Counselling Psychologist & Mental Health Coach for Women

Hello, my name is Abhinaya. I am the curative head of The Artist Project. Being a recently graduated architect and also working for an architecture firm (Sidharth Ninan Architecture), I am just as curious about exploring the fields of product design and the fine arts as I am about architecture. Naturally, being a converging point of both my interests, the world of handicrafts and the culture that surrounds it is what I subsequently started spending time with the most. NV – What is The Artist Project about? What inspired you to begin this company? Abhinaya – The Artist Project is an initiative to promote talented creativists, who’s work would stand to exemplify handmade craftsmanship. This space would prove to be as much about celebrating as it would be about showcasing the works of potters, jewellers, painters, khadi and alternative artists. We aspire to be a hub that’d allow for a healthy exchange of energy between our folks and the artists who interest them. What became fairly obvious in all my travels is that the standards and the interplay of the form function dynamics incorporated by the different artists in their work is so unique, it deserves to permeate an audience and a market much bigger than the limited customer base that they have set for themselves. A vast majority of these artists don’t have the inclination or the means to promote their works on social media or at tourist outlets, and it’s precisely the works of these kinds of artists that I hope to put in the spotlight with The Artist project. NV – Tell us a little about your milestone journey. Abhinaya – I was right out of college with no business organization module to have been familiar with so I had to formulate my own work methodology. That was the first but my inertia kept me motivated to sail through that. Further down the line I realised how to accommodate setbacks that come with a system where people are so used to online shopping which is so quick, they aren’t as willing to understand that it isn’t enough to only appreciate handicrafts but also understand the time put into each piece. So, speeding that was my next challenge. But these challenges have in a way helped me educate myself about what works and what doesn’t. NV – How has your experience with “The Artist Project” been so far? Abhinaya – I feel a sense of belonging because it’s over a year old and is something that is now well imbibed into my daily routine. Now it feels like familiar territory and I am able to gauge things better in terms of the commercial aspect of products. The relationship I share with my artists have also helped me because we are constantly working to improvising not just the products but also the way we as a company project ourselves. Thanks to the Sunday shout outs I ‘ve also been able to interact with artists of a wider spectrum that helps me evaluate my own perspective time and again. NV – Do you believe in dreams? If you had to motivate people to follow their dreams what would you tell them? Abhinaya – I do believe in dreams but dreams happen only if you have reality as your anchor. We often put these two in separate sections and very often in contrast to one another when really they are so complimentary!

Hello! We are Suvarna and Ankita. Our love for ethnic couture inspired us to start “What my Sister Wore” a fashion blog. This is our story! NV – Was it always your dream to write about Fashion? Suvarna: The dream really was just to start writing about something significant in my life. After pondering over a lot of topics and themes, this one night I was telling my elder sister Ankita about all this. It was then, when I told her that I want to write something that actually inspires me and also which has never been there before on any of the websites or blogs! And that’s when it struck me – I just wanted to write about the way my sister presents herself – her fashion mantra! Wherever she goes, people are in awe of her attitude and simplicity. She has this immense love for ethnic outfits and I have personally witnessed her passion to explore designers and secret lanes of the city hunting for the right clothes. When we searched online, all we could find were blogs and websites dedicated to western clothing and occasional wear. Soon we realised that we can start something to break this clutter. So, with a little push from my sister and lots of clothes, I started writing about #whatmysisterwore. 🙂 NV– What is fashion according to you? Ankita: Fashion according to me is something colourful with a dash of accessories and comfortable. More than anything else, it should make you feel good about yourself once you put it on. NV– Was it an easy decision to start a blog? Suvarna: Well it wasn’t easy at first. I never knew I could write and my sister never knew she could style her everyday attire in 100 ‘desi’ ways! 😀 For the longest, we have managed to sustain our blog through our own pockets and I think that has been one tough task since the very beginning! Initially, we would dig our closets to decide themes and sometimes ask mom to help us by giving her amazing outfits for our blog! Regarding photography as well, I feel we were very lucky and blessed to have some amazing photographer friends like Krishanu, Raj, Nikhil, Kavita and Shoeb who never charged us and believed in our ability to work more than our ability to pay! Ankita: However, this tough task resulted in giving us the best of what fashion blogging could offer – we were mind-blown to meet the designers we have worked with! We have learnt so much only because we followed our hearts and believed that someday we can achieve enough credibility to ask for more. NV– With so many Fashion bloggers already out there, how different is “What my sister wore”? I believe #whatmysisterwore breaks the clutter of today’s fashion blogs in two significant ways – Ankita: Trust me when I say this, the blog is all about our “everyday” dressing goals! The clothes we put up can be worn for work, college or leisure anywhere anytime! One doesn’t need to go out of their way to shop or change their entire wardrobe! The kind of ethnic dressing we focus on, it breaks the age barrier and instead encourages Indian women to be themselves and explore the “desi” fashion in its best possible way. We also focus a lot on comfort, ethnicity and affordability which we feel are a criterion for anyone. Suvarna: It’s high time we look at home-grown brands and the kind of efforts and innovations that they are trying to bring in today’s market! These labels and boutiques are present in abundance! We have met designers who work with rural artisans and are working day in and day out to create a sustainable community of weavers, tailors, farmers and craftsmen. And we feel, the crowd needs to take notice of such work and the kind of clothing and accessories that are being produced by humble souls spread across the country. NV– What/who inspired you to take up this field? Suvarna: Being a media and communications student, writing was one of the key skills that I wanted to work upon during my MBA days. The environment I studied in, always made me realise that I have to learn the art of writing. And this idea got its face and inspiration in my sister’s sense of fashion and lifestyle. Ankita: I have always dressed in Indian clothes and always had a lot of questions coming my way which only intrigued and encouraged me further. Slowly, I started experimenting more often and I realised that quiet a lot of people would come to ask me about ethnic clothing. That was the same time when my sister Suvarna was planning to write something significant and the next thing we knew, we decided to blog about it. As we hunted for online websites and blogs, to our surprise there was very little or no blogs dedicated to ethnic fashion and routine dressing. And hence, we started working on this theme. NV – On your way to becoming a brand, did you face any hurdles/difficulties? Please tell us about your milestone journey elaborately. Suvarna: Honestly, I feel we are still in the process of becoming a brand. People have started to notice us and our work but there is still a long way to go in terms of audience reach and earning that credibility to work with more number of designers and artists. When we started with the blog, my sister and I felt we will be able to give so much to the audience in terms of ethnic clothing and fashion but two years later, we feel we have learnt much much more than what we are able to give! I cannot stress enough about how surprising and inspiring it is to meet new age Indian designers and work with innovative brands. The experience is so enriching that when I start writing, the visuals of our conversations with the designers and my sister’s looks just begin to flow in front of my eyes thereby making me extremely happy and nostalgic about the quality work. It’s a proud feeling to achieve an audience through only and only the blog posts and my sister’s knowledge on fashion. We have never paid to reach a certain number of followers or readers. So for us every person who follows our blog is an earned audience and that feeling is great! NV – Reaching this point in your career, are you happy? Happy – Yes, but Content – No. We still feel there are still a lot of themes and designers that we can work with. NV– How has your experience with “What my sister wore” been so far? Ankita: The experience has been one roller coaster ride. I am a doctor by profession and I have personally seen that how important it is to be presentable in such a profession where you interact with people on a daily basis. This blog gave me the platform to share this thought with so many like-minded people and I feel that has been the best part of this journey. It’s been sheer fun to experiment with ethnic fashion and be a muse for my younger sister. Also, pursuing something personally which is our own creation – it has only added up to my confidence and passion to dress up well. Thanks to the moments we spent with designers, photographers and artist, it has just taught me a lot about something that I love – ethnic dressing. 🙂 Suvarna: I think for me all of this has been one great experience of learning! From learning the basics of blogging to meeting new people and exploring my sister’s sense of fashion, all this has just helped my surprise myself and the people around me 🙂 The best moments are when we receive compliments and love from our audience through their comments and messages. That’s when I realise that my sister and I were able to create something that most of us Indian women could relate to and at the same time make a lot others curious about our home-grown fashion trends. NV– If someone, inspired by your journey, was to follow your path what advice would you like to give them? The advice would be – “It’s great to be inspired by our journey, but do make your own path because that’s what will take you ahead and give you memories for a lifetime. So be yourself and create content in whatever form possible that ‘YOU’ want the world to know.” NV– Do you believe in dreams? If you were to motivate people to believe in their dreams, what would you like to tell them? Ankita: I do believe in dreams! I feel they are the driving force for our very existence in this world. The most important thing is to believe them. Every day one should do something that takes him/her one step closer to their dream. Suvarna: Yes! I feel the first step towards the dream is the scariest of all the steps that one will take to achieve it. And that’s where the difference lies between achievers and doers. So what I would like to tell someone who dreams is what I ask myself everyday– “What’s stopping you? Whatever it is, try breaking that inhibition brick by brick and then take the plunge. You are not going to fall but soar very high!’’

“My name is Niloufer Wadia. I am an artist and illustrator. I was formally educated in Applied Arts at Sophia Polytechnic, Mumbai. I have spent over 20 years in advertising, and now pursuing my first love – the fine arts and illustration. I was always good at drawing, a lot more than painting. However, I was not clear about it. My art teacher in school and my parents nudged me towards an art course, and before I actually realized what I was doing, I saw myself joining a Commercial Art course followed by a job in Advertising. To be honest, there is very little “fine art” in Advertising, especially with the advent of computers. Illustration is not very popular in Indian advertising. In any case, my job description differed. All I had to do was to design the ads. For years I was so engrossed at work, I do not remember even lifting a pencil. I missed sketching terribly, therefore one day, I went out, bought some stationery and started, rather basic, graphite pencil sketches of women – my favourite subject. And before I knew it, I started to sell my pencil drawings. Despite selling my pencil drawings, I was still working in Advertising. Having a career for over 20 years I really loved most of it. Even though it was very exhausting and you are always at the client’s beck and call. Meanwhile, I painted, sketched, and in the last two years, I did some illustrations for commercial purposes via micro image sites and worked as a freelancer, doing a few cartoons alongside. I browsed and browsed through the work of wonderful illustrators every time I was free. Eventually, one particularly hectic and draining day at work, I called my boss who was at the head-office and told him I wanted to quit. Although sudden, this was not a mindless decision. I finished with outstanding loans and had enough saved to last me a year. Living very carefully, I felt I just had to see if I could make a living through painting and illustration. It was my passion and I figured that out after a lot of soul-searching. It only seemed fair to give it a shot. On the brighter side, I did not have to make any great investments, just a little more art material perhaps. I was inspired by, hundreds of illustrators whose work I witnessed every day, thanks to the wonderful internet. I wouldn’t consider myself a brand yet, but I hope I’ll get there soon enough. I feel I have just been very lucky. I started out with very little work, but, it obviously hit a cord. Two years were very tough, and financially very frightening. Not to mention, quite a lonely experience. After being surrounded by colleague / friends and vibrant, exhilarating conversation and debate for years, it did get lonely to work at an empty desk. Not receiving a regular pay check made the process a bit harder. It was during those days when, quite by chance, I took part in a storybook illustration competition with Pratham Books. Gratefully I was noticed and I’m suddenly doing picture story books for a variety of children’s publishers. Almost back to back, apart from other things squeezed in between, of course. Cartoons, urban sketching, book covers and a little painting, Painting is very little unfortunately, as that gets side-lined by the jobs with deadlines. I am happy quite happy with the good work I have done. 2016 was good for me work-wise. I did a LOT and was often very stressed about deadlines, but I guess that’s the one down-side of being a freelancer. Rain or sun shine, ill or not, you just stay up all hours and meet the deadline. Being in advertising taught me to really take a deadline seriously, something I’ve noticed people in publishing are very appreciative of in an artist. I’m not complaining. I feel blessed to be able to earn a reasonably comfortable living while doing something I love and being, largely, my own master, oops, mistress. I believe in dreams. I understand people have things happening in their lives, responsibilities, loyalties, limitations, fears. I’m actually quite cautious myself. But I would say, figure out what you really want – and that can be tough I know. But focus on it, and take the plunge, NOW!! In whatever small way, Moonlighting at first, maybe. It’ll never be exactly the right time”. Instagram = niloufer.artist website = http://www.illustrationartist.in Facebook = http://www.facebook.com/niloufer.artist