Wk 51-25 – Weekly Notes

6 PM, 21 Dec 2025
Starbucks, Versova

I cant believe it. We are in the 51st week of 2025. What started as an experiment is nearing a year. I’ve missed some 10 weeks (week numbers 9, 15, 17, 22, 24, 41, 43, 45, 48, 49) but I showed up the other 40. And I poured my heart and head out on this blog. For the world to see. World in this case is those 2 people who come here each week (I get an average of 23 impressions each 90 days and thus translates into about 2 people per week). The audience is beside the point. The point is that I’ve been able to become that person who does his actions and is detached from the outcomes. This itself is a loaded statement. If I am truly detached from the outcomes, what keeps me going. And I dont know the answer. I guess that’s for me to discover along the way.

Ok, without further ado, let’s get on with the review of the week gone by. I will use the “freewriting” format that I used last time (unlike what I’ve been using thru the year).

Let’s go.

Oh wait, the music for this post is the Lootera Theme.

Music from Lootera

Ok, lets go…

💭 Highlights, reflections, updates and notes

As always, these are not in any order.

A/ Ayesha at Filmfare OTT

Shikha and Nihit’s film, Ayesha got a Filmfare for the best short film.

By association, I am now a producer of a film that has won the coveted Black Lady. And while on paper, I may have won a Filmfare, truth be told, I didnt do an iota of work on this. Except maybe helping with some money. So the award is Shikha and Nihit and team’s.

Love when my people do well.

I hope they go onto to many more grand things. I am and will remain a cheerleader.

B/ Lal Babu

I now have Lal Babu in my life. He’s a cook on hire and used to work at a friend’s place. And I hired him.

Today was his day 1.

And even though he made some baingan ka bharta and egg curry, I did eat kachra from outside. I will stop it from tomorrow. Ok not tomorrow. I have a team dinner. But I have a cook now. After ALL the mehnat to find someone to cook for me and take care of my diet, I now have someone.

And with that, now I do NOT have a single excuse to not do well on the health department. If now I am unable to get them 6 packs and those marathons and all that, I have no one to blame.

C/ Unseen (the Deepinder Goyal biography)

I finished reading Unseen. And I did a session of sorts where I talked about my reflections from the book. I will also make a blogpost about it. But meanwhile, here are my notes (access only to friends).

Among the things that am taking away are…

Naina‘s website and System’s Thinking. I don’t know shit about either and I will invest time and energy to read more about them.
Focus. Not saying anything else.
A stack of notes where I will write my values and look at them everyday. I do have a tiny notebook where I note these things. I carried it to the Everest Base Camp as well. But I dont see it everyday. I need to make that.
I need to build a space and a place that’s like a sanctuary where I get to spend time with myself. At this point, I am unable to afford one but I need to build this. Like a base. Where I come back to even when I am on the road a lot. So, in 2026, after I’ve paid back the loan and secured the life and money for my people, I will build this. I dont know. May or may not be Mumbai. Let’s see.

D/ Hareesh Tibrewala

I met Hareesh Sir after a while.

Each time I meet him, I am more inspired to do more with my life. And operate from more equanimity. And do more things from an impact lens. Impact not as in social service. But from the space of doing meaningful things.

Oh, among other things, he’s putting up Manabu Labs. If you need help and inputs on implementing AI for your teams, he’s your man.

E/ Pickle Ball

I played Pickle Ball the other day with O-A-C. And I must admit it was good to be in a sporting arena. Lol, sporting arena!

Pickle probably is that thing that I had a VERY strong opinion about but was loosely held. I now think there is merit in all the hype about it. I should’ve spotted it early on. Could’ve built a business around it. Anyhow.

Vivek has been raving about it for months. I ignored it as an elitist phenomenon (which it is – each session is like 1500 bucks). But now that I have seen that it probably works for me, I will invest more time and energy in it. I see myself going back to court many times. In fact I was telling C that she should earmark days and dates in calendar for pickle sessions.

Oh, I played it a few nights ago. My legs are hurting till date. So, if nothing else, its good movement and cardio. Let’s see how many times can I go in the coming week. I am setting myself a target of 3 outings to the court. I know I am not going on Monday for sure. So, maybe will block Tuesday already?

F/ Misc things

In no order…

Photos from the week gone by are here.
Met Shweta and talked about reviving Party of 9
Met Karishma and talked about how I want to network with people who can give me a crore and forget about it.
While talking to AK, I talked about how much I loved Apollo Tyres’s Road is a Friend. See it here. I wish we had more advertising writers like this. And more brands like Apollo Tyres.
My daily morning solocasts series has now reached a number of 17. Tiny win for the month.
Spoke to Vanita after a while. And as always, it was the most human conversation I’ve had in a while. The questions were deeply personal and I dont really talk about those to a lot of people. No more comments apart from that. So that’s that.
Thinking about a podcast about storytelling. I am just worried that I dont load myself a lot with random things, in a year when I want to focus.
This tweet and the related thread about how one must always create even if you are old. Charlie was working till a few days before he died.
I am traveling to Chennai in Jan 2026 #jan2026. The primary agenda is to visit Sri Ramana Ashram. I will have lot of time and if you are there or know someone there that I must meet, please do let me know.
I am taking my time with Year Compass. I am halfway thru it. And I am yet to start the review of 2025 and plan for 2026.

Guess this is it for the week.

See you next week. Till then, peace!

—
Phew!
Lemme know what you think.
See you around.

Oh, and this too shall pass!

PS: This series of posts is inspired by Thej and his weekly notes.

The previous editions are here: 01, 02, 03, 04, 05, 06, 07, 08 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 16, 18, 19, 20, 21, 23, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 42, 44, 46, 47

I’ve missed the following weeks: 9, 15, 17, 22, 24, 41, 43, 45, 48, 49

PPS: Please do point typos.
Grammarly is not working with WordPress and I don’t have energy to cut paste edit this in some other spell check thing.

PPPS: In case you see me being inconsistent in anything – work, writing, reviews etc, PLEASE do point out.

Wk 50-25 – Weekly Notes

Notes from Week 50 of 2025

~~14 Dec 2025.~~
15 Dec 2025.
Sunday.
Starbucks, Versova.

I’ve not written this more than 2 weeks now. Last post was this on Nov 24 or something.

Since then, a couple of things happened.

A, I had to travel on two consecutive weekends.

And b, I was not in the zone to write. I mean I could write but I was shrouded in darkness. I mean it. I am not sure if I am still out of it. But I know I will be. This is a recurring pattern where I go on a roller coaster and come out alive on the other side. And no, writing today doesnt mean that I am out of the woods. Just that I need to prevail.

Also, I think this is the time of the year when I get extra sad. For the simple reason that this is when I take a deeper stock of my life (you know, end of the year). And at the end of each year I realise that I am not worth a lot.

This “worth a lot” is subjective.

At least in my case, I attach a lot of value to my “accomplishments” (in terms of money, reach, impact etc). And on none of these pieces, I have done a lot. And thus the seasonal ~~depression~~ sadness. Plus, may be the Vitamin D levels are wrecking havoc. And that may be compounded by winters?

This reminds me, I need to start taking Vit D.

Funnily, with others, I am tad less harsh. When they tell me that they havent had a lot to show for their work, I am more kind and I offer encouragement. But when it comes to me, I am FAR more harsh. To a point that I overlook all the things that I worked on, shipped, enabled. Etc.

So that.

Anyhow. Moving on. The music of the moment is Mack Vocals, Rashmeet Kaur, Zombie. I have way too many links to individual tracks to drop. So I will do the next best thing – not drop any. You have to do yourself the service of listening to Mack Vocals. Please.

And with that, we come to the review!

PS: I will use a different format to write this.

💭 Highlights, reflections, updates and notes

As always, these are not in any order.

1/ #in2026

I have decided that in 2026, I will try to cut on my social media usage. I have outlined some reasons here. At some point, I will write a longer post. But for the time being, I am prepping to go fishing.

I will use my main phone as a dumb phone (AKA, assistive access mode on an iphone). Or I will get a basic Android phone that I can use for calls, notes, OTP, banking, navigation, payments, podcasts etc.

I am flipflopping between what to do and how to do. On one side, the challenge is HUGE and I would love to get thru the grind of not having social media on my phone. This will test me in all manners. But on the other side, I will have to disconnect from any opportunities that may come my way. So that.

Oh, in 2026, the themes would be fitness and book2.

These two were to be the themes for #in2025 as well. And for many more years prior to that. Lol.

Apart from these two major ones, there are many smaller things that I would like to chase. Here is a list (and I will try to elaborate on these). And for a change, this list is in order….

Health and Book2. Reiterating, lest I forget.
Network. More in the subsequent lines.
Learning. Something. Deep. You know, like an absolute expert. Top 1% in the world kinds. Vibe Coding. Poker. Nutrition. Music. I dont know.
Writing (apart from book2). This must become my primary way of communicating with the world. I will also use YT Lives.
Move to another country. Each year I try to make the move. Each year I fail. I will try again in 2026.
Teach. I want to restart SoG or something. A place where I can surround myself with younger, more curious people. I know it will be incredibly tough without me being on the internet. But I will try.
Wealth. I’ve made some milestones. A. I want to pay back all the loan I have on my head (about 40 lakhs). B. Once I’ve done A, I want to earn about 3.5 crores (to be able to pay my team well). And then, after A and B, I want to chase financial freedom.
Travel. One trip at least with Vivek. At least a couple with my parents. Maybe one with Poo. So that’s 4 already. Let’s see how many of these happen.

Oh, and no, this is not the goalsheet for the year. That’s a separate post and conversation. Watch out for that. Last year I missed it. This year, I dont want to.

On Network, while at C4E and then at Meru, I learnt that I know a lot of people. And some of those people know me back. And yet when I need help or inputs from those people, I am unable to move them. I get, what they call blank shots. I get a lot of gyaan and advice and all that but the real thing that matters – money, network, access – I dont get any of that.

So, I will be deliberate about finding people who are open with their wallet, phone book and other things.

In terms of tangibles, I want to know 100 people who can give me a crore each. And then start a VC fund in the next 5 years. #in2030.

I will place more tangibles around it.

2/ Unseen (the Deepinder Goyal biography)

I am reading Unseen these days.

And OMG, what writing! I am sure the story is a bit of exaggeration and some bit of corporate corrections but the writing is top notch. I am a fan of the author, Megha Vishwanath.

I’ve written a few biographies in life and I would love to write more. And I want to now “compete” with Megha for the quality of writing. May be I need to first put riyaaz in and write better.

3/ Free man…

One of the quotes that I use a LOT is this…

I find I’m so excited, I can barely sit still or hold a thought in my head. I think it’s the excitement only a free man can feel, a free man at the start of a long journey whose conclusion is uncertain.

– Red, The Shawshank Redemption

While thinking about it in some context, I spotted this one from Kerouac…

And then while chatting with Arti about life and all, she said something incredible. She said,”thats a good start..unlimited possibilities :)”

And I realised, what a great place I am in life! To have so much going for me!

4/ Ananta Quest

Over the weekend I attended Ananta Quest, an event by Sanjay Mehta, Aditya Save and their team.

It was one of those moments where I saw many mentors find their next step. And in my own tiny, insignificant way, I was responsible for getting them together. And no, I am not taking any undue credit for anything that happened there. But I love the fact that many people I love got together to do things that they find joy and salvation in.

I really want to do more of this.

Oh, I also learnt a lot of things about myself while I was there. The primary one, I would love to be a part of the events business in some way. And then the secondary one, I dont want to do events business ;p

5/ Docu on theatre

I have another itch that I want to scratch. Make a documentary on the lives and times of theatre professionals. You know, what excites them, what moves them. Why do they do what they do.

I’ve fired some shots. So far, no outcomes. I need to find a way to move this forward. But then I also need to find a way to focus. Let’s see when or how I do so. Ofc, there is a large chance that I dont do anything on this – you know, time, focus, priority etc.

N/ Misc things that am wondering on…

In no order.

1/ How can people work without a mouse?
I know people know a lot of shortcuts on the keyboard but I am too old to do so. I’ve even seen those Excel competitions and World Cups where people type faster than I can thing and make castles on excel!

2/ Studying / Learning.
I dont know how people learn after they are old. I enrolled in a nutrition course and I am unable to learn anything from there. To a point that I have stopped attending classes! And no, I’ve not given up. I will be back in action from the next month.

3/ Anti FOMO.
I forgot what I wanted to write here.

4/ House of Cards.
I’ve been itching to see House of Cards all over again. To me, it’s way too long (I estimate it to be about 70 hours of total runtime across episodes and seasons) and even if I were to give it one hour per day (which is a lot in the first place), the “project” would take me more than 2 months. I dont know if I want to commit to this long a project.

I can download and see on transits or flights. No, not flights. I want to write on flights. Lets see.

5/ Driving License.
I need to renew my driving license and I am lost in the maze between the RTO websites and non-helpful call centres. I am thinking I will apply for a fresh license (assuming I can do so!)

6/ This tweet. I am copy pasting text.

Early startups don’t fail because people don’t work hard. They fail because momentum leaks through hesitation, politeness, and unspoken assumptions. People hesitate to interrupt. They soften asks. They work around blockers instead of confronting them. They wait, assuming someone else will respond, decide, or notice. Each instance feels reasonable. None feel like failure. But together they create drag. Speed is not hours worked or how fast code is written. Speed is how quickly a team surfaces friction and resolves it. Speed is whether blockers are confronted immediately or politely avoided. Speed is whether decisions are made explicitly or left implicit. That’s why speed is a cultural property, not a process. You cannot add it with meetings, tools, or policies. It emerges when a team shares the same internal bar for urgency, ownership, and “all-in.” Early teams that win are not nicer or more organized. They are less ambiguous.

Made me think.

I am guilty for being way too polite (I think) and I am often way too soft. I need to be able to help people differentiate between politeness, kindness and “reasonable action”. More on this over the next few days.

This is about it.
No other large sections.
Like I said, I’ve been weirded out for the last few weeks.
Should be back in action soon.

PS: I am not happy how this has turned out. But I want to ship at this time. And then think about other things.

PPS: This series of posts is inspired by Thej and his weekly notes.

The previous editions: 01, 02, 03, 04, 05, 06, 07, 08 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 16, 18, 19, 20, 21, 23, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40, 42, 44, 46, 47

I’ve missed the following weeks: 9, 15, 17, 22, 24, 41, 43, 45, 48, 49

On theatre and Piyush Mishra

A brain fart from one of the Piyush Mishra plays I saw the other day.

A shot from the play. I clicked this on my iPhone.

Saw this play based on a book by Piyush Mishra.

The play made me think about many things. Trying to articulate here.

1/ What makes theatre folks get out of bed everyday?
There are hardly any people in the audience and there is hardly any money to be made. The ROI from just the time spent is disappointing. I know that each thing is not about ROI. Do they go thru this grind cos it’s a stepping stone towards Bollywood dreams? Is it the excitement of being under the spotlight? What is it? I must investigate. Meet some theatre people and investigate!

2/ The story yesterday is about a writer and his moral dilemma.
I dont want to go into too many details and spoil it, but he said that he’s not creative and he can only write about what he feels at this core.

This sounds scaringly similar to how I feel and think and write. I dont write from imagination but from what I’ve felt. Otherwise the words wont flow. In fact, I need inspiration from IRL events and folks to write. Most things in TNKS was inspired by real events. May be the reason am struggling with Caravan Serai is that I dont have access to any large real events from the past that I can take inspiration from.

3/ Towards the end, the writer says that hes a blot on the world of art.
Again, not going into details but as someone who takes inspiration from real things, I dont think he’s a blot.

His methods may be extreme and questionable but I can relate to what he did and why he did. If I was any strong, I would probably choose the same path. Does that make me a bad person? I dont know. Will that make me a better write? I dont know. Do I have the balls? No!

4/ I think I want to direct this play.
I will try and reach out to the theatre company and see if I can produce and direct this play.

In fact, if you are a theater company that’s looking for a director (and maybe a patron willing to support) and give me this opportunity to direct, please do let me know. And may be connect me?

Thanks!

Diary of an Air India Gold Digger

My recent experience as a Gold Member for Air India.

Took this photo a few years ago. From an iPhone.

~~Today~~ a few day ago, in the morning, the entire Mumbai airport was empty, except two islands – E and F. These two had probably 500 people in serpentine queue that spilled till outside the airport terminal. And these were of the Air India check in counters. And I was flying with Air India.

This anyway sounds like a horror story for people who take flights often and since this was 5:30 in the morning, most people in the queues were in zombie state and in various stages of anger, resignation and restlessness.

I was mentally prepared to skip the flight and take the next one only to not stand in the queue. My bank balance is testimony to my stupidity to avoid queues. In fact, I’ve have designed my life to avoid traffic and queues as much as I can. I leave painfully early in the day to reach painfully early and often the coffee shops that I’ve made into safe havens (from traffic) are still not open. I come back late in the night when the only traffic on the road is from folks who are drunk on life and high on social dos. I dont go to meetups outside of walking distance of where I live. I choose to work from a Starbucks that is a stone’s throw away. And now that there is an airport about 15 mins from my home in Delhi, I try and take flights to that one (just that Air India doesn’t fly there).

Coming back to the sea of sleepy people on the platform for check-in.

Thankfully, I asked one of the ladies about a different counter for Gold members. And she pointed me to a hidden island. Just at the mention of that, I jumped like 100 feet in the air.

Now, at the counter for Gold and above, there were more airline staffers than the passengers. There were more counters open than the wait staff hoping to usher people into those empty counters.

And at the counter, there were more ushers than the travellers to tag the bags with such care as if they were fragile babies. And they placed your bags on to the belts as if they were handling a radio active substance. And no, there was no drama about extra weight on the bags. Not for my bag. Not for pther people’s bags. You could just take as much. I saw a family of 4 with enough bags to start a new life. May be they were on the way to do that!

And then as I walked from there to security, I could see the security area was so empty like it was plagued. I tried to pass through it but I was stopped by the security folks because I was in premium economy. Lol, oxymoron.

Luckily since the airport was empty, save for the Air India islands that was moving slower than a snail, the general area security queues were non-existent and I could breeze through that. So the long queue at check-in did work in my favor.

But the point is, if I didnt have this Gold Card that I bought (not earned; as part of Vistara Credit Card that I’ve since closed) I would have been mindfucked. And I would have spiralled into a dungeon of fuckery and drudgery.

I think the validity of my card extends till beginning of next year (about 2 months to go). I thus need to find a way to get the Gold status again. I dont take enough flights anymore to earn the status by itself but I am willing to pay a card fee to acquire this to avoid hassle. Lemme research on that.

In fact, I think I should encourage each of my people to get this gold thing. I think it’s worth the money, especially because air travel is such a high involvement service!

Oh, btw, I wrote this from a premium economy seat that was not very comfortable. I prefer the emergency exit seats. And the next milestone in life is to only fly business class. I think I am 5 years away from that. Let’s see if I can make it happen any sooner.

Over and out!