IPL4, crowd attendance and World Cup impact

It has been almost one month since IPL began, and teams have played a good amount of matches each. But the hype that surrounds the T20 extravaganza, which is usually high during the start and end of the league stage, hasn’t been quite as it was during the previous editions. Though Set Max is doing a good job not covering the empty stands, it isn’t hard to guess attendance levels are an abysmal low.

Interestingly, people’s involvement and support for IPL was being talked about just five days before the start of the tournament. In fact, right after India won the World Cup. While some people said India’s win in the WC would further boost IPL attendance, a wise few hash tagged IPL with yawn even before it began.

What marketing whiz-kids should be studying is whether the decline in eyeballs and/or ticket sales linked to people’s behavioral pattern, or a failure to promote the product properly. Before discussing if this is due to people’s mindset, let us see if the IPL Marketing department has done enough from its side.

To start with, IPL never did announce its coming properly. Though the “Bharath Bandh” campaign by JWT India was fairly good, the advertisements were never in places where the eyeballs were. In the previous years, the IPL advertisements could be seen frequently even in regional channels. This year, considering that there was already a mammoth product (The World Cup) doing the rounds, they should have tried harder for advertising space. While most billboards, online space and TVCs were booked for the World Cup, the IPL should have had its share of presence to sell itself. From the knock-out stage of the WC, many top brands were ready to shell out millions of dollars to woo consumers. Considering that IPL itself is a billion dollar product, maybe it should have advertised strongly during the World Cup to win fan fervor.

What BCCI must keep in mind is that IPL never succeeded because of cricket. Well if it was cricket, ICL should’ve succeeded too, right? Lalit Modi knew this too well. There was always something to talk about the IPL. The parties, the cheer-girls, Bollywood, something interesting was always on. Mr. Modi made sure of that. The IPL chairman also led from the front, was always ready for an interview, was media friendly, and was everywhere.

Also, there seem to be no innovations this year. Or atleast, none that have been noticed, except better graphics for scorecards and players info. Think what the previous editions had to offer new to the consumers – player mics, the famed eagle cam, even an advertising stint like the MRF blimp was being talked about.

Some studies last year talked about good advertisements having a positive impact on game viewer ship. Many brands, which had a good run during the World Cup, have invested in IPL too, hoping for the momentum to continue, and not to lose out to competitors. These brands, if it is possible, must shoot fresh commercials, and not use the ones they used all through the long world cup. Only then, people will show interest. Else, they hardly seem to notice the advertisements.

And now, the impact of World Cup on IPL viewer ship. Indians had invested a lot of time and money for the World Cup. They might also be emotionally drained. After having seen the cricket’s most coveted prize being won by the country, everything else might seem trivial. Or maybe the World Cup hangover still lingers. Whatever it is, the IPL guys need to think quick, and bring back the crowds. Surely, Lalit Modi’s absence is being felt.

Monsoon

I'm staring at a broken door
There's nothing left here anymore
My room is cold, it's making me insane

I've been waitin' here so long
Another moment seems to have come
I see the dark clouds comin' up again

Running through the monsoon
Beyond the world 'til the end of time
Where the rain won't hurt
Fighting the storm into the blue

And when I lose myself I think of you
Together we'll be running somewhere new
Through the monsoon just me and you

A half moon fading from my sight
I see your vision in it's light
But now it's gone and left me so alone

I'll know I have to find you now
Can hear you name and don't know how
Why can't we make this darkness feel like home?

Running through the monsoon
Beyond the world 'til the end of time
Where the rain won't hurt
Fighting the storm into the blue

And when I lose myself I think of you
Together we'll be running somewhere new
And nothing can hold me back from you
Through the monsoon, hey, hey

I'm fighting all this power coming in my way
Let it take me straight to you
I've been running night and day

I'll be with you soon just me and you
We'll be there soon, so soon

Running through the monsoon
Beyond the world 'til the end of time
Where the rain won't hurt
Fighting the storm into the blue

And when I lose myself I think of you
Together we'll be running somewhere new
And nothing can hold me back from you
Through the monsoon

Through the monsoon
Just me and you
Through the monsoon
Just me and you

What Makes Hinduism Unique and Great?

Hinduism stands tall among the league of religions.

How & why?

There are many answers.

The greatness of Hinduism can be summarized in few words.

"Freedom of Thoughts and Actions."

1.Hinduism is a way of life, a culture and not an organized religion like Islam or Christianity.

2.There is no POPE or hierarchy in Hinduism. Only thing Hinduism have a lot of scriptures.

3. Hinduism is a Culture and all the eastern religions like Buddhism, to some extend Jainism, Sikhism came from Hinduism. Judaism is also a culture/religion from which organized religions like Islam and Christianity came.

4.Hinduism never ever had a “spring cleaning” like all other religions do. What ever any one wrote for the last thousands of years are still there for people to study and discuss. That is the reason why we have a very large number of scriptures. That is also the reason we do not have a so called Bible. For all us all scriptures are equally important even though many consider Bhagavad Gita to be the Hindu Bible.

5. No body is killed or crucified since he or she challenged Vedas or any other scriptures. In fact, Hindus worship Lord Buddha who challenged authority of Vedas and Hindu form of worship.

6. Hinduism never state it has monopoly on truth or God. According to Hinduism, God & truth are universal.

7.Rig Veda states: 'ekam sat viprah bahudaa vadanti' …meaning Truth or God is one but learned men describe it in many ways.

8.Hindu scriptures state, “Sathya meva Jayathe” meaning “Truth alone triumps, never falsehood.”

So Hindu scriptures allow FREE FLOW OF THOUGHTS & ACTIONS.

9.Hindu authors knew that by allowing absolute freedom of expression of thoughts and actions, every one will finally end up attaining truth.

10.They preached, "Ignorance is the root cause of all evils and knowledge eradicates ignorance.' We do NOT sin, we only make mistakes due to lack of knowledge of right and wrong. Hinduism does not believe in ORIGINAL SIN like Christians do.

11. Not even one Hindu scripture states only by becoming a Hindu, one can attain salvation.

12.Instead Hindu scriptures state, “Salvation or self-realization is open to all, irrespective whether a person Hindu or not.

13. Even an agnostic and atheist can attain salvation.

14. Nobody is denied salvation in Hinduism. The best among us will attain with one life. The worst among us will attain through many lives.

15.Salvation or self-realization is the process by which one is attaining the true knowledge that he is the immortal soul Atman within and giving up the false knowledge that one is the perishable material body.

16. Hinduism never forcefully convert others to Hinduism like other religions do. Hinduism as a culture and it does not force any one to become a Hindu.

17.Those who convert to Hinduism are doing that since they fell in love with Hinduism.

18. Hinduism believes in one and only God Brahman which expresses itself in trillions of forms.

19.Hindus believe in a one, all-pervasive Supreme Being who is both immanent and transcendent, both Creator and Un manifested Reality.

20.According to Hindu scriptures you can worship that God which has NO name or form [nama-roopa] in any form & with any name.


21.You can worship that God calling it Jesus or Allah or Brahman or Krishna or Buddha or anything else you wish. In all worships, finally worshiper ends with a God which is spirit, which has no name or form.

22. Even atheists can proudly proclaim they are Hindus.

23. In fact the Charvaka philosophy or Nastika philosophy, (existed during the Vedic period) founded by Charvaka rejected the existence of God and considered religion as an aberration. Nobody killed Charvaka. He died a natural death.

24. Hindus do NOT worship idols.. Hindus use idols like everyone else to concentrate on a God who has no name or form.

25.All worships in all religions start with God with a name and form. As the devotee matures in devotion, devotee start sees a God without any form at all.

26. Hindus believe that the universe undergoes endless cycles of creation, preservation and dissolution. This belief is in parallel with the modern big bang theory.

27. Voltaire in Essay on Tolerance wrote::

"I may disagree with what you say, but I will defend to the death, your right to say it."

Hinduism is the symbol of what Voltaire wrote.

Rig Veda wrote:
Vasudhaiba Kutumbakam
(the world is a family)

Rig Veda also wrote:
"Ano Bhadra Krittavo Yantu Vishwatah" -
Let noble thoughts come to us from every side.

PROUD TO BE A HINDU :)

6 most important lessons of Life

Lesson 1: Naked Wife

A man is getting into the shower just as his wife is finishing up her shower when the doorbell rings. The wife quickly wraps herself in a towel and runs downstairs. When she opens the door, there stands Bob, the next door neighbor. Before she says a word, Bob says, “I’ll give you $800 to drop that towel.” After thinking for a moment, the woman drops her towel and stands naked in front of Bob.

After a few seconds, Bob hands her $800 dollars and leaves. The woman wraps back up in the towel and goes back upstairs. When she gets to the bathroom, her husband asks,…

“Who was that?” “It was Bob the next door neighbor,” she replies. “Great!” the husband says, “Did he say anything about the $800 he owes me?”



Moral of the story:

If you share critical information pertaining to credit and risk with your shareholders in time, you may be in a position to prevent avoidable exposure.





Lesson 2

A sales rep, an administration clerk, and the manager are walking to lunch when they find an antique oil lamp. They rub it and a Genie comes out. The Genie says, “I’ll give each of you just one wish” “Me first! Me first!” says the administration clerk. “I want to be in the Bahamas, driving a speedboat, without a care in the world.” Poof! She’s gone. “Me next! Me next!” says the sales rep. “I want to be in Hawaii,relaxing on the beach with my personal masseuse, an endless supply of Pina Coladas and the love of my life.” Poof! He’s gone. “OK, you’re up,” the Genie says to the manager. The manager says, “I want those two back in the office after lunch.”



Moral of the story: Always let your boss have the first say.





Lesson 3

A priest offered a lift to a Nun. She got in and crossed her legs, forcing her gown to reveal a leg. The priest nearly had an accident. After controlling the car, he stealthily slid his hand up her leg. The nun said,”Father, remember Psalm 129?” The priest removed his hand. But,changing gears, he let his hand slide up her leg again. The nun once again said, “Father, remember Psalm 129?” The priest apologized “Sorry sister but the flesh is weak.” Arriving at the convent, the nun went on her way. On his arrival at the church, the priest rushed to look up Psalm 129. It said, “Go forth and seek, further up, you will find glory.”



Moral of the story: If you are not well informed in your job, you might miss a great opportunity.





Lesson 4

A crow was sitting on a tree, doing nothing all day. A rabbit asked him,”Can I also sit like you and do nothing all day long?” The crow answered: “Sure, why not.” So, the rabbit sat on the ground below the crow, and rested.

A fox jumped on the rabbit and ate it.



Moral of the story: To be sitting and doing nothing, you must be sitting very high up.





Lesson 5: Power of Charisma

A turkey was chatting with a bull “I would love to be able to get to the top of that tree,” sighed the turkey, but I haven’t got the energy.” “Well, why don’t you nibble on my droppings?” replied the bull. “They’re packed with nutrients.” The turkey pecked at a lump of dung and found that it gave him enough strength to reach the lowest branch of the tree. The next day, after eating some more dung, he reached the second branch. Finally after a fourth night, there he was proudly perched at the top of the tree. Soon he was spotted by a farmer, who shot the turkey out of the tree.



Moral of the story: Bullshit might get you to the top, but it wont keep you there.





Lesson 6

A little bird was flying south for the winter. It was so cold the bird froze and fell to the ground into a large field. While he was lying there, a cow came by and dropped some dung on him. As the frozen bird lay there in the pile of cow dung, he began to realize how warm he was. The dung was actually thawing him out! He lay there all warm and happy, and soon began to sing for joy. A passing cat heard the bird singing and came to investigate. Following the sound, the cat discovered the bird under the pile of cow dung, and promptly dug him out and ate him.



Moral of the story:

1. Not everyone who shits on you is your enemy

2. Not everyone who gets you out of shit is your friend

3. And when you’re in deep shit, it’s best to keep your mouth shut!

ten reasons why i hate SACHIN TENDULKAR

1. This man always plays a brilliant innings before all my important exams and hence never lets me study.

2.When ever I think India is not the best team in the world-- This man hits a century ,get India win and prove me that I m always wrong.

3. Nobody is wishing me on my birthday which is on April 24.

4. Whenever I play my shots well, all start extolling me as “Future Sachin” and the real fame only goes to Sachin!

5. If he gets out, due to the love on him every player of the team follows him to the pavilion.

6. He gives the umpires a lot of work by continuously hitting boundaries.

7. He is the sole reason for all the breakages in my house whenever he gets out at wrong times.

8. During a match, when ever i am about to pee , he hits a boundary and hence I m left with no choice but to sit and watch the replay on Tv.

9. The whole country is always brought to a standstill whenever This man bats.

10. Last but not the least , The Main reason why I hate him is because … He is going to retire sometime in the future which i hate the most t t t t …

Summer of 2011

In a month or two the transfer window will open and we would welcome another new season of some exciting football for the year 2011-12. Firstly this transfer window which opens effectively from June 1 and closes on midnight of august 31. Well there a few clubs who would try their luck getting players who would match their profile and their style of play.

Starting with Barclays Premier League, recent years in BPL has seen the likes of Chelsea and Manchester City splashing money on several high profile players.

So lets get down to my club Manchester United first. United with the backing of Glazers who reportedly sanctioned Sir Alex Ferguson a war chest of 100 million pounds to dig deep into the summer signings, this looks like a sign that the headlines in the newspapers would be dominated by the red devils.

Firstly they need a good goalkeeper who has skills to replace the retiring Van Der Sar. Well it would be quite a burden for the incoming keeper to replace a legend like Van Der Sar, considering the fact that he has won so many titles for united even at the age of 38 when he famously stopped Anelka's penalty to give United their second CL title. well the players who are monitored for this role are Manuel Neuer , David De Gea, Gigi Buffon and Hugo Lloris. From my point of view going for Gigi is a waste of money as hes a shadow of his former self, plagued by injuries and loss of form and also keeping the age factor in consideration , gigi would not be a wise choice to fill the shoes of Van Der Sar. David De Gea got both age and experience on his side and he is already touted as a possible replacement for Iker Casilas in the spain national team.

Secondly they need a good centre halves, one who is a good defender as well as well composed. Vidic and Ferdinand are the obvious starters for the first team but they need to get some young talent like Steve Taylor, Rafael Toloi or even Giorgio Chiellini.

Coming to the midfield, they need to sign players of high quality like Javier Pastore, Paulo Henrique Ganso, Marek Hamsik and Jack Rodwell. They need to buy a couple of players to replace the aging duo of Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes.

United have one of the best forwards in the world with the likes of Rooney, Berbatov and Chicharito. It would be wise if United can land either Alexis Sanchez who is one the brightest stars in Serie A or Edin Hazard who has catapulted to fame thanks to his performances at Lille.

Coming to Chelsea, the club i hate the most :P this time we may expect a summer clearance with the likes of Zhirkov,Drogba,Bosingwa,Anelka leaving stamford bridge and the likes of players like pastore,hamsik coming to replace them. 

Arsenal need to sign a top class goalkeeper from the above mentioned list but Igor Akinfeev looks like the best bet for the gunners. He's got class and skills as well as playing for CSKA Moskow and Russia, he would be an ideal keeper for the gunners.

Liverpool are continuing their resurgence in BPL thanks to the surprise signings of Suarez and Carrol. A liverpool fan would be delighted if they can get couple of good players in summer and the fate of Alberto Aquillani is still undecided. The decisive factor for Liverpool to get some good players in  summer would be whether they can offer European football next season or not. Afellay seems to be courted by both Arsenal and Liverpool and hes ready to move to one them if barca doesnt offer him first team football next season.

Coming to the case of Totenham, "make hay when the sun shine" as the proverb says, Spurs must sell Bale for a reasonable price in summer so that they can go into the market to fund their own transfers.

In Bundesliga, Bayern have sacked their coach Van Gaal, and the entire team is in mess following a disappointing season where they will finish with an empty cabinet, a summer overhaul is on the cards. the areas of concern would be defense and the midfield for the bavarian giants.

Schalke are enjoying their best football ever, UCL semifinals for the first time in their history, although winning the tournament is the only way they can ensure that they will return to europe next season. With the legendary RAUL leading their attack up front, they are a force to beckon with. it will be interesting to see if they can hold on to their captain who is the subject to a move to either arsenal or united.

coming to La Liga, its pretty straight, Barca and Real Madrid are fighting to sign Cesc, and in recent weeks CR was subject to speculation linking him to a move to italy. It would be interesting to see how Valencia would play in the transfer market provided they lose two of their best wingers, Mata and Pablo Hernandez.

last but not the least, Serie A, Milan would like to sign Ibra on full time basis for 24 million euros, while Inter are plotting a raid over Machester City for Tevez. Juventus on other hand have been in crisis where nothing has worked out, and the much awaited signing of Krasic turned out to be a disaster for the club. Nedved who is a director at Juventus is insisting on an overhaul and the players most likely approached by Juventus in summer would be Arshavin, Bosingwa and Bastos. Roma on other hand would probably monitor the market and go for players who have the capability to replace a legend like Totti.

THE WELSH WIZARD

Ryan Giggs aka GIGGSY is once in a generation footballer ever to play for manchester united over the past two decades. having come to england from wales at a tender age of 6 years and he joined Deans FC. Meanwhile, Giggs continued to play for Salford Boys, who went on to reach the final of the Granada Schools Cup competition at Anfield in 1987. Giggs captained the Salford team to victory over their Blackburn counterparts, and the trophy was presented to him by Liverpool chief scout Ron Yeats. Yeats was impressed by Giggs's performance, and would have recommended him to Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish, had Giggs not already been picked up by Manchester United.


Giggs turned professional on 29 November 1990 (his 17th birthday), by which time he was described by various sources to be the finest prospect in English football since George Best in the 1960s. He made his league debut against Everton at Old Trafford on 2 March 1991 as a 17 year old replacing Dennis Irwin as a full back. He became a first-team regular early in the 1991–92 season, yet remained active with the youth system and captained the team, made up of many of "Fergie's Fledglings", to an FA Youth Cup triumph in 1992. Giggs broke into the first team even though he was still aged only 17, a mark of his skill and maturity, and paved the way as the first of many Manchester United youth players to rise into the first team under Ferguson. As the youngest member of the United first team squad, Giggs looked to the older players such as Bryan Robson for advice.


The start of 1992-93 season in which the first division was rechristened as Premier League, giggs was the automatic first choice winger available to Sir Alex. Giggs, as the leader of this new revival of pacy and stylish football after the traditional years of long ball and route one styles of previous decades, played a key role in reshaping English football,[14] and helped United to its first top division title win for 26 years, though they didn't go top until after Christmas and fought off competition from big spending Aston Villa and Blackburn Rovers as well as surprise title contenders Norwich City. His emergence and the arrival of Eric Cantona heralded the dominance of United in the new league. His manager was very protective of him, refusing to allow Giggs to be interviewed until he turned 20. This was a testament to his skill and maturity which he got at a very tender age.




The season of 93-94 was the beginning of the ERA OF FERGIE-FLEDGELINGS. the so called group of youngsters who graduated from the United's youth academy. Among the academy graduates, future stars David Beckham, Gary Neville, Nicky Butt emerged and thus the era of United's domination began which signaled the end of a trophy drought at Old Trafford.



Giggs proved to be a great goalscorer, many of his memorable goals being shortlisted for various Goal of the Season awards. Widely regarded as among his best were those against Queens Park Rangers in 1993, Tottenham in 1994, Everton in 1995, Coventry in 1996, and the most remarkable of all, his solo-goal against Arsenal in the replay of the 1999 FA Cupsemi-final. During extra time, Giggs picked up possession after Patrick Vieira gave the ball away, then ran from the half-way line, dribbled past the whole Arsenal back line, includingTony Adams, Lee Dixon and Martin Keown before launching his left-footed strike just under David Seaman's bar and beyond his reach. He famously whipped off his shirt as he ran to celebrate with his teammates. This was one the best goals ever scored in FA cup and Ryan Giggs single handedly won the match for United.




The year of 1999 would be a year that Giggs would remember for his entire life. First the famous FA Cup semifinal victory over old foes Arsenal, secondly winning the premier league title on the final day of the season, pipping arsenal by a mere 1 point and thirdly the famous Champions League Final at Nou Camp where he helped United overturn a 1-0 deficit into a winning margin of 2-1 in which he set up the goal which teddy sheringham scored to equalize and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer scored on the last kick of the game to complete the treble. it was indeed a great moment for Giggs who was named man of the match and United later went on to win the Intercontinental Cup beating brazilian side Palmeiras.




Giggs became the longest serving player at United after Dennis Irwin left in 2002, Giggs was barely in his twenties that time. He celebrated his decade of being a united player with a testimonial match against Celtic FC at the start of the 2001-02 season.


Few of the his personal achievements;

1. Giggs scored his 100th league goal for United against Derby County on 8 December 2007, which United won 4–1.
2. On 20 February 2008 he made his 100th appearance in the UEFA Champions League in a game against Lyon
3. On 11 May 2008 he came on as a substitute for Park Ji-Sung to equal Sir Bobby Charlton's record of 758 appearances for United. Giggs scored the second goal in that match, sealing his, and United's, tenth Premier League title.
4.Ten days later, on 21 May 2008, Giggs broke Bobby Charlton's appearance record for United when coming on as an 87th minute substitute for Paul Scholes in the Champions League Final againstChelsea. United would go on to win the Final, defeating Chelsea 6–5 on penalties after a 1–1 draw after extra time. Giggs converted what became the winning penalty in sudden-death for United and joined Steve McManaman and team-mate Owen Hargreaves in becoming the only British players to have played in and won more than one Champions League final.
5. On the 6th of March 2011, Giggs surpassed the Manchester United league appearance record of Bobby Charlton by playing his 607th game against Liverpool.


On 16 August, 2010 Giggs scored against Newcastle which ensure that he became the first and the only player who has scored in every Premier League Season ever since its inception. Giggs signed a one-year contract extension with Manchester United on 18 February, keeping him at the club until June 2012.


Ryan Giggs is a player who understands the finer details of the game and is rarely carried off by the emotions. The fact that he was never sent off in a United Shirt is just a testament to his emotional strength.In recent years, Giggs has become a UNICEF representative, launching a campaign in 2002 to prevent landmines from killing children. He is half way through his UEFA "A" coaching license which would help him take the helm at United or Wales some time in the near Future.


"Ryan makes you believe there is a football God" - Rowan Atkinson
this is just a testimony to a club legend like Giggs who is up there among the likes of Sir Bobby Charlton, George Best, Eric Cantona and co.