Now you know why I am named Jamshed Velayuda Rajan, but you don’t know the lifelong suffering that comes with carrying three religions, one missing surname, and a father’s hope for a united country in your name. Most people get a name. I got a mandate, to ensure that the core message of the Indian … Read more
Many of you have asked me why I am named Jamshed Velayuda Rajan. Well, here is the full story. My father was born in 1947 in a small village called ‘Maangudi,’ which meant a dwelling place for deer. Back then, it had around 15 houses, and today it probably has 60 of them. Parthibanur is … Read more
There are two reasons I am sure I grew up poor. I got only two shorts to wear every year (one for Diwali – Oct or Nov…and another one for my birthday – in April). The second reason I know we were poor was that we never had enough curd at home. From when I … Read more
Much before folks in the Internet space discussed ‘share economy’ over drinks, and much before it was cool to use products such as Airbnb, BlaBlaCar, Fon etc. there were ‘hand-me-downs’. This is the story of how the first version of the ‘share economy’ played out in my life. Here goes… I think it all started … Read more
This is the story of how I became a better student. My schools had no role to play in me becoming a better student. It was all my skills, my talent, and my hard work. I promise. Don’t believe me? Read on – During my initial days in school, my father always compared me to … Read more
My parents hated going out to eat. In fact even when we were traveling and stranded outdoors at odd times, we would still stretch ourselves, reach home, cook food and then eat. As a child, I hated this. Even my two sisters hated it. But both my mother and my father didn’t see anything wrong … Read more
As a seven-year-old boy in 1982, I had taken baby steps towards becoming a career criminal. Back then, if you were a criminal you didn’t have to hide in a high-fenced complex in Pakistan or in an apartment complex in Dubai (did I just give away the hiding place of Dawood?). Coming back to my … Read more
You probably cook Nestle’s Maggi noodles, eat it and forget it. Hardly so in my case. This article is to explain and celebrate the importance of two-minute Maggi noodles in my life (and my sisters’). I first came to know about Maggi noodles in 1985. Back then I was studying in 4th standard in Seventh … Read more