December 2014

Decoding the BMM/BMS degree Find out if they are really worth it

The quarter-life trap EDUCATE + ENTERTAIN

DECEMBER 2014 || ` 75

All About Advertising Are you cut out for the ad mad world?

Account service

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The way out of a quarter-life crisis

Creative

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Media planning & buying

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Volume 4 Issue 6 December 2014

Editor's

note

Editor-in-Chief NITISH SHAH nitish@youthincmag.com

“Advertising is the greatest art form of the 20th century.”

– Marshall McLuhan Personally, I've always been always fascinated with advertisements since as long as I can remember - be it in magazines or on tv, or listening to radio or staring at interesting hoardings. I always felt like they were reaching out to me and inviting me to explore and use the various products they were marketing. All of us at some point are drawn towards a product because its branding has been so strong and we have connected with it. A campaign that had the most profound impact on me would have to be the Amul girl campaign with its incredibly relevant social messages. There have always been campaigns that have made me really curious with all the suspense surrounding them like the classic Digen Verma campaign for Frooti. The list is endless but it's always exciting how advertising can make or break a brand and create memories for a lifetime. Watching the tv show 'Mad Men' gave me a really interesting insight into the world of advertising and inspired me and the team to work on a special issue called 'All About Advertising' where we have spoken to industry experts and given you the comprehensive lowdown on the various facets of the advertising industry.

It's that time of the year when we take a look back and reflect on the year gone by. 2014 has seen the birth of many revolutions around the world. I strongly believe that the student protests in Hong Kong needed to be covered and the youth fighting for their democratic rights ought to be heard. We transport you to the streets of Hong Kong and tell you all about the 'Umbrella Movement'. We also take a look at all the big events that made the news throughout the year.

They say that the future of technology is wearable devices. But, I've realised that a lot of us tend to be a little clueless when it comes to understanding this development in technology.

That's why we've decided to feature the best wearables along with the most useful applications available.

I'd also like to take this opportunity to wish our readers a very Merry Christmas and a sparkling New Year!

Nitish Shah

Chief Operating Officer CAROLINE SAMSON coo@youthincmag.com

Editorial Team

AAYUSH AILAWADI TRISHANN HENRIQUES

Editorial Interns PURVA INDULKAR

Art & Design

MOULVI ABBAS HASAN GAURAV DODIYA

Ad Sales

NANDINI BARJATIYA sales.hd@youthincmag.com ALEIFIYA B sales.mg@youthincmag.com

Marketing

PRATHAMESH DESHPANDE marketing.hd@youthincmag.com PERSIS SHROFF marketing@youthincmag.com MANIL S DODANI digital@youthincmag.com

Circulation

SHANTARAM AMBERKAR NISHANT SHINDE

Administration GEETA NAIK

For advertising, subscriptions and circulation mail@youthincmag.com +91-22-2351-6622 / 6609 Printed and published by Nitish Shah on behalf of Splash Publication Pvt Ltd Published at: 9 Forjett Hill, British Express Bldg, 2nd floor, Mumbai 400036.

Editor: Nitish Shah

Admin office: F9&10, Commerce Centre, 6th Floor, 78 Tardeo Road, Mumbai 400034.

Printed at: Repro India Ltd Plot No 50/2, TTC MIDC Industrial Area, Mahape, Navi Mumbai 400 710, District Thane All content in print and online is owned by Splash Publication Pvt Ltd under international copyright laws. No part of the content can be reproduced in any form without the prior written permission of the publishers. Publishers will not be held responsible for the content of the magazine including accuracy and effects. All disputes will be subject to the jurisdiction of competant courts in Mumbai only.

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editorial c o n n e c t

Write to us at mail@youthincmag.com

SOCIALLY YOURS

YouthIncMag

Arvind Kejriwal with Youth Inc’s Editor-in-Chief at Express Adda, Mumbai

@YouthIncMag

Shashi Tharoor hangs out with Youth Inc at Litt Fest, Mumbai

 DOWNLOAD THE OCUTAG SNAP

BLOGGER OF THE MONTH Arnab Maity http://www.arnabmaity.com

PERSONALITY OF THE MONTH

LAUGH RIOTER

Stories from Arnab Maity’s travels reveal a veiled side of the world. His forays to distant shores and exploration of unpopular stories give us a privileged peek inside a hidden universe. Photographs captured at the perfect moment, responses to frequent travel queries and loads of travel advice make his blog a must-read.

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Laugh Rioter’s Twitter handle offers an amusing perspective on serious subjects. His selfdeprecating humour, hilarious dialogues and comic updates of current news will keep you glued.

Olx and Quikr are the only sites where women mail me saying, “If you’re interested, call me.”

Q: Why Indians don’t like to queue up for anything?

A: Queue is such a waste of vowels Playboy has started a special edition for married men.

The same woman is featured every month.

A woman’s diary: My husband thinks I’m crazy. Well I’m not the one who married me Manager: This is your revised salary, keep it confidential Employee: Don’t worry, I am equally ashamed of it

APP ON YOUR SMARTPHONE

WITH LOOK FOR PAGES THE OCUTAG SNAP LOGO

 SNAP THE PAGE USING THE OCUTAG APP

ENJOY

A VARIETY OF DIGITAL CONTENT: VIDEOS, RELATED ARTICLES AND MUCH MORE

25-11-2014 21:56:31

Contribut rs m nth SHREEJA MAHAMBRE Shreeja is a media student who dreams of becoming a journalist some day. She loves reading and will read almost anything.

Photography and travelling are among her other hobbies.

DEVIKA SONI Devika is an arts student who wants to pursue journalism some day. She loves reading and is a massive One Direction fan.

In her spare time, she likes to work on our beauty & fashion section.

RIYAZ KHAN Riyaz is currently pursuing a degree in mass media in Mumbai. He is a proud Otaku. His aim in life is to be a published novelist.

RAZI SHAIKH Razi Shaikh is a freelance writer based in Mumbai.

Among other things, he enjoys writing on technology and relationships. He is currently working towards majoring in journalism.

AARUSHI AGRAWAL Shreeja is an arts student at Jai Hind College who is majoring in English Literature. If not at a rock concert, she's usually busy writing education stories.

NIMI JAYACHANDRAN Nimi Jayachandran is a doctor who was born in India and raised in California. She is an avid reader, a passionate writer and a part-time editor.

She aspires to break the mould of a traditional medico and explore her passion for the arts.

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yi

educate A first-hand insight into Hong Kong’s student revolution...

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K E E PI N S I D E 

Pg18 JACK OF ALL TRADES, BACHELOR OF...?

THE PROS AND THE CONS OF THE UBIQUITOUS BMM AND BMS DEGREES

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Pg28 BEYOND THE CLASSROOM A LOOK AT SOME OF THE WORLD’S MOST BEAUTIFUL UNIVERSITY CAMPUSES

Pg30 HOW TO GET A GOOD RECOMMENDATION LETTER WHAT YOU SHOULD KEEP IN MIND WHEN REQUESTING THIS LETTER

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DIVERSITY SCHOLARSHIPS FOR STUDENTS OF INDIAN SCHOOL OF BUSINESS  To improve diversity in classrooms, the Indian School of Business is offering diverse scholarships across professions.  Scholarships are being offered by the Indian School of Business to students to improve diversity in the class.  A total of 40 scholarships worth `2.50 crore will be given to students applying for the one-year PGP programme.  Professionals from varied sectors like health care, government, social sector, hospitality, media, fashion, manufacturing, finance, marketing and sales and technology may apply.  All the students applying for the PGP programme are automatically evaluated for this scholarship and are awarded, if found meritorious.  The evaluation is based on past academic records, GMAT scores, personal and professional achievements, career achievements, recommendations, essays and interviews.  The applications are open all year round. Apply online at http://pgpapp.isb.edu/User/ Default.aspx

OXFORD UNIVERSITY PRESS LAUNCHES ‘ECHOES’  Oxford University Press recently launched Echoes, an English learning and speaking programme for students and teachers in India.  Echoes is a 10-level interactive course that trains students to use English on a daily basis.  Among other things, this programme teaches pronunciation of words, pauses in long sentences, word and sentence stresses and intonation for different purposes, all applicable and useful for conversing in English.  Echoes provides all its students audio CDs and aims at helping students feel more confident at using English in their everyday conversations.  Ultimately, the aim of the programme is to make English a global language.  Teachers from Delhi Public School, KLE Group of Schools, National Public School and Sindhi High School have already participated in this workshop.

THEGREENBATTIPROJECT.IN

CURTIS PALMER, WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

EDU NEWS

THE GREEN BATTI PROJECT

 An initiative by Social Quotient, The Green Batti enables young people to mentor children from a low income group and help them through a standard curriculum.  Starting December 2014, this four-month programme will incorporate 500 young professionals to mentor children from low income groups.  A curriculum is fixed in collaboration with the Tata Institute for Social Sciences that will focus on life and social skills.  The mentor-mentee pair will meet at a mutually decided time in public places like coffee shops or parks.  The mentors will be chosen after careful scrutiny and background checks and will then be trained by Tata Institute of Social Sciences.  To learn more log onto http://www.thegreenbattiproject.in/

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IIT-M JOINS HANDS WITH PURDUE UNIVERSITY  IIT Madras and Purdue University, USA have signed an MoU to share doctoral students and faculty for better results.  This agreement enables joint supervision of the doctoral candidates of the two institutes.  The coalition also allows the faculty of Purdue University to advise students at IIT Madras and vice versa.  This partnership has more than a dozen faculty members on board along with 1,500 students from India  Students may look forward to innovative teaching methods such as flip classrooms and embedded learning which do not put a premium on class attendance but give preference to projects and interactive exchanges between students from both institutes.  Representatives of the institutes hope that this partnership will lead to a joint PhD programme soon.

UK TO RECOGNISE CBSE CERTIFICATES FOR ADMISSION

 HRD Minister Smriti Irani has been in talks with UK’s Minister of State for Universities, Greg Clark, relating to admissions for Indian students from the CBSE board and visa issues faced by them.  Institutes in the UK have insisted that Indian students study an add-on course after CBSE exams as the education system in Britain is a year ahead of the Indian system.  This non-recognition of CBSE certificates was discouraging for a number of students seeking admission in the UK.  Universities with an undergraduate programme in the UK have now agreed to recognise the plus-two certificate awarded

by India's Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE).  India has also asked for a relaxation in the post-study visa norms that allow students to work with a minimum salary of 20,000 GBP.  Clark has said that under an initiated programme of the British Government, 25,000 students would be sent to India to study for five years.

NIIT TO LAUNCH PG DIPLOMA IN BANKING AND RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT IN PARTNERSHIP WITH KOTAK MAHINDRA BANK  A postgraduate diploma in banking and relationship management is to be launched by a joint venture of NIIT, NIIT Institute of Finance Banking & Insurance Training (IFBI) and Kotak Mahindra Bank.  The diploma programme will be 12 months long. It aims to develop and empower aspiring professionals with the requisite skills and knowledge to undertake various roles in banking and financial services.  As part of the programme, NIIT and NIIT IFBI will also train students and organise specialised academics sessions on applied banking, financial, relationship management topics at the NIIT University Campus in Rajasthan.  During the course students will undergo an industrial internship at Kotak Mahindra Bank.  Upon completion, students will receive an opportunity to work as probationary officers with Kotak Mahindra Bank.

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EVE N

IARY D T

Comedy troupe All India Bakchod shows up to a packed auditorium

While dancers enthral the crowd, Baiju Dharmajan amazes them with his music

A combination of fiery elegance and panache on display at the fashion parade

WAVES 2014, BITS PILANI GOA

K AR AVA AN 2014, IISER, PUNE Bollywood singer and musician extraordinaire Siddharth Basrur performs

DJ Night at Karavaan 2014 gets the crowd on its feet Masquerade Night at Karavaan 2014

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A group dance performance by students of NAEMD

Mr & Ms Academia contestants at JOSH

Mr & Ms Academia Winners of 2014

JOSH 2014, NAEMD, MUMBAI THE UN CONFERENCE, MUMBAI The Consul General of Netherlands addresses the delegates at The Mumbai Conference

The Executive Board of The Mumbai Conference with The Consul General of Netherlands at the closing ceremony

The delegate of Italy making a closing speech about the Chernobyl Disaster

Delegates bonding and interacting after creating resolutions for international security and peace

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FOCUS FEATURE

JACK OF ALL TRADES, BACHELOR OF ‌?

Manil S Dodani explores whether the BMS and BMM programmes are really a bang for your buck as opposed to the conventional BCom and BA degrees 16 Youth Incorporated DECEMBER 2014

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HOW IT ALL BEGAN

SOMEONE200, WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

When Darwin described the evolutionary theory, little did he know that by the 21st century, Herbert Spencer’s mantra of the ‘survival of the fittest’ would have extended into the educational space. Each year a rat race breaks out and is generally called admissions period. The finish line seems bleak like the light at the end of a dark tunnel. The runners appear reluctant to give up as they know that slowing down would impact their future irreversibly. The prize being (almost) priceless – a place in the college of your choice! Being one of the many frantic runners in the very same rat race, I know precisely how difficult and exhilarating it can be for any student to pursue a course of their inclination and yearning – a three-year course where a catalytic overhauling of their attitudes and aptitudes would occur. With the advent of new curricula and teaching methodologies in the Indian education system, a plethora of undergraduate courses were introduced in the new millenium that offered an array of new subjects and also a specialisation in a field of your choice such as banking, insurance, finance, management and so on. Not only were these specialisations introduced with the objective to add value to a standard BCom degree, but to also lend a sense of professionalism to it and help students gear up for a corporate life or take over their ‘khandaani businesses’.

In the year 2000, five courses were launched by the University of Mumbai. These unaided courses were Bachelor of Management Studies (BMS), Bachelor of Mass Media (BMM), Bachelor of Banking and Insurance (BBI), Bachelor of Accounting and Finance (BAF) and the Bachelor of Financial Markets (BFM). These courses aim to offer an edge over a standard BCom degree for the commerce stream and a BA degree for the arts stream. This ‘edge’ is offered via a more comprehensive curriculum and pragmatic set of subjects. The subjects are designed to

“It is not the strongest or the most intelligent who will survive but those who can best manage change.”

- Charles Darwin arm students with specialised skill sets which would help them tap specific industry prospects. To illustrate, a BAF student has additional subjects related to finance and accounting applications, in place of import and export trade and so on. This piece aims to shed light on the sharp distinction (and viability) between two courses that are extremely popular and have now become the first choice for those studying in Mumbai.

THE BMS JANTA VS. THE BCOM JANTA

Read on as we have these courses pitched head to head against each other to see who comes out on top; will it be the ‘new’ BMS (14 years old) or the trusty old BCom? The Bachelor of Management Studies programme was launched in 1999-2000 by the University of Mumbai “with an aim to create middle cadre management personnel”.

BMS is a three-year degree course spread over six semesters. The course is managed by a mix of permanent and visiting faculties in most colleges.

Since there are approximately 40 subjects that students write papers for, faculties tend to be drawn from corporate, industry and service sectors

to deliver classes in an efficient, professional fashion. BMS students require high percentages in class 12 board examinations as a prerequisite for admissions. Additionally, in the case of outstation students, they must also be willing to relocate to Mumbai for this course. Despite the oddities, a tremendous influx of students from all over the nation takes please each year, increasingly so for BMS. BMS tends to be a popular choice especially amongst family business heirs as this course promises to sharpen management, interpersonal and theoretical skills that can be harnessed to come up with effective solutions to real world problems. Compulsory summer internships, presentations and projects on digressional topics and industry experiences make BMS a hard choice to put down over BCom. Arwa Master, an FYBMS student from Jai Hind College affirms, “I think BMS is a relatively better course than BCom since it is designed to give students a sharper edge to manage businesses right after they graduate. This course helps enhance managerial skills which make the student a better candidate at the workplace. It covers a wide array of topics involving practical knowledge and is suitable for students from the arts and science faculties too!”

WHERE THE GRASS IS GREENER

BMS offers resplendent opportunities after completion of the course. BMS graduates can choose to pursue an DECEMBER 2014 Youth Incorporated 17

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FOCUS FEATURE MBA immediately after their course, it is not uncommon to see students pursuing an MBA with diverse specialisations in health care and management sciences, among others.

“BMS provides experiential learning through research intensive assignments and activities conducted by various people, both from academia and industry,” explains Dr Rakhi Sharma, the co-ordinator of Jai Hind College’s BMS programme.

Job options via college placements are available to those wanting to get some experience before heading to a master’s degree. BMS is the ideal foundation course for an MBA since a large chunk of the portion taught in the first year of an MBA is uncannily similar to that of a BMS degree. But it may not be the best option to pursue it as a standalone course for three years.

“Those pursuing BMS should look to combine it with certifications such

as the CFA or FRM. This completes the last step required in making oneself fully employable,” quips Rahul Jagwani, a 2012 BMS graduate from HR College.

With that bit out of the way, let’s look at the Ford Model T of all commerce courses – the BCom degree.

One of the oldest and probably the most recognised and accepted courses in the field of commerce, the BCom

One notices a constant overlap of the choice of careers after a BA or a BMM, while there is no specific study or evidence to prove that the demand for a BMM student is higher than that of a BA student

hardly needs an introduction. The core difference between a BCom and BMS is really the basic foundation that both these courses rest on. A traditional BCom contains a mix of accounting, auditing and import and export management. However, a BMS is a more general and applied management degree to be pursued by those enthused by management principles and organisational behaviour in a simulated corporate environment. BMS tends to be largely a project-based assessment course, where students are forced to summon their entrepreneurial spirit and latch it onto their first business venture. A BCom on the other hand seems to be the foundationcourse choice for a qualification such as .

THE ARTSY SIDE : BMM VS THE BA

The Bachelor of Mass Media course,

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SUBHASHISH PANIGRAHI, WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

one of the many professional courses by the University of Mumbai, is a glamorised version of our regular BA degree. Featuring new dimensions in a rather slow evolving curriculum, BMM (like the BMS course) offers a specialisation area in the third year; students can choose between advertising and journalism. A few newly introduced subjects include Landmark Events in 20th Century History of the World, India & Maharashtra, Culture Studies, Media Planning and Buying, and News Media Management. Technically, these subjects are more like modules that one would learn to derive a career in the media industry and not necessarily for an allure of the arts.

BMM comprises a blend of theoretical foundations and practical applications in line with the digital media age.

Another key distinction between BMM and BA is an enforced summer internship in the second year of the programme, equipping students with another level of hands-on skills. This internship acts like a springboard to a career at the end of the three years of this degree. Students tend to start

with basic entry level jobs at media organisations, advertising agencies or print media agencies.

The BA on the other hand offers a more comprehensive and extensively detailed study of certain core subjects as part of its syllabus. Political science, economics, psychology, sociology, history and philosophy along with set of national and international languages are standard issue for this course.

One notices a constant overlap of the choice of careers after a BA or a BMM, while there is no specific study or evidence to prove that the demand for a BMM student is higher than that of a BA. Critics argue that a BMM tends to appear lucrative with its new curriculum and student-teacher practices but may not offer a solid ground for placements.

Aarushi Agarwal, a second year BA student explains, “I chose BA mainly for the focus. In our final year, we have six papers in one subject. This ensures an in-depth and all-round understanding of any subject of my choice like English, economics, psychology or history. By investing an entire year in its study, I am guaranteed educational satisfaction as compared to only superficially breezing

through subjects in BMM.”

THE VERDICT

Each course sports its own set of subjects and a different curriculum.

After having compared them with one another, it is evident that each course is complete with its own set of subjects and specialisation areas. Your choice, of course, primarily depends on two factors – your percentage in the class 12 board examinations (a significantly high percentage of marks is required to pursue a professional course; BCom and BA cut-off scores are lower) and more importantly, whether one is inclined towards commerce or the arts. It also depends on one’s choice of industry. A BMS degree would help a student attain a management position at a firm or also help one setup their own venture, since entrepreneurial knowledge is the core focus of this course. A BCom has proven to be a rock solid foundation for a CA or other advanced certifications because the concepts of finance and accounting are taught in depth for industrial applications. A BMM gives one an insider’s view over the workings of the media industry and a career in the media and entertainment or digital sectors. A BA equips one with the skills needed to pursue a career in the media, news and publishing, public relations firms and even mainstream politics. Additionally, it can prove to be stronger a base for an MA in literary studies, political science or economics. At the end of the day, you must choose the course that is best aligned with your plans, career goals and what you are most passionate about. yi

COLLEGES THAT OFFER BMM AND BMS

 Jai Hind College, Mumbai  HR College, Mumbai  St. Xavier’s College, Mumbai  MMK College, Mumbai  Lala Lajpatrai College, Mumbai  National College, Mumbai

DECEMBER 2014 Youth Incorporated 19

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SPECIAL FEATURE

Under Hong Kong’s

umbrella Aayush Ailawadi follows thousands of young protesters flocking to the streets of Hong Kong in an attempt to fathom the fate of this student uprising

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O

nly time will tell whether these words will hold true for Hong Kong’s Umbrella Movement. The Umbrella Revolution (as the western media refers to it) began in September 2014 when activists in Hong Kong protested outside the Hong Kong government headquarters, a 10-minute walk from Central, the city’s primary business district.

Since 28 September 2014, demonstrators have been camping out on four major road junctions across the financial hub, calling for free and fair elections in 2017.

TWITTER

What creates freedom?

A revolution in the streets? Mass protest?

Civil war? A change of government?

The ousting of the old guard and its replacement by the new? History, more often than not, shows that hopes raised by such events are often dashed, sooner rather than later.

– Jonathan Sacks

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SPECIAL FEATURE

What is the story behind the umbrellas?

The protesting students have been using umbrellas to protect themselves from the rain and more importantly from the stinging pepper spray used by the police. Eventually, the umbrellas became a symbol of the movement and that’s why it’s called the Umbrella Revolution. It is interesting to note that the demonstrators still maintain that their campaign is not a revolution but a purely peaceful civil disobedience movement.

Students in the financial hub are distributing food, water and umbrellas to block the sun and rain and also medical masks in case of another tear gas attack by the police. Medical tents have been set up to take care of the wounded in the standoffs. The protest camps are self sufficient and there are volunteers who pick up the trash around the tents set up in at the protest sites.

Who are involved?

The movement was initiated by a group called Occupy Central With Love & Peace, led by Hong Kong University’s dynamic law professor Benny Tai, sociologist Chan Kin-man and church minister Yiu-ming. This trio of household names are viewed as moderate pro-democracy figures by the denizens of Hong Kong.

Apart from #OccupyCentral (as it is popularly known online), there are also student groups with similar demands fighting passionately for the cause of democracy. 'Scholarism' is one such student group led by a precocious 17-year-old, Joshua Wong. The Hong Kong Federation of Students under the helm of Alex Chow and Lester Shum is another such group that is leading the charge.

Although the youth have been galvanised and are protesting vociferously on the streets, the older generation are extremely opposed to

The older generation are extremely opposed to the pro-democracy movement because they fear that it won’t go down well with China. The horrific memories of the Tiananmen uprising of 1989 are still fresh in their minds, and many believe that by standing up to China the students are only inviting more trouble for themselves

the pro-democracy movement because they fear that it won’t go down well with China. The horrific memories of the Tiananmen uprising of 1989 are still fresh in their minds, and many of them believe that by standing up to China the students are only inviting more trouble for themselves. Many of them believe that the movement does not augur well for Hong Kong’s economy and that the youth are waging a war that they simply cannot win.

What exactly do both sides want?

China’s relationship with Hong Kong has always been convoluted. For over 150 years, Hong Kong was a British colony. But, in 1997 Britain handed it back to China in a political deal called ‘One Country, Two Systems’ which allowed Hong Kong to maintain some of the civil rights that the mainland Chinese have always yearned for – like the freedom of the press and the right to assemble. Under this scheme, the people of Hong Kong were to be allowed to elect their own leader in 2017.

But, this summer, China reneged on its promise. It announced that those elections could proceed only if the Chinese government selected all the candidates. Obviously, this move didn’t go down well with the people of

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IMAGES BY A AILAWADI

Hong Kong. It meant they wouldn’t have much control over their own government after all. Despite several failed negotiations, China is adamant that candidates for the city’s top post must at least be vetted by a prejudiced committee, which protesters claim will lead to the election of a leader who is effectively an agent of the Chinese government. The protesters have a simple demand – full democracy.

They want the right to nominate and directly elect the Chief Executive, the head of their government. That would effectively mean the resignation of the current chief executive, Leung Chunying, a man who is widely detested because he is viewed as the Chinese government’s ‘inside man’ in Hong Kong.

Why are Hong Kongers so angry with the Chinese government?

‘One Country, Two Systems’ sounds great on paper but has never really worked out for either side in practice.

The Communist Party of China insists on maintaining political control in the Special Administrative Region of Hong Kong. The Chinese establishment is reluctant to give China’s most international city of 7.2 million people the right to choose

The protesters have a simple demand – full democracy. They want the right to nominate and directly elect the Chief Executive, the head of their government. That would effectively mean the resignation of the current chief executive, Leung Chun-ying, a man who is widely detested because he is viewed as the Chinese government’s ‘inside man’ in Hong Kong its own leader, in the event that an opponent of the Communist Party gets elected as the chief executive.

China fears that might send a wrong signal to the rest of China longing for democracy rights that there’s a light at the end of the tunnel for them.

At the same time, Beijing acknowledges that Hong Kong, since it was originally a British territory, is a special case. Much like in India, Hong Kong has always had an independent and impartial judiciary, freedom of information and movement, a

reasonably free press and has retained its system of common law. The Communist Party thinks this sort of piecemeal democracy is ideal for Hong Kong, but the well-educated, well-travelled and emboldened youth of Hong Kong demand true and complete democracy.

Since 26 September, thousands of students have taken to the streets and many more have voiced their support for the Umbrella Movement from around the world. In fact, several students in mainland China have also resorted to their (highly regulated) social media in support of Hong Kong’s fight for democracy.

Counter protests from pro-China residents have also been reported and are only complicating the situation.

Back in Beijing, Chinese president Xi Jinping has publicly backed Hong Kong’s beleaguered Chief Executive Leung Chun-ying and his handling of the protests.

Action by the authorities coupled with the upcoming student exams suggest that this movement might be coming to an end.

But until then, Youth Inc’s message on the walls of Central rings loud and clear. The youth of Hong Kong have spoken. It’s now time for Beijing to listen. yi DECEMBER 2014 Youth Incorporated 23

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l e v a r T g n i t a T r u

OUT OF THE BOX

inclusive packaged tours. While travel agents plan, travel curators customise and tailor-make these vacations.

C

THE JOB

Redefining traditional travel experiences, the job of a travel curator encompasses exclusively planned travel itineraries.

Trishann Henriques explores this new career avenue

he world is a book, they say, and those who do not travel read only a page.

A book takes a reader to places he’s never been to, experience feelings never felt before and meet individuals that – even for a few hours – change his ideas about love and life.

A travel curator turns things books are made of into reality.

WHAT IS TRAVEL CURATING? Traditional travel planning à la travel agents involved everything from booking of airplane, train or bus tickets to booking a hotel and to providing all-

“In our opinion a travel curator is an explorer and a destination expert. When you approach a travel curator for a travel plan, they try to understand your kind of travel and will accordingly suggest options from their own personal experiences in order to put together a great vacation for you,” says Sandra Lee and Priyanka Jena, founders of The Holiday Studio, a travel curating company. On the face of it, the job of a travel curator might seem identical to that of a travel agent but there is so much more to this new profession. Travel curators customise

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travel plans keeping in mind not only their customer’s budgetary details, but their personalities, their expectations from the trip and also their suggestions and opinions.

also posses the skill to listen and take into account the varied needs of their client.

To put it simply, they should be able to transform dreams into realities.

THE SKILLS

Undoubtedly, the most fun aspect of the job, the travel curating process, is one that is both exciting and extremely fulfilling.

Manjiri and Avani of the Broken Compass explain, “It’s like a flow chart. First, a lot of research which involves reading about the place if we have not been there.

Research on the internet about what that destination has to offer and finding relevant information about what you want to offer to your clients. After that, authenticating the information you have found and making sure what you are offering is going to be possible to execute on ground and in the way you want it.

This is followed by making a plan, getting it approved and finally making bookings as per the plan.

Travelling the world with the intention of planning a vacation is a dream. But a travel of this kind, although fun and exciting, is not all that rosy after all. Along with a passion for travel and exploration, a person with good social and people skills is a mandate. A location is truly discovered only after delving into its life, culture and traditions, and investing time in getting to know the people and the locale. Often, unknown locations are treaded only after cues from the original inhabitants of the region.

As a travel curator an individual must

THE CURATING PROCESS

Career facts: Travel curator

JOB PROFILE: The job of a travel curator is to customise and plan travel itineraries for their customers. A travel curator keeps in mind a customer’s budget, the reason for travel, and of course, their expectations from the vacation being planned.

INCOME: The pay varies from company to company. There are also several freelance travel curators. But for someone starting out, the salary begins at about `15,000.

SKILLS: Love for travel, knowledge of different national and international destinations, a strong network of people from different parts of the world.

ICO R O T PUER

CZECH REPUBL

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‘Travel the world’ finds a place on every person’s bucket list today. While everyone wants to travel, not everyone knows how to make the most of it. Vacation or tour packages organised by travel agencies, although good, do not offer an experience quite like travel curating does. To make the most of their travel experiences, several people are getting in touch with travel curators.

THE PERKS AND THE CHALLENGES

Since the career is still a fairly new concept in India, high-income jobs and commissions cannot be expected when starting out. Another challenge that both the founders of Broken Compass and The Holiday Studio believe to be true is catering to the diverse tastes and likes of customers. While the experience of curating can be extremely stimulating, there can also be times when it can be frustrating – frustrating mainly because of the diverse personalities of clients curators meet.

An undoubted perk of the job is the thrill of travel from place to place. If travel is a passion, there is no better way to fuel it than by becoming a travel curating. yi

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THE SCOPE

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FOREIGN SHORES

BEYOND the CLASSROOM

Learning is not only limited to classrooms, but also to libraries, resource centres and to gorgeous surroundings.

We list some of the world’s most beautiful college campuses

Founded in 1920s, Scripps College Claremont, California is owes its campus’ popularity to its Mediterranean revivalstyle architecture.

The campus boasts of beautiful greenery, twothree storied structures, stuccoed walls, red tiled roofs, iron balconies and arched windows and doors.

An all girls’ college, Scripps is well-known for its core curriculum in interdisciplinary humanities which teaches students to think critically.

THE MARMOT, FLICKR

This Beijing-based university was established in 1898. The campus is located in the urban Haidian District in Beijing, China. It is one among the C9 League, an alliance of nine major universities in mainland China. Known not only for its excellence in academics, but also renowned for its picturesque campus grounds, gardens ponds and traditional Chinese architecture that includes ornately carved walls and doorways, the 675-acre university campus is made up of over 30 constituting colleges and 12 departments.

Scripps College, USA

RYAN_XM, WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

Peking University, China

One of the world’s oldest universities and one that draws in two million visitors, it is made up of over 30 constituting colleges each with its own range of academic departments that are organised into four separate divisions. Oxford’s campus is popular the world over for The Sheldonian Theatre used for plays and music concerts, Christ Church Cathedral serving as both the college chapel and as a cathedral, and of course its beautiful Botanic Garden popular for its unique species of plants. The university is also known for its stoneglass windows and its iconic stone archways.

CHENSIYUAN, WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

TOBY ORD, WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

University of Oxford, UK

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University of Cape Town, South Africa

The University of Cape Town was established on 1 October 1829 and is located in the Western Cape Province of South Africa. Comprising of four suburban and two urban campuses, this public research university is the oldest in South Africa. Located on the slopes of Devil’s Peak, the students of this university undoubtedly bask in the beauty and the glory of nature on an everyday basis.

The popularity of this college lies in its well rounded atmosphere which offers students an excellent academic foundation as well as a plethora of naturebased extracurricular activities like skiing and mountain biking.

ADRIAN FRITH, WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

University of Bologna, Italy

Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México or UNAM is popular for its 20th century modern architecture. A unique feature of this university is its 2.8 square mile city campus that has been collaboratively built by many of its art, architecture and engineering students.

One of the most striking and breathtaking works of art on the university campus is the Central Library mosaic mural made from tiles taken from different parts of Mexico, created by Juan O’Gorman.

SCANUDAS, FLICKR

LUCA BORGHI, WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

For a student who lives for art and culture, University of Bologna is the place to be. It is hard not to fall in love with the university’s architecture, its cobblestoned roads, redbrick structures, or even the bibliophile’s dream – a library that houses 700,000 books.

This northern Italian university campus built in 1088 draws visitors not only for the architectural marvel that it is, but also for its tropical fauna, beds of exotic flowers and its carnivorous plants.

Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico

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HOW -TO GUIDE

HOW TO GET A GOOD RECOMMENDATION LETTER

A good recommendation letter acts as a stairway to good colleges and to great jobs. Shreeja Mahambre gives tips on scoring a beyond satisfactory recommendation

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good recommendation letter goes a long way in getting you into a good college, getting an internship or even your dream job.

Ideally, a recommendation letter speaks more about your personality than your grades and extracurricular activities. It is a testament of your achievements written by your teacher, coach or your counsellor – people who have worked with you for a significant amount of time. To a probable employer or your future

college, your recommendation speaks volumes about how you are to work with, what you are actually good at and how well you work under pressure. It talks about your leadership skills, friendliness and willingness to work individually as well as in groups.

In short, a recommendation plays a poignant role in your future.

WORK HARD This is probably the most important thing a person should do before

asking for a recommendation letter.

Your hard work is all that is reflected in the recommendation letter. If you work hard from the beginning it gives your teachers a lot more to write about in your recommendations.

Working hard doesn’t just mean in the academic sense but overall. The teacher writing your letter will also look at your extracurricular activities, group activities and sports that you participate in. You should also take an active part in class by being attentive, asking questions and being regular in your work.

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APPROACH THE RIGHT TEACHER The first and foremost thing to do is to know which teacher to approach to write this letter for you. The teacher should know you well so as to highlight your skills adequately in the letter. They should give a good and honest recommendation. You can ask teachers who taught you during your early years of school or college and also the teachers who are currently teaching you. You could also ask adults from outside your schools and colleges like your sports coaches, counsellors or employers, the people who have a good knowledge of your skills, strengths and interests.

Most importantly, don’t rush them into writing it; give them at least a month’s time to write the letter.

They will do a better job with your recommendation if they have ample time to think about how they know you best and what they’d like to include in your letter.

WORK CLOSELY WITH THE TEACHER Take on research projects or assignments with the teacher writing

your letter so that he or she gets to know small details about your skills, what you are good at and can judge your calibre. Participate in class and in group activities so that the teacher knows that you can work in groups and connect well with other people. Seek experiences that will help you build relations with your faculty members so that they can easily write your recommendations. Also, talk to the teacher about your goals, what you want to do in life and why you are applying for the particular course so that they can write relevant things in your letter.

TELL THEM WHAT YOU WANT Very often you have to steer the teacher who is writing your letter in a particular direction. While we do not mean influencing them to an extent that they are biased about you, or prodding them to write something about you that many not be true, you might need to tell them what course you’re applying for, where you’re applying and the basic premise of your future agenda. This helps the teacher write a recommendation that is

THE DOS AND DON’TS OF GETTING A RECOMMENDATION LETTER This is okay: •Getting a letter written from a teacher who knows you well •Picking someone in a position of authority – Head of Department, professor, counsellor, etc •Setting up a personal meeting with the person who will write your letter •Letting the writer know why you need a recommendation •Asking them to concentrate on aspects you’d like to highlight •Including your projects, participation in extracurrircular activies and your accomplishments •Thanking the writer

This is not okay: •Asking the writer to lie •Waiting until the eleventh hour for a recommendation letter •Asking them to rush; this could lead to mistakes •Faking signatures and letter heads

best suited for your need. You could also provide the teacher with your certificates and tell them about your achievements so that they could include and highlight them in your letter. You could also ask them to mention specific skills in the letters but the steering shouldn’t lead them to write false information in your letter.

SHARE YOUR AWARDS, ACCOLADES If you are applying to a college, give your teacher who is writing the letter plenty of information to write about. Make a folder of relevant documents like your résumé, progress cards, statement of purpose, certificates and so on. This will give the teacher a base to build your letter on. It is practically impossible for every teacher to know every last detail about all their students, so it’s important to provide this information to them. Also provide information about the places and the courses that you are applying to. This will give the teacher an idea about what is actually required of the letter and help them write it better.

MAKE SURE TO FOLLOW UP Follow up with the teacher regularly. Ask them if they need any additional documents or information from you. Do remind them too to write your letter as people in positions of such responsibility tend to be rather busy.

When following up be persistent, not annoying. The professor should be given at least a month’s time to write your recommendation because you are probably not the only one who has requested one.

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COVER STORY

COVER STORY

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ewspapers, magazines, radio, TV, billboards, trains, buses, airplanes and every blank space these days bears an advertisement.

So important is this source of publicity that it often becomes the defining factor for shelf lives of brands, products and even organisations. Through this cover story, we scour the workings of advertising agencies from the making of an ad to its final placement in the market Would we have heard about the shampoo that makes hair thick, long and shiny, or the soap that

promises baby-soft skin, or the deodorant that will get you any girl in the world if it weren’t for advertisements? The answer, a resounding no! Such is the power of the advertising industry.

Chuck Palahniuk in his book Fight Club said, “Advertising has us chasing cars and clothes. Working jobs we hate, so we can buy shit we don’t need.” As much as we might want to disagree to this comment, the need to live fancy lives and drive fancy cars is one of the reasons why we take up jobs. Again, the importance of advertising holds true.

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Ever wondered why your favourite magazine or the newspaper that you so ardently read every morning to your cup of coffee is sold at a fraction of its actual cost? Advertising, of course. Advertising agencies today play pivotal roles not only for the promotions of brands and products, but also political parties. The BJP government and its rigorous campaigning across different media and its ultimate win is the product of an advertising agency.

Understanding the power and the beauty of this mode of

communication from brand to consumer, analysing its different areas and how each one of them are directly tied to another is what the next few pages will concentrate on.

Lara Balsara of Madison World, Avinash Thadani of Please See, Keegan Pinto of DDB Mudra Group and many more such advertising front-runners spoke to us about the different aspects of this diverse career spectrum. From the making of an ad to promoting it adequately, careers in advertising will let you in on one of the most interesting and creative careers that exists today.

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COVER STORY

A IS FOR ADVERTISING

Lara Balsara, executive director at Madison World reveals the thrills of her job

get into. As a creative – you can be a copywriter, in which case you need to be good with languages and come up with new and innovative ideas. You can also be an Art person, in which case you will need to know technical software like CorelDraw, Photoshop and have a heightened sense of design and layouts. For Account Management, you need to have a good understanding of marketing concepts and come up with key propositions for brands. For Media Planning and Buying, you need to have a very analytical mindset and should be able to analyse large volume of data and come out with a solution out of numbers.

For PR, you need to have very good communication skills and interpersonal skills. You also need to have a good understanding of marketing to come up with creative solutions for a client.

Basically, whichever function you work in, you have to be incredibly creative.

Advice for budding advertisers

What has your journey been like?

I graduated with a Masters in marketing from England and soon after joined Madison as a management trainee.

It has been great and exciting ten years,.There's been lots of learning, some challenges, but on the whole it’s been an amazing experience.

Three things you love about your work  Every day is a new day, there is no monotony.  You deal with bright, young and creative minds.  If you can work in advertising, you can work in any other profession in the world.

What are the perks of your work profile?

As I said, one stands to learn a lot. It really helps you grow as a person.

And the challenges?

Sometimes the work timings can get very long and urgent things may crop up at the last minute.

What is a typical day at work like for you?

The best part about my job is that there is no typical day. Each and every day is different from the others!

What are the skills one must have for the job?

It depends what function you want to

My advice for people who want to enter advertising would be – it is an exciting world but not ideal for someone who wants to take it easy in life. You are handed an opportunity to build brands and make a difference.

What do you think is the future of advertising in India?

The future of advertising is all about ‘convert-ising’, delivering experience, driving conversations with customers and co-creating content. There is already a lot of collaboration between different functions and there’s plenty of multimedia at play.

Your favourite creative campaign

A couple of them that come to my mind are Asian Paints, 'Har ghar kuch kehta hai', where we visited the childhood homes of celebrities and Cadbury Bournville's 'Tape a Tweet'

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PLEASE SEE WHAT THIS ADVERTISING WIZARD’S IDEAS ARE ALL ABOUT

What are the skills that one must have for the job?

and waited outside their door for more than a week till they hired me after multiple rounds of interviews.

After working some accounts for a while, I then moved to Ogilvy. Soon, my partner and I decided to return to India and start something of our own.

Advice for budding advertisers

Avinash Thadani, co-founder of Please See contrasts the advertising industry in India and abroad

Three things you love about your work  That I could start things from scratch and create something impactful.  My job is incredibly enjoyable.  I find my job extremely exciting!

What are the perks of your work profile?

What has your journey been like?

Right from my college days in Wisconsin, I was entirely independent so I did all sorts of jobs – from waiter to factory worker to finance. Whilst I was at university, I watched a Saatchi and Saatchi commercial about a father and son and that had a profound impact on me. Upon graduating, I landed a job at Merrill Lynch in DC. That’s precisely when the media bug bit me and I drove out to New York City with only a few dollars in my pocket to pursue my dream job with Saatchi & Saatchi. I slept in my car,

I am a ‘people person’ and that’s one of the biggest perks of my job. I get to meet a lot of people and that’s amazing! Since we have offices in Mumbai and New Delhi, and have clients all over the world, it’s always interesting to meet new people.

Something that always fascinated me about advertising is its unconventional nature. It isn’t your typical ‘nineto-five’ job where one’s biggest achievement in a day is using Excel without a mouse!

And the challenges?

There are certainly a lot of challenges in terms of advertising in the Indian context. It’s a massive market that’s constantly evolving and it often depends on your client’s needs and demands. Broadly speaking, the ‘boisterous’ type of clichéd advertising still sells here. For example, if Salman Khan were to

endorse any brand, it would work, owing to his star value.

I strongly believe that one must be very confident and must not be averse to taking risks. I also feel that one must really give it their all, no matter what they pursue. When I left the States, I had only one thought on my mind – “Why should we waste our talent in the USA, when we can put it to better use in India?”

You know I’ve noticed that in Indian schools and colleges we aren’t encouraged to think out of the box.

I think it must be encouraged in our system as it will only help our youth.

As for specific advice to budding advertisers, I am of the opinion that there is no shortcut to hard work!

Never restrict yourself to the beaten path.

How do you think advertising in India has evolved?

Earlier, advertising used to be restricted to print and broadcast.

With the advent of technology, there is now a lot of importance given to the interactive and engaging aspect of the Internet.

Ever since I returned to India, I’ve seen that we have caught up with global trends to a great extent. Now, we make responsive sites for the clients which provide a consistent user experience instead of a mobile site or application. So, some pretty interesting things are happening in the Indian market as well and it’s an exciting time to be here.

Your favourite creative campaign

According to me, the Nirma commercial was iconic in a lot of ways.

But surely Shaggy’s Levis boombastic advert takes the cake!

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COVER STORY

CREATIVITY IS WHEN YOU SEE WHAT OTHERS DON’T Shagun Seda, Creative Director at DDB Mudra West narrates her enthralling story in the creative ad-mad world What has your journey been like?

I did my graduation in English Literature from Lady Shri Ram College, New Delhi, my postgraduation from The Symbiosis Institute of Mass Communication, Pune. My foray into advertising started with a short but immensely illuminating internship at Lowe. Soon, I joined TBWA\India (then Anthem) as a trainee copywriter, and learned and lived there for nine and a half years. TBWA saw me grow from a trainee to a creative director. And then it was time to leave the proverbial nest.

I joined DDB Mudra West a year and a half ago and it’s been great so far.

Three things you love about your work  Getting paid to do what I love.  Creating work that will (hopefully) outlast my existence.  Not having to wear a uniform.

After receiving a brief from the client, the creative department huddles up for days to determine what kind of advertisement would work best for their target audience. They play a crucial role in determining what the advertisement would look like when it hits the market.

This department includes art directors, creative directors, copywriters, scriptwriters, visualisers, photographers, typographers and so on. They create and communicate ideas to the consumers. This department is responsible for visualising and verbalising the needs of the client.

They are the ones with a flair for writing, a creative bent of mind and artistic creativity.

What are the perks of your work profile?

My current work profile according to my business card says Creative Director, DDB Mudra West. But I still am and will always be a copywriter at heart.

The only difference is, when you are a copywriter, everyone thinks it’s their right to walk up to your desk and disturb you while you’re thinking.

When you become CD, they first knock on your cabin door before disturbing you.

And the challenges?

One of the biggest challenges is time.

Anybody can crack a superlative idea after days spent thinking over endless cups of coffee and in between naps.

An increasingly competitive business environment has resulted in client pressure and want-it-yesterday deadlines.

What are the skills one must have for the job?

There are no specific skills. As long as you can think clearly and communicate succinctly, you’re home.

All you need then is an inquisitive mind, an observing eye, fire in the belly, creative rigour and stamina.

Also, a good digestive system to stomach rejection!

Advice for budding advertisers

Be there, do that, watch this and read that. You are a sum of your experiences. It also holds true for the work you create. The richer the input, the more superior the output.

what do you think is the future of advertising in india?

Despite our vast socio-cultural, linguistic and religious diversity, our advertising has always had its pinkie on the pulse of a changing India. The penny-pinching Lalita-ji has evolved into a tough-talking boss-wife who doesn’t think twice before asking her husband to work late. The 30-second TV spot co-exists with its four-minute Internet edit.

Today, TV cannot be the only answer to every marketing problem.

Brands are increasingly harnessing the power of the Internet to tell their story.

But this is just the beginning. We have a long way to go.

Your favourite creative campaign

Apart from the Nescafe ‘Stammering Standup Comedian’ and Kit Kat #MyDiwaliBreak commercials, I can’t think of any recent Indian campaign that moved me enough to talk about it.

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FROM THE CREATIVE HORSE’S MOUTH

Keegan Pinto, group director at DDB Mudra West tells us what makes his job so interesting What are the perks of your work profile?

It all stops at us. Creative people are at the end of the assembly line.

Everybody is an integral part of the process, but we are the final expressionists or craftsman of advertising. We get the stage for the last act, for the big one. All eyes are on us eventually.

As Group Creative Director, nothing changes. I’m still a trainee fighting for every good piece of work to happen. I still beg and plead sometimes and say silly things just so good work happens.

And the challenges?

What has your journey been like?

It’s been in the fast lane I think. Fullon, crazy and chaotic. But at the end of the day, it is an anti-aging career.

It has the power to energise you more than it tires you.

Three things you love about your work  You get paid to tell stories, write jokes, make music and ' sit and think'.  There is no mould. There is no ‘standardisation of creative work.’

Only you can and will take you forward, which is the best part.  It’s full of surprises. You will get scandalised, challenged, laugh real hard and always have something new to do every day. That is a very rich life.

Newness. The quality of ideas and the quality of their expressions. The longer you are in the business, the less novel ideas seem to you. So only you can become your biggest impediment. It’s scary but it could become a strength if used correctly!

We should all stick to 20% thinking and 80% doing. Let’s not have futile brainstorms where we merely think.

It is better to have mediocre ideas out there, executed, than to have no ideas see the light of day at all, rendering them scribbles in our books and word docs in our portfolios. The internet is full of doers. If they have an idea, they do it. Sometimes it doesn’t look great.

But if the idea is powerful, it will fly.

Doing brings glory, not thinking.

Kolaveri Di was shot in a studio. And the rest is history.

What are the skills one must have for the job?

A sense of reality, of logic and reason.

Speed is also essential. A sense of contemporary aesthetics couple with a sense of fearlessness. The desire to be

a thought leader, to think solutions but to also think solutions that shake up. The duality of being a total madman while ideating and being a sane salesman while selling an idea.

Creativity and imagination must feature somewhere in that list.

Advice for budding advertisers

Be real. There is no space for indulgence. You will have to work within the boundaries of reality and be as creative as you can, within that. It's creativity with whatever you've got. Also, there is a whole new competition and that is 'internet content' and the people making that are doing a swell job.

How do you think advertising in India has evolved & what is the future?

It evolved once from work that ironically reflected the lives and times of its affluent creators to a more honest, simple, Indian relatable voice. Another big evolution curve is still waiting to happen I feel. If brands started engaging more than selling, I think the evolution will come. They must start using an engagement platform like the internet and use TV to simply remind because that's largely what the TV medium has morphed itself into. It took us years after the internet boomed in India to start using the medium correctly. I see that as the next big opportunity to evolve.

Your favourite creative campaign Real men of genius for Bud Lite.

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COVER STORY

READ BETWEEN THE CONSUMER’S LINES

Siddhant Lahiri, Account Planning Director at JWT reveals how an account planner needs to mind-read the consumer What has your journey been like?

As the only son of middle-class Bengali parents, it was always blatantly obvious that I had to find a career that was both stable and fruitful. At the same time, however, having a slightly creative and restless temperament, I was wary of the typical management roles; I still find them very dry and boring. So when I was doing my graduation, I was searching for something that would allow me to walk the tightrope between the stability and respect of the corporate world along with the quirky independence and cerebral satisfaction of an artistic field. MICA, and later advertising, fit into this vortex. I started with DDB Mudra and then have spent nearly three years with JWT.

Three things you love about your work A brand’s positioning must always be forward-looking in order to be successful, it must not only tap into the current zeitgeist, but also have relevance in the recent future. A planner’s expertise is in understanding the world around him or her, to derive reasons for mass behaviour, observe the subtly emerging trends and then arrive at a calculated understanding of a brand’s core insight, its need in the market, the role it fulfils and the profile of the consumer.

It is also the planner who from time to time initiates research studies, and must then analyse them to derive conclusions relevant to the brand.

I get paid to wonder why people are as absurd as they are. Everything is research, from watching movies to chilling with friends to talking to your girlfriend to haggling with the taxi driver. Consumers are all around you. That life-changing idea can hit you at any time.

What are the perks of your work profile?

 The license to be a little eccentric and then justify it by saying, “Haven’t you ever seen the guys on Mad Men?’”  The freedom to concentrate on creating great work rather than fighting restrictions in the office.  Meeting a unique set of characters every day.

And the challenges?

It’s a difficult job. Whatever you do, even

something like making people choose one brand over another is instigating a change in their behaviour. People don’t like to change. You must be ready to persevere.

What are the skills one must have for the job?

Planning is a vocation that takes place mostly in the mind, therefore, there is no substitute for curiosity.

It is paramount that you are forever seeking more and more knowledge – why people do what they do; what are the new, upcoming things that are going to change the world tomorrow?

Advice for budding advertisers

Stay curious. Keep questioning. Use every interaction with people as an opportunity to learn more about the workings of the human mind. Read a lot. Watch everything from Polish films to saas-bahu shows. Drown in pop culture. Be open to experiences.

Remember that the India you live in is not the only India out there.

What do you think is the future of advertising in india?

Advertising exists for one purpose only: to convince people they need something they don’t want.

In an industry all about selling, planning exists solely to understand the consumer. Understanding consumers’ behaviour, motivations and desires, what makes them tick and therefore ways to convince them to buy. Planning is integral to understanding both the processes as well as the growth of advertising.

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SERVICING A CLIENT’S EVERY NEED

Vineeta Tyagi, account supervisor at Please See talks about why the client is king and how important her job is at an agency What has your journey been like?

I was very sure that I wanted to be part of the advertising industry and an integral part of a brand’s journey.

When I started reading about various job roles, account management was something that I instantly connected with.

The journey has been nothing but amazing. I love working in the creative field. Seeing great work in the market inspires me to be creative and ideate every day.

Three things you love about your work  It never gets monotonous  Constant thinking  Exposure – my job allows me to interact on a daily basis with people from different walks of life

How much money can one expect as an account manager?

As an account manager you should be able to get something between `3040 thousand per month

An account manager acts as a link between a client and the advertising agency they are tied to. The purpose of an advertising agency is to ensure that their clients’ needs are met keeping in mind details such as finances, targets and audience. The client approaches the agency with a product that needs advertising.

The product then goes under various phases before it hits the market. Through these phases the advertising account manager acts as a link between the client and the advertising agency.

What is a typical day at work like for you?

Meeting with clients, sitting with creative team to ideates, planning the brand ahead, numerous amounts of phone calls, a lot of coffee, working with the rest of the team to think of how an idea can come to life

What are the skills one must have for the job?

You should be able to manage a team because eventually you will be leading a team. Be it planning weekly details or planning a brand’s communication,

communicate! An account manager is a combination of a thinker, a doer and a good communicator.

Advice for budding advertisers and account supervisors

 If you are not in for long hours of work, then this is not the job for you.  Don’t leave any room for miscommunication.  Be updated with what’s happening in the industry, read as much as you can.  Work in tandem with the creative team.  Be passionate about building solid working relationships with your clients and your team.  Cross industry communication expertise – try and work with agencies that offer various specialisations – ATL, BTL, digital, etc. It gives a better understanding of the industry

How important is the client servicing department in an advertising agency?

If creative teams work directly with clients, they will never reach a mutual consensus. Even if they do, I wonder how many emails and long discussions would have to be exchanged to reach a conclusion.

Account managers know what clients want. Believe it or not, they are integral part of an ad agency.

Not only that, it comes naturally to account managers to think about how a brand can grow – is it just a good idea or will it benefit a client? Does it have the power to change things for clients? Will it solve the problem?

Evaluating comes naturally to account managers and that is what makes all the difference.

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COVER STORY

THE BUSINESS OF MEDIA PLANNING AND BUYING

Media planner Yash Desai enumerates how he helps brands with maximum exposure, placing advertisements in pivotal areas so that they are seen by all my final year of BMM; the aspects of managing the presence of brand communication and reaching out to the right audience was so exciting that I thought I had to explore it.

The task to choose the right media platforms to communicate the brand message and achieve marketing objectives has so far never left me bored at work

Three things you love about your work  Dynamism  Potential to reach the nation with brand communication  The creativity involved

How much money can one expect as a planner?

All those print, digital and outdoor advertisements that you see promoting everything from food to automobiles to clothes come under the purview of media planning and buying.

Like finance and real estate consultants guide their clients on investing their money in the right place, media planners and buyers have the same crucial role to play when it comes their clients’ brands and products.

What has your journey been like?

I was attracted to media planning in

At the entry level, media planning within the advertising industry is not one of the best paid profiles. As you grow in the ad industry things get better. If you are exceptional at your work you can even demand your desired package. In terms of numbers, the salary depends on the ad agency a person works with. One can expect five to eight lakhs per annum for a fresher i.e an MBA graduate.

What are the perks of your work profile?

Being selected for exchange programmes and visiting other countries to understand the media scene while working with media planning professionals of those countries. It gives the opportunity to understand diverse working cultures as well. Also, a media planner is

constantly given freebies as there are several media vendors and sales teams out there contesting for your attention

And the challenges?

A media planner has to communicate with various people (clients, vendors, internal teams, etc).

The art of communication often becomes a key challenge for most people.

After the analysed numbers come in, a planner has to find the right platforms and write the story which will address the marketing objective of the brand. These areas can be challenging for a number of people who choose this career.

What are the skills one must have for the job?  Strategic outlook  Eye for numbers  Communication skills  Analytical mind  Adapting nature

Advice for aspiring media planners and buyers  Don’t make the mistake of thinking that the job has a lot to do with numbers  Prepare yourself  Choose the right agency  Be more keen to learn than to grow  Don’t shy away from innovation

The importance of a media planner

Advertising plays a very important role in brand building. However, it is the art and science of media planning that tells the advertiser how much to spend, where to spend and how to spend to have the maximum positive impact for the brand.

As the biggest task for most advertisers today is to get the right scale for the brand campaign, a media planner thus has utmost importance and is an integral role to play in an ad agency.

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11/26/2014 6:43:56 PM

DIGITAL – THE PRESENT & THE FUTURE

D

igital advertising is another term for Internet marketing.

Digital advertising is when businesses leverage new technologies to deliver promotional advertisements to consumers. Digital advertising includes promotional advertisements, messages delivered through email, social media websites, online advertising on search engines, and banner ads on mobile and web sites.

It may be a sunrise industry in India today, but seven years ago, it was associated only with websites and search engines. The digital space has evolved to a large extent and is no longer a thing of the future. Trends in the digital space change by the minute and the social media space is constantly evolving.

Agencies like FoxyMoron latched onto this trend at the right time, starting off as a social media agency and later adding search, tech, PR,

video and a lot more to their basket.

The digital side of the media is such that one needs to constantly adapt with the ever changing trends. WATConsult is another agency doing some great work in this space.

The online advertising market in India is tipped to grow 30% in the current fiscal year. This is being attributed to the fact that more people have begun to warm up to the more quantifiable nature of the digital medium that can aid corporate behemoths in understanding their promotional campaign’s popularity and success in real time. Experts claim that total value of the online advertising market in India is expected to reach nearly `3,575 crores in this financial year.

One of the biggest challenges digital advertisers face is category creation.

Several clients do not understand the digital industry, the importance of

employing an agency and spending the big bucks on the online space.

Creating brand strategies for internet and mobile therefore is an uphill task as they have to keep justifying their stance to clients.

Studies suggest that digital advertising is beginning to move into a direction in which it will soon form 30% of the advertising pie. With the increased usage of mobiles in India and abroad, if any of us is reluctant to adapt, then there’s the risk of becoming redundant in the blink of an eye.

That goes to show how this is the turning point for the ad-mad world and how advertisers will have to continuously learn and adapt to newer technologies.

That’s why we caught up with those ahead of their times and tried to figure out exactly which way the advertising industry is headed.

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COVER STORY

SELLING TO CONSUMERS IN THE DIGITAL AGE Suveer Bajaj, Co-founder of the digital agency FoxyMoron shares his passion for the digital space work experience. We do not look at ourselves as an organisation but as ‘The Big Foxy Family’.  The clients and the opportunities received have been overwhelming.  The ever-evolving nature of the industry has been stimulating.

What are the perks of your work profile?

With digital beginning to eat into a larger slice of the advertising pie, as digital pioneers we are exposed to the top management of our brands and often meet some fascinating entrepreneurs from across the globe.

This encourages an entire new diaspora of thinking and shows me how one can potentially change the way we shop, we eat, we live, and we entertain.

What are the challenges?

What has your journey been like?

The journey has been wondrous. It’s been exasperating and monumental as well! Entrepreneurship is a unique opportunity that a handful of lucky souls run into every now and then.

We, of course, had the good fortune of running into this opportunity in the digital advertising and marketing space. Honestly, it’s been challenging but in a good way. We set ourselves unachievable tasks. We commit ourselves to that. We dream it. We do it. And that’s how we have evolved!

Three things you love about your work  The energy and vibe in the office creates a unique but enthralling

People believe advertising is an easy job to start with and fresh out of college choose to jump into the welcoming advertising industry.

However, after a few years they have educational priorities that come in the way and hence retention as well as training pose to be one of our greatest challenges.

What are the skills one must have for the job?

Primarily, we pillar our agency on three verticals creative, media and technology. In theory, one must have a knack for either of the three in order to be a part of the digital industry.

Digital marketing is like advertising on steroids, one has to create a good ad every day. Candidates must do something interesting on Twitter, be a guest blogger, make ads of the world

their homepage and make sure to stand out from the crowd!

Advice for budding digital advertisers.

 Always be relentless. Keep evolving.

Keep on your toes. If not, the industry will eat you alive as there might be a thousand opportunities but to grasp even one is difficult.  Also, listen more and speak less.

Absorb everything you possibly can from the ecosystem.  Network, network and network some more!

How do you think advertising in India has evolved?

Back in 2008 when the agency began, the definition of digital was restricted to websites and a little bit of search. Post this it blossomed with the rise of social media where each brand capitalised on the Facebook and Twitter bandwagon; now brands are conceptualising integrated campaigns with Pinterest, Instagram and LinkedIn. The digital industry will bifurcate itself very distinctly between services and products.

Agencies like ours will thrive in the services space where we will continue to bridge the gap between creative media and technology by continuously innovating and providing cutting edge services.

Your favourite creative campaign

Staying true to the young, cosmopolitan and contemporary brand that Maybelline India is, FoxyMoron developed a catchy and innovative mode of engaging its fans across all digital platforms in India.

That’s my favourite!

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THE FUTURE OF ADVERTISING IS HERE Rajiv Dhingra, CEO at WATConsult explains why digital is the only way forward in advertising beauty of the digital space. Keeping up can be tough but therein lies the learning experience and the adrenalin rush. When you get ahead of the curve once in a while it gives you a great sense of fulfilment. The rest of the time you stay at it trying harder each day.

We like to call ourselves a social and digital agency that thinks big, executes smart and learns fast.

What are the perks of your work profile?

The perks are lots of conferences, working with the best brands in the country and also meeting, working and interacting with people who as passionate as you are about your company. There is no better feeling for an entrepreneur than to see his team totally charged and ready to take on the world.

What has your journey been like?

My journey has been long and fruitful but it still feels like yesterday when I started WATConsult. It will be eight years this January but seeing how much we have grown fuels my passion for more. We have gone from one to 150 people and from one to 85 brands that we service and from one to four offices in four cities. It’s been a great ride and I've enjoyed every moment of it.

Three things you love about your work

Every day is a new day as things in digital never seem to stagnate they just change even faster. That's the

And the challenges?

 Competition is high and we need to keep upping our game.  Need to unlearn what we have learnt while we continue learn new things.  The business grows so fast that one needs to step back and evaluate every now and then as to whether we are on the right path.

What are the skills one must have for the job?

There are two ways of looking at that. Skills from a functional standpoint would have to be a keen interest and knowledge of marketing and brand building. I think both are From a macro standpoint, one needs a whole lot of patience for

results and yet needs to continue to be impatient about adapting to change.

Advice for budding digital advertisers

Mobile is where the scale will be.

It's time for all of us to embrace the digital age.

How do you think digital advertising in India has evolved?

It’s grown well on solid foundations in the last five years. The trick is if we are able to make the leap from being digital as a medium to digital as the mainline. Mobile is growing rapidly and we are ensuring we stay ahead of the curve by providing our clients cutting edge branded apps, be it on Android, iOS or Windows for that matter. Now, we deliver innovative mobile media campaigns too through our media partners and I believe that the Indian market has evolved to a large extent.

What is the future of digital advertising?

Whenever I am asked this question, I have one simple reply. Digital is the only future of advertising.

Your favourite digital campaign

Anything done in the past is not best anymore. The digital industry is constantly evolving, so the best campaigns are only in people’s heads for now and will be executed tomorrow but they will stay best just for that moment till someone else does better.

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COVER STORY

THE ROAD TO ADVERTISING

If you’re planning to pursue a career in advertising, here’s a reference guide on the top courses available and the most reputed recruiters in India and abroad

TOP WORLDWIDE UNIVERSITIES OFFERING ADVERTISING PROGRAMMES

 Northwestern University  University of Pennsylvania

(Wharton)  Stanford University  Duke University  Harvard University  Columbia University  University of California at Berkeley  University of Chicago (Booth)  University of Wisconsin  New York University

TOP AD AGENCIES WORLDWIDE

 Young and Rubicam Brands  McCann Erickson  Dentsu  BBDO  Ogilvy and Mather

TOP DIGITAL MARKETING COMPANIES IN INDIA

 webchutney.com  windchimes.co  bluedigital.co.in  foxymoron.in  sweedigital.co  flarepath.in  WATConsult.com  geekcreativeagecy.com  softzsolution.com

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COURSES FOR ADVERTISING IN INDIA

 School of Broadcasting and Communication, Mumbai • Masters in Advertising and Public Relations: Two years  Symbiosis Institute of Media and Communication, Pune • MBA in Media Management : Two years • Masters of Business Administration in Communication Management (Specialisation in advertising): Two years  Amity University, New Delhi • MA in Advertising and Marketing Management: Two

years • Post Graduate Diploma in Advertising and Marketing Management: One year  Apeejay Institute of Mass Communication, Delhi • Post Graduate Diploma in Advertising and Marketing

Communication: One year

 The Delhi School of Communication (DSC) • Post Graduate Diploma Programme in

Communication (PGDPC) along with Masters in Mass Communication (MMC): Two years  School of Advertising and Communication (SAC), Delhi Post Graduate Diploma in Advertising: One year

 National Institute of Advertising (NIA), Noida, Delhi

NCR

• Post Graduate Program in Advertising &

Communication Management (PGPACM): One year  Indian Institute of Mass Communication, Delhi • Post Graduate Diploma Course in Advertising and

TOP AD AGENCIES IN INDIA  Ogilvy and Mather  McCann - Erickson India Ltd.  Lowe Lintas  J. Walter Thompson India (JWT)  Leo Burnett India Pvt. Ltd.  Mudra Communication Pvt. Ltd.  RK Swamy / BBDO Advertising Ltd.  Maddison World  DDB Mudra  Saatchi and Saatchi

Public Relations: One year

 Xavier’s Institute of Communication, Mumbai • Post Graduate Diploma in Advertising and Marketing

Communication: One year

 Mudra Institute of Communications, Ahmadabad • Post Graduate Certificate Programme in Advertising

Management and Public Relations (PGCPAMPR): One year (online) Certificate Programme in Digital Marketing: (online) DECEMBER 2014 Youth Incorporated 43

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COVER STORY

YOUTH INC’S ROUNDUP OF THE BEST ADS

NESCAFE

A refreshing change from the swirly Deepika Padukone ads, this one finds a funny and creative way to sensitise us to speech defects and remind us of the bliss that is coffee.

Don’t complain, you guys, buffering is a good thing.

HAMARA BAJAJ

This ad starts with sunrise and yoga, and cuts to every aspect of India from the Gateway of India to lush green villages, ending with the DD National logo. Rocking out the two-wheelers that are compatible with every person of the population and using Indian-ness as a selling point, this two-wheeler had a definite cult following at the time.

The ads we grew up with and you are growing up with are more integral to the indian way of life than you think

LIFEBUOY

In a nutshell, it’s a snotty boy being disgusted by his seemingly unhygienic friends who don’t wash their hands for a whole minute like his mother has taught him to. Really though, it turns out, his soap is just slow. Libefuoy only needs you to invest 10 seconds in your hands. Also at the end, of course, is the customary doctor giving his approval.

ACTION KA SCHOOL TIME

An entourage of every typically Indian school memory: the uniform checking, the teachers who aren’t allowed to smile and wear really big glasses, the PT classes and the blessed bell. Complete with those specific shoes we had to wear, it’s a walk down memory lane with annoying nasal singing.

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CADBURY – KUCH KHAAS

The dancing girl relic! Running on to the field and dancing is the thing to do after a player hits a six. This girl not only shows you how to avoid security like a pro, but also how to make the player blush like a newly-wedded bride. She symbolises a sure classic favourite.

FEVI KWIK

HAPPY DENT

One of the funniest and shortest, yet silent and creative ads made. Four dots of glue will always do the trick.

Goodbye snobby old man, it’s for the local fisherman to shine, and with only five rupees!

This one was different; it’s a fantastic concept, sure to be stuck in your head for a long time. People with such bright teeth that rich people can employ them on an altogether new level – I wish they would show bedside lamps too. Your memory just sparkled with recollection, did it not?

THE AMUL GIRL

The Amul girl is the iconic advertising mascot used by Amul, an Indian dairy brand. She’s a hand-drawn cartoon of a young, chubby Indian girl dressed in a polka dotted frock with blue hair and a half pony tied up. Plus, she’s witty and always updated. Rightly so, she’s been described as the best Indian advertising concepts of all time.

WHO WAS DIGEN VERMA?

Digen Verma was a fictitious personality created to invoke curiosity in the minds of consumers. Ad after ad exhorted the so-called virtues of this man. Frooti benefited largely from this genius of a campaign which led to Digen Verma hogging our mindspace for a very long time.

BLACKBERRY BOYS

An obviously successful effort to increase the market of blackberry, this ad was the symbol of the BBM boom, when literally everyone owned, or at least thought of owning, a Blackberry. A shout out to the start of being-on-the-go, unlimited free texting and emoticons.

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COUNSELLOR CONNECT

JAYANTI GHOSE

ANSWER ANSWER

Creative industries to work in could be animation, advertising and marketing communications, craft, performing arts, film, fashion and textiles, games, FX, VFX, music, photo imaging, publishing and radio. Some job roles would require innate talent such as drawing, craft work, music, dancing, acting, writing, or it could be possessing the imagination and skill to work in these industries in other roles. A creative person could be an artist, designer, musician, dancer, sculptor, copywriter, animator, actor, culinary artist, makeup artist, nail artist, hair stylist, graphic artist, graphic novelist, cartoonist and so on. A scientist, an engineer, a writer or a curator is also a creative person.

Identify in what way you are creative and use that to determine the right course.

RESEARCH IN PSYCHOLOGY Q: I plan to pursue a master’s in psychology.

Please tell me the scope of research in the subject.

Swathi Psychologists may conduct research in the fields of industrial/organisational, counselling, clinical, developmental, educational, health, social, environmental, school, rehabilitation, psychometrics and quantitative, and forensic psychology, neuropsychology, geropsychology, sports psychology, consumer psychology, experimental and human factors psychology, family psychology, consumer psychology, aviation psychology and their sub-fields. Employment could be in academia, government agencies, educational institutions, private research organisations, business consultancies, in market research, correctional facilities, hospitals and community centres. Examples given are indicative and not exhaustive.

ANSWER ANSWER

CREATIVE COURSES Q: What is the best course for a creative person?

Mahima

DATA ANALYTICS Q: What is data analytics? What are the postgraduate courses offered abroad in this field?

What is the required background for admission?

Animesh

MSc Carbon Management is being offered by Edinburgh University Business School, MS Carbon Management by Columbia University while University of Central Lancashire offers MSc Carbon and Resource Management. University of East Anglia offers MBA in Strategic Carbon Management, London School of Business & Finance offers Global MBA Carbon Management.

These are indicative examples. A strong honours/ bachelor’s degree in economics, management or a social or physical science would make you eligible for the MS/MSc in carbon management, while there may not be any specific academic requirement for MBA Carbon Management (though work experience in related fields may be useful).

Data analytics (DA) is the science of examining raw data with the purpose of drawing conclusions about that information. Big data analytics is the process of examining big data to uncover hidden patterns, unknown correlations and other useful information that can be used to make better decisions. MSc/MS programmes are being offered in big fata analytics, web science & big data analytics, data science & analytics, big data & text analytics, business analytics, business intelligence and data analytics across various universities in the USA, UK and a few universities in Australia and Canada as well. A good bachelor’s degree in computing, computer science, maths or statistics or electrical engineering or the physical sciences would be appropriate background for admission to postgraduate courses in the subject.

ANSWER ANSWER

CARBON MANAGEMENT Q: Kindly suggest names of universities/business schools offering master programmes in carbon management. What academic background would be required?

Baljeet ANSWER ANSWER

STUDY ABROAD

STUDY IN INDIA

Jayanti Ghose is a career and education consultant. She holds an honours degree in economics and a degree in education. Her research in career counselling and guidance spans more than 25 years. She pioneered the concept of career counselling and career writing in the print media. She is actively involved in personal and group counselling.

DECEMBER 2014 Youth Incorporated 47

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WISE UP

1

2

R

D 1

3

O N Z 1

1

2

- By Niloufer Gandhi

1

E

O W

Choose the option that is closest in meaning to the main word and complete the sentence.

Que pasa, readers?

The teacher announced the date of the approaching exams and instructed the students to start studying _____. (a) immediately (b) slowly (c) independently

2. Suave (swahv)

The ____ job applicant impressed each of the interviewers on the panel with his charm and intelligence. (a) uncivilized (b) zealous (c) sophisticated

3. Peccadillo (pek-uh-dil-oh)

The principal forgave the children for their ____ of breaking the glass window but lectured them on observing safety measures while playing. (a) minor offense (b) deliberate attempt (c) failed actions

4. Desperado (des-puh-rah-doh)

An armed ____ forced his way into the store, threatened the cashier and fled with all the money. (a) hoodlum (b) cavalier (c) loyalist

5. Embargo (em-bahr-goh)

In 1960, the United States imposed a trade ____ against Cuba with the objective of weakening the Cuban economy. (a) agreement (b) prohibition (c) strategy

Many Spanish words have found their way into the English language as a result of the interactions between Spanish and Mexican cowboys and the Americans they were working for, and trade transactions between the Caribbean and the United States.

HOLA! Answers:

1. A, 2. C, 3. A, 4. A, 5. B

1. Pronto (pron-toh)

Word Pyramid

The clues will help you find the answers to complete the word pyramid. Each answer must contain the previous answer. You may arrange the words with a new letter.

Hint: Start from the top 1. Geometric abbreviation for length

L

2. ‘The’ in Spanish 3. The fifth sign of the zodiac or the lion 4. To suffer defeat in a game or competition 5. Opposite of open 6. Body cavity containing visceral organs (plural) 8. Abbreviation for telecommunications 9. Most attractive or pleasing 10. Edible or fit to be eaten

Answers:

EL, LEO, LOSE, CLOSE, CELOMS, CLEOMES, TELECOMS, COMELIEST, COMESTIBLE

7. Plants also known as Spider Flowers

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yi

entertain Dating too has gone mobile and taken the world by storm. Find out more...

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THE QUARTER-LIFE TRAP

DANCE THE CALORIES AWAY

THE 2014 ARCHIVES

BEAT THE QUARTERLIFE BLUES. WE SHOW YOU HOW

GET IN SHAPE WITH BOKWA, THE NEWEST FITNESS REGIMEN

WE ROUND UP 2014’S BIGGEST NEWSMAKERS

25-11-2014 22:19:36

ENTERTAINMENT FEATURE

T

he mid-20s are a difficult time for everyone. Having just finished your studies, all anyone seems to be saying is how you need to ‘get your act together’ or how you need to ‘figure out what you want to do with your life’, while all you really want to do is sleep in late, meet up with friends and enjoy the luxuries of free Wi-Fi. Sadly, life doesn’t work that way. You need to get a well-paying job, save money for the future, achieve all your goals, marry the perfect person and do all this while still keeping a check on your sanity and morals. Somehow it feels like people always told you that life was going to be difficult, but nobody really offered to tell you how to make it easier.

Most 20-somethings go through a phase of constant doubt – Is this job right for me? Why I am still single?

When will I buy my first car?

Was my degree a waste of time? Riyaz Khan offers tips on battling this thing called quarter-life crisis

What is a quarterlife crisis?

A quarter-life crisis is a period of life usually ranging from the late teens to the early thirties, in which a person begins to feel doubtful about their own lives, brought on by the stress of becoming an adult.

It is derived from its more famous relative, mid-life crisis. Quarter-life crisis was coined 50 Youth Incorporated DECEMBER 2014

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in 2001 by Alexandra Robbins and Abby Wilner in their definitive book Quarterlife Crisis: The Unique Challenges of Life in Your Twenties.

Often dismissed by people as simply a part of growing up, it can be quite a difficult experience for the ones actually going through a quarter-life crisis. David Marr, author of Get It Together: A Guide To Surviving Your Quarter-Life Crisis explains in his book, “Twenty-somethings are at a greater risk of depression than any

other age group. Although one in five people will be affected by depression at some point the depression alliance estimate that as many as one in three twenty-somethings are depressed now. No wonder. No other generation has had so much choice or such great expectations thrust upon them.”

SIGNS YOU ARE HAVING A QUARTER-LIFE CRISIS

What am I even doing with my life?

What have I done up until now? What

do I do now? How do I choose a career that keeps me happy and pays the bills?

Do you find yourself asking these questions a lot? Here are some tell tale signs that you too might be going through a quarter-life crisis:

Feeling paralysed by the vast amount of choices

You are finally independent, no more studying, the world is your oyster and you can do whatever you want to.

The only problem is – what is it that

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ENTERTAINMENT FEATURE

MOVIES  500 days of Summer  Fight Club  The Graduate  Reality Bites  Kicking and Screaming  Silver Linings Playbook  Tiny Furniture  Into the Wild

BOOKS

 Getting Things Done: The Art Of Stress Free Productivity

by David Allen  Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice on Love and Life from Dear Sugar

by Cheryl Strayed  A Prayer for Owen Meany by John Irving  Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn  The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides  Perks of Being a Wallflower by Stephen Chbosky you want to do? What is it that you really want to do? What truly makes you happy? Will doing that make you happy for the rest of your life?

What if you get bored of it and drop it midway? So many choices and big life decisions leave you paralysed and incapable of making decisions.

“I would probably never be described as the brightest person in a room,” says 19-year-old Fatema Lakdawala, “but I make up for this by putting in a little extra effort than the rest. I have always loved to dance but never really saw it as a viable career option. Coming into my final year of degree college I feel like I don’t even know why I am currently pursuing a degree in mass media. I will probably end up changing my major next year and doing something completely different.”

Reminiscing about your school or college days

We all miss school; life seemed so simple back when your biggest worry was submitting assignments on time and getting your peers to like you. The difficulties you currently face make

you wish you could go back to a time when things were simple and carefree.

Having to make do with how much money you have

Even on a fixed pocket money there was always the choice of getting money to buy clothes and accessories simply by doing a few chores or buttering mom and dad. However, finding yourself without enough money to buy food in the middle of the month makes you truly understand the meaning of being broke.

Your friends seem boring

All your friends who used to be the centre of your world somehow seem less interesting and tend to be put on the back burner. Jokes that previously used to crack you up now seem immature and somewhat offensive.

You start wishing that you had just stayed home and watched a Friends rerun instead of going out on a Friday night.

You constantly compare yourself to your peers While you seem to consider staying

at home and finally finishing that difficult level on that annoying but addictive game as a good day, all your other friends seem to be getting married, writing books, going on vacations and still making a lot more money than you.

You constantly wish for everything to change

You are in your 20s and life doesn’t really seem to be going your way: a boring job, complete lack of financial stability, no hope of finding a significant other, dreams that feel like they might never come true. With the way everything’s going, for the most part, you just wish you weren’t you. You wish things were different.

You just wish you had someone else’s problems and maybe someone else’s life too.

DEALING WITH QUARTER-LIFE CRISIS Everyone has to start somewhere It turns out that your entire life you have been listening to your parents and teachers – get good scores, take part in extracurricular activities

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and participate in sports because everything is going to help you in the future. Once college is over you seem to gain complete control of your life.

This might seem a bit daunting at first, but only the only way to become good at something is to start doing it. Take the first step, even if it is a tiny one.

“I plan on starting my own business,” says Mohammed Imran Khan, a 30-year-old currently working as a driver. “I own a few trucks; I am planning on increasing their numbers and starting my own transport company by April [next year]. In an ideal situation my trucks would become synonymous with transport all over this country,” he adds with a glint of pride in his eyes. When asked about the difficulties faced in an open market all he says is, “In my life I have had my fair share of difficulties but that is not something that should stop me from undertaking a new task. All I can do is work as hard as possible and have faith that it will all work out.”

keeps your mind busy and gives you something to look forward to.

Take up a new activity

You always get a second chance

Want to become a singer? Learn a new instrument. Want to travel abroad?

Learn a new language. Only practice will help you obtain mastery over them. Remaining idle all day may lead to the mind conjuring up negative and unwanted thoughts; a new activity

You are not alone

It turns out that several people just like you in this world really don’t know what the hell they are doing either. Don’t stress if you are not interested in a career pertaining to your engineering or MBA degree.

People who were with you during your school and college years are probably feeling the same as you – yes, even the ones who seem like they have it all figured out! It is always comforting to open up and talk to people who are going through the same crisis as you.

Learn from mistakes

Everyone makes mistakes while starting out. Nobody is the best at what they do while at the start of a college course or a first job. It is only through accepting your mistakes and learning from them that you can get better at what you do.

You know how people always say that you only get one shot at greatness?

Well, they’re wrong. A person’s life cannot be measured by one single great thing done. It is a culmination of all the hard work and time he or

TV SHOWS Girls How I Met Your Mother

Two Guys,

SONGS  Remedy (I Won’t Worry) by Jason Mraz  Drunk by Ed Sheeran  Be Ok by Ingrid Michaelson  On the Radio by Regina Spektor  Unwell by Matchbox Twenty  Why Georgia by John Mayer  Like a Rolling Stone by Bob Dylan  Everybody is Free to Wear Sunscreen

A Girl And A Pizza Place Quarterlife Friends

she has invested into doing the things they love. Don’t think that your life is over if you fail to make the best of an opportunity. Think of it as an important lesson and continue to work towards your goals. If you keep trying and never give up, opportunity is sure to knock twice and in the least expected manner.

Be patient with life

Sometimes people get so caught up worrying about the future that they forget to enjoy the present. They get so caught up in making money that they forget the reason they started working in the first place. It is always important to follow your dreams and do what you love. But following your dreams does not mean quitting your job and staying at home all day trying to finally begin your music career.

It might be as simple as listening to songs a bit more carefully or taking out a little time each morning to give words to that new tune you have been humming. It might be a slight change that barely affects your life today, but in the long run it might be the seed that gives birth to a strong, magnificent tree.

People beat themselves up over what they are doing that might be a waste of time. But even the most redundant of tasks have hidden lessons. yi

QUARTER LIFE CRISIS CHECKLIST Read, read read Find solace in John

Mayer, Bob Dylan, Lana Del Rey Be awesome at one thing  Share your stories through a blog Get a degree you will be proud of Set goals; have a purpose in life Overcome failures

by Baz Luhrmann

DECEMBER 2014 Youth Incorporated 53

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RELATIONSHIPS

RIGHT OR

LEFT?

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T

he thing with the above scenario is that it worked both thirty years ago and would work thirty years in the future as well. Of course, the earlier scenario would be walking on a street, taking a random turn to the right, bumping into a person and the subsequent chats with them. Thereafter, if Lady Luck was shining on you, you could have found yourself a partner for life.

While we may adore such a scenario, the formidable odds in today’s digital age remind us exactly how unreal it can be. Of course you can take a walk on the street and take a turn towards your right, into a street full of people.

But, with your eyes glued to your mobile screen, there’s a scant chance you’re going to notice anyone, let alone meet your potential soul mate.

NOT SUCH A HAPPY SCENARIO ANYMORE, IS IT?

Wait! In the age of technology, we always have options. Getting off our smartphones might be like doing the unthinkable but finding someone interesting through it is now possible.

The future of dating seems now promising because of mobile dating apps like Tinder. Unlike WhatsApp whose recent updates (blue arrows signalling read messages) suggest it wishes to break relationships, apps like Tinder promises to make new ones.

Mind you, Tinder isn’t a pioneer in digital dating. Yahoo chat rooms and the now defunct Orkut might sound pre-historic but those places are where it all started. Nowadays everyone owns

a mobile phone and there are several services on offer where you can simply dial a number and connect with someone interesting. If used skilfully, even the ubiquitous Facebook can be quite the dream come true for cyber stalkers, especially if they’re looking for a real relationship. Let’s put it this way – dating has never been this simple and it’s definitely never been so much fun.

Tinder, like Facebook, didn’t really offer us a new product. But like Facebook, Tinder has managed to revolutionise a cluttered segment in the social media space. Swipe right for a yes, swipe left for a no. Thanks to Tinder, online dating has just gotten a lot more interesting and incredibly superficial as well!

TRUE LIES

Tinder addicts and ‘Tinderellas’ must remember that the highlight reel one portrays online can be very different from their ‘behind the scenes’. Online profiles are deceptively dissimilar from the real thing. Our Facebook and (consequently) Tinder reel lives are very different from our real life.

We choose to portray our best selves, and whilst not necessarily harmful, it can often prove to be misleading and occasionally heartbreaking. Can online dating be more a meeting of virtual facades than real people?

Henal Bhatt, a media student claims, “Online dating is frivolous. It certainly is convenient to meet a lot of new people through the various dating sites and apps, but that’s about it.”

IS IT FOR EVERYONE?

Is the online dating scenario as rosy as the ads for Shaadi.com? Or can it turn out to be as egregious as a scene from a Ram Gopal Verma horror flick? It depends on a number of things such as your notions about relationships, your own preferences, the number of modern people in your city who are into online dating and so on. All these factors jointly determine the user experience.

Take the case of AJ, a twenty-year-

old college student. She explains, “I don’t really use Tinder. Mainly because I get hit on by guys and never by women (my preference)!

Plus, I’m not comfortable with the profiling system of dating apps, which show the names, age, likes, dislikes and all. It takes away the mystery and romance of discovering another human being by yourself.”

Everyone perceives it differently.

Some see it as a pale shadow of real world dating. Others see it as a much needed advancement modern relationships could do with.

There’s also a view that online dating can help transcend barriers, especially in a country like India.

Tejas Harad, a junior copy editor expounds, “I think we need an app like this tailor-made to the Indian context. A large number of urbanites are finally enjoying the freedom to decide their own partners.

Parents also have become open to their children having premarital relationships. But still the concept of ‘dating’, which is essential before you find a right partner, is still not as prevalent in India. An app like Tinder has the potential to change that for the better, even if in a very limited way.”

CYBORG OR SOUL MATE?

Online dating can be seen as superficial or simply as a medium to connect you with people who you may be interested in and who you otherwise would never meet.

Applications like Tinder can match similar profiles, and then it depends on the matches whether they actually hit it off and end up meeting. Dating is based on the consent and connect between two people. The digital age can do little to change that. No matter what the future of dating will be, it’s abundantly clear that online dating is what the user makes of it. As with all technological advancements, it solely depends on how we use them to our advantage. yi DECEMBER 2014 Youth Incorporated 55

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25-11-2014 22:25:04

FITNESS

Would you like to lose up to 1200 calories in just an hour?

Devika Soni takes a closer look at Bokwa, the new dance fitness form that promises just that 56 Youth Incorporated DECEMBER 2014

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W

orkout to good music?

Check. Meeting new people? Check. Losing loads of extra calories? Check. We are all perpetually on the lookout for new ways to lose the extra calories we gain from gorging on all those burgers, fries and pizzas. The fitness programmes in India like pilates, yoga, aerobics, zumba and boot camp give us different experiences to achieve the same goal – keeping the weighing scale from breaking our hearts and appetites too.

You don’t need to go on rigorous diets or run kilometres every morning; just join this new comer of the fitness world and dance your way through it.

Bokwa is a new programme that is spreading across the fitness world like wildfire. This programme is based on shedding weight while drawing letters and numbers on the floor.

WHAT IS BOKWA?

Bokwa was started by LA based fitness instructor, Paul Mavi and fitness entrepreneur Johann Verheem in 2012. This workout regime was launched in the United Kingdom, which spread to the US and then took over the world. India was introduced to Bokwa by Senthil Kumaran in Chennai and was quickly adopted in Mumbai and Bangalore too.

Bokwa gets its name from Bo (boxing) and Kwa (Kwaito – South African War dance). It is a hybrid of dance steps and war moves. Bokwa is the first of its kind to use a universal sign language as its core routine, which is the same whether you’re in Poland, Taiwan, New Zealand or India.

Bokwa can have many variations and it does not have to be dance-based compared to its contemporaries.

WHAT TO EXPECT FROM A BOKWA CLASS “Bokwa participants draw letters and numbers with their feet while performing an energising and addictive cardio workout routine.

Moving together to today’s most popular music, participants of all

ages draw the Bokwa ‘L, 3, J, K’ and dozens of other steps,” says Hemma Nowrojee, a certified Bokwa Instructor. It does not have the traditional eight-count routine; instead it’s about tracing letters and numbers to pop music. Bokwa’s closest ancestor Zumba is a workout routine inspired by tango, salsa, reggeaton and flamenco; whereas Bokwa sets its moves to music with energetic quick beats, pop and everyday music.

Bokwa instructors begin the class by introducing you to the basic steps and explaining the moves. The assistant instructors would then help you keep up with the class. It is not a choreographed dance; it’s only about the moves. Once you know the moves, which are easy to remember, you can go with the flow. In the event that you’re ever bored with the same old steps you can have some fun by adding a hip move or even a shimmy.

WHO IS IT FOR?

Bokwa does not have a definite target audience. “Any and everybody can do cardio bokwa. It is a high energy cardio class, targeted at weight loss,” says reputed dance expert Aanchal Gupta, who is the director at Arts in Motion.

Everyone from a four-year-old kid to a 75-year-old can practice this routine. Whether you are a trained ballroom dancer, or are trained for any Latin dance styles of have two left feet, Bokwa is for you. Mavi perfected these cardio moves over a span of eight years by tapping into his native South African roots. A Bokwa session can help you lose over 1200 calories. A Bokwa class is a great place to meet new people. “It’s a great class for the young and for housewives also, who have monotonous schedules. This is a good way to get out, meet people and have fun, while at the same time lose weight!” says Gupta.

THE FUTURE OF BOKWA IN INDIA

ONS S A E R 5

OUL D H S U O WHY Y OK WA B K C I P

e ve to b a h t ’ n do 1. You a dancer. for w a is 2. Bokryone. eve se 1200 lo 3. You s per hour. to t e calori an work ou c 4. You ood music ends! g f ri make l l ’ u o 5. Y

“It is growing but steadily. Presently, there is a wave of zumba classes everywhere. Sooner or later people will get tired of it and boredom will set in. People are always on the lookout for new avenues of exercising.

Therefore, Bokwa has a lot of scope,” says Gupta.

About the future of Bokwa in India, Nowrojee says, “It looks bright to me as it is something different.

We do Bokwa to popular music that appeals to a global audience. The music is energising and addictive and it is like the same feel good songs you listen to in your car.

“It looks bright to me as it is something different. We do Bokwa to popular music that appeals to a global audience. The music is energising and addictive and it is like the same feel good songs you listen to in your car,” he adds.

Go ahead, give it a shot! yi DECEMBER 2014 Youth Incorporated 57

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COURTESY HOT GOSSIP ITALIA

AERO ICARUS, FLICKR

Con or catastrophe?

The most expensive multinational search effort ensued when a Boeing 777 disappeared after its take off from Kuala Lumpur International Airport on 8 March 2014. Flight MH370 with 227 passengers and 12 crew members has since been the source of several bizarre conspiracy theories. So far the investigation is pointing to the pilot as being the prime suspect. However, due to the unavailability of concrete facts, people are predicting everything from an alien abduction to Illuminati involvement.

17-year-old prodigy Our generation got the role model it deserved in the form of teenage braveheart Malala Yousafzai, a Pakistani girl who was shot by the Taliban for promoting women’s right to education. Her illuminating autobiography I am Malala and Nobel Peace Prize victory bring attention to human rights violations in the Middle East and the need for modern education.

COURTESY SOUTHBANK CENTRE

SLGCKGC, WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

ALS Invasion Bostonian Pete Frates who was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis performed the first Ice Bucket Challenge on Facebook; the act soon spread like wildfire. From laymen to presidents, pretty much everyone across different parts of the world began challenging their friends to the challenge. There have been 1.2 million videos and 2.2 million mentions on social media, and within a month the ALS Association received $41.8 million.

Purva Indulkar counts down 2014’s most controversial, popular, triumphant and shameful moments

Ladies, Clooney is taken!

A million hearts broke when Hollywood’s favourite silver fox George Clooney was snagged by accomplished barrister, activist and author Amal Alamuddin. The couple had a luxurious wedding in Venice and several top politicians, athletes and celebrities were invited. But ladies do not stress, your dream man might be taken but India’s Greek God Hrithik Roshan is newly single!

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COUNTDOWN

COURTESY GLOBAL PANORAMA

Riding the Red Planet India’s first interplanetary mission became successful when on 5 November Indian Space Research Organisation’s Mangalyan began orbiting Mars. The purpose of the mission is not only to demonstrate India’s expertise in technology and design but also to collect more information about the nature of the planet. Till date India’s ISRO is only the fourth space agency to reach Mars and the first to achieve the objective in its first attempt. The success adds another feature in India’s cap especially for achieving this feat at only 11% of the price that NASA spent on their Mars mission.

GHETTORADIO.CO.KE

A narrow victory The separatist conflict in United Kingdom reached its finale when the British Government asked the people of Scotland to choose their own fate. Ultimately people voted ‘No’ as a narrow 55.3% wanted Scotland to remain a part of the United Kingdom. This unrest is reminiscent of the religious conflict in Kashmir caused after the partition of India and Pakistan. Most of the Scots are dissatisfied with the results in the similar way in which most Muslim Kashmiris were against their home state being a part of India.

COURTESY MARS.NASA.GOV

COURTESY NOTEVENPAST.ORG

The Modi miracle Bharatiya Janata Party’s one-sided victory in the world’s largest elections baffled the international media. The surprise factor, being 64-year-old Narendra Modi managed to win over 44-year-old Rahul Gandhi when 65% population is under 35 years.

The creative use of social media and Modi’s direct communication with the people played a substantial role in getting votes. Based on speculation Modi is said to have spent `500-1,000 crore for campaigning activities and a large chunk of it was dedicated for promotion on social media.

AGENCIA BRAZIL, WIKIMEDIA COMMONS

Brazil on boil Blood was spilled on the streets of Rio de Janeiro when the residents objected use of public money to provide facilities for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. The protesters suggested using the same money to improve schools, health care and security in the impoverished parts of the city. Brazil’s humiliating 7-1 defeat to Germany only infuriated the residents and fuelled the rebellion.

Call of booty After last year’s uncomfortable twerking, this year’s hilarious trend was songs featuring buttocks. From Booty by Jennifer Lopez which showed the diva twirling seductively to Anaconda in which Nicki Minaj flaunts everything that can be legally flaunted – the trend has caught on like no other. What’s more?

Even Bollywood joined in with songs such as Shake Your Bootiya from Finding Fanny and Shake That Booty by Mika Singh.

When pens become swords The Indian literary scene saw a lot of action when three major books released this year were marred in controversy.

The Accidental Prime Minister by Sanjaya Baru, a memoir about the political career of former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was berated for being fictional. Sahara: The Untold Story by Tamal Bandyopadhyay revealed the inner workings of Subrata Roy’s company and Gas Wars: Crony Capitalism and the Ambanis by Paranjoy Guha Thakurta was condemned by India’s richest family.

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POINT OF VIEW

Nisha JamVwal walks you through the emotional rollercoaster that is life

I

f I were to describe our times, I’d say two things stand out in this era – technology and stress.

On one hand we live in zappy times of social media and holograms, but on the other side of these exciting happenings are stress, selfishness, envy and angst. Yes, I am a victim too, so trust me; you’re hearing it from the horse’s mouth. When we overlap personal pain, angst, stress at work and hormonal upheaval, have you noticed how we offload baggage onto our loved ones? That’s only one part of the problem. The other is when we allow tough times to collide with the other aspects of our life and cast a dark shadow on relationships by not separating problems. That’s when we set out into the pattern of constantly seeking reassurance.

In an example drawn from a recent stressful phase I went through personally just this year, I find in hindsight that I became oversensitive and began to question the love and care of people whom I would otherwise have known had nothing but affection for me. In one instance, my friend had not replied to some messages of mine and I had attributed all sorts of issues to our relationship

and computed some unrelated coincidences and created a mountain of tiny molehills. The reality was that she had left her phone in a cab and lost all her contacts along with her phone.

The molehills are part of life, but to collect and magnify them is to form a big mountain of problems which is detrimental to one’s equanimity and peace of mind.

THE DOWNHILL JOURNEY

Difficult times affect us and can cause us to be unreasonable and less rational when dealing with near and dear ones. I experienced this in the last year and found that especially in the more intimate relationships one can become less involved and nearly find it difficult to enjoy time together.

The obvious answer is to push oneself to objectively compartmentalise problems and not allow them to spill over onto every personal and work aspect of one’s life. It is when we are unable to objectively separate our troubles from other aspects of our life that we enter into conflict, lack of communication, withdrawal and arguments in other relationships that are unrelated to our problems.

The things that get disturbed almost always are sleep and concentration, and of course, energy levels fall to an all-time low. This makes you irritable and you turn into a worry wart. So

you see how there is just a catapulting viral effect of not dealing with problems objectively?

To occasionally vent with near and dear ones is not taboo but to overuse this privilege is something I’d feverishly advise against. Any licence when overused gets withdrawn. Another adverse effect of tough times that you don’t deal with is depression and the consequent lack of desire and libido in your relationship.

Your resentment and emotional trauma may also lead to a poor self-image, exhaustion and performance anxiety.

Weight gain is another symptom of this very real life issue. The problem, of course, is that in India mental upheavals and troubles are not viewed as tangible, while a fever or flu are treated with great concern.

The irony is that the greater of the two is the mental malaise, isn’t it?

THE ANSWERS ARE HERE

One smart way out that I’d suggest is to speak to a friend, play a sport or travel.

If none of these work, meet a counsellor who will look at your problems objectively and assess them with you, using your own intellect to solve the problems by encouraging objectivity. This, by far, is the smartest way out.

A trick that works wonderfully is leaving a work problem at the door, like hanging up your coat before entering home; it is healthy and allows the mind and nerves to regenerate so you can face the challenge in a more composed way the next day. The same goes for personal problems before entering your work place.

These compartments allow you to be more productive and get back to a problem with greater fairness, detachment and unconventionality.

Everybody’s life has problems. You can either face them head-on or fall deeper into the sad, downward spiral. Just leave your problems at the door and live in the moment. Carpe diem! yi

Read more of Nisha’s point of view at www.nishajamvwal.blogspot.in, tweet to her @nishjamvwal and write to her at nishjamwal@gmail.com

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Winteris coming!

FASHION

It’s time to get those bombers, cardigans, sweaters, jackets and coats out of the closet. Winter is almost here!

Delhi

le 8teen Sty rd a v le u Bo ` 1860

The capital city has volatile weather, extreme temperatures going from -2.2 degrees in winter to a scorching 44 degrees in the summer. Brace the cold in thick, long overcoats, beanies and scarves.

Myntra ` 3 49 9

d Limeroa ` 80 0

Mumbai Early

Myntra ` 2,200

Mango ` 7990 Junglee ` 2,700

Jabong ` 2,199

mornings and late evenings in Mumba i get chilly due to the city’s proxim ity to the sea.

Light jackets are perfect for carrying around during the day and keeping you warm when it’s windy.

Vero M oda ` 2495

Bangalore Kolkata

s STEPing a tr n y M ` 29 9 9

The weather in Bangalore rarely drops below 12 degrees; warm overcoats can therefore be uncomfortable.

Try these light jackets and longsleeved shirts for those rare numbing nights.

The temperature in this vibrant city can dip as low as 9 degrees from December to January.

Combat the grey skies with these coats in bright shades.

1 Forever2 9 3 ,1 2 `

Jabong ` 89 9

Stalk buy ` 1,2 love 99 1 Forever2 9 6 3 1 `

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Elle ` 2,999 da Vero mo ` 3 49 5

27-11-2014 15:46:47

G-SPOT the

Gadgets Gizmos Geeks

BACK TO THE FUTURE

Wearable technology is here to stay. We assess how it will change your life phones themselves. But the world has moved one step further and provided an in for a niche market of wearables.

Wearable devices include fitness trackers, smartwatches, augmented reality devices and life monitors. The possibilities that these devices offer extend to infinity and beyond.

From monitoring your heart rate to tracking the amount of time you’ve slept, to accepting voice commands and storing your life’s most special moments with the touch of a button – these are just a few things these devices can do.

ALL THIS WEAR AND TEAR Can your watch tell the time? Of

Pebble Smartwatch Technology has made things exciting for all of us. It has enabled mankind to make things ductile, malleable, foldable, touchable, and most recently, wearable.

Wearable technology (as defined

by Webopedia) is technology “that can be worn by a consumer and often includes tracking information related to health and fitness. Other wearable tech gadgets include devices that have small motion sensors to take photos and sync with your mobile devices.” The success of a gadget is dependent primarily on two factors – the features it can proudly boast of and the amount of value it adds to a consumer’s life. An ever increasing demand for mobile phones has also led to consumers demanding more accessories or add-ons for their existing devices. Bluetooth headsets, speakers, selfie sticks and power banks are just a handful in an extensive list of accessories that sell almost as well as

THE COOLEST

SMARTWATCHES IN TOWN  MOTO 360  LG G WATCH  SONY SMARTWATCH SERIES  LG G WATCH R  SAMSUNG GEAR LIVE  PEBBLE WATCH

Moto 360

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LG G Watch (Round) course it can! Does it also let you respond to texts, instant messages and emails? Or show you the latest news and provide weather information? Or play music straight into your ears or help you with GPS when you’re lost in an alley?

Watches are passé. It’s time to embrace a higher form of timekeeping; it is time to embrace the smartwatch.

Commonly known as Android Wear, smartwatches form a major part of the wearables market. A smartwatch makes life easier by providing the information you need as well as acting as an extension of your phone.

About 10 years ago, our concept of the smartwatch was the Casio Databank series of watches which included functions like a nifty little calculator.

But watches have come a long way.

To illustrate, let’s look at the Sony SmartWatch 3 SWR50 powered by Android Wear. This watch uses its intuitive technology and features a ‘life logging’ experience by capturing user data such as sleep time, walking distances and calories burnt, and also fine tunes to your daily routine by providing commuting updates such as traffic alerts and arrival of the next train – not to mention saving your life by reminding you of your anniversary or your girlfriend’s birthday.

Take the Moto 360 smartwatch for example too. Motorola was the first company to come out with a classic round watch face. A slick body, round face and wireless charging, the Moto 360 was the most anticipated

LG G Watch Android Wear watch for a long while.

It was also perhaps the only one of the Android Wear bunch that was a hit with both the guys and the ladies.

While most watches run on Android Wear, some, such as the Pebble Watch have their own proprietary software to provide unique functions such as daylight reading and at glance notifications.

NEXT LEVEL REALITY: AUGMENTED In early 2013, the world was taken by storm by the possibility of owning a mass produced ubiquitous computer that could be worn like a pair of sunglasses. We are talking, of course,

of Google Glass.

Google Glass was the first step (or rather, giant leap) taken with OHMD (optical head mounted display) technology that allowed users to quite literally see the world with a different perspective. Google Glass was first opened to developers in 2013 for testing and reporting purposes.

Now Google has announced that the Glass would become available to the public in early 2015, with the option of fitting prescription lenses.

What makes Google Glass so alluring? It uses augmented reality technology, meaning it superimposes a virtual computer-generated image over what your eyes are actually looking at. For example, if you’re stuck in traffic and request for maps on your Google Glass, a translucent map to your destination will be projected in front of your eyes over your view of the traffic. The possibilities with this device, therefore, are endless. Every real life situation could be enhanced with some virtual input using this device. And while Google Glass has been designed with many in-built features to make this possible, it still relies on third-party apps to provide extended features and functionality, not unlike the typical smartphone.

The next stage of evolution for the OHMD is the VRD (virtual retinal display) technology, currently being developed and tested in product form as Avegant Glyph. This gadget seems straight out of a Matrix movie; the headset beams the display directly to your retina for some really snazzy virtual 3D computing.

The stage is set for wearables to become as indispensable to us as our mobile phones. Watch this space for more!

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APPS

UPGRADE YOUR WATCH

of the

MONTH

If you’re planning on investing in a wearable device soon or if you already own one, here are some of the coolest apps for Android Wear that you absolutely must download

FIND MY PHONE Ever suffered a mini heart attack while hunting for your phone and running late?

Simply tap on the wearable device screen and it will sound your Android phone’s alarm. It will even notify you when the wearable is disconnected from the phone.

Now you don’t have to worry about losing your phone in a cab or a bar.

Price: FREE

LOOK BEHIND

STRAVA RUNNING AND CYCLING GPS

You can talk to your watch using voice commands and do all the spying just like in a James Bond flick. Leave your phone by the window and hide under the covers to spy on someone.

You can even keep a watch on your kids using that watch. If used wisely, you could use this app to be at two places at the same time. It works best with Samsung Gear Live and LG G Watch. Android 4.3 or above is recommended.

Price: `60.77

This app is perfect for your health and fitness. It tracks your runs and rides and lets you follow routes you’ve created. It gives you stats like distance covered, your speed and calories burned. It also keeps an eye on your heart rate. Additionally, it gives you monthly challenges and a chance to compete with your friends.

Price: FREE

WEARABLE RECORDER

PANIC Your wearable device can now protect you with this app. When you are out and need urgent help, type out your message or use voice control and Panic will send the message to your emergency contacts. You don’t have to worry about being alone at odd hours anymore; help is just a tap away. Something tells us our neighbourhoods will be a whole lot safer with this app on our wearables.

Price: `70.96

Use this app on your device to record and instantly share long lectures, or take minutes of any meeting. Journalists can use this to discreetly record conversations.

It’s useful for the visually impaired too.

Best suited for a Pebble smartwatch and a Moga Game Controller.

Price: FREE

TIC TAC TOE Bored? Play tic tac toe against your device.

You can choose your difficulty level and use the two-player mode to play with a friend. Whether you’re in the train, a boring meeting or a lecture, while away the time with this classic game of crosses and knots. Don’t doodle in your book anymore, try this app and save some paper. Go green and do it in style on your smartwach.

Price: FREE

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2/21/2014 25-09-20148:49:03 20:43:50 PM

iMHO BEST OF

M o v i e s

/

T V

/

M u s i c

/

B o o k s

COMICS WE WISH WERE MADE INTO TV SHOWS It’s all there already – blow-by-blow action, character sketches and readymade dialogues. All these comics now need are the magic of the camera and real actors PREACHER

THE INVISIBLES

What: A psychedelic treat with anarchist and existentialist undertones, it’s about The Invisible College, a secret society fighting alien gods and their oppression.

Time travel, sex, meditation, physical violence and drug use are some of the recurring themes of the volumes.

Why: A change from the cliché special power teams, this one consists of a transgender, a former NYPD member, a telepath and a hooligan.

Stopping this metaphysical evolution from blasting into entirety is something we want to see happen.

What: Jesse, a preacher, possessed by Genesis who is an infant born of the coupling of an angel and a demon. Since it’s composed of goodness and evil, it has enough power to rival God himself. Jesse is on a hunt for God, who disappeared from Heaven as soon as Genesis was born.

Why: With a company of ex-girlfriend and vampire, sacred and profane issues alike, Jesse’s journey sounds like an adrenaline-pumping experience we want to witness.

TRANSMETROPOLITAN

What: The story of journalist Spider Jerusalem and his group of assistants, with potent tangents of sex and atheism, on an aim to end social injustice and political corruption.

Why: This foul-mouthed, drug addicted misanthrope with strong ideals will make an interesting protagonist. The exploits and general nastiness would be a fun TV show. Also, it has sentient technology.

PROMETHEA

DAYTRIPPER

What: Dominguez, an obituary writer – each chapter starting with a random point in his life and ending with his death. He’s alive again in the next chapter with no memory of him dying.

Why: It makes us think about the spontaneity of death and tragedy and how it can all end in a wink.

The emotional roller coaster that it is, it’s a masterpiece among comic magic realism. Since a picture speaks a thousand words, this one should definitely become one.

What: A college student, Sophie Bangs, offers her body to Promethea, a 5th century Hellenistic Egyptian. Her final goal is to end the world.

Why: An ongoing transit from the real world to the immaterial, it’s an enchanting back and forth. A demigod spreading creativity throughout the realm, a fun mix of magic and Alan Moore’s imagination.

FABLES

What: Famous fairy tale and fable characters coming to life, living in the modern world either peacefully at Fabletown or at The Farm, if they can’t blend in to human society.

Why: It may seem like a fairly laborious idea but it entertains thoughts that force you to see it as more than just universe swapping. Although there is action and adventure, we also get a perspective into politics and a parallel universe trying to tackle government. It will make you think.

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Christmas CAROL COVERS

Listen to the oldie-goldies of Christmas as rendered by the legends of pop music

JINGLE BELL ROCK

I SAW MOMMY KISSING SANTA CLAUS

Composed by Joseph Carleton Beal and James Ross Boothe, this song first became popular when it was released

by Bobby Helm in 1958. The title of the songs and a few of its lyrics are a parody of the classic carol, Jingle Bells.

Popular covers: Mean Girls, Hilary Duff, Glee Our favourite: Kenny G

This Christmas song was written by British songwriter Tommie Conner. It was originally recorded by 13-year-old Jimmy Boyd and was used by stores to promote Christmas cards. It was condemned by the Roman Church on grounds of kissing.

Popular covers: Bobby Sherman, Beverly Sisters, The Cheetah Girls Our favourite: The Jackson 5

LAST CHRISTMAS

A song by the British pop duo Wham! this song was released in 1984. It was originally written by George Michael and has been covered by various artists ever since.

Popular covers: Whigfield, Ashley Tisdale, Crazy Frog Our favourite: Billie Piper

SANTA CLAUS IS COMING TO TOWN

This song became an instant hit after it was first sung on Eddie Cantor’s radio show in 1934. It was written by John Frederick Coots and Haven Gillespie.

This song hit a mark of 100,000 sheet music copies and sold more than 30,000 records within 24 hours.

Popular covers: Bruce Springsteen, Faith Hill, Miley Cyrus Our favourite: Frank Sinatra

SILENT NIGHT

SANTA BABY

Written by Joan Javits and Philip Springer in 1953, this Christmas song was originally recorded by Eartha Kitt with Henri RenĂŠ in his orchestra in the same year. It takes a look at a Christmas list made by women who want extravagant gifts like yachts and convertibles.

Popular covers: Madonna, Shakira, Marilyn Monroe Our favourite: Taylor Swift

This Christmas carol was composed in 1818 by Franz Xaver Gruber and Joseph Mohr in a town called Oberndorf bei Salzburg, Austria.

It was performed on Christmas Eve the same year at St. Nicholas Parish Church in Oberndorf. UNESCO declared it as an intangible cultural heritage in 2011.

Popular covers: Yolanda Adams, Sixpence None the Richer, Aly and AJ Our favourite: Third Day

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BEST OF SPIELBERG

Neither the man nor any of his movies need any sort of introduction. With Academy Awards and movies breaking box office records, his Hollywood career has been one helluva ride. With movies ranging from themes of science fiction to racism to the holocaust, he covers everything and his versatility as a director is proof of truly brilliant vision. With his 68th birthday this December, we look at some of his bests JAWS The story of a killer shark terrorising an island surpassed records and became the highest grossing film of its time.

Although based on a novel, with three sequels to its credit, none were as successful as this 1975 blockbuster.

E.T. THE EXTRA TERRESTRIAL The concept for this one was found in the imaginary friend Spielberg had after his parents’ divorce. It became the highest grossing film in 1982, even surpassing Star Wars. It has also been titled as the Greatest Science Fiction Film Ever Made

by Rotten Tomatoes. A story about the love of friendship, the celebration of this wonder never stops, with re-releases in 1985 and 2002.

SCHINDLER’S LIST A movie about a German, Oskar Schindler, member of the Nazi party, hero of the Jews that’s ripe with controversies about the nudity and profanity. Often listed as one of the best movies of all time, it won seven Academy Awards, seven BAFTA awards and many others; it’s Spielberg’s brilliance, a part of his legacy, his strength in the face of all the opposition and trouble.

THE COLOR PURPLE A shift from the thematic style Spielberg had become famed for, The Color Purple starring Oprah Winfrey and Whoopi Goldberg in their film debuts is based on the Pulitzer Prize-winning novel of the same name. Exploring the growth and endurance of Celie Harris, it analyses and brings to the forefront problems faced by the African-American community of the early 20th century.

JURASSIC PARK Spielberg just seems to be holding on tight to the ‘Highest Grossing Film’ torch with every new creation of his. The E.T. record was broken only ten years later with his dinosaurs. Recognised for its excellent computer imagery in 1993, Spielberg even funded DTS Digital Entertainment which is channels of audio technologies, for surround sound and believable animal impersonations.

INDIANA JONES The franchise of the famed whip yielding archaeologist, these Harrison Ford starrers were the action-packed directions of Spielberg. With the franchise expanding into novels, video games and merchandise, it’s a hefty feather in Spielberg’s fedora.

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OLIVIER LAFONT IN CONVERSATION WITH NITISH SHAH ABOUT HIS LATEST BOOK Opening with a blizzard in the present day summer of Mumbai, Saam is the only demigod on Earth.

In an attempt to save the universe from his father Shiva’s wrath and eventual destruction, Saam has to walk into the world of war and destruction, a world he thought he had turned his back upon. Forced to face his family and relive the past, it’s a journey full of bloodshed and betrayal. In a thrilling combination of violence, adventure, mythology and emotion Does India still like mythology related books?

I hope so. The mythology genre is something I’ve always loved. For me it came from my father; he’s a French historian who specialises in the subcontinent so he was here in India for 25 years and had a love of mythology which came to me. In terms of India’s love for mythology I think it’s still there; it’s something that’s evolving today, we’re seeing it manifest in many different media like in film, on TV, in cartoons and games.

Have you always been interested in writing a book?

Always, from a very young age it was something I knew I wanted to do.

No, this is not it I’ve always wanted to write, it’s always been a part of my life. I read a lot and I hope to be able to write many more books. I have so many ideas in my mind about things I want to do in an Indian setting, in a foreign setting, sci-fi, fantasy – even regular fiction or non-fiction there’s just so much that I want to write.

Did you ever face writers block while working on this?

I’ve never faced writer’s block; it’s a

funny thing because I’m aware of what it is and intellectually I’m aware of it but I’ve never actually experienced it and I don’t know why. It just flows, I’ve never gotten locked. I’ve gotten to places where things weren’t exactly working but I’m able to find a solution. I cut something and I’m able to find a way but it all kind of happens organically, so I’ve never been blocked in the way that other people have seemed to describe writers block.

You think there’s been a decline in reading today?

Yeah, I don’t think it’s for any dearth of there being stuff to read. I think everyone’s interests are fine tuning and depending on how media evolves. But I think writing is here to stay.

Which writers inspire you?

I like George R. R. Martin who has written Game of Thrones. Among other authors I recently read Mark Lawrence who has written Prince of Fools, King of Fools and Emperor of Fools – a trilogy. Those were pretty amazing; it’s been a long time since I’ve read an author who has consistently surprised me.

I would also suggest the series of

books that changed my life when I was very young – a series of books by an American author called Lloyd Alexander, The Chronicles of Prydain.

It’s such a beautiful story; for me as a young person that was absolutely formative.

Is there anything you would like to tell our readers?

I just hope that whoever reads the book will enjoy it because for me it was so much fun to write it, read it and experience it. When I write I’m sort of enacting the story in my mind; that’s how the two play against each other. When I’m acting, I’m also constructing the scene as a writer, so when I was writing it was like having my own IMAX 3D movie in my head, all of which is my creation and it’s pretty fantastic.

I was actually trying to write this book as a screenplay. And then I moved to Mumbai to write another film for a director and the screenplay went into the drawer for a couple of years, and then I got some time to write again and then it turned into a novel.

Read the entire interview at www.youthincmag.com

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_AFTER DARK

hangout  

PLACES AND EVENTS FOR THE MONTH

3 WISE MONKEYS, MUMBAI

With a mix of raw dark wood and art, this is a warm and welcoming place to be at.

VIBE: Full wall paintings, dark wooden interiors, dim lights, pool table and a beautifully highlighted bar, 3 Wise Monkeys has something for everyone.

MUSIC: The music here might probably be considered too loud for most ears, so it is definitely not compatible with good conversation. But it is a rock and alternate music fan’s dream.

BITES N BOOZE: ‘Beer Globes’ are their specialty, affordable and perfect to share with your group of friends; you get the picture. The Chicken Lollipop has a cinching Schezwan flavour and the tandoori mushrooms are timeless favourites of the diners. The mocktails are also a treat for every non-alcoholic out there.

FAB OR DRAB: 3 Wise Monkeys is definitely worth a shot. The ambience coupled with the great music makes for a cozy and comfortable evening.

BEST NIGHT: Sunday for its Rock Karaoke Night.

The Unicontental, 3rd Road, off SV Road, Khar West, Mumbai –Aarushi Agrawal

000

`1 n per perso

BIG YELLOW DOOR, DELHI

0 `30erson

per p

A super fun café, favourite among students for its affordable prices. Fancy jar lamps hanging from the ceiling, dark walls and a huge log bookshelf welcome you in.

CUISINE: Italian and American FOOD AND DRINK: Cheesy French Fries, Cheesy Nachos Mexicana and Garlic Toast make great starters. Peppy Corn Salad and Weight Watcher’s Delight would pacify the health enthusiasts. There is a wide variety of beverages from hot teas and coffees to cold shakes and flavoured ice cream sodas. Choose between pizzas, pastas, wraps and burgers for the main course. Do try their brownie, mud cake and apple pie.

OVERALL: It is affordable with an elegant, out of the box ambience and a very friendly staff.

Good music and young people are bonuses.

This big yellow door is one you want to walk through!

H 8, Opposite Venkateswara College, Satyaniketan, New Delhi –Devika Soni

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BLUE AND BEYOND, KOLKATA

A change from the drab bars and dull meals, this rooftop restaurant offers a view of Kolkata in its entirety; drinks made to perfection, delicious food and a live violin in the background.

CUISINE: Continental, North Indian, Chinese FOOD AND DRINK: Start with Makai Sheek Kabab, Stuffed Foccacia, Teriyaki Chicken or the Dewangi Platter.

The Khawsueys are a special delight in vegetarian and chicken varieties. And of course, paneer, fish, prawn, biryanis and all the Indian food you could want are here too. Splits, tarts and fudges are only some of the dessert options. The variety of alcohol in the form of cocktails, hard drinks, beers, offered in bottles and glass, will make your mind boggle with indecision.

OVERALL: Along with an excellent meal, you will also have an enchanting time. The serene atmosphere and windy surrounding with the sky on top make for a promising time.

Hotel Lindsay, 8A & 8B, Lindsay Street, New Market Area, Kolkata –Trishann Henriques

EVENTS THIS MONTH

`700

n per perso

COMIC CON, MUMBAI

MUMBAI WOMEN’S INTERNATIONAL FILM FESTIVAL

Mumbai – 19 to 21 December

Mumbai – 6 to 13 December

The annual film and comic convention is back with stalls, panels and Cosplay.

From Vader to Katniss, you can meet them all. And more importantly, Mark Gatiss, co-creator and writer of Sherlock and Doctor Who will be there!

Geek fans, unite.

Showcasing movies by women all over the world, this festival divides movies into different categories to help you choose what to watch. There is also open air cinema and a music concert.

ROYAL SHAKESPEARE COMPANY Henry IV and V by Shakespeare – watch it for Falstaff’s wit, David Tennant’s performance and the Company’s direction.

There is no reason big enough for any drama enthusiast to miss these screenings.

Hyderbad, Bangalore, Mumbai, Nagpur, Delhi – 7 & 13 December (I), 14 & 27 December (II) DECEMBER 2014 Youth Incorporated 73

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GRAFFITI

Trends Of The Month

Say no to man-shaming

A lady from NYC recently took to the streets with a GoPro camera which recorded every sleazy comment uttered by men walking past her. Needless to say, the move was very well received here in India. So far two women have attempted the same stunt in obvious attempts to catch men letching or passing lewd comments.

The videos have so far received thousands of views and shares all in the name of shaming men. Question... had an attractive guy ‘looked’ at these same women, would the reaction be the same?

Bravo, Delhi Metro!

Proud moment for India! In a recent survey, the Delhi metro was ranked second out of 18 metro systems worldwide. The list included international systems like the London metro, Metro de Madrid, etc.

Let’s hope the Mumbai metro makes this list in the near future.

Swachh Internet?

Controversy and the BJP government go hand in hand.

After starting the Swachh Bharat campaign, the Modiled government has taken on the responsibility of banning pornographic websites because it is against Indian culture. Jeans, mobiles, the LGBT community and now porn – we wonder what next is ‘against’ Indian culture, Modiji?

Kim K on Paper Magazine

Kim Kardashian left nothing to the imagination yet again.

The reality star recently bared all on the cover of Paper Magazine; the intention, to break the internet. The graphic images have since its release created quite a stir in the form of memes and recreations. Fans of memes we at Youth Inc are, this is one that we LOL’d at the most – Kim’s butt as Homer Simpson’s mouth.

By Lavanya Karthik

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