Interview with Financial Express

 Recently, my interview was published in Financial Express about the Qlik Academic Program and its growth covering more than 400 institutions. The interview included a broad range of topics including the resources offered under the program to the career prospects for students in data analytics

Invited as Chief Guest at BMSIT FDP on Data Analytics

 BMS Institute of Technology and Management one of Bangalore's well known Engineering and Management Institutions organised a five day Faculty Development Program ( FDP) on Trends in Data Analytics on 10-14 August 2020. Participants from across the country attended this virtual event

I was honoured to be invited as the Chief Guest on the day of the inauguration of this event. 

Invited as Speaker at an event by Computer Society of India Chennai

Recently, invited as a Speaker to deliver a talk on "Data Visualisation and Qlik Sense" organised by Computer Society of India, Chennai, ACM Chennai & IEEE CS Madras on September 15th 2020. Participants were from diverse background including academicians, professionals and students

 

Rise in demand for data scientists, Article in the Pioneer

 Article published in The Pioneer on how there is a rise in demand for data scientists due to the explosion of data. Companies are investing their time and money in harnessing power of data and deriving insights from them. 

To read more on this, visit: https://www.dailypioneer.com/2020/avenues/be-analytical.html  

Qlik Academic Program expands to 400 Universities and Institutions in India-press coverage

 Press coverage received on the Qlik Academic Program crossing more than 400 Universities and institutions in India. Five years back when I started the number of Univs and institutions were less than 10 and since that time the growth has been tremendous, with more than 6000 students and Professors registered for the program.

Some links for the press coverage received:

https://www.financialexpress.com/education-2/qlik-expands-presence-to-over-400-universities-in-india/2097953/

http://bweducation.businessworld.in/article/Qlik-Academic-Program-Expands-Presence-To-Over-400-Universities-And-Institutions-In-India/30-09-2020-326464/

https://analyticsindiamag.com/qlik-academic-program-expands-to-over-400-universities-and-institutions-in-india/

https://indiaeducationdiary.in/qlik-academic-program-expands-presence-to-over-400-universities-and-institutions-in-india/

Running my first Marathon

Couple of years back, when I read about a friend completing his first marathon, I was in complete awe and admiration. I am a regular gym goer but I felt running long distances was a different ball game altogether and it wasn't meant for me.

However, since the last year or so, my friends came up to me asking for fitness tips and how to start working out or stay motivated. I felt I needed to be on the same page as theirs and what better than to start a new health journey altogether and take up a different sport?

Remember, every sport is unique and requires its own separate set of preparation. I took up the challenge to run long distances about a year back. It wasn't easy because that meant going out of one's comfort zone, following a completely different health routine, willing to risk failure, following different food habits etc. Prior to that, my longest run was about 20-30 minutes and I used to go huff and puff at the end of it. But I started to increase my distance/time periodically, also trying different variations.

I wouldn't say my body was completely new to running because I ran in school and college days but that was about 25-30 years back! Mumbai's conditions for outdoor training both in terms of the infrastructure and weather are not exactly the best but I had to keep moving. Few months into my training and my friends noticed my transformation from a moderately built frame (I was about 79 kgs) to a leaner frame ( I got to about 72-73 kgs) I progressed running from 5 kms to 10 kms and took part in my first half Marathon in July 2019 which I was able to successfully complete.

Registrations for arguably the biggest marathon event in India, the #Tata Mumbai Marathon ( #TMM) 2020 opened. I decided to take the challenge and registered for the full marathon . I began training with this goal in mind. Rains in Mumbai start around July and end around September but this year they lasted longer and its another challenge for outdoor sports, training takes backseat. Rains subsided around October end and I was able to slowly regain my training, also managing my commitments at my work and family.

In no time, I was staring at December with just over a month to go for #TMM on January 19th. I was able to train well but managing a full run of 30 kms twice. Ideally, one should be able to do a full run of at least 35 kms before the marathon to be able to feel how one’s body responds

January got some other action for me in sports. A day before #TMM was my daughter Kiana’s annual sports event and I took part in the parents race in which I stood first. In our annual sports event in the society where we stay, I came second in the 10 kms race. I think these provided some validation for the training I had undergone since the past one year.

Finally, the D day arrived and I was excited to take the plunge. Being my first full marathon, my aim was to complete it and not worry about the duration.

#TMM is an extravagant event and this one had about 55,000 participants in different categories not just from different cities in India but also different nationalities. Since its an IAAF Gold Label event, the way it is organized is very professional. People from all walks of life, age, shapes and size participate which is the beauty of this event.

I began my run at 5.30 am and the course is quite beautiful as it passes through Mumbai’s iconic buildings and landmarks. The highlight probably is the run on the Sea Link since its only during this event one is able to walk/run on it. At other times, cars are not allowed to stop on the link connecting the South and West of Mumbai. I was enjoying my run and taking it easy. As the course takes a turn from Mahim Causeway moving from Prabhadevi to Haji Ali and back to the starting point, the experience is made memorable by hundreds of volunteers who keep supplying water, energy drinks, pain relief sprays. Music and dance is being played by bands, groups encouraging you to keep moving. Feels like a carnival! Citizens in their own capacity supply you with cheers, food, water, motivational messages. Your feet keep moving by the sheer energy that’s present on this day. At the end of the last 4-5 kms, it’s a challenge to keep up because the body is tired having ran for more than 5 hours, in my case. You see many other participants around you and feel encouraged. You want to go on and not stop. The feeling at the finish line is amazing and for me, like many others, it was a culmination of determined efforts which all paid off in the end. In the 45th year of my life, I feel this run will remain a memorable event in my life.

Finally, my first marathon success is dedicated to my Dad who was an accomplished sportsperson himself and achieved many successes during his school and college days! Thanks Papa for your strength!

Home workout tips to get your fitness in action!

So you are at home due to the corona virus advisory! Not to worry, in fact, this is an excellent opportunity to invest in your health and boost your immune system.  Better immunity means better protection against this virus and its good for your health in the long run anyways!

Did you know that exercising just 20 minutes daily can-do wonders for your immune system and improve your health? Doesn’t matter if you do not have access to the gym now, you can still stay healthy by following a health regime at home.

To ensure you optimize your time at home, here are some useful tips for your home workouts:

1.      Define your health goals

 What do you want to achieve and by when? Is it overall fitness, to get lean, to build muscles or participate in an event or anything else?  Identify this first so you could have a focused health plan. The objective is not to feel anxious whether you’ve been able to achieve your goal or not but to have a clear direction. The chances of achieving your health goals are higher if you know what they are.

There are various plans on the web and on apps based on the kind of workouts you could pursue based on your goals.

2.      Commit a specific time

 Even though you are home and most likely have all the time in the world, it’s important to dedicate a time for your workout. Maintain this discipline and do not let anything get in the way. It’s easy to procrastinate when you are at home. The best time to allocate for your workout is early morning when there are minimum distractions. However, this is an individual choice but maintaining a fixed time is key. Unless you commit a specific time for your workout, it’s not gonna work!

3.      Stay away from distractions

Keep yourself off distractions such as checking messages or answering your mobile phone or attending family chores during your workout. Do not get sucked into multitasking other things at home. You may be a great multi-tasker, but this is not a good time to demonstrate these skills!

4.      Create clutter free space

 Ensure that you create a good amount of free space if not a dedicated room for your workout. A thumb rule is to have clutter free space equal to the size if you were to spread your arms and legs straight and sideways lying down and of course a ceiling height that is good enough for you to jump up (and not hit the ceiling!) if you are skipping. The room must be airy or if you would like to keep the air conditioning on, that’s your choice.

5.      Keep these items ready

Have these items ready BEFORE you begin your home workout- floor mat, dry fit clothes, face napkin, clean shoes, (optional if you are comfortable wearing inside your home), weights or accessories like bands, skipping rope if you are using them, fitness watch or fitness app on your mobile, water, music system. Keep these items organized at a close distance before you begin your workout. Avoid television or any such visual medium for entertainment, this could be quite indulging and a time waster.

6.      Record and Monitor

Use health apps or gadgets to record and monitor every workout, this way you can keep a record of your exercises. These apps and gadgets have many features such as duration, distance, calories burnt, speed, heart rate etc. If you are doing strength training, you can input the type of exercise, weights, reps etc. You could also record your video or take a picture on the first day and moving forward, to gain visibility of your progress.  It’s motivating to see one’s past workouts when the chips are down. You can review your progress on a regular basis, at least once a week. For many, it would be a pleasant surprise on the amount of progress being made just by keeping a tab on your workouts.

7.      Follow proper nutrition

Staying at home might lead to binging! So keep your nutrition under check and remember to follow few simple rules- reduce/eat less of sweets and oil based/fried foods, more of fresh and home cooked food. Eat on time and do not skip or delay your meals, for example, do not have late dinner or skip breakfast. Keep hydrated on a regular basis.  Before you begin your workout, have some light snack like a fruit or an energy bar but not anything heavy. Learn to have a healthy meal post workout to replenish your body on time

Hope you find these tips useful, stay at home and stay healthy. This is the perfect time to invest in health and a great opportunity to define and redefine one’s health priorities!

4 Weeks Fitness Plan for Beginners

This fitness plan is meant for all those who want to start “home workouts”, irrespective of age, gender, existing fitness levels etc. You may or may not have a history of doing exercises, that’s ok. 

Right now, all you need is good enough space to be able to spread your hands and legs in a sleeping position, good enough head space so that your head doesn’t hit the ceiling and an airy, ventilated room or if you have terrace/large balcony, that works!

Besides this, you must commit yourself to stay fit and healthy!

Items you need to get started:

·        Floor mat if you have

·        Shoes (if you are comfortable wearing indoors)

·        Water bottle

·        Face towel

·        Hair/head band, wrist band ( optional)

·        Gym attire

·        Music

·        Install exercise monitoring apps on your mobile, fitness trackers or a note pad to keep a record of your workouts

Week 1:

Points to remember:

·        It’s the start of a new habit so your body will take time to adapt, there would be resistance, body will get sore but it’s all part of business!

·        Fix a time and maintain that time, no matter what, this is very important

·        Try to follow the number of sets and reps mentioned but don’t push too hard, enjoy this time, don’t stress over it

Day	Week-1	Links
Day-1	Simple stretching and warm up for 20 minutes	Perform 5-6 exercises from here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=49ESacuU04g
Day-2	Begin with stretching and warm up for 10 minutes Spot jogging for 5 minutes Push-ups and Squats (3 sets x 10 reps each)   Relax, stretch and meditate for 5-10 minutes Total time:40 minutes	Perform 4-5 exercises from the above link for stretching Spot jogging: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qLmCgzeqtqM Push ups: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IODxDxX7oi4 Squats: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aclHkVaku9U
Day-3	Repeat Day-2
Day-4	Rest day
Day-5	Repeat day-2
Day-6	Repeat day-2 Increase 1 set of push- ups and squats each Practice less time rest between sets Total time: 40 minutes
Day-7	Repeat day-6

Week 2:

Points to remember:

·        Again, maintain the time for the workouts, no matter what

·        Body will further resist, some “important” work might get in the way but don’t compromise with the time committed

·        Do not get tempted to reduce or even increase your planned workout

Day	Week-2	Links
1	Warm up and stretching for 10 minutes Spot jogging for 5 minutes Burpees (10 reps x 2 sets) Mountain climbers (15 reps x2 sets) Relax, stretch and meditate for 5-10 minutes Total time: 40 minutes	Burpees: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dZgVxmf6jkA Mountain climbers: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zT-9L3CEcmk
2	Repeat Day 6, Week-1
3	Repeat Day 1, Week-2
4	Rest day
5	Repeat Day-1, week-2 Increase burpees and Mountain climbers 1 set each Total time: 40-45 minutes
6	Repeat Day 6, week-1 Increase 1 set each of push ups and squats Practice less time rest between sets Total time: 40-45 minutes
7	Repeat Day-5, week 2

Week 3:

Points to remember:

·        Body would respond to the workouts quite well, muscles may get toned, your endurance levels would be better than week-1, keep the game on, don’t slack. But feel proud you’ve come this far!

·        Stick to the workouts, try to reduce rest times between each set

Day	Week-3	Links
1	Begin with stretching and warm up for 5 minutes Spot jogging for 5 minutes Push-ups and Squats (3 sets X 10 reps each) Lunges (3 sets x10 reps Leg raises (3 sets x 10 reps) Relax, stretch and meditate for 5-10 minutes Total time: 50 minutes	Lunges: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QF0BQS2W80k Leg raises: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4kQd9eWclE
2	Warm up and stretching for 5 minutes Spot jogging for 5 minutes Jumping jack- 5 minutes Burpees (10 reps x 2 sets) Mountain climbers (15 reps x2 sets) Squat thrust (10 reps x 2 sets) Relax, stretch and meditate for 5-10 minutes Total time: 50 minutes	Jumping jack: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c4DAnQ6DtF8 Squat thrust: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HsfHY2ewmcY
3	Repeat Day-1/Week 3 Include crunches 2x10 reps Total time: 50 minutes	Crunches: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xyd_fa5zoEU
4	Rest day
5	Repeat Day2/Week 3 Include Plank 30 second x 2 sets Total time: 50 minutes	Plank: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XMxHTNPPgxM
6	Repeat Day-1/Week 3 Include crunches 10 reps X 2 sets Total time: 50 minutes
7	Repeat Day2/Week 3 Include bicycle crunches (10 reps X 2 sets) Total time: 50 minutes	Bicycle crunches: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iAb1qlJvD9c

Week-4:

Points to remember

·        This is an important week and will culminate into the formation of a new habit, your body will can take your fitness to different levels from now on

·        Maintain the rules of fixed time each day

·        Follow the plan strictly, do not reduce or increase

·        Don’t relax or slack, maintain the habit consistently

Day	Week-4	Links
1	Begin with stretching and warm up for 5 minutes Spot jogging for 5 minutes Push-ups and Squats (4 sets x10 reps each) Lunges (3 sets x 10 reps) Leg raises (3 sets x 10 reps) Bicycle crunches (3 sets x 10 reps) Relax, stretch and meditate for 5-10 minutes Total time: 50-55 minutes
2	Warm up and stretching for 5 minutes Spot jogging for 5 minutes Jumping jack- 5 minutes Burpees (10x 2 sets) Mountain climbers (15x 3 sets) Squat thrust (10x 3 sets) Crunches (10x 3 sets) Plank (30 seconds x 3 sets) Relax, stretch and meditate for 5-10 minutes Total time: 50-55 minutes
3	Repeat Day-1
4	Rest Day
5	Repeat Day-2
6	Repeat Day-1
7	Repeat Day-2

Notes:

1. ·        Stick to one time for workouts, preferably in the morning
2. ·        Measure and keep track of workouts on apps or in writing (remember this rule: no tracking means no workout). If possible, take a picture, record a video of your workouts in the beginning and every 3-4 days
3. ·        Don’t be tempted to increase your workout or decrease it for any reason
4. ·        Keep everything organized before you begin like mats, water, face towel etc. only when these are ready, you should begin
5. ·        Either wear your gym attire or have a dedicated gym t-shirt/top and shorts/pants for workouts, do not workout in your home wear, treat your fitness with respect
6. ·        Do not go for any strict diet initially, just control/reduce your sweets, fried, processed foods. Eat natural food more and less of everything since you are at home. Stick to a fixed timing for food and don’t skip your meals. Keep yourself hydrated during workouts
7. ·        Don’t expect miracles but expect improvement each day (so keep a track of your workouts)
8. ·        Its ok to miss a workout or two but don’t make it a habit