Salem Kitchen

Transit - the food court in forum mall,Bangalore is a costly saviour to our poor hunger pangs. Forum is reasonably a good place to hangout,treat our eyes,dream colorfully & burn calories too, after rounds of mindless roaming & insensible shopping there.But Transit houses a variety of food stalls with a crooked intention to dump all the bad calories on us while we dump all our money on them.All in the game of addressing the Cosmo culture's taste buds.Displayed are almost all varieties of food available under the sun tempting the eyes & watering the mouth.

When i had been there for the first time,something that caught my eye was a stall named Salem Kitchen.The name was so authentic to me amidst the other colourful stalls though i never wanted to eat anything from there at that point in time.I settled down with a subway sandwich somewhere near our Salem Kitchen due to space constraint over the weekend.Happened to browse through the menu there and was super shell shocked to read the very second item in the menu.It read

Idlly ---------------------- 20Rs

Idlly with Mutton Gravy ---80Rs

Just looked around in that heavy crowd if someone was actually eating the above menu and yes there were many.There were just 2 idllys in a plate with possibly the smallest scoop of sambar & another same scoop full of chutney beside.And someone actually was crossing me with the second menu as well.The same two idllys with just a bony piece of meat floating like an iceberg from the sea of mutton gravy.Looked as if the gravy might not be sufficient for the entire second idlly.

People from south who live in Bangalore basically being away from home find these authentic menus simply as substitutes for mom's cooking.Money isn't really a big deal for them since the time they get to spend this money is very less compared to the time they spend on earning all their money in the same city.And creative kitchens like these capitalize on these facts & the figures that these kind of people earn.Mmm .... great idea from a business point of view.Simplest shortcut for a creative idea generator.Foolish from the perception of an avaricious consumer.Let everybody live thought from a happy consumer's perception.Where do i dig down further ?

For a minute thoughts went down the memory lane.Scenes of mommy grinding idlly batter at home with just a pint of rice & a less than a pint of uradh dhal for less than 1 hour yielding around 3 dozen idllys.And a kg of mutton made as gravy serving a family of four for 3 days,flashed in front of me.With some simple math all i understood was the cost to make these 3 dozen idllys at home rounded off to less than Rs 45 including the units of power thatz consumed by the grinder.A kg of mutton consisting 25 big chunks of meat pieces costs at the max 350 Rs.And the money to prepare a gravy out of it would be another 50 bucks.In all a capital of 450 Rs could be multiplied in to 18*80 =1440 Rs.

18 = #of plates that could be churned out each consisting 2 Idllys

80 = An easily affordable price by a person visiting Transit inside Forum in Bangalore

Ada cha what am i doing in an IT company spending all my precious time & energy building business at a grass root level for some establishing empire in the US or UK ? was this fresh engineering grad's initial thought after a simple calculation.I hated to be a helpless consumer on that day.After few months i felt whatz wrong ? Every business is an idea built in to a reality.After all i am a consumer of so many things under the sun.Just that i couldn't comprehend how the others work and i just could with this one.Itz not fair i told myself.I knew these were the realisations of a tyro's business inclined mentality. Few months later,i realised behind every glossy name,a colourful banner,a smiling sales girl stands a sure business tactic,a strong business strategy and the whole world works with just these principles.And as a working population we all assume some invisible roles in these huge games plot by very few creative heads who too are mostly invisible.Wished to be one,that moment !

Salem Kitchen was just my eye opener.Thatz the day i began to see money in a different light.A penny no doubt multiplies in to a pound.Just a simple but a strong idea has itz own power .Mmm ... eating a subway sandwich right in front of Salem kitchen was definitely worth a lesson.In fact my first striking business lesson.Same must be the strategy of subway as well where i paid a whopping 100 bucks for a single sandwich sold wrapping the 'Health' word to me.

..... over a cup of coffee

Nalluswamy was mildly thrilled to find himself dig out a fact sitting in CM's office that Monday morning.He realised that it would be more than a fact even to his immediate boss.Thankfully it was not CM to the city where he belonged.He carefully analysed all the supporting evidence of his discovery to confirm his finding.Yes,he was just right.His finding was a fact that money collected from a certain insignificant source which was supposed to be deposited in the CM's Relief Fund promptly wasn't reaching the fund from the time CM took position in his territory.The sum was 77,000,00 INR.It wasn't a small money atleast to common man like Nallu.

Nallu was a man in mid fifties who worked for the governmentof india.It was a matter of great pride to him.More so was his nature of work.He was in a decent designation few steps below the top notches in his office, who enjoyed the power & responsibility to identify & unearth the invisible revenue to be falling in to the Indian Govt's pocket from every potentially possible source in his country.Just that it happened to be a CM's office this week.

By the time Nallu decided to take this to his Boss's notice it was noon hours after a scrumptious lunch arranged by the CM's folks.He thought to himself that his drive to the union territory from his Chennai home that early morning was fruitful in someway.So he didn't mind his insomniacs & extra body pain at that age.He rang his boss who was positioned in their head quarters office in Chennai keeping in mind the political battle they might have to face later.

Boss-Tell me Nallu,howz it going there.Did U & ur team have lunch ?
Nallu-Yes sir,things have been fine.There is a finding here on Day1 itself.
Boss- Mmm...looks like you made a big catch there which might invite us some trouble.
Nallu- In a way ur guess is right sir.
Boss- Nallu let ur effort not go waste.Make an entry in our record,inform them as well.Dig for more & get back to office this friday with all ur findings.Let me pull in our Big boss by then.
Nallu- Alright sir.

Nallu disconnected the phone & got back to more action along with his team mates.Folks at CM's office are no less in sniffing things out.By end of day 3,CM's folks had devised their mitigation plan.So they seemed to be super cool.In spite of their loyalty & proving their worth to their parent org time & again,Nallu & team weren't so cheerful this time.But they did their job as ever.

By Thursday,all entries were recorded,report sent to head quarters.A copy of it left with the concerned officials at CM's office as well.Nallu & team wound up their work & headed back home the same evening after a pleading session by the officials at CM's office to drop their findings reach the head quarters.This wasn't new neither to Nallu nor to his team mates.They undergo this pleading session at almost every empire where they dig out some unpleasant facts worth huge sums.But this really wasn't,Nallu said to himself.

Nallu wasn't enjoying a great health at his age.So was more than pleased to spend first half of the next day at his home sipping his self made health drink watching his favourite NDTV Profit channel.At around 12 noon,his boss rang him up to inform about his inevitable presence at a confidential meeting at 3.30 pm at the head quarter office.He obliged to his Boss's words and decide to make his presence felt at the meeting.

Nallu reached office sharp by 3.30 pm & realised that the so called confidential meeting was already in progress without his inevitable presence.So he decided to wait until he was called.Finally at around 4.30pm his immediate Boss slipped out of the enclosure to look for his presence if any.When he spotted Nallu,he invited him in.

All that Nallu could make out was, literally over a single cup of coffee with his Boss & Big Boss hardly for an hour,2 high ranked officials who had flown from CM's office at the union territory to chennai,helped drop the findings of Mr Nallu & his team.In reality Nallu's presence did not matter to anyone there.Neither did his finding.Nallu was a pragmatic man after all.So it wasn't any shock or something to him.Infact he takes ample learning from situations like these.To update him on the case,he enquired his boss later that night as what was their point across table to drop this finding since a sum of 77,000,00 shouldn't have been a big amount to be paid back by the CM's office, in Nallu's point of view.

Oh yes,his boss cheered him up saying 'Nallu it wasn't the money which was the cause of concern here.But the CM's image.A case like this might show him on the bad light & he cannot afford to tamper with his image at this point when he is already in position in his office.So me & our Big Boss were requested by them on be-half of the CM itself.So Nallu we couldn't do much on this.I was just reading that lands around CM's office are available at rates much affordable by me.In case tomorrow either me or you happen to buy some plots there, registration and other formalities can be done without much hassel Nallu.Lemme know if u have any such plans'.

Nallu now dropped the call muttering 'A lot can happen over a cup of coffee'.

Spratt

spratt..spratt..spratt.After a few more times of spratting up & down, all the split end locks were down there heading straight in to the dust bin. What remained was just another chopped coriander bunch but in black. Liking falling leaves, this seem to be the season of falling hairs. Quiz anyone whom you know & they have no hesitation in pouring out their cup of woes on it. The price for built up stress gets paid in terms of falling hairs, I thought.

One of my ex manager wore a wig, only as a full stop to all this I believe.Though it looked just like natural hair, am sure he must have coughed up a heavy sum on it.Since he commutes in my shuttle everyday, I find him most of the times stroking his artificial hair may be just to make sure it’s still in place amidst the speedy winds against which the bus plys.On days when he falls asleep in the shuttle, like a dry smudged paint brush, I find some hair streaks pointing horizontal from his head.Not many who travel in our shuttle are aware of this,though they might have had deep elements of doubt at times.Oh! then it needs some cautious attention all the time.Mm… sporting a wig wasn't that easy,I learnt.

A boy cut was also there in my options list.Though some day I would love to experiment on it at least once,it didn't seem to fit the bill for the time being.The option of a fully shaven head was the simplest of all but considering mommy as my high priority,I had to give up on that option too. So instead of sporting something that looked similar to a rat’s tail (though it wasn't exactly like that in my case) which sufficiently lacked volume, the best way to hide it seemed to go for short coriander bunch like, you know.

Believe it or not, I had plaited locks brushing much below my hips until my school days. In fact those days I was a big time cry babe watching my hair creeping down causing me nothing but trouble. Because it meant more time devoted to comb,plait ,wash & dry when there were too many other essential things to accomplish early in the morning. And needless to say, more oil & more shampoo for it’s nourishment. Still for mommy’s sake I let it creep. There hadn't been a single day without the crib & cry while brushing my long locks. A day came, when mom angrily agreed to chop it off till my shoulder length after a provoked arguement. And my dream of sporting a short cute hair came true.

After my haircut, all that people did to me was a taken aback look followed by hollowed eye expressions, which I hated to the core. So I made sure when I became a college kid, I sport a short hair from day 1,probably with just a handful of plaits reaching just below my shoulders. So during every semester break, I promptly take a scissors myself and chop off my black creeper preventing it creep down further. And those times I used to hear from my friends that they shelled a pretty money to get their hair cut done.'Lady, you go walk in to a haircut salon donating both your hair and a huge sum?', I would check. But never did I knew in those days, that a day would come, when I will head straight in to a hair salon to give my hair the blissful experience of having it caressed by some hair experts. Until I met one, I honestly did not have any high regard for this designation on earth.'What a ridiculous idea to have coined such titles - Hair experts.Are people so jobless to master the art of handling & experimenting on hair leaving all other things on earth'.That was my initial reaction to the term 'hair expert'.

Years after I started working,on some repeated suggestions from few interesting friends around that a layer cut would give me that renewed smart & sporty look, I went ahead and fixed an appointment with some expert in a nearby International branded hair salon. Being not so sure of all the clear do’s & don’ts before a haircut from a hi-fi salon like the one I was heading to, I neatly shampooed my hair the same morning & dried it one last time, knowing that all would have gone by evening. I headed straight in to the salon, observing all the showcased hair styling products. When I stepped in,I realised that both the existing hair experts were men. When I waited for my turn, one expert curiously quizzed me to finalize my chosen style of layer cut. When I was almost ready for the spratt session, he revealed to me that they cut hair only after washing it themselves. 'How strange ?' I felt. He then guided me towards a dim lit wash area. Comforted me on a sliding chair. Wrapped my shoulders with a warm towel. Took my hair by his side. And began to fondle it. That was the first time a guy was shampooing my hair.Let me tell you,next to mom, he was the one privileged to do so.When he gently stroked the scalp for the first time, my stomach churned a little, with the realisation of a strange guy washing my hair.He used three different shampoos from three colourful bottles.Soon aroma filled my nostrils inducing some pleasant feelings.Slowly I realised, that should have been the best hair wash my scalp must have ever witnessed.Not even a single strand got uprooted.I never saw him pull, squeeze or twist my hair any time during the wash.Every thing he did was too gentle on the hair.My hair must have thanked him that day for all the agony it underwent in my hands. Such a wonderful hair wash experience except for a mild pain on my neck for having rested it on an elevated surface during the wash.

Post hair wash session, he wrapped my damp hair in yet another soft towel.Reminiscing such a pleasant hair wash under a dim light from some angelic hands which failed to pull out even a single strand,I moved towards the dressing table.When I faced my image crowned in a huge white turban,the wide mirror facilitated me in watching his toolkit right behind.By then, his companion helped him sterilize all the accessories one by one. Meanwhile based on some input from my hair wash expert, he came near me to peel away my white turban and feel the texture of my hair.His avid love for my bunch of dead cells were undeniably visible. He was so passionate in feeling my hair.In fact he never looked at my face, which I felt was much pretty than what he was fiddling with.

Finally all was set to begin my haircut.Looked like expert #2 wished to cut my hair.They had exchanged some words when the combs were sterilized.He began with a simple spratt at the end.Then parted my hair in to at least 6-7 sections to give his best part by part.His keen concentration never spilled away from my hair.He was looking through every cut of his.And each spratt was so professional that I could feel the difference from the spratts in other local salons.It was full of spratts from side to side,up to down and sometimes here and there.In one way I was patiently battling against boredom while the expert was at work.All this time expert #1 was watching him & his strokes.Both were equally qualified to my eyes & equally passionate of their profession.I took my words back on hair experts in one of those silent minute.

There is definitely some meaning in calling themselves as hair experts.It means so much in a way since I cannot claim to have combed my hair without at least 1 strand in my hand.Soon expert #1 took over from the other to style it after my much awaited layer cut.That took another 20 minutes.At the end of which I couldn't believe if am I the one with such beautiful hair with some cute curls at the end.I never knew they could be styled that way.Each strand stood replenished with a bright shiny look.All I simply had to do at the end was to tie them back which looked awesome even without tying.

At the end out of some self admiration from the relfecting mirror, cheerfully I swiped my card for half a grand plus taxes for my most memorable hair cut.He inferred the output of his work from my expressions.I looked so different after my haircut.They definitely made a difference to people who walked in to their salon. Apart from singing their praises,I even recommend people to experiment their hair in the hands of some expert at least once in their life time. Believe me it’s worth it & more so you will love it. When I visited home after a week from then with my short cute cut, needless to say like any typical middle class Indian mom, my mommy also had the shock of her life.Infact her smile froze on seeing my coriander bunch cross her eyes. To add fuel to the fire she was very curious to know how much I shelled out for the left over fistful bunch. As a responsible daughter I just told her a plain white lie just to calm her nerves, u know ?

Project CRIMAN

Mmm... post lion city trip,I gathered a whole new insight in to managing my micro finance & savings. This new outlook on figures printed in currencies wasn’t there in me before.At least three out of every 10 penny that I spent didn’t enjoy their true worth,I felt.And the fact that I spent more than usual money when compared to my regular monthly expenditure because of my trip,I opted to be tight fisted for next couple of months to strike a balance in my savings account.Suddenly the sense of value for money was surging in me like never before.So I began this project naming it ‘Piloting Criman’.Before tossing a rupee out of my pocket I asked myself twice if I should let this currency go.If I strongly felt yes then I would simply let it go. Apart from paying my rent & mobile bill,I was putting every other thing on hold or procrastinated it as long as I could.Hey hey ... don't jump in to a conclusion that - me a miser.Am actually not one. Know what ?it was like a sneak peek in to the whole new world of being a miser. Oops should I say being simple?Being in Silicon Valley of India,one knows how difficult is it to retain an extra penny in the pocket until the month end.Anything and everything that’s labeled as fun or frolic comes with a unique exorbitant price tag Am unable to believe those huge shopping malls as a place to chill out & relax.It only appears to me as a two monstrous money scooping malls.One can easily make all hard earned bucks vanish in less than a mad second in a moment of tempting joy, being there.Only to realize later that we could have very well lived without it.Not worth, I realized.

Come weekends.... I prefer to be under the blanket these days, the whole 48 hrs rather than stepping out even a lane away.The money in the pocket doesn’t seem to be very happy staying in its place.If saving is the only agenda then we tend to miss colorful quotients of having fun & sometimes some good moments that’s stays as residue in this mission of spending money like water.What to do ?Too much of saving and not spending at all. And too much of spending and no savings in all.Ooffff ! Both happen to be lose –lose situations.I was revealing to dad some months ack about my ‘Penny wise - pound foolish’ attitude.I would save and save on the few hundreds that I draw from the ATM but was stupidly generous to swipe my card that scooped out huge money invisibly.Oh fo ! what am I up to’suddenly a bulb glowed on the top floor, recently.So this CRIMAN project was born as my brain child. I chose to keep myself away from these shopping malls for a couple of months at least until the year ends. So when the month began all weekends at home reading newspaper for long hours, relaxed ablution,washing clothes to my best, cleaning cupboards, watering plants, unwinding the day with some soft music, gripping a good book to end the day & to catch some really good sleep.

Come weekdays, am happy for reasons many. Almost the whole day in office and free googling on anything & everything on the mind. And no penny for any phone calls.U know,am paid a four digit wage everyday for just googling & giggling ,sometimes.Sometimes for forwarding few critical mails too.Then to reach home late evening, have supper & doze offff.Wow! five full days of great savings each week.To buy a single missing grocery, let me tell you visiting Fabmall & Nilgiris are not the best options on earth unlike my earlier assumptions.All under one roof is an agreeable fact.But bringing home a bill that contains units of tempted items more than the essentials can't b the price that one can pay for visiting all under one roof malls. Isn’t it ?.The other day a team mate of mine offered a help to book a train ticket online from his pc in the office. So there was a page where I had to enter my bank’s credentials for an automatic money detection. Being not so sure of the next immediate page to be displayed,I enquired him. He said 'Nothing to worry. Your account balance will not be displayed’.

Scanning each others thought we chuckled. Once the ticket booking procedure was over,he asked me innocently 'How you able to save this meejj maany’. In fact he was spell bound knowing my account balance displayed at some corner of the main transaction page which I foolishly missed out.He revealed to me a week later that I became his source of inspiration to save money from that very moment which in turn inspired me to save more.He listed that he stopped visiting his regular weekend destination - Balaji Bar just because of me.Maa use to say - people who spend less water will spend less money.Actually very true, I discovered.Though my pilot attempt on CRIMAN project is coming to end in a week’s time, I realized that I was only enjoying this process of spending less & saving more.And that true happiness doesn’t dwell in the act of spending more money or hanging out but on those priceless solitary moments being at home.An interesting book costing one hundred bucks did spill more joy than a three hour movie costing five hundred bucks.And that a home cooked meal stands more satisfying than a candle lit dinner shelling out around a K in the dim light.And the coziness in wearing a bargained on the platform sweater doesn’t seem to derive from the newly bought branded jacket.Simply a sweet smile costing zero bucks does spread more happiness & joy in unseen ways, I realized.During this pilot attempt I was inspired by a distant bro who lives in the same city of mine earning in lakhs every month,chose to travel only by 2nd class during any train journey of his for the straight fact that he believed only in simplicity.And earning in lakhs did not change him & his life style in any way.There were so many interesting learning that came out of this CRIMAN attempt. And know what? I managed to save around a K :) in these two months time from 1/3rd of my wages that I drew out each month. And more surprises stood @ the end of this pilot attempt - a couple of my colleagues were crazy about the company’s jerkin that they gave us a year and a half back, fortunately when they had not joined. I got in to this surprising deal of a K for my old jerkin.I couldn’t believe it.Want to know where these are going in to?The piggy bank that Rohit promised me.Rohit you are getting me one to save these, right?

Moral - CRIMAN was a fantastic pilot attempt.Since I loved saving every penny out of it, am engaging in it as a DF(dedicated facility) from the new year.I know I still have a long way to go in this CMS project of mine & this is just the beginning.You just read a tyro’s write up on Crisis Management Simulation.