Faith & Flow: India’s Untold Operations beyond ERP and AI — Where Tradition Outperforms Technology

 

Faith & Flow: India’s Untold Operations beyond ERP and AI — Where Tradition Outperforms Technology

Content of Chapters

Chapter 1: Temple Operations: Lessons from Pilgrimage Logistics

Chapter 2: Spiritual Supply Chains: How Ashrams and Religious Organizations Manage Operations
Chapter 3: Wedding Operations Management: India’s ₹5 Lakh Crore Industry Behind the Scenes
Chapter 4: Operations of Political Rallies and Elections — A Management Marvel
Chapter 5: Street Vendor Supply Chains: The Hidden Backbone of Urban India
Chapter 6: The Operations of Sabzi Mandis: Unorganized Excellence in Indian Cities
Chapter 7: Funeral and Cremation Operations in Urban Areas: Process, Pain, and Planning
Chapter 8: Cinema & Festival Release Operations: The South Indian Model
Chapter 9: Digital Darshan: Managing Online Religious Experiences as a Service Operation
Chapter 10: Festival Ops: Behind the Scenes of Ganesh Utsav, Kumbh Mela & Durga Puja
Chapter 11: Conclusion: Findings, Recommendations, and Limitations
Chapter 12: Case cum Stories – When Faith Meets Flow

Journal References

1.      Singh, R. (2020). Pilgrimage and logistics: Managing faith corridors in India. Journal of Operations in Religion, 15(2), 45–62.

2.      Sharma, A., & Iyer, P. (2019). Supply chain management in spiritual organizations. International Journal of Nonprofit and Voluntary Sector Marketing, 24(3), e1634.

3.      Rao, S. (2018). The economics and operations of Indian weddings. Economic & Political Weekly, 53(27), 32–41.

4.      Maheshwari, P. (2021). Managing political rally logistics: Evidence from India. Journal of Public Affairs and Management, 18(4), 215–232.

5.      Mukherjee, A. (2020). Street vendors and informal supply chains in emerging economies. Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services, 54, 102012.

6.      Verma, R., & Gupta, K. (2019). Unorganized agricultural markets and urban food distribution. Indian Journal of Agricultural Economics, 74(3), 512–528.

7.      Banerjee, T. (2021). Funeral operations and cultural practices in South Asia. Mortality: The Journal of Death and Society, 26(4), 421–437.

8.      Srinivasan, R. (2017). Cinema release strategies and festival operations in Tamil Nadu. South Asian Popular Culture, 15(2–3), 189–202.

9.      Rajagopal, L. (2022). Digital religion: The case of online darshan in India. Journal of Information Technology and Religion, 11(1), 25–41.

10.  Kumar, V., & Patel, M. (2019). Mega event operations: A study of Kumbh Mela and Durga Puja. Event Management Journal, 23(6), 875–890.

Book References

1.      Mukherjee, A. (2018). Street vendors in urban India: Invisible supply chains. Oxford University Press.

2.      Banerjee, T. (2021). Death and dignity: Cremation practices in India. Routledge.

3.      Kumar, V. (2019). Managing mega events: Kumbh, Ganesh Utsav & Durga Puja. Bloomsbury India.

4.      Rajagopal, L. (2022). Digital darshan: Faith meets technology in Indian temples. Sage Publications.

5.      Singh, R. (2020). Pilgrimage and logistics: Managing India’s faith corridors. Springer.

6.      Sharma, G. (2017). The economics of Indian weddings. Penguin India.

7.      Srinivasan, R. (2019). Cinema and society in South India. Cambridge University Press.

8.      Rao, S., & Krishnan, A. (2016). Faith, food, and festivals: Operations of Indian traditions. Routledge India.

          9.      Government of India. (2019). Street Vendors Act implementation report. Ministry of Housing             & Urban Affairs.

10.  National Sample Survey Office (NSSO). (2017–2022). Reports on informal sector employment. Government of India.

Preface

Operations Management, as taught in classrooms and practiced in boardrooms, is often associated with Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), Artificial Intelligence (AI), and advanced analytics. Yet, there exists another world of operations—less documented, less theorized, but profoundly efficient. This book was born out of the realization that India’s traditional systems of faith, culture, and community often manage large-scale operations with precision that rivals, and sometimes surpasses, the most sophisticated technologies.

From the seamless queue management at temples to the unorganized but flawless distribution in sabzi mandis, from the complexity of Indian weddings to the mega scale of political rallies, these operations are powered not by software, but by people, rituals, and trust. They embody resilience, adaptability, and human intelligence that no algorithm has fully captured.

The title Faith & Flow reflects this harmony—faith as the anchor of purpose, and flow as the rhythm of operations. Each chapter in this book explores a unique domain—temple pilgrimages, ashrams, weddings, political rallies, street vendors, mandis, funerals, cinema releases, digital darshan, and festivals—unveiling the hidden principles of operations management embedded in tradition.

This is not merely a study of logistics or supply chains; it is a celebration of India’s capacity to manage scale, diversity, and uncertainty through cultural wisdom. While global business schools focus on case studies of corporate giants, this book argues that the lanes of Varanasi, the kitchens of ISKCON, the grounds of political rallies, and the vibrance of Kumbh Mela are equally powerful classrooms of operations.

I hope that students, researchers, managers, and curious readers find in these pages a fresh perspective: that efficiency is not always born in servers and software; sometimes, it emerges from rituals, relationships, and resilience.

This book is dedicated to all those unsung managers of faith—the volunteers, vendors, priests, farmers, organizers, and everyday workers—whose invisible labor sustains the visible flow of India.

Acknowledgement

I owe this book to the countless unsung heroes of India’s informal and faith-based operational systems—the temple volunteers, wedding planners, street vendors, ashram workers, political rally coordinators, and festival organizers—whose work inspired every page.

Special gratitude to my students, who encouraged me to look beyond textbooks and ERP systems, and into India’s living classrooms of operations. Their curiosity shaped many of the ideas here.

I thank my colleagues and peers in academia who constantly reminded me that research is not limited to corporate boardrooms but thrives equally in sabzi mandis, ghats, and festival grounds.

My family has been my backbone, providing patience, strength, and endless encouragement during the writing journey.

Finally, this book is dedicated to every believer in the power of tradition and human coordination—reminding us that faith, when combined with flow, creates management miracles beyond algorithms.