Achiever a.k.a. Steve Jobs

August 24, 2011 would go down in the history as the day a giant warrior decided to put down his armour and sit at the sides to help other fight the war for him. Steven Paul “Steve” Jobs announced his resignation as the CEO of Apple Inc. and brought down curtains over an era which had all the required ingredients of a Bollywood pot-boiler. From the founding years of Apple Inc. in the late 1970s with Steve Wozniak, Mike Markkula, and others to his being ousted in 1985 by the then Board of Directors of Apple to his reinstatement as the CEO in 1997 till the time he decided to hang his boots, his life has been a roller-coaster. I fumbled upon an amazing collection of his quotes during all these years (http://blogs.wsj.com/digits/2011/08/24/steve-jobss-best-quotes/) and would try to understand the meaning of a few here.

On Technology

“But it’s a disservice to constantly put things in this radical new light — that it’s going to change everything. Things don’t have to change the world to be important.”

Through Apple, Jobs never tried to change the world or the mannerism. He brought change in the rules of the game, the perception of the people and the levels of imagination that they could fathom. Apple never invented, it merely innovated – but it made sure those innovations were the best.

On Design

"Design is a funny word. Some people think design means how it looks. But of course, if you dig deeper, it's really how it works." 

Whatever your domain, you have to appreciate Apple's impact on the field of design. Apple built a mastery of design so deep, it reshaped the entire field. Would you say the Gap's reshaped textiles? No. Would you say McDonald's has reshaped nutrition? No again!

On His Products

“We made the buttons on the screen look so good you’ll want to lick them.”

The Mac OS X was such a revolutionary operating system, that it redefined the OS industry completely. The look and feel of the MAC OS was so refreshing and GUI so advanced that it made the user be in complete awe.

“It will go down in history as a turning point for the music industry. This is landmark stuff. I can’t overestimate it!”

Apple changed the music industry and established itself as their messiah. Flogged by the piracy menace, the music industry breathed revival with the iTunes store which made possible the sale of individual soundtracks. Result - Customer happy and the industry on its way towards prosperity.

On Business

“Innovation has nothing to do with how many R&D dollars you have. It’s not about money. It’s about the people you have, how you’re led, and how much you get it.”

When Apple came up with its Macintosh, IBM was spending many times more. But it was never money for Apple. It was always recognizing the right opportunity, the right market and the right partners. From understanding the commercial potential of Xerox PARC's mouse-driven graphical user interface, to the requirement of a dedicated music player and from making the world believe that buttons were cumbersome, to re-establishing the market of tablet PCs, Apple was almost never wrong.

On His Competitors

“The only problem with Microsoft is they just have no taste. They have absolutely no taste."

Great work doesn't just require legions of bean counters, or armies of willing muscle — it requires the capacity to make cultural judgments: in a word, taste. We might just be approaching the tackiest point in history known to man. In a world where customer service can barely pronounce organization’s name (and they theirs), a world where big-box stores barely even bother to tidy up the over-crammed shelves, a world where things get cheaper and cheaper — but look and feel like they were dreamt up by the dream team of Frankenstein, Simon Cowell, and the Wolfpack — a tiny morsel of taste is probably a competitive super weapon. Apple did that!

On Predicting Future

“I’ll always stay connected with Apple. I hope that throughout my life I’ll sort of have the thread of my life and the thread of Apple weave in and out of each other, like a tapestry. There may be a few years when I’m not there, but I’ll always come back.”

Jobs, while stating this line in 1985 when he was ousted from Apple Inc., knew very well his potential, what Apple meant to him and what he meant to Apple. 12 years later he proved it. This is a perfect example of believing in your abilities, persevering towards excellence and clearly defining your goals no matter how much adverse the situation may become.

On Life

“I think if you do something and it turns out pretty good, then you should go do something else wonderful, not dwell on it for too long. Just figure out what’s next.”

The secret of success of Jobs and thus, Apple Inc. lay in the fact that he never rested on laurels too long and always tried discovering new opportunities. Apple has always been at the forefront of technological innovation. From the Macintosh to the iPod, from the iPhone to the iPad, it has been constantly innovating. We all know what happened to Xerox. Jobs made sure it never happens to Apple.

Last but not the Least

"We didn't build the Mac for anybody else. We built it for ourselves."

It's the received wisdom that Jobs never listened to his customers — and he'd often make a point of saying so. But how many other CEOs do you know that were listening so intently that they responded to the average fanboy's (or troll's) emails? Job's goal in paying obsessive attention to all things Apple wasn't merely to "listen" but to discern people's wildest expectations, and then firmly take a quantum leap past them, instead of merely discovering the lowest-common-denominator of what people wanted most today, and then pandering to it. Leapfrogging your customers means creating new markets, not just new products. And Apple's created and rejuvenated market after market by applying the logic above.

In conclusion, I would only like to state that these may be the best lessons for some, and not so for others. But they do showcase one of the best corporate minds this planet has ever seen.

The Boomerang Theory

It was my end term exam and I was sitting on the desk, flipping pages of the question paper which had small case-lets varying from interviews to frameworks and theories. What was asked from us was to come up with our own versions of the shared literature. And for the theory build-up, following was what I came up.

boo·mer·ang

noun /ˈbo͞oməˌraNG/ 
boomerangs, plural

•  A curved flat piece of wood that can be thrown so as to return to the thrower, traditionally used by Australian Aborigines as a hunting weapon

A boomerang is a throwing device known to have been invented by the aborigines. Its main purpose is understood to be used as a tool for hunting, although it has become a part of modern sports with a lot of competitions being organized for it. The fact for which the boomerang is known for is its ability to swerve back to the thrower during flight. This property makes it an unusual weapon for hunting.

My theory takes into account the flight trajectory of the boomerang and tries defining the addressal of a situation in the corporate world. I bifurcate the path of a boomerang in flight in three stages, namely:

1          .       The Throw

2          .       The Hit

3          .       The Return

Based upon these three stages I’d try to resolve a situation.


The Throw

Any problem when approached should be done in a manner such that it receives the right amount of attention and impetus from one. Just like throwing the boomerang, if the force with which it is sent off in air is not appropriate, it might not attain flight. Moreover, it is very important that the manner with which the problem is approached is correct. If during the launch, the angle of release of the boomerang is not correct, it might return back in a wrong and wayward manner and might even hurt the thrower in process. Thus, both these things should be kept in mind while approaching the problem and addressing it.

The Hit

The crux of solving a problem lies in the accuracy of the solution and its impact. Again drawing analogy with the boomerang, if the target is not hit with required precision, results might not be achieved and another throw might be required. If there is inaccuracy in impact, the results obtained might be half baked and inefficient. Moreover, for readressal, another throw would entail spending of energy and resources which is wastage when the same could’ve been achieved through a single throw. Hence, the hit should be accurate and precise to achieve required results.

The Return

This is the most important part of the flight of the boomerang and lends it its characteristic. Thus, any shortfall in this renders the boomerang useless. Here, I’d like to compare this with the feedback that is required after the solution is provided. This is because it is the feedback which reinforces the effectiveness of the solution and also identifies any faults in the provided solution. If the boomerang fails to return to the thrower, following might be the reasons:

           a)      The force of the throw is not apt i.e. the problem was not approached correctly

           b)      The angle of the throw was not correct i.e. the manner of approach was faulty

           c)       The flight was interrupted by the wind i.e. impact of external factors

Thus, all of these tell us the impact of the solution to the problem. Any event of no-return would require us to either fetch the boomerang or to use another one to hit the target again, which can be understood yet again as wastage of resources. Thus, a correct feedback ensures the effectiveness of the provided solution and avoidance of wastage of resources.

Thus, one can approach a problem using the analogy with the flight of the boomerang and achieve better results.

"To Porter, With Love"

Michael E. Porter is a well known name in the field of strategic management, more so with the students’ fraternity. Although he has given valuable contribution to the field of strategy through his research papers and elaborate models, one thing which has given him the cult status is the Five –Forces model. Every MBA student swears by it and becomes a skilled proponent of it by the time he/she has spent a couple of months in the B-School. Combined with the SWOT and PESTEL analysis, Porter’s Five Forces model forms such a formidable trinity, which is capable of overhauling the most stubborn of the cases with ease and aplomb.

The Five Force model is defined to understand the behaviour of all the stakeholders onto a business and their related effects. It is divided into five areas which are:

                  1.       Competitive Rivalry within Industry

                  2.       Bargaining Power of Buyers

                  3.       Bargaining Power of Suppliers

                  4.       Threat of Substitute Products

                  5.       Threat of New Entrants

With me also being one of the (un)lucky students being imparted the skills and techniques of the corporate world, I could not stop myself from bringing this sacred piece of knowledge when writing this blog. But don’t you worry, ‘cos my premise is not at all management related which you might get bored of. Instead, it talks about something so acute that I believe it’s time we started looking at the problem with the same perspective. My inspiration has been a sudden flurry of events which happened in the past couple of months and made me sit up and take note. Firstly, one of my dear friend had a breakup with his girlfriend of yore and secondly, I had the privilege of watching Pyaar ka Punchnama (a satire at the current lot of Indian males which bestow their loyalties to their (to be or not to be) partners, and I strictly mean the opposite sex here, and the complexities they face erstwhile). Both these have forced me to analyze the situation, and as always I take refuge in the Five Forces model and would try and find a reason and a possible solution to the problem. 

Note: The analysis is from the point of view of the poor males like us, so it is requested that the fairer sex may not feel offended but take pity on us in future course of their actions.

1.     Internal Rivalry

This is a common scene everywhere. With the sex ratio of the country hovering at around 1000:940, the poor 60 males end up being with no one. Add to this the literacy rates in the females in the country and the problem raises manifolds. So we often find 3-4 friends wanting to appease the same damsel. What does it result into? Well, yes off course – internal rivalry!

2.     Bargaining Power of Buyer

Who is the buyer in all of this? The lady, off course, who’s (so called) love is being wanted here. Does she bargain? Oh, yes! She would throw tantrums, would act pricey and would ask for gigantic favours. Yes, she would not ask for stars, not because she cares, but because she knows you can’t get them. So ask her out on a date, and you’ll suddenly find yourself making plethora of trade-offs, be it the crappy movie you never wanted to see, or the hours of shopping you so detested or the bill of that expensive restaurant which would’ve bought you the new PlayStation game!

3.     Bargaining Power of Supplier

All this while, we paint the beautiful ladies in shades of grey and forget about the demonic marketers who sling the bait and wait for us to get caught (maybe, that’s why I’m doing my majors in marketing – time to pay back!). Be it Valentine’s Day, Friendship Day, New Year, (pseudo) Anniversaries, Birthdays, etc. these marketers would flood the market with stuff which the ladies would fall for resulting in a burnt hole in your pockets!

4.     Threat of New Entrants

This is the most evident problem that you face. Always living under the constant fear of being replaced by another kid on the block, keeps you all terrified and up on your toes. The worst part is that all the foundation work that is set by you is ignored and a new construction happens in no time, bulldozing your patiently constructed hut of hopes!

5.     Threat of Substitutes

Last but surely not the least is the threat of substitutes. You may ignore it, but you can never write it off. With the government recognizing the gay community throught its 377 Act, suddenly young people have started discovering their preference they never thought existed. So, you can’t be sure that the girl who was walking with you, hand in hand a month back, has another of her kind keeping her company now!

In conclusion, I would like to say that one should be beware of all the above stated factors before plunging into a relationship now days. And sincere gratitude to Mr. Porter, you bailed me out yet again!

E-Commerce: Is India Ready?

It is not very long when something known as personal computers came up on the horizon of the Indian market. A computer back then was an aspirational product. People having a desktop were considered wealthy and laptops were things from across the seven seas. Suddenly the scenario changed. Economies of Scale metamorphosed the entire industry. And then came the internet! It not only revolutionized the way we go information but also the way we interacted with the world around us. Social networking was the next big thing. And now it is the turn of e-commerce. The new age Indian has the moolah, likes to spend and is tech-savvy. Perceiving e-commerce as an assured channel, is the thought correct? Let’s find out.

According to a report by The Internet and Mobile Association of India (IMAI) in association with IMRB International, e-commerce in the country will reach figures of close to INR 45,000 by the year 2011. The industry has grown almost 500% since 2007 which is a promising sign. The online travel industry has been the biggest gainer of all with 80% of the business happening for it. IRCTC, the e-commerce arm of Indian Railways has been the biggest draw while the likes of Yatra.com, MakeMyTrip.com, etc. have also gained much. The customer has shown that he would like to make his travel plans at the comfort of his home, even if it resulted in a miniscule fee from the service providers. This trend has been fostered by the advent of low cost airlines and ever increasing dynamic and always-on-the-move nature of the urban consumer. This justifies the growth rate of above 50% for the industry. Domestic air-travel followed by train-travel and then the rest form the overall composition for this sector.

On the contrary, other sectors such as e-tailing, financial services, digital download and other services account for a mere 20% odd. E-tailing and financial services manage around 7-8% while the rest going to the digital downloads and other services. One is hard-pressed to question the reason for this anomaly. Why are there such a high percentage of sales for the travel industry, while the others still struggle? What are the reasons behind this? Is it going to change in the coming future? Has the Indian consumer embraced e-commerce or is it still a bud?

If the percentage share for each sector is kept out of reckoning and the traffic is taken as an indicator, then the picture does sound rosy for the Indian e-commerce industry. The industry has had a nightmarish experience in the past and has now woken up to the demands. The second coming of the Indian e-commerce has infact been quite profitable for the players. According to K Vaitheeswaran, CEO and founder of Indiaplaza.com, “when we started selling in 1999, the internet population in India was about 3 million, and the market was too small. Today, with about 70 million internet users in India, the market seems to be ready.” The advent of 3G services as well as impetus of banks towards electronic transactions has also heralded a new era and given life to the industry.

In the words of Kunal Bahl, CEO and founder of SnapDeal.com, “with more options available online and with lives becoming busier, the recent years have seen a resurgence of e-commerce in India.” Today, the Indian e-commerce industry is fuelled by the shrinking of available time to the consumer and the added comfort which online purchase brings. Venture Capitalists and Angel Investors have started funding more and more start-ups which focus on the virtual world. “New ventures need to have great partnership between strong professionals and strong incubators, entrepreneurial investors with great ideas and connection with funds”, says Pearl Uppal, CEO and co-founder of FashionandYou.com. Increased trust in credit cards has also bolstered the industry, and with the introduction of other payment facilities like Debit card payment, EMI and Cash-on-Delivery have made it so much easier still.

But even with this tremendous growth rate, why has there been a slow rise in the e-tailing sector? Blame it to the age old perception of t-ouch-and-feel by the Indian consumer. E-Tailing comprises of buying consumer items such as apparels, cameras, computers, home & kitchen appliances, flowers, toys and gifts online. All these products require functional assessment by the customer before decision towards purchase is made. This has resulted in the snail-pace of this sector and has resulted in the market of deal offerings. According to John Kuruvilla, CEO and founder of Taggle.com, “People all over the world love deals. India is no different and Taggle is working hard in making what was once considered decisions by customers into impulse decisions.” On one hand these have brought increase in the sales patterns, it has also reduced margins for these retailers. For the industry where customer acquisition costs are the highest, these low margins do hurt big time.

So what is to be done? Well, the answer is both simple and complex. Increase in global players would add further credibility to the industry. Moreover, with their established operations and logistics, a better structure will come to the business. Another thing to be noted is the fact that continuous focus has to be given to online payments, because without them, e-commerce would cease to be commerce and would become a directory of services.

As of now all growth factors such as demographics, economy, changing lifestyles and exposure to new ideas is in India’s favour. With focus on tier-2 and tier-3 cities in times to come, the picture would become rosier. So is India ready yet? Yes, it is and soundly on course.

Sales Graph: Affect of Festivals

All over the world, festivals are usually boom time for consumption. People know they have to spend, and they want to spend. All this makes them plan for this expenditure, as a result making these seasons as perfect barometers for measuring product likeability in the market. If spending doesn’t happen even at festival time, it is pretty bad news and a quite precise measure of how good or bad the consumer economy is, the same manner in which the prices of bellwether stocks tell a story.

Last year, the retail sales in America closely reflected the consumer sentiments and indicated what may be coming. If people decided to economize on that most sacred ritual that happens just once a year, of buying Christmas presents for family and friends, they were obviously really too broke or too miserable to spend or probably did not feel confident about the future to part with their money they had. That spelled trouble for all those economies around the world that exported to America.

As we ease towards Diwali this year, our export-oriented companies and stockmarkets are shaken up by the events in the world outside that they are directly connected to and “recession” is everybody’s favourite topic of conversation. The media also magnifies every bit of the uncomfortable news. The “is Indian economy coupled or decoupled with the world economy?” debate keeps getting intensified. The “coupled” school predicts unavoidable doom and the “not-so coupled” school says farmers weren’t globally connected yet and most of India didn’t invest in stokmarket directly or through mutual funds or pension funds.

Most consumers do not have regular jobs – they have livelihoods, so it is not merely a question of counting how many job layoffs there have been or how many companies might not handle out salaries in time. The concern would be the affect it would have onto the whole value chain. If the sales get affected, transport would decrease. This would affect the truck drivers and people accompanying them, and the dhabas in return too.

Thus we find that this is the essential nature of more than half of India’s consumption economy. Lots of people earning a little each adds up to a lot. Lots of people spending a little each that adds up to a lot. The other half of the consumption economy is a smaller number of people who earn a reasonable amount of money and spend a reasonable amount of money. Then there is a relative handful that is really rich and big-spending. Ironically, the latter are the one’s which are the most hurt in a recession like scenario.

So in the midst of all this swirling fog of speculation and uncertainty, nobody quite knows how bad the situation is. Unsure about how consumer income was being affected or how consumers felt about spending, one can only rely on the fact that in India everything and its opposite are all true. Many sales managers get spooked and try to negotiate sales targets downwards. All this makes the Diwali sales all the more important which would be the best test to gauge the market sentiments.

It has been seen in the past that the Diwali season is always good for sales except for those who follow the stock markets religiously. For marketers, Dussera and Diwali are especially important. Unlike the other more regional festivals like Pongal or Ganesh Chaturthi, which are celebrated with varying degrees of importance and enthusiasm in different parts of the country, Dussera and Diwali are more or less pan-India. While they may have different stories and rituals around them, they still have some standard features: ten days of Dussera festivities and praying to Lakshmi for prosperity at Diwali. The entire social nature of these festivals is nearly standard right across the country. Juxtapose it with the already in place expansive mindset, and you have the perfect recipe for sale. And if at that time, consumers aren’t spending, it’s a direct indicator of how bad things actually are. In good years this is when one makes the upside on his sales.

Companies and retailers reinforce this scheme of things. It takes two to tango as far as shaping consumption behaviour is concerned. Brightly lit seductive displays, lots of festival offers and discounts, heavy advertising – all work together with the consumer’s with desire and habitual plan to spend at this time and reinforce each other. It’s hard not to feel the electricity in the air, and it’s hard not to give into a little bit of indulgence, whichever way we may choose to define it. Even soap and shampoo companies will tell that people upgrade to a higher priced set of brands during this season. Colour cosmetics sell more, even Rs. 5 nail enamel.

Lazy marketers may well see this season as the mainstay of sales, but the more enlightened ones have steady sales throughout the year with the “third quarter” spike being the difference between a good year and a great one. As modern retailers increase in number and as television soaps show us many different ways in which to celebrate festivals, there will be an even greater consumption push at festival times. There will be remixes, retro and rediscovered festivals – because we have so many of them, and they have been historically planned in such perfect way as far as cash-flow planning goes, the festival-linked consumption ride has just begun!

MSD: The Story of a Common (Super)man

The Achievement: Transformed a team which had delivered its worst performance in a World Cup-knocked out in the group stage in 2007-into world champions with minimal changes and demonstrated success in just six months.

He is not the best batsman. He is probably not the best wicketkeeper India can have. Yet he turned out to be better than all of these - MS Dhoni is the best team builder and hence the most effective leader in the cricketing world. He transformed a team of champions into a champion team.

Even in April 2007 - the lowest point of Indian cricket in the recent times-the team was packed with individual stellar performers. Tendulkar, Ganguly, Dravid, Sehwag, Kumble.... But collectively, the team wasn't firing. It had ignobly exited the ICC Champions Trophy in 2006 and was thrashed by South Africa in the same year. It was like an office team that had the most experienced and the best-paid professionals, but was not able to perform collectively. What do you do when you are either a part or head of such a team?

The biggest career lesson from Dhoni's conduct is the art of reposing faith in youngsters. Dhoni will not pick and drop you without giving you a decent run. "Dhoni has picked up his team and backed them over a long period. This is a remarkable quality I saw in KV Kamath too," says K Ram Kumar, executive director, ICICI Bank.

The Lesson: Talent and temperament do not always come together, but a great leader can help nurture one of the two.

Dhoni also brings an unusually high degree of composure-in contrast to, say, Shahid Afridi. Think of a lost opportunity like a dropped catch. Dhoni would react to it saying the catch is gone, focus on the next ball. This kind of emotional balance is critical to command loyalty and draw extraordinary performance from your colleagues. The best thing to learn from Dhoni is to remain in control of a situation. One seldom finds him panicking. People look at the body language of the leader. Dhoni is always in charge of the situation-whether he is winning or losing. Leadership trainers don't tire extolling the virtues of emotional quotient (EQ ) over intelligence quotient (IQ). Dhoni exemplifies EQ.

"A leader like him lets people finish and be responsible for their part; defines success in terms of the whole team; creates a feeling of belonging. This was evident all through the World Cup and contributed the most to their win," says Nina Chatrath, principal (leadership & talent consulting) at executive search firm Korn/Ferry. The fact that Dhoni came from a small town and was put in charge of a team full of seniors helped him rely more on EQ. Dhoni has proved that irrespective of where you come from, you can conquer the world if you believe in yourself.

The greatest learning from the World Cup is that business is not the only source of management and career lessons. To start with, the Indian team had a clear goal that is shared and owned by the entire team. The players were prepared to develop the necessary attitudes and skills to beat the competition at every stage, particularly from the quarter-final onwards. The team, led by Dhoni, was able to mix and match its resources basket according to contextual requirements.

Rediscovering Salman Khan: The Eternal Bachelor

It was 10 am and the PVR gallery was full and brimming with excited people. The occasion was Eid and the release of Bodyguard, Salman Khan’s new flick with Kareena Kapoor. By Saturday, the news had started making rounds that the movie had broken all records and had registered a whopping INR 20 crores by then, biggest in the history of bollywood, much higher than Khan’s previous Dabangg and Amir’s Three Idiots. This release makes a hat-trick of Salman’s hits this season and him the most bankable star as of now in the Hindi film industry. So what exactly has happened to him? Has he finally found the right formula for the Indian audience which the industry has been searching for all these years? Or is it just a fad, with Salman being at the right place at the right time?

Let’s go back a little in the history of Salman and try to unearth some facts. The first son of Salim and Salma Khan, Salman was born on the 27^th of December, 1965. He started his career with a small role in 1988 movie named Biwi Ho To Aisi. But success was received through the major hit Maine Pyaar Kiya in 1989 opposte Bhagyashri. This followed a roller coaster career spawning more than two decades which saw movies like Pathar Ke Phool, Andaz Apna Apna, Hum Apke hain Kaun, Karan Arjun, Judwa, Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (which won him his first ever Filmfare award as the Best Supporting Actor), Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam, Tere Naam, Mujhse Shaadi Karogi, No Entry, Partner, etc. But the most important thing about all this was that the number of hits was very less compared to the number of movies Salman did, and also majority were multi-cast movies. But the year 2008 saw a change in fortunes with Wanted turning out to be a grand hit. Although this was followed by a lull for some time with the likes of Main Aurr Mrs. Khanna, London Dreams and Veer bombing at the box office. But since the release of Dabangg in 2010, Salman has given three consecutive hits with Ready and Bodygaurd adding to the list.

So what has happened post Dabangg? One thing which is very evident is the maturity that Salman has attained. He seems to be more responsible and knows what he’s speaking in public. Maybe the days of the brash and arrogant Salman are things of the past. Social scientist Shiv Vishwanathan believes the secret of Salman’s popularity lies in his ability to combine machismo and irreverence, innocence and mischievousness. “He combines opposites effortlessly,” he says. Adding on he says that Salman makes no claim of being an intellectual, which gains him immediate acceptance with the masses and adds to his charm.

Another angle which explains the actor’s success is the timing of the kind of movies he’s a part of. According to distributor Sanjay Mehta, in the past decade, the film industry was dominated by feel-good family dramas, love stories and naughty comedies. “Salman was the first to spot the shortage of action films and its possible demands. With Wanted and Dabangg, he reinvented himself as an all-action hero who also delivers one-liners and makes people laug,” he adds. The actor’s reinvention as an action star became possible after the regular men of muscle – Sunny Deol, Sanjay Dutt, Ajay Devgun and Akshay Kumar – recast themselves as funny-faced comics and uneasy romantics. The new Salman filled the gap. It might be contested that he was always at home in action flicks (Garv, 2003), but with wanted and Dabangg, he repositioned himself as industries top action hero.

Another fact which favoured the actor was the return of single-theatre kind of cinema which had lost its existence. In the wake of the new found intellectualism in the new breed of film-makers inspired by the likes of Scorsese, Tarantino, Nolan, etc. the line between art and commercial cinema had started to merge. This resulted in the south Indian and Bhojpuri cinema catching the attention of the not-so-urban India. The multiplexes were not able to serve the costs of the mega-budget romantic flicks and thus the need for returning back to the age old hero-heroine-villain-action-music formula arose. Coincidentally, Salman’s Wanted matched the audience expectations and voila – renaissance was declared!

But it remains to be seen how long Salman is able to fend off scares from the other biggies of the tinsel town. Action movies are back and with a bang. Ajay Devgun has already tasted success through Singham, Amir is working for Dhoom 3, Shah Rukh is almost ready with R.A.One while Hrithik is also working for Agneepath and Krissh 2. The audience has started perceiving Salman as someone who’d not disappoint them and who promises run-of-the-mill entertainer with complete masala. Television anchoring through the likes of Dus Ka Dum and Big Boss has only helped Salman strengthen his fan base. His improved mannerism has won him more friends and better stature. Appointment as the brand ambassador of IIFA is another justification of the same.

Hoping Salman will continue to entertain as he is doing right now and does not commit faults which hampered his career in the past. We’ll believe he’s committed to provide just that to his audience now, and as Salman proclaims, “Ek baar jo maine commitment kar di, to mai apni bhi nahi sunta,” we’ll take his words.