Samar Mehdi, a performer, and songwriter recently joined NewsX for a musical conversation as a part of NewsX Influencer A-list. In the exclusive interview with us on NewsX Influencer A-List, Samar Mehdi shared his journey of making music, dealing with rejections and creating a one-man band.

Samar started off by talking about the initial stage of his journey where he faced major rejections and how he turned that into motivation. “I emulate the sounds of a bunch of instruments on a guitar and as most things in my life, it was motivated by rejection and that’s a part of music life. What I did with rejection was, I tried to make it work with 2-3 bands in my life. Not being able to be in a band made me so angry and that’s when I said to myself that if I can’t be in a band, I will be a band. That’s where it started for me”, he said.

Speaking about the process of emulation, the songwriter exclaimed, “This is frequency thing. Like keyboards, when you want to make them work, count the melodies. By now, I know that a base guitar and the rhythm section can create harmony in the background. I also realised that an acoustic guitar is a very complete instrument. It has so many possibilities. I genuinely had the tendency towards emulating this kind of stuff from the beginning.”

When asked if his social media journey and his stage journey have grown simultaneously, he positively responded and said, “They definitely went hand in hand. Honestly, there’s no such thing as virality for Indie music. Someone has to really bless us for that.” He jokingly said that their virality is that their neighbour knows them.

Samar then spoke about his journey towards fame and said, “The first taste of semi-virality was when I stopped making music for a year. The hunger and the longingness to feel the magic of music bought me close to this style of music. I used to play guitar and make music in a regular way, but this break inspired me to create music in this different format.”

He further shared, “The first song I created was ‘Azzad’, which is very symbolic to where I was in my personal journey. I hadn’t been on social media for a while. I posted a message along with it sharing my journey of hardships and that created a wave of support that actually changed my life. Bosses of my friends from different cities recognised me and that’s when I realised that there are endless possibilities if you take that leap and there after I got opportunities to play, and I’ve been growing as a performer and composer ever since”.

Sharing his mantra to handle pressure, Samar said, “At the beginning, the whole reason why I started this, began blurring. It was because I started getting affected by opinions. I realised that if I sit with the wrong intention, the music just doesn’t come. I took a step back and reassessed why I started this. I want to keep my process honest. It is very human to get affected by opinions. The moment that awareness comes in, it’s important to grab hold of it. In this beautiful journey, I believe, my fans are my gifts. The days when I feel unmotivated, this love and fire motivates me to make more music. I have been saved by music, that’s how it started for me. My connect with magic in this world has been music”.

On a concluding note, Samar advised all the budding artists who are still figuring their way to just take the leap in life.

Check out the entire interview on NewsX YouTube:

Music content creator Anoushka Maskey recently joined NewsX for a candid conversation as part of NewsX Influencer A-List. In the exclusive interview, Anoushka opened up about her journey so far, social media, content creation and much more. Read excerpts.

Speaking about her journey and what brought her into the music industry, Anoushka said, “Music for me was something that I saw myself doing just as a hobby. I was never in an environment that gave me the belief that I could pursue it as a profession. All through school and college, I was in bands. I used to sing and just do cover songs. It was only when I pursued a career path that was in corporate that I realised it is something that I don’t want to do at all. It was the realisation of how badly I didn’t want to do everything else. That made me focus on what actually meant the most to me. For me, it was been backwards. Instead of pursuing music as a career first and going about from there, it was about pursuing other forms of things first and then coming backwards and realising what my heart actually wanted.”

On being asked what she prefers amongst performing live gigs and content creating, she responded, “There are pros and cons with both. Let me start with content creating. Building a persona online is a lot more work than people attribute it. I can speak for myself. For example, I am recording a cover song. I obviously want the setting to be perfect. I want the frame to look good, I want me to look nice in the lighting and I want my voice to sound good. Sometimes you can get in your head a lot. Even if something is actually good, you may not see it because you have these incredibly high standards and expectations for yourself. Because you are in the comfort of your home and you have the freedom to record it however many times as you want, it becomes a loop. You are like you know what, I can change this. Out of 5 minutes, 1 minute I don’t like so I will record the entire thing again. Instead of becoming fun, it becomes something taxing so that is something incredibly important to look at. Don’t let it tire you out. “

“Whereas, when it is live, there is obviously the nervousness. For me, the biggest nervousness with performing live is about not forgetting my lyrics. I have a horrible memory. I always keep forgetting the lyrics, especially my own songs. The thing with live is that you have got one chance. You get out there, you do it. Whether it is good or it is not, it is just what happens in the moment and you don’t have the headache of doing it over and over again. I think both have their perks and both have their pros and cons”, she added.

In an attempt to empower and uplift women across, LIP(c) Ladies In Power has been launched to establish a community cum business consultation platform where women can feel a sense of community with other female professionals and entrepreneurs, learn better accountability and feel motivated about their future endeavours.

The platform works with a group of successful leaders who have made their mark in their industry. One can access this group of lady leaders from all around the world. These leaders offer you motivational, entrepreneurial and life skills content that you can access from wherever you are. Yes, you too can build an empire from the comfort of your home. Founder of LIP(c) Ladies In Power, Lady Charlotte is a visionary young entrepreneur who has launched the platform in order to provide a chance to express themselves and experience equal opportunities in society. A happily married mother of 5, the tips and guidelines offered at LIP(c) Ladies In Power are closely related to the instructions Lady Charlotte applied in her own life to reach the pinnacle of success. Through LIP(c) Ladies in Power, she wants to enable other ladies like herself to succeed in their life’s efforts.

Speaking about her venture, founder Lady Charlotte says, “As the pandemic insisted people to stay confined to their homes, people all across started sharing their feelings and emotions and open talking and motivation were more accepted among people. As a result, we decided to launch this platform to help women overcome their challenges faced throughout the pandemic. Being able to talk to people has always come naturally to me. I am able to listen with genuine empathy and understanding from what I am being told. My children have taught me patience, which is something I didn’t always have”.

“Helping other women find their power and seeing so many grow and blossom. Travelling the world and meeting so many ladies is so rewarding to me. Raising awareness for abuse and trauma unlocking the pattern and changing the stereotypes. I hope my own journey is one that can give hope and inspiration to ladies that need some light hope. If I can turn my life around and juggle so much, so can so many, she further added, expressing her gratitude towards women across the globe.

In a facilitation ceremony organised by ex-servicemen in Dehradun in November 2021, Uttarakhand Governor, Lt. Gen. Gurmit Singh (Retd.), shared his vision of empowering Uttarakhand and focusing on rural rejuvenation, women empowerment, youth employment and uplifting the ex-servicemen and their families staying in rural areas.

During this event, the ex-servicemen requested the team of Rashtriya Sainik Sansthan to implement a project in medicine in rural areas involving ex-servicemen and their families, as it is the need of the hour. At that time the seed for inception of this project was sown. In a board meeting of Rashtriya Sainik Sansthan, it was concluded to launch projects in four key areas in Uttarakhand – Health, Education, Environment and Technology in phases. It was decided to launch an AI-based project in telemedicine – Jan Mitr in first phase. “Jan-Mitr” will be an ex-serviceman or his family member who will be trained to provide door-to-door service to rural people to connect them to a doctor through an app online, free of cost.

These health warriors, both men and women will be given comprehensive training and provided with a medical kit (free of cost) that will enable them to provide support to patients by measuring their temperature, sugar, blood pressure, etc, and sharing their parameters with a doctor online for their diagnosis. These “Jan Mitrs” will be provided a basic remuneration for their services. A mobile number will be assigned and circulated in the village for the people to contact them. Training of “Jan Mitrs” for a pilot project is being scheduled in Uttarakhand.

On 16 November 2021, a team of Rashtriya Sainik Sansthan comprising Major Sushil Goel (National convenor and AI Expert), Dr. Anupama Lakhera (President Education and Health Uttarakhand) together with Profs. Jyotirmoy Goswami (President, West Bengal Chapter) and Soumyajit Roy (Vice-President, West Bengal Chapter) met Governor of Uttarakhand – Lt. Gen. Gurmit Singh (Retd.) to share their vision of introducing numerous projects in Uttarakhand in four core areas. During this enriching discussion, the concept of the project on telemedicine – Jan Mitr with value-added Artificial Intelligence enabled systems, by Rashtriya Sainik Sansthan was discussed with the Governor of Uttarakhand.

In keeping with the vision of the Governor of Uttarakhand to reach out to the farthest district and last village through Veterans and Sainiks, subsequently, numerous other projects will be launched for education, health, environment and technology for the upliftment of underprivileged in rural areas including ex-servicemen and their families. Projects related to ESD (Employability-based Skill Development), agri-based projects promoting Agripreneurship, and various other projects are in the pipeline to be launched subsequently.

Covid-19 pandemic was the epitome of a disastrous and chaotic global event. The pandemic forced a complete stop and an overhaul of lives all at the same time. Future was no longer concrete, and everything that we as human beings considered secure began exposing dangerous vulnerabilities.

Initially, people thought that the insidious nature of the disease that makes the very act of breathing impossible was the only danger. But what made the pandemic truly devastating was the ripple effect that cascaded loss and suffering to everyone in the world regardless of the circumstances. It affected the very livelihood of the people. Companies that did not have the resources to enact a plan of action were burdened with unimaginable loss, forcing them to shut down forever.

It affected people so profoundly that no one truly knows how to move on or come back from it. The only way to ensure that all the loss and suffering yields something productive is by deducing from our mistakes and ensuring we don’t repeat them. Here are ten tips that CEOs need to keep in mind to operate in the new normal:

Empathy Matters: The pandemic was a grave reminder for not just CEOs but for everyone that life is precious. Every life counts, and it opens many leaders’ eyes to the emotional toll their employees are going through. The pandemic humanised the workforce, and they became something more relatable. The most effective way to ensure that operations continue is by connecting with them, giving them a reason to work, and ensuring that no one encounters burnout due to intense pressure.

Communicate: One of the effective ways of assuring the employees that they are protected and put a rest to their fears is by actively and honestly communicating with them. No one ever followed a leader that refused to talk. It was the greatest orators that always had the most loyal followers. Establish an open line of communication and keep the employees apprised of the situation. Good or bad, an organisation is not made by one person. Every person has a role, and communication is key to reminding them of that.

BCP Needs to be Modified: The pandemic was an unprecedented disaster. To ensure that all employees are protected and operations continue in the Business-as-usual model. The pandemic was a stark reminder that one could not prepare for all eventualities, but investing in the right technologies and ensuring a seamless transition of operations to the online workspace provides leaders much-needed time to strategise while ensuring they don’t haemorrhage resources.

Prioritise Clients & Vendors: Yes, all clients are important. But when push comes to shove, it is smart to provide comprehensive service to high-tier and loyal clients rather than struggle to balance a large but unhappy clientele. The same applies to vendors. As a leader, you have to lock down the most crucial vendors to ensure minimal disruption.

Build a Resilient Supply Chain: Supply chain is necessary for sustainability. During the pandemic, when quarantine became the norm, the importance of the supply chain was greatly realised by businesses across all sectors. A resilient and adaptable supply chain is crucial to ensure operational capability during a crisis.

Silo-Agile Teams are Key: Instead of one large teamwork on one large project. It is more efficient and reliable to dissect the project and have smaller teams work on various aspects. This ensures that even if one team encounters a situation where they cannot continue, the overall project continues to be worked on. This greatly reduces delays and cancellations.

Address The Evolving Consumer Needs: People were forced indoors, and their PDAs became their once source of contact to the outside world. This fostered a shift in consumer preferences who now prefer a large chunk of their activities to be done online in safety and the comfort of their home. This means that businesses need to concentrate on an online presence and provide them with products that would be beneficial during their quarantine period. Regardless of what the industry was when the company’s very survival is questioned, CEOs need to step up and take the company in a direction that resonates with their customer base.

Re-Evaluate Marketing Strategies: Digital marketing became one of the most crucial parameters that contributed to the sustenance of the company. As aforementioned, prospective consumers were forced to spend a lot more time online than offline. This means that businesses need to connect with them online. As a result, CEOs of today need to focus on their digital marketing strategy and produce SEO content, social media ad campaigns, or adhere to any other prominent digital marketing technique.

Invest in a Reliable Virtual Platform: Virtual space became a safe space. Whether it’s a business meeting, an informal meeting, or shopping, or just about any other activity can now be conducted online using reliable virtual platforms. CEOs need to prioritise investing in a virtual platform that is cloud compatible and even performs like a commercial platform to their consumers.

Invest in Data-centric Tech: Every data is valuable in this information-loaded era. Especially during a pandemic, whether it’s business analytics, sentiment analytics, or general predictive analytics, it remains true that comprehensive analysis of data can reveal key intelligence that is valuable to build effective and, at times, foolproof business strategies.

There is no debate that the Covid-19 pandemic has probably been the single most catastrophic disaster the entire globe has met together. We could have never survived this pandemic without the tireless work and help of first responders, healthcare professionals, and emergency personnel.

Irrespective of the circumstances, no matter how exigent, the only way to stop progress is to refuse to evolve with the changes. If observed with a positive attitude and clear enough hindsight, every challenge or obstacle would serve as the ideal teachable moment. The one sure positive takeaway from the pandemic is that we are no longer ill-prepared to meet similar and much worse scenarios now.

The author is CEO and Founder at Proxgy.

Companies that didn’t have the resources to enact a plan of action were burdened with unimaginable loss.

Actress Taapsee Pannu recently joined NewsX for a insightful conversation as part of NewsX India A-List. In the interview, she spoke about her latest film “Rashmi Rocket” that throws light on the issue of gender testing in sports. In the exclusive conversation, Taapsee spoke about how she handled the tough or uncomfortable scenes in the movie, how gender testing impact players and much more. Excerpts:

Speaking about the factors that convinced her to play “Rashmi Rocket”, Taapsee said, “Two reasons: first was I love sports. I love to follow sports. For me, sports stars are real heroes. I am in awe of them, so when I got to know about this particular testing, how it has only been done on females, it was shocking for me that someone like me, who loves sports so much, had no clue about something so crazy happening even till date.”

Sharing insights on the practice of gender testing across the world, she said, “Yes, this happening all over the world. Even in the last Tokyo Olympics, there were two Namibian players, who were banned because of same-gender testing. As an actor, I can only use my medium to bring about a certain kind of awareness and discussions. I can’t assure that the change will happen. It is not like after ‘Pink’, the molestation or rapes stopped. It is not like after ‘Thappad’, the domestic violence stopped. However, at least the conversions started. The topic became a mainstream or dining table conversation, not just keeping it under wraps.”

When asked about how she is able to handle these tough scenes in her films, she responded, “I’ve been living with this script through the lockdown. Actually, it has been in my head since I heard it in 2018, so it has been there in my head since then. As I just told you, I was so shocked to hear that this still happens. When the script came in my hand and the screenplay was ready, we were in early 2020. Since then, I’ve been living with it at the back of my head, so I was already mentally prepared to dive into it. How to get rid of it was like, as an actor, you feel a sense of accomplishment if it affects you in real, if it actually makes me pause and take a little while to get back to reality. That means I have done a decent job doing it, so that happens doing that job. I have felt it inside, it mean the camera would have captured it. So, that sense of happiness helps me get out of it because then I feel, ‘okay, I did my job, I did what was in my hands to push this topic out, now let’s be ready to see what the audience does’, so that happiness makes me get out of the role.”