Book Review: Shombit Sengupta,Corrugated Slices—The Social Jalebi

Corrugated Slices—The Social Jalebi is the third of the Jalebi Trilogy series, metaphor Social Jalebi referring to heterogeneity of Indian society. Consisting of four chapters this small crisp book has 63 mini tales of the author’s personal and professional experiences and observations.

The first chapter titled ‘Indiscope’ begins with the question ‘does thinking exist’ and talks of how fuzzy thinking ignites provocative stimuli which in turn leads to desired action. The author feels that the sociopolitical and cultural diaspora of India forms a fertile field for creative and innovative ideas. Yet in most of the developing economies the focus is of picking up the tested practices of the Western world rather than on indigenous talent.

India has always appeared as a country of cultural contrasts to foreigners. Diversity can never be overemphasized in India. Connecting to India’s billion plus heterogeneous mass could be one of the biggest challenges. How culture influences business trends was nicely captured with observations and experiences from social media, Bollywood, transport system, etc.

Much of what is talked in this chapter may not be new and might appear as regular happenings. However, these narrations force the reader to look at the issues from a different prism.

The second chapter critically reviews the politics of political system in India and observes that till 1947 there is nothing very Indian about Indian democracy. Most of the leading political figures thereafter were either from very wealthy families or who have been trained and educated in developed countries. As such feeling the true pulse of people remained a myth. The author observes how there has been a monopoly in Bollywood and politics. However the same monopoly cannot be extrapolated to business. While family owned businesses can own the company, running the company was by professionals. Drawing parallels between the branding strategies of companies with the political system the author tactfully presented the need for political parties to broaden their horizon/spectrum and look beyond the caste politics and vote banks.

While information technology is a great harmonizer, it is also the biggest change agent. The author cautions that if we do not keep track of the fast-changing digital trends even innovative ideas may fail to deliver the intended results. In the third chapter entitled ‘Globetrotter’ the author shares some of his experiences as he moves from the Indian subcontinent to Africa, to Japan, to Switzerland to the US. Most readers will have some knowledge of African wild life, or Japanese work culture. Not many are aware of the life of the downtrodden in Tokyo’s high-tech slums, or communication models of the animal kingdom. The book touches upon the lesser talked of tales from these lands. The experiences shared are myriad with varied hues and colours. Behind these simple narratives are valuable management insights on lifestyles, consumer preferences, purchasing powers and branding strategies.

The concluding chapter looks at how economic capitalism is increasingly influencing the behaviour, attitude and lifestyles of individuals. In ‘Brand Friendship’ the author highlights the importance of emotional connects for brand pull which goes beyond monetary transactions. Taking us through the branding strategies of European and American companies, he emphasizes that business houses must respect cultural nuances if they wish to capture the global and local markets with sustainability. The table ‘History of Branding: From Seals to the Arrival of Brand Friendship’ comprehensively covers how the brand concept has evolved from mechanization era which dates back to the 1700s to the digitech strategies of the Information Age.

Overall, the book is an interesting reading that fits into multiple genres and hence will attract wide readership. One may not always agree with the author or the issues discussed in the book. Neither does it answer the very many questions it raises. Some may get new ideas, some may deliberately choose not to agree, and some may find it extremely difficult to agree. Some may find the author too critical at times. Nevertheless, it is impossible to ignore the author’s viewpoints. Overall ‘Corrugated Slices’ is a mosaic of narratives with every narrative having its own independent identity yet tactfully woven into the main social and corporate fabric. Thought provoking anecdotes, catchy acronyms, diversity in the experiences shared, all add to the readability of the book.