Confessions of a Tall Indian Woman

    In today's world t his almost seems outdated and binary in its approach now. We cannot stereotype Mars or Venus either. Though this caption caught my attention for an entire different reason. In our strength training plan there are heavy days, medium days and light days . The weight choices you chose with the rep range defines these. So there are days you are asked to work with your maximum weight, days when you go one level lighter and days when it is just possibly bare minimum. I am writing this from a personal experience and please do not blame me for stereotyping. There are exceptions to every rule and you can be a women from mars or a man from Venus or you don't even need a planet. You get the drift.  This pattern I am describing below, has been almost consistent . Simple training plan of t ake your max weight/one less and grind and do reps. My immediate thought was go lighter and do the reps and not grind. The reason is not to make this an easy workout, it is ...

  The most common adage you hear when you say Chennai is "Madras is an emotion". The metamorphosis of Madras and it's old world charm to the current Chennai of CSK fame is something that only hard-core Chennaites or if you must Madrasis understand. Growing up in the area Mylapore (South Chennai) that is synonymous with filter coffee, temples, classical music and dance scene , I have always had a part of this city in me.  Something as simple as the Vinayagar Chaturthi celebrations in the Warren road pillayar kovil formed the basis of many friendships and cultural exchanges in my life. While the beach made for a simple outing on Sunday evenings with family where the sand meets the sea and the cool breeze drowns away your worries.  The drive in woodlands introduced me to the Bhel puri , Channa Batura and butter naan  that did  tease the palette from it's traditional south indian fare. It's hard to imagine my childhood without the FDFS( First Day First Show) adrenal...

I have been diligent on my fitness journey for the last 10 years and been chipping away one step at a time. Of course, I started with certain goals in mind and modified them as I went along and don’t worry, I am not talking about efforts equal results or consistency leads to success always and whatever else you all read. All these things matter and of course no undermining anything but one thing that has eluded me is the PUSH UP. Any sports movie or any remote fitness scene on social media will involve the lead/influencer doing push ups and it may move to one hand pushup and with some crescendo music you will definitely get up and cheer and secretly maybe think, someday will get there. Ok I did think that. Many times I have started on this learning and doing the push up journey, and did the required work of moving from plank time to wall push to elevated push up. It almost seems like the circle of life, as over many years, I will be determined to do this start on this track for a month...

  I grew up reading Enid Blyton books and the mysteries in the famous five and secret seven books fascinated me. However there are still current work mysteries that still baffle me. Read on for more clarity.   The last couple of years has been an employee market with hiring demand skyrocketing across certain skill sets  and the unprecedented nature of the same has created challenging situations for the talent acquisition team. Recruiters surely would have faced at least one or more situation below in their day to day operations and this is just a wake up call for us to mitigate these situations. Have you encountered any of these below mysteries? Add on in the comments section…   The case of the missing candidate This is the most popular category for recruiters. After careful selection and negotiation you offer and hope the candidate shows up. Thrown in pre joiner gifts , connects and any strategies you can think of but on the day of joining you will not fi...

 Time loop is a fictional concept is when you experience certain events over the time period and there's hope to break out of that cycle of repetition. If you saw the latest Tamil movie Maanadu  or Tenet or Groundhog day you will get the drift. Ok even if you haven't seen it but read on. The New year is always special as there is a certain sense of positivity and hope that heralds the new year. A lot of anticipation that you can start over as a clean slate if you want to and there's a general euphoria around it.  2020 was a super starter and it dawned bright with Covid 19 as a household name. By March, N95 masks sanitizer social distancing lockdown quarrantine were all household terms. Then after the months that passed it was time for New Year 2021. There were talks of a delta variant but well the same thing repeats itself like the time loop and in a few months the second wave of sorts hits everyone. While the year progressed you weigh in options and you realise it's al...

I have attended courses at work where we have delved deep into situations that require Change Management and various scenarios and spoken at length on what works and doesn't. While in theory this works beautifully and we can think calm and even out of the box in reality it's a tough ask. This morning’s events as simple as it seems when I started writing it had so many life lessons to offer. After eighteen plus months of being at home forgetting how the school even looked the excitement was palpable when finally the schools decided to reopen for all grades in a staggered manner. We heard of roll number bifurcation and marked calenders on all days the kids will be in school.The enthusiasm and energy that followed in getting things ready almost made me nostalgic. The kids had meticulous planned every thing including the once upon a time bought lunch boxes and water bottles that I had even forgot existed. The day arrives and of course kids are ready ahead of time. Not surprising a...

  As a Talent Acquisition Leader there is a constant battle everyday in the war for talent. Your arms and ammunition seem to disappear in the current Tech market where sometimes even if you use the Brahmastra you still don't stand a chance. If you are in this field the last few months has been a crazy roller coaster ride. Everyday throws up new challenges and I remember remarking one day" This haggling needs to stop". While we keep looking for innovative ways to predict human behavior , I do think the onus needs to be shared with the candidates. Of course the below is a lighter take and purely for fun , though am curious if  you are a candidate do you identify with any of these categories? Even if you don't it's ok because I am pretty convinced I have met them all.  Shopaholics One offer isn’t enough for you. You keep shopping till you drop and the offers keep piling on till you can’t keep track. If you aren’t planning to use that offer, kindly tell the shopkeeper...

  I have lost track of time since Covid 19 took over and shifted our lives from its normalcy. I am talking from a position of privilege and this post may resonate with you if you look at it from that angle only. It is  what I experience and I thought its time I write about this topic close to my heart. I cant fathom what the frontline workers are going through and respect is too small a word for the medical community and this post isn’t about that. I don't think I can do justice to their service which is limitless. To me, the below are the unsung warriors of Covid 19..........   Local grocery store to the roadside vegetable vendor      Irrespective of their supply chain issues you see them working with a smile to deliver food and ensure your needs are met. The roadside/door to door vegetable vendors have started using speakers now so we can hear and go buy what we need. OF course the online versions of these stores have been a huge support system ...

Isn’t this the most heard phrase across all of 2020 and now? Since the pandemic set in, our most often used terms are Be Positive and Stay safe. Though soon this morphed into are you positive?  This is about actually being positive for the Covid 19 test. One of those few results where you want to see negative but the bold red positive throws you off balance. I remember refreshing the page and checking the results knowing 100 percent it will be positive. Not to mention you would have already isolated /self quarantined with any little symptoms so the test is still a formality to confirm your doubts.  Of course if you are a part of a nuclear family you need to ensure you all are tested just to rule out possibilities. In our case my husband and I tested positive and the rest of the household din’t. There is always a silver lining. This blog is to capture random musings and thoughts that kept us going for 14 days. I promise to keep it on the lighter side.. 1. One of the most often ...

Confused with the title? Let me take a step back and narrate a story which is familiar to most of us.    The Devas formed an alliance with the Asuras to jointly churn the ocean for the  nectar of immortality  and to share it among themselves.   Now in the modern hiring scenario substitute nectar with candidates who the prospective organizations want and the current employers want to retain. I am not calling out who is the deva and the asura here as its purely relative 😊 The only difference is there isn’t an alliance between the two, but in retrospect this can prove to be useful in getting this nectar faster.  This  elusive candidate or nectar is  being searched by prospective employers and on the other hand being retained by the current employer. Who wins in this modern day scene?   The gods and demons gathered on the shores of the milky ocean and performed Vedic rituals to ensure their success. They made offerings into a sac...

    2020 was a disruptive year. Whether you wanted to or not, you were forced to make changes and rapidly while you were at it. The interesting part is between March to May of 2020 most organizations adapted to the new ways of working, finding a middle ground and eventually embracing this change. When you do not have a choice, you adapt faster maybe? I am talking only  across most Information technology business as I do have first hand experience in this. Call it from a place of privilege if you want. This was the year, I moved jobs and decided to join an organization virtually . The interview process/ joining all happened remotely and my laptop was promptly delivered a day before my joining. As I jokingly said, the only change is I will switch laptops and login with a different ID on my first day.  But on a  serious note this is more than what meets the eye. As my role involves doing this everyday and hiring people into an organization in the virtual way, a...

I should have written this a  while back. I contemplated and put it on back burner thinking I am not that experienced to write. In retrospect it's all in the journey so why not? One of the few things am passionate about is strength training. Eight years back if someone had asked me if I know what it means I would have said huh what? Currently I have come to realise that this journey has taught me more as an individual and I have just not paused to take it in. Few simple life lessons that have stuck with me ... Reality Check: EGO doesn’t work  We have all heard it but when you start knowing zilch your ego is in place. Its not what you thought you were and your perceived sense of self but it is what it is. Funnily you cannot have an exaggerated version of self as you can see what you can do. That’s the interesting part when you thought you are super fit(whatever the definition of fit maybe) and you actually had to run 2 kms or walk up five floors you will feel it. Ego left at th...

  Have you seen the infamous show on Netflix on India Matchmaking? While there were more memes and jokes on the frivolous nature of the show and the trivialization of the whole marriage concept, it did make the necessary noise and draw our attention to certain norms in arranged marriage construct. Nope, this post isn’t about that.     I am just drawing an interesting parallel in hiring with the Indian Matchmaking Scene...   The wooing phase   There is an urgent need to hire X with a certain skill set. The hiring manager has a generic overview of what he/she has in their mind. It is loosely translated to a job description or role profile to help us identify the right match. Of course like your tall dark handsome or fair, good-looking and homely  criteria in finding a groom/bride  the close equivalent is great communication skills, attitude and cultural fit. You can compromise on anything but not this.  The recruiter tries to find the ...

Till about March if someone asked me " What's your plan?"  My answer probably would have  been" I think having no plan is a good plan. Just wanna be and chill. Too many things happening right now and getting out again seems overrated". Then life as we know changed. Heading out for a coffee admist daily work is a luxury you can't afford. Grocery shopping is carefully planned and meeting people seemed a distant dream. While this happened, and google reminded you of previous trips and outings you couldn't help but wonder when things will go back to being  normal. Whatever this normal will be. That's the beauty of conditioning your mind over something for months. There are infinite theories on what's the norm during these times and what is the standard protocol to follow.  If there is one thing I am still learning after talking to a lot of my friends and family it is there is absolutely no right and wrong in this. Now before you all jump ...

Disclaimer: I am not an advocate for feminism or women's rights and this post is only a lighter take on Tamil Cinema's treatment of women characters. The definition of feminism is quite clear and if I may quote" The advocacy of women's rights on the ground of the equality of the sexes". While this has been misconstrued in so many ways and there is always a false sense of ownership on this subject, my pet peeve is how Tamil movies in general assume they can advocate this in a most bizarre fashion. This post is just my top of my mind recall on few sterotypes of women in Tamil cinema . I had written on corporate stereotyping in movies and this forms a close second in terms of how women are  portrayed in Tamil movies.  Let's play a game of guess who? Long kadhi kurtas or torn jeans with tattoos and nose ring/maybe tongue pierced and most probably riding a bike and sporting a dark almost black lipstick. In most tamil movies, this will be a women  in a media agen...