Shower Thoughts

         The dust has finally settled on what was an enthraling and relatively successful Olympics for Team India. They managed to better their all-time tally of 6 medals (2 silvers and 4 bronze) in 2012 to 7 medals (1 gold, 2 silver and 4 bronze). Beyond the numbers, it brought together a country of more than 1.3 billion to sit and watch games that most of them had never watched. Every Olympics has unique nature to it where stars are born, and history is created.            I am especially thrilled about the new sports that have been introduced to me during the Olympics i.e. Golf and Fencing. I am sure I'm in the majority among the people who had to Google what was a Birdie and Bogey, and we have Aditi Ashok to thank for it. To be able to stay the course till the last day was incredible. I didn't particularly like Fencing, but the fact Bhavani Devi won her first match was quite pleasing and I hope more youngsters will take a liking...

 Women's sport has come a long way over the last decade while growing exponentially in terms of viewership and revenue. It has been evidently noticed how well women's sport has expanded with efficient structure and management, what you may forget is that men's sport has also been growing rapidly with technological advancement and globalisation. The Women's FIFA world cup final in 2019 had 1.2 billion viewers which is frankly an insane number, while the Men's World Cup in 2018 had 3.5 billion viewers, meaning every second person on the face of this planet was watching the men's finals. While the gap has reduced over the years, my understanding is that this gap will always remain.          I believe that there are two types of fans; one is the casual fan who watches sports casually just for entertainment and enjoyment, while the other is the analytical fan, who watches all the matches with an eye for skill, technique, tactics and of course entertainment. The ...

  6.2 billion dollars is the amount of revenue that the Australian government-generated through the gambling industry in 2018  14.4 billion pounds is the amount of  revenue that the British government generated through the gambling industry in 2018                     Source:  https://www.thestatesman.com/opinion/gambling-ills-must-be-brought-into-focus-                                                                               1502860575.html For all the growth that India has had in the last 50 years in terms of economy, defence, technology etc. we seem to be anchored by some ridiculous and outdated laws in terms of generating revenue through different methods. Betting and Gambling is one such law that needs serious ...

           A few years ago I had asked a very senior politician in India, "Why are people of my generation so disinterested in Politics"? and he said, "It's the same for every generation, there will always be people who are not interested".  For something that is so pertinent in your day to day life, it is undeniably surprising that such few people know about their politicians and governance.            Globalisation and Technology have allowed people from different backgrounds and places to get in touch and know the changing landscape in every corner of the world. The previous generation did not have this opportunity, therefore as millennials, we are the first of our kind to this type of access. If you are paying tax, you should ask questions. The fact that individuals know so little about their MP's and MLA's in India is disheartening. Every 5 years, the system gives you an opportunity to vote for one person that you bel...

            Rivalries in sport are widely considered as a critical factor that is tangible to every global competition. Be it the ICC Cricket World Cup, the Premier League or the Ashes, fans relate to these competitions on an emotional level. Growing up in school I was always taught about respecting every match, play it like it's your last match and your life depends upon it.              Then puberty hit during the later years, and I started understanding the global dynamics of sporting competitions in different countries. It took me a while to understand why Indian fans found more happiness in beating Pakistan during World Cups, even if India did not win the world cup. Why Alex Fergusson kept saying that the first goal is to make sure Liverpool does not win the title. Why contemporary Ashes players (primarily English) felt like winning the Ashes was often bigger than winning the World Cup.         ...

 It is a well-known entity around the world that celebrities do not choose to become role models, it is just one of the responsibilities that come with the job. Public life is harder then most people understand and actors and actresses are held to high standards of leadership which they did not sign up for. Don't get me wrong, they have a life that most people around the world can only envy and it is a position of privilege to be a celebrity. Having said that, we as commoners tend to forget that they are humans with real emotions and more importantly have personal lives which may or may resonate with their professional lives.             These celebrities are not independents and should not proclaim to be independents. Whether they lean left, right or centre is irrelevant to their professional careers and should have no bearing on how people view them for their jobs, just like anyone else. This dynamic however does change when theses celebrities u...

            Governing a country of more than a billion is no easy task, and when you add to it the democratic style of governance, it's a near-impossible mission. Yet, since India's independence from the British in 1947, a grand total of 14 Prime Ministers have had the honour and privilege of leading our country. Some of them have had to face rather difficult circumstances, both internally and externally. Wars with Pakistan and China have led to regular border tensions with the situation rarely being calm. Internally, we've faced riots between communities (most of which are politically motivated) with metropolitans such as Mumbai and Delhi being torn apart. The current situation is no different and as a country, we are being attacked from all corners and to make matters worse the citizens are more polarised than ever.            As our prime minister says "Criticism is the backbone of democracy", I agree, but you need the coura...