Miditech president Niret Alva has a relationship with sharp, easy companions, which has been wowing him, challenging him, since forever? his favourite Books. Nidhi Jain is truly inspired by him and swears to become a bookaholic herself.

Who introduced you to reading?
My grandfather Joachim Alva had a fabulous collection of books ranging from biographies and autobiographies to works on psychology and dating behaviour and history. He loved giving and accepting books as gifts. After I was born, all new purchases had his name and my name on one of the first pages and the date of purchase. The implication was that he was leaving them to me.

At his bed side was a Bible (the most widely printed and sold book in the world) and the Imitation of Christ by Thomas Kempis. I've read both. The first many times. The second once. The first is my favourite book. It's a love story of the relationship between God and man, sometimes literal, sometimes metaphorical, with all the attendant ups and downs of faithfulness, betrayal, murder, war, redemption and restoration. In my life it holds supernatural power. I cannot start the day without it.

Joachim Alva was a journalist, freedom fighter, author and politician. He published the news magazine Forum in the heady days of the freedom struggle. Mahatma Gandhi read it and they often wrote to each other. We still have some of those handwritten letters. On Sundays, even before I was a teenager, I would take down in long hand his newspaper articles which he would simply dictate to me. He paid me a princely sum for each exercise and his reminiscences were published on Sundays in a column called Yesterday and Today.

I guess I got my love for books from him. I started reading really early. By the 6th or 7th standard I had read a fairly serious work called Pre-Marital Dating Behaviour. Forget who the author was. From my grandfather I inherited love for non-fiction across a variety of subjects. From the classic "The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich" (William Shirer) which took me a month and twelve days to read in the 12th standard, to the sheer joy of pouring over the printed Encyclopedia Britannica, building on what had started with Enid Blyton, Biggles, Hardy Boys... Alistair Mclean... Ian Fleming... the love for books was all encompassing and still runs deep.

When my grandfather died when I was 14, I lost a fabulous role model, somebody who had inspired me at various levels; intellectual, spiritual, emotional and even to excel at sport... he left me with an abiding love for books.

Kind of book collection I have
It's very eclectic. Some books I have inherited from my grandfather. I love their old feel and slightly musty smell. Some have survived battles with termites, but don't look so good as a result.

The Bhagvad Gita according to Mahatma Gandhi is an example. I have books on Karate (did it for 3 years), a page-weary, battered 30 volume Encyclopedia Britannica , a gift from my parents, Niranjan and Margaret Alva, books bought after reading reviews in the Economist (my favourite magazine), books for the spirit, for the mind, for the sheer joy of fiction.... Ian McEwan, Umberto Eco (what an intellect that man has), Vikram Seth (Golden Gate and Suitable Boy), Ben Okri? books on economics that are lucid and easy to digest... books on the environment....The Forgiveness of Nature and a Moment on the Earth for example... David Attenborough....

I love touching and rearranging our books. My wife Anuja Chauhan loves books too and reads more than me. Unlike me she rereads lots of books. So does my 12-year-old daughter Niharika.

Our book collection reflects the diverse interests of our family... from the latest Harry Potter that my wife and daughter need to buy almost as soon as it is off the press to Agatha Christie to Wodehouse.... we love books... can't get enough of them... keep asking my wife to make more shelves.....

Taste in books and how do you choose the books you read.
My taste in books is often incomprehensible. It's intuitive. It's spontaneous. It's sometimes governed by reviews I read. Sometimes it has to do with work. When we were doing a reality series for BBC World on a call centre in Bangalore, I quickly read... What's this India Business.... And I own it.

When I was writing the script for Operation Hot Pursuit, an undercover documentary on the illegal ivory trade and tracing it from South India to Japan, made by Miditech for NGC... Someone gave me as a gift, a novel by Wilbur Smith that seriously helped stimulate the writing...
Basically I look to buy books that will help me grow by inspiring me, wowing me, challenging me, pushing me, forcing me to state what I stand for.
None of this means that I only read high brow stuff. Some of my favourite writers, I read for the sheer mastery over their material... Dalrymple, Seth, Roberts (Shantaram), Mehta (Maximum City), Agatha Christie... others I read to remember my childhood... Enid Blyton... believe it or not... read two, two years ago... then I love to read food for the soul... enny Hine... Derek Prince... Tozer... Yancey... Tolle

On favourite authors and well written books
There is no hard and fast rule. My favourite authors are those who draw you into their world and hold you close to them as they lead you from page to page. They reveal a point of view and ask you to join it and be a part of it. No this doesn't mean they are all fiction. Take Jeremy Sachs... The End of Poverty... an incredible argument, very passionate for how we can use capital to solve most of the world's development problems. Right or wrong.....he hits you in the solar plexus and you are forced to re-examine what you believe in.

Read Jared Diamond...Guns,Germs and Steel and his more recent Collapse... wow... solid research... well crafted arguments and the climax. Boy, does he make you think! Rushdie and the way he writes is so compelling, you are not drawn, you are driven through the narrative by a rare gift that the author clearly has. Tom Sharpe can make you laugh till you cry with his Wilt series... he is really funny. Sainath (Everybody Loves a Good Drought)... a solid reminder that a large part of India is clearly not the radar of our so-called mass media.

Do you find interesting things in every book
As soon as I finish reading a book, I write down its name and the author's name in a note book. It's a "ritual" going back to the 1980s. If I own the book, I may underline stuff that I found seriously compelling or moving or something that I need to internalise. May copy it out too. Every book as its own secret it own magic. Sometimes a book is dense and not too easy to follow, or maybe my intellect isn't sharp enough.....time to pass.....a good book is like a good relationship...effortless....easy...companionable........

Self help books
Look I know they sell well and that there are people who specialise in that kind of writing. I don't read them anymore. Used to years ago. What scares me about some very famous self-help authors with respect to what they stood for is that they were not able to practice what they preached. One person who preached the philosophy of objectivism died in any asylum. Another author who tried to teach people how to tackle life, committed suicide. A third married 6 times or thereabouts.

The best so called self help books are those that stimulate you to find your own answers. Eckhart Tolle is fabulous... The Power of the Present Moment and his new book... A New Earth... Jim Collins... Good to Great... On why some companies become truly spectacular and others fail to make the grade... simple, insightful and beautiful.

Investments on books
Never consider buying books a waste of money. Think they are well worth the investment, though sometimes it pays to wait for the paperback version. Research shows that children who grow up around books tend to be better equipped for life. Anuja and I have three kids. Niharika (11 and a half), Nayantara (8 and a half) and Daivik (almost 6). The eldest loves reading the most but the second one seems to be picking up. Daivik hasn't really got into it yet.

Reading pace
Varies, depending on the pace. A thriller gets polished off. Romila Thapar's History of India, Vol 1 took ages... was trying to absorb lots of stuff while reading.

Browsing and e-reading
Does not work for me... personally. A book is about having and holding... in bed, at the table, on a plane, in a train, in a park....

Currently reading
Just finished Heaven is so Real by Choo Thomas and now savouring a History of the World in 9 and a half chapters by J. Barnes.

Books that don't hold
Dense, seriously complex material that my brain can't connect with or fathom... stuff that I may grow old trying to get through.

Sitting in his exquisitely done up plush apartment in Goregaon ( a suburb in Mumbai), dressed comfortably in a grey T shirt and track pants, Aatish Kapadia looks totally calm and composed. I sense a certain aloofness about the man as he tells me, "Actually I've taken a day off from my shooting today to write my next episode for Sarabhai Vs Sarabhai."

After discussing a few nitti gritties the fresh pineapple juice arrives, Kapadia opens up a bit and gets talking about himself, "at times I can be very aloof but then I can also very gregarious with people I know well."

That perhaps sets the whole tone of the conversation, as we settle down for a brief t?te-?-t?te on his life and times. I ask him about his rise from a writer to a successful producer, and he goes "somehow, life hasn't been a struggle but things have just fallen in place for me. I am a product of meeting the right people at the right time. I strongly believe life is a journey and not a race." And this, coming from a producer and the brain behind the immensely successful shows like Khichdi, Sarabhai vs Sarabhai and Ba bahu aur babli. I wait for more, as Kapadia reveals it all about his life and times.

My early days
My family's been into the textiles business for years, but somehow I knew that I could never fit into it. And that's why the surname `Kapadia'. One best thing that I picked up from my father was the habit of reading. And along with reading voraciously I tried my hand at different things in life - acting, writing and theatre.

I started off doing Gujarati theatre and later scripting for Gujarati soaps. Somehow, God has been kind to me and life has not been a struggle but things have just fallen in place for me. I am a product of meeting the right people at the right time. My big break in the Hindi television space happened with Alpaviram. Later, Ek mahal ho sapno ka happened, which I thoroughly enjoyed writing.

I believe, life is not a race, it's a journey cause if it's a race then what do I do when the race ends? I want to walk at my own pace and compete with myself.

I seek inspiration from
I seek inspiration from people I meet on the road, on the sets and when I travel. They could even be complete strangers to me. I try to understand people, their real selves and their three dimensional lives. Life is not about being either completely white or black. So, people are my fodder for thought.

I keep the child in me alive by watching children play. Children are an amazing gift from God, as they enjoy the simple joys of life almost mesmerized by life. It's we adults who put in ideas of competition and racing against time for them.

On the television business
The television business is getting crazier by the day. We are obsessed with glamour, gossip and everyone's trying to fit into the same slot. So, if one guy is creating unnecessary drama and getting TRP's everyone's trying to imitate. As a result, the whole landscape looks the same. I think, success is a relative term and TRP's have to be seen in the right context. Even newspapers are all intellectually crap, full of parties, gossip and weddings. There is nothing intellectually stimulating to read.

On Page 3 parties
I feel totally out of place at parties especially, filmi parties. I try to avoid all parties as far as possible.

Success means
Success is being allowed to do the kind of creative work that I want to. And not having to do what the channel or the audiences want. There are people in the market who think they are successful but I think they have succumbed to pressure.

I am failing every single day.
I experience failure every single day as I try to write and pull off every episode successfully. To fill a blank piece of paper every single day is a great challege. Since, I am not a genius, words don't flow out but I've to work very hard at my craft.

Stress busters
I don't believe in getting stressed. If something is not working out or shaping up as per my wishes - then my attitude, So what? I take it very cool in life. I used to practice Yoga earlier but now I prefer going to the gym. I mix a workout of cardio and weights. I also love traveling because of the hectic schedules. I love traveling and have traveled across the world along with my theatre group.

Cartoon Network Enterprises India and South Asia director Jiggy George's think reading is greatest investment mind. An avid book reader tells Nidhi Jain it would allow writers to make a living and would keep India's smartness quotient in tact.

Who introduced you to reading?
Books are an enduring love. My parents fueled my interest for general knowledge by buying me volumes of the "Tell me why series" and encyclopedias. The idea was to balance/supplement academics and learning by rote. These books along with the Bible were introduced at a very early age. The progression in school saw phases?from the Hardy boys, Alfred Hitchcock adventures to a lot of abridged classics like Tom Sawyer, Huckleberry Fin, Moby Dick, Robinson Crusoe etc. I remember a phase of obsession with Sherlock Holmes and his myriad adventures. I wrote a letter to Baker street asking him as to why he came as close as Nepal and never visited India. I was thrilled to get a letter back explaining as to how he would love to come to India and some mystery soon would see him and Watson there. Though precocious; I did not see this as marketing. This letter made an indelible mark and now working in a job that markets dreams to kids; the letter from Sherlock keeps reminding me of how simple ideas can fuel imagination and bring unbridled joy in a kid's life!
The one person who I believe has molded my life is my maternal uncle. He played cupid to my love for books. Bose uncle introduced me to the world of Gabriel Garcia Marquez, Milan Kundera, Salman Rushdie, and Amitav Ghosh. Though he was struggling to make a living in Mumbai; he ensured that he invest in buying me books every month. It was his investment into me and it changed my world! I started my love affair with books. It got me traveling vicariously to different parts of the world and activated the theatre of my mind.

Kind of book collection you have
I am promiscuous when it comes to books and my collection is eclectic and reflects the obsessions and different phases of my life. From Classics, to travelogues, from humor to contemporary literature, from graphic books, screenplays, comics to biographies. A lot of music related books and of course corporate stuff. I am not very fond of Indian authors except for my complete love and respect for the works of Amitav Ghosh, Vikram Seth and Khushwant Singh.
I love humor and favorites include Kingsley Amis, Dave Barry, Bill Bryson and Douglas Adams.
Comics ?I love and have the complete Tin Tin's, Asterix, Amar Chitra Katha's, Calvin and Hobbes, Gary Larson , Scott Adams (most of them?)and Mad (all of them until 2005)
I recently got gifted a subscription to the Economist by a worthy friend. I love it and this again is now staple diet.

On favorite authors and well written books
This could take very long but?My current favorite is Nick Hornby and this genre of writing would so appeal to the youth of our country. Its not "high art" and pretentious and this genre of writing does not exist in India. "High Fidelity", "A long way down" and "About a boy" are all superb books!

Salinger's Catcher in the Rye, Gabriel Garcia Marquez- love in the time of Cholera, Hundred years of solitude and Chronicles of a death foretold. John Irving's "World according to Garp", " Zorba the greek " byNikos Kazantzakis, Michael Ondaatje's "The English Patient" and Ian McEwan's " Amsterdam", "To kill a mocking bird" by Harper Lee and even Stephen King's "Shawshank redemption"
"The Hitchhiker" series by Douglas Adams, Vikram Seth's complete works from "Golden gate" and "Equal music" to the "Suitable boy" and the wonderful travelogue "From Heaven's lake"

"The Hitchhiker" series by Douglas Adams, Vikram Seth's complete works from "Golden gate" and "Equal music" to the "Suitable boy" and the wonderful travelogue "From Heaven's lake"?

Every corpo type should read Seth's Hare and tortoise in his book "Beastley Tales". It is the signs of our times!

Amitav Ghosh's "Shadow lines", Rushdie are "Shame" and "Haroun and the sea of stories." The classics like "The Great Gatsby "by Scott Fitzgerald, "The Alexandra quartet" by Lawrence Durrell, "Brighton Rock" by Graham Greene, "The adventures of Tom Sawyer" by Dickens and "Don Quixote "by Cervantes.
I also liked "God of small things'?
As for business related books; I am partial to biographies and loved Richard Branson's Steve Job's and J R D Tata's stories.

I love Sidney Lumet's" making movies" and in recent times, Stephen Levitt's Freakanomics, Malcolm Gladwell's Blink and Lexus and the olive tree by Friedman were very interesting.

Do you find interesting things in every book, how do you choose books you read?
Most of my friends read and I trust their judgment of books. Besides, I check amazon.com, reviews of books and by browsing at bookstores. The people I love most have to live with my obsession with books- they get the same predictable gifts (a book again!) and have to live with being forced to read.

What do you think of self help books?
I don't think of them! I know it sells a lot of copies because all of us need help. I could not "awaken the giant within" even after trying to read Anthony Robbin's book a hundred times. I loved the Alchemist (if you put this in genre of self help) and I am an unashamed fan of some of the dummies series of books. I greatly benefited by the dummy's guide to Classical music, wines and yoga. I though Stephen Covey's seven habits was great when I read it n MBA School.

Money and time you spend on books
Money in this case can buy love! I spend too much money and rationalize it each time. In fact, I have been forbidden by the Home minister to buy any more books as it is impairing our social life. Fewer friends come home as there is no place to accommodate them!

Books-an investment
The art scene has got fashionable as its now a currency like the stock exchange. It's now cool to say you collect art. I wish this coolness quotient would translate to books. It would keep our writers and publishing industry in business. It would allow writers to make a living and it would keep India's smartness quotient in tact.
I think reading has been my greatest investment. The returns payout greatly at work as it has helped the process of being lateral, communicating better, dreaming up the road ahead, selling a dream!

Browsing and e-reading
Inspite of the fact that I like technology I have still not got used to the idea of e-reading. I guess I am a tactile person. I need to touch and feel books! I guess this explains my obsession with my job?I set up new businesses with brand Pogo and Cartoon Network- the vision being that kids can touch and feel the brands beyond the realm of TV.

Currently reading
Thunderbolt kid by Bill Bryson, TV Nation by Michael Moore, SRK's biography and my daily dose of comics and magazines.

Director and COO of Graphiti Multimedia, Munjal Shroff tells Nidhi Jain, how a person grows with changing times without changing the basic nature incorporated in the beginning.

By Birth
My belief in GOD has not really changed much, though I have been through tough circumstances, desperate situations. I knew that it was part of learning personally and professionally and knew things would work out.

Values & Belief
I have been fortunate to be born in a family which is culturally very strong. Our family tradition is 120 years old. The customs, traditions I grew up enjoying was a great way of bonding. Belief is a personal choice, though I don't personally don't exercise it and some make it a big issue, values shouldn't change. To a large extent, mine have remained the same. I guess it has a lot to do with upbringing, though there are values which change with personal experiences. Extreme conditions do question our values. I don't have any regrets on the decisions I have made.
Rituals
I believe in Lord Ganesha. Trained by my grandfather, Navin Shroff, I know my customs/rituals better than my father and my father acknowledges that. Our rituals give us identity. We have antique toys, chariots, which I want to and pass on to my kids and I want this tradition to continue forever.

Divine visit
I go to Mahalaxmi temple in Mumbai. My main deity is in a temple in Udaipur.

Spiritual guidance
My grandfather, to an extent, who was always detached from worries, and took life in his stride and is a very calm, composed, spiritual person.

Positive thinking
I believe in light at the end of the tunnel as things have a mysterious ways of coming back to us.

Relaxing spiritually
With wife and kids and also the latter are a huge source of entertainment.

Are you Destiny's child?
It wasn't a smooth ride after having close calls but I know deep down that things will work out.

A complete gadget freak - That is Hiren Gada,Vice President Shemaroo Entertainment Pvt. Ltd for you. His likes life on the fast lane, is how he describes it to Richa Dubey.

I keep myself updated about the gadgets that I use. I read magazines, books and watch TV. I own a mobile, MP3 player and a laptop which I carry wherever I travel for official purposes. I prefer the latest configuration on my laptop. The latest one which I am using has got a screen size of 12 inches and is very small and weighs less. I find it very convenient to carry while traveling. It also has different software and a DVD writer. We are a home DVD company so I have a vast DVD collection ranging from classics to newer ones.

I like watching movies in multiplexes as well as at home. Watching a movie in multiplexes is a family experience. I make it a point to watch movies with the family at least once or twice in two weeks.

Being from the entertainment industry I like to watch movies with leisure therefore I have installed home theater in each and every room. I watch movies a lot. I am a big techno freak when it comes to movies. In my hall I have a mini theatre. There is a Panasonic projector at one end and a large screen at the other, which gives a proper theater feel.

One of it is movable, such that I can watch it while having meals. I have a set top box, a DVD player and amplifier. All of these are attached to the projector and speakers around the room. I use 5 remote controls for them but it pays well. The experience of watching and listening to music in such an environment is amazing. I own all the original DVDs and depending on the mood I watch them.

My collection of movies range from Lawrence of Arabia, Da Vinci Code, Anand etc.

In mobile phones I have kind of stabilized on Nokia 9300 since two years. It is a communicator and I never found any cell as good. This is the one which has everything in one and suits my profession. I have a blackberry installed so I get mail alerts on it when I am not carrying my laptop. Communicator is a holistic device in its own right. But I do keep a track of every new mobile in the market.

While traveling, schedules are tight so I hardly get time to shop or check out for small electronic gadgets but in duty free I do check out the price and new features. I also carry my MP3 player while traveling. It also has a radio in it. I have never bought an Ipod because I feel it is as good as having an MP3 player. If they come out with an Ipod cum radio I will surely buy one. I am looking for different features in an Ipod like video.

I begin my day
Mornings are usually very rushed. I live at Andheri (a suburb in Mumbai) Lokhandwala Complex which is pretty far from my office. Since I spent the whole day at work; in the mornings I try to play with my four year old daughter Mahek. Me and my wife get Mahek ready for school, after which we go for a walk at the nearby park.
After brisk walking I practice a little bit of kriya yoga, which I've picked up from my mother. But I must confess, I am trying to be more regular with my routines.

My diet mantra
I don't follow a strict diet. It's a very simple diet mantra and that is eat healthy and avoid all spicy Indian food. My breakfast is mostly some fruits and milk and I don't carry my lunch. I just grab something at the office canteen which is pretty palatable. To dine out I prefer either Mahesh Lunch Home in Juhu/ South Mumbai or Mainland China.

Shopping
I don't really shop much. And whenever I go shopping, I make it a point never to go alone. Because it's all about getting a nod from my wife. Most of the time I stick to what my wife selects for me. We mostly shop at the malls and I amongst all the brands I stick to Allen Solly which is pretty good.

Travel Destination
I think India is a beautiful country. And each time we go for a holiday it's like rediscovering our country all over again. I had gone to Kerala recently and I still can't forget the breathtaking sights of the backwater expanse consisting of canals and coconut groves.

I like to visit hills, archeological places and beaches. I hate going to sanctuaries, especially in Orissa, that's where I belong. Weekend traveling is also fun. I often refer to the weekend destination books to plan my weekend getaways. We love going to Lonavala, Igatpuri and Matheran.

Traveling abroad doesn't happen too often. Had traveled to Singapore recently.

Relaxing Mantra
Broadly speaking, our work is not as stressful as people make it out to be. It's as stressful as any other profession. Spending time with my family is always a great stress buster.

Gadgets and Gizmos
Love the latest in mobile phones, stereos (especially like the ones which are assembled with the best of components from different manufacturers), digital cameras and camcorders.
Recently bought a Nokia 6670 and a Kodak 5 Megapixels, 10X Zoom camera that also shoots motion.

On Books
Have the urge to catch up on a lot of reading, though time seems to be in short supply always. Beyond catching up with the everyday newspapers and some favourite columns in the Sunday newspapers, I recently read a book 'The Tipping Point' by Malcolm Gladwell. The book takes everyday life instances to illustrate concepts that can benefit all of us, especially marketing professionals like us. I also quite liked reading Robin Sharma's The Monk who sold his Ferrrari. Though I don't quite like the self-help category of books, this one is different. It sort of sets you thinking and motivates you to rediscover things about yourself.

Was browsing through the 1970s classic Future Shock by Alvin Toffler to see how we saw the future then and what really has transpired in the intervening 35 years.

My idea of entertainment
Weekends are usually fun and reserved totally for my family. Since, there are more than four multiplexes just near to where I stay, so for entertainment and relaxation it's movies all the way. Either I like to watch something that is sensible or an out-and-out comedy - nothing of the middle order. Some of the recent films which I enjoyed watching were Salaam Namaste, Hanuman and Bunty aur Babli. And yes, I didn't miss the latest Salman Khan films - No Entry and Maine Pyaar Kyun kiya.

My favourite car
When I was a kid, my dad had a Black Hindustan 14 - an Indianised Ford Austin made by Hindustan Motors (HM), the makers of our good old Ambassador. That really was my first impression of what a car could be and should be - sturdy, mobile, majestic and BLACK.

Things changed and we bought a Premier Padmini, then a Maruti 800 and now I own a Baleno. I feel a car has to be technically good and give you the comfort you deserve. Of course looks matter, but that's not everything.

My favourite car is the stately Mercedes Benz that rules the road. As for now, my Baleno is no less though....