Category Archives: FAQ

How Can a Man Not Use Aftershave Lotion?

Friday, April 18th, 2008

The other night, a lady friend was combing her hair in my bathroom when she decided to investigate the state of my toiletries instead.

She made appreciative sounds when she saw my Bvlgari body lotion and Burberry perfume, but was much perplexed when she couldn’t find any aftershave lotion.

Here’s a more or less faithful reproduction of the conversation that followed –

Lady Friend: (clearing her throat) Which aftershave lotion do you use?

Gaurav: Actually, I don’t use one anymore.

Lady Friend: (resuming her inspection of my toiletries) Oh! So, you use an aftershave gel. Those are good too.

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I’m the King of the World!

Friday, April 18th, 2008

Yes, that’s what I said –

I’m the king of the world!

Yes, you heard it right —

I’m the king of the world!

Once more, with a little ‘yay!’ at the end —

I’m the king of the world!Yay!

I hope you remember how it feels to stand up and shout it out –

I’m the king of the world!

If you have forgotten, here’s Leonardo DiCaprio himself to remind you –


King Of The World - Titanic - Click here for more free videos

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Read The April 2008 Issue of David Report: I Shop Therefore I Am

Saturday, April 12th, 2008

The April 2008 Issue of David Report: I Shop Therefore I Am (via TreeHugger and Santosh Maharshi) identifies some of the trends that led me towards my off consumption experiment:-

- From conspicuous consumption to conscious consumption.
- From brand-consciousness to background-consciousness.
- From synthetic to organic.
- From mass-produced to hand-crafted.
- From global to local.
- From short-term to sustainable.
- From fashionable to durable.
- From valuing things to valuing insights.
- From fitting in/ standing out to being.
- From buying more to buying less.
- From doing more to doing less.
- From multi-tasking to down-shifting.
- From buying to sharing/ exchanging.
- From owning to experiencing.
- From having to giving.

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Godard’s ‘Le Petit Soldat’ + Evening With My New Friend From Bollywood

Saturday, April 12th, 2008

Godard Le Petit Soldat The Little Soldier Movie Poster

Undeterred by my earlier escapade with ‘The French Touch’ festival, I returned to the Alliance Francaise auditorium on Thursday evening to watch Jean-Luc Godard’s 1960 film ‘Le Petit Soldat’ (’The Little Soldier’).

Set against the backdrop of the Algerian War, the film narrates the tragic love story of Michel Subord and Anna Karina who fall in love in spite of belonging to warring terrorist groups. The film pulsates with the same restless energy as ‘Breathless’, my favorite Godard movie, which was screened at the festival earlier on Tuesday. So, in spite of the little anti-climax at the end, when the DVD stuck and wouldn’t play, I thoroughly enjoyed the movie, or at least the part of the movie I did watch.

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Let Me Introduce You To Some of My Less Fortunate Selves

Tuesday, April 8th, 2008

I have many virtues, but modesty isn’t one of them.

I’m not at all apologetic about being smart or successful because I have had to fight against, and overcome, great odds to become who I am.

So, before you judge me for being far too fortunate, let me introduce you to some of my less fortunate selves.

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Necessity or Not: A List of What I Bought in Week 1-2

Sunday, April 6th, 2008

The intent of my off consumption experiment is to spend an year without buying anything that is not a necessity.

Even though I have written down rather elaborate rules for what is allowed and what isn’t during my year of being off consumption, I have deliberately avoided defining what is a necessity. This is because one of the most interesting aspects of the experiment for me is to discover what I think of as a necessity and how it changes with context.

Perhaps the only fool-proof approach to discover what I think of as a necessity is to record and study what I actually buy, and how it changes over time.

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A Long Distance Hug To The Girl With The Seven Pretty Blue Salwars

Thursday, April 3rd, 2008

Dear Blue,

I’m finding it really difficult to respond to your post comparing a life of chosen frugality to a life of enforced frugality.

Ever since our first quaint online correspondence with each other more than a year back — do you remember your first e-mail to me? — I have thought of you fondly, as a friend. Even though we didn’t meet up when you were in India, you have been a regular presence in my online life.

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Why Didn’t You Tell Me You Had Financial Problems?

Wednesday, April 2nd, 2008

I was at my friend Kanishka’s place the other day, when I pulled out a Ziploc bag from my bag. Here’s a more or less faithful transcript of the conversation it triggered off –

Kanishka: Why are you carrying around sandwiches in a plastic bag?

Gaurav: Ah! Haven’t I told you that I’m off consumption for a year?

Kanishka: (chuckles) I bet you won’t be able to spend a month without consuming alcohol! But what is the connection between not consuming alcohol and carrying around sandwiches?

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The Elevator Pitch For ‘The Marketer Who Went Off Consumption’

Tuesday, April 1st, 2008

The Marketer Who Went Off Consumption

I consider knowing how to make a good elevator pitch one of my best kept marketing secrets, so I thought that I’ll make a quick elevator pitch for ‘The Marketer Who Went Off Consumption’.

‘The Marketer Who Went Off Consumption’ is my year-long blog-as-a-book experiment in why we choose to consume, or not.

The book is a record of two parallel quests — my quest as an individual to find the formula to turn consumerism-caused ennui into happiness, and my quest as a marketer to learn how to apply that formula to convert our collective ennui from consumption into a yelp of enthusiasm for consuming even more.

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My Insatiable Craving For McDonald’s Paneer Salsa Wrap

Sunday, March 30th, 2008

McDonald's Paneer Salsa Wrap

I have a confession to make.

I have an insatiable craving for McDonald’s Paneer Salsa Wrap.

It hits me at the oddest times and places, more often than I would like to admit.

- X - X - X -

Sometimes, I’m running on Marine Drive and, suddenly, my stomach ties up into knots and all I can think of is a McDonald’s Paneer Salsa Wrap.

I have to stop, bend over, take a few deep breaths, look out over the sea towards Malabar Hills, wait for the craving to slowly subside.

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