Four books old, journalist-turned-author Rashmi Bansal has written on a plethora of topics – ranging from MBA entreprenuers and social entrepreneurs, to the spirit of enterprise. However, the underlying theme in each of her book has been Entrepreneurship. And, her fifth book, Follow Every Rainbow, is not an exception to this rule. A collection of stories of 25 women entrepreneurs across the country (and world), Rashmi hopes that this book will serve as an inspiration to other women. Recalling the incident which led her to write this book, Rashmi shares, “I was at a college giving a talk on entrepreneurship, and after it got over, a young lady came up to me and asked, ‘Why aren’t there as many women entrepreneurs?’ It got me thinking and I decided to compile a book which would talk about women entrepreneurs – this would not only show the world that there are many women entrepreneurs out there, but would also inspire women to become more enterprising.”
More from the author herself:
25 stories
This book chronicles the entrepreneurial journey of 25 women (22 from India and three from other countries).
The youngest entrepreneur featured in the book is 26-year-old Manju from Indore. She started her company when she was 16.
It is a loan recovery agency and has also received various laurels and awards for being one of the best loan recovery agencies.
Oldest would be 70-plus Mrs Rajini from Ludhiana, who started out as a baker, and now her business has burgeoned into something an enterprise that supplies breads to Mcdonalds franchise, produce tomato ketchup (under the name Cremica), among other products. Each woman has a unique and fascinating story to share.
Follow every rainbow
The title has been borrowed from one of my favourite songs from the musical Sound of Music. The song goes something like this: “Follow every rainbow till you find your dream”. I thought it was an apt title for women – prompting them to follow every rainbow until they find their own dream. Women would surely be able to relate to the title.
Women entrepreneurs vs male entrepreneurs
One can never say as to who would make better entrepreneurs – men or women – because both bring different values to the enterprise. While women would bring in sensitivity, wouldn’t be greedy and probably wouldn’t get involved in anything unethical, men bring in other qualities to strike a balance.
Defining entrepreneurship
The reason I write and talk about entrepreneurship is because I want people to be able to take charge of their life. Entrepreneurship is not just about starting a business, it’s about being enterprising in whichever field one may be. Even a small business can provide jobs to 10 unemployed people, which would be great. So, it’s about the choice one makes.
On Women’s Day
Well, it’s good that we have one day. But, I hope that a time comes when we don’t need to dedicate one special day to women. Men and women are equals and women should be treated the same (or special) every day. But, I guess, for something like this to happen it will take another 50-100 years (laughs).
What next?
Another book on entrepreneurship (smiles). My next book is going to be about student entrepreneurs – students who have started something on their own at college/school level itself. I haven’t decided as to how am I going to go about it; probably stories of 25 student entrepreneurs.