SKILLS FOR EVER

Skills are learnt through repetitive process and we retain some skills and some of them we do not.  Skills that are learnt and retained for ever are the most useful skills in life.  We learn to do typing (I remember joining for typewriting class as soon as i wrote the Board Exams in 1978) and one can never forget the typewriting skills for life time.  Similarly swimming, car driving, cycling are some of the skills which are very useful and once learnt you will retain these skills for ever.

In the olden days Cycling, Typewriting, Swimming were taught for all children in most families.  The ability to learn skills and retain them is very important trait for success in life.  "Learning to Learn" by itself is a skill as one needs to have the ability to learn new skills as one grows up older.  The skill of knowing how to learn is a must for everybody and is the key to acquiring new skills and sharpening the ability to think through problems. It opens the door to other learning. 

Certain skills are very essential for our day to day life and hence are retained for ever.  However, there are skills which are retained for ever even though we do not practice them on a daily basis.  These are the skills that I classify as "Skills for Ever", viz., Swimming, Cycling, typewriting, Car Driving, etc.  These are technical skills and are needed for day to day living.

There are other skills like Communication Skills, Management Skills, Human Relations and Leadership Skills which are acquired and learnt over a period of time.

At every stage in life it is important for us to take stock of our own skills and see if there is any need for acquiring new skills or sharpening the existing skills.  We are living in a technological world where it is extremely important for us to acquire new skills in order to stay in tune with the current way of living.  I have seen some old people learn computer skills and thanks to Steve Jobs they are able to use the iPAD conveniently for their chatting, emails and other requirements.

"Ability to adapt" and "learning to learn" are the two essential qualities required for learning new skills and retaining "skills for ever".  Skills help us to live smarter in this world and hence acquiring and retaining skills is very essential and important.

T.P.Anand
Chennai
19th August 2012

SUPER 30

Super 30 is a coaching institute in Bihar founded by Mr.Anand Kumar.  Anand Kumar is known all over the world as his institute made it to the Time Magzine's "Best of Asia 2010" list.  The only educational center to have bagged this honour so far.

Super 30 provides free coaching, books, food and accommodation for Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) hopefuls from the society's underprivileged sections in India.  Super 30 has achieved a hat trick by scoring 100 success for three consecutive years (2008, 2009 and 2010) in the prestigious IIT joint entrance examination (IIT - JEE),

Launched in 2003, Anand Kumar has been providing training and support for children from extremely poor families and has achieved great success by putting them into the prestigious IIT.  In 2012 IIT - JEE 27 out of the 30 students from Super 30 has succeeded.

Anand Kumar conducts an entrance test for all underprivileged students and finally selects 30 students. Nearly 3000 students turn up every year and out of those 3000 a first list of 200 are selected and then the final 30 make it to the Super 30.  These 30 students are coached for one year through a rigorous 16 hour a day routine in order to appear for the IIT-JEE.  In the last ten years 263 out of the 300 students have been successful in IIT-JEE and have entered the prestigious IIT to pursue a degree in Engineering.

Anand Kumar is very fond of mathematics and runs the "Ramanujan School of Mathematics".  He conducts evening classes for students who can afford a fee and from that money he is providing the free education for the 30 underprivileged students. 

Anand Kumar is now thinking of expanding the Super 30 to Super 60 and then later to Super 90.  The successful students of the earlier batches have already settled well in their career and they turn up during their vacation to teach in Super 30 as a voluntary service.



Hats off to Anand Kumar for achieving this great success consistently.  He has provided guidance and paved the way for several hundreds of children from poor families.  Great job.  Well Done.

T.P.Anand
Chennai
14th August 2012

JUNE BIRTHDAYS

June is a very special month in the calendar for me.  I was born in June and my twin sons were also born in June.  It is also a month in which my favourite music director Ilayaraja was born.  The Male Play back singer whom I like the most - S.P.B. was born in June.

I have listed below some of the famous and renowned personalities who were born in June:

1. Ilayaraja
2. S.P.Balasubramaniam
3. Michael Phelps
4. Karunanidhi
5. Marilyn Monroe
6. Anoushka Shankar
7. Angelina Jolie
8. Bjorn Borg
9. Lionel Richie
10. Venus Williams
11. Anna Kournikova
12. Steve Waugh
13. Lakshmi Nivas Mittal
14. Karisma Kapoor
15. Amrish Puri
16. Ray Illingworth
17. Nicole Kidman
18. Prince William
19. Rafael Nadal
20. Kenny G
21. Elizabeth Hurley
22. George Bush
23. Steffi Graf
24. Paul McCartney
25. Khloe Kardashian
26. Lionel Messi
27. Mel Brooks
28. Cheryl Cole
29. Mike Tyson
30. Kim Clijsters

It is a honour to have been born in June as there are quite a few celebrities and famous sports persons who are also born in the same month.

T.P.Anand

Chennai

12th August 2012

CURIOSITY

Curiosity is the name of the vehicle which has landed in Mars recently.  The above picture shows the vehicle which looks like a dune buggy.  It is not a toy or desert scooter it is a specialised space craft sent by NASA to the Mars and has successfully landed there.  See the video below and the sigh of relief and happiness in the faces of people working in the Laboratory in NASA:



Curiosity is one of the traits of human beings which helps in growth.  As a child we are curious to see what the other child is doing.  As a grown up boy in school we are curious to see what our classmates are doing.  As a grown up man or woman we are curious to see what our neighbours are doing.  As a business man we are curious to see what our competitors are doing in the market.  As human beings living in Planet Earth we are now curious to see what can be done in the nearby planet "Mars".  "Wow" this seems to be the height of curiosity.  The spacecraft is rightly named and let us hope with the images and pictures that are being beamed from Mars we are able to discover something new.

There will be new discoveries about Mars on a daily basis.  Curiosity is equipped with 17 cameras and is controlled by a computer. It took 8 months for the journey to reach Mars.  Following Curiosity's descent, the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter HiRISE camera snapped what NASA scientists have called the "crime scene photo", an image showing Curiosity and the final resting place of its parachute and back shell, sky crane and heat shield.

Curiosity sends data, including images, back to Earth through its multiple antennas via the two Mars orbiters, Reconnaissance and Odyssey. It can also send messages directly to Earth. At the moment data relay rates remain low, but the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter has the capacity to relay data at up to 2 megabits per second.  On Tuesday the rover transmitted its first colour image from its Mars Hand Lens Imager (MAHLI), also showing part of the north rim of Gale Crater.

Curiosity is in what engineers call its commissioning phase, a time where all of its systems and instruments are checked out. The real scientific work — determining whether Mars was habitable — begins in a few weeks, and the $2.5 billion mission is expected to continue for at least two years.

All the best to Curiosity and the Team at NASA.  Whilst they are busy curious to find out more about Mars let us explore the unexplored areas and avenues within this Planet Earth and let us continue with our Curiosity to know what is happening around us.

T.P.Anand
Dubai, U.A.E.
9th August 2012.

HERCULEAN OLYMPIAN - MICHAEL PHELPS

Olympics is the greatest sporting event and winning a Gold Medal in the Olympics will be the dream and lifetime achievement for every sports personality.  Winning Gold Medal at regular intervals is a herculean task and not many individuals have achieved the feat of winning Gold Medals repeatedly at regular intervals like the great "Micheal Phelps".  He has won 22 Medals in the Olympics of which 18 are Gold Medals.

It is pertinent to note here that India has participated in Olympics over 112 years and has so far won 23 medals as a Nation.  To put Michael Phelps achievement in that context shows how herculean this individual's performance has been.

He is an athelete with ADHD (Attention Deficiency Hyperactive Disorder).  Millions in the world are affected by this condition which means having difficulty in sustaining attention, hyperactivity and impulsive behaviour.  The children who are affected by ADHD will struggle to perform well in studies as their span of concentration and attention is very poor.  With proper early detection and medication the children with ADHD are treated properly and they grow up to be normal adults.

Michael Phelps was also affected by ADHD and was diagnosed when he was only 9 years old.  His mother thought the swimming pool will be the best place for Michael Phelps to burn off the excess energy and hyperactivity.  Though he was unable to concentrate at school and study well he had the ability to wait for four hours to compete in swimming races.

Despite the ADHD condition at an young age Michael Phelps has achieved this herculean success in his life purely through hard work and dedication.  He has somehow found a liking for swimming and has concentrated intently on that.  It is the love for the sport that has brought him in limelight across the length and breadth of the world.

I salute this most decorated olympian.  Michael Phelps will be a great inspiration for many millions of children across the world.

T.P.Anand
Dubai, U.A.E.
4th August 2012

ABHYASA

Abhyasa means regular and constant practice and in other words Repetition.  Vairagya is control over mind.  The repetitive practice of certain things is an essential means for achieving Vairagya.

Every one of us need to have "Vairagya" and it should be focussed towards the pursuit and achievement of set goals in life.  In order to achieve the goals set in life we need to practice and do things repetitively in order to achieve perfection and that is Abhyasa.

In Airtel Super Singer Junior 3 programme on Vijay TV the voice expert Ananth Vaidyanathan was advising the children to practice the songs "repetitively" in order to achieve perfection.  "Practice makes a man perfect".  This is proved in the Olympics and various other sports events.

Repetitive practice calls for discipline and dedication which is very much needed in the younger generation.  There is a tendency to give up very soon or get attracted towards something else.  Digression or Diversion seems to be the order of the day as there are so many different activities and attractions around us.  As normal human beings we are susceptible to temptations and hence it is extremely important to stay focussed and thus the need for "Vairagya".

Repetitive practice will lead us into discipline and thus it will become a habit.  The effort of the will to remain in its unmodified state of purity.

The concepts of Abhyasa and Vairagya are very clearly explained in this video which is worth watching:





Abhyasa and Vairagya are important in Yoga and see the below video on the explanation of these two terms:



Abhyasa applies to every individual in every walk of life.

T.P.Anand
Dubai, U.A.E.
4th August 2012

VANI JAYARAM

Smt.Vani Jayaram made her debut in 1971 in the hindi film "Guddi".  "Bolo re papi hara" was heard in every nook and corner of India and she became a celebrity with her very first film and first song.  She has a very unique and soothing voice.  She has won the National Award for Best Female Playback Singer thrice.  Her songs in the Telugu classical hit "Shankarabaranam" which got her one of the National Awards keep ringing in my ears for more than three decades.

Some of her memorable songs in tamil films are:

1. Malligai en mannan mayangum ponnaana malarallavo
2. Ezhu swarangalukkul ethanai paadal
3. Sorgathin thirappu vizha
4. Nitham nitham nellu choru
5. Malligai mullai poo pandhal maragatha manicka pon oonjal
6. Kanden engum poo maghal naatiyam kaanbathellame athisayam
7. Indraikku en intha aanandhame inbathil aaduthu en maname
8. Megame megame paal nila theyude
9. Naane naana yaro thana
10. Vasantha kaala nadhigalile
11. Naadam enum kovilile gnyana vilakketri vaithen
12. ABC nee vasi ellam en kai raasi so easy
13. Bharathi kannamma neeyadi chinnamma
14. Vasanthakaala nadhikalile vaira mani neer alaigal
15. ennullil engo engum geetham en ketkirathu

My all time favourite song of Vani Jayaram is Malligai En mannan mayangum:

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Vani Jayaram has rendered more than 8,000 songs in various languages and has registered for herself a unique and permanent place in the Music World.  She has been very aptly given the title "South Indian Meera".

T.P.Anand
Dubai, U.A.E.
3rd August 2012

LONDON OLYMPICS 2012

The London Olympics 2012 began with a bang.  The Opening Ceremony details directed by Dany Boyle was kept as a secret.  There were very high expectations and among the millions who waited in front of TV sets I was also there keeping awke till 12 midnight for the show to begin.  I watched for one hour and did not get really excited about the filmy style in which the opening ceremony was handled.

There was James Bond, Mr.Been and stunt of jumping from Helicopter by the Queen of England - all done in a filmy style.  To me the one hour of what I watched did not augur well with the spirit of the International Games like Olympics which happens once in four years and an event where more than 200 countries participate with over 10,000 sports persons.

As I write this India is placed at 35th position in the table of Medal Winners as India has so far (till 1st August 2012) scored only one bronze medal in shooting.  We are good in film shooting also and see what happened in the Opening Ceremony when the Indian Contingent walked out.

This unknown lady also joined the Indian Contingent and was proudly waving her hands to the spectators in the stadium and to the cameramen.  This was probably the "Walk of the World" and added to the already filmy style opening ceremony.  No one expected this climax particularly from India and she became a celebrity overnight - literally.


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India is second largest economy with over 1.3 billion people but we are not able to produce even 100 sports persons for the Olympics.  In the 21 Olympics that we participated we have won 20 medals.  This is the 22nd Olympics and we have so far won one bronze medal.  Let us wait and see how we end up in the Medals Tally.

T.P.Anand, Dubai, U.A.E.
2nd August 2012

பாட்டு பாட வா - எம் ஜி ஆர் பாடல்கள்

பாட்டு பாட வா - எம் ஜி ஆர்  பாடல்கள்

எம் ஜி ஆர் தமிழகத்தின் ஒரு தலை சிறந்த கலைஞர்.  நம் இந்திய வரலாறு கண்ட - காணக்கிடைக்காத - மாபெரும் அதிசயம்.  அவர் ஒரு மிகப்பெறிய சாதனையாளர்.   தன் கொள்கைகளை மிகவும் தெளிவாக மக்களுக்கு உரைத்தவர்.  அவர் படங்களில் கதை வசனம் பாடல்கள் இவை மூன்றுமே மிகவும் சுவையாக இருக்கும்.

அவருக்காக பாடல்கள் எழுதப்பட்டன அதில் என்னை மிகவும் கவர்ந்த ஒரு பாடல்:  உன்னை அறிந்தால் நீ உன்னை அறிந்தால் உலகத்தில் போராடலாம்.

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காதல்,  தேசப்பற்று, வீரம், விவேகம், தாய்ப்பாசம் என்று பல நல்லு கருத்துள்ள பாடல்கள் அவர் படங்களில் இடம் பெற்றுள்ளன.  மக்கள் திலகம் என்று சரியான பெயர் அவருக்கு சூடினார்கள்.

அவர் நடிப்பில் சண்டை காட்சிகளில் மட்டும் அல்லாமல் நாட்டியத்திலும் தன் திறமையை காட்டினார்.  ஆடலுடன் பாடலை கேட்டு ரசிப்பதிலேதான் சுகம்



என்னை மிகவும் கவர்ந்த நடிகர்களில் மிகவும் முக்கியமானவர் மக்கள் திலகம் எம்.ஜி.ஆர்.

தி.பா.ஆனந்த
துபாய்
1st August 2012