I will be gone for later part of this year and will return some time first week of 2009. Hope you guys have fun and wish you a very happy new year. Stay safe and stay healthy !!

I’m still unable to recover from the shocking events in Mumbai.  As a means to show support and solidarity for all those who have been affected, I was wondering if we can do some type of online campaign ?

Something similar along the lines of what followed in the aftermath of the Virginia Tech shootings. I for one am eager to show my whole hearted support on my blog, my Orkut and Facebook profile.

If we have a graphic designer in the audience, probably we can have a symbolic graphic like the VTech ribbon ? Drop me a line at contact@startupdunia.com if you can design such a graphic.

I’d also like to know what you think about this idea or if you have any other suggestions.

Most of you must have known by now about the terrorist attacks on Mumbai earlier tonight.  Its just sad and unfortunate that such attacks continue unabated and keep terrorizing our country and citizens. 

I just hope that unlike the other recent attacks, this attack doesnt become just yet another attack that is forgotten with time. Its high time we take a stand and put an end to this insanity. 

I am just shocked by how brazen and daring this attack has been and my sympathies go out to all families that have been affected by this senseless act of horror.

The economy is shaky and the credit crisis has impacted technology startups as well. Almost daily, I end up coming across yet another interview, yet another perspective on the current economic crisis and what entrepreneurs / startups need to do to survive this crisis.

Advice from experienced entrepreneurs and VC’s is great. Its invaluable.

But then how much is too much ?

Lately, it seems that everybody who is somebody, is offering the same set of advice, topped with a personal touch. Its the same set of principles, no matter which way you spin it. I say enough of it already. 

The bottom line is:

1) Conserve cash — equate this to layoffs or cutting down on non essential costs or anything that comes to mind

2) Generate revenues — try to generate revenue that will help you sustain the business

Thats it – plain and simple.

There – I’ve spared you reading through yet another survival advice.

I was doing some maintainence on the blog the last few days and it seems that accidently got the feeds to get re-synced. Apologies for any duplicate feed udpates you may receive in the next day or two. 

I know I have been missing in action for the past few weeks — I was hacking away at a personal project of mine. Got a working demo completed with several kinks still to be figured out. Boy !! When you get to a working demo, it gives you such a sense of accomplishment, no matter how small the coding task might have been. 

Blogging shall resume in the next few days.

In the meanwhile, feel free to check out some of the interesting startup jobs on the job board. Who said anything about a bad economy ? 51 jobs & counting, Indian startups are hiring. Check them out.

Wish all of you a very, very Happy Diwali. To those who hail from Gujjuland, wish you a happy and prosperous new year as well.

Been caught with shit @ work — regular blogging should resume soon.

Early today morning, I was reading up on the Jet Airways mess. I’m pretty sure Indian media would have been all over this, with constant coverage of the misery and organizing ‘expert panels’ on news channels.

In case you’re oblivious to what happened, Jet Airways announced layoff for 1900 people to cust costs and align with the current economic scenario. This set in motion a frenzy, with folks protesting outside airports and such and even the political ministers weighing in on the scenario.Ultimately, Jet Airways reinstated the laid off people.

This is a load of BS and Indian hypocrisy at its best.

When the going is good, employees can freely hop on from one job to the other as they please. Now, when they get laid off, they protest and cry foul ? I guess as the Indian market is moving towards a capitalist, consumer driven economy, people need to get rid of their socialist mindset when it comes to getting laid off as well. You simply cant have the best of both worlds. Thanks Nehru, your legacy still carries on !!