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Shahrukh khan - Thorns to Competition
I'm the best! That's one line he is known by, said Shahrukh Khan at the launch of my latest book, Thorns to Competition, which I coauthored with my wife Rajita. It was supposed to be a normal book launch with Shahrukh Khan – the man I personally think is the most intelligent, educated, witty and charming superstar the country has. But it turned out to be something else. Not just did Shahrukh launch the book, he also spoke in detail about how he had applied every concept of the book in his life. And his speech became a journey of his life. It sure was special, more so since he is known to be shy and rarely to open up like this in public. I have experienced this special side of him at least a couple of times in the past as well during our events. This time, I felt I must write on it. It’s pure inspiration for one and all to know of this side of his life and it sure will help the masses know this iconic man and his amazing journey better. I thought of writing this piece more so because today morning, when I made a Facebook entry on how I thought Shahrukh was so intelligent, I was instantly barraged by messages asking me to write more on the same.

However, before I write more about what he spoke, let me admit that like a majority of people in this country, I am a huge fan of Shahrukh, and that I feel I have been extremely lucky (it’s my pure luck that I had the opportunity to know Shahrukh from relatively closer quarters, much before he became this iconic superstar, through a very dear common friend of ours, Sabiena) that in every event of IIPM which he has come to, he has spoken about something that people later insisted that they had never heard before. Yes, I know he feels quite relaxed here due to his past links, but I don't think that is what makes him share so much. I believe that when he comes to IIPM, he sees students looking up to him. And he knows he shouldn’t just be entertaining them. Rather, he should leave a message to make a difference to their lives. And the messages have mostly been very, very meaningful, honest and drawn straight from his life’s experiences, as expected out of a man of immense intelligence and education like him. Similarly, when he comes to a book launch, he sees a totally different class of very learned people sitting across the stage, and I believe he gets into a totally different world of ideas and philosophies just to live up to their expectations.

I believe his tremendous habit of reading is what makes him totally different from most others. I have always believed that you can't be a great leader if you aren't a great reader! In fact, I tell my friends – just like in the case of Mr. Amitabh Bachchan – reading Shahrukh's social media entries is a great lesson on how to look at various facets of life and express them through absolutely brilliantly words. Come to think of it, both Shahrukh and Mr. Bachchan are known for their education, extremely brilliant communication skills, their unique way of expressing themselves, and of course, above all else, both of them made it to the top through their sheer sincere hard work and perseverance despite not being traditional good-lookers!

In this book, Rajita and I used ‘T-H-O-R-N-S’ as an acronym for six competition beating strategies! They are: Target it right | Hit where it hurts | Obsess with it | Reinvent it | Nail it | Sell it |

And when Shahrukh was introduced as the star who has literally given thorns to his competition during his entire journey, he decided to speak on what each of these letters stood for in his life! Yes, this is how the Badshah of Bollywood has given thorns to his competition... Read on!

Coming to the first principle; in the book, we focussed on the need to identify and ‘T’arget one’s consumer segment right. For Shahrukh too, targeting it right has always been very important! However, while most stars in the industry will consider the audience whom they wish to please as their key target, Shahrukh’s target has been beyond all this. He said that when he came to this industry, people found him too thin... too dark... thought he spoke too fast, that his hair was like a bear – all over the place – so on, so forth... and questioned him on why he even wanted to be in the film industry. His response always used to be, “To make people smile!” They couldn’t relate to this answer. They insisted that people came to the film industry to make money, to get rich; and said that what Shahrukh was professing couldn’t be true. When they asked him why he wanted to be a movie star, he said, “I want to be a movie star for my late parents... I want to make movies so damned bloody big that my parents, somewhere up in heaven, can sit on some star and see my movies from there too, and say, ‘Hey, we can see his movies from here better than we can see the Great Wall of China... We can see his movies covering the face of this earth’...” And that has been his target. A target that no one can compete with. It’s his own set, standard of excellence. And that's why he feels that he can't be beaten, for he has never fought the battle that everyone else has been fighting. For him, the target needs to have an ideology, and only then, he believes, can one succeed!     Read More....


8/9/2011 05:14:50 am

both Shahrukh and Mr. Bachchan are known for their education, extremely brilliant communication skills, their unique way of expressing themselves, and of course, above all else, both of them made it to the top through their sheer sincere hard work and perseverance despite not being traditional good-lookers!

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8/9/2011 05:22:23 am

the launch of my latest book, Thorns to Competition, which I coauthored with my wife Rajita. It was supposed to be a normal book launch with Shahrukh Khan – the man I personally think is the most intelligent,

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8/9/2011 05:44:54 am

The authors, Arindam Chaudhuri & Rajita Chaudhuri, believe competition cannot just be conquered, but even smashed through the power of advertising and marketing. Business is marketing, they believe —- if you want to stay ahead, you need to understand the power of marketing and use it to win over your customers and overpower your competitors.

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8/9/2011 05:47:53 am

Leaders depend on the wisdom of leaders who have gone before them. Whose wisdom are you depending on? Who’s mentoring you? There’s no use in recreating the wheel, learn to depend on the wisdom, experience, and knowledge of great leaders who have gone before you.

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8/9/2011 05:51:10 am

Great leaders are learners. I like to say that leaders are readers. Learn to cultivate the joy of reading. People who don’t read must depend on those who do. Great leaders are usually great readers.

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8/9/2011 05:59:37 am

eaders inspire people to do more than they think they can, for longer than they think they can. Leaders inspire people to be greater than they would have otherwise been.

Leaders bring energy when they interact with others. Some peoples’ very presence is draining, but leaders ignite a spark, and they motivate those around them to be great.

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8/9/2011 06:44:12 am

Another benefit is that much of the content produced in this medium is not from the typical industry pundits, but rather true “in the trenches” thought leaders that see things coming long before journalists report it in the news, or the so-called gurus publish it in their latest book

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8/9/2011 06:49:44 am

Thomas Jefferson had one of the most exhaustive personal libraries of his time prior to donating it to the Library of Congress (which many joked Roosevelt had read). The moral of my story continues to be that in order to be a great leader, you absolutely must be a great reader

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8/9/2011 06:54:09 am

However being aware of industry trends, competitive positioning, who the thought leaders are, etc. are all critical to your success. Pick the top couple of publications in your industry, sector, vertical or micro-vertical and pour-over the content looking for opportunities to exploit. Most print publications now also have Internet versions, Kindle editions, or digital newsletters that can be subscribed to as well.

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8/9/2011 06:56:13 am

What makes a great sales leader? There's no single, remarkable secret. In fact, great sales leaders are many things. Depending on the situation, a great sales leader is a time-management supervisor, a meeting planner, a contest coordinator, a talent scout, a coach, a trainer and a psychiatrist. All of those roles put together--and executed well--make for a great leader

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lovely
19/9/2011 03:03:32 am

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19/9/2011 03:07:12 am

Thorns To Competition is an irreverent look at competition and winning in the marketplace. So irreverent, in fact, that its title might as well have been.........

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19/9/2011 03:18:59 am

We live in a very competitive world. Everybody seems to be competing with someone at
some level. Each week we spend hours playing or watching others compete in sporting
activities all over the world. We cannot help being impressed by the level of excellence
that these people achieve.

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19/9/2011 03:22:56 am

Brilliant Article. From the success he acheived anyone could see that he is dedicated, prinncipled man. He is fun to watch on a simple interview, while giving a speach or when doing just about anything. I think he is brilliant actor and and a very charismatic person, who enjoys what he does. He also portrays great values such as loving his family to the most. Anyway, I belive, watching his movies brings great joy to many many people.

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19/9/2011 04:04:45 am

THORNS TO COMPETITION is a book that presents a set of competition-beating strategies to sell a product. It showcases the selling mantra of the 21st century through the acronym.....

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19/9/2011 04:10:48 am

Arindam Chaudhuri is a Management Thought Leader & Teacher, Entrepreneur, Public Speaker, Author, Economist and three times National Award winning Film-Maker. He is the Honorary Director of the IIPM Think Tank at IIPM, and the book thorn to competition is very good....this book is really very good for sell a product....i am reading the book and got very impress....

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19/9/2011 04:22:36 am

The book aims to help readers master the power of marketing and succeed. It focuses on the need to have great products, but also shows how great products have failed worldwide due to the lack of right marketing.

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19/9/2011 04:47:27 am

in the books are basically extension of the word ‘THORNS’, where T stands for targeting the market with the right message about your product. H denotes hitting the competition at the weakest point to gain advantage in a short time. O, which stands for obsession about the customer and the product, basically extols the virtues of absolute passion. R is about re-inventing your product to stay relevant and ahead of competition. The last two letters stand for Nailing the message perfectly and Selling the product.

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19/9/2011 05:01:06 am

Prof Rajita Chaudhuri is the Dean, Centre for Enterprise Management at the Indian Institute of Planning and Management, New Delhi. She is also a regular and well -acclaimed columnist of 4Ps Business and Marketing magazine.....her book is very good...through the power of advertising and marketing. Business is marketing,competition and winning in the marketplace.

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19/9/2011 05:04:21 am

thorns to competition is another valuable addition to the knowledge library from Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri, after the grand success of his past best-selling books – The Great Indian Dream, Count Your Chickens Before They Hatch and Discover the Diamond in You; and Prof. Rajita Chaudhuri, a post-modernist marketing thinker and the editor of 4Ps Business and Marketing. This book is an irreverent look at competition and winning in the marketplace! It’s an ultimate guide to modern-day winning and success.

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19/9/2011 05:09:12 am

If you want simple understanding of not just marketing and advertising but basic truths with amazing amount of examples, it is really a great read.

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19/9/2011 05:17:38 am

This book will help the readers to master the power of marketing and succeed. With each principle of marketing, excellent examples have been incorporated in order to convey the essence of the book emphatically.

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19/9/2011 05:28:02 am

I have always been a great believer of advertising and marketing as it is the final frontier between making a good product and creating a stickiness with the consumer. Arindam and Rajita's book actually spells it out in the clearest, still tongue-in-cheek manner that is possible.

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19/9/2011 05:41:43 am

thorns to competition is a book that presents a set of competition-beating strategies to sell a product by management guru and brand experts, Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri and Prof. Rajita Chaudhuri. ..

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19/9/2011 06:50:53 am

Thorns To Competition is an irreverent look at competition and winning in the marketplace........

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19/9/2011 07:28:57 am

Mohabbatein, Paheli, and numerous other run-of-the-mill love stories Shah Rukh's done are different and unique. Shah Rukh said, "I hit my competition hard by deciding not to play the game. I choose to change the game, and I choose to select films that are so different from what the others do so that they don't remain my competition because [then] they don't run the same race."

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19/9/2011 08:00:18 am

Shah Rukh theory of success,he is ever the philosopher,he said, "Winning is not about trying to undermine someone's success... What you need to do is to go on the parallel road! You decide that you go and change the game.In my life, I have always decided to change the game.....

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19/9/2011 08:31:48 am

You can beat competition if you adopt the right strategies. Here’s a set of six winning strategies: Target it right, hit where it hurts, obsess with it, reinvent it, nail it and sell it. This approach works. If in doubt, look at Shahrukh Khan. He has used these six strategies, along with his unshakeable belief in ‘I’m the best’, to reach the top.........

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19/9/2011 08:40:08 am

Shahrukh Khan launch the book,thorns to competition. on this book launch he also spoke in detail about how he had applied every concept of the book in his life. And his speech became a journey of his life. .....and this speech is impressive...

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20/9/2011 07:48:43 am

shahrukh is the best actor in the world in fact many films in which he acted derserves the academy award of best actor namely
dilwale dulhania lejayenge
swades
mohabbatein
chak de india
bazgiar
devdas
veer zara
kal hona ho
amerrican actor are dwarves in front of him

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20/9/2011 07:54:12 am

SRK shared with people why his first producer wanted to know why a ‘thin and dark’ person like him with a ‘hair like bear’ wanted to be in films SRK smiled and said, “I replied that I wanted to make people smile because it made me happy.” He added, “Come to think of it, it is quite ideological. Genuinely, tell me why do you want to be a movie star?”

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20/9/2011 08:00:47 am

Shah Rukh, said that he may have rivals in the industry but he deals with competition differently. He said, “I hit my competition hard by deciding not to play the game. I choose to change the game and I choose to select films that are so different from what the others do so that they don’t remain my competition because they don’t run the same race. ”

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Revelin
20/9/2011 08:05:16 am

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20/9/2011 08:27:12 am

Shah Rukh Khan is unperturbed. He not only believes that he is the best but he is confident that no one can compete because they ‘do not run the same race’ as him. Known for his impeccable ability to charm people, Shah Khan said how he gives ‘thorns to competition’ on the release of a book of management co-authored by friend and management guru Arindam Chaudhuri and his wife Rajita.....

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20/9/2011 08:38:06 am

Shahrukh Khan romancing Kajol on the screen, his dimpled smile and the twinkle in his eyes in the very hit and famous DDLJ, he has been in total awe of the versatile actor. Since days The event was the book launch of Arindam Chaudhary’s latest book, ‘Discover the Diamond in You’ at The Grand, Vasant Kunj, New Delhi. Arindam Chaudhary had in store for his readers after his very famous "Count your Chickens before they Hatch............"

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20/9/2011 09:08:01 am

superstar Shah Rukh Khan is set to reinvent himself and take on all his competitors with the ‘biggest movie’ made yet in Bollywood Ra. One. Shah Rukh Khan Speaking at the Arindam chaudhuri new marketing book "thorns to competition" launch , King Khan said he was in talks with the international sensation Lady Gaga about collaborating on a song........

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20/9/2011 10:19:21 am

Shah Rukh Khan who will perform at a live concert in Mumbai on September 12 to launch the audio of his film RA.One has been supervising the arrangements for the concert for the last couple of days. The superstar is flying over 50 media persons from various parts of the country to cover what is said to be one of the most high-profile audio launches in recent times

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20/9/2011 10:25:15 am

I have been chatting up with her about a song I want to do with her,and her manager said ‘Lady Gaga wants to introduce you to her audience and she wants to be introduced to your audience’,” Khan said. “So one can say she believes in pure, simple and wonderful business,” the superstar added..........

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20/9/2011 10:33:48 am

Shah Rukh was speaking at the launch of the book Thorns to Competition by IIPM’s Arindam and Rajita Chaudhuri.“I believe everything should be sold. Even life doesn’t come for free,” the 46-year-old actor said. ” I’m a proud seller of dreams, that’s why you can buy me, you can pay for me to come to a wedding, you can tell me to stand over here on my head, to entertain people… I will even sell my body if it makes someone smile.” .............

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20/9/2011 11:11:24 am

Shah Rukh Khan My strength to work in such situations comes from my family and people who love to watch me. My family and my close relationships keep me grounded and they are more important than my career. My family likes me as a person and not because I am an actor. I never mix the two. I don’t know how much I earn or how many awards I have received.”

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21/9/2011 02:53:21 am

Now SRK is ready to roll the dice with what is going to be his biggest release ever, Ra.One, a science fiction and superhero film. After Ra. One comes another expensive, much talked about movie Don 2, directed by the ever-dependable Farhan Akhtar.

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21/9/2011 03:00:50 am

As a game changer,Shah Rukh Khan will reinforce his number one position in Bollywood with superb marketing for Ra.One that will spread in the next 50 days up to the release of the film on Diwali. Marketing wise, this genius will not leave any stone unturned.........

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21/9/2011 03:08:15 am

ShahRukh Khan books Diwali to release films like Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge, Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, Om Shanti Om and Ra.One.ShahRukh Khan books Diwali to release films like Dilwale Dulhaniya Le Jayenge, Kuch Kuch Hota Hai, Om Shanti Om and Ra.One.Chak De India and Om Shanti Om; ie ; 2007 and years before ShahRukh khan was the undisputed number one star of Bollywood........

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21/9/2011 04:42:54 am


Thanks for sharing your views Arindam chaudhuri Sometimes, the author’s thoughts become even more clear when I think about what he or she most likely means in the context of a sentence, paragraph or chapter.

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21/9/2011 05:08:04 am

Thanks for sharing this insight! I see that my children are learning this way. I even do it myself sometimes, when I don't know how to spell a word! Thanks for stopping my to share this information!

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21/9/2011 05:28:27 am

Harry S. Truman once said “Not all readers are leaders, but all leaders are readers.”

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21/9/2011 05:45:56 am

“Drink heavily from good books, especially the Good Book”, Joshua Hugh Wooden. This is an advice that the great Basketball Coach John Wooden received from his father at a young age. Most great leaders are great readers!

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21/9/2011 05:47:45 am

Some of the most successful leaders throughout history were known to read one book every single day.

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21/9/2011 05:53:43 am

Someone once said “you are what you read”

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21/9/2011 05:56:36 am

As Margaret Thatcher once said, “Great leaders are great readers.” , you can be a great reader, but not a great leader; but you can never be a great leader without first being a great reader.

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21/9/2011 06:00:35 am

“Leadership and learning are indispensable to each other.” - John F. Kennedy. One must learn to cultivate the joy of reading. People who don’t read must depend on those who do. Great leaders are usually great readers.

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26/3/2012 05:34:17 am

Fine article dude

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24/4/2012 05:41:17 pm

Nice one info, thanks

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3/9/2014 06:42:27 pm


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