’70 years on, Norgay and Hillary’s sons unite to celebrate Himalayan feat..” Times of India, May 29th At 11:30 a.m. on May 29, 1953, Edmund Hillary of New Zealand, and Tenzing Norgay, a Sherpa of Nepal, become the first explorers to reach the summit of Mount Everest, which at 29,035…
Wagging Our Own Tail..!
My daughter was furious as she walked into the room. “What are you doing dad?” she exclaimed. “Wagging the dog’s tail!” I replied very matter of fact, as I physically held my bewildered dog and forcibly shook his tail. “But why?” she asked. “Trying to make it happy,” I said….
Business by the Good Book..!
Many books have been written on how to make millions, but few of these truths come from the most successful bestseller of all; the Bible. My uncle, an Indian Air-Force fighter pilot, who went on to become one of the most senior officers in our air-force, which meant being at…
Handling Obligations Joyfully..!
It troubled me some years ago: They were an old couple next door, who had come to me, trying to sell their land, and with a little experience in having done the same some years back, I was able to help them fetch nearly thirty lakhs more. That was indeed…
Manipur and the Blind Eye Technique..!
Watching the terrible atrocities committed against Christians in Manipur left me shocked; churches burnt, priests killed, and terror-stricken women and innocent children fleeing from ruthless rioters! But my mind was jerked to the Depths of Hell where I saw a German with a small toothbrush mustache, looking where I’d just…
Rahul’s Small Nudge..!
Rahul Gandhi’s popularity is on the rise, and I’d like to imagine, it could have been a small nudge from his mother. Maybe it went like this: “Rahul, please don’t think that you are the inheritor of the PM’s chair!” “But ma, my great- grandfather, grandmother and father all became…
The Two Thousand Rupee Note..!
A few weeks after the nation was reeling under the shock of demonetization, like a white flag appearing from a trench, after a pitched battle, the two- thousand- rupee note appeared. It was like a truce declared between digital payment and cash. Truce, because though it was legal tender, still…
To Sir With Love..!
My schoolmates have started a WhatsApp group and every now and then we wish a teacher a happy birthday, and in doing so realize how they played an important role in our lives. Till last year, a ninety-six-year old teacher of mine, called me practically every month, just to say…
The Trust Factor in Negotiations..!
Was intrigued the other day to hear that someone was going to speak on how to negotiate to win. I decided to attend: The speaker was articulate, but as he went on, I realized his methods involved using a clever head and not a compassionate heart. As I listened, I…
Dressed up, but Nowhere to Go..!
A few years ago, India witnessed a hanging! Between the hangman and the media, the late Dhnanjoy Chatterjee was made a hero before he died and a martyr after his death. Hangman Nata Mullick who executed the rapist and murderer fell sick after coming out of Alipore Jail and said…
Robert Clements is a newspaper columnist and writes a daily column, which has graced the pages of over 60 newspapers and magazines, from a daily column in the Khaleej Times, Dubai, the Morning Star, London, and in nearly every state in India, from The Statesman in Kolkata, to the Kashmir Times in Kashmir to the Trinity Mirror in Chennai.