The Mahavatar maha-saga

On a busy and boring weekday, my mom and I had planned to watch a movie together. We had a lot of options lined up- Saiyyara, Kingdom, Hari Hara Veera Mallu, but then we ended up booking tickets for the film Mahavatar Narasimha. We heard about this film through positive word of mouth and decided to watch it. 

At the start of the film, I had a few apprehensions. Since this is originally a Kannada film and was dubbed in Telugu, I was concerned the dubbing and the lip-sync of the animation wouldn't do justice to the original. However, those doubts were put to rest in the opening minutes thanks to the flawless execution. 

The first thing that blew my mind was the fact that an animated movie could impact me so much- the film made me cry at a few portions, gave me goosebumps in the fight sequences and for a few of these sequences, my hands automatically folded into prayer as a form of reverence. I was deeply moved by the way Prahlad's pure and unmatched devotion towards Lord Vishnu was captured by the makers and my heart rooted for him. Anything Prahlad felt, I could feel it too. Certain portions of the film involving conversations between Prahlad and Lord Vishnu deeply hit- it felt as though Lord Vishnu (Narasimha) was addressing me. The depictions of all the characters in the film were spot on and the placement of songs at the right places complemented the storyline well.

It is really difficult to convince the audience in an animated film- especially if it is a devotional film. There are a lot of possibilities of things going wrong- cultural misrepresentation, improper characterisation, artifical set-pieces, etc. For a film that is the first in a most-anticipated cinematic universe, hitting the right chord without overdoing anything is extremely important. This film lays the foundation for the future lineup of this universe- which spans the next 12 years- so getting it right is crucial for everyone involved.

This film translating into the big screen effectively and capturing the audience's attention would mean that we as an audience would get to see more beautiful portrayals of Lord Vishnu's avatars in the years to come. Just like Marvel Cinematic Universe, we would get our own Mahavatar Cinematic Universe, boldly Indian, rooted in our culture and presented in a way that appeals the young audience.

The good news is that the film clicked- people who've watched it are raving about it- the film has got the highest ratings in BookMyShow. The dream to have a universe that is truly ours is finally going to manifest in the best form possible and I am absolutely elated and excited.

One major thing that elevated my viewer experience was the audience. For all the high moments of the film, the audience cheered, prayed, cried and in the end, they even gave a 2 min applause too. All of this didn't make me feel like I was watching a film in a multiplex, it felt like I was watching a film in a single screen.
This single screen movie experience felt like a multiscreen experience only while having our food- the food was costlier than our ticket price. 

All in all, this film is beautifully taken. It is a handwoven artistic animation masterpiece. In case you've missed watching it and are waiting for the film to be released on OTT, I would say- don't wait till the OTT release. This movie needs to be experienced in 3D on the big screen in order to feel its true impact- watching it at home won't do justice to the grandeur and finesse of this film. So don't wait, grab your tickets and watch this film at your nearest theatres because once you are done watching it, you will be proud about this film and won't regret investing your time on it.

                                      

                                         - Anusha Sridhar

A tribute to one year

Presenting to all of you a poem that I'd written reminiscing about my one-year leadership journey in Toastmasters.....do read and share your thoughts.

How did one year pass so fast?

It gave us lots of memories to last.

We worked with hearts filled with passion and minds so keen.

Oh! What a journey this has been. 

We came together to achieve a common dream.

We've seen ups and downs together 

and braved them like a team.

We had to take calculated risks

for which we planned and strategised.

We put our best foot forward for every opportunity that was utilised.

This team was more than a team.

This was family.

This was a safe space

that always had your back.

Even though they were running their own individual race.

In the course of this journey, we became mature.

We laughed, smiled and got wise.

But instead of happiness, why are there tears in my eyes?

This journey is unforgettable.

It has transformed me from a drop to an endless sea.

It has made me harder.

It has made me smarter.

It has done so much to me, that it is difficult to even describe this chapter.

I am stepping out with a filled and content heart.

This has become an integral part, so much so, that it can never be apart.

This is a rollercoaster ride.

This is a chapter in my life that I would look back with pride.

I bid farewell to this beautiful journey with one last goodbye.

And a promise to myself

that once this ends

I won't cry.

This is not the end, this is the beginning.

A beginning to more such heartwarming memories and stories.

So, brace yourself for more.

Because you never really know what life has in store.

-Anusha Sridhar

The new trend

On a regular evening as I was scrolling through Instagram, I saw a few images that popped up on my feed. They were neither celebrities' paparazzi shots nor clickbait trend images. They were Ghibli art images. I was seeing these kinds of images for the very first time and I was truly fascinated. 

Before my mind could comprehend the trend and decipher as to how these Ghibli images were being made, my Instagram was flooded with loads of these images. Whichever account I opened- either a celebrity's or a friend's account- everyone was dabbling in this newfound trend of 'Ghibli art images' and I remained a mere spectator to all the buzz surrounding it.

What is this Ghibli art? It is a distinctive visual style that is associated with Studio Ghibli- an animation studio- based out of Japan. The craze for Ghibli art is really high due to the expressive characters, vivid backgrounds and the colour palette used, but most importantly, people started loving it so much due to how aesthetically it transforms their facial contour.  In fact, the trend became so popular that Sam Altman, the CEO of OpenAI, started requesting people not to put too much load on the servers as their software was not able to keep up with the excessive demand. Little did he realise that a harmless trend of generating Ghibli images would spread like wildfire across the globe creating record-breaking engagement.

After a few days, I too managed to hop on to the trend by creating 'Ghiblified' images of mine which managed to garner a lot of attention. 😁

In the midst of all this newfound excitement of generating beautiful images, I stumbled across an article that spoke about one of the original creators- Hayao Miyazaki- and his opinions on Ghibli art. While reading this, there were two lines that caught my attention: 'the use of AI to generate animation is an insult to life itself' and 'hand-drawn animation is the only way to breathe life to a character.' 

While I was slowly trying to read and wrap myself around this new discourse surrounding Ghibli art, I saw that the netizens were in a frenzy and divided into two halves. One half was busy making Ghibli edits and cashing in on the latest trend, while the other was discussing about data security, how privacy is a myth and how the Ghibli trend doesn't credit the original artist.  

In the midst of all this chaos regarding whether Ghibli edits should be made or not, something called as 'reverse Ghibli art' started trending. How does this work? You upload an image of yours and convert it to Ghibli. Once that is done, you ask AI to add another person (based on the description of yours) in the Ghibli image it generated. Then, convert that image back to normal. Once you finish all these steps, you can see the face of a real person AI adds to your picture.

Maybe AI has one staple real face each for a man and a woman that it will generate when you do the reverse ghibli, but this raised a lot of flak from people. Concerns of data privacy and ethics came back to the picture- how safe is our data? Aren't we going too far by consensually giving AI firsthand access to our personal pictures? By doing that, won't our data be vulnerable to all sorts of attacks and misuse? How far is it correct to give access to our data despite knowing the risks associated with it? With all these questions, the trend became the subject of all sorts of scrutiny and dissection from people.

In this situation, there are two stances that you can take. Either don't upload any image of yours and don't participate in any trend due to data privacy concerns. But if you are participating in the trend, you will have to upload your images in order to generate your personalised Ghibli image.
If you are going with the second option, you are giving AI access to your pictures, so make sure you don't share sensitive pictures- but again, not sure if this will guarantee you complete protection, so be cautious.

Every situation has its own pros and cons. We can do two things- either avoid taking any kind of risk or take calculated risks. The choice between the two is something we have to take based on the way we perceive the current situation and our own thought process.

One last thing that I would like to mention here is- AI is not originally creating these images using its brain. AI is not a human- it is developed by humans. If AI is able to generate these Ghibli art images, it is because Mr.Miyazaki and his team worked really hard to create hand-woven animation in Ghibli style. Let us respect that and give credit whenever we are using this. Not only now, but in any situation for that matter, let us give credit to the original artist because if it weren't for that person, we wouldn't be having everything on our fingertips.

Whichever side you pick- whether you are pro-Ghibli art or anti-Ghibli art, we are defined by the kind of choices we make. Nobody is going to judge you for participating/not participating in a trend. Maybe by not participating you might experience FOMO, but again it is a consensual choice that you have to make.

Which side are you all on? Do you want to generate Ghibli images or are you against it? Let me know your views in the comments.

                                                           - Anusha Sridhar

 

Let's talk about work life balance

The comments made by the L&T Chairman Mr. Subramanyam about work-life balance has sparked a rage on the internet. On one end there are fiery debates made about the way work-life balance is treated in India and on the other end, netizens are digging out some controversial statements made by business legends in the past on this. Some are happy that finally there is a discourse on a topic that is mostly brushed under the carpet, while some have used this incident as an opportunity to vent about the toxic work culture in their organization.

What is this work-life balance all about? In simple terms, work-life balance refers to the concept of allocating sufficient amount of time to professional and personal commitments without getting mentally drained. It refers to the aspect of drawing a healthy line between work and life without letting the former overwhelm us.

You might ask why this concept of work life balance has come into the picture now and not a few years ago. The answer to this lies in the three aspects of change that have taken place in the work culture. 

The first aspect is the nature of work. In the past, work was restrained to the boundaries of work timings and had no scope of entering our personal space. But today, our lives have become more digitally intertwined which led to work taking out maximum of our personal time. 

The second aspect is the commuting time and the modes of commuting to the workplace. Previously, it was easier to travel long distances due to lack of congestion on the roads. The environment was supportive too. But now, due to bad roads, rampant increase in traffic and roadblocks, the to and fro is getting really exhausting. Due to this, a person is not able to focus on anything else once they are back home. 

The third aspect is the expansion and diversification of work. Today, companies across the globe partner with each other to produce innovative solutions by leveraging each other's expertise to the maximum. In order to achieve this, employees have to interact with clients across the globe- with clients living at different time zones. This has led to a major disruption in the sleep cycle of these employees and is taking a toll on their health.

Due to these significant changes in the work culture, the concept of work-life balance came into picture- to ensure that we are not getting burnt out and are utilizing our potential to the fullest.

Work-life balance has revolutionized the world with countries passing laws to ensure that employee rights are protected. Right to disconnect, fixed work schedules and pay for overtime have made work environments less toxic and have cultivated a positive environment. But sadly, this isn't the case in India as none of these provisions are available.

We Indians somehow have built this mindset that greater number of hours we put into a task, the better we are performing it. We are valued as an asset to our company when we work for long hours beyond our office timings and are looked down when we leave early. The key logic that a lot of companies are missing here is the fact that it is always quality over quantity and not the other way round. We might end up spending hours trying to resolve a simple problem whenever we are exhausted because our brain can't function to its full capacity after a certain period of time. We need to give it a break to refresh and unwind. The lack of this time is leading to an unhealthy work life. We end up working for hours together with no real progress.

When a study was done on how work-life balance is treated in India, the facts that emerged were shocking. Indian employees work for 48-50 hours a week, and 83% Indian employees have experienced burnout in their workplace. This is far higher in comparison to other countries and these statistics are pretty concerning. While other countries are looking to reduce 5-day work week to a 4-day work week, our country's businessmen are looking at increasing 5 days to 6-day work week and 6 days to 7-day work week which is absolutely unhealthy.

Does that mean achieving work life balance in India is absolutely impossible? Well, things are not going to change until there is a change at the top level. Mr. Anand Mahindra had mentioned in one of his recent interactions that whenever top businessmen talk about bringing reforms, let it start from a top-down approach instead of a bottom-top approach. When these individuals actually work for long durations under the conditions normal people are facing and achieve the required output, only then should it be implemented in companies. As of now, only time will tell whether the Indian conglomerates are going to implement this top-down approach and make their employees life easier.

Can't we do anything from our end to make things better? The first most important thing to do is to start saying NO if you aren't available. A lot of times we end up doing things way beyond our requirement when it is not necessary. We should draw our lines and firmly stick to them. We might feel bad initially for doing that, but in such scenarios, remember that you are doing it for your sanity.

Work-life balance is a pretty sensitive concept, and you can't pigeonhole it. For different people this term means different things. The employees might give paramount importance to quality time with family, their personal interests and hobbies. The business tycoons might give paramount importance to working because of the lump amounts of profits they earn. The problem arises when these tycoons pressure employees to work overtime under the guise of "more work, more output" and "contributing to the nation's growth," forcing them to prioritize company goals over their own. This leads to poor work-life balance.

A lot of these hi-fi individuals live under this assumption that there is no such concept of work-life balance because when you love the work that you do, it becomes your life, and you don't have to balance it. You will just go with the flow without any complaints. I feel this is a flawed way of looking at it because not everyone likes their work, and they have to do it because of some compulsion or commitments. Even if someone does like their work a lot, they too won't like to sit on the same task for the whole day without a break since it leads to monotony. This monotony will slowly lead to boredom since there is no novelty and this slowly leads to losing interest in work. 

A lot of times, one starts to presume that work-life balance simply means making the work environment better and more efficient, allowing it to take center stage. But remember this: work-life balance is about improving one's life outside the work environment—through travel, personal growth, etc.—in a way that prevents exhaustion. One’s life should always take precedence, with work being just one part of it. Never let work rob you of the serenity that defines your life.

                        - Anusha Sridhar

The Dining Debacle

One evening my mom and I had gone to a five-star restaurant to kickstart our weekend with a bang. We were visiting this restaurant for the very first time and had zeroed in on this place after hearing a lot of reviews raving about the food, its quality and the ambience of the dining area. We were excited to see how the evening would unfold and were eager to experience the flavour of various cuisines enriching our tastebuds.

This restaurant made a strong statement in the initial minutes itself as to why it was called a signature place. There was a decorative ambient light set up on each table whose colour could be customised based on the mood. This increased our expectation multifold. We looked at the offerings of the day in the menu, placed our order and were waiting with bated breaths to receive our food.

After a wait for 20-25 mins, the food- which btw, looked absolutely delicious- arrived. The aroma filled our nostrils, and we were ready to savour the food. My mom and I took a bite of one of the items and after tasting it, we immediately looked into each other's eyes. We realised, it was not our mouths that were watering craving for more, but our eyes that were watering due to the 'distasteful taste' and the exorbitant amount of money paid for it. We somehow finished half the portion of whatever we had ordered, paid the bill, and left home. 

This was the story of our Dining Debacle in full glory.

This incident reminded me of one of the most intricate and interesting debates in today's time-'Place value Vs Taste value'. I call this debate an intricate one as it helps us understand the complex and innate human emotions on the basis of the choices people make. The watershed moment in this debate is the choice of picking the restaurant to dine-in. Some of them put their social status first before their own taste buds, while some put taste first over the place they are dining in. This forms the baseline for the argument.

To understand this conundrum better, consider this. You prefer taste over the place. Would you like to eat in an unhygienic place even though you know that the food there tastes really good? This pushes you into a predicament, and you think of switching sides. But will this switch guarantee you the best output? We have this common misconception that greater the money involved, better would be the quality. Is this completely true? Not really.

Food costs are really high not only because of the quality, but the additional expenditure these restaurant giants incur in order to satisfy the needs of their high-level customers. This means, that the entire amount you are paying is not solely for the quality and safety of the food but is also for the logistics that the restaurant has to put in to maintain the place.

At this point you must be in two minds wondering if there is no end to this debate. The deeper we dig into each argument, the more convincing it starts to sound. What is the final verdict? Is there no way we all can arrive at a conclusive closure?

To offer a resolution for this debate, the first thing that all of us should be doing is to decide if we prefer food over taste or vice versa. This will help us make more efficient food choices and avoid mistakes as we would be visiting places that align with our interests. Maybe if the food served while you are a customer at a place is bad because the restaurant didn't have a good day, you still won't crib about the cost as you willingly signed up for it. 

Now comes the next thing- what if you willingly didn't sign up for visiting a place and just went by whatever you heard? If that is the case, the best approach would be TRUST your sources but VERIFY before going. In our case, we just saw Google reviews and decided that the restaurant would be the best for us. Had we spoken to any of our foodie family members/friends to see if the taste would cater to our food liking, we could've avoided the situation.

The more I ponder regarding the reason for dislike of food there, the more complicated the arguments get. Every idea sounds equally convincing and deciding what must've been the reason behind the Dining Debacle gets crazier. There is another theory as well in my mind while writing this: maybe I was so used to eating food at local street shops and small restaurants that I didn't even have the appetite for the food eaten by elites! (LOL)

I rest my case here by mentioning this: Place value vs Taste value is a never-ending debate, and each person has their own reasons for picking one side. Despite following all the steps, you might still end up in a Dining Debacle if the stars are not aligned properly. What is important here, is for you to identify what kind of a person you are, which would thereby enable you to make informed choices. 

Finally, remember, you eat to live and not live to eat, so don't let one bad experience completely tarnish your image about a certain place. Look for alternatives, keep exploring and whenever you experience a Dining Debacle, remember there is always a next food joint/eatery that you can explore to keep your taste buds high!

      - Anusha Sridhar

(P.S Have you experienced any Dinner Debacles in the recent times?)

The T20 delight

 The 17-year wait has finally come to an end. India brings the World Cup home with a stunning victory against South Africa. All the players in the squad performed their respective roles with finesse ensuring that the long-awaited dream becomes a reality. The match wasn't a one-sided one. There were so many game-changing moments and awesome cricket that we got to witness. The number of twists and turns in the game made all the Indian fans glued to their TV screens watching with bated breaths, fingers crossed, and eyes brimming with thin line of hope of crossing the final endeavor. Victory in yesterday's match was such a heart-warming moment as it allowed us fans to finally come out of the heartbreak of the World cup loss against Australia last November. 

Many sentimental fans (like me) were really tensed about yesterday's match as we were getting flashbacks and drawing parallels with the ODI World Cup. The two scenarios were eerily similar- an undefeated streak in the league matches which led to a heartbreaking loss in the final game. Somewhere we were scared where history might repeat, but thanks to an overall team effort- IT DID NOT. 

The best part of T20 was the bromance of Rohit and Virat was on top throughout all the league games. The efforts of the bowlers too were top notch and that helped us defend low scores too. This T20 campaign was a collective effort which led to a well-deserved win. Watching the way Rohit collected the trophy and Rahul Dravid getting his due after so many years made everyone elated and emotional too.

This victory has given Hardik Pandya one of his biggest comebacks ever. From being trolled on getting appointed as the MI captain, to being booed by fans in his own home ground, to unwanted rumors- everything took a major toll on his mental health. Seeing him give a fitting comeback to all the haters in style and expressing his happy tears made everyone proud of him. Along with Hardik, even Virat Kohli was criticized a lot for his form in the league matches but he too answered in style with his bat on the D-day. 

What surprises me sometimes is the nature of Indian cricket fans. During IPL it is 'Rohit Vs Kohli' but when it comes to international matches as team India, it becomes 'Ro & Ko', 'RohiRat' and many other such names. How fast the night changes!

Maybe this proves that during IPL season we are all divided as teams, individual players and laurels, but when it comes to the national team, everyone becomes one and cheers the loudest.

Wishing hearty congratulations to team India and eagerly waiting to watch more such classy cricket! The fact that both the stalwarts of the game Rohit and Virat are retiring from the format definitely has left a void in our heart but as they say: 'endings are new beginnings', looking forward to a new era of cricket with the youngsters carrying forward the legacy of both these players. The shoes to fill in are big, but I am sure that with the quality of cricket, respect and dedication they put into the game, they will definitely be able to shine and take Indian cricket to greater heights.

Once again congratulations team India! We will continue to stand by your side as your loyal fans. 😊

                                                   - Anusha Sridhar

My first time

May 10th, 2024. 

The D-day.

The day when my biggest dream came true.

The day when I got my right to exercise my power of being a part of a democratic country.

The day when I got my "RIGHT TO VOTE."

I have been an ardent follower of Indian politics and throughout my 19 years of life, I've gotten to read and witness the different ideologies of political parties, the way matters of the country are looked at and the way things are rapidly changing due to surge of AI. (iykyk)

It has been quite an interesting phase for me as I've gotten to see both sides of the coin- how through the passage of time certain great leaders evolved and sustained due to wise decisions while a few completely withered away. The wide spectrum of people with diverse thoughts that we get to witness in Indian politics is truly fascinating!

They say democracy cannot succeed unless those who express their choice are prepared to choose wisely. The USP of a democratic nation lies in the fact that people are the choosers. The drawback? People are the choosers.

The citizens of the country have the right to either give power to someone or to completely strip them off it. With great power comes great responsibility and with a responsibility as big as that of electing someone who would be in power for 5 years, lots of caution needs to be exercised before casting a vote. There needs to be lots of thinking, analyzing and understanding as to what the best option for our country's progress would be. Is the same amount of effort being put in by each and every voter in this country? Sadly, the answer is no.

Despite having a country with the youth constituting the major population, it is disheartening to see such a small percentage of voter turnout during elections. It is even more disheartening to see all the educated people taking a backseat and not casting their vote. Since most of the times we have elections conducted during the weekends and with the election day being a holiday, people are prioritizing their personal work over any other activities, thus sabotaging the country's future. 

Every election is dependent on the people who show up. Every vote counts. Please vote for the person whom you think will bring a fresh approach to the table to tackle the current set of problems being faced. Please don't come under the influence of external factors and vote irrationally. Take your responsibility seriously and be the change you wish to see.

As a first-time voter, I will be casting my vote on the 13th of May and exercise my most important right and take part in this privilege of being a citizen of a democratic country. What about you?

JAI HIND!!

                        - Anusha Sridhar