AN UNUSUAL AND IMPRESSIVE ENCOUNTER IN COCHIN,
KERALA. Mr. Ansif Ashraf and Cochin Herald.
At
the beginning of this visit, I had been thinking of Cuba and my new role as an
Ambassador for the Health Care in Cuba especially at the National Institute of
Endocrinology in Havana, Cuba. Kerala is one of the most welcoming places for Cuban
ideas and philosophies and it is also has one of the more educated populations
in India, akin to the highly literate people in Cuba.
The
most unexpected introduction on this short visit to Cochin was to Mr. Ansif
Ashraf. When my good friend, Dhanusree, called to ask me whether I could be in
Ernakulum at 4 pm the day before my departure from Cochin, I accepted the
invitation and arrived at the offices of Cochin Herald, without any preconceptions.
American Indians have taught me that you must go to new meetings with clear
minds and conscience and also with a genuine desire to learn and offer.
I
spent the next two hours in the company of Ansif Ashraf, the current CEO of
Cochin Herald and Ms. D. Cochin Herald on paper, so to speak, presents itself
as a glossy Business Magazine but it differs from others published in India or
Malaysia and elsewhere in that there is a hidden dynamism and a connection to
an emerging world at a different level altogether. I had heard about Dr. Rashid
Al Leem of Sharjah and his concept of Education and was happy to know that Dr.
Al Leem was the leadership mentor of this young man. Dr. Al Leem is the
Knowledge Ambassador for UAE and the United Nations Good Will Ambassador of
UAE.
I
am a Cultural Anthropologist who happens to be a Physician and also a traveler and
thus my view of people and places are mired in various strata of culture and
connections. During our conversation, we could bring up a subject, such as Cultural
Identity, and connect it with the projects they were involved in. I listened
intently to the various paths he has taken, learned about his illustrious
father and his cultural lineage and marveled at his energy. He had just
returned from Shenzen and from the various photographs in his magazine and the
prospectus it is obvious that he is a regular at many venues. Travel broadens
your mind, it is like reading of a tome of many pages, and at the same time, if
you are building bridges, your dreams will obscure the peculiarities and
provincialities of the thinking around you. It matters not his cultural origins
and belongings, I could see him being successful in other highly competitive countries,
where networking, connecting, looking and exploiting opportunities are an art
form in the world of business. To think of him as a businessman would be
applying a too limited a border to his expansive dreams. I agree, after a
couple of hours talking to this energetic entrepreneur of ideas, with what Dr.
Al Leem said about him: he is set to make a difference in the world.
My
world revolves around Cuba where I am deeply involved in sociocultural matters
and American Indians, to whom I am deeply indebted to their teachings and
giving me the opportunity to help them. A long way from that well-appointed
office in front of Centre Square Mall in Ernakulum in Kerala where the
expectant monsoon was about to peak. As I was leaving, I remarked to my friend
DS, he has high energy level. Because I am from a totally different background
professionally, I couldn’t grasp many of his projects and I admitted to him, I
am just a small fry from Cuba!
I
realized that meeting Ansif Ashraf, my world suddenly expanded geographically.
I can see him becoming active in two of my favourite countries in this region:
Oman and Malaysia and I certainly would be open to visit Sharjah, when on a
mission to Qatar.
For
more information on Ansif Ashraf and Cochin Herald, please visit the following
websites:
Wikipedia
