BIG vs. BAD – lets begin the confusion…..dec 2009

“How big can you get before you get bad.” – Subroto Bagchi.
The lines are written by him but have been told to me by a very senior person from the media fraternity. It happened on a day when our whole team sat for a refreshing coffee in the cafeteria after a day full of stress and pressure. It was a time when recession was just setting in our country and the grapevine suggested that our division was going to shut, the top management was going through a shuffle which led us to believe so. Many of our leaders were rumored to have been sacked, due to either incompetence or foul play in the organization; the market was packed with negative rumors about our company. Stalwarts in the industry claimed that the launch of this new division will mark the downfall of our company as a media house, thus in such an unsafe scenario, we were all very precarious about our existence in the company and our discussion in the cafeteria very explicitly revealed so. So engrossed we were in our conversation that we did not realize that our CEO had just walked in. Pretending to not have heard our conversation, he quickly reached for his fruit plate and walked out. Unfortunately for me, I was the longest working employee in the group that we were sitting in, as soon as we dispersed; our CEO spotted me from the glass door of one of our conference rooms and called me out. He said “Subroto has asked a very valid question in his book, “Go Kiss the World”. He questions the readers “How big can you get before you get bad?” what he means to say is that there is an extremely thin line differentiating big from bad, and it is wise to take cognizance of this line, before the world starts terming you bad. So does it mean that every one who becomes big starts becoming bad?” I was a little blank for a few minutes. Firstly the CEO has caught me unaware and is now asking me questions which I assumed would require a witty answer to earn some brownie points. Well leaving me in that confused frame of mind he quickly retaliated to his own question. He said “Well I differ a little on this; I feel that if you have at least a dozen people considering you BAD, you are on your path to becoming BIG. These losers can’t see us grow that is the reason you hear them floating such rumors about us!” He continued by saying “The threat of seeing someone grow compels certain people to pull you down. 10 people will criticize you not because they strongly feel so, but because they see a potential threat in you to their career. The news floating in the market just proves it that we are posing a threat to the other players and the only alternative they are left with is talking ill of our company and people. So while people term us as BAD, we must all celebrate the fact that we are on our road to success and will soon become the BIG Daddy in the industry.”

WOW this man actually set me thinking. In spite of the fact that his comparison and relevance of what Bagchi comments in his book to his idea of BIG vs. BAD is debatable, he still made two strong statements, he placed two views both sounding correct independently but contradicting each other. In my opinion, these two statements could have never been compared. Although I haven’t read his book, I feel what Bagchi is asking his readers to do is introspection of what moral benchmarks we hold in our lives and are we able to sustain them even when we become successful. While what our CEO opines is that once we are big the external environment wants to claim us as bad as we pose a threat to their growth. I think both experiences find place in our lives at different levels. While introspection is a constant process, dealing with such negativity often or occasionally is also as common.

How Big can we get before we get bad! The best example to site here would be of our very own politicians. They just cannot handle success; in fact what makes them bad is GREED. Greed for power, money, fame, name, everything! They turn evil because of selfish interests. How many of them fulfill promises they make while campaigning for elections, once they are elected? How many of them are sincerely working for this country? Most of them raise an issue and sit back enjoying the ordeal that the common man then has to deal with. A list of genuine politicians is so small that it can probably be counted on our finger tips I’m sure. Well another industry which is filled with such people is our very own BOLLYWOOD. We often read news on certain actors, about their arrogance, and humiliating behavior towards fellow artists or junior actors. There are many film stars who have not been able to handle success. Success gets to their head and arrogance takes over. All news might not be authentic, but as they say there is no smoke without fire! I’m sure we do have such specimens existing, but that hardly affects us in any way. In fact it is quick entertainment for us when we so interestingly read about them in magazines and newspapers. Mr. Madhur Bhandarkar in fact made a whole movie called “FASHION” which showed this same journey of a model that rises to fame and then experiences a downfall due to the negative impact, fame has on her. Madhur Bhandarkar is known for his real cinema, so if this is reality, then our entertainment industry is filled with such people who can very well justify Bagchi’s statement.

But at the same time we cannot ignore some people who have become BIG but still have their modesty and goodness intact. I’m sure they all have sacrificed a lot in their lives to achieve this image. They are people who want to become big but not at the cost of someone else. They are people who are determined to make a difference to the society and touch lives as they pass their journey. I’m sure there are some renowned names which fall in this category of people too. I have myself experienced many people who have touched my life and to me are selfless people, who are far BIG in my opinion, but because they are selfless, they could never make a big name for themselves? Is it their good nature that stood as a hurdle? Or were they plainly incapable. If being good is a hurdle then what makes Dr. Narayan Murthy as big as he is? He is just one off names that comes to my mind, but what happens to those benevolent leaders who disappear in the crowd? They are the unsung heroes in our lives who have never got their due credit. But is it their fault?

Well introspection is definitely the answer! While we steadily climb the ladder to success and prosperity, if we give up introspecting our actions and reactions, we might lose the plot! Having our heads firmly held on our shoulders is so critical! As we grow the eye balls doing a quick scrutiny on us, also steadily grow. At such a point, what is most difficult is to remain good in front of all these eyes! While that is tough, what is important is to remain good in our own eyes! Well all this is easier said than done! Many a times I have fought with my own conscious for some of my actions! While we may not act in a way that is harmful to others, but we often react to other’s harmful actions in a way that make us look bad to the world! My personal experience says that if we think with our hearts, we sometimes tend to repent on our decisions at some point in the future, but if we think with our heads, we often make the right decision! Many of my friends argue with me that with matters related to the heart, you should always think with your heart! I feel that even in matters related to the heart if we think with our hearts we often flow with emotions and lose our ability to rationally think from all perspectives, in the bargain ruining either our side of the story or someone else’s. If a practical mind has to take a decision, with good intentions, the decision will always be rational and fruitful. Of course here the good intentions bear maximum weight as without such good intentions, the results will never be fruitful!

But however good our intentions are, we still face flak for our actions and reactions. Every success story has some criticism attached to it. In fact, we are so accustomed to these criticisms that we cannot enjoy our success without tasting some of it. Meaningful criticism helps us mend certain pitfalls, we can avoid in future. And the insignificant disapprovals to our actions are only meant for sharing and laughing it out! Here I quite agree with what my CEO said that such insignificant criticism is meant to be enjoyed as they are proof of our success! Even the best people, institutions, and companies are condemned for some of their actions. Some of the best work is criticized for what it is! Another example from our very own Bollywood; The most critically acclaimed film “BLACK” was also criticized by Aamir Khan for its portrayal of the physically challenged and the way Amitabh Bachchan’s character handles his patient. All this again to garner publicity for his own film “TAARE ZAMEEN PAR” which was soon to be released then! Sorry folks, the movie buff that I am, I can’t find more appropriate examples to establish my point of view as movies are something we all can relate to.

Now that I have already written more than two pages talking about the journey from The BIG to The Bad, I still need to figure why in the first place did I ever choose such a topic? A topic which elaborated two thoughts, both thoughts which were not mine! Both compared without much relevance by someone but not me. Still I managed to write more than two pages talking of both points of view! May be both thoughts reflected me in some degrees? May be? Well if I am still battling between growing big and turning bad, or if I am already rejoicing being proclaimed as bad because I am growing big, what has happened to the good in me?? Well as I continue to introspect, the lesson that I have already learnt is that “Never openly discuss your point of view in a public place such as the CAFETERIA, lest you never know which wrong person has his ears on you!” Well thanks to my team, had we not discussed our woes in the cafeteria, our CEO would have never heard us, and it would not have sparked off that conversation between us, which further flickered into this discussion. Whatever the lesson may be, or whatever confusion I have managed to create in your minds it has surely given me something to write as my editorial!