From shadows to the stars

Did you ever notice that in the advertisements for cleaning agents like Dettol, toothpaste and detergents, they show that one germ or one tiny dust particle has not been cleansed even after using the product? What are the advertisers trying to show here? Has there been a study conducted from which they have learnt that this is the extent to which the viewers would willfully suspend their disbelief? Do they think that because there is still one germ left and one tiny stain hasn't been washed away by this self-proclaimed awesome cleaning agent, we convince ourselves that they aren't trying to bullshit us? If some stupid idiot had the audacity to claim that all the germs would be killed, would people start rioting? "What the hell is this!? All germs are gone? There's no way that's true, is it!?" But if you are clever enough to show that there's still one valiant germ standing even after it has been chemically bombarded, people will think, "Oh, l...

For years, I have been ridiculing the concept of having special days for fathers and mothers. With the arrival of social media as a central figure of our lives, my dislike for such 'celebrations' only grew, thanks to people posting photos of them with their mothers and fathers. It's very ritualistic in nature. All these years, I have been asking myself, "How is it possible for such events exist?". That was the wrong question. The question is, "Why do they exist?". I will relate an incident that might explain this phenomenon. A school in America really wanted parents to pick up their kids after school very punctually. At first, they put social pressure as an incentive for the parents to be on time. Teachers would stare at the parents who weren't on time or other such acts were carried out to make the parents feel uncomfortable and shamed. While parents were more punctual than in other schools, it was not 100% of people picking up their childr...

A few days ago, I had used the phrase "Just when I thought I was out, they pull me back in!", a famous dialogue from the move The Godfather Part 3 in a situation that was perfect for the dialogue to be unleashed. I looked up to my audience, hoping to see them give me a smile that said, "Yeah, I get that reference!" But what I got instead was them looking at me in a perplexed manner. They did not know what the hell I was on about. This post is not about me trying to complain that nobody gets my pop culture references. Its that its a two way street. When most people drop references from Hindi or Telugu pop culture, I don't get them either. While most of my friends and relatives laugh at their pop culture references, I stand there awkwardly, trying to smile and nod as if to convince them I know what the hell they are talking about. At first, I thought that if I had been in USA (hypothetically, cuz I don't think I'm ever going there), then I would...