1.How did you make the switch from journalism to now being one of India’s biggest influential entrepreneurs?
Journalism was something that I did when I was very young and it was something that I wanted to do because I used to love writing. It was not something that I thought of as a career or a profession. During my education when I was interning, I used to love meeting people and writing. I wanted to do something in the business of communication and entertainment. When I started working and growing, I realised that my forte was building brands, businesses and companies. That’s what I started doing eventually and that’s how Raindrop Media was born.
2.Did you think it would be possible to survive, let alone lead, in this man dominated profession? How did you do the latter?
We keep talking about equality and gender and then we keep harping on this profession being a man-dominated one. It’s just a profession. When we are in school, we don’t talk about whether a man is better or a woman. In any work place, the right qualification is all that matters, not gender. For me, it has always been ‘May the best person win’ over ‘May the best man win’. As long as you are capable, qualified, talented and have the ability to work harder than any other person in the room, you will be successful. I don’t like the word ‘survive’. I think it is very negative. I like to thrive. The word ‘survive’ implies that I’m settling for too less. Surviving is normal and understood; it should come like breathing. It’s thriving that matters to me. What to make of this life and how much I thrive is what matters to me and I feel this is something that everyone should think and do.
3.What’s the trick behind your success?
There’s no trick. There’s no magic formula for success. People have their own list of dos and don’ts. I keep reiterating is that the fact that the only thing you need to remember is to not let success go to your head or failure to your heart . When you’re successful, keep a calm head and if you fail, have the courage to fail big and not let the experience get to your heart. I’ve lived by this theory all my life and that’s something that I would ask everybody to remember.
4.How important is it for a woman in today’s time to have a man in her life? Your take on woman empowerment.
I believe in work-life balance and I believe in having a personal life. And I’m sure that the same goes for everyone. Would a man be asked how important is it to have a woman in your life? That’s not even a question for a man. So, why should it be a question for a woman? Talking about women empowerment, I would like to reiterate that there should be equal chances for everyone, be it men or women. Right now, it is a great time for women. It’s great that women are more ambitious and less apologetic about asking for more money and taking the initiative. They are more upfront about what they want from their lives and partners. It’s a great time and I hope it continues. I know so many talented women I’ve worked and dealt with over-compensating and apologising for things and that’s something I don’t understand why women do. I want to tell every woman that they are enough and they deserve everything that they bring on the table and they should ask for a seat at the table.
5.What future plans in your entrepreneur career? I keep my cards very close to my heart. I believe in doing things first and then shocking people. There are lots of things that I do have in mind. Just to give you a small overview, I would say that all I want is everything. I don’t have plans; I have dreams. The dream is world domination, at some point.
6.You have been awarded as one of India’s ‘Outstanding women’. Any advice to all women on how they can each stand out?
The best advice I can give is that don’t fit in and stay in a box. Every time someone puts you in a box, get out of it. Try to make sure that you stick very true to your core, authenticity and what you stand for. Don’t try to be like anyone else because there’s only one you and that’s your superpower.
