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Offbeat
ventures PACESETTER
Monika Manchanda Centrespread Bling it
on
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Offbeat ventures
But times have changed. The new millennium has altered the very concept of employment as more and more opportunities are springing up which would have been scorned upon just a few years ago. Conventional job wisdom has been thrown out of the window as young people embark upon unchartered career opportunities. And those who are ready to slog it out are enjoying a new respectability and prosperity. Here’s a low down on some different — and unusual —career paths that many young people are opting for. Besides providing immense job satisfaction they are also raking in the moolah. Crowd sourcer
In the layman’s language the job is to distribute problem-solving to an undefined number of net users (crowd) by a professional (sourcer). Whereas outsourcing is to seek solutions for a problem from a specific source or a group of people, crowd sourcing is to broadcast the problem on the Internet and let anyone and everyone find a solution. Sometimes the ‘crowd’ does it for a fee and at other times it is a prize or a gift but mostly it is for social recognition and sharpening one’s knowledge while helping the crowd sourcer with solutions. Emerging media producer
The idea is to explicitly use all internet-based hardware as promotion and distribution channels. For example, if an advertisement of a camera is released on television, the same ad should also be visible to the user when he or she opens an internet site on the computer, laptop or tablet. It should be on every media even on the FM radio and print media. For this, a person has to be proficient in net browsing, and be skilful with social networking sites and be qualified in how to use them to one’s advantage so that advertisements or other issues reach the maximum number of people. Spiritual tour operator
Chains like the Taj, Sarovar, Tulip, ITC’s Fortune Park and many others are building hotels or entering into partnerships with existing ones to meet the demands of the burgeoning number of tourists on a karmic break. Besides offering comfortable accommodation and top-quality services in temple towns like Haridwar, Badrinath, Katra, Puri and Shirdi, these hotels and travel agencies usually have smart spiritual tour guides who are conversant with the sites and can take religious-minded on a guided spiritual tour. With people ready to spend megabucks these tour operators are highly paid specialists. Dog groomer
Enter the professional dog groomer, who may sometimes be the vet or a professional trained in the job. He or she would be proficient in bathing and brushing the dog, ventilating its ears by removing wax, clipping nails, giving a haircut and dexterously using a pair of scissors to clip away that extra hair between the paws to prevent skin infections. This is a high paying job with many groomers charging up to Rs 2,500 an hour and even offering specialised services like conditioning hair and coats and even dyeing and curling hair for dog shows. Most of these professionals have a long list of daily appointments and the well known ones groom 20 to 30 dogs a day. Trousseaux shopper
The trousseaux shopper would have to have good communication skills, be able to bargain and know the latest trends. She or he should consult the client and find out her likes and dislikes and guide her according to her budget so that she looks ravishing on the most important day of her life. The trousseaux shopper can expect to be paid anything between 10 and 25 per cent of the shopping budget which could run into lakhs considering what top quality bridal wear costs these days. Food curator In the corporate world, wining and dining has been elevated to an art. A well-cooked dinner is no passport to success. What is required is style which goes with it — how a table is laid, the right placement of knives, forks and spoons, a correct blend of food and drinks as also the perfect post-dinner etiquettes which would include coffee, liqueur and cigars. Cashing in on this new-found passion for culinary expertise is the food curator who helps the host lay out the 'power' meal. He or she would not just be an expert at table layouts but would have a thorough knowledge of the right chinaware and cutlery, stemware and glassware in which drinks are to be served and would also be an expert at ‘plating’. A number of corporate houses and diplomatic missions hire the services of such trained professionals to supervise arrangements for large dinner parties. Since such assignments come from high-profile clients the food artist is paid handsomely. And if the job is well done there is that vital word-of-mouth publicity that gets more contracts. Game tester
What you need is good hand and eye coordination and the concentration to play for hours. But you don’t need just to play — you need to be able to find bugs in the games and be able to explain them well. You should also be able to be very dedicated and be able to put in 70 to 80 hour weeks. If you are really serious about this high-paying job you would need to have studied animation, gaming and special-effects software and then you can go on to work at designing new games. Game developers have another avenue for work opportunities — mobile phone games. Prerequisite for a new age job With the exponential knowledge growth in every field, the brave new world is throwing up unheard of professional employment avenues and the job market is poised to change dramatically. Most of us may not have heard of cyber soldiers, DNA interpreters, nano-enabled scientists and funeral specialists but these are the emerging jobs of the future. However, whichever the profession, there would be some basic essentials each newage job would require.
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PACESETTER
Monika Manchanda
IF you think you have a dream, go chase it. At worst, you will fail but you will never regret you didn’t try”, says Monika Manchanda. A techie by background, she was busy building her career in IT companies like Nortel, Intel and Wipro after completing MCA in 1999. However, she always felt an itch to start something of her own but sometimes it becomes difficult to just break free from routine. She planned a six-month break from IT to take care of her son but six months stretched to three years. That was the time when at home, she started pursuing her hobby of cooking. Once the experiments in the kitchen increased, she started recording these on her blog. The appreciation of readers and her own passion slowly reinforced her belief that this was what she really wanted to do. The search for a name for the new venture began and Sin-a-Mon was coined. Cinnamon happens to be her favourite sweet spice and also something that is widely used in baking dishes. The term was tweaked to add signature ‘mon’ (Monika) to it. The christening had happened but the first break came when Chirag from Chaipatty (a chain of tea joints in Bangalore) was looking for someone who could supply him desserts on a regular basis and Sin-a-Mon delivered its first order. In October 2012, the first anniversary of Sin-a-Mon was celebrated with élan. Sin-a-Mon has delivered many orders, took baking workshops and spread the love of baking to many and now Monika has a brilliant apprentice working with her. Sin-a-Mon is a small boutique home baking startup. Says Monika, “While I was growing up, I remember my mom making those tutty fruity cakes for us by baking these in the cooker and how excited we would be seeing those cakes. I think the interest in baking was really sparked at that time. As I grew up the interest grew with me but I really explored baking fully once I took a break from my work. I started baking almost every week which soon became almost daily”, Monika recounts. She did confront challenges of this trade ranging from setup costs, infrastructure to bringing in the best quality raw material for the perfect end result. After having seen her sweet goodies adding sweetness in people’s lives, she knows she is on the right path. Her deep love for baking fuels her creative juices and she has always tried to think beyond the standard. “Spreading the love of baking to all and bringing home baking to everyone, can there be better joy?”, signs off Monika.
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CENTRESPREAD
A scarf is the perfect outerwear accompaniment that can add pizzaz to any outfit from the little black dress to a business suit or to your favorite shirt — and — jeans outfit. Striking a great medium between modishness and good sartorial taste, the scarf and its derivatives are all set to be major couture enhancements in 2013. “A scarf is the most versatile accessory,” says global fashion diva Donna Karan, who is well known for her cashmere and silk blanket scarves that she designs in collaboration with nomadic artists. Karan says that scarves can redefine your look and create styles that are dressy, casual, professional, sophisticated, sporty or sizzling. Besides the designer clothes, the right kind of scarf or muffler is crucial for turning the charismatic needle from zip to hip. Gone are the days when the fashionable lot considered the scarf as a formal dress accessory. Today, it is becoming an important part of the evening wear, essential both in summers and winters. The reason is simple. Even as fashion changes, scarves never go out of style. That’s because these are no longer a staid and stiff accompaniment but come forward as a vibrant fashion statement. Fashion essential Says Delhi fashion designer Sakshi Behl, “Scarves are becoming a fashion essential to a wardrobe as these create that perfect and sophisticated look. These add character to an ensemble, making it come alive and look complete!” According to Behl, “Retro styles and fabrics are back with a wide range of prints, textures and colours. A scarf compliments Indian, western and Indo-western outfits and makes an excellent conversation piece. If you want to go Indian, then opt for a Rajasthani motif”. Colour and design Until recently, the scarf market was characterised only by colour and design. “It was basically impulse buying because the customer really didn’t know what he or she was looking for,” says image consultant Vidur Nayyar. He adds, “Over the years, people have become more discerning and sophisticated in their choices and know what scarf to buy and for which occasion.” A wide array of designs, colours, sizes and prices are available in the domestic market. Many leading companies and designers come out with their exclusive collections at the beginning of every season. In summer, the fabrics are cotton, linen, cashmere and pashmina and, in winters, these are silk and wool. While in the international market, there’s a great demand for silk scarves, in India, it is divided equally between silk and polyester. “Since the trend of printed neckwear came to India, the demand has increased, and hence, the production,” says Nayyar. Most designers say that a scarf adds to a person’s personality. If worn with the right attitude, it can look as striking on men as women. It draws much more attention to the wearer’s personality than any other accessory. Scarf-wrapped skirt One of the most important components of a Donna Karan collection this year is the scarf-wrapped skirt. She says that there’s a certain power associated with wearing a scarf variation. “The scarf changes your entire look. Suddenly your appearance brightens up.” Hollywood star Eva Longoria agrees and says, “I’m not averse to being tied up in beautiful silk scarves!” Indeed, scarves are a versatile style statement and can be worn in a variety of ways. Just use your imagination! These are a wonderful gift to give and receive. So be sure to match your designer clothes with a trendy scarf to further polish that au courant image and make you stand out as a style guru.
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Scarves are no longer a staid and stiff accompaniment but come forward as a vibrant fashion statement. A scarf or a muffler can redefine your look and create styles that are dressy, casual, professional, sophisticated, sporty or sizzling
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The crowd sourcer is person (usually an employee of a company) whose job is to find people on the Internet to solve problems. It could be in the form of surveys where feedback is required or getting opinion from unknown people on various issues.
This is truly a new age job that involves creating cross-media content. Basically it is the marriage of digital convergence, personal computing and global networking. The person would have to find all kind of new news or advertising carriers in the digital world like computers, laptops, tablets, mobiles, television and converge them all to create one seamless content.
With spiritual tourism growing by leaps and bounds and people ready to spend big money on comforts, a number of leading hotels and travel agencies are employing qualified young tour operators specialising in spiritual sites.
Having a dog as a pet is one of the most rewarding experiences, but it is much more than an occasional walk around the block or teaching it to shake hands. There are many other responsibilities that one must keep in mind. Hygiene of the dog is a challenging task.
Organising a wedding can be stressful. If the bride-to-be is working she simply does not have time to go shopping for her trousseaux. Even a diehard shopaholic knows that it is not easy to get what you want. Enter the trousseaux shopper, who is familiar with shops, tailors, designers and suppliers of accessories, including jewellery, bags, shoes and anything else the bride needs.
You love sitting in front of the monitor and playing games -- computer or video games or those on consoles like the Xbox or Play Station. If you have been chided by your parents for spending
hours playing online games, this is the time to think of turning it into a viable career option. And you can do it from India as well since working online has made the world a smaller and more accessible place.
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STELLA MCCARTNEY LEOPARD PRINT
JIL SANDER Cool cASHMERE
DOLCE & GABBANA DEEP RED TARTAN SCARF
BURBERRY TARTAN pattern
LANVIN DARK RED SILK Style
VERSACE Timeless appeal
HERMES VINTAGE SILK
OSCAR DE LA RENTA BOY SCOUT
ZADIG & VOLTAIRE JERSEY Style
FENDI FOULARD fashion
BOTTEGA VENETA LINEN SCARF
ALEXANDER McQUEEN SKULL scarf
GUCCI DIAMANTE PATTERN MUFFLER
What’s a beach vacation without cool underwater pictures? Now you can do that without having to wear a diving suit and paddling off into the deep blue. The HydroView is an iPad-controlled underwater mini-submarine with an attached camera and LED light that does all of the underwater work for you. The camera can also work without the mini-sub and can be attached to the end of any standard boathook and can take excellent underwater pictures while you sit comfortably in the boat. It can also be controlled via any android phone or laptop. So next time you are on a vacation, take the gadget with you and impress your friend with ‘your’ stunning underwater pictures.
It's a camera that packs a versatile punch. The Sony DSC-RX1 is specifically designed for travel and street photography as well as portraits and day-to-day shooting. It has a 35mm full-frame sensor and wide aperture F2 fixed-focal lens. It offers the quality of professional DSLR cameras right to the very edges of each photo frame. Full manual control options are complemented by intuitive operation, making it easy for photo enthusiasts to realise their creative vision that is, if they don’t mind the steep price tag.
It was a common sight in the 1980s and 1990s. Now an iPhone app is all set to bring back the nostalgia. The iRetroPhone application lets you dial like people did in the last century. The app puts a rotary-style dialling apparatus on your iPhone screen so you can experience an earlier era communication at its best. The distinctive sound and need for patience are the hallmark of this app. It is a recreation of an earlier day technology that is guaranteed to remind you of simpler times when technology was analogue, uncomplicated and innocent.
This pen that will make your handwriting glitter. The Graf von Faber-Castell Diamond Edition Fountain Pen is so exclusive that it is in a limited edition of ten. The hand-crafted jewelled masterpiece is made primarily of ancient wetland oak with the structure of each block of wood captured and cast in solid gold. Two Brazilian Madeira citrines are featured in both the cap and end-cap. It is decorated with 60 diamonds totalling 4.6 carats. The metal parts are 24k gold-plated and the nib is 18k gold. The pen comes in a presentation box of deep black high-gloss lacquered wood and makes a perfect gift for someone you dearly love.
Living the vita di lusso is not just about being in designer suits, it is also about your attitude. Italian luxury brand Antonio Bernini has created a benchmark with its new watch collection called the Ocean Series. The new collection effortlessly merges the element of luxury and lifestyle. Crafted for a well-heeled man with a discerning taste for life’s very best, the Ocean Series inspired by the magnitude of the sea is a compilation of exquisite timepieces built to withstand high-levels of water-pressure of up to 300 meters below sea level. So, next time you go deep sea diving, don’t forget to wear this watch.
The Nottage Design pool table is surely not for a minimalist games room. It blends ultra modern styling and innovative designing. Made of glass and covered by a transparent surface, it replicates the feel of a traditional cloth-topped version. Besides looking stunning, it provides a stylish alternative to a normal pool table. And the added advantage: Glass is naturally very rigid and flat and isn’t prone to sagging or warping. And since it is glass, you can make and create a spectacular effect with some overhead lighting.
Next time you want to renovate your bedroom and have spare megabucks lying in your bank account, look no further than Lalique Maison. The luxury brand offers an entire bedroom revamp. Right from the handcrafted bed and linen to cashmere throws and cushions embroidered in glass beads, it is sheer luxury all around. The collection of furniture and accessories crafted in Italy and France includes console, lamps, mirror and even a cigar box. Each piece bridges the gap between vintage and contemporary and is befitting a discerning connoisseur.
A DESIGNER RAISES A TOAST
If you have a refined palette for delicacies — and a thick wallet — try out the Beluga caviar. The salted and matured eggs from the Beluga — the largest of all sturgeons (now endangered), are found in the Caspian Sea. It is the quintessential luxury food and the most sought after for its delicate flavour. The colour of the eggs can range between light grey to almost entirely black, with the lighter colour caviar being the one appreciated most by refined palettes. So, if you are a carnivore, go ahead and splurge on the Beluga caviar and flaunt style, class and wealth all at once.