Margarita with a Straw

Speechless with tears that won't stop and a huge lump in my throat that refused to subside. I waited till the audience emptied the theater and I could handle my weak knees, swollen eyes and empty feeling to carry myself out. Even then, I was not very comfortable.

We never make it to movies on time, but today was different. I knew that I could not miss the titles to the movie and the introduction scenes, because I was there to explore and watch Laila.
I settle into my seat conscious that my husband is still to join me but as the screen darkens and I see Laila peeking out of the Metador curiously... I forget everything else.
Laila is curious & brave. She has a resolve which is unspoken but firm. She is beautiful outside and inside. As most specially abled, she sees beyond the obvious,hears what we can't and feels more than we can understand.

Her laugh is infectious, her smile filled with a happiness from somewhere deep inside her & we can't see it. Her eyes are an endless galaxy of emotions, experiences and unspoken words that we can not grasp in this peak into her life.
She clearly lives "Stop Judging, Start Living" in the movie.

The oddest feeling within is a strong cord that connected me to her increasingly through the movie. I was shocked by her boldness to explore the internet to satisfy her sexual desires but admired her resolve to do so within the understanding that she had an Indian family where these topics are not open for discussion.

I salute her honesty and her commitment to pursue this honesty till the end of the movie. It got her into awkward moments with "Aai" many times. It embarrassed her in the US with her writer friend when she had to be helped to use the bathroom. And at the peak, her pursuit hurts Khanum permanently. Through her battle to face the truth, she also shocks "Aai" into many realities about her daughter. Each of these moments remind us that beyond this limited body is a complete human being, a young girl into a lady.

As is with most Indian families, a lot is unsaid. Her moments without words with her father & brother- celebrating her travel to the US or the heartbreaking reality of her mother's failing health are just brilliant & real examples of how Indian families deal with emotions. 

Laila's life is a real depiction. It has not false imaginary and Bollywood commercial moments that would alter it's essence. Simple moments like a dinner in silence, or a fight with her mother without words, a confession which turns into a joke because her mother cannot interpret a common slang word from the west, her staring at her mother's dressing table, smelling her mothers clothes, warming her mom's feet in the hospital, playing her mother's voice during her final rites, leaving the college to listen to her crush's song.... make this film- not a film but a peek into the life of Laila. Her real life. 

Nothing seems to stop her from her journey to understand herself, accept all about herself and be honest to others about herself. And this I believe is the most beautiful part of the movie. Laila is like a tree that wishes to bloom braving all seasons with roots firmly planted in earth & branches looking towards the endless sky.

Laila- she is what every woman is. Resilient, loving & honest. 

Thank you Shonali Bose Shonali Bose Nilesh Maniyar for bringing to life on screen a lot of what lies within me.

Kalki- you are just brilliant. Revathy- par excellence.

Marketing Myths

Marketing is still a synonym of Sales in many regions of India, and I happen to be living in one.

Often, people ask me what I do as a professional & my simplest answer is "Marketing Consultancy". Here, again as simple as that, but, totally misunderstood.

So, for the amateurs & the toddlers, here's what Marketing actually is ( & this is my definition catering to this section of people).

Marketing is when you define what your business is- product, price, place & then select a 'personality' which you create through an identity represented by a logo/ brand name.This is promoted through the various traditional & new tools of marketing. The promotion process uses advertising, marketing, public relations as avenues to publicize your brand. Common traditional tools and developing tools are used to market your brand. 

A compressed version of just how important marketing is to a person, business, organisation - any entity that has a personality. 

Now that marketing is NOT sales, it is important to appreciate the agenda of marketing. The agenda is simple-to increase the visibility, credibility & generate business opportunities (sales).

Most often, the marketing fraternity faces the big question of being a cost center & not a revenue center for businesses. And so, more often, marketing is not a necessary component of management teams. 

Often, marketing is 'no big deal' , 'not a science', ' a bunch of posters and a Facebook Page'. If it was so simple, why would there be a global crunch of effective marketeers?

In a border-less world & opportunities beyond where the eye can see, any person/ business / organization needs a marketing input to increase productivity of the business. 

Marketing:

1. identifies a personality in the brand
2. selects the right audience to target- few stones many sparrows
3. amplifies the brands presence
4. effectively communicates the brands personality
5. expands business opportunities 

Selecting a good marketeer is crucial to the success of your brand.

A marketeer is a deadly concoction of a sales person, a communication specialist, and a creative mind.

As a sales person, a marketeer can translate your product's features into a desired solution. A communication specialist can effectively create a strategy that distinguishes your brand from competition. And the creative mind is able to aesthetically portray your brand with special inputs from sales & communication.

This activity requires an alert mind, strong ideas & commitment to take ownership of the brand. 

So, if you have been shying from sourcing a marketeer, this should be reason enough!