The Indian ad space seems to have lost its originality. With one after another, ads copied blatantly from global advertising campaings. The Indian advertising firms, who had campaigns like the Amul Butter ads, the Fevicol ad series seem to have lost their original touch. First it was the IPL ad that had an uncanny resemblance to the NFL ads running in the US, with the ink splashes all over the screen. Now it is the Frito Lay ad campaign that is a blatant copy of the very famous Budweiser ad campaign, better known as the “Whazza” campaign. Don’t believe me, then look at both the campaigns and be the judge yourself.

First, the original Budweiser ads:

And now, for the “inspired” Indian Frito Lay ad:

I was wondering if I should do a review of the Lays ad, but its so much of a blatant copy of the Bud Ad, I decided it is not worth. Admakers, find your conscience and stop copying ads. Such blatant imitations will really hurt the reputation of the Indian ad world.

A few years back, YouTube took the online world by storm by offering a unique video sharing service that was previously unheard of. It did not take very long for YouTube to become a culture in itself, much like the social networking sites that mushroomed all around it. And yet the novelty of watching videos online, on demand stayed the USP of YouTube. Another trend started by YouTube was video blogging, which simply put is me sitting in front of a camera, saying what I write down…and uploading it on YouTube for the world to see.

On May 7, 2008(or as YouTube says, 07:05/2008)YouTube launched its local Indian site, www.youtube.co.in to cater to its Indian audience. The site promises to deliver local features such as promoted videos, featured videos, homepage promotions, localized user interface & help center to its visitors. Also, content uploaded by users in India will be shown up in “top favourites” & “recommended content’ on the local YouTube site.

One thing that really sounded music to my years was the NPTEL. This is an initiative taken by the IITs and HRD Ministry, Govt. of India to enhance the quality of technical education imparted. With the large number of engineering colleges mushrooming in India, students at times do not get the best staff to teach them the tougher subjects.

This programme has created web & video based supplements for a large number of engg courses to help teachers and students prepare better in their own fields. The video course lectures are freely available via the websites http://nptel.iitm.ac.in & http://youtube.com/iit

The question now is, will the poor internet infrastructure in India hamper YouTube’s growth plans? Or do they have any plans to overcome this challenge? I put this question to Sakina Arsiwala, International Manager of YouTube, who was present to launch the site and had a one to one with select bloggers(including yours truly). Her reply was quite candid

We are aware that internet speeds in India are slow. But we have seen increased traffic from India in the past year, and the traffic just keeps growing exponentially. We also know that users in India are not able to view our videos seamlessly. If need be, we may look at improving our streaming technology, or adding more local mirrors to improve our users’ experience.

I certainly hope that internet speeds in India improve soon, and faster internet is available to a broader user base sooner. More so, since more students in far away places get access to e-learning programmes like the one being prepared by NPTEL.

YouTube India was announced yesterday, but it has a long journey ahead of it. I wish YouTube.co.in all the best for its journey ahead in India, and may it benefit a lot of people on its way along.

As the countdown begins for another Women’s Day, I have a few thoughts that are bouncing around in my head. So here I go.

The buzzword that is heard around these days is women empowerment. For women to be empowered, independent & free of any form of oppression is essential for a positive evolution of the society. The blame for women not being any of these has traditionally been dumped on the males. The Indian society has long had a patriarchal setup, which had gone unquestioned for centuries. Even laws like the Hindu Marriage Act, and the Hindu Undivided Family Act had been biased for several years in the favor of men. Now this is all changed. CBSE has made the Mother’s name an entry with equal importance as the Father’s name, a women has equal power, and can demand her fair share in family property or her husband’s property.

The number of educated women in the country has gone up. More and more women are taking up higher education, and becoming doctors, engineers, lawyers et al. The Times of India in its buildup to Women’s Day writes, “Its a women’s world!!”

Is it?
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This is the name of the latest music band on the block. Their music, well, easy listening, smooth with lots of acoustic guitars playing all over. So why does it have me interested?

Because this band is Indian! Yes, believe it or not, we finally have an Indian band that belts out easy listening songs in English. We did have bands who were more into the heavier rock & metal, but I do not recall any Indian band that sings so clean, and has music that is easy to listen and that could appeal to the masses.

Now, where is a b(r)and manager when you actually need one?

This is what this band is up to. So what do you think?

Learn more about this band & its members at Gigpad

Update: If you want to listen to more of this band, visit their profile at MySpace

In the first part of this study(Read Part I), the focus was on compensation and performance review practices that lead to frustration in employees.

In this part, I will take a look at peer & colleague factors, attention paid to an employee and work assigned to analyze the effects these factors can have on employee morale, and how minor issues can be major factors in build-up of frustration.

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In a sporting victory that was long awaited by the Indian Motorsport community, Narain Karthikeyan won an international grand prix. Ok, so it wasn’t F1 but the alternative(or call it rebel if you like) A1 GP league.

Narain’s victory came in China, where he triumphed over a field of drivers from 21 countries.

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Mr. Karat is at it again. After giving the UPA government some breathing space on the Indo-US nuclear deal in November, the left has put a stick in UPAs wheels a day after the parliament concluded its winter session. This time around though, the warning was much more direct.

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Justice it seems, has been sent off to exile. At least in the Indian state of Gujarat, where the current chief minister has thumped his chest at a pre-election rally justifying the police encounter of Sohrabuddin and his wife. Sohrabuddin was under suspicion for terrorist activities for a while before he was killed by the cops in what was a staged encounter. His wife was also killed by the police in the same encounter. The fight for justice for this family is currently on in the Supreme Court.

Narendra Modi thinks otherwise. For him, justice was delivered on the day Sohrabuddin was encountered by Gujarat’s finest. And the crowds cheer and applaud for him. Read the story on Modi’s election speech at NDTV’s website.

The bigger question stands, are we turning into a nation that is more inclined towards vigilante justice?

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In a stinging statement, A M Naik, MD of Larson & Toubro accuses the Indian IT companies of “doing nothing for India”. In an interview with Times Now, he also went on to say that IT companies should leave the civil and mechanical engineering students to be employed in infrastructure and manufacturing industry rather than writing C++ and Java code.
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It has been a long time since the Indo-US nuclear deal is doing backflips on both ends of the world, and it appears that it could possibly end out as a damp squib. Much credit must go to the communist lobby in India. Communism is now dead in the country that gave birth to it, and China has adopted a more liberal form of communism so that it doesn’t get left behind in a fast growing world. The acceptance of globalization in China is a big indicator of the declining world belief of communism. (more…)