Sometimes you need to go back to where the learning started: For me it was Mamallipuram, the old village south of Chenney. It was a new learning experience as I accompanied my friend Birgit Kannen, who produces a film about the fishermen, their lifes and their believes just here.

We had dinner with a dance group of Sikkim, a province in the very north of India – who had performed in the “Dance Festival” of Mamallipuram. They had travelled 3 days by train to show their dance. The next morning they went home to the Himalya. We talked to the Kashmir traders, who sell Indian Art to European ladies, from pashmina to silk, from silver to holi stones. We studied the way they made business, how they find out about tourist behaviour and why did they offer this price or another. We became friends. But – pictures can show more than 1000 words can write. Flickr

Keeping an eye on India, do not miss the article about Tata India – Too good to fail, by strategy-business. From german perspective – TATA group has hired ex-BMW managers now … to restart Jaguar brand.

Very interesting is also this video on TED, which was recommended to me by my friend Amel Karboul. It takes only some minutes to understand the cultural difference between westerners (Alexander the Great – Linear thinkers) and Indian kings (routed in Vedic thinking) … not only interesting for anthropologist – but anybody working with other cultures. (18 min)

Speaker Devdutt Pattanaik: Mythologist. He says: “We all search for meaning in our work and lives. Devdutt Pattanaik suggests we try a tactic of our ancestors — finding life lessons in myth, ritual and shared stories. As the Chief Belief Officer at Future Group in Mumbai, he helps managers harness the power of myth to understand their employees, their companies and their customers. He’s working to create a Retail Religion, to build deep, lasting ties between customers and brands.”