MUMBAI OPEN HOUSE from a DELHI ‘RODINHOODER’

Mumbai Open House happened to me like a dream come true. It had a beginning, a middle and a perfect ending! So here is all about it for those who were or weren’t there. 

Preface:

TheRodinhoods Open Houses bring gems of learning for entrepreneurs, start-ups and individuals with passion to think and do. I have been fortunate enough to be able to attend quite a few in Delhi apart from frequent meet-ups that happen as and when Delhi Rodinhooders get to organize them. So why did I go to Mumbai to attend an Open House?

I have never been to the land of showbiz and dreamers as many say. One random day a post from Alok ji announcing the upcoming Open House in Mumbai stood at the top of my wall. I looked at it for a few seconds and what I did next was open the irctc site to book my tickets. I went through the list of trains, but didn’t book though. I questioned whether this is the right time? Do I have that time? What about the work I am leaving behind? Will it be all worth it, given that it happens in Delhi too?

I vaguely discussed with my partner and the best thing he said was, let’s book it and if we find it difficult during the last moment, we would cancel the tickets. My mom and I had this brief discussion on my last visit to Jaipur (my hometown) where she had mentioned how eager she was to visit Mumbai at least once in her lifetime. I had promised her to plan a trip soon and so when we decided to book tickets, I called her and just said, “We are going to Mumbai”.  We also roped in my sister in Kolkata who is doing her PhD to join us. So what started as an Open House planning, soon turned out to be a family vacation for me and that too in a city we have never been to.

We reached on 18th and checked in at our pre-booked hotel – shockingly located at a clumsy location in Goregaon. The first shock of the trip. My partner called up a few rodinhooders we knew in Mumbai and I can’t thank each one of them enough to dig out contacts of hotels which they thought would suit us. Sushrut Munje helped us with a contact and we were able to book a decent hotel in Khar. We shifted to our new hotel on 19th – the Open House day. As we had just shifted, I was left with little time to get ready and so it was only when I was out of room and downstairs that I noticed – I was in my slippers! My mom asked if I wished to change it by going back to the room. But since I had come here for the Open House and being late for it was not a great idea, I decided to continue with my slippers. I thought, Rodinhoods is only place where no one looks at what you are wearing but what you hold in your heart. 🙂

Start:

[Image: This is when Alok ji approached to meet my Mom. (She is not visible though). I felt really overwhelmed. ]

So here we were at the Open House. To make things easier for my mom and sister, I had read the agenda to them in the morning explaining what to expect at the event. But what they loved the most were things they never expected. Imagine having a reserved set of seats for you. For me, who often find place at the floor in Delhi Open Houses or meet-ups, the reserved seats were literally flattering – the only thing that made me feel out of place 😉 I can’t thank Asha ji enough for that gesture. My mom and sister were at a place they had never planned to be. And so each moment for them was a bit of surprise. I was just enthralled by the organised way it was turning up.

Middle:

This was the First ever Open House that started with music, had dance in the middle, hold many interesting presentations and had a very insightful conversation with the Vice President of Licensing & Merchandising at Yash Raj Films. It was this perfect combo of knowledge, kinetics and kick [talking latest lingo] that made everything worth it. Presence of Alok ji’s family including his parents made the community look like a one big family! Guess what – I had done just the right thing at the right time by deciding to be a part of it.

Towards the end when my Mom was called up on the stage and gifted a Rodinhoods tee, I kind of felt like a proud daughter. It turned the day into one that gave me most memorable moments of my life. Having no idea about this would happen, I almost went clueless when asked to talk about her on the stage. So what I said there was something which I said loud for the first time, even to her and myself. I am posting a poem which she wrote on her experience. Hope you will enjoy it. For the past two years, she has been writing poems on everyday happenings. She has also written one on her first visit to Mumbai. 🙂

[Image: A mobile capture by Vishal Gala but my favourite 🙂 Sorry for the poor resolution.]

End: Just another beginning!

Phew!! That was 800+ words. This definitely isn’t an Open House summation write-up. For that, you can check this live blog nicely drafted by Vishal Gala. I was so overwhelmed by my experience of being in Mumbai that I failed to capture minute by minute storyboard presentation of it which I promised to some of my Delhi rodinhooder friends :). I am so happy to meet some of my Mumbai Rodinhooders face-to-face finally and to realize that it never seemed like our first meet. Such warmth and eagerness to know each other just made the day seem like a confluence of emotions and gratitude. I have never known any community so up-close. The Rodinhoods happened by itself. I never forced myself to be at any meet-up or Open House. It seemed like being a mandatory thing – something which is inevitable. More than business I have made some really good friends who have always helped me with my business.

Highlights:

– As every Open House, only organisers get to know the chaos that goes behind the scene. But what others witness is pure content and passion on stage. Kudos to Mumbai TRHS Team for bringing to us such an amazing Open House. I can only guess how you managed it. I also had some great learnings to learn from you guys 🙂

– Family makes your small achievements look grand. When I saw rodinhooders interacting with my Mom and appreciating her, I felt that joy deep inside!

– Dancing is not dancing. It’s breaking your apprehensions and opening up. A move you make is your attempt to let people know a little more about you. It takes courage to dance on stage, similar to how you feel when you go to pitch for an idea. So if you wondered how dancing was related to entrepreneurship, I can write a blog about it 😉

[Image: When I danced with my Mom and my Sis. Special thanks to my Sis for coming over. I still can’t believe she traveled from Kolkata by train to attend an Open House. She in some way, truly showcased what it is to come out of your comfort zone. She never dances even if we insist. But over there, it came so naturally to her.]

– Be weird. Something Alok ji always insists. So when we saw him carry around his Brand Mascot, a monkey in his pocket, we just felt at home – weirdness has kind of settled in each one of us. I also believe only weird minds can think to start-up.

– For a Delhi Rodinhooder like me, I was left surprised to see Asha ji feel at home at any Open House she attends. For me it was a MUMBAI Open House. But for her, it was a Rodinhoods Open House!

– The Chai wallahs outside serving us steaming cups of tea were none other than our recent favourite – ChotuChaiWala.com! Amazing tea just as the amazing idea!

I am on a travelling mode for a few months. And all I wanna do is travel and meet people, something I am not very good at 🙂 Let’s meet, not to just discuss ideas but to discuss randomness that prevails in being an entrepreneur!!

There is so much I want to go on about. But let me put an abrupt full stop here!

Looking forward to many more Open Houses across the country and even abroad 😀

Below is the poem by my mother on her Open House experience. I took more than 1000 words. She did more effectively with just few 🙂