Archive for February, 2009

RIL-RPL proposed merger: Open letter to Mukesh Ambani

Posted: February 28, 2009 in Uncategorized
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My friend, Mehul makes some very valid points, in his open letter to Mukesh Ambani, with regards to the proposed merger of RIL and RPL. I hope that the sentiment reaches the decision makers in the Reliance group. With Mehul’s permission, I am reproducing his letter, verbatim, as under:

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Shri Mukesh Ambani,
This refers to your announcement of proposed merger of RIL and RPL.
While i am sure the economies of scale created will be of enormous value to shareholders in the long run,
am voicing few concerns on the same for shareholders of RPL.
1)Most of your “loyal” shareholders purchased shares of RPL on the day of listing (11-May-2006) around average price of Rs.87
2)They have been holding onto these shares for almost three years without any dividend or other return
3)Their cost including three years interest (@15%) works out to around Rs.133.
(against present market price of Rs.75 approx.)
4)At present swap ratio of shares based on market value they would receive approx 1 share of RIL for every 17 shares held.
5)Would request you to consider a swap ratio favourable to RPL shareholders (say 1 : 13)
6)This would benefit you in several ways as below
(i) earn the respect of RPL shareholders (who feel cheated that you sold 5% RPL stake in the market at above Rs.220)
(ii) ensure at least some return to RPL shareholders who held on waiting for the refinery to begin
(iii) send a message to the investor public that you care about your shareholders
(they presently believe the merger is just a ruse to reduce the equity of RPL from 4500 crores to about 250 crores wherein
again if you extinguish your 70% holding and buy back Chevrons 5% you would have to service an equity of only Rs.70 crores)
What would this cost you – ABSOLUTELY NOTHING
Lets say that all RPL capital gets converted into RIL capital at a swap ratio of 1 : 13
The additional equity created would be approx. Rs. 350 crores.
Of this you already own 70% in RIL which can be extinguished.
Net additional equity created would be only Rs. 105 crores (vis a vis 80 crores in a swap ratio of 1:17)
By creating an additional 25 crores of equity you will earn the respect of a number of loyal shareholders of the Reliance family.
Your brother was kind enough to do similarly during allotment of bonus shares in Reliance Power wherein he did not claim his entitlement of bonus shares.
While you may feel that this was just a paper gimmick the market thinks otherwise.
Hope you are able to understand your shareholders pysche as your father did and move in the right direction.
warm regards,
Mehul Zatakia

p.s. if your board members need convincing will be happy to meet them personally to explain the rationale of above
Mehul Zatakia
9892013019
Financial Advisor
Sykes and Ray Equities (I) Ltd.
Daulatram Mansion, 2nd floor,
Kitridge Road, Colaba,
Mumbai – 400 005
tel (o) 22874615, 22797371
(res) 23674416, 22934547

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Disclosure: I hold shares in both, Reliance Petroleum Ltd as well as Relaince Inds. Ltd.

Rahman’s Oscars reminded me of India’s 1983 World Cup win

Posted: February 23, 2009 in Uncategorized
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That A R Rahman’s small acceptance speech after winning an Oscar should contain the oft repeated dialogue from Deewar, “Mere paas Maa hai” was indicative of his true roots. In Indian cinema.

That he went along and spoke his standard Tamil line too, acknowledging the role of destiny, was again an indication of his Indian-ness.

As an ardent admirer of A R Rahman, it was a special morning for me. Hearing his name being called out for the first time, seeing him gulp down his throat, as he jerked and rushed to the stage to bag his Oscar. Then, coming on stage to render voice on his compositions of two of his Oscar nominated songs from Slumdog Millionaire. Holding his own in front of that august audience. And then ever so humbly, accepting the second of his two Oscars.

What a feeling.

I felt goosebumps. The closest I have ever felt to an event of this kind (where I have not been directly involved) was when India won the World Cup in 1983. It was the same kind of feeling when Rahman picked up his two Oscars today. What a dream come true.

In fact, few days back, the Bombay Times had carried a story about him negotiating a deal with Krishna Shah, who is on the jury at the Academy, to get him to an Oscars show, in return to hearing a script of Krishna Shah’s. Like any other excellent performer of the arts, he did dream about the Oscars. And it was a most fitting climax today, for him to bag not one, but TWO Oscars.

That from yesterday, I have been humming tunes from his latest release, Delhi 6, is a coincidence. I am sure he will delight us for many more years, and I will not be surprised to see him on stage at the Oscars few more time, in his lifetime!

Oscars and Olympics: India is coming of age! Jai ho..

Posted: February 23, 2009 in Uncategorized
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It has been a special year for India. At competitive international events, where all these years, India was nowhere in the race.

First it was the Olympics. Where, we have forgotten how to win a hockey medal for years. And where other than hockey, India was not even in the consideration for any medals.

And where in 2008, out of nowhere, India picked up not one, not two, but THREE medals! It was quite unbelievable. For sports like shooting or boxing or wrestling were never considered to be India’s forte. It is one thing to be in consideration once ina while, at the Asian Games or at the Commonwealth Games. But at the Olympics, we were not even in consideration. And then, to come from nowhere, and pick up three medals was quite awesome.

Likewise now, at the Oscars (whatever Amitabh Bacchan might think of these, the Oscars are truly a global recognition in the world of cinema, and they reign supreme in stature), our best hope used to be that one Oscar for the best foreign film. And the country would be going gaga over a Lagaan making it to the final round.

And then, from nowhere, we had this international film with an India theme, Slumdog Millionaire. And in which many Indian artists had a role to play. And no less than 3 of them were annointed as winners at the Oscars earlier today. A R Rahman, Gulzar and Resul. With Rahman getting TWO Oscards in fact.

And if that was not enough, in the documentary film section, there was another Indian winner for the film, Smile Pinki.

So it was a great day for India.

India has come of age and there will be many more winners to follow these few now. Cheers! Jai Ho…

Delhi 6: My rating * * * *

Posted: February 22, 2009 in Uncategorized
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I have been warned by a friend not to reveal too much about the film in the review, so I will keep it brief. But at the outset, I must refer to my prediction in the form of a pre-release preview about Billu and Delhi 6. On February 8th, I had predicted that Billu will be kind of average and Delhi 6 will be a good film. Well, I had stuck my neck out and talked about 2.5/5.0 for Billu and 4.5/5.0 for Delhi 6.

From what I can see from official and unofficial reviews, I am not too much off the mark. And in my own book at least, I am quite on the dot with Delhi 6. Based on what I read about Billu, I have not felt it worth to go and see it!

I have already covered my tribute to Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra and talked about the actual performances in Delhi 6 in earlier posts. So what else can I say without saying too much, about the film?

There is an amazing capture of old Delhi. The place, the people, the life there. The energy of the place. You can clearly feel the pulse of the place.

The song with the New York – Delhi mashup is a brilliant piece. That is the kind of genius stroke which for example, we saw in the ‘Woh Ladki Hain Kahan’ song in Dil Chahta Hain.

There are small shades of Swades, but not much. Although there is the NRI factor, its not been overused just to sell the film in the overseas markets.

Like Rang De Basanti, smart work has been done by mixing up history / mythology as mirrors / pathfinders for today, and especially as conscience calls for the characters in the film.

The climax is always the biggest challenge for any filmmaker. What is that fantastic ending that he must depict that audiences leave the theatre awestruck?! And many a filmmaker has fallen short at that pedestal. If the film has to be faulted, it is in this space, for Delhi 6 too. At the end, the climax is a bit hackneyed, and undos a lot of the good work done earlier.

Rest its money and time well spent, and I recommend it!

There, I have summarized it, without telling too much. Hope my friend approves 🙂

Delhi 6: About the Performers

Posted: February 22, 2009 in Uncategorized
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There are some great performers in Delhi 6 – on-screen and behind it too. Before sharing my impressions on the film itself, I thought I would touch upon these.

On screen, Abhishek has the longest role, of course. But there is nothing much to write about him and his role. I mean, he does a competent job, but no huge scenes, nothing fantastic, considering that he was the absolute and complete hero!

Sonam Kapoor had a small role. But she did that well. And also came out looking extremely pleasant on screen. I repeat myself when I say that she looks like the Juhi Chawla. Especially that effervescent smile of hers. So much like Juhi’s. I would love to see her in longer and meatier roles in future.

I noticed that Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra was born in the same year that I was born! I know a few people from our generation who have a Waheeda Rehman fixation. I don’t. But I know others who do. Perhaps Rakeysh has one too. Waheeda Rehman, for her age, puts in an extremely credible performance. She did that in Rang De Basanti too. I am sure she has maintained her health well, and she has put in hard work to execute the role.

Likewise, amongst the older folks who come for character roles every now and then, Rishi Kapoor is one who again manages to leave a mark, even in smaller roles. In Delhi 6, he has a very small role. And he does a good job of it again.

Three very talented actors make their presence felt in small essays here. Vijay Raaz (who can forget his Monsoon Weddings character?!), Divya Dutta and Atul Kulkarni. All of them have good characters written for them in Delhi 6, and perform well.

Om Puri, Supriya Pathak and others do a fair job.

Among the behind-the-scenes acts, there are 4 outstanding performers.

First of course, it’s the director, Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra himself. I have paid a separate tribute to him. That he has also written the film makes for special mention. The heart of the film is in the writing. And more of it, when I cover the film itself. But suffice it to say that it is a great job of writing and direction that Mehra has done.

Then there is the cinematography of one of India’s best cinematographers, Binod Pradhan. Coming from the Vidhu Vinod Chopra stable, Binod has fabulous works like 1942 a Love Story, Mission Kashmir, Parinda, Devdas, Munnabhai MBBS, Rang De Basanti and others to his credit.

In Delhi 6 also, Binod leaves his magical touch. The camera panned across a nearly 360 degrees to capture the Friday prayers at the Jumma Masjid is breathtaking. Even the scenes capturing nightime life and lights in old Delhi are very well captured.

Then, there is lyricist Prasoon Joshi. Who comes up with some great lines once again. Considering his advertising industry exploits, he must rank as one of the most creative and talented persons in India. Period.

And of course, finally, you have to salute the master, A. R. Rahman. By tomorrow morning, he might have become an Oscar winner too (he has 3 nominations for Slumdog Millionaire, and the Oscars happen in about 12 hours from now). In Delhi 6, he delivers some great numbers.

The best and most hummable is Masakali. Check it out here:

My other two favorites are Rehna Tu and the title song, Delhi.. or Dilli.. whatever!

Rakeysh has managed to get some great performers together and they have delivered a fine result in terms of Delhi 6!!

Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra: A Tribute

Posted: February 22, 2009 in Uncategorized
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I saw Dehli 6 today. And loved it. But more about it later.

I thought it fit first, to write a few words about the filmmaker, Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra. And I must add, if it was not already obvious, that I am a big admirer of this very talented director. I would believe that he is among the best that we have in Indian cinema today. And I am looking forward to many excellent films coming out of his repertoire over the years.

I presume I was one of the few people (lol) who had seen his first venture. It was called “Aks”. In fact, I remember that we had gone from our company, and several of us in a group, in fact. And all of them did not last through the film. Several left mid-way. Yeah, it was that kind of debut.

I had sat through the film. And while not really enjoying it much, I was certainly impressed with the subject chosen, the method of expression. Very bold, Very different.

In fact, it tackled an interesting subject – shades of Good and Bad within the self. And how one can manifest over another. To an extent, the theme carries forward in Delhi 6 too. In the form of the ‘black monkey’ metaphor.

So though Aks was no great success, I presume it got its fair share of critical acclaim.

Which got him going on his piece de resistance movie, Rang De Basanti. An excellent film for the times, it delivered its message in no uncertain terms. About the angst of the youth, about the restlessness that they face, and their clear thought about not wanting to take any more nonsense. The presentation was extremely creative. From the eyes of a foreigner who was here to make a film, and taking on idling youth to do her movie. And then even as she went over her story from the times of India’s freedom movement, the extent of juxtaposition of the story to current times, and to the lives of the actors, was the way the story got presented. Interspersed with great acting performances and excellent music (A. R. Rahman).

Rang De Basanti did create a stir beyond the film itself. Where people came out of theatres feeling good, they also carried the message forward, and the people’s voice against various unjust political wars, can be partially attributed to the impact made by the film.

RDB was a classic in that sense. Got Mehra a lot of acclaim and recognition, and finally he was taken to be a serious film maker. He won a host of awards for RDB.

But all through the fame and glory that he got, and the many TV appearances as a result, what came out from Mehra was a consistent humble message. Acknowledging Aamir Khan. Acknowledging Ronnie Screwala. And others. Maintaining a calm front that kept talking sanity, never letting success go into his head.

In fact, one program on TV really brought him out as a class act. He was on the Karan Johar show along with Rakesh Roshan, Raju Hirani and Kunal Kohli. Along with Karan Johar there, they made for some of the more successful directors in India. And in this interaction, the one voice that kept responding to many questions in the best way, was the voice of Rakeysh Mehra. In fact, that show kind of gave an impression that Rakeysh was the most thinking director from amongst them, Karan Johar was certainly the smartest, Raju Hirani had a good feel for the masses (maybe a good ad filmmaker’s trait), Rakesh Roshan was perhaps the best businessman, and Kunal Kohli was out of place there!

And now, Delhi 6. Another great work from Mehra. Some part of his style and his convictions carry on, I guess.

The part of the evil inside people, comes back from Aks.

The mixing of history / mythology to current story characters is done here again, as was done in Rang De Basanti. In this film, it’s the Ramayana and the black-monkey story (from Delhi folklore) that are mixed up to drive the film’s message across.

But more about the film in another post.

For now, I would just reiterate my admiration for Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra. Really glad to have such great talent working together at the same time – Mehra, Ashutosh Gowariker, Sanjay Leela Bhansali, Farhan Akhtar, Raju Hirani, Madhur Bhandarkar, etc. Film enthusiasts like me never had it so good.. 🙂

Valkyrie – about history and what could have been..

Posted: February 22, 2009 in Uncategorized
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Broke a dry spell and took the late night show of Valkyrie last night. Having had an early morning start, I was concerned if I could stay up through the movie. But I need not have worried. The film was captivating enough to not only keep me awake, but in fact, keep me on the edge of my seats right through, with anticipation and excitement.

War movies, especially the ones of the World War have their own charm. Although Valkyrie cannot be termed a war movie, it used the war times as the backdrop to tell the story of one bold and nearly successful attempt (out of a total of 15 such ones) to assassinate Hitler. Since it’s history and a true story, we know very well that the attempt did not succeed, and the destiny’s child that Hitler was, he survived.

But the film shows poignantly the extent of opposition to him that prevailed in the German ranks, and yet how most of them were not able to come out in the open, with their objections / opposition to Hitler. The film also goes to show once again, the intricate web of control that Hitler set for himself, which was one of the strengths on basis of which he commandered over his forces, even as he led them with this all conquering ambition that took no prisioners!!

If only the attempt had been successful, how different the world could have been today.. ?! Quite a hypothetical, rhetorical question now.. !

Tom Cruise does an excellent job and its really sad that he is not seen much nowadays. The supporting cast is competent.

Drama from history makes for good stories and films, wonder why film makers do not use this treasure chest more than they have done so far. This is far more engaging stuff than the fantasy make believes that we keep seeing from Hollywood too often nowadays!

Getting Twitter influence the right way

Posted: February 8, 2009 in Uncategorized
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So what’s the typical Twitter users that one comes across nowadays?

There are newbies, who are trying to figure their way around. So they are in transition in a way.

Then there are the other ‘veterans’. Most of these are on Twitter for a purpose. To largely be able to promote something or the other. Their services or some product or some brand. And they have come to the conclusion that the way to get there, is simply by having as large a follower base as you can.

And so we have people following, and getting followed by tens of thousands of people.

And they figure that when they send out their spams or their blog links or their status messages, their various followers are interested, and would catch it and that is their Twitter success.

Or like telemarketers, they figure that on a large base, a small percentage hit rate, still counts, and that’s the way to go.

But really is that the right way to use Twitter?

Let’s think for a moment, from the average Twitter user’s point of view. Chances are that she also has hundreds of people that she follows and gets tons of updates as a result. She is not watching her Twitter feed whole day long. Even if she has clients set up, she really “looks” at the feed, few times a day. At the rate at which tweets come in, I am sure she is not going back to see all the tweets that she missed between her consecutive Twitter sessions. So she is likely seeing only those which are active and fresh at the point of time.

And in those, if something appeals to her, she reads, takes action and others she lets go.

So for those other Twitter users, who had sent their tweets in between her sessions, and who counted her as amongst their thousands of followers, she was a waste. She did not read their tweets, and did not react to them!

Twitter used in this manner, then is a complete hit-or-miss situation.

For a tool that is so amazingly simple to use, that is so popular, can it’s utility be left to sheer chance, in this manner? There’s got to be a better way.

And sure enough. Enough serious and real knowledge gurus have been using the medium with a lot of understanding and foresight.

They ensure that their tweets are all relevant and good 140 character bits, which would actually be of interest to their followers. They ensure that the content is good. They don’t spam you with links, they don’t aggressively pitch you their wares. They don’t update each time they’re having coffee. In short, they don’t overburden their followers. They ensure that their tweets are made to count, and are worthwhile for their followers.

When done consistently and repeatedly, they make a reputation for themselves. And then if an average user is following them, even if she has infrequent Twitter sessions, she will look out for their updates. And pause to read, or click a link posted by them. Over time, she will eagerly await updates from them.

NOW, the sphere of Twitter influence has been established.

This is the way that a Twitter account needs to be built and used.

And here is where, the core point is same for Twitter as it is for web pages (and search engines), viz. that good content counts!

To summarize my two point formula for success on Twitter:

1. Don’t run after creating large number of followers. It is important to have a focused follower list, one that is typically your “target group” for whatever it is that you are trying to achieve. If others come on board, and they don’t react to your tweets and then leave, so be it. Don’t be obsessed with the number. Seek quality of followers rather than just quantity.

2. Good content works here too. If you give useful tweets, which are not just re-tweets or links being passed on, but your knowledge being shared, that will be valuable to your followers. Develop credibility on the basis of your content. Then your followers will watch out for your updates and you will truly have a sphere of influence via Twitter!

Good, relevant content – strategy works everywhere!

Posted: February 8, 2009 in Uncategorized
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As many SEOs that you interact with, so many strategies you will get, for getting your page on top of search rankings! Likewise, the latest “how to” is all about using Twitter for influence.

My own thoughts on both of these come to a common base.

Good, relevant content!

Let’s take search engines first.

In the increasingly competitive and changing world of search engines, the real game for the search engines is to give you, the searcher, 10 perfect results. So if you search for “Java”, the search engine should not give you a mix of programming language, coffee and an Asian island, but rather, the search engine must KNOW what you want to see, and accordingly, deliver all 10 results that you want. That indeed, is the goal that search engines must be working towards. And they are getting better at doing so.

This is called “personalisation of search”.  Catering to you – the individual searcher.

As soon as this gets more and more real, what happens to SEO? To a large extent, it goes for a toss! Especially that part of search that focuses on getting you high SERPs or Search Engine Ranking Positions. BECAUSE there will be nothing like “positions”!! At least not universal ones.

So if we extend the same simplistic example, and find three different people searching for the same word, “Java”, they are quite likely to see entire different sets of results, based on amongst other things, a) their location, b) their previous searches, c) their ‘history’ of other things done, sites accessed, etc. If different people are going to see different sets of results, for the same search phrase, then there is nothing like a SERP. So that’s what I meant by SEO going for a toss, in a way.

So what will be the strategy for website owners to reach their target markets, via the search engine route?

The critical factor here is “target market”. So far, in the world of SERPs, if you got on to the top rankings, you would reach your target market, and then, you will reach others as well. You may not mind, but your site will be wasted for those others!

Now, in the upcoming age (and I don’t know how far we are from truly personalized search results) of personalized search, you will need to be satisfied with your target market. And once you know your target market, and what they would want from you (on the subject of your website), if you make sure that you get GOOD, RELEVANT CONTENT for this target group, it will already include the right keywords, it will get popular and others will link back to you, and in short, you will rank up in the search engine results for those phrases, when searched for, by your target market.

This strategy will work now, in the days when SERPs are still valid, and it will work later too, when they are less relevant.

“Don’t try to be something for all of the people, better to be everything for some of the people!!”

There is a similar strategy for Twitter, and I will share the same in a following post.

Luck By Chance – Refreshing

Posted: February 8, 2009 in Uncategorized
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The sister shines too.

Following the footsteps of brother Farhan who debuted as director with the brilliant Dil Chahta Hai, Zoya Akhtar comes up with a credible first venture in the form of Luck By Chance.

One more look (there have been other attempts before) at the lives of strugglers trying to make it into the big bad world of Hindi cinema, the execution is good. Farhan Akhtar and Konkona play the lead strugglers, while Isha Shravani is the star child who has everything handed to her on a platter. Not many idle moments, the film engages you with the story, the dialogues, and a decent pace.

Farhan is an unconventional hero. While he is very talented, I am sure, he is not your serious hero material. Face, height, voice are all ‘not right’. But he manages to make up for that, with his sincerty. Konkona of course, is one of the best actresses on the Indian screens right now. She slips into the character beautifully.

To accommodate Isha’s acrobatic skills, they unpretentiously brought in a full fledged circus scene!! The “oldies” did a good job.. all of them – Rishi Kapoor, Juhi Chawla, Dimple Kapadia. They prove that they are good actors and are able to come back and get noticed all over again. Dimple is ravishing still, although it appears that some cover up job was needed to get her there. On the other hand, I am so impressed by Juhi Chawla. She has maintained herself so well, and she keeps coming back in the 1-2 films a year, with meaningful work. I wish they write a good script for her in a central role, like they are doing for the Big B.

There were a lot of special appearances. Most of them were people who have worked in Farhan Akhtar’s films in lead roles. What a coincidence?! Shah Rukh, Kareena, Boman Irani (Don), Hrithik (Lakshay), Aamir and Akshay Khanna (Dil Chahta Hai).. all returned favors 🙂 And then there were others – Ranbir Kapoor, John Abraham, Abhishek (he is the special appearance favorite of Hindi cinema), Karan Johar.. and I might have still missed a few.

A good film to go to, especially considering the drought of good films right now.

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