Bangalore – 922

The Bangalore Diaries

Started writing this in Bangalore when I was there a few days ago. Edited and published it on 05 Dec 19, from Mumbai.

So as I write this, I am at a Blue Tokai Coffee Shop at Indira Nagar, which to me will be among the top 5 places. Not Blue Tokai. I mean Blue Tokai is also nice. But Indira Nagar is dope. One of the top 5 localities to live in, in India.

Indira Nagar has everything that you may want. Wide roads, lined with trees on both sides, a mix of international and local businesses, offering you everything that you may want for life. There are cafes that offer healthy, organic food. There are coffee shops that offer you free wi-fi and uninterrupted long-hours of work. There are stores that sell from organic clothes to bicycling accessories to hard to find trinkets to electronics and what not! And on top of everything, the weather is just perfect. It could get hot but there are so many trees that you can take shelter under. There is footpaths that are not encroached by hawkers, bikes, and people. There are quiet lanes and bylanes and small gullies where you don’t have creepy people lurking in the shadows. There is fancy modern buildings and larger fancier row houses that put those bungalows in Delhi’s Sainik Farms to shame!

Shot on iPhone, by Saurabh Garg. More pics on this twitter thread.

Anyhow. So I was here for a TRS event. We had two filmmakers, one almost indie (Devashish Makhija) and another almost commercial (Hardik Mehta) talk about their idea of films and filmmaking. And this was our first event outside of Mumbai. We hoped to get some 50 guests but could only get 25-30. But then thanks to Devashish and Hardik, we made up for the empty seats with the quality of conversation between them. If you want to be a filmmaker, you HAVE to see the conversation. We’d try to put it on Youtube soon. Remind me in a few days if we don’t 😀

Devashish, Hardik in conversation with Shikha. Here’s a snapshot of the event. Photo by Anusha S.

So, while I was here for the event, I stayed back for two days to catch up with people that I needed to meet. In fact, I have been planning this for a while now. And a funny thing happened. I texted some 10-15 people and not one responded to the request to meet. This is the second time this has happened to me in the recent past. I really need to investigate the reasons. May be I don’t add enough value. Or may be people are genuinely busy. Or maybe I need to revisit how I work and operate. This entire “me being me” doesn’t work.

But then, from the ones that did make time to meet, I have to talk about meetings with S, M, and A.

S talked to me about life and work and was easily one of those few people that I automatically opened up to! While talking to her, I could talk about my insecurities, how my heroes seem to have fallen off their high pedestals, how I feel lost for most of my gurus are monsters, how I need to maintain a balance between a life I choose for myself and what I leave behind. It was easily one of the most mind-expanding conversations I’ve had.

M is a senior from MDI, has sold two startups and onto the third one. While talking to him, he spoke about what makes him decide when to jump in. He said till you get so obsessed with the idea that you can’t think of anything else, you MUST not jump onto it. Makes perfect sense. Just that I am not sure if this is applicable to me. As a human being, I am very very curious. To the point that I am a scatterbrain. But if I think about all the great people and the things they do. And they HAVE been obsessed with the ideas that they were working on. May be I need to think hard about my choices and all.

A has been one of my greatest supporters and with time, a friend that I wish lived in the same city as I. We first connected when #tnks came out (#note2self – must write more often – writing allows me to meet more people) and we’ve been in contact since. She is also a writer (see her work here). And a photographer (check her Instagram here). And one of the nicest people I know. So while talking to her, it dawned on me that I need to be better with the distribution. What this means is that today, once I share a piece once on twitter, I think my job is done and then I don’t do anything about it. Whereas, I’ve been told multiple times by multiple people that as a creator, my larger job is spread what I create. I can’t just write something and then hope that it will spread. As a “high agency” person (see this twitter thread), I need to take an active interest in distribution and make sure that everyone sees it. Especially in the times when Facebook and Google and other distribution channels obfuscate your content unless you pay them! We also talked about how she can work on her book more effectively. And I think I quite enjoy helping others. Well, who doesn’t 😀

The last thing that I wanted to do while I was in Bangalore is to try and meet Lucky Ali. Bangalore. Lucky Ali. How? Well, the gentleman lives there. And I know where’s his place. And I thought I would drop in unannounced and try to get a meeting out of him. And hope to get to write his biography (one of my life’s ambitions). But then more I thought about it, more I realized how insensitive and obtrusive it would be. I mean imagine someone walking into your home unannounced. How would you feel?

So yeah. That’s that. There were other smaller things there. Like the best butter dosa I’ve ever had in my life is from this place called Sri Udupi Park. I went back again and again to eat. I spotted this cafe that had organic food. The food was ok but loved the vibe. Then there was Jaypore – had like 5 shirts for men but priced very reasonably – I bought one of those 5.

In fact, Bangalore trip was like life in the slow lane and may I say, I loved it! Need to make more such trips! Until then, over and out 🙂

Post-Bangalore post-mortem post

I am just back from Bangalore. I was there for putting up a show for a client at Excon 2017 and since its a 7-day exhibition, I thought that I will do a million things while I am in Bangalore. The top few included…

meeting friends and almost friends
making new friends
exploring the city
click some pics
work with a friend on a book
work on my next book
eat properly and get fitter

And so on and so forth.

Guess how many of these did I do?

ZERO!

And why did I do nothing while I was there? No, time is not the culprit. After 7:30 / 8 most days, I had the rest of the evening and night to myself. And the reporting time the next day was at 8. And since I was leading the tram, I could actually come in by 9. So I had 12 hours each day to do all the things that I’ve listed above. But I could not.

Here’s a list of reasons.

1. Bad planning.

For starters, I was put up in a hotel that was in the middle of nowhere (about 20 KMs away from Bangalore). And most people I had to meet were reluctant to travel all the way.

Two things from this.

A, become so good, so valuable that people are willing to go through large quantums (quantum but added an s for effect) of trouble to get a sliver of time from you.
B, Plan well. For example, when you know that you are in a city that you know is notorious for traffic, try to be at a place that is accessible.

2. Energy.

By the time I spent 12 hours at the exhibition, I was so sapped that all I could do is sleep. And snore. And then drag yourself to work the next day.

Can this be fixed? Yes. I can work on my health and ensure that if I am up, I am full of energy. Most times I am but lot of times I am not. And I need to fix it. Health HAS to be the number 1 goal #in2018.

3. Team.

I am in the process of creating a team, a set of people that are aligned to the purpose that we as a group are supposed to serve. And deliver. That of entertaining the world in such amazing manner that it inspires others.

Now, to do so, I don’t need people who work for a salary. I don’t need people that stick on a list of holidays on their whiteboards. I need marshals that are aligned to the mission. And if not aligned well to the mission, then at least a part of their personal missions has to get delivered if they work with me and others.

Right now I have a few people that I think are in the zone. I need more. Are you the kinds? Help me. I am on 9819981337 / saurabh.garg@gmail.com.

4. My working style.

I get super emotional about my work. I want everything to work with clockwork precision. I want robots that stand as long as it is required. I want machines to not overheat, to remain intact, to perform to the capacity and never burn out.

While its possible most times, I know its tough to expect this all the time. After all there is a huge element of technology and people dependence. While you take every care to ensure that things don’t go wrong (get the best crew, get the best material etc etc) there are times when you cant control things.

And when things go out of control, I get unnecessarily harsh at people. I am rude to the point that I am amazed at myself. Reminds of that experiment where they made ordinary people cruel by giving them a role of a jailer.

At this exhibition, I was the jailer and because I thought people were slacking, I fought with no less than 10 people. This included my team, my outsourced staff, other agencies that were working there and other people at random. I continue to believe that I was right in fucking their happiness but may be I was wrong. After all 10 people cant be wrong. No? Whatever it was, I know it has to change. I need to work on it or I will not reach anywhere.

The event otherwise as perfect. Apart from one time when the band was to play and the mics’ cable came out loose. Of course we checked it right before the show but if a cable has to come out, it will come out. Wish I could ensure that as well.

5. Raison d’être
So, why do we work? For love!

Why do I talk about this? At the exhibition, I repeatedly saw people work for money. And not for love. And to save money, I saw people do things that they would otherwise not do. And that’s not cool. I believe that money is important. But the mission has to be larger than just a hefty bank balance.

I am the kinds that is ok to lose money to deliver a great job. Of course for a client that gives me the freedom to do things. The idea is, we must be able to do great work and charge the money that will make us happy. And find clients that are willing to pay the kind of money we want, to allow us to do great work! Its a vicious circle but I am sure we can find an opening.

6. The silver lining

During the event, at one of the conversations that I had with the client (PV) on the side was about life purpose and all that. I realised that my life’s purpose is to entertain people and do it so well that I become an inspiration to others. And in the process, grow as a human being. And then use the money I’ve made to inspire others. Its still shorter than making a dent in the universe (like Steve) or trying to save the humanity (like Elon) but its something larger than myself. And worth chasing.

See this slide (from my companies’ creds deck).

C4E‘s masterplan

I just need to work on it.

7. Exit stage left

When the thing ended, I was out of there in 5 minutes. I did not say my good byes. I did not hang out to chill with the team. I did not want to get a group pic clicked (but I had to). I dint go out to grab a beer or something. DS tells me that its not cool. And I agree.

But the thing is, I hate to say goodbye.

And then there is post-event depression that hits you so hard that you don’t know what happened. DS said it best when he said that a minute before the show ends, you are the master and you control lives and times of the crew and the event. And right after the event is over, you are nobody. It sucks. Thing is, I get super emotional about what I do. SC says that once an event is over and you get into a flight (or a car), you move on. To the next event. Or the next thing. Like, I shouldn’t be writing this post but focusing on what will the next one be like.

And third, I feel that once I have delivered what I was supposed to deliver, I can take off and die in my misery of an event getting over. Or I can go and sleep. Or do whatever. I am no longer on the client’s clock.

***

Now it has happened. I cant undo it. But I can take lessons. And these are things that I will do – no matter what.

Figure out a minute to minute plan of my time. If not a minute by minute, an hour by hour for sure. I will start doing this from the next trip (that starts tonight).
Get anal about how and where I spend my time. And try to earn time. How do I do that? By putting in place processes that save me time. By getting people who can do things that save me time.
Try to detach emotions from work. I am not sure if I want to do this. But lets see how it happens.

In all, this trip was a clear case of setting expectations too high. Going forward, I need to lower down the expectations and then try to exceed those. Or may be not. One life. If you don’t hustle hard enough, why are you alive?

That’s about it. Until next time, over and out.

P.S.: Here are some pics from the exhibition. Do give feedback.

Notes from trip to Bangalore

I am starting a new thing today. Dont know if this is new, I may have done this in the past as well. But what the heck. Here it is.

So I went to Bangalore last weekend. I had one piece of agenda. Meet a couple of people who I wanted to invest with (and before you ask me, it is not a big investment. Less than 5 lakhs).

Apart from one meeting scheduled with them, I had left my plan open. I had 48 hours in Bangalore and here is what I did there.

In no order.

1. Met a fan-turned-friend-turned-crush-turned-friend. Have met her on few more occasions before this and unlike others who you meet once in a while and lose touch, have stayed in contact with this one. More than anything else, she is one of those few people who believe in me. I know come hell or high water, she will stand by me. Thank you, D.

2. Met the guys I was supposed to invest with. Two dudes, both older than I, run the startup. A great mix of technical competence and business acumen. And since both are older that me, they are wiser and more experienced than me.

So I spent large part of a day with them. And while I was with them, I realised a few amazing things. Here is a list of top three takeaways.

While they have the vision, they suck at explaining that vision. Someone has to work with them to craft the vision. And why is important? Because most early hires and investors and customers will buy into that vision. So, they need someone to handhold them with that.
Founders are a different breed. They are clear about the mission they are on. And even if they are wrong, they dont accept inputs and advice on the face value. Either you have to have reputation to change their opinion or you bring in some anecdotes that make sense to them. Or you present some data. In my case I figured something else – I threw them a chain of logic (like A follows B, B follows C and so on and so forth and they seemed to understand).
Its a long long term game that most founders are in. Some get lucky to reach their destination fast. But most sort of fall along the way. The idea is to create enduring value and make wealth along the way.

#note2self: I need to meet more founders and get into more intimate discussions and write more. Why? Helps me get clarity. And allows me to create content that helps others.

3. Met a friend / classmate / distant cousin for breakfast. We went to this place that’s been themed as a bicycle cafe. Ok place. Slow service. And while they took forever to get our breakfast, I did some digging and found that its co-owned by TI Cycles. It reeked of an idea that someone like me could’ve cooked up and served to a rich person on a platter.

#note2self. I was thinking, if I decide that I dont want to work on events, there’s nothing else that I can do. Scary. No? More on this in some other blogpost someday.

4. Met another fan turned friend. This one is like the first one. Will stand by me through thick and thin. I wish I could spend more time with her. Thank you, A/T. If you are reading this, so sorry for making you wait. I will come back to Bangalore soon and spend more time with you. Promise.

5. Met a friend who runs a fairly well-funded and a “visible” startup. At the same meeting, met another acquaintance that runs a startup in the events space. Talked to them about variety of things, including gossip on other startups, how to leave your mark (after you are gone), the future (retirement plans), aspirations and what not. Super engaging conversations. The kinds that make you high even without any whiskey or something. Plus talking to the events dude made me realise that its still Day 1 for events as a business. And if that is indeed the case, its such an amazing time to be around!

6. Met friends from MDI for dinner / drinks. As always, super conversations. Played pool with a stranger and he beat me like I were a kid. And he played with just one hand most of the time.

#note2self. Become at least a pro-am level player so that I get to win most games that I get to play when I am chilling out. I mean what are the odds that I will bump into Bata at a club in Mumbai?

7. Met Shom. I can write an entire book on the two odd hours I spent with Shom. He is as cool, as extreme, as great, as super as they come. He can write, sing, play guitar, paint, code, think of business ideas, do startups, roll a perfect one, compose and what not. He is literally the Mike Ross that I want!

He is amazing and little quirky and little all over the place — he is exactly like me when I was his age. I HAVE to get him to work with me. Dont know how. If you are reading this, Shom, please, lets do this!

Apart from that I did things like sleeping at the airports, spending a fortune on numerous cab drives within Bangalore and splurging money on things as frivolous as donuts, lounges and airport showers.

But then it was a great break from the daily rigmarole. I need to take these breaks more often. And for that I need more opportunities to engage with smart brains. #note2self. Create more opportunities.

Over and out.

P.S.: Thanks to VG for instigating me to write. I dont know what I’d do without him.

P.P.S: While I was editing this, I realised that random people (that are not related to you by blood or proximity) have had such a huge role to play in my life that its not funny. Thank you, Universe.
P.P.P.S.: Not happy with how this post has come out. May be I will improve as I go along. Feedback?

Delhi to Bangalore and Back

So for my birthday, I decided to disappear again (last year, I went for Vipassana). Why would you do something like that dude? I think I just wanted to hide. I cant handle all the sudden attention for the day. I mean I dont mind attention but then I cant tolerate how fast the attention disappears after the special day.

Anyways, so I went to Bangalore. Of all the places in the world, why would I choose Bangalore? Because I have this very special friend there. I trust her and her family and I know if I am with her, I will be left alone and I can do what I really wanted to do in these few days. Then I had grand plans of borrowing her car and driving to some hill station in Karnataka of Kerala. And I wanted to read, write, think, laze around, catch on sleep, do things that I like – walk, window shop, click random pics etc. I made copious amount of notes and I am hoping to jot them down (digitally) tomorrow.

I met up with a few friends that I hadnt met since ages. And a friend that I have been talking on the Internet for some months now. And a senior from MDI who I am enamored by. I am trying to coerce him into becoming my mentor. Second after VK.

BTW I loved Bangalore. The weather is very pleasant. Imagine, I was walking around Bangalore at 11 in the afternoon. There are ample roads and footpaths to walk around. Most of these are covered with trees. And there are surprisingly very less beggars. Those tales of racial slurs and attacks sounded distant as whatever few people I interacted with were warm and hospitable.

Most of my opinions tend to be colored anyways. I loved the time I spent at Bangalore. And I think I need to do this every three months.