Turning passion into a business: How the pandemic spawned solopreneurs

The socioculturaleconomic impact of the lockdown has been and will continue to be analysed and discussed for decades to come Whatrsquos also interesting is the psychological and behavioural changes that are being seen across the world With an unprecedented amount of leisure time on their hands many people turned to their hobbies and discovered passions old and new ndash be it gardening or baking sourdough It is not a surprise that enterprising individuals furthered their passions and started businesses MidDaycom spoke to three inspiring women who monetised their passion projectsAbstract customisationPR professional by day and artist by passion Sakina Gandhi started Project Inkart in May 2021 PicSakina GandhiPublic relations professional Sakina Gandhi uses alcohol ink to make abstract art out of the ordinary The Mazgaon resident is the founder of Project Inkartmdasha small business that customises coffee mugs and tea cups ldquoI have always been a creative person as a young girl whose notebooks were always filled with sketches and doodles and as an adult who loves abstract painting with acrylic and watercolours Art has always been very therapeutic and healing for me I love watching the colours flow and merge giving rise to new types of shades and shapesrdquoSpeaking of her experiences during the lockdown Gandhi says ldquoThe lockdown was extremely challenging owing to the intense work hours and increased family responsibilities At the same time I discovered alcohol ink art on YouTube and was absolutely enamoured with it I wanted to try it immediately and was thrilled after my first attempt which was followed by some serious research Today I can confidently say that I have read up and tried everything on the internet relating to alcohol art After spending innumerable hours on reading I started inventing my own techniquesrdquoAfter her husband nudged her to start posting her works on Instagram she started receiving a tremendous response which motivated her ldquoWhen I founded Project Inkart I discovered another side of myself one that is fuelled and constantly energised in a pursuit to be better I started in May 2021 with just one wall clock and three mugs I could never have believed that 6 months later I would have close to 6000 followers and have made a significant amount of sales through Instagram It feels amazing to see people on Instagram loving and appreciating my workrdquoStarting a small business during the pandemic is not easy ldquoThe journey has had its share of ups and downs I was constantly trying to innovate and try new techniques that have not been done before The products you see before you are a result of countless hours of trial and error After multiple attempts and several broken cups I have been able to finally perfect my artImparting valuable advice to budding entrepreneurs who want to chase their passion Gandhi concludes ldquoPeople with great passion can make the impossible happen Believe in yourself and your skills and more importantly take that leap of faith which will get you out of your comfort zonerdquoCollaborative creationKosha cofounded Mitti a collaborative space for artists in November 2021 PicKosha ShahThirtyfouryearold Kosha Shah is an illustrator and cofounder of Mittimdasha coworking and collaborative space for ceramicists artists and designers ldquoMy passion has always been to create something As I grew up mediums have been changing but the urge to create has not I am a multidisciplinary artist that dabbles with different mediums and fields I illustrate with pencils watercolours soft pastels digital tablets and off late with ceramics too This urge to create also led me to start a space of my own that is called Mitti and a brand of my own called Oshkosh Paper DesignsrdquoThe lockdown enabled her to spend more time pursuing her passion during which Mitti was born ldquoI have always been in the creativefield but Irealised I need to create an identity of my own The idea turned into reality during the lockdown which gave me much more time and freedom to add finesse to my work which was not possible earlier I wanted to create a brand of my own that would also satiate the hunger of artistic abilities All I had to do was find a bridge between what was in my head and reality The lockdown helped me plan things and put them in perspectiverdquoBeing an artist Shah realised the importance of a dedicated space for creative people to interact and create ldquoPeople require a safe haven of a kind to do their best work That is where the idea of my coworking space was born There are many coworking spaces for the corporate sector but none for the art sector and thus that idea gave birth to Mittimdash a space which artists designers ceramicists can hire for their practice and to work on their skillHer journey from an artist fuelled by passion to someone who turned it into a feasible business has been rewarding ldquoInitially I never pursuedmy passion so it could turn into money Whenclients started approaching me to turn my illustrationsinto commercialartworks thats when I realised that art along with being unique also had a commercial aspect to it We just started Mitti in November 2021 and wersquore yet to see how much money it makes but it definitely does give me joy to have a space that can create a beautiful community Taking that leap of faith will certainly help you sleep peacefully knowing you are pursuing a passion that gives you complete joyrdquoWriting her ownTrained in calligraphy Pooja picked up a calligraphy pen after seven years to eventually start Ink n Bliss PicPooja Manohar BhagwatPooja Manohar Bhagwat started Ink n Blissmdasha calligraphy and design studiomdashbroke away from monotonous corporate work to pursue her unrelenting love of calligraphy ldquoSince childhood I was very particular about good handwriting and had a keen interest in arts I completed my graduation in arts and learnt calligraphy frommy talented teachers but after completing my studies I started working with advertising agencies I got caught up in the busy schedule strict deadlines an almost 24x7 working culture and started losing interest I turned to calligraphy after 7 to 8 years which felt enticing and liberatingrdquoThe Borivali residentrsquos studio provides custom calligraphy services for luxury brands corporates weddings and events During the lockdown she invested time in bettering her skills ldquoI got the time to work on my skills during the pandemic Many master calligraphers started teaching online so I invested that time in learning new scripts and honing my skills through daily practicerdquoTalking about how passion fuels her work Bhagwat shares ldquoI think passion is not actually a side hustle itrsquos in our blood 24x7 You just need to channelise it in a way where you can earn a living and can satisfy your soul too Planning is a key step followed by learning it never stops Learning and exploring new things is a part of the processrdquoThe challenges of following onersquos passion are many similar to the rewards ldquoThere are going to be moments of despair loneliness frustration in your journey but if you keep yourself inspired things will start turning in your favour The biggest benefit of passion is you love what you do and that will keep you on track all the time Just know that there is no right time there is just time and what you choose to do with itrdquoAlso ReadBraving layoffs Mental health experts on how to retain hope after losing a job