I n the S2EP69 of The Arts to Hearts Podcast, Charuka Arora, Artist & Host of the Arts To Hearts Podcast is joined in by Srishti Gupta Roy (Visual artist, illustrator & fashion designer)

In this Episode,

1. You will hear Srishti & Charuka in very candid and fun conversation talk about anything & everything that goes into a life as creatives
2. Srishti talks about her experience of working as a designer in the corporate sector and then transitioning as a freelance visual artist. What made her take the decision and how it has been for her so far.
3. Srishti has had the pleasure to work with some of the top clients like Netflix, adobe, mac cosmetics, Michael kors to name. She shares her expereince of working won these projects and her learning curve when it comes to pricing and leading projects.
4. Charuka & Srishti both look back to their careers as a fashion designers. Well, lets say they both had a lot to say. That you definitely should hear.
5. Srishti also shared how she always looks for inspiration in her surroundings and her own life in a cosmopolitan.
6. They touch on the most sensitive topic of pricing that you would want to hear.

DEEP DIVE INTO THE FULL EPISODE AND HEAR SRISHTI AS SHE SHARES MORE ABOUT HER JOURNEY & LIFE AS A CREATIVE.

Srishti Gupta Roy, or @srillustrator as she is known on the Internet, is one of us. A graphic and fashion designer by profession, the 28-year-old has been serving millennial language on a platter. From renaming fashion brands for the desi 20-somethings to giving us the most iconic designs, Srishti is the perfect amalgamation of aesthetics and intellect. Not only do her captions guiltily remind us of our bad habits, they are written in such a fun manner that everyone can relate.

A National Institute Of Fashion Technology, New Delhi graduate, Srishti also won the ‘Best design collection’ award for her graduation collection. Her work has been featured internationally in leading magazines and online publications as well. Srishti has also collaborated with some big names like M.A.C Cosmetics, Fastrack, and Levi’s to create some very interesting artworks that not only will make you laugh, but also share a strong social message.

To see srishti’s artwork, please visit https://www.srillustrator.com/

Or follow on Instagram at @srillustrator

Charuka Arora, Founder of Arts To Hearts Project

www.charukaarora.com

Arts To Hearts Project

https://artstoheartsproject.com/

www.instagram.com/artstoheartsproject/

AUTOMATED TRANSCRIPTS

00:03.27
charukaarora
Hey, you guys welcome back to the arts to hearts podcast  season 2 this is your host charuka arora I’m back with another amazing guest today and this time I am so excited and also a little scared because. I just told her that we both of us speak a very different language but before I introduce you to her I just I just wanted to read out something that I’ve been researching about her so I have an amazing illustration for illustrator fashion designer. Um. And a creative more than anything else who has been doing a lot of rounds of appreciation here in India so I pulled out a few quotes from her features and this is something that really clicked. Okay, so. From renaming fashion brands for the dctwenty something to giving us the most iconic design srishti is the perfect amalgamation of aesthetics and intellect srishti has collaborated with some big names like mac cosmetics fasttrack levis to create some very interesting artworks that not only will make you laugh but also share a strong social message. Like this is by idiva um something I really found interesting was wait. We love switched his understanding of what we all do all day every day if you’re someone who’s perpetually broke. She’s got a meme for you. If you’re dealing with the trauma of growing older. She’s got a hi like hilarious one for you too. The reason it all works in primarily because of her maximalist approach to art the memes that she produces are not in conventional format. There are no l loll worthy majors but carefully curated artworks. Have been created from scratch I am so excited to introduceristy to you welcome to the podcast rest still.

01:58.38
Srishti
Um, hi. It’s so good to be like quoted back like this like super sp of which coat did she got to sick that was good.

02:04.11
charukaarora
I haven’t done this before honestly and will still edit this wherever like intro I mean I’ve never introduced a guest like this before but while I was researching you I really love this article by id one you and it was so intriguing and so well put together and I felt like um. Like how like you are this this humor queen of India.

02:27.25
Srishti
This is you guys I feel like that’s too much pressure I’m not that funny otherwise but sometime I’m good I think I’m funny when I have time to like put it down in like text format like I’m not like conversationally super funny I don’t think I’m conversation guy as funny as my friends.

02:36.97
charukaarora
Is it. Really, We figure this out I mean we’ll get to know this in the conversation because when I was like when I was just getting ready for this conversation I was like I was so intimidated because I am the least fun least funny person you can ever meet I Just told you that even before recording.

02:44.98
Srishti
Not.

02:56.24
Srishti
Yeah, yeah.

02:59.55
charukaarora
And I was like how am I going to even match the level because I just I just can’t I mean any episode that you’ve heard So I mean if if you’ve heard so Far. We always have like I have I bring this bible very serious conversations or like you know stuff like that and I was like you know I’m having this this person who has like. That’s good humor and you know I was like how am I going to even cop up with that.

03:23.89
Srishti
No no, it’s not going to be that it’ll be mildly disappointing for sure I ain’t go to be that for me or but me at all. But yeah I get comfortable like this is That’s a more result resultful at writing like I’m a writer funny like funny write it but not. Ah yeah, not the most. Yeah.

03:27.40
charukaarora
Oh I should get comfortable.

03:36.83
charukaarora
Um, oh Wow This is.

03:43.23
Srishti
Conversational Organic funny like I try to be sometimes a okay but most of the time It’s a little like crickets. You can hear crickets.

03:49.61
charukaarora
Oh wow, you know this is so um, so red for me to even hear because um, we all like at least I had this in mind because you you have this image like of course you all have curated images via verb. We do.

04:03.47
Srishti
Correct. Yeah.

04:07.70
charukaarora
And I always have this perception until of course we met today and as we’re speaking that you know you will be this person but it also like how differently creative processes work for everyone like some people. Um, so but before we dig into all of that would you like to just introduce yourself and what you do.

04:16.70
Srishti
So yeah.

04:25.69
charukaarora
Everyone who’s listening to this episode.

04:26.13
Srishti
Sure so I’m shshti uparra i’ am a 30 year old illustrator fashion designer and visual artist I’m currently living in Bangalore in India I grew up in koolkata then I studied for a bit in Delhi and now in bangalows I’m kind of a little bit of every part of India I feel um my art.

04:42.62
charukaarora
So.

04:45.76
Srishti
Style is super maximal and colorful and there is like ah almost like an inherent um india india inspiration that is there in a lot of moifs and illustrations that I do ah so I’ve been trained formally as a fashion designer and I worked in like the corporate retail sector for almost like four 5 years and then after that I’ve ventured into like full fleded freelance designing now and that journey has been about like 3 years long so let’s see like Tila got the opportunity and the good luck to work with a lot of really like interesting clients and big brands and hoping that that journey continues for me. Everything is kind of like um, all. Out there and all over the place.

05:22.95
charukaarora
Oh my goodness now that you’ve brought this up and again so strange to hear this from you because again, but I even if I pull out my questions right now I can’t show you but let me just tell you because we all see the other side of it because when I’m seeing you as we were and I feel like oh she’s got it all together like you have.

05:33.43
Srishti
Sure.

05:39.93
Srishti
And.

05:42.81
charukaarora
You have the client that all everyone has on their dream list like from Netflix um arida adobe ah like I mean let me just even pull that out I wasn’t I mean I put together your client list which includes Google bo Coolervis Maccosmetics asian paints Adobe Netflix Las and.

05:45.19
Srishti
Yeah.

06:02.46
charukaarora
You know all of these and these are of only a selected one like these are not all your clients.

06:03.98
Srishti
No sure I understand where you’re coming from because the thing is with a lot of these projects I feel like it happens so organically because people happen to see my work or Instagram so it’s not like I had reached out to any of these people per se but I also understand that you know while this is like.

06:15.17
charukaarora
Yeah.

06:22.86
Srishti
I Don’t know like sometimes like I feel like with freelance work. It’s so um, there’s no structure to it at the end of the day right? So while there are those clients that you see but you don’t ah think you don’t know how many months have not had work Also so when you see that carefully curated.

06:27.90
charukaarora
Yeah, it’s.

06:34.26
charukaarora
Um, yeah I ask? Yeah yeah.

06:38.60
Srishti
Like highlight real almost on Instagram it feels like you know everything is super sorted but there have been months when I’ve been without work and then maybe there’s some things that I’ve done which didn’t never even came out or like some people had huge arguments without these clients per se but just in general. It’s just the show reel of the best things. but yeah but these

06:48.93
charukaarora
Um, yeah, absolutely.

06:55.81
Srishti
But it has been great like there’s no doubt about that and I will forever be grateful and indebted that I have been given these opportunities to work with these people because it’s truly like something to add in your portfolio forever.

07:04.29
charukaarora
Absolutely and you’ve done such stunning work I think I figured I mean I discovered your work I mean maybe to three years ago I don’t even know I mean I don’t even remember now because I’ve been seeing it for so long and you’ve had this very distinct style that you know every time I see some I remember you had’t this like.

07:15.58
Srishti
Show.

07:23.73
charukaarora
Um, you hadn’t announced your recent project with India Circus I think christna met us book and I remember seeing oh sorry oh yes money? Sorry sir my back now and I saw he made a post before you did and I saw the come.

07:29.24
Srishti
Um, Loma Manishia or ah, sorry that was Manishia group. Yeah yeah, correct correct. Yes yes.

07:41.81
charukaarora
And I was like this is her work for show I mean there’s if anyone who follows you or knows your work would recognize your work in an instant and I was like this is so.

07:46.35
Srishti
Yeah, and honestly that is so validating like this is the biggest validation when you want to have like a very distinct style because there is so much of visual arts. That’s there on Instagram the fact that somebody can remember though this looks like her is pretty like it is gratifying.

08:01.26
charukaarora
Yeah I mean business This is something a lot of creatives always are aspiring and striving for because they all we all want to be known for something and you all have our own dance specific and I think it’s not only the visual vocab of your your work but also the work.

08:09.11
Srishti
Yeah.

08:18.90
charukaarora
Vocal or I would say the written the content basically which I think makes it even more powerful I was just when while I was researching and just you know going over your work and I was just just seeing how the transition of your work where content was the humor content wasn’t such a big part of your work but your work still look.

08:19.11
Srishti
And shops.

08:33.74
Srishti
Um, hear me sharp now.

08:38.27
charukaarora
Similar and then I could see there was like gradual touch and then you went like all in and you were you. It felt like you were so much you felt so much safer in using that side of your creativity in your work and I think that was that was the work that actually brought so much of recognition for you if I’m not.

08:55.70
Srishti
Yeah, no, you’re not from. Yeah no I Absolutely agree to it because earlier like when I was in college I Just ah, illustration was like a module which I thoroughly enjoyed So I really like even in college that I was somebody who really enjoyed fashion illustration and.

08:57.90
charukaarora
Um, what do you? What do you have to say about.

09:12.74
Srishti
Interesting thing about fashion illustration when you’re doing it in college is that again the possibilities are endless because you sort of just have to have a human head and then everything else is like up to you but you don’t might have bodies with our heads. All overall you know so I always found that fun. But then when I started working in my corporate job I didn’t really do it full phrase it here and there I would so when I.

09:17.47
charukaarora
And less.

09:30.65
charukaarora
Yeah.

09:32.70
Srishti
I Never even had a vague idea that this could be combined with text so that was not even a thought process So when everybody told me to start the illustration page because O I used to put up these illustrations on my ah personal page and I always just say you know people are not liking it and have and it’s not a day you know I’m not getting the traction that I want and then everybody advise make a separate page for this because a lot of people are interested.

09:42.55
charukaarora
Okay I do.

09:52.61
charukaarora
And yeah, and.

09:52.66
Srishti
In design and visual might not want to see like 200 selfies from you like in some holiday because it’s such a very confusing space. So then I made the page and like you said the first few illustrations that I put out I had that style somewhere. It wasn’t like evolved to what it is today but it had like the you could understand the beginnings of it were there. But. The concept of adding text was still not there and you know what happened one day when I was like going through my phone screenshot album I just realized that I only had screenshots of Meme and had only screenshots of fashion runby images for work and then I was like it be so cool if this could be combined and then I started realizing. Okay I can be funny like it can be witty because most of.

10:31.70
charukaarora
Yeah.

10:31.39
Srishti
Passion is so funny and since that clicked and people Sohow found like some novelty in it because this was happening in 2018 also with not too many people I don’t think are added like text text in like illustrator. So it correct he.

10:36.83
charukaarora
Yeah, right right? I think that was the time glittering was also coming very much in fashion especially in.

10:48.37
Srishti
Yeah, exactly exactly especially in the context of India so this was in my headspace like almost like the nuance of like fashion illustration and combining it with something super low brow like bibs which is not exactly but and this is 2018 at the beginning. So then when that’s.

10:50.50
charukaarora
Yeah.

11:04.74
Srishti
Kind of clicked I almost felt like it was something that became easy for me because I also think like a copyriter somehow like sometimes like the idea that comes to my mind is like a 1 line funny thing and then I create the el illustration around it. So yeah, so for yeah, so for me, it fell like oh then it makes sense if I include the text because.

11:09.77
charukaarora
Um, yeah, wow That’s source one nice clear.

11:22.96
Srishti
Maybe it’s a crutch that I’m falling back on because I don’t know like it’s funny and sometimes when I get client Project. You don’t want any text I feel like oh shit, but that was like I think it’s like it has to be like a little funny but it happened organically and I’ve kind of stuck to it to a certain extended list on my personal page. But I do like to retain that element of humor it like a pun not like something funny.

11:41.51
charukaarora
But is that who you are when you’re like is that immediately Also who you are I mean um.

11:45.96
Srishti
No, that is who I am like it’s not like I can’t put that on just for Instagram I am that person anyway, I am like ah like I love having conversations with people and like sort of picking up these really innately funny things that they’ve said and then like sort of making like a list of it and then I personally enjoy like when.

11:50.67
charukaarora
Yeah.

11:57.88
charukaarora
Um, yeah.

12:05.35
Srishti
Somebody gets a kick out of it in courses like it’s such a relatable piece of art for me. Yeah, so people love it and I like that reaction that it gets also so it is innately me also and it just somehow like because it was getting like certain amount of traction I Also kind of did stick to it to a certain extent. Yeah.

12:07.47
charukaarora
Oh you do that? So well.

12:19.43
charukaarora
Yeah, do few minutes amazing you know and that’s that’s something so too because even when you like you know you randomly share stuff on your stories and you’ll write copy and I so agree to this because I’ve been in this phase of branding and working and like.

12:24.24
Srishti
Yeah.

12:31.50
Srishti
Yeah. Yeah.

12:39.11
charukaarora
You are such a good copyright and that would come to my mind so many times because you know the kind of copy. You always come up so instantly I mean people can’t like we all can’t put together like a fasad that we we can put with our grades. Let’s say you know you can read. You can schedule and all of those things but stories are.

12:54.41
Srishti
Yeah, correct I like yeah even I feel I love stories because it’s so irreverent. It stays only for 24 hours it just it’s just the most fun thing to perform I love story like I’m not a real person. Yeah, correct exactly.

12:57.55
charukaarora
Like a real insight into who you are.

13:02.81
charukaarora
Yeah, you something you my name you go you go that and even then even then when you like you put out something and you add like your comment or like a copy and I’m like how can how did she come up with this now. Like this is this um something which seems very obvious to you does not seem that easy and obvious to someone else, especially like you know I’m on the receiving and and whenever I look and and um whenever I like whenever see your work now as a consumer I’m also seeing like.

13:25.15
Srishti
Um, probably ah.

13:41.32
charukaarora
She must have had something like because that’s also something that’s become very recognizable for your own brand your visual style but also the content that now I’m like okay what is she going to hit upon like what is something that you’re going to say and what’s even more interesting is that a lot of your humor.

13:46.14
Srishti
Yeah.

13:51.50
Srishti
Now.

13:59.74
charukaarora
It’s just not humor. It’s also hitting on a social nerve of the society that we’re living in especially like Indian millennial. Um Urban contemporaries most of us like what do you have to say about that.

14:10.85
Srishti
Um, yeah, yeah I mean like most of like humor and Relatability does come from like a place where you have to authentically have lived that life or like had those experiences to translate and for me like me being the kind of person even if I have to discuss something serious.

14:19.85
charukaarora
Um, yeah.

14:28.54
Srishti
I’ll put it in the garb of like circasm and sati and wit as opposed to like making an illustration trying to like do it in more like a or protest he probably style which is like oh you know this is the problem with the site. This is what I can do I Personally I don’t drivetate towards it as a person and as an illustrator as a creative person as a creative. So for me like I feel like a lot of the.

14:43.77
charukaarora
Yeah.

14:48.14
Srishti
Like I don’t think I personally am not one of those people who touches on Super Um, how would I say like maybe like touchy topics. Maybe like I would not make a post about like something to do with say a caste problem or a cast issue that’s happening because I don’t feel I have lived that life to have any comment on it and so I think that.

14:53.95
charukaarora
Yeah.

14:59.50
charukaarora
Yeah I there. Yeah.

15:07.49
Srishti
Maybe my version of like what my firstw world problem issues and I would rather stick on that lane because I have lived that experience authentically and I can put a fun twist to it but like for instance, if you see an artwork and I’m talking about oh fuck like no none of us have had any savings. It is kind of hitting on the nerve that we’re at that point where.

15:20.50
charukaarora
Yeah.

15:25.82
Srishti
Expenses are so high and the idea of putting up a facade is so high that none of us could manage to save money so there is like a undercurrent to it but it’ll never be like oh you know, like second very social message like on if you look at it like in the first approach I do try this? Yeah yeah, but I am.

15:28.00
charukaarora
Um, yeah.

15:35.68
charukaarora
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, next good.

15:43.39
Srishti
Yeah, but social message I feel like some of them like it for me like I feel like it is more organic if it is guisedd in like some amount of humor and um, sarcassive.

15:55.00
charukaarora
That’s true I think and I think it also it’s also a way to say something that also reaches to masses I think your work um has so many things I can’t even pull out like 1 right now. But there’s so many things especially women related because as you spoke like. You know we? That’s the most intimate thing that we experience as women as women creative or like a millennial and a lot of times you put perspective in from like with a tool of humor to problems that we face a lot of times I have a very interesting question I want to hear what you say about it.

16:27.75
Srishti
Show.

16:29.77
charukaarora
You know, a lot of guests on the podcast have come all of them have been women all of them um have come from across the world. This is very common question and inhibition and experience people have shared um which is a lot of people who came from the art school or the design school.

16:42.20
Srishti
Shaw.

16:48.32
charukaarora
And had humorous side to them at least I didn’t I never experienced this because I never had you were on me so that thank god.

16:48.38
Srishti
And. You need to stop iterating the decision. The what it would You are.

16:58.50
charukaarora
Believe me believe me people pull my leg when you know people pull leg because you make jokes people pull my leg because I never make jokes That’s that’s how real it is So you know a lot of times people shared their experience at how they wanted to use humor in their career in the arts.

17:03.92
Srishti
Yeah.

17:15.95
Srishti
Okay.

17:18.37
charukaarora
Illustrations I know but they were always demotivated and sidetracked by then let’s say you know schools Mentors jobs or whatever because they always felt like never the fear of never being taken seriously.

17:28.31
Srishti
I do. Okay, okay.

17:36.17
charukaarora
Is that has that been something that you have ever experienced or felt in your own way.

17:41.40
Srishti
No I personally haven’t never like had I’ve never gone to a nixby I actually never been thought about it this way until I was asked this question that yeah like I don’t know like.

17:48.43
charukaarora
Feeling.

17:52.93
Srishti
I feel like we’re living in an era where like even if there was this like an earth shatering pandemicset. The mememakers are busier than like anybody else making jokes about new videos like I feel like generationally at least millennials and we’re not young anymore so millennials are like 30 plus.

18:00.55
charukaarora
Um, that’s you Yeah yeah, yeah.

18:08.86
Srishti
I Feel like we grew up in ecosystem where humor was super accepted and easy and almost like the funnier you are the most socially acceptable you are So yeah, so I personally never felt like I um.

18:13.45
charukaarora
Yeah, oh of course.

18:23.47
Srishti
Had any kind of baggage about like being funny on the internet or being funny in my artwork. Maybe a generation before me might have had a different experience because they might have had a different reality that they grew up in but like the reality that we grew up in I feel like it’s the most organic thing that a lot of people like use for I mean like we.

18:28.36
charukaarora
Yeah, yeah.

18:41.20
Srishti
Living in an era of a precedent dancing on Tiktok songs to like put out a message so like clearly there are no rules anymore in terms of what you need to do to be taken seriously or nots I never had that pressure externally and I never put that pressure on myself either because it is a very important facet of my personality with or without the internet. So and so.

18:48.58
charukaarora
I Love this.

18:58.26
charukaarora
All language.

19:00.67
Srishti
Automatically the it is it that comes across at as my internet persona. Also.

19:04.39
charukaarora
Love that love that I think it’s also because um your work primarily has been into a lot of text space and the lastration space whereas you know I think even in India this space is way more open way more. I think it gives you way more creative liberation than typical traditional um arts. Yeah, yeah, yeah, and you know what What’s even interesting with your work is what I feel is It’s such a good.

19:22.63
Srishti
Um, yeah, craft probably like art and craft. Yeah I understand like it is a totally different space. So the rules of interaction are totally different. Yeah.

19:40.65
charukaarora
Like your work is such a good fit that bretches the gap between the 2 like your work is um and especially with the background that you come with in fashion textile you you are also in the digital space but your work also fits in into into the let’s say the other side of the spectrum.

19:56.96
Srishti
In this.

19:59.13
charukaarora
Have you like when you were venturing into where you clear like you know you wanted to be an illustrator. Let’s all talk about your journey as a fashion designer how you went into illustration like how did that happen.

20:04.67
Srishti
Um, sure yeah sure So I actually I’ve been learning finance since I was really young. So I come from like fine arts. No no, not finance I know not I.

20:14.10
charukaarora
Find I Just find not the fine I would be grown right now.

20:23.67
Srishti
But I would be shocked myself if I said I’ve been learning finance since I was a sha that if my drugs to that in my bank account stage with the report fuck. Its oh no, no, no so I wish I have been learning finance. So I mean I come from like a fairly. Um. I want a traditional but like a very typical bengali middle class family where like when you’re younger, then it is kind of like you have to learn like 2 3 fine arts. Okay, so whether it’s classical music Robin the shonggi whether it’s dance whether it’s fine I like into proper hardcore drawing. So my mom put me in all these classes and drawing is something that kind of stuck.

20:40.96
charukaarora
Um, yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

20:54.88
charukaarora
Oh what.

20:58.65
Srishti
Did that so I did that from she put me in the class when I was four years old I was in that drawing class. Love was about 9 or 10 and I love this I and she never took it was never never a task I mean they would love to go like with other kids like do crafts and like draw and there are a lot of these are schools for like kids.

21:01.86
charukaarora
Could make so. Lost.

21:14.86
charukaarora
Okay.

21:16.26
Srishti
In like my neighborhood area and stuff so where I used to do that then I had like a finance teacher who would come to come home and teach us till I was in about class 7 or eight then I did commercial art in school so it has always been like a big part of my life growing up. Yeah so commercial art I did in class nine and ten so and then in 1112 I kind of diverge to bitten life was doing science. But.

21:25.44
charukaarora
All your days. No wow.

21:33.94
charukaarora
Oh goodness.

21:35.73
Srishti
I Feel like I yeah which is great I mean I don’t regret taking up signs at all because it opened up my mind to something else which I wouldn’t have otherwise so good for that. So I really so I’ve been associated with some form of like art and designing at that time which was not like a ah there was never a conversation about being taking taking it as a profession.

21:40.56
charukaarora
Yeah, yeah.

21:52.77
charukaarora
I.

21:54.45
Srishti
But then ah once it came through like 1112 that time while I was like sitting for engineering exams. So as I told my mom I’m going to be sitting for a couple of design college exams also because I don’t feel like I’ve completely ah ended my love of head with drawing it. She was fairly okay about it. So that’s when I got into nift and till then also so fashion design was not the. I want to do something more related to product design as something more to do with animation or apparel. But somehow and I did not end up happening so I went to nift and like and the moment you get into nift I think the most kind of the conversation you have with people who’ve been to the college or know about the college is that. You know their fashion design program is the best if you caught in the chance and you must do that program as opposed to anything else. So that’s when I got into again like fashion design where it’s not like I didn’t enjoy appar and clothes. But I never thought calie doing this professionally and then I went into like Nift and I feel like that’s when my mind opened to a different extent was I was in coolkata.

22:29.79
charukaarora
Miss. Yeah yeah.

22:38.52
charukaarora
Yeah.

22:49.11
Srishti
Before this and then I went to a place which is as cosmopolitan as delhi where your class has people from like 25 different states and states you like you didn’t know a single person from that state for like 18 years and then you have 5 friends so it was great and that’s the advantage of being and I feel like ah.

22:50.85
charukaarora
When.

23:04.85
Srishti
Government college with like people from all over the country. So and it was delhi and it was freedom and you were eighteen years old and living away from your family in your own apartment. It was just like that’s when I think they opened up and like bloomed as like a person in terms of like what I like what I don’t like or is my design sensibility. What are the kind of you know things that I’m interested in and. That’s when I truly fell in love with fashion actually because I felt like the kick of like because illustrations till then whether a book. It’s just on paper or just on the computer but the kick of making something that somebody actually wears and like other people are like kind of like validating they like oh my god were lovely outfit felt like this like almost like a high that oh like you know Dev like this is like.

23:33.52
charukaarora
Yeah.

23:41.73
charukaarora
And I.

23:43.77
Srishti
Way better than just like an illustration because it’s coming that it’s coming to the 3 d form where somebody’s wearing it. Somebody’s actually engaging with it. You know like wearing it out to like an event when other people see it where they interacts it was like a different dimension through the creativity. But again like the thing with the I feel like a lot of like.

23:46.51
charukaarora
Yeah.

24:00.83
Srishti
Especially design colleges is are until you have a lot of capital. You can’t start your own brand so you automatically end up working for either another designer or getting into the corporate retail sector and once you get into that sector. Whatever these 4 years of this la la land that you’ve been living in kind of come shattering down. Oh yeah.

24:03.90
charukaarora
Yeah. Kind.

24:14.89
charukaarora
Um, and but that afternoon. Yeah.

24:19.89
Srishti
Exactly where you realize oh wait like you know I have like a very creative individual where I’m taking seventeen ah hours to like stitch one panel of an outfit and it is like based on my dreams and this and that like all sorts of these faffy concepts. But when you are in the corporate sector like. 7 even nine nine t-shirt you have to make 20 of them and these are the colors and the prince go make so that was.

24:35.99
charukaarora
Yeah, you you this is your experience and for me it was just I so I did fashion and I I if I you did it initially so I have a a.

24:45.12
Srishti
He.

24:52.48
charukaarora
Education like ah like a rule or coaster. So I did history on earth advertising marketing and then I came into fashion that something I always wanted like again I grew up in a small town in in Agra and I was highly like you know I would see my mom and my mom was like a big fashion add that she would always like.

24:52.94
Srishti
Okay, okay, okay, okay, okay, okay.

25:09.15
Srishti
Okay, okay, or pick out fabric and then make your own clothes. Yeah.

25:11.36
charukaarora
We would all win um like we would go through the alleys and like pick up thrift. Um, yeah, and he like this this uncle would come in and like he would be the tailor and then we would piece things together like this will go here. This was like this has even been today. This is something that.

25:22.70
Srishti
Yeah, correct now. Okay.

25:28.62
charukaarora
That’s how even I function that’s fundamentally something I learned from her so I always thought I wanted to do this and since I came from a very small town I never had the exposure my my mother like my father used to still when I told him I wanted to do this. He would even till today he would call me like master g tailor me.

25:37.42
Srishti
Shaw.

25:43.11
Srishti
Ah, correct and sure.

25:46.34
charukaarora
But because that’s how their perception was and I can come from a business class family so they never knew like this concept like the only new if you’re doing fashion that means here. Ah you over like you’ll open like a um yeah yeah, yeah, a bit like this is what you’re going to and he was like a little um key and its.

25:55.53
Srishti
Um, like a booty call like a brand and image I am sure. Yeah.

26:05.96
charukaarora
Design Schools are not cheap so he was like what he’s going to pay for versus what he’s going to get out of it I’m never going to match that level So when I came out it but I I was going into it for my postcards I was doing things on side but I really wanted to go into like a degree and when I went into it I was really happy.

26:09.60
Srishti
Now.

26:16.47
Srishti
Okay, okay, you.

26:24.80
charukaarora
Because as much as we learn so like sewing and all of that we still had this creative part of drawing and I always love like putting things together conceptualizing so I felt like when I’m going to go into the real world. This is what I’m going to do my job as a fashion designer would be while create like these commons and these.

26:29.99
Srishti
Um, sure. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, you have concepts and ideas. Yeah and you’ll put these like lovely things together. Yeah.

26:43.67
charukaarora
Um, yeah and I’ll create like a collection a hundred and I when I came so I started working with nikasha no the first internship that I did was with future groups so we worked on a project. Um, yes, yes, yes, absolutely yes, but it wasn’t as hard as when working with the.

26:49.46
Srishti
Um, okay oh one that must have crushed your dreams quite fast. Yeah or designer.

27:03.54
charukaarora
But like a yeah it was so hard because I there is nothing called Fashion designer this up this Li There’s there’s only something called in any name that you participate. You’re always a production manager so you.

27:09.30
Srishti
I Totally agree I have I do agree could continue with your yeah Authority sorry.

27:19.40
Srishti
Sure I Totally know what you mean.

27:22.50
charukaarora
You are always so I would you know I would even though I was in the brand section. That’s how my love favorite like brand started but I was always someone I was like you maybe I want to like design like ask me like at least ask me to reports in something and they would be like no make these sheets do that and all of that.

27:25.95
Srishti
That.

27:34.78
Srishti
Yes.

27:42.20
charukaarora
And I was like then I figured. Okay, maybe then I’ll start my own work. That’s how it’s going to be so I took that plan and I was like this is how it’s going to be now I will be like this who’ll be like this creator like this designers making these sketches conceptualizing.

27:44.73
Srishti
Yeah, and.

27:53.93
Srishti
Um, yeah, that’s like and only happen if you invest your own money and start your own brand to be very honest like that’s yeah yeah, oh okay.

28:01.59
charukaarora
That’s what I did no it doesn’t happen even then I’ll tell what happened with so I did that and I had handful of savings and I was like now I’m going to do this and I always had this entrepreneurial spirit in me because that’s how I grew up.

28:09.83
Srishti
Shop. Okay, new.

28:16.50
charukaarora
So and I had done a couple of things before and I was a part like I was in the startup world I was like why not why not I mean this is my time I can and because again this whole idea of who you you’re the designer. You’re the creator you’re going to do like you know this this this land that you’re always in so I did that first let’s say six months

28:21.73
Srishti
Okay, we. Yeah, yeah. E e.

28:35.74
charukaarora
Very good Honestly, it’s my real experience because I was creating I was so invested into creating like a collection like you know, putting together a brand and all of that then came the reality that hit me so hard because what I wanted to do as a designer.

28:41.21
Srishti
And yeah.

28:54.39
charukaarora
Because I was coming from a place of creative I would create what felt right to me but then kind in like what will sell are people interested. What price point Why have you? Why do you need to make these like I was like I’m going to make these qto or like these high end clothes with double line that like you know French seam then like everything that takes.

28:55.22
Srishti
Mean chop.

29:07.62
Srishti
And and has it out. Yeah.

29:14.19
charukaarora
Times A normal output could take and I did that and it was like what it came to my mind that then things like you know you have to take it then this whole cycle spiral started of not making something that you wanted to make and yeah and I struggled hard with it and I realized like I can’t I mean.

29:24.62
Srishti
You want to to sort of cater to the audience more than anything else. Yeah.

29:33.40
charukaarora
For me when I thought I would start a band it meant I would create if respectively I didn’t even have this real check that I would have to create how not did I have the money to sit back and just create and then not be worried Kyatta yeah, but I I was on the edge I was like I’ve put in all my savings.

29:44.56
Srishti
How much is coming back into the business and yeah.

29:52.28
charukaarora
I Need to make sure that it is working but as I was moving forward I was realizing how wrong I was going because this wasn’t the way I the path I thought but I only figured when I went into it so that one my.

29:58.51
Srishti
Um, I totally I absolutely understand where you’re coming from. But I think that’s the advantage that I felt because when you work in a corporate while a lot of it is super like repetitive work. I personally feel like it taught me so much about Target Customer pricing how like clothes are made in actual factories where you can cut cost how fits work what the sizing what kind of sizing is required and what kind of thing I felt like it was like a boot camp for 7 years

30:28.92
charukaarora
Um.

30:30.40
Srishti
Right now and unliable are you are forever indebted because now I know if I ever get into Atherel and start selling I have so much clarity in terms of the brand aspect of it and I know that you cannot make clothes just because of to satiate your creativity. There is a lot of other things involved which you might not know.

30:45.96
charukaarora
Bright.

30:47.80
Srishti
So for that I’m forever inddebted. So like I because and I met like freaking amazing people in these corporates like you know all the people are the creative directors of companies like this because they were also one at some point twenty one year olds who wanted to come and change the company so they did understand where we were all coming from. So thank god for the journey because I made like.

30:54.30
charukaarora
Um, yeah.

31:06.30
Srishti
Amazing friends and you know in life you need like 2 people who can be your mentors and guys and like be so many people in those phases in my in that when I was in bangalow working in like so I worked for a bitit in Madhura then I worked in agjo then I worked in venra. So in all these corporate companies and thank god that happened and.

31:07.14
charukaarora
Um, yeah, yeah.

31:24.62
Srishti
That’s when ah in 2018 at the beginning I started the Instagram page just started of a whim basically for illustrating and slowly people started picking up the work and I started getting freelance offers and I think that’s in about 2019 is when in the middle of it is when I realized and now I think I can transition and leave this. Because my projects are getting a bit more lucrative and I’m at that point where I have enough savings to sort of sustain myself and yeah, sure, sure. Sure.

31:42.96
charukaarora
Yeah, yeah, makes up give me one moment I I have some noise like me just shut the door.

31:55.85
charukaarora
I have 3 dogs and I have to just 1 keeps coming in and 1 keeps going out.

32:03.66
Srishti
Initially I thought the blanket was wrapped just wrapped and that’s I and I saw it moving and I was like okay.

32:07.77
charukaarora
No, so you can’t see you can only see one but that there are 3 okay, amazing. You know that’s the perspective for me the most life changing decision or and I I I wrote so for me like.

32:11.94
Srishti
Oh get good.

32:26.32
charukaarora
I don’t know how much how old I was maybe 22 20 to 23 I know when I I I was inter like then I started working with designers and so I didn’t work I never wanted to work for some reason with a corporatet and I hope.

32:28.38
Srishti
When you started your brand. Um.

32:40.32
Srishti
With the call phrase. Yeah sure.

32:43.65
charukaarora
Yeah I always wanted to have this designer because this was again the dream that I was like I perceived in my own. Yeah you and how was your that.

32:46.81
Srishti
I worked with the designer also in the middle and the India’s biggest designer. Yeah, you all know, ah he put me off the idea of working with a designer ever in my life like I lasted three months and that also I think was three months too long I should have lasted two days and walked out. Was the most toxic horrific work environment because I also had the same thought. Okay, maybe the problem is like you know I should not be working with a corporate. Maybe if I work with a standalone independent design ad more creatively fulfilled and see the process there but and kind knew it was not like it was India like I mean I’m not using his name because I don’t want to ah to just.

33:10.23
charukaarora
Yeah.

33:15.81
charukaarora
Yeah, absolutely.

33:22.68
charukaarora
Yeah, absolutely.

33:25.53
Srishti
I want to use but everybody knows who he is like India’s biggest designer everybody in the world evidently knows his name and this was the reality in his workspace where yeah to where people have had the most horrific experience. Yeah, where people are having the most horrific experience every second designer is crying as I next to no bro.

33:30.88
charukaarora
And good.

33:42.12
charukaarora
Yeah, and I think I had like this experience. So I switched a little bit here and then when I worked I worked for a couple of years in the beginning. So I’ve so hard that I don’t even want to like I have stopped adding those experiences on my cv like I felt like I had.

33:56.73
Srishti
Yeah I Totally but it’s so true but I did this I was like I’m never going to put this anyway for me this was like a repressed memory you I was like oh yeah I did do this of um like I shifted cities to go and do this and I’m like I any it. So yeah, at least got an exit and came out and got another job I was.

34:01.79
charukaarora
Um, but yeah.

34:09.26
charukaarora
Provide. Yeah, and it’s this is so like you know and then okay for me I figured like okay maybe this isn’t the structure that works for me and I remember I got a job. It’s India so a lot of people are listening are not based in indias I’m just going to put in context like.

34:16.60
Srishti
Life would have been very different if I continued walking this it.

34:24.63
Srishti
Now.

34:34.53
charukaarora
Um, shahi exports which is um in here. So I’ve been there and I was like I got the job and I was like you know this whole idea of sitting there. Never like never like fit in right with me so I felt like okay maybe I came in with this startup background and I was always maybe doing that was it.

34:34.81
Srishti
Show. Yeah.

34:51.25
Srishti
And.

34:53.25
charukaarora
So I even work there so I work with someone again. No names. But I work there I survived them for one and a half year and and I was like solely like it was very tiny team very tiny. She was like she came from Howard and I was like maybe this is it. This is my chance to do something and just 1

34:59.30
Srishti
Come back? Yeah, and. Man. Yeah.

35:10.73
charukaarora
1 very specific thing and I figured like you know, um, that was my starting point when realizing that I for 1 didn’t always enjoy um, coming from a perspective of making something that people wanted versus I wanted to make something.

35:28.94
Srishti
In.

35:29.42
charukaarora
That I wanted to make what’s strange is what I’ve been I’ve been noticing and again I wasn’t as exposed as I am today. So my perceptions of course have shifted now what has been interesting is I so the community that I have now I see this has become such a eucarative way for people.

35:36.50
Srishti
Cho keep shifting. Yeah.

35:48.51
charukaarora
Especially artists, especially in the finance because you know we all have scanty revenue streams high months and low monthss and that is the part and parcel of the jobs that we have like that is what being independent makeseks purei but of but you’re getting all finer and better and like you know I read read this somewhere which was um.

35:48.60
Srishti
E.

35:55.48
Srishti
Yeah, yeah, yeah.

36:08.16
charukaarora
Successful creative people at least have 7 um income streams. So just sharing this year because I think you’re all trying to figure out because creative careers have gotten more and more into focus than ever before more and more people are paving that now. What.

36:20.56
Srishti
Sure.

36:26.40
charukaarora
I See a lot of people are trying to transition into this approach of you know illustration not only having this like when I was there there was this arts or like this is illustration I Still remember we’ll also talk about this because I I really want to hear what you maybe if you have something so when I transition from design to art again.

36:39.70
Srishti
Sure sure. But when you mean art when you would you? you do you mean like you’re working with like traditional art forms from India or do you mean like art as a nemo tradition and like canvas based art and like sculpture more.

36:45.66
charukaarora
And I was working I was working.

36:54.30
charukaarora
Yeah, so been when I so I was doing like I was in the digital space I start me like I was doing branding and then elation and design I was very very raw at that point but I figured like yeah I wanted to create physically and I didn’t I wanted.

37:03.11
Srishti
And ok, ok.

37:12.78
charukaarora
The only thing again at that point I knew Ka Chaato I can choose like a a art career as an artist means like this is what an artist means and this is what a designer means and this is what this and this is what I was sharing like you know when I went where I was working with a couple of other creators and i.

37:17.36
Srishti
And and shop.

37:30.60
charukaarora
First few times I started introducing myself as an artist because for me as design know always felt like a li cap like I was meant to always solve a problem and I didn’t I realized I didn’t want to do that I felt like I wanted I was more like aesthetic driven and like you know I wanted to.

37:31.25
Srishti
Um, sure we got Okay, okay.

37:47.70
charukaarora
Have that breaking that boundary because that I didn’t want to just call myself as a designer and I wanted to have that and it would be completely something I imposed on myself but rep really when we associate design with something it is like you know you need to solve solve a problem. It needs to be functional and I’m like I don’t want to make anything functional now I Just want to.

37:47.22
Srishti
Unit.

37:54.60
Srishti
Sure yeah.

38:02.17
Srishti
Ah, what? if.

38:06.55
charukaarora
Explore art as a creator form and when I started introducing that a lot of times. Um, where I was working in the space people people would like new they wouldn’t call me like an artist they would call me like oh you’re a designer because you come from a design world you you’re not this and then they were like okay you know art is this This is illustration all like.

38:17.88
Srishti
Okay, who. And.

38:26.17
charukaarora
This is graphic design and so I I felt this so much tormented and mentally like it was so hard because ah I was not able to grasp that what I wanted and I felt like I had to fit into this one definition or I have to be either this or that.

38:34.80
Srishti
And okay e.

38:43.99
charukaarora
And I wasn’t fully convinced which side I needed to go and people now what I love now is that people have this like we all have these blurring boundaries you like you’re a fashion designer. You’re an artist. You’re a designer and there’s so many other things that you wrote like you. You’re a copywriter. Um you you.

38:50.85
Srishti
Sure yeah.

39:03.10
charukaarora
I mean there’s so many things that we as creatives. It’s not just one boundary that we can box ourselves into and I think that was my biggest trouble at that point that I didn’t realize so I didn’t have the support or the exposure to understand that I didn’t have to just fix into 1 box like this. Okay, this is what you want to be coming back to the point.

39:04.53
Srishti
Now.

39:16.41
Srishti
Yeah.

39:22.51
charukaarora
I See a lot of people now understanding that traditional arts. Let’s say people who are painting on canvas making paintings. Um, maybe like let’s say we have exposure of fashion and all of that. Um a lot of people don’t and this is such a eucrative way to make your products.

39:27.36
Srishti
So.

39:33.76
Srishti
P.

39:40.30
charukaarora
Like make your art into something especially also having like a stable income sims income stream like another stream and I see a lot of artists now trying to get into this like creating their merchandise having apparels bringing the art on for you. It seems like the other way around.

39:43.23
Srishti
Smith.

39:50.78
Srishti
So.

39:56.92
Srishti
Um, to a certain extent. Yeah I mean I will like I don’t know sorry cant what is the question though like what what do I feel about this like.

39:58.96
charukaarora
Like you came to? yeah. So My my question is how has like do you see like this transition for yourself from fashion to art like how did you think that you wanted to be an artist like is from artist from.

40:13.80
Srishti
Me.

40:19.29
Srishti
So for me, all of this is like like but the struggle that you faced about is sort of compartmentalizing like where it is I have always looked at it as like super malleable and flowy like for me like all of these things like like doesn’t really matter The only thing I never call myself and I do agree that I’m not as I’m not a graphic designer because I feel like a graphic designer is somebody who has the bandwidth of doing something in 25 different styles. So if ah, somebody comes with a project that person will be able to execute it in a style which is super minimal super maximal and everything in between.

40:37.90
charukaarora
Okay.

40:44.23
charukaarora
Yeah.

40:50.48
charukaarora
And.

40:53.89
Srishti
And they have the skillset to do that I don’t feel like I do that is why the only word if somebody calls me a graphic designer I correct and say I’m not a graphic designer because I know that I can’t I can only do a very specific style and 20% here in 20% there and that’s like my niche and there are other things that I can attempt but I’ll never do it as well as a professional graphic designer can.

41:11.35
charukaarora
Yeah.

41:13.44
Srishti
Because I don’t have the skill set to even be able to execute something like that. But apart from that I feel like all of the other things for me in my hand are like super malleable because everything in a way is just about ah putting out like your creative energy so that can be in like a format of like an apparel if you want that can be a canvas one day if you want that can be 5 lines of copy.

41:24.65
charukaarora
Yeah.

41:33.39
Srishti
But it’s all coming out of the same person and the same inherent thought process so I have never looked at it in super like compartmentalized way. So I didn’t really even when I was transitioning from like making hardcore a parallel to like illustrations.

41:35.47
charukaarora
Yeah.

41:46.17
Srishti
I enjoyed it at the beginning a lot because it was very different from doing a par and also the apparel I was doing at that time. It’s not like I hundred person say creatively right? So it’s like a cog in the wheel and you are participating in the creative process but you have like a senior designer you have a creative director. You have a buy so there’s enough changes is not when the.

41:52.17
charukaarora
Yeah, yeah.

42:03.40
Srishti
Product finally goes on the website. You can’t take claim of it as your own because there are 10 people in the design chain. Um and now like and now like coming back to like the idea of like so apparently is something personally which I am not sure whether that ever do apparent again.

42:04.31
charukaarora
Um, yeah, ah right? yes.

42:13.10
charukaarora
Ah.

42:22.26
Srishti
When I’m doing my mer So like because I know the trouble that it takes to make good apparel in correct sizing and correct fabric and like everything where I’m like do this is too complicated a process to do. But that’s what the merch that I have also a little merch is more like size agnostic merch which like hosters and like.

42:25.89
charukaarora
So yeah, you know. Seen as.

42:40.41
Srishti
Cuion covers and like art prints and phone covers. But I don’t need to really bother about the human body and the sizing and the fabric and the wash and number because when you pin too much into that field. You can’t just casually make up Ael. You says this like I know too much about this to just put out a product out there without you know, giving them the best product because I have been like I know.

42:49.30
charukaarora
Um, again I agree. Yeah yeah, yeah, yeah.

42:59.87
Srishti
What what are the things that can go wrong with the pilot but I never compartmentalize myself like I feel like tomorrow like if somebody comes up to me and wants me to do a project when I have to like I don’t know design like something bizarre like design beds I’ll find a way to make it like a still illustrator bit. So I don’t really I like.

43:15.41
charukaarora
I love that thought I think that’s and I think that’s that’s what I I feel like is happening now that I feel there are like these 2 industries on 2 different spectrums which actually belong in the center and eventually I see like by bit by bit.

43:19.79
Srishti
Boxes.

43:27.76
Srishti
Now.

43:32.86
charukaarora
There is a lot of blurring that’s happening because um when I went to this side of the spectrum which is especially and I’m specifically saying this from India because when I transitioned like and again when I felt like I transitioned for me, it was a big transition when I decided to shut down my business.

43:33.25
Srishti
Yeah.

43:40.00
Srishti
Just see.

43:49.44
Srishti
Smith.

43:51.46
charukaarora
Because I I realized that this wasn’t my ultimate calling I couldn’t see myself running a factory now I mean I knew if even if I could scale this I knew that how I can work this around but I knew if I did this I will have to take over a factory I will have to take over like a production and.

43:56.80
Srishti
Sustaining this for the next eye. Sure.

44:06.34
Srishti
Yeah, yeah, correct. Yeah.

44:10.75
charukaarora
And I would grow I would need to be looking at seancing I would have to be like looking at marketing sales and like all of that and there will be very little talk like time that will be left for me to as a creator and I wasn’t ready. Go ahead.

44:20.90
Srishti
So true, but my creative director when I was working in argio when at that time I was very kicked about starting my own bread. So I discussed this with them like I’m thinking about starting my own brand she I you know you love designing clothes right? I said yes, she said when you start your own brand that will be 10 % of what you will do in the rest 90% will be other shit. So the day you’re ready to do that 90% only start your brand dead and I was too stupid that time to understand. But as I’m growing older and I’m like and just hearing other experiences from people who have been that’s true, right? like you were your creative part of it is so small and the rest of it is such a large chunk of your time.

44:44.10
charukaarora
Yeah.

44:49.69
charukaarora
The hundred percent right absolutely and that’s when I I didn’t know about this and I felt like I came from that imaginary line that I felt like okay you know everything will happen I would be sitting like in this place and then creating con that’s and like in the idea that we’re always sold because and that is why like.

44:58.83
Srishti
Yeah predict.

45:06.19
Srishti
Means yeah.

45:13.55
charukaarora
This conversation means so much because we never speak about what goes behind like there’s so much that goes behind that scene that that perfect outwork there are so many people working around it and as a creator I think fundamentally I needed to have this lesson to realize am I Some am I a creator more or I am.

45:16.38
Srishti
And.

45:30.32
Srishti
Um, ah more of an entrepreneur and a business person. Yeah.

45:33.29
charukaarora
Like the other yeah and now I come from a point I have another business and I realize like okay why this feels more to me and then like you know when I decided. Okay, this is what my future would look like if I continue and I was like I can’t I went into like I went into because I put all this.

45:46.30
Srishti
And. Yeah, yeah, that’s the thing with aarel right? It’s such a like capital intensive like thingme so you can’t just casually entered it without knowing camera to pump so much money in it for the next five years and then maybe there’ll be a return on the investment after 12 years so I am personally very apprehensive about doing that.

45:52.25
charukaarora
Savings like everything I’d earned so far Capital intensive.

46:05.89
charukaarora
And then you have this I Every I.

46:10.68
Srishti
Like it’s not as easy as like opening a laptop and being like a we like a digital illustrator.

46:15.38
charukaarora
And then you have time like as an elustr to you Still your capital investment is still so long. You can always take twist and I remember like I again I came from this whole like I have let me let her work. So.

46:20.25
Srishti
Correct correct exactly.

46:28.11
Srishti
Um, yeah, your shot.

46:34.40
charukaarora
Um, ah like I came from this idea Kicha I want to create this like big massive brand so I had like a huge branding.

46:49.81
Srishti
Um, do you have to pay somebody else. Yeah yeah.

46:51.97
charukaarora
Thankfully I had that design skills so I didn’t have to pay out someone else to know so I saved on that cost. But even though I invested like into like and that point like there wasn’t so much awareness about sustainability and all of that so I needed to have like this huge packaging and like you know like all of that and I realized what you did I was.

47:04.91
Srishti
And.

47:10.40
charukaarora
I was putting right? my money in the beginning into all of these things that could have been figured out later. But again, we’ve always learned so at that point I realized okay I didn’t want to move forward and I was like Katika now I want I still I realized I wanted to be a creator so I was like what what next like designer make products I don’t want to make products.

47:11.65
Srishti
Yeah.

47:22.53
Srishti
And yeah.

47:30.70
charukaarora
I Want to create something and then do be whatever happens I can do that so that is that was the distinction for me. Okay I don’t want to be designer I Want to be an artist I didn’t know I had no clarity about how I would move forward so I was just navigating and that’s when this and I had no like influence before that that.

47:31.19
Srishti
He.

47:39.36
Srishti
I’ll just open.

47:49.75
charukaarora
I’m a designer and I’m an artist or I’m in lustito I was like for me it was always about creating something and the project that we even did with future um groups was about illustrat. But again, you always forget about things that you do, but then you connect the dots so I was like okay now I’ll go like.

47:58.32
Srishti
Um, okay, Georgia.

48:07.14
charukaarora
I’ll be like an artist and I will just make something and then sell that me Marvel for me that was the simplest honest explanation make anything that I want him and sell that I don’t have to solve a problem make a public yeah and like people tell me what like this is what is happening should I make something around that.

48:09.00
Srishti
Is he problem and I listen to brief tramp.

48:27.12
charukaarora
Didn’t I just wanted to create whatever interested me and then sell that so that was my typical thing and then I came to this whole thing and I was like what’s happening I mean it’s not as simple as I thought then there was this conversation. Okay, who know you this you know you are that oh fine artist. Don’t do this and then. So that was my triggering point I was like I’m done with this if I continue to do this I need to still pay my bills I need to go into a world where I feel creatively libered I don’t feel restricted and that’s when arts two has happened because I realized that I was in the wrong company the first and foremost I wasn’t in the right mindset like.

48:45.87
Srishti
Um, yeah.

48:55.85
Srishti
Um, okay.

49:03.77
charukaarora
It really matters the people you’re around with and you need to have you know mindset and that’s when I switch things up and I was like you know I don’t care I need to make sure I survive this because this is the only way I can live. There’s no, there’s no other way I can do anything around this. This isn’t the only thing I know and I needed to make this through. Luckily I found my way around it. But.

49:03.97
Srishti
You surrounded with him.

49:23.42
charukaarora
I Know that this is such a real problem for a lot of people because if you you’ve not come like people who I have so many people who come from art school and they have so many innovations that that has been systematically like brought down. Yeah fine art schools like you know I remember people like.

49:29.53
Srishti
M. Um, you’re talking about a hard or like fine art schools. Ah.

49:43.21
charukaarora
I Won’t again won’t quote this like someone saying like oh I can’t have my um work on this because I will not be like I will not be as yeah or I will not I can’t share too much of my work on.

49:43.27
Srishti
Now.

49:50.94
Srishti
Taken Seriously as a fine artist. Yeah.

49:58.77
charukaarora
On Instagram I wouldn’t be taken seriously I wouldn’t do that and and I was like and because when you’re in an industry that you very new and for me the thing was I’d already messed up something and I I had lost a little bit of my own confidence because I felt like all my life I wanted to be like a designer and then.

50:01.17
Srishti
I’m worried about these things. Yeah.

50:11.53
Srishti
A. But like and essentially like in an art space like this when you start creating you like find an agent and then you go ahead with it or like what is the ah you just start like there is no road. Okay, whatever you However, you want to navigate.

50:18.19
charukaarora
You know silent.

50:24.91
charukaarora
So yeah, there is all all of this is blur I mean you and today you you’re an illustrator you find an agent and you who can go into licensing. That’s what I’ve been experiencing now like you know there are no lines today. There are artists successful artists who are. Um, who are like creating traditional art who are exhibiting. Let’s say in traditional arts. Let’s say traditional exhibiting their work with galleries or independently selling their prints or canvas original artworks they’re collaborating with brands and creating art product. Whatever for them. The.

50:46.19
Srishti
And grab yeah more.

51:02.18
Srishti
New who but that’s fun but I would assume that that would happen when you have like a fair amount of success that you already have to sort of have like brands reaching out to you to put your signature art work in a product.

51:02.58
charukaarora
Selling prints like licensing prints. They’re into licensing but let’s say you are also into licensing.

51:17.25
charukaarora
I Actually actually that’s something that’s happened with you but a lot of people if you see like up are patent makers. They’re like print illustrators so they pick up whatever body of tile works like suits more.

51:25.50
Srishti
Okay, okay, okay, yeah, yeah, yeah I know but then I they wouldn’t be in the category of a traditional artist and like they would be like more like yeah I know the patent makers and I’ve seen a lot of those that they license they work a lot and like.

51:34.27
charukaarora
Like so again, you know.

51:44.40
Srishti
Work with international clients from what create a bank of illustrations and things like that. Yeah I have already take a merchant correct exactly for us for her for me. She’s a fine artist. Yeah, but yeah, but she’s like a.

51:47.50
charukaarora
Have you heard of rhythmca merchant yeah so Withca Merchant is a traditional artist like I mean I don’t I do I this word I hate you know? yeah.

52:01.16
Srishti
She creates like huge she’s work with Chloe and stuff right? like.

52:04.60
charukaarora
Had like a huge collaboration with chloe. She’s done such massive collaborations in very different spectrums. Ah you see like.

52:09.24
Srishti
Ah, she’s crazy popular. No like she is like extremely successful.

52:13.96
charukaarora
But but even if you see today. There are people who are it’s about I think it’s about bluing these lines once you reach your like once you get over this own a bit innovation of seeing your art in only 1 form or defining it in only one form it can be anything and everything that you wanted to be.

52:30.94
Srishti
Is.

52:33.00
charukaarora
Like initially people were very inherent about this fact that okay you know I don’t want to I I only want to show my work here or I am I’m a today you if you’re making if you show your work in a gallery today. You’re a fine artist and what else I mean how how do we decide who who is something and who’ something not.

52:38.96
Srishti
And.

52:44.40
Srishti
And then. Not shop.

52:53.00
charukaarora
Okay, we’ve had this very interesting conversation. Do you have? Okay, let me ask you? they have you heard anything crazy in your career so far like especially being a creative like people have said you like I shared know how an artist or something anything that you have heard experienced.

53:08.23
Srishti
When I’m sure I have or a you like think about it like I would put me in a sport and think I’m of course I must have bought like a lot of bizarre things What is like sticking out. I Think that like when I was doing like clean of passion designs. There was like always like a constant like lowhanging fruit joke and everybody’s like oh you’re like a tailor Tailor Tailor like oh my God I can’t believe like you studied science and now you want to become like a tailor so that was always there and like but.

53:33.30
charukaarora
Yeah I ah.

53:42.58
Srishti
Which is fine like I don’t mind because like ring stitching garments is crazy hard if I can be a great tailor like you were no idea how much business I do if I was a fantastic tailor. Okay like taylors are extremely valued and they make damn good things. Okay.

53:45.80
charukaarora
Oh God Yes, yes yes, but yeah.

53:57.55
Srishti
Ask anybody. The first thing that they ask is that they want to find a good tailor in a city. You could do how how are their blouses so I didn’t find anything degrading and being a tailor because I was horrible at stitching in college. So I really had to ba up so I was like if I’m a tailor that’s not bad but I’m trying to remember um I thing I can’t remember often and like it there was something which was particularly scathy.

54:03.61
charukaarora
Yeah.

54:16.36
Srishti
But I think for a long time in um, my own head like once I switched over to freelance I think I felt a little inadequate until I was getting the projects of the caliber that I wanted because when I would go into social gatherings or like when I would meet um ah in a family gathering or like when I would.

54:24.10
charukaarora
Now.

54:32.75
Srishti
It was not so much with friends with more with theirs probably where I was like oh I’m the kind of I was in a corporate job but everybody knows that mintra with these names. Everybody knows it’s super easy to tell them I work for a mentra and then saying oh I am like a freelance artist and then they’ll be like oh and very confused then obviously which is fine I don’t mind educating someone but I felt like until I had.

54:33.21
charukaarora
Yeah.

54:38.85
charukaarora
And yeahators. Yeah.

54:52.32
charukaarora
Yeah.

54:52.34
Srishti
Backing of like a certain clients that I worked with I fed like very low in confidence to kind of even explain to somebody else what exactly I did I said like am I in the right path now of course like when I go into like an event or like meet new people I just say 2 words and I show them my Instagram profile show them 2 projects and they’re intrigued and I’m like I’m done I don’t even need to speak anymore.

55:00.10
charukaarora
And ask.

55:09.77
charukaarora
Um, yes.

55:11.71
Srishti
But ah yeah, but I don’t think they said scthing I think I had like internalized um um, almost like I don’t know like some amount of apprehension that what have I done like is this the correct path and I have don’t even know explain to people like basically that time I was kind of jobless because waiting for the right work to come.

55:20.82
charukaarora
Now Yeah, that’s very interesting and I think again something very essential. We need to talk about is a lot of times again and especially come from you. We also spoke about this in the beginning someone who already has a backing of um, ah, ah, a prestigious cliente list. Let’s say brands and names that people want to work with everyone wants to work with um when you transition from a corporate job to being a freelance.

55:56.92
Srishti
And.

55:59.35
charukaarora
It’s not it’s deaf it’s like pole apart. It’s like earth’s apart like it’s those spectrums and a lot of times. Our selfworthth is also associated with our work mostly associated with our work and it’s even I always say that it’s such. It’s so hard to be a creative in India specifically like.

56:01.39
Srishti
That.

56:08.49
Srishti
Sure yeah.

56:16.31
Srishti
That.

56:18.44
charukaarora
In these countries which ah which have little less exposure or um, at least maybe that’s been something um my own experience. But I believe that that’s something still I feel. Yeah, so.

56:26.51
Srishti
Yeah I think I India it is true.

56:32.49
charukaarora
How how was that transition for you and accepting like for a long time for me the whole imposter syndrome was so hard because like you said like I felt like all my friends were in stable jobs I would if I would find no I didn’t care about how much money I made but the validation of that somebody when someone would ask me what I did.

56:37.25
Srishti
News. So.

56:50.92
Srishti
Map.

56:52.18
charukaarora
Even today when someone asked me what I do because there’s so many things I do and most of them are very like they don’t know what it means like like I remember again I wouldn’t say someone telling me I don’t know if you’ve heard this you like um and someone from my own family. So he said.

56:56.63
Srishti
And.

57:07.30
Srishti
So good.

57:09.83
charukaarora
Um, that you have like ah you have like a such a great job. You just have to con people into buying um your work for thousands or like or whatever money or like you because they think like you just have to make something pretty or you have to just do this and you.

57:17.49
Srishti
Oh my god.

57:25.66
Srishti
But then you to call somebody so you to convince somebody else care you Oh my God I.

57:27.95
charukaarora
You have? yeah um, yeah, but because they they feel like well this is art. You can sell this for 500 or like this dollar or whatever. Why would you sell it for like thousand. So I believe if you hear the podcast you youll hear I mean things that you wouldn’t even like and.

57:37.23
Srishti
That’s for road. So that’s.

57:46.63
charukaarora
So terrible it hurts you are like you you question every every little being of what you do and I have struggled this for so long because I felt like okay am I for once. It’s also stick to you My am I do am I even doing this is this even saying.

57:46.75
Srishti
Sharp.

58:01.76
Srishti
Jab correct.

58:03.62
charukaarora
Right? And when they want you to define. Okay I’m a dog time this or I’m I’m an owner of this and you explain. Okay, what you do like? How do you explain? what? you do? how like and this again your revenue streams and like um, having consistent income when you transition. How.

58:08.35
Srishti
Um, correct.

58:21.90
charukaarora
Especially coming from a sound few years of working in the corporate having that stable income. What was that transition for you.

58:27.57
Srishti
To be very honest, like initially like I did like a couple of projects but I was still like working with minta towards there and then I was like okay you know and this is my time because I felt like that time that you know like. If you have like something which is hot on Instagram like until you leverage it like quite fast then maybe in another six months or like 1 year there’ll be 20 other artists and because every to the number of illustrators I think I keep seeing is 10 x twenty x thirty x I feel like it was my hot moment to like kind of.

58:45.73
charukaarora
Um, yeah, a days. Yeah, yeah.

58:58.40
Srishti
Ah, fullledgeed get into free but I wasn’t able to manage timewise because I was like literallyter stepping for 4 hours and doing all this and it just felt like it was unfair to the corporate job bolts and it was unfair to the project. So that’s when I was like okay so this is like my time to exitence like you know. Get into this like full prison and I did have like I knew that it was never going to be a situation because I come from that amount of privilege that I am moving back home. Okay, first stepper is moving back to colcata in right before quitting and about eight months I was going to get married. So I you know I know what I’m going to get food and I’m going to get shelter which is like 90% more than most people can say.

59:26.40
charukaarora
Over Yes, it.

59:31.39
Srishti
Okay, so I have already won like the battle where I am so privileged I will never have a situation where I will not have like a roof and make a food. So now I can truly concentrate on like you know making the money that I want or like just. Money like now I feel like first five six years goes in just building a reputation and building a brand and money eventually is like a long term return in like in my heads space actually so it did take like a little bit of so then immediately after I left for two months I didn’t get any work and in my head over there. But this was my hot minute I left because I was expecting so much work.

59:49.56
charukaarora
Yeah.

59:58.84
charukaarora
And before that what kind of work had you’d already done.

01:00:02.41
Srishti
But so that types of right before leaving minta I had done the project for Levis where I showcased in their fi for one day and I had and I had been approached by this ah company to do like an entire branding and artworks for their restaurant.

01:00:06.92
charukaarora
Okay, oh I remember that building.

01:00:18.91
Srishti
And that was the project on the back of which I was like I’m finally ready to leave it and it was like a good look and after I left it within two weeks something happened and the project never went through so I was like holy shit like I left my company thinking that I’m going to be doing something so huge where I’m branding an entire restaurant in mangalow but that never happened.

01:00:21.39
charukaarora
Yeah. Have all God because of this. Yeah.

01:00:38.34
Srishti
So then? um so it was this I will not like sugar quoted. There was like extremely ah low and very very anxiety inducing months which was there and the only thing was like since I was going to get married in sometime I felt like there was a sort of a nice destruction when I was planning the wedding. So whenever and I would like put all my creativity in like planning this learning that’s I felt like that was a good player that was like a good distraction So I didn’t have like an episode where it full-flledged a transition was something that I needed to concern like me like a doctor or like some therapist but it was.

01:00:56.30
charukaarora
Um, it’s your dream.

01:01:06.44
charukaarora
Yeah.

01:01:10.38
Srishti
Super anxiety inducing and low because like you said, like so much of our selfworth unfortunately is associated with the work that we do that is kind of can’t dismiss it. Especially if you’ve been somebody who has been sort of like a achiever from the beginning. You’re not somebody who is like you know like is like a super laid back person to begin with personally.

01:01:22.75
charukaarora
Yeah, so. Yeah, and I think I just want to add to this I think it’s also also driven with the fact that we’re all we bought. We are also shown is that okay you had 1 moment and I’m telling you a lot of people who are listening to your story.

01:01:29.62
Srishti
But I think eventually after like doing it for almost two and a half minutes now

01:01:46.60
charukaarora
You you told me you this is your first podcast I don’t know how many times you’ve spoken about this but I’m telling you because it’s first this is this was my perception let alone anyone else that we like you see this person over he he has this? Oh she has this 1 job on the next moment. She’s blow over. She’s doing good so bad in like.

01:01:46.69
Srishti
Um, yeah.

01:01:55.39
Srishti
Nip.

01:02:00.39
Srishti
Exactly she’s doing amazing and you see that? Yeah so I will not put it. Yeah so I didn’t have I didn’t have work like even now when I look at it like I said this month only in January I didn’t have any book.

01:02:04.56
charukaarora
Yeah I mean this is maybe.

01:02:14.11
Srishti
Like the beginning of the year I had covid and I was like okay, fine in my head of the good like at least 10 days I’m gonna give myself a break and then your queries will come in and I start working but nothing ah now is when I’m like talking to people again to like figure out like fair what what work I’m going to do I’m gonna plan it out but then I sort of like I’ve realized that with this is that you can’t look at it as a sum total of like a day.

01:02:32.63
charukaarora
Yeah.

01:02:34.10
Srishti
At the end of the year you should be okay with knowing you’ve made this much money. These are the this is the work that you have done and this is the growth that has happened. But if you look at it monthwise then it’s not going to be like that because there and there is no way you can sort of strike a balance if you’re dependent on external factors to give you work where you will be like.

01:02:42.43
charukaarora
Yeah.

01:02:48.64
charukaarora
Yeah.

01:02:52.22
Srishti
There have been like weeks where I don’t have work and I know in the next two weeks are probably steep for 3 hours which people will be like oh terrible you must maintain like a routine on a schedule. But what do I do like if I have like 3 people are reaching me at the same time and all the projects are amazing and I can’t say no and I have already spent a month without working like me as a person. What will I do.

01:02:58.80
charukaarora
2 counts. Yeah, yeah.

01:03:10.00
Srishti
Next step of course would be to like hire like an internal or like hire like somebody else in the team and sort of like divide the work. But it’s always going to be that. Yeah yeah.

01:03:17.17
charukaarora
And I think this is something a lot of us struggled with also not a very essential point especially working as Solo Preards Independent creatives 1 of the hardest thing is is to hire people and delicate because you go ahead, go ahead, want your thoughts on.

01:03:27.50
Srishti
Exactly. So yeah I Absolutely no I will because whenever I’ve thought about like okay I can probably have like some projects where I’ll get somebody else on board. My thing has always been like Okay so I you train somebody I need to could teach these person all the things that I know because.

01:03:41.59
charukaarora
Yeah.

01:03:44.91
Srishti
I need to be execute. They it we executing things in my style now. It’s such a strange almost like a thing of like I don’t want to teach them everything that I know but if they’re working for me. They have to do everything that I do otherwise what is the point of this whole exercise and it’s just like and every day I’ve gone to the lab i’ only sleep for 2 hours less than we finish it myself. Okay, and its.

01:03:51.15
charukaarora
Yeah. Yeah.

01:04:04.50
Srishti
I mean I’m not at that point of scalability where I need somebody but I know if this continues for some more time I’ll probably have to and I haven’t faced that dilemma of actually being in the situation to hire. But whenever I think about it and I get apprehensive.

01:04:14.67
charukaarora
Yeah, yeah, that’s true and I think this um this is such a big learning cur for all of us and again training and like this so skill driven like it is something that you would do certain certain way and then you want people to do it certain way and then it’s it takes a lot of time and I think just this problem of all.

01:04:26.79
Srishti
Nap.

01:04:34.22
charukaarora
Like oh I can do this like I know how to do this? Yeah like you know this is such a um common problem. We all have that we feel like oh I can. It’s only me who can do this the way I or nobody else can do this and we that’s one of the biggest hurdles my last question and then we we we jump onto the rapid fire with this.

01:04:34.92
Srishti
My sense? yeah.

01:04:44.87
Srishti
Yeah, yeah. Start shop.

01:04:53.31
charukaarora
Question I Really want to ask because a lot of people who are listening to this episode of our community. This is like a hot topic like people want to especially like in the fine art likes with the design world. It was still very common to work with um with brands and reach out or not or like you know to have these collaborations. And the bigger spectrums collaborations have become a language like like is there with every industry now. Not it wasn’t that way in the beginning. Um a lot of artists now and since art collaborations have only are only elevating now than ever like from the fine arts from Nfts to like.

01:05:18.97
Srishti
Each show.

01:05:28.63
Srishti
Yeah.

01:05:31.46
charukaarora
Wherever we see this is what the hot thing is no no matter what scale of brand or artists you are there. People are coming together and working you’ve had success with working with 1 of the top means what are your suggestions your own learnings that you would like to share with people.

01:05:46.94
Srishti
That.

01:05:50.21
charukaarora
Who want to who want to get their work and collaborate with brands and pitch themselves or how has your journey also being with the same.

01:05:58.64
Srishti
So I think 1 thing is like super important if you’re in any creative feeling I actually was thinking um about this a couple of days ago. So that um, you need to give enough time to yourself as a creator to figure out what is your exact style and what is your aesthetic sensibility. Because aesthetic is such a big bucket. It should be such that if somebody comes to me and tells me to make a phone cover if somebody comes and tells me to make like a piece of jewelry if somebody comes and tells me to make like shoes. Whatever the product is it doesn’t matter.

01:06:16.60
charukaarora
Yeah.

01:06:32.26
Srishti
You should have your voice and your sensibility in terms of a visual aesthetic which can translate into a million different products and 1000000 different concepts and ideas whether it’s invitation cards or whether it’s a pair of shoes. Okay, that’s when you are like a successful art person in my head because that because there are some people artistically where a lot of these things. Cannot translate into a lot of product and that is the hard truth of it. That’s also fine, but there is like but that’s building that sensibility and aesthetic is such a long and important process that until you get that kind of like molded if big brands come to you. You will not be able to understand where to draw the line. Because if it’s supposed to be forty fifty percent of your sensibility in forty fifty percent of the brand sensibility until that forty fifty percent is you have clarity of what that is in your head then you will end up doing something which you’re not proud of for which the brand will also be like but I can’t see your design sensibility in this so it takes a lot of time and then you need to properly like. I personally when I started the gustation periods. There were like a few points that I told myself I’m like what are the words that you associate with your artwork and your brand so there were words like maximal intricate colorful, humorous, playful. So I have this like bunch of like 10 keywords that I put in I’m like no matter what I do at least 4 or 5 of these

01:07:44.23
charukaarora
This Mr um.

01:07:47.77
Srishti
Keywords need to and if I don’t it’s not going up in my page is not going up in anything that I do so this is like what my identities and and it takes a lot of time to reach that point. It’s not that’s what I said like I started drawing when I was 4 years old in 39 today where I’m like super concrete and clear about exactly what I like and what color I use with what so a lot of people see this on Instagram and think that.

01:07:54.78
charukaarora
Yeah, yeah. Would be like yeah.

01:08:07.35
Srishti
I can do this like in five days I just take like 5 reference photos put everything together and now this is my study I have been seen so much of that recent and it really bothers me because I’m like I understand you’re really young. There are some people who are just naturally extremely talented I do agree to that that you know like some people are so talented and 19 that I’ll never reach that at 45 wordss I get that I’m not.

01:08:15.21
charukaarora
And and yeah.

01:08:27.31
Srishti
Questioning those people but a lot of people are just coming in looking at the end result where they don’t understand that you need to put in the time and the effort to reach a point to understand that this is what my aesthetic sensibility is and then you go into the process of like.

01:08:29.41
charukaarora
It? yeah.

01:08:40.20
Srishti
Working with another Brandon collaborator. You can’t see the end result and be like I’ll start at 22 and at 23 I’ll have like an Instagram page with like 1000000 followers and by 24 I’ll be like doing all of that and your aesthetic is not to racethetic because you’ve built it up kind of in a way plagiarizing somebody else’s idea and you liked this. This is what you didn’t this is a very common like.

01:08:53.22
charukaarora
Um, yeah, yeah.

01:08:59.46
Srishti
Recording theme that I’m seeing with social media where I can’t distinguish between some people’s world. There is like a huge barra of people who are just yeah, it’s exactly like a format that you have taken and it’s unbelievable that you want to be a successful creative and nobody knows what your sensibility exactly is.

01:09:02.80
charukaarora
Yeah I mean it’s like a success formula.

01:09:13.64
Srishti
You can do 5 projects within the seventh project if you don’t know what you are doing that it didn’t want to work like if you think you’re sustaining it for the next third year if you’re doing this that you want to channel for like 9 years Three 4 years do a nice page. You have a separate job on the side. Sure no problem. That’s great. That’s your creative output. But if you want to make a successful career out of it where you’re sustaining the next thirty four years and you will have your own range of merchandise in the future you will have your own eventually you will have a studio with 5 people then you kind of need to work on that aspect and then I think with like just generally when you’re working with like brands and all like I think of like technical advices like to get like a lot of things which is super clear in the contract and paper. So that later like they also don’t end up like um, utilizing you for more than you had agreed on so like those are like more technical aspects of like the collaboration like we super clear of how many iterations you want to do how many changes you make in the art world. What is the exact timeline that’s agreed upon what is the users of the world. How long will they use it for does the copyright of the work belong completely with them or does it. You can you use it? Also so these are like technical things that you should make it as clear as possible. So that nobody ends up taking advantage of you in the future.

01:10:20.73
charukaarora
Laugh that I think they’re very practical point that we all should I have one last again just a sub of this again. A very very common problem. A lot of people face which is not only in context to collaboration with any project because we all we have no rulebook. There are no standardization. There’s no like.

01:10:37.14
Srishti
Sharp.

01:10:40.44
charukaarora
There’s nothing. There’s anything like we all build for our own self depending on the knowledge and self-ro and all of those things like oh sometimes what someone also offers us. This is a discussion I’ve had so many times because there is in India I can vouch for this. There’s a huge lack for transparency like I so I was so grateful to find a community where I was.

01:10:41.94
Srishti
Um, yeah, spread it and sure.

01:10:59.13
charukaarora
Able to figure out. Okay, you know if this is the kind of work I’ve got what should I charge because I didn’t know I didn’t know I never got a project like this now I do and you don’t want to be dumb. You don’t want to be taken advantage of you don’t want to look too overconfident like we all have these very very common innovations that.

01:11:02.35
Srishti
Yeah, yeah, got doing this.

01:11:13.69
Srishti
Now.

01:11:17.95
charukaarora
Um, you know and a lot of times I didn’t find that transferency enough around me and I was like you know how do I do this? How do I do that eventually I was able to figure it out but I still you know this is something that we all created people um experience when you start and this is something that people.

01:11:21.81
Srishti
This.

01:11:37.60
charukaarora
Specifically experienced with working with grants because this is or anything contractual because that is when you have to like you have to define your worth and what are your advices on, um, figuring out how to like price themselves for projects that you know are either in collaboration pra.

01:11:38.90
Srishti
2

01:11:44.67
Srishti
Now.

01:11:57.34
charukaarora
Brand Driven licensing. How did you figure that out for yourself. But.

01:11:59.52
Srishti
I Don’t think I’ve eververted out it I’m telling you like this is like an ongoing process I don’t think I’m quite happy with the numbers that I have and I don’t think there ever will be any standardization to be very honest and I don’t think there will ever be any transparency about this to be honest because this is. 1 of those things which is almost like your secret source and you will might not want to reveal to somebody else. How what? you would feel like something is worth as time has progress. Of course I’ve had more confidence to demand certain prices because I felt like in the past I have like undersold myself like crazy. But i.

01:12:29.76
charukaarora
Yeah.

01:12:36.72
Srishti
This is one topic where I genuinely would like to advise people but I feel like I also don’t know enough to advise because this has only been like two and a half years and I am not one of those people who thinks that it is the most conducive thing to um, sort of like give pricing only on the basis of ours because that kind of um is a very old school way of looking at your work.

01:12:39.44
charukaarora
My my.

01:12:49.95
charukaarora
Um, yeah, absolutely.

01:12:56.12
Srishti
Because I mean in your head like it might take me 3 hours but it has taken me a lot of time to make sure it is done in 3 hours and also until you start the project. You don’t really know the number of hours you will spend on it for a lot of work so it doesn’t matter and especially the only a thing I can probably like tell you that if you’re.

01:13:05.91
charukaarora
Absent.

01:13:14.90
Srishti
Artwork is going into something that is going to be on some product which is going to be like sold in like hundreds or thousands then sometimes it’s not a bad idea to like have like a profit sharing model along with like a design fee because then you get sort of a loyalty to every piece that you do but apart from that like this is something you have to figure out.

01:13:25.78
charukaarora
Yeah.

01:13:33.10
Srishti
Every person would have to go on the journey and figure it out on their own and only after a certain point be okay with the fact that I’m okay with this try saying nobody else can go on the journey for you because if I ask somebody else for advice.

01:13:33.67
charukaarora
Yeah. Yeah, ah.

01:13:44.15
Srishti
Who might have doing it might be doing it for long or might’d be charging 5 x the amount because that person believes that it is worth 5 xs them amount and who am I to compare and say that you are not worth 5 x your boat.

01:13:48.50
charukaarora
yeah yeah I agree but you know what I was so happy to find out about artists pri guide I don’t know if you know about that. So this is like a standardized um tri guide that’s been published in the Us.

01:14:02.35
Srishti
Okay, okay.

01:14:05.73
charukaarora
So this is like and I think we we absolutely need something like this in India a lot of time like you know something is like how much I think charging is of course our skill and everything but it’s also big game of self-worth how much can we have the like I need to believe and.

01:14:17.57
Srishti
Yeah, so.

01:14:22.75
charukaarora
Myself first that I can ask for this only then I can ask for something no matter how insane or how low or height sounds. But sometimes we are all always signed finding like this this starting point like okay this is like a base this is like something that you need like a navigating point from there. You want to go and for a long time I didn’t know about this but this this.

01:14:24.24
Srishti
Yeah.

01:14:42.26
charukaarora
Like the idea of having like an artist’s pricing guide where you know everything is mentioned like and it’s it’s quite an old book and a lot of people in the us always refer to that as ah as like a base pricing structure even for me when I started like when I started in India so you know selling my work.

01:14:49.77
Srishti
Um, to that. Okay.

01:15:01.10
charukaarora
I didn’t know if I was like I was like hitting the Bush I didn’t have I didn’t know what I was charging for if I was charging too high sometimes when I felt like someone who was buying too easy I felt it was too low when someone would like I would be like sometimes I would feel like oh this is too high. Why would someone you know you had this notion that kept on going.

01:15:02.12
Srishti
And.

01:15:13.16
Srishti
Tolo correct. Yeah.

01:15:20.59
charukaarora
When I figured. Okay, this is like an average this is how my friends like people from our community and I was so grateful to have that transparency. Okay, this is how people charge and this is like a base and this is how can then I new can now it’s my decision which way I want to go into but I know. Okay this is like a structure that. People follow if they want to if not I can always build something on my own I think just having like a um, a basic transpi because I Love this idea when a lot of people say like you know when we’re undercharging ourselves. We’re also not only undercharging us. We’re also. Paving that path for a lot of people who are going to be around us our own community because like it’s like this and for 4 years creative people have been taken advantage of because you know these always like there’s no substantial like you can note as a doctor you youre but I think nonub substantialtiary like it’s.

01:16:03.57
Srishti
Um, yeah.

01:16:13.76
charukaarora
Nothing is in physical form. Your creativity can never be valued in like a skiing scale. Okay, this is how much you So it’s still of any bloody topic. But I think it’s something that we all um, are trying our best to figure out.

01:16:16.73
Srishti
The.

01:16:26.30
Srishti
But I don’t know like if you do this in Indias like a in like standarded pride I don’t know because if of a brand goes out there and wants an illustration say for like their social media. There’ll be somebody who will agree to it for fifteen hundred bucks sos and there’ll be somebody who will charge 15 lax soldier to the scope is.

01:16:41.18
charukaarora
Absolutely think but I think but this from you saying today this from a place or where you build your career when you don’t know where to start from I think a lot of people when they’re navigating and entering into an industry. They don’t I mean you don’t know you.

01:16:43.19
Srishti
And this can be irrespectable.

01:16:55.10
Srishti
So so they need to start from the point which they think they’re comfortable with to do so and then you need to make sure the only thing is that if you’re charging something in year one and there’s something in year two and something in a year three of your freelance life in year four should make sure that there is a considerable hike if you are also delivering better products in a better like more concise time and all of that because today like it’s such a like am I happy with all the pricing that I’ve done I’m definitely not so it’s not like I have gone to every project and like I can’t tell with conviction to have done greater. So many things that I know can under charge and. Maybe 1 or two where I feel like oh maybe that person has given me more money than it deserved for this but that is far in between most of it is I oh maybe I should have yeah.

01:17:32.33
charukaarora
Yeah, yeah, and yeah I think are all all also variable wepoint of our viewing our own work and then like again a lot of way we can like not all creative things that you do have an exact how do way like how much impact.

01:17:39.66
Srishti
Exactly and.

01:17:45.72
Srishti
Exactly exactly and for a lot of things. It’s like why we want to say okay I’ll never work for exposure which is true I might not work for exposure but then tomorrow like if something as huge as like a Apple comes to me and says okay I will pay you 50% less than another client. But I’m going to make sure that product goes into all your Apple phones or something like that.

01:18:03.80
charukaarora
Yeah, yeah I have you.

01:18:04.65
Srishti
Automatically is that it’s not as black and white as just being a co I will never work for exposure because for something that big and lucrative my rule my change. Yeah yeah.

01:18:12.26
charukaarora
Yeah, just 1 thing 1 girl? Sorry yeah, absolutely and I think just I feel like um as we are all navigating I think there are always ballparks that we all feel like comfortable like just like not feeling that I think I remember.

01:18:25.60
Srishti
Yeah, you taking too much of an advantage. Basically yeah yeah.

01:18:31.87
charukaarora
Yeah I think the the 21 year old me was always so like every and you know this is something I’ve heard from so many people like because they get so anxious and scared of what am I going to charge or if I’m going to look like a fool or like they’re like who could let the client say no because it’s and for a lot of people having this.

01:18:40.92
Srishti
Now.

01:18:51.49
charukaarora
Now it’s getting better and better because the conversation has been going on having the money conversation is one of the hardest things for people, especially the Creator Kiki for like it’s initially it was so tabooed like okay you know are you a sellout or like oh you like you think too high of yourself or like you know all of these things that you’re obviously constantly.

01:18:52.85
Srishti
Now show. Yeah.

01:19:11.60
charukaarora
Um, fed about but also understanding the fact that you’re all, we’re all paying a bill. We’re also like as creators we’re also businesses were trying to make the best of what we are doing. Yeah in.

01:19:19.30
Srishti
Yeah I don’t think even we should just say paying our bills or why just paying a bill. Why not like saving money creative and creating Empires eventually like why should I just pay the bills. Yeah, why is my yeah, why is my like penis in society that I only going to pay my bills I’ll pay my bill.

01:19:29.18
charukaarora
Asking me I Love this I Have you today.

01:19:38.26
Srishti
I want to buy a freaking house 10 years they didn’t go and like redo it as my dream house. Why shouldn’t I like I want to have all those explanations and more.

01:19:41.10
charukaarora
Yes, add I 0 I I so have a mentor my mentor and coach who’s like somebody iylior and and I think that was this was this learning for me also like you know we we had this hindrance like we a lot of times you feel. Um. At shallow I don’t know I mean you want to have you. We want to build a life that is not only just surviving and filling our necessities but also saying accepting the fact that I have a high ambition of you know, living a luxurious Tylo like a I want to buy.

01:20:13.85
Srishti
And.

01:20:18.87
charukaarora
A Lim Bog you know I don’t know I um I whatever that our aspiration be or even if that means like you want to have a certain ah safety net in your bank account or for your own.

01:20:26.30
Srishti
Yeah I think get a I think some careers It is not a taboo to have those aspirations and in some careers. It’s like oh but your thing is just to like create art for society or better than all of this I’m not better than all of this f no.

01:20:33.70
charukaarora
Yeah, yes, and I’m like you know so then a lot of so I I have a drough business that I work with um and ven V hi people and I feel like.

01:20:49.99
Srishti
Thing is talk.

01:20:51.54
charukaarora
There. It’s so comfortable for them. Sorry can you hear me.

01:22:26.52
charukaarora
Back I can hear you perfect? Yeah, okay this was such an interesting conversation I’m I’m so grateful and so sorry I’ve taken a lot more time than I had asked you for I am so excited. Can we jump on to.

00:00.00
Srishti
Yeah, so.

01:22:43.51
charukaarora
Um, the rapid fire if you’re ready perfect. So it’s going to be rapid, you have to be quick just give me what comes to your mind first. Okay you you wouldn’t have too much time I mean you wouldn’t have literally known i.

00:15.66
Srishti
Yeah, sure.

00:27.30
Srishti
I might like skip a few I kind if you ask me a favorite artist in or on a sport I can’t yeah like um, no i’ really bad be names is what I mean like if somebody asked me like something I’m just for like I can do names everything else I think I’m good.

01:23:03.32
charukaarora
There’s no keeping there’s no. And okay, let’s try. Are you ready? Okay, 1 2 3 1 thing you want to convey through your work in the arts.

00:44.20
Srishti
Show.

00:50.26
Srishti
Um, don’t take yourself to seriously. It’s all going to end Anyway, yeah I Yeah in.

01:23:24.97
charukaarora
I’m going to buy I think to write this one like 1 word that describes you the best.

01:07.78
Srishti
Over the top over the top over the top is not really 1 word. It’s all, um, ah charged I guess.

01:23:42.31
charukaarora
We I’ll I’ll buy that but you have another Oh Wow if you could have a studio anywhere in the world where would it be.

01:24.17
Srishti
I think probably London or like I am like more of a cosopolitan city persons I want to go like I want to be replaced which is like a melting port of like 5000 different cultures i’t I’ve been only to London and New York in terms of cosopolitan cities. So.

01:23:56.89
charukaarora
Yeah, really, why.

01:24:06.10
charukaarora
Oh well.

01:24:12.39
charukaarora
Really Wow Oh wow, That’s a nice. Okay, your biggest source of inspiration.

01:42.90
Srishti
And I enjoyed London more than I did in New York yeah I’m a very city person.

01:53.18
Srishti
Um, um I think conversation with friends and just being social because I draw a lot of inspiration from people talking and conversing and kind of translate those things in my work.

01:24:28.79
charukaarora
Got. You know when you say this I feel like I’m also visualizing you like that person who has like a glass who’s into this small group who has a glass of a drink and and a part of a conversation but actually your your yours are eavesdropping on someone into something interesting that. Happening behind you.

02:22.27
Srishti
Yeah I can do both I’m very like fun like conversation. Not as funny but I love hearing people and like say even if they’re talking about something silly like their day or something like I feel like there is like so much when like a group of six seven people from different professions and backgrounds come together and like chat over like drinks and food and it’s just like.

01:25:11.52
charukaarora
Lovely Loud. Okay, who’s your favorite women artist designer and why.

02:41.46
Srishti
It’s I just feel like we end up going and learning about so much.

02:50.96
Srishti
She says I told you like don’t give me like names.

01:25:22.27
charukaarora
This is I This is the tough spot for every man so you take a moment.

02:59.57
Srishti
I’ll take a moment like quite a few women. Okay I okay so I love Alicia Susa so I’ll tell you why because I say workwise like that I like a few other artists like for instance, unscalled work worker who did the collaboration with vji with theca merchant actually whose work I like.

01:25:32.80
charukaarora
Oh yeah.

01:25:40.63
charukaarora
Yeah, yeah, yeah.

03:16.21
Srishti
Who genuinely like love and enjoy. But I feel like Alicia in India is such a benchmark of what like a female illustrator can be and that’s why like she is such a iconic woman in that space because I feel like she is the 1 whose artwork took to work to where it is today because she was the first person who designed the brand identity of a brand.

01:25:51.26
charukaarora
Um, yes, yeah, yes.

03:35.74
Srishti
Ah, proper homegrown design brand like chmba and like she’s like though like aesthetically designed words It’s not like I’m like the same come from the same sensibility and idea but I like respect the fact that she created this for a lot of people to follow.

01:26:13.34
charukaarora
Yeah.

03:52.42
Srishti
Because she was one of the first people to be in this space and turn it into like a damn successful career where people know her respector merges doing wonderfully on top of that she has a family she has kids and she’s doing it all. So I feel like that’s why she has like a special place and recently in the Adobe and Adobe insider she was one of the insiders and we.

01:26:31.80
charukaarora
Yeah, yeah.

04:11.60
Srishti
First time I connected with her. So for me I was there. Well this is like so insane that you know this woman who was a benchmark for so many for them actually talking to her.

01:26:45.74
charukaarora
Love that and I O daughter work and I feel like any point anyone who’s imagined to be like a um illustrator hasn’t It’s not possible to not look.

04:28.53
Srishti
Hast end up and thing. Yeah, exactly even know the Don withs her work the must have seen her work without realizing because she’s then so many of these like really famous and iconic like artworks and illustrations and the entire style of the way she so many people have copied it after that is not even funny but she was the first one. Yeah.

01:27:00.30
charukaarora
Yeah.

01:27:08.41
charukaarora
Yeah, yeah, and I think what? Even she’s not only like a good illustrator but she’s such an amazing human being anyone can but and that and that can like I Just love the.

04:49.30
Srishti
Um, seem yeah definite. It seems like that. Yeah come across.

01:27:25.33
charukaarora
Unless that comes across her work and I think from I also told you this before like for me, it’s it’s I fall in love with an ah person like an artist first and then I like if yeah if I’m like if I don’t like you as a person I am most probably going to even if I like your work I’m going to fall out of love because I think that’s how because you are always 1

05:04.90
Srishti
And then you.

01:27:45.31
charukaarora
Our work becomes so personal so many times that the relationship with the viewer also becomes very personal and I think as a viewer when you’re also with Alicia like you see her face of like the elastation evolving from her being single good. Yeah.

05:21.92
Srishti
Is.

05:28.85
Srishti
Exactly well to correct and you can see that join now of all like illustrations about a son and I love that I love that because you if you draw experiences authentically from your life. Your art will slowly start progressing will buy a new audience exactly.

01:28:04.68
charukaarora
Yeah, yeah, and then people connect because your experiences are asthma spirit. Yeah, and also like you know your experience. We’re all living beings our experiences Overlap we’re only unique I mean we are not going to you? Not you.

05:52.00
Srishti
Is.

01:28:24.55
charukaarora
None of us have anything. We’re not living on another planet. We have a distinctness but there’s so much similarity like we’re all, um, you are a woman I’m a woman we’re creative like there’s so much that we can bring in common that there’s always a authenticity. They always pulling together a group of people who have similar experiences and belongingness like you and I think Alicia does such a.

06:10.11
Srishti
Yeah, you yeah.

01:28:44.70
charukaarora
His job with that I I Absolutely agree when I thought like I thought so I had these different phases and I wanted to explore what kind of creative I wanted to be when I hit float being a like I am a terrible I’m I’m terrible at this now I Know at that point I didn’t so I felt like making characters or like because I was so inspired of eliia.

06:21.90
Srishti
It.

06:28.80
Srishti
Okay.

01:29:04.10
charukaarora
Like having like these people who make this these instant characters and like yeah and then um, make it like in such a quick. It’s so instinctive like even for Neha um I feel like I don’t this is like a skill. It’s so hard. It’s terribly hard.

06:33.69
Srishti
Um, yeah, these porky characters. No vote. Yeah yeah, yeah.

06:52.40
Srishti
Yeah, definitely like it. You have to be like I feel inherently drawn towards observing people and then nuances to draw these characters so fast.

01:29:24.11
charukaarora
Yes, yes, anyone who’s listening and who doesn’t know who we’re talking about. You can go on the show notes and I link Mehars an alysia boths work and a few screenshots so that you can actually understand what you’re talking about. Okay. Next question who’s your go to person where you’re in trouble or in need of advice.

07:18.60
Srishti
I Think probably my sister like I feel like um I yeah I But not about advice I never call for advice but for trouble I can talk to her I’m sorry she’s my younger sister So we’ve gone through like different phases of like loving each other hating each other.

01:29:50.59
charukaarora
Boom. Ah.

01:30:03.11
charukaarora
And yeah, yeah, and I think and I be I think as we grow older this gap.

07:36.95
Srishti
But now that she is 27 and I’m 30 feel like we’re the most evolved phase of our relationship but we can discuss like a lot of things which we did not discuss universe 1780 for some audience said.

01:30:19.60
charukaarora
Whatever yours we have it just reduces like.

07:50.80
Srishti
Exactly and she at the idea of the you now would realize the value of like a blood sibling right? You really can have conversations about your most inan thoughts without feeling judge. But I don’t know her advice Iin want to take so that but I can talk to you about problems.

01:30:23.95
charukaarora
That.

01:30:32.58
charukaarora
You She is your savior that means.

08:09.31
Srishti
Yeah, in a way like I know for a fact, she’ll be 1 of the people who will like empathize with me and beyond my site and then if I’m wrong. She probably tell me a few days later but like she is like it’s good to lash out if I have a problem with her.

01:30:42.63
charukaarora
Yeah, yeah. Yeah, yeah, love that? Okay, why has he? Okay, this is a little more than one moment. So just can you share like I’m sure there must have been many can you share like 1 moment something that you really cherish and recall and feel grateful for being.

08:29.47
Srishti
Okay.

01:31:06.88
charukaarora
Who you are to like as an artist like choosing this creative career or having this creative path.

08:43.30
Srishti
In terms of I did so a moment that really stood out in my creative career is that what you mean.

01:31:16.55
charukaarora
Yeah, something that you any in any context that you feel like you are very, you were very grateful for being an artist for having this creative career.

08:57.97
Srishti
Um I don’t know I mean this random but exact moment see this is some questions you give it me from before I should like like spend like at least two days like retrospect in muing over.

01:31:34.80
charukaarora
How would have I would have gotten the and out of you.

09:12.14
Srishti
I I see a lot of like I think in the way like prized like I think were like careerwin moments are like super like external validation based so I don’t if that’s a good thing or a bad thing like it feels like a little bit of a like. It’s not one of those are 4 like you know some child saw my artwork and started crying and it was gratifying. It’s not all of the books.

01:31:49.30
charukaarora
That’s okay, that’s absolutely fine. No no, no helping no know we’re looking for the external. Also.

09:31.32
Srishti
Emotional stories at all. Yeah, so I mean I think.

01:32:05.98
charukaarora
All having this is again. This is what hearts to heart is let’s be honest, we all cra for external We Oh why do we have these vision boards and these things that I want to be featured here I Want to be here or there if you you’re all seeking so external validation I mean there’s this is a fact.

09:42.54
Srishti
Yeah.

09:54.86
Srishti
Ah I think when I was like um when I joined Nift like I actually had like a really good drink in the nift tendance exam. So I think one of the most because that was like a pivotal moment in my journey to choose this as opposed to getting into like a um. I would’ have never been an engineer but I was that time they think of doing like ah undergrading one of the science subjects and I’d given the nift exam and I didn’t get into an id so only the nift was the only creative exam left and I like did exceedingly well in the nift entrance exam and I remember that when I opened the website and my all India Rank was three so I had come. Completely flip to because that was the point when my parents was I think I a little more faith in the fact that okay maybe she is good at this that was one that I remember because that was the beginning of my career per se into leaving that side of my life behind it going into creative site and ah then is when i. Contemplating on whether to become like a freelancer or not is when I applied for curious awards I don’t know whether you know there are these um awards which is called the curious awards and so there’s a category for like um which is called the young blood awards. So there’s like different real time pitches which you have to like.

01:33:21.45
charukaarora
I Know yeah.

11:05.49
Srishti
There are like a 3 4 different categories 1 is pertaining to product design some is about branding and things and if you’re below 27 you can apply for it. So I applied to one of the categories which was completely automat myed comfort zone because it was about branding and graphic until then I was a hardcore fashion person designer so I was like a you know if it led me just part said made like a proper pitch but I like like put.

01:33:49.43
charukaarora
I Don’t know.

11:24.99
Srishti
Like together all my ideas and graphics and I knew I was competing with people who work in creative agencies. So they knew very well how to pitch a brand idea because that’s a very different skill set from a barrel and people don’t realize that because they all think it’s a huge bucket of just creative people. But it’s all different specific code talents. So I applied for it and I was shortless is one of the 3

01:33:56.81
charukaarora
Yeah.

01:34:03.88
charukaarora
Yeah, yeah I think yeah. Yeah.

11:43.20
Srishti
Ah, finalists and then I won that award. So I think that kind of gave me a push that there is possibility and you’re the one who’s putting herself in like more of a lane than you need to be the possibilities are endless. So yeah.

01:34:21.88
charukaarora
Yeah, yeah I love that because again, you you have such a this is something that also we spoke about like how are core talents as creatives. We are also made to think like because you were in fashion and who so okay, you can only do this and.

12:06.40
Srishti
Um, this is very yeah.

01:34:40.84
charukaarora
Even if we see it from a refreshing end like you know if you see agency pitches and all of these things that you do, um, they’re so similar like because there’s a certain pattern and whenever someone comes from another perspective. They break that like that that’s stereotype and they give people you to look at and.

12:20.96
Srishti
Correct. Yeah yeah, so it would actually be an advantage which I didn’t realize because I feel like I was competing with all people who from marketing and branding and like that perspective and the fact that my project.

01:34:58.58
charukaarora
That is all how creative people can to think yeah staff.

12:40.50
Srishti
And ended up winning that I was like okay so I mean like there is no set rule if you have an idea and a creative thing you can do it in that you can figure out a way in way and it was being judged by professionals with like Herios of experiencedi. So it’s not like you can fool them with like doing faff around the cover page and they’d be like oh power floated.

01:35:17.89
charukaarora
Yeah, yeah, right.

01:35:24.81
charukaarora
I Love this because I think it’s such a great example of how we just need to see our skills as our own skills and then what you’re putting into as only tools and our tools can always always be swayed and learned and um I mean a lot of things a lot of time people have this inhibition that.

13:04.71
Srishti
You.

01:35:43.19
charukaarora
They’re doing one medium or should they now do this like oh you’re doing this now Nfds are coming should we do that or like how will that and it’s like I feel like we’re all as creative I feel like I want to try as many things as possible and then I keep filtering. Okay I like this I don’t like this and this works for me. This does not work for me like.

13:19.10
Srishti
Yeah.

13:30.62
Srishti
Then.

01:36:02.81
charukaarora
This whole nerve of also trying like your creative ideas I mean I I would have a thousand ideas every day I never knew about outcasting but ever since I knew about it I was like this felt so natural to me and it it’s it is a creative practice for me because for me this feels like this is something that I need to feed through myself.

13:38.87
Srishti
Yeah, yeah.

13:44.77
Srishti
F.

01:36:22.50
charukaarora
To be a better creative. Yeah, and for me, it’s like digging like for me, it’s also digging out stories and building those stories and putting that out there and it’s again, something and for me human experience in women I mean creative and women they’re too core of everything I do and.

13:53.80
Srishti
Sure like talk to different people and understand their process and.

01:36:41.90
charukaarora
This is again another art from what every day we’re already always trying to discover something by art I mean you’re trying to dig that Indian millenn in your own genre I mean we’re all trying to discover and dig something in some or the other way It’s our tools get different over the time.

14:12.17
Srishti
It’s no good.

14:25.80
Srishti
Yeah.

01:36:59.55
charukaarora
And we evolve and then we like something we don’t like something or sometimes we just want to switch things up. Perfect if you were to meet younger sister today. What advice would you give up any young. Okay, maybe let’s see.

14:34.80
Srishti
Yeah, definitely. But for sure.

14:43.25
Srishti
How young this is very crucial to this cook. No like I would give a very different advisor 16 and 20 here but because it just grabs you.

01:37:19.60
charukaarora
And were very particular now. Let’s say 21 euro I think that is like twenty Year Twenty Twenty one tipping ah the tip of the iceberg.

15:00.31
Srishti
Okay, when I’m just still in like the last year of college I don’t want advice if I’m still in college I know what advice I would have given up for show I would have told her okay, it doesn’t truly matter what your college fucking cgpa is just. Networking with people and talking to people instead of like being in your bubble because that’s the only thing eventually that matters and college is never going to teach that to you until you grow because I feel now when I retrospect in college like we went to so many like fashion events as the 20 year old 21 year old fashion weekends but I don’t worry we know.

01:37:48.36
charukaarora
Um.

15:33.18
Srishti
Network for like met people and interacted it was just something that was like um, whatever like go see the passenger and come back I would have given advice gift from the beginning and now I understand the value of it like you know ten years later but I’m not just networking with the intent of like well get work out of it but just interacting with different people.

01:38:08.24
charukaarora
Um, yeah.

01:38:15.85
charukaarora
Um, woman relation.

15:50.70
Srishti
And yeah to you to understand. Okay, okay, this is where can go maybe something interesting can work out later or this is so cool I Just going to introduce myself. Maybe I learn about something totally different that I didn’t know about so I feel like I missed out on like a lot chunk of like those years where I was I wasn’t in a shell I was social I had friends but I was always in like a clique where I didn’t find there was. Interest or thing in and I wish I could go back and do that because of so many interesting people I could have networked it when I was in deadly in those fashion circles. Yeah.

01:38:43.85
charukaarora
I Love that because I think this is also again fundamentally something that you’re always taught like um that we felt like being just good at what you’re doing was enough I think yeah, you get this if you come on the top or like you know, even if you feet in school people thought I always thought.

16:25.37
Srishti
Um, is good I Yeah exactly.

01:39:03.77
charukaarora
And I was like I am I was really I was dyslexic immediately like I could even today for me meeting is like I listen to audio books and um I mean for me, that’s how I gain knowledge and for a very long time I figured like I would I and imagine I did history on earth three years of terror.

16:37.21
Srishti
Okay, okay, and.

16:50.52
Srishti
Well yeah.

01:39:22.28
charukaarora
Like I was so hard for me and I was like I’m never going to succeed in life because this is how my grades look or this is what my teachers say because I couldn’t perform in the structure of whatever it was set and today I realized it didn’t matter I just needed to figure out.

16:59.72
Srishti
Yeah.

17:06.11
Srishti
Yeah.

01:39:41.25
charukaarora
Put myself in the right place and if I wouldn’t have put myself in the wrong places I would never know what it feels to be right.

17:16.54
Srishti
Ah, exactly yeah and but that’s think like even I feel like at least in design Also at least the experience that I had while it is very focused on technical knowledge and skill set which is extremely important for something like fashion because you need to be technically sound before you can do creative things you know make that outfit before you imagine that outfit I get that.

01:39:59.69
charukaarora
Yeah.

17:36.26
Srishti
But even with design school I feel like it’s so like structured and like oh you’d like so many your assignments you’re doing like a morning tonight. There’s not a single moment to breathe where you just like come out of that worldwin after 4 years and later when you look back, you’re like what the fire the the hell were I taking all these things so serious I could have just maintain like a very avarate cdp and like actually. Gone and like made like crazy connections in the real world which would have serviced me wayward.

01:40:27.52
charukaarora
And you know even with the world of social media. So many times I think like for me today not coming from an art school is such a big advantage and I think my biggest disadvantage on become that I came from a fashion school because I felt like people especially in the age of social media people who didn’t.

18:07.12
Srishti
Yeah.

01:40:45.72
charukaarora
Um, like were not driven by the rules they were doing things like crazyly land. They do do something like you know how intimate works like you do something off something different something draw and it picks up and I was like how you I still remember my biggest pet peat like when I was doing my fashion mine I was like.

18:24.48
Srishti
Yeah, yeah, no yeah.

01:41:03.33
charukaarora
I’m going to give the best finishings I were like I was so upset that’s I That’s what I thought taught nobody taught me you don’t give up. You don’t care about um finishings when you have to look at priing you have to look at Margins you have to look at all of these things.

18:35.19
Srishti
Then.

18:47.66
Srishti
Yeah, that was and pricing was never discussed in college and never knew pricing exist as a concept you have to think about this. Also.

01:41:21.33
charukaarora
Yeah, absolutely like it was like quality without and a variant of prizing and outcome and commerce and success in anything. It was just quality I mean what you pay is what you get for. This was a fundamental we were like if I and also the.

18:59.24
Srishti
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.

01:41:39.60
charukaarora
In the fear of being a sell out like if I’m going to I had this innate feature fear that because I came from a design school I had to I had this whole responsibility on my shoulder. Yes, yes yeah, he like me and I would and I.

19:18.29
Srishti
Or that he of garments have to look a certain way. Yeah, it cannot. You cannot send right? Yeah something which is not finished or done to perfection. Yeah.

01:41:58.38
charukaarora
So I started noticing this especially at my own house like my mom would my mom was obsessed with fashion and clothe and like she would buy like um I still like I would be I have her biggest heirlooms and pieces with me and I would every time she would ask me so I was this fundamental person every time she would ask me like.

19:34.48
Srishti
The.

01:42:17.86
charukaarora
What’s in fashion and I’m like oh this trend is in fashion I’m like I would get more so irritated with the fact that I don’t care what is in fashion because I came from this. Oh it takes months to build this collection and then this is I would I would turn upside these clothes and I will show her like oh see how horrible this looks.

19:48.70
Srishti
Since yeah. Ah, yeah. Or it’s perfect un hold sex with Alert lost. Okay, sorry they just got like the notification lost connection. But I think I Okay yeah.

01:42:37.61
charukaarora
Yeah I I doesn’t need. We still working. Yeah, so and I realized if and then she was like and I figured. Ah it doesn’t really matter to her because for her everything that mattered at that point was I mean. Unless she wasn’t literallyly looking into investing like a like a money Maloo like something like even then I don’t think they would really turn their um outside. Um you know? Yeah oh we see it that is yeah yeah, absolutely and I would tell and I would.

20:35.65
Srishti
Turn the garment and like see that it is like all finished with it’s all seemed to perfect home pong see what happened? Yeah yeah.

01:43:16.20
charukaarora
Like I would and I would tell her who that is why it’s more pricey because friends seem take this much time and that much time and all of that and I was like what the idiot I was what was I even doing because now that’s I realized it doesn’t matter I could do those all those things later if I felt it was right? But the first thing was to to have everything.

20:49.16
Srishti
The.

21:02.14
Srishti
Yeah, yeah, yeah, correct.

01:43:35.67
charukaarora
And balance. Okay, my last next second last question shout out to an artist who’s or a couple of artists who are on your ah who are you currently enjoying on social media.

21:18.78
Srishti
Um, ah there is this artist I mean her Instagram hand is caused delicious, delicious yeah, but like delicious with DELH I delhi um she makes this beautiful. Love.

01:43:55.99
charukaarora
Okay, who.

21:35.32
Srishti
Um, mean what is a we I’ll tell you her name was this is not cool that I’m not telling her here.

01:44:08.10
charukaarora
I’m going to just note and I’ll link her on shown on.

21:44.23
Srishti
Anshithar Relan Okay, yeah, she’s making like these absolutely like beautiful like illustrations using like basically like against women’s like faces and figures but with like the stunning like gold jewelry in this very like almost a Tangio type of art form and like beautiful lighting. Very nicely done I Really like her skill set then there is this okay art which I tell you.

22:14.57
Srishti
What is her name arts see that’s the thing I have also many people who I follow but then I in okay so there is this girl and I think 19 years old okay I just discovered her profile. It’s called Nasa satyati and her Instagram profile is artti artsy su she role. Okay.

01:44:46.39
charukaarora
That. Value.

01:44:59.63
charukaarora
Oh my god.

22:32.76
Srishti
Now she is like such because ah she is like I’m looking at her art like almost every day and I’m like so she does like a little bit of journaling some like cartoon characters one day then she’ll watercolor one day then she’s really shit appropriate and she’s so godamm like raw skill is so good at the age of 19 where I’m just like I cannot even imagine the level once you.

01:45:17.69
charukaarora
Excuse me edit.

22:51.88
Srishti
Maybe go to like you know college or even if you go to college you continue this what skills that you go to reach when you’re in your thirty s because such raw talent at the age of like 90 I like supremely impressed and um I do.

01:45:24.14
charukaarora
Yeah.

01:45:29.78
charukaarora
Um, you have any more.

01:45:37.67
charukaarora
I have them perfect My last question. Okay, as a women entrepreneur creative artists Designer What’s that one advice you want to give to people who are coming behind you.

23:06.86
Srishti
More where I look at these I’m going to remember most of these after the conversation is over. Ah yeah.

23:22.83
Srishti
I think that’s only what I had like um, like which is probably going be re reiterating the the same thing only that if you want to sustain this for like a decent amount of time and it’s not something that is the um is going to do this for a few years and they probably do something else which is fair. But I feel like if you want to sustain this for like a legitimate amount of time that you have to give yourself time to understand what is your aesthetic insensibility and that can only happen if you have done a million things and formutation combinations and probably failed and reached the point feel 5 times got enough 5 time done. Artworks which you are super embarrassed of and you know like done all of that to realize that point that okay this is what I truly enjoy and this is what I like and only then I feel like it can sustain for a long time if you yeah have that in place.

01:46:40.35
charukaarora
Love that I think that’s better advice. Okay again, so see I can’t believe we it’s been way over video than yeah, we should be recording but I’m so grateful I had so much fun knowing you and honestly it’s been such.

24:19.46
Srishti
Um, yeah.

01:46:57.75
charukaarora
Ah, wonderful conversation I Really want to say a big thank you for being.

24:29.25
Srishti
It has it really has yeah you were like a very like easy going like speaker like you make somebody very comfortable.

01:47:04.38
charukaarora
Thank you I have one last thing I have to ask you before I let you go people who are listening specially because I have had very few indian guests on the podcast and I’m committing to bring more more creative women from India and.

24:45.56
Srishti
Um, again.

01:47:21.54
charukaarora
I want I Really desperately want more and more people to know about your work So I would love to give you the state and can you share where people can find you support you by your work and if there is any other upcoming project that you would want to share with us. And we can also link on a website. Please let us know.

25:13.80
Srishti
So currently the most active channel for my art is my Instagram profile where I’m called illustrator and I have a website too which is not like fully updated but kind of gives you an overview of everything that you’ve done. Yeah, okay but I haven’t updated it in the past six eight months is some glitch that is happening but’s it’s.

01:47:51.27
charukaarora
Who you have a fabulous website. Okay, um, yeah.

25:31.57
Srishti
Kind of like yeah I mean you get an overview of the work that I’ve done till now which is good enough. Ah so that’s linked actually to my Instagram itself. So if you go to my bio you can find that and there are a few projects so which we’re in talks with right now but like I I mean I don’t think I’m at the liberty to discuss it until like certain things are already fixed but.

01:48:13.67
charukaarora
Yeah.

25:50.28
Srishti
So yeah I mean like that’s about it. Yeah, but Instagram is the most active channel to reach out if you want to um, like talk to me or if you have any project queries and um and like my mers. All the information is there like in myta stories and this if you just dear me in all probability I will get back to you in like four five tales

01:48:35.82
charukaarora
Um, yeah, be be patient 1 man armymi perfect. Thank you so much of and everyone who’s listening I would I would definitely recommend. Go check out her work I’m so grateful to have 60

26:10.25
Srishti
Yeah, yeah, exactly exactly.

01:48:53.32
charukaarora
Um, who’s been such a game changer for Indian women illustrators creators and I am I’m definitely cheering cheering for you and I am so excited to see what you do further and I’ll bring you back again with every new milestone that you have not does that you be right.

26:38.91
Srishti
Um, why I done Yeah sure.

01:49:11.47
charukaarora
Ah, yeah, but I mean I want to say a big thank you for being here. Thank you so much I Really appreciate your time. Thank you, You have to hold on great. But.

26:46.36
Srishti
Thank you all right? bye.

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