Flight of fancy for city kids

AGK SPEAK

What I've liked

I must confess something right at the beginning. Clearly I am not the target audience for the ad that I am going to talk about, but I think I was just as delighted as my grandchildren were when we all watched it for the first time.

It is quite refreshing to know that in this day and age of technology-enabled fantasies and real-life computer war games something as simple and innocent as a multi-coloured parrot springing to life, can still enthrall children.

I half-expected the visualisation, that happens in the Cadbury Gems TV commercial, to be received with the jaded sceptiscm so common to city-bred kids but was relieved to realise that some things, fortunately, don't change.

The plot is simple. Bright blobs of coloured chocolate fall into place on the boy's study desk and transform into a real-life parrot which then becomes a live tape-recorder, so to speak, so that the 'master' can sneak out and watch a forbidden TV cricket match.

Despite its simple storyline, I am sure the ad will capture the imagination of little children all over India for whom a tube of Gems will now be the pass-key into their own little wonderland.

The ad is pretty well shot, the family very relatable, the home bright and cheerful and though it might not feature on any awards list, the commercial is a beacon of hope.

May joy and innocence prevail.

What I've learned

My three regrets

"Regret for the things we did can be tempered by time; it is regret for the things we did not do that is inconsolable." I couldn't agree more. I am normally of the opinion that I have lived a good life, achieved more than I set out to and all my dreams have come true.

What more could a person want you might ask? There are three things in my life that I did not do and which will follow me to my grave.

I did not build my mother the home that she always wanted. Yes, it does sound heartless. I could definitely afford it. So what stopped me? Pure lethargy, and, not really coming to terms with the reality that she will be gone one day.

Team this up with misguided rationalisation (I argued she should live with one of her children and not alone), and you have one monster-sized regret.

I did not bring up my youngest daughter in our home. My wife was frail and could not bring up three daughters (about a year or two apart).

Her parents offered to help us out. We brought the baby back home after a while but it has left an indelible scar on her. She continues to feel unwanted, no matter what the rest of our family and I do to change it.

I did not leave Mudra when I was fifty. I should have. Tunnel vision and my total dedication and passion for Mudra and MICA""institutions I was associated with from day one, kept me chained to my chair.

I could not see that the world outside my office could be so enriching . Now I can. As a columnist, author and consultant a different and more enriching world has unfolded.

My activities have found a bigger and better platform of expression. And I wish I had entered this world earlier.

So what have I learned from my regrets? I have learned that every key relationship in our life is a gift that will be taken away someday. So delight in them like a beggar-child would when given something precious.

And, that life is multi-dimensional and not exploring it when given the opportunity, is the greatest folly.

agkbrandconsult@yahoo.com