Business in the name of "Religion"

I hear a lot of criticism around the movie "PK" for making fun of religion esp. Hinduism. I haven't watched the movie yet but based on what I have heard , I see a lot of correlation with real life mockery being done in the name of religion. 
Here's one such example:-  There was a news article about 108 divya desam lords ( 108 vishnu temples sung by alwars) in one of chennai's leading news paper.Me and my wife got curios as to what this was about .We had also seen a few posters on the streets of chennai about the same place. We thought this should be some earnest attempt to recreate the 108 divya desam lords in chennai. We googled to find more information and saw that this was organized at shrivaaru venkatachalapathy palace vanagaram.

We decided to go and drove down.On reaching the place, we were charged Rs 100/ per head and Rs 20/ for car parking. No complaints yet, the expectations were real high as to "How would be the recreation of those 108 divine lords".

Within a few seconds of entering the hall, I was left with nothing but disappointed. Replicas of divya desam lords were made with sub standard attention. All 108 lords were recognizable only by posture a.k.a sitting standing or lying. Apart from this , there was no significant effort made to distinguish between the look or portray any significance of the specific lord. Only if you read the name board, you would know who the lord was and the name of the divya desam.

The display of lords was followed by a mini "food" exhibition.( obviously, you need to pay for the food)

There was a lot of crowd going around merrily taking pictures.of course, you might argue that one shouldn't expect too much from such "exhibitions". . In fact apart from the entry fee, I also saw some people throwing money at the idols, coconuts and arthi plates being sold at counters , etc etc.

But I see this as a ruthless effort to earn money out of a vacant mandapam ( In chennai-No one hires a marriage hall in Dec-Jan season) using an unpatented concept of 108 divya desam. 

These guys in collaboration with another tamil magazine- Kumudam "Bhakthi"?? have made a fortune with just the title 108 divya desam without actually making any effort to justify the theme.

But if some one makes fun of  us , we get real angry :-) ( Including me). The fact is there are a lot of folks who know to  milk money out of "religion".

Ultra Walkathalon - some experiences

Last week , I had the opportunity to do an ultra walk from Chennai to Tirumala  ( around 130 kilometers). It was definitely a good experience. Both mentally  and physically the activity was definitely a "stretch". At the end, the overall experience taught me a lot.

There were moments ( especially on the second and third day) when reaching the destination seemed almost impossible. The only thing that helped to reach the goal was to "slow down ", " take rest" and most importantly " focus on the next step alone". Many times in life we get overwhelmed by the things that are ahead of us but focusing only on the next step might really help.

Another significant observation:  - Either it be a national highway or a road crossing through a small village , there was one thing in common - 80% of the road stretches are being used as open public toilets. We as a nation have a long way to go in terms on imbibing "Cleanliness". Huge piles of plastic garbage was also a common sight next to all human settlements along the way.Mother nature is truly and extraordinarily patient with all of us!

Basic money managment tips

1. The cheque is the "real" money, not the credit card. Therefore, the cheque amount you receive as salary should determine your spending pattern; not your credit card limit. Utilise your card to the limit that you can comfortably settle at the end of the month.

2. Contrary to popular perception, cars, televisions and phones are NOT assets. They are liabilities, because they depreciate and because you need money to use and maintain them. So don't accumulate too many "fake" assets.

3. For greater transparency, flexibility, liquidity, simplicity, convenience and better returns, do not mix insurance and investments. Avoid policies that combine investment with insurance.

4. Borrowing means spending tomorrow’s unearned (and possibly uncertain) income today. So be very careful. If you have to borrow, borrow for the "right purpose", the "right amount" and at the "right cost".

5. Start early, invest regularly and stay invested. Time makes money. Fixed deposits, stocks, mutual funds, property, gold, and other such assets, are merely the tools that time employs to make money for you.

Rest of the article , http://morningstar.in/posts/29956/money-tips-for-my-son.aspx

This post has been written by Sanjay Matai, a financial adviser and author. This is the advice he penned down for his son when he got his first job and first pay cheque. 

#GOSF and other #discount sale - Do all consumers benefit from these sale?

There has been a lot of fuzz around the discount sales , primarily the online ones . People are tempted to buy a lot of things online for a "discount" as they are available at seemingly " throw away" prices.

One of my friends bought a tablet for Rs 4000 as it was available at a cheap price. he already owns a smart phone,a  phablet and a laptop.

Another friend of mine from Chennai bought a thick winter jacket for Rs 400 for future usage .... he might travel sometime in 2020 :-)

These are some just a few examples.

Of course, how one spends his or her money is a "personal" thing.
But I feel that these online sales seem to drive some "crazy" consumer behavior.

Those who succumb to the "cheap or discounted" price tags end up buying things that they actually don't "need".

When you buy things that you don't "need"-you think that you got a deal in terms of discount,but  you actually loose all the money that you pay to get the product. So,discount doesn't matter when you buy something that you don't really need.

"Buy -what you need" -Distinguishing between what you WANT and what you NEED can make  intelligent consumers.

Happy Shopping!



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