The Bliss Catchers™- Season 4 - November 2018
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Srinath Balachandran
Choco-preneur. Srinath could have been managing hotels (he studied for that), he could have been teaching French, he could have been running an Indian restaurant in a French territory in the Pacific Ocean and, hold your breath, he could have been singing in the movies (he even auditioned successfully with A.R.Rahman for ‘Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na’)! But you know what? Srinath is doing what he believes he is born for – which is, “make the world a happier place, one person, one chocolate at a time”! It’s been over a decade since his bliss found him and he set up the insanely popular Zuka choco-la-te cafés in Pondy and Chennai. “I am perpetually intoxicated and driven by my chocolate passion quotient,” he exults Vetri M V Folk Theatre Artist-Champion. By the time he was 25, Vetri was a successful model and actor. He had found good money, interesting work and reasonable fame. But despite all the acclaim, he was feeling incomplete. His quest for meaning in Life led him to Devarattam, Thappatam, Silambattam and Therukoothu. He discovered that our traditional folk theatre forms are not just about acting but offer education about Life itself. Vetri felt compelled to work on preserving their legacy and heritage. Over the past year, his theatre group “Akku” (pronounced as in the Tamizh alphabet) has been leading workshops and performances championing traditional folk theatre. “I don’t know where this is taking me. But I know this completes me,” he says. |
The Bliss Catchers™ - Season 4 - October 2018
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Amar Ramesh
Photographer…who prefers to be known as the “Memory Maker”! Amar was once an engineer-techie living the typical Indian-American dream. But his love for India and documenting the history and heritage of our temples drew him back home in 2010. He gave himself one year to “quit the normal Life and live an exciting one”! In that time, a client bought his entire collection of temple pictures and another gave him his first wedding shoot. That’s when – and how – he discovered who he really is: “Photography is my window to happiness, and through the view finder it is not just pictures that I see, but my Purpose!” Today, Amar’s Studio A is a prized boutique delivering creative wedding photography and films. Ravi Kiran Musician. An engineer from BITS (Pilani) and a senior manager in an IT MNC, Ravi, to the uninitiated, may appear to be living the “predictable techie Life”. But there’s another side to him: apart from being T.M.Krishna’s senior-most disciple, he is a sought-after performer in the Carnatic music circuit. Over the last two decades, Ravi says his music has “led him on”, has “altered all his decisions” and has filled him with “infinite joy”. How does he balance the pressures of a demanding IT job with the exciting rigor of his Life as a performer? “I am blessed to still be doing both. What nourishes my soul is my music,” he says. |
The Bliss Catchers™ - Season 4 - September 2018
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Surya Ramachandran
Naturalist Guide. As a kid, Surya loved visiting zoos, painting wildlife and remembers spending weekends at the Madras Croc Bank. So, when he joined engineering school, he knew intuitively that ‘this wasn’t his scene’. Serendipity stepped in soon though and has led Surya back to where he believes he belongs – amidst nature and wildlife. In the last few years, he’s co-authored a photographic book on the wildlife of central India while working in the Satpura and Kanha sanctuaries. Presently, he co-curates experiences at a snow leopard lodge in Ulley village in Ladakh. “My joy lies in exploring nature and its creations and in telling stories. I just want to be doing this all my Life,” says Surya. Vibha Batra Writer. Her first book was a tribute to her maternal grandfather – she translated his work on the Ishavaasya Upanishad into English. But soon, a series of events – a.k.a Life’s inscrutable curveballs – led her to embrace writing as a therapeutic, immersive experience. Over the past decade, Vibha has published 11 books. Her latest book, ‘Euro Trip’, is popular among pre-teens. Although she does write advertising copy, poems, lyrics, plays and travel pieces, Vibha feels that the process of writing a book delivers ‘unparalleled joy’ to her. “When I write, I lose myself in my writing,” she says. |
The Bliss Catchers™ - Season 4 - August 2018
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Surojit Guha
Singer. Celebrated as a close resemblance of the voice of the legendary Hemant Kumar. Surojit started singing from when he was 2½ years old. Initially his repertoire was Western music, but he soon took to singing old, memorable, Hindi melodies. After an eventful stint – 25 years – in sales and soft-skills training in the corporate sector, he took to singing full-time in 2011. “I have never been happier…I perform for myself first, each time I am on stage; I am very grateful for being blessed with this talent and for all the encouragement and love from my audiences,” says Surojit. Varun Aiyer Performer. Yoga & Music Practitioner. Traveling Teacher. Growing up, all that Varun wanted to do was to find answers to the ‘questions of Life’ – ‘Who are we? Where are we? Why are we here?’. His quest led him to study physics, then teach, do theatre and eventually graduate from a three-year master’s program at the National School of Drama. Varun believes that performance is the ‘way of Life’ that he was always seeking – an ‘immersive activity in which he loses himself’ every time he performs. “When I perform with an audience, I am present. I believe that is my bliss,” says Varun. |
The Bliss Catchers™ - Season 4 - July 2018
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Ram Keshav
Portrait & Lifestyle Photographer. Ram dropped out of studying Physics in college because he found the call of photography “unputdownable”. His schooling at Massachusetts-based Hallmark Institute of Photography further reinforced in him his belief that all he wanted to do was to make people’s portraits “tell their story, paint their character and express their inner voice”. He knows now that the road he has chosen is a long one – where the horizon will seem forever distant – but he also knows that this is what he wants to do all his Life. Because doing this, to him, is bliss! Ashwin Sukumaran Aquatic Life Lover. Nature Aquarium Specialist. His “love affair” with the aquatic world began when he was barely 10. But it wasn’t until he was almost 40 that Ashwin gave up his well-paying corporate job as a marketing consultant and took the plunge to follow his bliss, to nurture his fledgling start-up, Aquaria. His company designs nature aquariums (recreating natural settings inside aquariums) and champions awareness for the species among all those who want to know about how fish live and behave. “Fish have taught me about the Circle of Life and how important it is that we preserve these fragile ecosystems. I love setting up the best possible habitats for the fish – if they're happy, I'm happy,” he says! |
The Bliss Catchers™ - Season 4 - June 2018
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Srikrishna Sivakumar
Although he tried being “chamathu” and went to engineering school, every day of the four years there acutely reminded Krishna that “engineering was not happening for him”. Thanks to a serendipitous opportunity that he seized, Krishna soon found himself in the legendary Kamal Hassan’s team as an apprentice assistant director. Those one-and-a-half years with the man changed Krishna’s Life – “forever”. Today, after working as an assistant on a few feature films (including Vishwaroopam I & II), he works with his wife Amitha at Red Canvas Productions making ad and corporate films. He says: “Life isn’t easy but it is fun…so much fun that I have never thought of going back to being an engineer, not even once!” Jayanth JA Flautist. Imagine learning to play the flute at age 4, from your grandfather, the great vidwan – T S Sankaran. Imagine being placed, immediately after engineering school, at an IT major – and you refusing the offer because the joining date at the job clashed with an upcoming US concert tour. Imagine telling your parents that you will earn enough from music to be independent each month – and promising them that if you fail at that deal even for a month, you will look for a job. That’s Flute Jayanth’s story. And he’s never had to look for a job in the four years that he’s been out of college. Instead he’s already a veteran solo flautist – having done over 1300 concerts! “You are confused only when there are options. I am blessed that I had no other option in Life. I was born to play the flute,” he says. |
The Bliss Catchers™ - Season 4 - May 2018
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Baradwaj Raman
Giving up a predictable corporate career, he dived deep into the world of music – exploring the illustrious legacy of his legendary grandfather, Veena S.Balachander. The result is Baradwaj’s invention, the “SarasVitar”, which is making Life simpler – without compromising on the quality of the music – for traveling musicians. But he wants to do more – and more!!! To him, ‘creation is bliss…seeing something manifest’ – whether it is a physical Veena or a melody! Anand Krishnaswamy A “nagging sense” that he was “just meandering through Life” led Anand, after completing grad school in the US and working for 13 years as a consultant, to pursue a degree in animal medicine in Sri Lanka. He finally took this “late plunge” because he simply loved being with animals. Yet, because his choice and timing have both been unconventional, he still awaits regulatory approvals to practice as a Vet. But he says, “I have no regrets. I love the journey despite all the uncertainty.” |
The Bliss Catchers™ - Season 4 - April 2018
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Deepika Arun
Innovative Educator. Founder, Jhoola Activity Centre. A graduate in bioengineering, she quit her job with a software MNC to teach. But soon her bliss of “helping children live a gadget-free Life and discover their inherent creativity” led her to set up Jhoola two years ago. She envisions a world where children are not “held hostage by technology but are free to imagine, explore and create”. Sandhiyan Thilagavathy Gender Equality Champion. His father was a painter and his mother, Thilagavathy, is a housekeeper. She raised him and got him through engineering school. But after four-and-a-half years at a software MNC, Sandhiyan quit his well-paying job to follow his bliss - “to give back, to make the world a better place.” So, he set up AWARE, a social media group that champions gender rights and equality. |
The Bliss Catchers™ - Season 4 - March 2018
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Jagyaseni Chatterjee
Dancer. With just Rs.17/- on her, Jagyaseni made Chennai her home – to realize her dream of learning and performing Bharatanatyam. Thanks to her Guru Dr. Lakshmi Ramaswamy’s selfless support, and a successful crowd-funded solo recital, Jagyaseni is making a mark in the field of dance. Her bliss is to “dance endlessly, dedicating every living minute to her Guru”. Dr.Lalita Santanam Singer. Composer. Teacher. At the age of 40, she gave up a ‘stable and secure’ government job as Administration Superintendent with the Tamil Nadu Police to follow her bliss – music. To Lalita, music is not a career option; it is a means to understanding her true Self, to be one with creation. She says she has “no goal, nothing to achieve” but is enjoying every moment that she is connected with music. |
The Bliss Catchers™ - Season 4 - February 2018
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Aparnaa Nagesh
Aparnaa is also the Founder of Madras Dance Arts. To her, being a performer is not just a career; it is an immersive experience, a way of expressing her true Self! Rajesh Gopalakrishnan Rajesh gave up his ‘comfortable’ job at a top bank to ‘quit the rat race’ and to ‘lead a meaningful, happy Life’. Owns Tamizhan Curries, a home-cooked food venuture, and runs a dairy in his backyard with 9 cows. |
The Bliss Catchers™ - Season 4 - January 2018
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Amitash Pradhan
Actor. Popular for his antagonist role in the super-hit “Velaiyilla Pattadhari”. First South Indian actor to feature in a Hollywood production – plays the lead in “Heartbeats”. Post-graduate in Electronic Media. Krishna Trilok Writer. Author of “Sharikrida” (2017) and the official biography of A.R.Rahman (releasing in mid-2018). Commerce graduate. |