place and I wish I can stay longer here." - said the pupil.
"But that is not at all possible. As you already know, your stay was here for only one year.Now you have to move to Zion. I see that you have one more question for me !!" - the angel said with a playful smile on his face.
"It's been there in my mind for sometime. Working under Commodor Legalus was like walking on sand for me.In euphoric times, I can see 4 foot-prints on the sand which I presumed to be of me and Commodor, but in difficult times I can only see two foot-prints ! Why did the Commodor leave me when I was in trouble ? Why didn't you ask him to help me ?" - complained the pupil.
"You are badly mistaken my Child !! The two foot-prints that you saw were that of your Commodor and not your's. I instructed Commodor to carry you on his shoulders when you're in trouble. So, have you unravelled the mystery of prosperity of Kingdom of Heaven ?" - again a playful smile appeared on angel's face.
"Yes !!" - said the pupil. Now it was the turn of the Angel to get perplexed.
"So tell me, what is it ?" - the Angel was anxious to hear the answer.
"It's the people who live in the Kingdom of Heaven. It's not the formidable walls and the inpenetarble army that it has, but it's the people who live inside those walls which make it Kingdom of Heaven. Previously I thought that these people are fortunate to live in Kingdom of Heaven, but actually the Kingdom of Heaven is fortunate to have them." - was the end of conversation between the pupil and the angel.
The calender reads 5th August,2005 and this is the last day of the pupil at Kingdom of Heaven.
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