Vaishali Shadangule: From Small-Town Teenager To Successful Fashion Designer In Paris

October 7, 20213 Minutes
Success Stories

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Coming from the small town of Vidisha in Madhya Pradesh, Vaishali had a lot of dreams for herself.

But this restricted all of her goals because she had no exposure to the outside world. She had never seen city life. She did not even have a television in her house.

None of these things could stop her. Today, Vaishali is a successful designer who has her fashion boutiques. She is also the first Indian woman designer to present her designs at the Paris Fashion Week.

With her collection 'SHWAS' that means 'breath'. She was the first woman designer and an international guest designer invited by the Federation de la Haute Couture et de la Mode to showcase their brand's couture collection at the event.

From a small-town teen to a well-known fashion designer

Vaishali gathered all her savings, and with a loan of Rs 50,000, she opened her first boutique in Mumbai.

Within ten years, Vaishali opened two more boutiques, completed her graduation, and then even post-graduation in fashion!

Second-hand clothes: The first step towards a successful career in designing

As a child, Vaishali rarely got to wear new clothes. Most of her clothes were old. Worn by her elder sister and then passed down to Vaishali when they became old.

Once they were of no use, her parents used to recycle them. Vaishali's family tried to save money. All that could be used again was reused or recycled.

Not a single cloth at her home was wasted. They made curtains and tablecloths from these old clothes. This creative and intelligent way of recycling clothes and designing something new from them was Vaishali's first-ever inspiration for designing -- Something she would later build her career based on this idea.

Clothes in her backpack and beautiful dreams in her eyes.

Vaishali realised that she could not achieve her dreams by staying in the village.

So she left her house and went to Bhopal. All she had with her was a backpack of clothes and dreams in her eyes.

She stayed at the hostel and took a job at a builder's office as an office assistant.

While working, she used to give fashion advice to her colleagues. She saw that people liked what she suggested. Some used to come back to her and thank her for her advice. This motivated her to think about fashion designing as a career option.

Vaishali knew that just giving advice or having basic knowledge of fashion wouldn't do her any good. She needed to have a proper education and degree to move ahead. But money was still an issue.

Vaishali was a dream chaser, though. She smartly handled this situation. Instead of enrolling in a college, she photocopied the whole curriculum.

She started studying at home by herself. Simultaneously, she also started designing on a small scale.

She saved some money and shifted from Bhopal to Mumbai for better opportunities.

Here she took up took a job at a gym. Along with that, she worked at an export house as a designer. Soon with her savings and a loan of Rs 50,000, Vaishali started her own fashion designing business. Soon her work started gaining fame. She also got a chance to present at Lakme and New York Fashion Week.

Even after achieving success, Vaishali still has more dreams and ambitions. According to her, the current success is just the beginning. "I am just getting started!" she says!

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October 18, 20212 Minutes

The First Woman To Be A Chairman And Leader Of The State Bank of India: Arundhati Bhattacharya

Arundhati Bhattacharya is a woman who changed the SBI bank's fortune forever! And she has an impressive list of achievements to her credit: * Listed as the 25th most powerful woman in the world by Forbes * Named as the 4th most powerful woman in the Asia Pacific by Fortune. * India Today ranked her 19th in India's 50 most influential people on the 2017 list. In 2018, she was named the Business Leader of the year at the Asian Awards. Her work as the chairman of SBI was filled with achievements too. So much so that SBI even granted her an extension after her retirement as the chairman. This superwoman took up this opportunity too! Arundhati Bhattacharya brought about a profound change in the history of the state bank of India. She has done many beneficial things for the bank's employees as well as the customers. <br /> <br /> * She introduced a sabbatical leave policy for women employees of the bank. So that women could be granted an extended leave for the desired period and join the office again. <br /> <br /> * Made the bank go digital by introducing the YONO app. This step towards becoming technologically savvy proved to be highly valuable and helpful for both - the bank and its customers. And yet, banking was never her first choice.... She wanted to be a journalist! Banking was considered a secure job for women; journalism could be chosen if you have strong contacts. So when Arundhati cleared her exam as SBI probationary officer, she decided to take up the job. She sacrificed her dream of becoming a journalist someday. At that time, it wasn't easy to pursue a career in journalism. But even today, many people find it challenging to choose a job. There are so many things to consider - what does one like, salary, actual life in the field. Going for [Career guidance](/career-guidance) counselling and psychometric tests is a good idea to know the different [career options](/career-guidance/career-options) available today. A little bit of guidance goes a long way in making your dream career real! Though banking was not her first choice, Arundhati gave it her 100%! ... She started as a junior manager at the Kolkata branch. She got three consecutive promotions at the Kharagpur branch and left the branch as the assistant general manager. Over time, Arundhati developed a passion for banking. She started climbing the ladder of success through her hard work and dedication. She got posted as the branch manager at Nirampura. Arundhati's efforts and hard work further helped her become a Vice President at the New York Branch of SBI. She was there for four years. When she was back in India, she got posted in the foreign exchange department in Kolkata. Later in 2008, she got transferred to Mumbai. Here she worked as a deputy MD, then MD, CFO, and then finally, her dedication got her to become a Chairman of SBI.