10 jobs that you can do from anywhere in the world!

Are you looking for a job? We all know that thousands of people have lost their jobs due to the Covid-19 pandemic that is still ravaging economies around the world. The opening up of economies has brought relief but much damage is already done. However, there is always hope and opportunity!

“The quicker you let go of old cheese, the sooner you find new cheese.”
– Spencer Johnson from ‘Who Moved My Cheese’. So, before we start something, our old mentality of fighting change, reluctance to learn and think negatively about the outcome, must end. Let’s explore the possibilities, if it works that is great! But if it doesn’t, we will learn great new things, which might help in our next. There is no scope of giving up, striding forward is the only way!

So, without further ado, please find the list and links to 10 remote and global job offering companies. (These companies hire worldwide, but some hire only in Europe, Canada or India. The pay varies depending on the country of residence. Most of these companies would hire as a freelancer after an assessment and interview.)

List of 10 remote and global jobs

• https://careers.covance.com/global/en/search-results – If you are into clinical research, this biopharmaceutical contract research organization has research operations in more than 25 countries. Type ‘Virtual’ or ‘remote’ or ‘home-based’ in it’s jobs database.
• https://jobs.adp.com/ – ADP provides remote jobs related to Sales, IT, Corporate and Management professionals. Apply here with a nicely created resume and use the keyword ‘Home office’ in the location field.
• Filmless.com – If you are into video creation and script writing, try Filmless that is looking for talent from around the world.
• https://www.mysql.com/about/jobs/ – If you are an out of job engineer, try this one. It accepts application from around the world.
• https://www.mturk.com/ – Amazon Mechanical Turk is a crowd sourcing marketplace where small tasks like surveys, feedback, content moderation are filled and sent. These small task do not pay much but it is okay for pocket money.
• Aim-for-A Tutoring – In our pandemic ravaged world, online tutoring is blossoming as a great career. If you are a teacher, make use of it and apply here. There are many other companies that also hire online tutors. Be on the lookout.
• http://www.classof1.co/careers/ – This company is based in India and provides, online tutoring, homework assistance, test prep, content development, and e-learning courses for college and school students in the U.S., U.K., and Australia.
• https://appen.com/jobs/ – This is similar to MTurks. But the ‘search quality evaluator’ or ‘Internet analyst’ or ‘rater’ jobs here make it attractive. For being a part of this, you need to submit your resume and wait for their reply. If your email matches their requirement, you will have to pass a test based on a knowledge booklet PDF. There are other micro tasks and surveys also, which will appear in your dashboard if your qualifications match. The pay is average here.
• https://thesmartcrowd.lionbridge.com/ – Lionbridge, like Appen is reliable and offers home-based jobs globally. Great for ad raters, translators, interpreters and those who are into data entry. There are surveys and micro tasks as well.
• https://jobs.workingsolutions.com/ – This BPO is great for those who want to work from home as independent contractors. The job is mostly data entry, translation and call center related. Pay ranges from $7.50 to $30 an hour. Try it out!

If you have any other designing or niche skill, offer freelance services through Fiverr.com and Upwork.com . You never know, what clicks and takes you forward on your path to success. The important thing is, to try.

I will keep posting job related ideas here. Do share this post with everyone as many would be looking out for a job. All the best my dear friends!

(Images courtesy Google)

INDIA

While the scorching, mischievous sun and dusty, hot winds try to take off your coat of worldliness, blaring horns and sounds announce that it never really matters where you go, you are made of India. Your support system reconnects and stands up for you like a pillar, and with a heavy heart, you bow and acknowledge that you have missed all that strength, love and care. It feels so good to return to your motherland.

You realize, India feels so real with its sounds, vibrations and panorama of life. You feel those years away from here has been a dream, this is reality. You just pick up from where you left, sandwiched in long gapless queues, moving along within a disorderly crowd and haggling for auto-rickshaw fare. Staff, watchman, shopkeepers, acquaintances share slices of their lives, joys and woes with you, as if you have always been there. Family and friends leave aside mighty inconveniences of commuting and toss aside their busy schedules to just be with you for a warm hug and even for tiniest of chats. They make India so special. They make India so lively. They make India, home!

Family makes you reconnect with your childhood, friends rekindle the feeling of wondrousness, and they together make a cosy cushion for you to lean on. After all these years, you seem to have forgotten about the comforts of leaning. You have been upright and always standing, facing things on your own… and it feels weird to lean on. And you do it awkwardly in the comfortable space created for you….for a limited time.

Also random act of kindness from unknown people leave you touched and emotional. Sometimes they make your mission of finding your destination, their job. And intuitively understands and relate to your needs. So there might be a person in the metro, who would offer his seat, and a lady who would lead you to the shop you have been looking for, a shopkeeper might ask you to sit in his shop to catch your breath or an ola cab driver, would share rare political insight.

Your kid might wonder- Have you known the person you were talking to mumma? You would reply – You don’t need to know a person to talk to here. Conversation doesn’t start or end here, it just flows!

Your kid, who has heard nothing but polite conversations, might even ask you – Why is he yelling mumma? And you would say – He is talking, not yelling. That is how it is!

You feel, India has not changed much. The Josh seems to be high as ever. The infrastructure is the same, except for technology that is making lives easier. You had expected a dramatic change but outwardly little seems to have changed.

As you pause for a moment in the midst of a road divider, and cars pass by you on both sides, making it very risky for you, you get the realization that India has never been about aesthetic beauty, enchanting landscapes, orderliness and structured existence. It is free, chaotic, jolting, nerve wrecking, and completely unpredictable. No plan works here, ever. India has its own plan to get your job done. This is how the country was, and still is. What is amazing about being here is experiencing palpable, throbbing life and humanity in its entirety.

When you return from India, you feel the world has gone still. No sounds, no conversations, no conflicts! There is a strange heaviness that doesn’t go away despite your structured, smooth existence in the new land. You go about doing your job, once again mulling over your decisions, divided and torn. You fold away clothes, do laundry, cook, all the time, ignoring the heaviness. Life is predictable and comfortable.

And then, you find an old Hindi newspaper on one side of your half open suitcase. It had wrapped something of importance, perhaps a few bangles. But it is useless now. You need to throw it. It is trash. But you can’t. You touch it lovingly, fold it gently and keep it under the mattress. You can’t let go of that… even the tiniest bit of India.

(Image via Google)

Indian Beauties in Soap Ads

Soap advertisements (especially Lux) have showcased Indian beauties of all times in the most glamorous light. Here are a few of my favorite ones, who is your favourite Soap Beauty?

Ebullient Madhubala!

Elegant Waheeda Rehman

Stunning Suraiya

Charming Asha Parekh

Gorgeous Hema Malini

Sensuous Helen

Striking Saira Banu

Cute Tanuja

Mysterious Rekha

Beautiful Sridevi

Radiant Aishwarya

Charismatic Katrina

And of course, Desi Girl Priyanka Chopra!

(Images courtesy Google)

Flashes of India in America

This Summer, coincidentally perhaps, I’m enjoying flashes of India in America! Last week, I marveled at this amazing poster at one of the leading home decor shops of America. There were exotic products from my country – bright, lively, vibrant – reminding me of street bazaars of New Delhi.

And today, Indian culture, heritage and food was celebrated at Downtown Minneapolis in an event called IndiaFest. It really felt like being in India there, with tantalizing aroma of Indian cuisine, classical dances and crafts. I even saw things I didn’t know about India.

(Story being conveyed through paintings- ancient form of storytelling)

At the fest, it was India everywhere. I felt proud that even the next-gen Indians participated and perfected classical dance moves.

It was fun strolling and reliving India in America. We met up with some friends, bought mouthwatering street food and had a wonderful day at IndiaFest.

If I see another flash of India, will let you know. To know about the festival, read here.

Stay well, friends!

(Some images courtesy Google)

The Chair and The Pose

I had seen a similar old photo of my now 100-year-old grandmother back in India. Apart from seeing my grandma as a young teenager what had baffled me was positioning of the chair. “Why is the chair turned the other way,” I had asked her. She laughed and said it was the style at the time, back in 1910s. 

The picture was shot for arranged marriage purpose and there was another photo of her younger sister with the same chair and in the same pose. Later, I saw plenty of such photos in an old trunk at my house. I noted another thing – no one smiled in old photos. 

Recently, I came across another such photo and I thought of doing a little research on the chair as props in old photos. This is what I unearthed.

1) The use of the chair was a means to facilitate, relax and prevent the sitter from moving.

2)  It was used at the very beginning of photography  when long exposures were necessary for a successful result. 

3) Perhaps the long exposure and staying still was the reason why people would get tired of smiling. So people rarely smiled from old photos.

4) Posing with a chair was widely used and imitated. It got ingrained in psyche of the people of the time and everyone preferred it because of convenience as well as dramatic effect.

To learn more read this great blog – here. And do share if you know more. As of now, my curiosity got satiated regarding the weird positioning of chairs during portrait photography back in the good old days. Here are some more old pictures of royalty, with of course, the chair!

Images courtesy Google

Indian Beauty

Another quick sketch! An Indian married woman. Hope you like her! Would love to hear your thoughts😀

The Raped Girl Who Refused Heaven!

A girl who was brutally raped and murdered, went to heaven. Near the entry she checked herself in the golden mirror. All signs of cruelity that had been done to her body was gone. Now, she had a glorious, translucent form. The four guards of Heaven greeted her at the gates. But suddenly, she stopped and stepped aside.

Every soul was always eager to enter heaven and meet God. Since eternity, nobody had ever done that. So, the four agitated guards asked her, “Why are you refusing heaven? My dear, come back to the queue and enter the great gates.”

The girl smiled and recounted, “You know I was gang raped by a group of filthy men, who were jeering and spitting on me…”

“Yes, we know that…,” the guards cut her short in chorus. “Please don’t tell us the details. We know you have suffered immensely but once you enter the gates, all pain and sadness will vanish. Your troubled soul will find peace. All thoughts will leave you and you will bask in eternal glory.”

The girl still hesitated. The wind played with her hair as she she looked around with delight but still showed no inclination to enter.

“Dear, what is going on your mind? Do you feel any sort of guilt? Do you think you can’t face God after what happened to your modesty?,” the guards asked in chorus.

The girl laughed for a long, long time while perplexed guards looked at each other. 

“It is not that! The reason why I don’t want to see God is not because I am ashamed. I have done no wrong. Wrong has been done to my body.” she answered.

“Then?,” the guards asked.

“It is because God will be shamefaced on seeing me. I know, He will never be able to meet my eyes. I want to spare Him the shame as I love Him too much,” the girl wandered away after saying this leaving a trail of shimmering light behind her. The guards stood unmoved, red faced.

God heard her, clutched his heart and cried…

( Written after viewing a terrible image of a dead, rape victim in West Bengal, India. She moved me beyond words. A tribute to such victims.)

Images courtesy Google

A Visa Wife’s Thoughts!

I am a visa wife. This means I am on a dependent visa while my husband is on H1B work visa in the US. My Visa is in H4 category, which is regressive to say the least. Now, while the techies are reeling due to uncertainities over H1B Visa Bill, which might become an act under President Donald Trump’s administration, I secretly rejoice.

It is also being rumoured that work permits of H4 visa holders, which was a part of 2015 Department of Homeland Security initiative by former President Barack Obama, might change. This means visa wives would not be allowed to earn any kind of income and may be restricted to cooking, cleaning and volunteering. In short, a completely dependent entity – emotionally, socialy and economicaly. 

I truly believe that US is a great country to live but if the work permit for H4, is cancelled, it would be a curse for Indian women, who accompany their husbands at the cost of their own ambitions. My stay in the US has been smooth and filled with happiness so far. And I had plans to be economically independent when my kids grew up a bit but under the present scenario, I find hope in returning to India. 

It wouldn’t have mattered if being a dependent was optional, but when one is forced into shadows, it’s unfair. 

If things change, I dream of going back and being surrounded by family and friends. Then, there will be the lovely Indian Maid – Kaam wali bai, whom I have missed almost every day!

Technology is here to stay and techies are like minions. They will find a big boss sometime soon even if there are job cuts due to the overhaul. They will not perish.

Truly speaking, it might be better for husbands if they stay in the US because work conditions are nicer here. Even kids are better off in the US. But for silently cooking and cleaning visa wives, who are away from society and independence, going  back to India would always be great.

Images courtesy Google

Remembering Jasoosi Duniya by Ibn-e-Safi

My grandfather was a big fan of Detective Colonel Vinod of Vinod Series by Ibn-e-Safi (pen name of Asrar Ahmed). And my father and his siblings would compete with each other to be the first to lay their hands on those thrillers, that arrived every month by post.

Colonel Vinod (Faridi in original Urdu version), the main character of Jasoosi Duniya was huge at one point of time and almost as famous as James Bond or Sherlock Holmes. My grandparents, uncles, aunts, everyone loved him.

 For me it was different. I was born after Ibn-e-Safi’s death. As I grew up, titles of the books – ‘Tijori ka Geet’, ‘Khooni Pathar’, ‘Pahadon ki Malika’, ‘Baraf ke Bhoot’ –  intrigued me. And the pictures on the covers were fascinating too. One day, when I was in my teens, I just picked it up from a big box of books and read it at one go. That was the beginning. I soon got addicted to them.

Thankfully, my parents were not very strict about my reading those ‘kind of books’ because they knew that the series did not have sub standard or cheap material in it. Every member in the family could read it. However, they warned I may end up paying more attention to the thrillers rather than course books. But I managed to strike a balance.

After Devkinandan Khatri in the 19th century, it was Ibn-e-safi who set the beat of detective novels in the second half of the 20th century in Indian subcontinent. His contributions to not only Urdu but Hindi literature was immense. The books were published in Bengali, Tamil and Telugu as well. 

Wikipedia says about Jasoosi Duniya series – “Its first novel, Dilaer Mujrim was published in March 1952. In the following 27 years, Ibn-e-Safi wrote 127 books in the series with his last Jasoosi Dunya novel, Sehra’ee Deewana appearing in July 1979, a year before his death.” He was from India but migrated to Pakistan in 1947, post independence.

It is said that some Safi’s books have been inspired by English novels but the much-loved characters, Vinod and Rajesh (Faridi and Imran in original Urdu version) are his own creations.

My favourites were Colonel Vinod and his feisty aide Captain Hamid (akin to Dr Watson). As I read him more and more, I felt Ibn-e-Safi was well informed about the political situations in the world. He wove a glamourous and dangerous world in 1960s India that enchanted readers.

 I think Colonel Vinod was very much like Howard Roark of  Ayn Rand’s ‘The Fountainhead’. Both of them had super integrity, both were brilliant at their jobs but appeared to be rather heartless (Colonel Vinod was nicknamed Father Hardstone by his friend Hamid). Both had lofty ideals. Infact, it was said that Ibn-e-Safi wrote very carefully about Vinod as people sort of worshipped him and would not tolerate anything untoward related to him.

Ibn-e-safi’s other lead character Rajesh (Imran in the Urdu version) was equally popular. A fool by the day and secret service chief by night, Rajesh’s unpredictability always left me in splits.
It should also be known that Safi’s works were widely plagiarised by writers who enjoyed limited fame but could not match his popularity. His books were often sold at black market prices in and around India. 

A big reason for the charm of the novels were the minor and comic characters Qasim, Black Force, gilehri jaan ( in Vinod series) as well as servant Bholu, Jolly, Madan (in Rajesh series). The master storyteller had the knack of drawing readers into the world of ensnaring beauties, night clubs, fancy locations, Lincolns, Tommy guns, poisonous needles and lethal enemies. 

Back in India, I always wondered about Lincoln – Colonel Vinod’s car and excitedly called up my father when I saw one in the US. 

The Hindi version of – Jasoosi Duniya series are hard to find in today’s world of Ebooks and downloads. I yearn for the crispy touch, musty smell and excitement that preceded reading the thrillers. It was heaven to read it in a quiet corner of my house, munching guavas and wondering what was going to happen next.

Gone are the days but who knows…I might still find my younger self somewhere inside one of those nail-biting books…!

Who is the biggest film star in the world?

If you ask Google – Who is the biggest movie star in the world? Click comes the reply – “The numbers prove that Shah Rukh Khan is the biggest movie star in the world.” Whoa a desi!

We all know his life story – a nobody with a dream, comes to Mumbai to become an actor and eventually becomes the king of the Indian film industry. He did not stop at that – He is the biggest star in the world now!

The fact that he is a self made, hard working family man totally endears him to his fans. I have grown up binge watching his movies, applauding his scenes, defending him and knowing that – Shah Rukh Can! He is romance incarnate in Indian Movies.

From ‘Army’ and ‘Circus’ days when my mom used to exclaim – ‘Ye ladka hero banega'(This boy will be a film star  someday) to ‘Hello Zindagi’, he has come a long way.

Here are my coolest top 10 SRK movies.

1. Chak de

2. Swades

3. Kabhi haan kabhi na

4. DDLJ

5. Rab ne bana di jodi

6. Chennai Express

7. Kal ho na ho

8. Raju ban gaya gentleman

9. Veer zara

10. Fan 

(Yeah, I liked Fan, despite all the criticism. I am yet to watch his newly released, Dear Zindagi, hence it is not in the list)

Recently, Netflix signed a deal with him in order to capture the coveted film market in India and stay one step ahead of rival Amazon. The charismatic Khan is not much known in the western world but the deal is sure to give him a wider exposure.

But meanwhile, we SRK fans are happy in the knowledge that he is the biggest movie star in the whole wide world with high grossing films, enviable film offers and a huge Twitter following. 

BTW, What is your favourite SRK film?

Images courtesy Google

The Lady from Pakistan

“I am from Pakistan,” she said looking at me closely, studying my reaction. “Oh, okay,” I replied nonchalantly. 

In the aftermath of the URI attack, when the tensions on the borders of India and Pakistan mounted, I was ironically making aquaintance with this lady from Pakistan on US soil.
I first met her when my older Son started Kindergarten. It was difficult for me to let my son go to the Big Kids School in the bus all by himself. In the afternoon, I reached the school bus stop very early to receive him. My son arrived and an older boy alighted from the bus next after him, carrying his water bottle. 

The boy laughingly told me,” Everytime your son started to cry, I distracted him.” Taking the water bottle from him, I smiled and said, “Thank you!”

His mother had come to receive the older boy. She had her head covered like the Sikhs but was not wearing Vermilion or bindi like them. I gathered they were Muslims from India. She smiled at me and I smiled back. This is how I first met her!

Her apartment was close to mine and we walked a little together, talking casually about kids, work, weather etc. This became our daily routine.

But the day after the URI terrorist attack in Kashmir along the LOC, when every Indian across the world was outraged and shocked at the killing of brave Indian soldiers, she happened to tell me that she was from the enemy nation – Pakistan!

Something stiffened deep inside me although I did not show it. I mentally prepared myself to keep a distance from her. 

As I looked back to hasten my son, an unexpected sight made my heart melt. Walking hand in hand with his Pakistani bhaiya (brother), my son looked cheerful for the first time he started school. He had made his first friend in school. They looked absolutely comfortable in each other’s company, ignorant of the fact that they belonged to two deadliest enemy nations of the world. 

They were laughing, teasing and running around us, oblivious of the hate that surrounded their mother nations.

I stole a look at the lady from Pakistan. Apparently, she was having similar thoughts. She seemed worried about the heightened tension across the borders of the two neigbouring countries and for the safety of her family back home. Like me, perhaps even she did not want her kid getting lessons on hate in case the situation worsened. We were so similar yet so apart!

It seemed as if a thick line of uneasy thoughts seperated me and the lady from Pakistan. But not far behind us, our little boys, chased each other in blissful ignorance…! 

The Exotic Nautch Girl

I first saw a nautch girl (dancer) when I was a little girl. We were at our mother’s village to attend a wedding and the nautch girl was standing in front of the community guest house.

She was ordinary looking but had a pleasant form. What made her special was the buzz surrounding her! Ladies were throwing scrutinizing glances at her while gents were checking her out through the corner of their eyes. Old ladies were chatting about beautiful baijis (another name for nautch girl) of their time. The arrival of the nautch girl had made the calm village a little noisy. She was considered a public woman, a fallen woman and everyone wanted to have a good look at her. But for me, she was exotic!

One of my relatives chided me for peeping at her. “She is not a good lady. Stay away from her. She is a nachaniya (another name for nautch girl). She dances and entertains the male crowd. Nice girls never go near her.” Her words made me all the more curious. And throughout the day, I kept a watch over the dancer through the window.

In the evening, I saw her washing her face and getting ready for the dance. We heard that groom and the baraat (group) had been received and were resting in the tents. I couldn’t wait to see her dance.

Well, at the auspicious time, the groom arrived with pomp and splendour. The nautch girl began to perform a welcome dance in front of the group. She had whiten her face, stained her teeth with betel and put on a lot of make up. Under bright lights, she looked younger than she actually was. The ladies watched the welcoming of the groom from the terrace while gents stood around her in a circle. Some young baraatis threw money at her which she pocketed fliratatiously.

I watched from above while she danced on and on…on that magical night. I forgot all about the wedding but her forbidden persona stayed with me.

It was later in life that I learnt more about the likes of her. I had almost forgotten about my exotic nautch girl when I came across this quote by James Forbes (Oriental Memoirs 1813)-

“Nautch girls are extremely delicate in their person, soft and regular in their features, with a form of perfect symmetry, and although dedicated from infancy to this profession, they in general preserve a decency and modesty in their demeanor, which is more likely to allure than the shameless effrontery of similar characters in other countries.”

I learnt that possibly my nautch girl was a crude and jaded version of the former nautch girls, who were superior in art and bearing. With time, during family functions, nautch girls got replaced by choreographed dancers.  And now we have DJs playing songs at every wedding.

Earlier, they were a prominent part of Indian life and culture during the second half of the 19th and first half of the 20th centuries. They were mostly teenage girls, who typically performed in Mughal courts, the palaces of nawabs, the mahals of rajas, the bungalows of officers of the British Raj, the houses of zamindars as well as at ordinary homes wherever they were invited. Sometimes they arrived with their troupe without any invitation to a celebration and patrons were expected to pay them. They would break into an impromptu dance whenever situation demanded.

It should be kept in mind that they were not into flesh trade and their husbands accompanied them as one of the musicians. Their dance forms were an amalgam of prevalent dance forms of India at that time.

As royalty faded, the tradition of nautch lost its lustre. Some of them joined films and theatre. They have been widely portrayed in films too. The prominent ones among them were Shashimukhi from Chitpur and Phanibala. Shashimukhi was the first recorded artist of India. She went on to become the tragedy queen of Bengal theatre. 

Further on, nautch girls lost their dignity and came to be seen primarily as sex workers. That is why my concerned relative had admonished me – “Nice girls never go near them”.

I do not know whether the nautch forms are still alive in some corner of India or not but I cannot help remembering that particular  nautch girl, who had looked so divine to me! I had followed her almost like a fan adores a film star. I had enjoyed her playfulness and dance moves. I did not know then that I was witnessing a fading tradition…

Images courtesy Google