Indians today are full of hope for the future. That is the result of our electing a leader who is trusted, and in whom there is confidence that he will bring big changes. But the process of realising our hopes is not easy. It will require all of us to realise what we need to do and how we need to change, if our hopes are to become reality.

- RC Bhargava ( CEO of Maruti Suzuki )

Business leaders the world over have been quite diffident in embracing, and leveraging the power of social media. Even the CEOs who have Facebook and Twitter accounts use it to put out anodyne statements. But now that seems to be changing, albeit slowly. Business leaders realise the power of meaningful, and often playful engagement with consumers. It seems to be paying off.

In the run up to the historic Parliamentary elections in 2014, the stock markets in India scaled new heights in anticipation of economic reforms and hopes of a better business environment. However, in the last five months, the bourses have become jittery and have witnessed tremendous volatility owing to a host of factors ranging from perceived delays in reform to key bills facing challenges in passage in the Parliament. - Adhil Shetty

Bajaj Electricals surged by nearly 10% during the third week of May. The volume of trade in the stock was also pretty high. The stock has corrected around 50% from its all time high of Rs 383 in May 2014 to 199 in December 2014, and then bounced back strongly from there to the current levels of Rs 264 levels. During this bounce the stock has formed a double bottom pattern in line charts followed by a small pullback rally and breakout above the pattern resistance. We expect the stock to start a fresh leg of rally from these levels to the said targets.

Over a period of time, we have received numerous queries from taxpayers embracing varied topics in the income tax lexicon. However, if we were to choose any one issue that comes up most frequently, it would be that of House Rent Allowance (HRA) and its co-existence with tax deduction on home loans. Among all income tax doubts that arise in general, the issue of HRA going hand in hand with housing loan deductions seems to vex employees the most. - An Shanbhag & Sandeep Shanbhag

In the wake of recent earthquake, discussions about home insurance have taken a sudden centre stage. There has been a much required awareness on the catastrophic consequences of not having a home insurance policy. Let us take a quick look at the various nuances of a home insurance plan thus helping you make an informed buying decision. - Yashish Dahiya

I have the good fortune of actually working in an ‘ideas business’ and on R. Balakrishnan ‘Balki’ Balki is the Chairman and Chief Creative Officer of the advertising agency Lowe Lintas India. He’s also a veteran ad filmmaker and film director, best known for Cheeni Kum (2007), Paa (2009) and, most recently, Shamitabh starring Amitabh Bachchan 36 The Finapolis l February 2015 numerous occasions, surprised, if not a bit overwhelmed, at the speed at which ideas are both born and die. We live in exciting times when a seed of an idea can reach and deliver on its potential in as little time as the life of a campaign. R. Balakrishnan ‘Balki’

A failure to start financial planning early in life can paralyse your future By Shivram Yedithi

A time comes in the life of a nation for it to stand up and be counted among the comity of nations. In that sense, India is on the crux of achieving greatness. It will be a rare occasion when a large democratic nation rises on the world stage using nonviolent means. - Ashish Chauhan

"Only 12%? That’s kind of low, isn’t it?” said the distinguished looking person to whom I had been explaining the arbitrage returns from the Indian markets. We were at a social gathering, and I did not really know him that well. I could only guess from his mannerisms and sophistication in social etiquette that he would also be well-educated about financial matters. - By Vishesh R Sharma