In this issue

In our cover story, we have featured three such entities and the young men and women behind them: Ashish Goel of Urban Ladder, whose customer-centric approach and commitment to quality have turned Urban Ladder into a leading furniture retail brand; Neetish Sarda of Smartworks, who is redefining India’s corporate environment by creating the best in agile workspaces; and Rashmi Daga of FreshMenu, whose on-demand fine-dining food business continues to soar in popularity as a portal for innovative dishes and gourmet food that is delivered at the doorstep. Kailash Kumar Kanoria, the founder and executive chairman of the Mumbai-based TCPL Packaging Limited, epitomises the commendable Marwari traits of entrepreneurship and philanthropy. Hindi movie fans may number in millions, but few can match Dhruv Somani’s undying fascination for Bollywood films, especially those belonging to the suspense, horror and thriller genres. The textile baron has penned a four-volume anthology titled A Touch of Evil that celebrates over 300 such films. Switzerland-based research scientist Dr Rajendra Joshi, who is credited with developing several therapeutic drugs, has embarked upon a new mission: developing India’s vast talent pool through various skill development initiatives. Read about the indefatigable octogenarian and his wife Ursula, who have established a skill development university in Jaipur, a charitable foundation and the RUJ Group of companies. Traditional roles have often led to disparity in the recognition and status accorded to Marwari women. Though progress made by women in various fields have made a difference, a lot remains to be done. Keeping in mind International Women’s Day, celebrated on March 8 every year, in Marwar Perspectives, we bring you viewpoints from eminent Marwaris on how they feel about the changing dynamics of Marwari womanhood. With all this and more, we bring you yet another interesting issue of MARWAR.

Solutions In A Box

As entrepreneur, philanthropist, culture aficionado and Honorary Consul of the Kingdom of Morocco, Kailash Kumar Kanoria’s responsibilities go beyond overseeing Mumbai-based TCPL Packaging Limited, of which he is the founder and executive chairman. But considering his advanced age, he does it all with surprising agility and finesse.

6 mins

Chills Thrills And Spooks

Hindi movie fans may well run into millions, but few can match Dhruv Somani’s fascination for Bollywood flicks. It has not just seen the aficionado watch numerous films, but also painstakingly collect memorabilia of hundreds of films since childhood. Somani’s enchantment, however, revolves largely around the suspense, horror and thriller genres— unconventional and independent-minded that he is—and this fascination continues to this day. Now a textile baron and father of three, his passion has led him to pen a four-volume anthology of over 300 films that was unveiled recently at The St Regis, in Mumbai. Titled A Touch of Evil and published by Spenta Multimedia Pvt Ltd, the series captures the essence of the suspense, horror and thriller genres over a seven-decade period, celebrating both landmark and little-known films. Enlivened with over 500 colourful images of posters, lobby cards and press books and peppered with interesting trivia, A Touch of Evil provides synopses, casts and credits of numerous films, making it a must-have for movie lovers, researchers, collectors and information seekers. In a Q&A with MARWAR, Somani talks about his business, his huge fascination for horror and suspense films, his family and more.

5 mins

Man With A Mission

Dr Rajendra Joshi is credited with developing several therapeutic drugs, including the well-known Fumaderm and Tecfidera (BG 12). The research scientist, who has spent most of his life in Switzerland, has now turned his attention to developing India’s vast talent pool through various skill development initiatives.

5 mins

Up The Ladder Of Success

Ashish Goel’s brilliant academic background, successful stints in multinationals and the ability to build businesses point to an inner drive to excel. But what’s most amazing about the electrical engineer is his feat of outshining in a line in which he had no prior knowledge or experience! Meet the cofounder and CEO of Urban Ladder, the country’s fastest growing furniture retailing brand.

4 mins

Redefining Workspaces

Smartworks is redefining the Indian corporate environment by combining design, ambience, hospitality and technology to create the best agile workspaces. As the only home-grown, and profitable, workspace provider, the two-and-a-half-year-old start-up is currently engaged in addressing a two-pronged, unmet need of providing cost-effective and hasslefree workspaces, while enhancing productivity through employee satisfaction—in keeping with its motto ‘Workspaces that work for you’. Meet Neetish Sarda, Smartworks’ visionary founder and leader.

3 mins

Freshening Up The Menu

Rashmi Daga forayed into the food business in 2014. Within these few years, she has transformed her start-up, FreshMenu, into one of the leading food-tech companies in India, that services around 20,000 orders a day, through close to 40 cloud kitchens. The spirited entrepreneur takes MARWAR through her journey.

5 mins

Kolkata Soiree

Aditya Mehta of White Castle Hospitality is changing the nightlife scene in the City of Joy, adding one restaurant at a time to spice it up.

4 mins

The Drape Queen

Dolly Jain, who has veritably elevated saree draping to an art, has brought smiles to many a celebrity and topnotch socialite with her refreshingly new and contemporary silhouettes. Meet the Kolkata housewife who has not only achieved the record-breaking feat of draping a saree in 325 ways, but also draping one in 18 ½ seconds flat!

4 mins

Immersed In Music

Vasundhara Gupta literally eats, sleeps and breathes music. A professional sound designer, sound editor and vocalist, she has worked on several films under awardwinning sound designer and post-production mixer, David Van Slyke, apart from producing her own extended play record, One.

4 mins

Racing Against The Odds

October to April in Mumbai is sailing season. At the end of April, we will celebrate the winner of the Bombay Merchants Cup (BMC) Regatta, where luxury yachts will compete for the much sought-after Gurkha Cigars Trophy.

3 mins

Read all stories from MARWAR India

MARWAR India Magazine Description:

Marwar is a community-based magazine with an emphasis on profiling the best and the brightest in the Marwari community. The magazine reaches the elite in India and abroad who want to read and discover the wonders of all things connected with the community. Thus, the subjects featured have to have the flavour of Marwar and Rajasthan—its culture, lifestyle and traditions. We highlight arts, crafts, music, dance and theatre as well as fashion and food that are connected to the region apart from immensely successful businessmen and businesswomen. In the past, luminaries like Laxmi Mittal, Abhishek Manu Singhvi, Indu Jain, Sanjiv Goenka and Rajashree Birla, to name a few, have graced our cover.