CRUNCH - All things crunched.

Time has this uncanny ability to fade everything that it touches and it subsequently reinvents some thing new that is fade-able. Ours, is defined as a time and age that is psychological in nature and not institutional. Which essentially means that individuals now have to perform the role of society for themselves...what used to be done for us by institutional structures like family, caste, society, culture through ritual process, we now have to do inside ourselves for ourselves. This makes us a culture of the individual rather than the collective. If every generation was given a megaphone to shout out their differentiated approach, it is likely that the POV of the current generation is bench-marked against some that was older.         What is interesting to note is that the fundamental institutions have changed from family/birth structures to social structures... Google is the new god and facebok is the new society. Ours is in many ways still a deeply ritualistic c...

What  is the world of luxury, premium, couture…how do they create and stir so much emptiness and instill a feeling of hollow even in the souls of those with wealth and status.  Luxury operates by creating a deep sense of lack and void. It creates a profound sense of desire and longing– it creates a need that did not not exist. So how does one create desire and whom should we target.       They key to aspirational brands are that they are elusive – they play hard to get. No one can own them. They only allow membership not ownership. These brands are build on momentum and they flourish through the innovations that they come up with. Fashion, luxury and everything that is status conferring is also satus depleting, hence we feel the need to keep spending to stay with these brands and categories. At a broader level every faction of society has the same aspirations, some realize it momentarily and others can enjoy it over a longer passage of time. Luxury is a g...

Loads have been lauded on the Indian cricket team for conquering the world. To the many Indians, this has been a customary display of Indian nerves and fragility and the ultimate triumphing over emotions. A tied game with England, a heartbreak against SA, a gritty win to outclass the Aussies and the vindication of Pakistan...we watch cricket like we consume a bollywood flick and it is no surprise we demand the same codes of entertainment from a game like we do from a film. The songs, the poetry, the locales, the highlights and twilights, the cruises and the unexpected bends, the emergence of heroes and the conquering of villains and finally a happy ending. World Cup 2011 was just that or was it more...     Parallel to the roller coaster journey of this tournament is the hint of the evolution of the Indian player. The involvement of corporate India, the proximity of the entertainment industry and the high handedness of the political machinery has ensured that 'performance' i...