Shrayas

Serial Entrepreneur | Certified Coach | FoPo-Geopol, leadership, books & more | Help me discover answers to intriguing questions.

[Mohammed Zubair @zoo_bear]

The tweet by an Indian journalist questioning racism against Indians, along with Secretary Rubio’s response, has now been deleted by @StateDept.

[Ananthan Ayyasamy @AnanthAyyasamy]

Four years ago, I sat down with my 12-year-old daughter in the US and told her I was walking away from a successful tech career and real estate business to return to India for public service and politics.

At that age, she didn’t realize “public life” would slowly take her Appa away from her for months… and years.

But I came with conviction.

So for the last 4 years, we gave everything we had — for example -In villages like Subramaniapuram and Vellanaikottai, we built bus shelters, restored a 100-acre pond, removed seemai karuvelam, strengthened bunds, planted thousands of palm saplings, supported students’ education, organized medical camps and career workshops, built community sheds, encouraged youth and sports activities, and contributed to annadanams.

It cost several ten lakhs of hard-earned money - just for this village alone. But more than money, it cost time… family moments… and precious years watching my daughter grow up from far away.

Then elections came.

And the same village chose a candidate who had barely visited them in five years.

In the end, one week of election-time money defeated four years of sincere service.

Yesterday, my daughter quietly asked me over video call:

“Appa… can you now tell me what exactly politics is?”

For the first time in my life, I did not have an answer for my chellaponnu.

@svembu

[Vijay Kumbhar @VijayKumbhar62]

Filing a complaint against that brave woman in Worli is pure arrogance.A citizen stood up and asked questions to Minister Girish Mahajan while his party’s selfish protest choked Mumbai traffic for hours.

Instead of apologising, they’re harassing her?Citizens are the real owners of this country — we have every right to ask questions. Politicians are public servants and must respect citizens’ comfort, not cause trouble to them.

Stop this shameless bullying!

#WorliTraffic #CitizenRights #Maharashtra #GirishMahajan

[Abhishek AB @ABsay_ek]

Just a small anecdote of Sachin Tendulkar’s Irani Trophy debut on his birthday:

November 1989, Wankhede Stadium.
5 selectors sat in the stands with notebooks & doubts, watching a 16 year old boy try to force his way onto a plane to Pakistan. Sachin Tendulkar had already shone through the Ranji season, 583 runs showing he was ready. But the men in charge preferred patience. They wanted one more look.

Irani Trophy gave it to them. Rest of India against Delhi. Tendulkar made 39 in first innings. Promising, but not the hundred that would have made selection automatic. So the 2nd innings became an audition he could not afford to fail.

What happened next was less a cricket match & more a rescue mission. Tendulkar walked in at number 4. Scorecard around him read like a horror story. Not a single teammate managed to reach double figures after he arrived (in fact, no one crossed 6 runs). Wickets fell like dominoes. By the time 9th wicket went down, he was stranded in the 80s, the hundred slipping away with every departing batter.

Enter Gursharan Singh. Rest of India vice captain had fractured his finger in first innings, his right hand wrapped in plaster, his match effectively over. Then Raj Singh Dungarpur walked over & told him to pad up. Not to save the game, but to save the boy’s hundred.

Gursharan walked out one handed. Tendulkar, already heading back to the pavilion assuming the injured man would not bat, stopped in his tracks. Gursharan looked at him & said, “Tera hundred kar ke jayenge.”

Tendulkar smiled, took strike & told Gursharan he would handle Maninder Singh himself. They added 36 runs for last wicket & Sachin scored 103*.

A week later, he was on a flight to Karachi. Selectors had seen enough. Sometimes greatness needs a century. Sometimes it needs a teammate with a broken finger willing to stand in the firing line so the story can continue.

[Muthukrishnan Dhandapani @dmuthuk]

I don't know how many of you remember that in addition to Trump, how Howard Lutnick and Peter Navarro, almost on a daily basis was insulting India last year.

When Trump said he used the trade deal to stop operations Sindoor, we never made a public statement explicitly saying that Trump is lying and we on our own decided to halt the operations.

No statement against India and Indians, no lies about our government by Trump - has ever been formally refuted by our government.

Right from dead economy to hellhole, whatever Trump says goes unchallenged.

When small countries and even long term allies of America, then and there refute Trump's falsehood, every European country condemning Trump when he wanted Greenland, even Canada strongly condemning Trump- why we are so quiet?

Trump says he has given permission to India to buy oil from Russia. He says no trade deal if India doesn't stop importing oil from Russia. Too many contradictory statements depending on the day and mood.

We are sovereign. For our energy needs, we would even import from Iran. Who is Trump to give us permission?

What is paining is we've absolutely not issuing any formal rejoinder to whatever crapshit Trump is regularly saying about India and Indians.

Every other country, including America's long term allies, always give back formally.

What is the reason behind our silence?

I've got nothing against America or Americans. I've very fond memories of my time spent in USA. I like America and Americans.

I'm extremely negative about Trump and his administration. It is the worst which has happened not only to America but whole world. There is nothing to laugh about clownish behaviour of Trump. He is pure evil. Who other than pure evil would use girl children for their carnal needs?

[The Paperclip @Paperclip_In]

@leomessisite is in India on a three-day tour, visiting Kolkata, Hyderabad, Mumbai, and New Delhi. It’s the perfect moment to revisit how a Pakistani man born in Bhopal helped Argentina win their first World Cup. If you happen to meet Messi, you tell him this story. Thread. 1/18

[John Spencer @SpencerGuard]

https://t.co/tCdXloIpGb

[Julia Chaigneau @juliachaigneau]

Festivals being celebrated openly in the street instead of behind closed door is one of the things I love the most in India.

The closest I can compare it to is Christmas. But in Europe (at least in my experience), once the day comes, people disappear into their homes. If you don’t have family around, you can end up alone.

Here it’s different. Since moving, I’ve never celebrated a festival alone. Neighbours, friends of friends, even complete strangers always made sure I was included. It feels almost unimaginable to people that someone would be left out.

That human warmth with food, music, rituals shared on the streets with friends as much a as family, is what makes me feel so welcome and happy here.

[Abhijit Chavda @AbhijitChavda]

India’s Strategic Inflection Point: When Reality Exceeded Four Forecast Scenarios

Seven weeks ago, in Episode 10 of Geostrategy, I identified India’s approaching strategic inflection point. The Trump administration’s threatened 500% tariffs on Russian oil imports, combined with unresolved China-Pakistan tensions and stalled US trade negotiations, created what I called a trilateral squeeze. The Americans’ open support for Pakistan – a state that sponsors terrorism – only complicated matters.

I outlined four scenarios with specific probabilities and timeframes. Let me examine what actually transpired.

[The Kaipullai @thekaipullai]

India has lost many things at the altar of history. But some towns in India lost something far more important

They lost their own history

Towns, which once decided the fates of lakhs of people, don't even influence the districts they are in today

One such town is Vandavasi

[Ranvijay Singh @ranvijayT90]

Gone Undercover, Risen Unbeatable: Salute to the Legend...

This thread is based on one of India's most heroic missions!

[Swapan Dasgupta @swapan55]

Glad that at least one newspaper carried an obituary (of sorts) of Leila Kabir, widow of George Fernandes. What I found odd was the perfunctory reference to her father, Humayun Kabir. The erudite Humayun Kabir, apart from being a former education minister, was an intellectual companion of Maulana Azad in his last years. Indeed, some say that Humayun Kabir was the real author of India Wins Freedom. His political career wasn’t so consequential, although he figures on the short list of ‘nationalist Muslims’.

Also missing was any reference to Leila’s mother, Shantilata Dasgupta. Her marriage to Humayun Kabir in 1930 created quite a social furore. It is said that Mahatma Gandhi had to intervene.

I have not come across any further references to Shantilata. Maybe some of those who read this post can help. It is important that important facets of Bengal’s social history isn’t lost to posterity.

[Indranil Roy @Indrani1_Roy]

The reporting on military affairs in India is worse than a clown show. At least, a clown knows what they are talking about.

Most of our defense reporters would be poor actors for soap operas.

Here's are the basics in air defense.

[Amit Malviya @amitmalviya]

After Udhayanidhi Stalin’s disgraceful attack on Sanatan Dharma, DMK Minister K. Ponmudy has now taken the baton of Hindu-bashing forward.

At a public event, Ponmudy recounted a vulgar anecdote involving a prostitute and a man, where he mockingly reduced sacred Hindu symbols to crude sexual innuendos. Referring to the Shaivite horizontal tilak as “lying down position” and the Vaishnavite vertical tilak as “standing position,” his remarks were not just offensive—they were deliberately insulting to the core beliefs of two major Hindu sects.

This isn’t Ponmudy’s first brush with controversy. In 2022, he targeted Hindi speakers in Tamil Nadu, belittling them as panipuri sellers—another example of his divisive rhetoric.

The pattern is clear. Whether it’s DMK, Congress, TMC, or RJD—members of the I.N.D.I. Alliance seem united not by ideology, but by a shared disdain for Hindu beliefs and a relentless pursuit of minority appeasement. Their politics thrives on insult, provocation, and calculated disrespect toward the majority community.

[K.Annamalai @annamalai_k]

This is DMK’s standard of political discourse in Tamil Nadu. Thiru Ponmudi was once the Higher Education Minister of Tamil Nadu & now Minister for Forests and Khadi, and the youth of Tamil Nadu are expected to tolerate this filth? Not just this Minister, the entire DMK ecosystem is vulgar, foul-mouthed, and uncouth. Hang your head in shame, Thiru @mkstalin, for leading such a disgraceful pack.

By removing him from a party post today, if @arivalayam thinks people will move on, they are sadly mistaken!

DMK’s relentless attacks on the pillars of Hindu Dharma (Saivam & Vainavam) won’t go unanswered forever. Don’t take our silence for weakness, Thiru @mkstalin.

[Ramachandra.M| ರಾಮಚಂದ್ರ.ಎಮ್ @nanuramu]

Ian Bishop just invoked Vipraj Nigam’s exploits in the season’s #SyedMushtaqAliTrophy. And, ironically, most of the Indian commentators—across languages—only play to the gallery by eulogising India’s star players. Well, that’s the difference between professionals and sycophants.

[We, the People of India @India_Policy]

Remember the RTO constable found with 14 crore in cash and 52 kilograms of gold bars?

He has been granted bail by the court!

Bureaucracy loots the people of India with impunity. https://t.co/eVUt0URfUe

[Mohandas Pai @TVMohandasPai]

Another case of tax terrorism due to purchase under iBC!PM ⁦@narendramodi⁩ Sir when will this stop?When will our FM ⁦@nsitharaman⁩ ⁦@FinMinIndia⁩ step in to stop such action!it will take 15/20 years now. Is this Ease of business promised to us? ⁦@PMOIndia⁩

[Rakesh P Sheth @rakeshpsheth]

Back in 2019, I received a staggering ₹69 lakh income tax demand for the FY 2012–13….seven years after the books were closed, audits signed off, and taxes duly paid. To appeal, I had to cough up 20% of the amount upfront over ₹13 lakh as a precondition.

Despite a rock-solid case rooted in standard accounting principles, the ITAT ruled against me. So I took the fight to the High Court. After years of stress, documentation, and legal back-and-forth, I finally won in 2024.

Victory, yes….but at what cost?

Who pays for the legal fees I incurred fighting an incompetent interpretation? What about the interest lost on the 20% deposit made under protest? Why is the department not held accountable for reckless demands, when they lose in a court of law?

The issue isn’t just personal. It exposes a deeper rot….how tax officers, with little to no understanding of accounting standards, wield power without consequence. Their lack of domain knowledge, combined with institutional pressure to raise revenue, leads to arbitrary demands that can derail businesses and lives.

There is no penalty for their ignorance. No system of restitution. The taxpayer bleeds time, money, and mental peace with zero consequences for those responsible.

This is not just bad policy. It’s systemic injustice.

And the best part my IT officer had an education background of “Dentistry”……

[Murtaza Amin @murtuzi]

Dear @PiyushGoyal @PiyushGoyalOffc

I run a 100 people software company from #Burhanpur MP, I bring M$+ / yr to Bpur economy & I am the largest white collar employer in #Burhanpur.

Since you've been talking about how Indian #startups are not innovating enough, I'd like to ask