We at inext have actually hit a sixer, crossed the boundary amidst applauding readers and are now standing at the threshold of taking forward our learning so far, with more gusto. These last six years, from the time of our launch till now, the transformation that each phase of life has gone through, has truly been phenomenal. The churning that was taking ten years in the previous century, gathered pace and the same is happening in ten months or even ten weeks perhaps. Blink and you will miss it, pause and you will topple is the kind of environ that we are in today.
So when it came to our Foundation Day, we decided to look at the changed scenario with the accent on current highs making life really look up in multiple ways. With more expendable moolah in their pockets and the exposure blitz exploding all around big time, the consumer and the daring to explore, the more open and on the move generation, is out to grab opportunities anywhere. Nothing makes them stop and if anything does, there are schemes, packages, loans and above all IDEAS to surmount all odds.
Most important development is the way B towns have slowly but surely come up with qualitative changes taking over to revise and revisit all that is traditional or routine. Life is no longer just a struggle but one for enjoying and looking ahead. So it is not just the wonderful today but the exotic tomorrow that we have trained our eyes on, giving a bird‘s eye-view of also things to come, with some bits of flashback for a complete feel good.
Talking of the Youth, the focus has been on the short-cut generation that is non-conformist in every phase of life. Whether it is relationships, commitments of any kind or responsibilities it is the I, Me, Myself touch that defines everything for them. The changes are so fast paced that the generation gap has thinned to an extent that is visible within a gap of four years. For Society, we found it is the mode of communication, that has defined its way forward.
Texting has become a way of life and networking has gotten more robust. Not having to stop anywhere for info, the lifestyle changes are phenomenal as people in general have become more experimental and open to offers. The buzzword is ENJOY and that they are doing so to the hilt. Nothing anymore seems to happen just by chance for the society at large today. In Technology we focused on the phenomenal march towards things not even dreamt of six years ago.
The utilitarian tag is today all important while the range and variety has swept us all off our feet. At the same time the Market is exulting in the current phase, completely enveloped in brand culture, mall options, eating out junctions, you just name it! In the end, the aggressive marketing trends have made the consumer clearly emerge as king.
Similarly, the scope of Entertainment has clearly grown in manifold proportions for the entire range of viewership, with multiplexes almost taking over and the industry coming up with more and more innovative, interactive and experimental content in all genre. We identified one trend, that of women slowly taking centrestage. ‘She‘ has gone into action mode, racing, fighting, using firearms and taking to a lifestyle that is bold and aggressive, emerging as our new onscreen Hero. When it came to Sports, the comparative overdrive in six years we found, has been immense.
The T-20 era has come of age and at the same time, whether it is CWG, Olympics, World Cup or shooting and wrestling arenas, it is a high energy zone that we have entered today. We no longer play the game like we did yesterday. And this trend is something we found was all-pervasive. In all, collectively, we can call ourselves the Game Changers!
I’m still a kid. I’m like six years old. But it’s just a matter of wanting to get up, it’s just a big journey.
-Heath Ledger
Sharmishtha Sharma
Writer is an Associate Editor of i next
