1. Why did you leave India?
To better the quality of my life.
2. Do you plan to return to India to settle down?
Most certainly. Pune, Maharashtra.
3. What do you like most about being abroad?
Sound infrastructure.
4. What do like least about being abroad?
Social isolation.
5. Would you be concerned about raising your family outside India?
Yes, very concerned.
6. What are your thoughts about marrying outside your immediate community, someone who speaks a different language or practices a different religion?
The thought itself is repulsive in view of the many, usually irreconcilable differences between people from different communities or religions. My own sister married someone from the same community/religion but who spoke a different language. The marriage was over in less than a year. I rest my case.
7. What would be the first thing you would do if you became the Prime Minister of India?
Give public servants a salary raise so that they would not be tempted to become corrupt. Thereafter, any public servant, including cabinet ministers, would be subject to very harsh penalties, if caught accepting bribes.
8. What do you think are India's greatest strengths?(max 3)
1.Large highly-educated population
2.Business acumen and vision of its industry captains
3.Spiritualism of the masses
9. What do you think are the biggest problems facing India? (max 3)
1.Corruption
2.Lack of sound economic infrastructure
3.Poverty
10. Do you think that a presidential form of government would better serve the needs of India's democracy?
Yes.
11. For whom do you have the highest regard amongst living Indians?
Sri Sri Ravi Shankar.
12. Do you think that the national obsession with Cricket has helped or has it hurt India as a sporting nation?
Has helped India.
13. What do you think are India's greatest achievements since Independence? (max 3)?
1.Becoming a nuclear power
2.Becoming a world leader in software
3.Becoming an economic superpower
14. What is your favorite pastime?
Monitoring major financial markets.
15. What is your happiest memory?
Receiving Overseas Citizenship of India recently.
16. What's your most memorable journey?
2005 trip to India where I spent time with my Dad who subsequently died of cancer.
17. What is your ultimate food dish?
Hyderabadi beef biryani.
18. What are your favorite movies? (max 3)
1.Black
2.Hungama
3.Swades
19. What are your favorite books (please list authors as well)? (max 3)
1.Trading in the Zone by Mark Douglas
2.The Intelligent Investor by Benjamin Graham
3.The Investor's Quotient by Jake Bernstein
20. A message from you to other NRIs
Seriously consider returning to your motherland where unlimited opportunities await you. Be a part of the India economic superpower story.
Meet Srihari Mulgund. He currently lives in Toledo, Ohio, USA.
Published - June, 2002
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The views of this column are the author's own, and do not necessarily represent the views of NRI Online.