It is popularly said that at the end of the rat race, one is still a rat. Here are four young Bangaloreans, who have in their own way, leapt out of the rat race and carved a very different race track for themselves.
Having completed their education, these youngsters decided that they wouldn’t work for someone or take up a job - just because that is the usual norm.
Instead, they chose to follow their passions and earn their living, doing what they love the most.
While for 20-year-old Pooja S Jain, it was designing accessories and jewellery that filled her heart with content and her wallet with moolah, 19-year-old Rahul Siyal finds joy in sketching faces of people he finds at cafes and other hangouts.
Impressed with his work, often people buy his sketch, paving a path for his unusual career to progress.
22-year-old Divya Haldipur found her first love in exploring the different kinds of art and craft forms and then impressed like-minded people with these delicate works.
Likewise, 26-year-old Sheetal Mote and her colleague Karan Karthik — both foodies, came up with the best solution for party lovers, who feel their tummies twist in the middle of their night for some yummy food — their initiative Midnight Masala has people calling in for scrumptious ‘Ghar ka khanna’ delivered to their doorstep after the clock strikes 12.
FOLLOWING YOUR PASSION
“I am not the kind of person who can be put in a box or told to follow a schedule. I like doing things on my own and when my friends realised that I had a real talent in designing accessories, my dream became a reality,” Pooja explains.
Having chanced upon her passion a few months back, when she wore a self-designed hair clip and garnered a lot of appreciation from friends and even total strangers, she decided that this was her calling in life.
“My parents and close friends are all excited about Quirky Accessories. One rainy evening, when I was sitting with one of my dear friends and mulling over the dead end I had hit in my life, this friend encouraged me to do what I love the most. This is when I started Quirky Accessories full fledgedly and till date I’ve sold more than 400 pieces of my work and orders keep coming in from all quarters,” she beams.
For Rahul Siyal on the other hand, sketching was a gift from his mother.
“My mother is a painter and she taught me to hold my first brush when I was really young and since then life has taken a nice turn. It is almost close to impossible to see someone’s face and not put it on paper. And the best thing of this profession is the look of joy on people’s faces when I show them their sketch completely out of the blue,” he says.
Further, he shares that his trade makes him meet people from all walks of life.
“One evening when there were very few people at a cafe and there was a group of businessmen from the corporate sector having a silent argument in the corner, I converted their huddle into a very interesting sketch with tempers flying high and agitated sipping of coffee. They all burst into a laughter upon seeing what I had done on paper and called me to their office to calm their employees’ nerves one evening with my art. It is a very satisfying job and I work on my own terms,” Rahul says with a glint in his eye.
Divya Haldipur literally is the jack of all trades and the master of a few.
Her simple Do It Yourself approach on Facebook has over 400 people interested. “I’ve tried many things related to art and craft. It all started when I was looking for some direction in life when I’d embarked upon a whole new journey in life. I’ve done greeting cards, clay art, paper ear rings, wall hangings and the latest art form I learnt was Ojo De Dios. The idea is simple. I want to be unique and do things that would bring a smile to people’s faces,” Divya says.
Her page ‘Kalavity’ — Art plus creativity has a whole host of small and big things that would add to the decor of your house and a whole range of colours to choose from.
“My confession here is that I have worked for the corporate sector and reached the highest post in a very short time. But one day when I sat down to analyse my life I realised that I have a lot of talent when it comes to art and innovation and all of that was going waste. This is when I quit and decided to live life on my own terms. There are many flee markets in Bangalore and many opportunities
From art to food
After a long night of partying, the least one expects is a good meal and a soft bed to crash on. “We don’t know about the soft bed, but we certainly know a lot about food. This was an idea we chanced upon after a long tiring night and when I pitched the idea to my friend Karan, he seemed very interested. Besides, finding good food in Bangalore after the clock strikes 12 is a little difficult. Midnight Masala was born at that very instant and is the ultimate solution for both your midnight snack cravings or a tummy full of ghar ka khanna meal,” says Sheetal Mote, who started the service with her friend Karan Karthik.
Both the foodies operate this service on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays between 10 pm and 2 am. The idea has caught on not only with the partying crowd in the city, but with many who work the graveyard shift too.
While these youngsters are making their way into strict professions, on their own terms, there are many other such Bangaloreans who want to live life large, but they set their own rules and lay down their own tracks and their only competition is themselves.