If you are an Indian, irrespective of whether you follow cricket or not (non-followers would anyway be in a miniscule minority), you know Sachin Tendulkar.  And like all other Indians, and cricket followers all over the world, you would have, for most part of his glorious cricketing career, been in awe of this amazing gentleman. He is one rare combination of extraordinary talent and remarkable humility. Soft-spoken. Professional. Unassuming in personality, imposing in stature. The world is at his feet, yet his feet are firmly grounded. It would appear that God created him to demonstrate something to humanity. If only we are observing.

While he continues to travel on his chosen path, still attracting huge crowds wherever he plays, discussions on his retirement plans have now started appearing at every medium. Questions are now being asked about his role and future in the Indian team. What started as a murmur has now become a noise.  So, should be retire now? Why? Why not?

At the outset, I must admit that my achievements in my field of endeavor would be less than 1% of what Sachin has achieved in his field. While Sachin has been an inspiration, admirable and positive influence on countless kids and adults alike, I am hardly such a person even within my close circle of loved ones. And, I am, only like most other people. Yet, I venture to suggest to Sachin that it is time he hung up his boots. He must retire now. I say this out of affection and concern, not disrespect. And I say this fondly to the 16-year-old who debuted for India with starry eyes.

To many, Sachin has never been an ordinary player. He has been a great one. A legend. And he has set up the mark so high for himself that today even he may be finding it difficult for him to match. So what should he do? Arguably, he may still be better than most ordinary cricketers. So, does he stoop to the level of mortals to compete with them? Please, NO! Let not the lion become a dog for the sake of a bone. Leave us with just the memories of how you ruled on field, not of how you struggled to progress from 96 to 100.

I believe that anyone who has in mind the best interest of Sachin, should venture to suggest him to retire now. His body, enthusiasm, commitment, and all the positive virtues that he has, may allow him to play, at the most, a couple of years more in the international circuit, and may be fetch India a few more wins, and personally to him a few more centuries and laurels. But they will all come at a very heavy cost. He has gifted us with countless memories. But his greatest gift to us has been this image of a committed professional who performed for the team’s cause. A professional who battled to triumph, not a professional who struggled to survive. He runs the risk of having to pay for this extended run with his stature, standing, reputation, and goodwill.

Sachin, on field today, resembles a shadow of his past. Don’t read a lot into the scores – whether he is making them or not; whether they are favourable to him or not. I do not attach a great deal of reverence to statistics. Not because they don’t help, but they can be easily manipulated. Anyone can be pleased. You just have to pick the right numbers.

Ever since he first made début as a teenager, Sachin Tendulkar has come across as someone who put the interests of the team above himself. What is in the best interest of the team today? That is a question that he has to answer himself honestly. And he will be judged by his answer, as much as by the amount of runs he has scored.

Retirement is not the end of the world. We would like to see Sachin often, in one form or the other. And we will see him of course. But however we see him, we like to see him as someone who excels. Never as someone who struggles. He is not like us. Let him not become like us.

Agreed I haven’t played cricket even at school level. Agreed that I cheered for him till not so long ago. While I can’t cook, I complain if the food served to me in a restaurant is stale. I love Madhuri Dixit and her smile. Yet, should a movie be made today, I would not prefer her to be the college-going heroine opposite Ranbir Kapoor.

Majestic voyage, it has been. But the ship is running aground now. And the sooner the captain acts, the better it would be.

Finally, Sachin, at this point of time, reminds me of an Indian bride at her ‘Bidai’, shortly after her wedding. Surrounded by loved ones in tears. Loved ones who are pained at the thought that she has to leave, even while realizing within themselves that she has to leave. Loved ones hoping to make the most of the few moments left. Loved ones hoping that time would stand still and the bidai would freeze in time.

However, that doesn’t happen. The bride must leave. She must set up her own household. We must allow her to leave. And advise her to leave. And fulfill her destiny. Before the Groom loses patience and heads home alone.

Steve Jobs is no more.

It is natural for the World to pay homage whenever a prominent personality dies. In the case of many leaders, the tributes are mainly customary. Speech writers often scramble to identify characteristics that could be attributed to the departed soul, to make the homage appear realistic. At times they succeed, but often times soulless words get uttered and printed – words, which both the speaker and the reader know, make no meaning, have no impact, and establish no connection.

A select few personalities are, however, different. Their death generates spontaneous outpouring of grief, sense of loss, and emotions ranging from disappointment, to sorrow, and to pain. And Steve was never one in the crowd, to say the least. He was always among a select few. More than that, he was often unique.

Steve Jobs had so many positive qualities, inspiring traits, and admirable characteristics, that it would be a herculean task for an amateur like me to capture even a fraction of them. At the risk of sounding to be just another guy jumping on to the bandwagon of people expressing their homage to Steve, I venture to share my feelings about him, and a few characteristics of his that I admired the most.

First of all, he seemed to be blessed with an amazing sense of clarity in respect of what he wanted, an amazing clarity of thought. It seemed like he exactly knew what he wanted. Knowing what you really want is a trait not everyone is blessed with.

Secondly, his communication abilities were remarkable. He was a born presenter, communicating clear and simple. He got to the point quickly, and made them precisely, without leaving any room for misunderstanding. His ‘Stay Hungry Stay Foolish’ speech is one of the most inspirational and wise speeches of all time. I really wish that it is made part of curriculum at some level in high school.

Thirdly, it appeared that to him, everything was personal. Mostly, that is a limitation, but he gloriously displayed how that could be an asset. May be, that was one huge difference between him and the other boy genius of his times, Bill Gates. Jobs is credited to be behind every single, minute detail behind Apple products. Every face-off and competition he had in the commercial world, from Microsoft to Dell, he made it all personal. Even towards the end when reports started coming out about Google’s plans to come up with mobile handsets, he is famously reported to remarking ‘but we didn’t get into the search business.’

Fourthly, he made the world a better place – few could argue against that. In a world where speculators pass of as visionaries, he was a true visionary. He made bold moves, justified them when questioned, and they finally emerged as he predicted. He satisfied demands (at times after creating them), and fulfilled expectations. He raised the bar – be it while demanding from his team, or while delivering to his customers.

I must confess that I am not half as much a fan of Apple, as I am Steve. But for an iPod gifted to me by my brother, I have never used an Apple product. And pricing of Apple products, undeniably, had a major say in this. Even as a child, I was identified as ‘stingy’. As I grew up, I realized that as much as I got my priorities wrong at times, the world too, mixed my desire to evaluate ‘value for money’ with stinginess. And I, somehow, found the other mp3 players that come at a fraction of the cost of an iPod, to be serving my purpose. Similarly, I am not too inclined to spend money on an iPhone, when comparable utilities are available at lesser cost. And my views on the iPad are getting aligned in the same direction.

However, that does not mean I don’t respect or like Apple products. Apple products were always a statement. And they meant QUALITY – always! Seldom, did their products fail. No doubt, they appeared to be steeply priced, but regular Apple customers always trusted that Apple knew exactly what they wanted. They were seldom disappointed. And, in fact, Apple often delivered to them experiences that even they never imagined of.

Finally, I must also admit that as much as I admire him for all his abilities, talents and his achievements, I, by no means, can claim to have implemented any of the lessons that he shared with the world. True homage is reflected more in actions than words. And by that yardstick, I would be a miserable failure. That however should not take away any of my right to be in awe of this man. As a member of the human race, I am entitled to that much indulgence – to be in awe of an extraordinary genius and an inspirational personality.