Who’s Heading This?

Sohal Khatwani wants India to use its head(s). So much so, that he returned to the Motherland from Australia a few months ago to start Head Knockin, a new company that converts desi celebrities into bobblehead dolls and puts them on your desk. Gods and Demi-nods?

But the 27 year-old entrepreneur doesn’t want to run Head Knockin like a Bollywood doll shop. He’s got big plans, ones that involve ventures with Bollywood stars, cricket teams, politicians and you. Most recently, Sohal bagged an official merchandising contract to create Don 2’s SRK bobblehead, as well as another for the Royal Challengers IPL team.  “A chap just came to see me about making RCB Bobbleheads...what do u all think? He made a sample of me...will post pic... This is me in Bobblehead form!” Sidhartha Mallya tweeted a while back. How about some cheerleader bobbleheads to go with the team?

What: Say It With, Atria Mall, unit number 153, Dr Annie Besant Road, Worli, call 9820726388, price on request.

Why: Giant cocktail glasses and candy-coloured boxes, sea-blue candle stands and a crystal chandelier all vie for space at this new(ish) shoebox-sized store, where you can’t actually buy anything. What you can do, however, is pick from the display or order customised gift-wrap and stationery for your upcoming bachelorette, baby shower or lunch soiree, and they’ll tailor the order exactly to your needs.

When: You want a part-y time job.

What: Driver etiquette classes at the Institute of Chauffeur Services (IOCS), Gitaneel Arcade, shop number 19, 44 Hill Road, Bandra (W), call 26412070 or visit www.instituteofchauffeurservices.com, Rs 5,400 for a twelve hour module and “brush-up” classes for a year.

Why: A training school for drivers? Are you skidding me? This training camp not only teaches your road runner proper chauffeur etiquette (punctuality, greetings, opening of doors) but also grooms him away from funny smells like body odor, cigarette smoke, etc. For an extra fee, equipment such as uniforms, caps and a folding chair are provided as well. They also help recruit drivers, and send them to you fully trained.

When: You want a dealer for your wheeler. Next module in the last week of November.

Read the Fine Text

It's true: not all mass messages are teeth-grindingly annoying. Take for instance ekSMS (www.eksms.com), a location-based deals service that operates on both email and phone, passing along coupons for active discounts in different neighbourhoods.With this, we can deal!

All you have to do is text ekSMS your location and what meal you're looking for - lunch, dinner or drinks -  and they send you back four options: we recently received fun breaks at Suzette, Nariman Point; Hard Rock Cafe; Lemongrass, Bandra; and Veda, Lower Parel. To redeem the discount, visit the establishment and show them your coupon on your phone. Easy as pie.

Cyber Cafes

For those of you on the DND cell number list, they offer the same service through their website as well, and send you a coupon via email. We found this method more convenient, as it allowed us to browse deals active at different times of the day for multiple areas, but it hampers mobility; at best, ekSMS works as a tool you whip out  when you're on the road already, done with work or an afternoon of shopping, and want to cop a good deal at your current location.

Early Days and  Early Birds

 Just having launched, ekSMS is currently rather limited, operating in three Mumbai neighborhoods - Colaba, Lower Parel and Bandra - with only  a handful of deals  for each area. Also, the Bandra section often shows discounts in Worli (Cool Chef Cafe, for instance), which is a long distance to travel. There are technical glitches as well - twice we didn't receive the text coupons, but their email is consistently reliable.

Despite this,  ekSMS is a cool, convenient concept, one that plans to expand geographically and to more businesses -  we suggest you keep an eye on this fledgling service. You know what they say about early birds. 

Getting there: Visit www.eksms.com or text 9845898458, free service.

Sex up your career with our free monthly listings of super job openings in the city, from working for an uber cool restaurant to landing gigs at content companies and non-profit organisations.

Jack In the Box: This content-for-brands company is looking for someone with 1 to 1.5 years of experience in SEO and / or ORM. Email your resume to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

The Table: The Colaba eatery needs a young enthusiastic person who is interested in learning about marketing and public relations in the restaurant industry. No previous work experience required. Just good communication skills and work ethic. Email your resume and a short note about why you're interested to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

National Centre for Performing Arts (NCPA): Is looking for an executive in online communications. Email your CV to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

DeTales: This new marketing and communication company is looking for a PR consultant with at least six months relevant experience. The job would entail working on accounts like Bonobo, Pali Village Cafe and Troy Costa. Email your resume to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Save The Children India: Is looking for a COO with 12 years of experience and an MBA degree to plan operations, growth and expansion of existing programmes at the NGO. Email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Brown Paper Bag: Is looking to hire the services of a tech company to handle monthly maintenance for its website as well as work on other special web projects. Contact us on This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Want to list your job vacancy on bpb Classifieds? Write in to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it with job description and contact details.

What: Chachii.com chore completion service, call 7738131051, budget depends on task.

Why: This new service gets a sari-clad, fat-hipped fictional Chachii to run around the city completing your chores. Submit a task on the website (still in beta testing) or via SMS – pick up movie tickets, do groceries, clean room, repair leak, deliver flowers – along with a time line and budget and they will match your request with a vendor in their network. Chalees chore!

When: You have an aunt who can’t.

A Pose By Any Other Name

Dress in all your finery, grab a guy who can work a turban, park your tushy on a velvet upholstered high back chair and smile the same smile for about three to four hours. If you don’t have the time, inclination or velvet throne to pose for an oil painting, send your photograph to Your Portrait and they’ll get an artist to do you on canvas (oil or acrylic).

Recently started by Tripti Kedia, ex broadcast journalist with Bloomberg UTV, this venture hopes to revive a dying technique and add a little art to your room. Kedia works with a bunch of struggling artists in the city to convert photographs of everything from babies and yachts to celebrities and couples into paintings. While the pictures on Your Portrait’s homepage are a little, how do we put this delicately, garish, their technique seems sound. And since the subject will be you, pretty reader, we’re sure it will turn out great.

After thought: Didn’t Churchgate bar Valhalla shut down recently? Wonder what they did with that velvet throne.

Getting there: www.yourportrait.in, visit the Facebook page here, prices start at Rs 5,000. Order oils in advance (3-4 weeks) or acrylics (7-10 days) if you're in a rush .

Website Woes

We’ve all heard the horror stories: websites that take a year to build instead of the promised two months; tech guys who fall off the planet halfway through the project; overwhelming bills attached to underwhelming artwork; servers that crash on your highest traffic days.

“Where can I get a reliable, creative tech team to build me a website without breaking the bank?” is a question we get asked more than any other. There are very few good answers. It’s no wonder most small businesses just stick to a Facebook fan page.

Google is God?

But wait, now there’s one more option, and like most things magical, it comes from Google: check out India Get Your Business Online (www.indiagetonline.in), a brand new initiative by the internet behemoth in collaboration with HostGator, FISME and ICICI Bank which allows small and medium sized businesses to build their websites for free.

Offered services include an “.in” domain name, hosting service, email addresses, design templates, around the clock technical support and the regular Google tools - AdWords, Analytics, Maps, SEO tips - all without paying a rupee. After the year is up, you get to keep the domain name and get a discount on server hosting by HostGator. It’s enough to make any cash-strapped entrepreneur weak at the knees.

One, Two, Free!

Execution Day

It’s nothing short of road kill, Mumbai’s new dial-a-rickshaw service that seems hell bent on taking a good idea to the morgue. Dubbed Rickshawale, this facility is what Meru is to cabs (or like Ay Auto we wrote about in Pune), a 24/7 number that allows you to book autos that arrive at your doorstep. The advantages, their website will tell you, are many - verified fleet of drivers, same meter fare, no driver refusal, night time pickups.

A friend introduced us to Rickshawale, and like many other Mumbaikars, we were glad to meter. But a Wednesday night call to book an auto for the following morning showed signs of chaos, a teaser to the inconvenience that would ensue. To begin with, the call center was noisy (we’re pretty sure we even heard a crying kid back there) and the gentleman who answered asked for the pick-up address way too many times. The worst part: He seemed to be scribbling it on a piece of paper. No vital information regarding the rickshaw service was volunteered; only when we asked did the Rs 20 convenience charge over and above the meter fare come up. This proves to be quite expensive if you’re travelling a short distance, a friend remarked, commenting that a higher minimum fare would make more sense.  We were supposed to receive an SMS within ten minutes of booking a rickshaw , but no such text came.

What: Brokers Please Excuse, real estate listings portal, visit www.brokerspleaseexcuse.com, no brokerage fee, listing free.

Why: Founded by a bunch of ex-Edelweiss employees, this new website aims to cut out the middle men for both landlords and leasers. Home free! Featuring a simple user interface and efficient customer service, Brokers Please Excuse also offers moving services within Mumbai and housekeeping facilities, where trained cleaners wielding top-of-the-line equipment invade your home every fortnight. We recommend their deep cleaning treatment, just in time for Diwali.

When: You want to do as you (p)lease.