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Bhagwan Dada

Image courtesy: T-Series, Youtube

There is a beautiful ghazal from the movie ‘Alag Alag’, by the inimitable combo of R.D.Burman, Kishore Kumar and Anand Bakshi, picturized on Rajesh Khanna in a chawl. In the 80s, on Doordarshan’s ‘Chitrahaar’, I couldn’t help noticing an old guy sitting besides the star and enthusiastically  ‘wah wah’ing both in anticipation and after the verse is sung. The rest of the crowd were full of junior artists and a few known actors, so I wondered who this senior junior artist would be. My research led to the reveal of the real person—Bhagwan Dada.

Inimitable combo of R.D.Burman, Anand Bakshi and Kishore Kumar

Bhagwan Dada led a life that would be called chimerical in any other domain, but not so in the world of light and dark. Movie industry is the place where fortunes change overnight and shift from sprawling building to congested chawls, and from the glare of hero spotlight to shade of filler characters. Bhagawan Dada had seen it all. His famous step in ‘Albela’ is supposedly to have influenced Amitabh Bachchan and Govinda.

Here’s Tabassum recounting her experiences with Bhagawan Dada and leaves us a reminder that no matter how big or small, nothing is permanent in this world/stage. There are many Bhagwan Dadas and Kasturi Sivaraos who can vouch for this fact.

“All the world’s a stage, And all the men and women merely players; … And one man in his time plays many parts…”- William Shakespeare

Related Links:
Wikipedia on Bhagwan Dada
‘Albela’ Song and dance steps
‘Chitrahaar’ is…
Kasturi Siva Rao journey

India’s digital-first banker

Given what you’ve just described, what advice you would give to entrepreneurs currently building global businesses?
KOTAK: First, digital has transformed the world into a marketplace, so when you think about a product, focus on the viability of the idea without worrying about scale. Second, be ready to fail. Very few entrepreneurs actually make it, but the value of the experience is significant. I would hire an entrepreneur who has tried and failed, as he or she now has knowledge of that reality. Most important, you must have purpose and you must have passion, and it doesn’t matter who or where you are.

Full article here–>

Big Tech Isn’t the Problem With Homelessness. It’s All of Us

People who are chronically homeless—defined as being without shelter four times a year or more—and who often have addiction or mental health problems are well served by a philosophy called Housing First, which finds them what’s called permanent supportive housing that provides access to services as well as shelter. Until recently, even homeless advocates found this idea radical. Best practice was first to get people off drugs if they were addicted or on them if they were mentally ill—before they were eligible for housing. That’s not the state of the science anymore. “You basically come as you are,” Kushel says. “There is no assumption you’ll be clean and sober or take psychiatric medications. Once you’re in housing, the supportive services wrap around you.”

The trick, though, is that there has to be enough housing available to make all this happen. You need enough homes for people who can afford to rent or buy them, and then enough on top of that to provide room for people with vouchers—by definition below market rate—and permanent supportive units, by definition way below market rate. It’s expensive.

Complete article here–>