Interview
Dolly Jain: Inspiring generations ,one pleat at a time!
Dolly Jain has been an inspiration and a flag bearer of no work is small or non-monetizable, no dream is small and everything starts at home! From draping saree as a world record in 18.5 secs to draping it in different styles may that be celebrities, their weddings or working with big designer houses!
1) You were a homemaker with impressive saree draping styles which apparently turned into your profession!
How would you describe your journey?
2) “Saree is India’s traditional wear which is somewhat fading away”. People choose to wear more western outfits.
What is your opinion on this statement?
Dolly Jain: I don’t agree with this because about Saree-I could say, like, 10 years down the line, people had literally stopped wearing sarees. They jumped into, like, you know, the young ones jumped into gowns and the moms, like our moms who are wearing sarees on regular basis started wearing Kurtis. But I have I mean, I would say maybe 1% of my effort, but I have seen a huge, huge comeback of sarees. Now, not only the moms but also the young girls and the young generation. They love to wear Saris. They just need an occasion and an opportunity to wear saris. Whether it’s a school farewell party or get-together a meet. I think they all have started wearing sarees in different, different ways. Clubbing with jackets, denim, and skirts. I would say that saree would always be there. And, uh, saree has done a huge comeback
3] We have read on the internet about you setting up a “Limca book of record” draping saree in just 18.5 secs, which is commendable!!
What sort of riyaz did you do to get this accurate and swift?
Dolly Jain: If you believe me, I didn’t do any practice. I didn’t do any Riaz. I literally did nothing. It just so happened that I was draping saree and my daughter came up to me and she said, Mom, you drape Saree so fast I said, Yeah, I was draping and she said, Okay, let’s record it. And obviously, when we were recording, my speed was a little more but didn’t know that I could make it up in 18.5 seconds. So it just happened. Basically, I didn’t practice. I didn’t do anything. And once that happened, we sent it to the people, and that’s how it just worked. So I literally didn’t practice, and I don’t practice the speed. What I only practice for coming up with new styles for the next generation.
4] There are innumerable saree materials and draping styles followed in each corner of India. Which style of fabric is your favorite one?
Dolly Jain: um, I think, I loved every fabric. I don’t know why I’m never able choose any specific fabric! Because I live in Bengal, So I love Dhakai. Born and brought up in Bangalore, I love the Kanjivaram as well. Um, even a net fabric came in. I loved the net. Now it’s organza and organza has been my all-time favorite. So I think if you just ask, then I could say An organza saree. And I love draping it where people just find this fabric very, very difficult. I find it the easiest to drape organza Saree.
5) “There is a drape for every personality, every occasion, and every mood. I have visualized them all” a well-said quote by you.
What impact did you want to always make with the quote and the work?
Dolly Jain: Definitely, there is a drape for every personality every occasion and every mood this is so rightly said ! See if I just see my Granny and if she wore something like a net saree with an open pallu I don’t think so I will be able to take up my granny !! It’s also about the personality and it’s also about the age. I think there are few fabrics which just defines your perfect sari for that perfect age ! So I think like a net sari for a young girl with toned body and everything if she’s wearing it, I would just say that she looks gorgeous in that sari with that same saree on my granny in the same way I think would not appeal to me for every occasion!
I have like a beautifully fully embroidered saree and you know if it is something like a sad moment definitely that sari doesn’t suit the occasion ! If it is a happy moment and you’re wearing a white plain saree which has no detailing and there’s no jewelry will be so weird. So I just feel every saree has got an occasion, every saree has got its personality, every saree has got its mood and it just takes the shape of the body and it just fits so well ! I would say that you just need to know what is your type and what is your kind which country you’re moving in what is your society around and then decide the drape and then decide the sari I think that’s so much much smarter way to do it !
6) Besides this stressful professional life, how do you cope with the pressure and balance your personal life as well?
Dolly Jain: This is a very difficult question. Professional life and personal life, I think these are two, different streams. And it is so difficult to balance both. But I think women are programmed by God in such a way that they can manage and they can balance both.
My kids have grown up now, but when they were young, I think that was the time when I really miss them a lot. When a girl child is born especially, I don’t know about the boy child, because I don’t have a boy! But when a girl child is born, her mother always wants to see her grow, from the first time she walked, from the first teeth to the first word she spoke. the school, the dances, the activities everything!
I think she just wants to cherish every moment, but that apparently couldn’t happen with me because I was so busy with my work that I had to balance both there are alot of times when I think my husband has been like a good mother to my kids and he’s taken care of them. So I think my kids have grown up more with the dad than with the mom. But today when I look back I just wish I had a better way to balance both but somehow I think my kids have not been complaining they’ve been very happy, they’ve always been with me, they’ve taught me so many things and they never gave me stress. I think that is so important.
If a lady is growing in her career it’s so important for the whole family not only the kids, the husband , the inlaws everybody to be one and support the person so that she could stand and you because she believes in herself! So I think if you make the situation difficult I think she will do what she wants to do but the situation the work mode and every surrounding becomes very difficult for her. I’m blessed that nothing of this sort happened!
7) In your entire career, what is the contribution of designer Sandeep Khosla sir who insisted you do celebrity clients and help you pursue it?
I can’t thank Sandeep Khosla because he’s been the person who has actually seen my art. He was the one who introduced me to the big houses, from Ambanis to Bajaj to Mehtas to Jindals. He is the one who actually saw that she can do much more and, you know, the diamond doesn’t know its value. I could call myself a diamond here, but the person who was actually engraving the diamond, in that beautiful ring! That person knows what value this is, and then who’s wearing it. So I think, Sandeep saw all of this in me and then he literally groomed me and pushed me into society, and that’s how I am where I am.
8) Speaking of celebrities, you have draped outfits for Deepika Padukone, Isha Ambani, Priyanka Chopra, etc. Working with many celebs, who would say was the best experience amongst all of them and how?
I can’t see any one celebrity. When I did Sonam Kapoor, she was the best bride for me, when I did her drape for the wedding, it was like such a beautiful dream wedding then I did Deepika then I did Isha Ambani then I did Akash then I did know Alia at that time and I’ve done a couple of projects with her. I didn’t Antara last you know wedding so i feel everybody has got its beauty and they’ve always been so kind and so polite to me. I never had a problem with them they’ve always loved my work!
They’ve always appreciated my work so can’t name anyone but I’m glad that you know I could come up to this stage where people initially thought that I’ve gone mad and I’ll never be able to make a career out of it today. They all want to start a career in Saree draping, I think that’s like a huge thing for society and it’s also a learning thing for the society that never look upon any work, No work is big or small it’s just the way you look into it!
9) You draped Natasha Poonawala’s outfit in the world’s enormous fashion event i.e Met Gala? How’d you initially felt when you were given this opportunity? Were you excited or nervous or anxious, etc.?
Sabyasachi had called me up for Natasha Poonawala drape, it was a very happy moment doing something for the Met Gala and you know representing India. When Natasha was doing this and all the way calling me from Calcutta to do this gave me a huge huge honor! Also I proved myself that I am capable!
You know it’s not always someone else credit sometimes you should give the credit to you! You are capable, that’s the reason people hire you, people call you because you know your job very well and it is no joke to be at the Met Gala!
I’m glad Sabhyasachi who is one of India’s favorite and one of the best designers of our country and not only country but world-renowned designer saw this in me and when I was given this opportunity I didn’t have a look at the sari didn’t know what I was doing but just saw the whole thing like a day before and was very nervous definitely but I have always been very confident in my work because I know when it comes to Saree I can’t go wrong! So I think Saree is like my baby and I just handle it with lot of love. So it just falls so beautifully on the person whom I’m draping.
10) What message would you like to give your well-wishers?
Dolly Jain:One message that I would give to all my well-wishers, my friends, my followers, my instant family, my Facebook, my youtube, family, every single person, every single woman living on this planet. I would just say one thing God has given everyone 24 hours and we all have been blessed with something or the other special thing. But what actually happens is in that 24 hours, we give our precious 16-17hrs to the family, not even thinking that you know we might need that half an hour for ourselves. I’ve spoken to so many women and they say OK we don’t have time, We don’t have time!
I know how to do this but I don’t have time I just say that it is fine to give your 12 to the family it’s fine but then I think in that 12 if you can just squeeze in things and give that half an hour or 30mins to the thing that you would love to do you would want to do I think you will also excel in your field. It might be a storytelling thing, it might be poetry, it might be listening to music, it might be dancing, writing poems, singing it, or might be playing an instrument but that period should be yours!
You should just feel happy that apart from all the other routine work that you’ve been doing as a mother, as a wife, as a daughter-in-law blah blah blah you have also done something that you cherished and was your hobby, and when that hobby turns into a fashion when that passion turns into a profession you never know!
So it’s time for you to start today, there is no tomorrow! Say in this 24 hours, I’m going to do this this this and that 45 minutes should be included in your agenda, no matter what you do but that 45 minute shouldn’t move so I think we all can do it is just how we plan it! You have to basically direct your mind and be very strict about it and then just see the magic happen all the best guys ! I love you all stay safe stay blessed.
We hope Dolly Jains Interview will inspire you to follow your dreams and work harder towards them!
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Meenal Jain- Voice that reaches souls
Meenal Jain is a fantastic singer who started her music career from being a girl who participated in Indian Idol 2, who made it to the top 6 finalists. And has been seen in many other reality shows such as Music Masti and Group. And here she is inspiring each and every one of us. Let us look at what Meenal has to say in this exclusive interview.
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Q1). Tell us about your journey, you participated in Indian Idol 2 and now Meenal Jain is a singer.
Meenal Jain: I came to Mumbai just for the music and to be something in Music. I was 10 years old and I was with Suresh Ji for a few months. Being the youngest sibling in my family, I’ve always been pampered by my mother which was the reason why I couldn’t live there, as it was a Gurukul system there. I’m basically from Indore, I went back and came to Mumbai. There’s a saying “jaha ka dana pani likha hai, waha pe aa hi jate ho aap kaise bhi” There I found my first ever Guru- Shri. Manohar Raiji & Smt. Krishna Raiji who agreed to teach music to me.
And the moment they came to know that financially I’m not able to sustain the expenses of Mumbai along with my family’s expenses living in Indore, they never talked about the money required to learn music ever again. I believe finding a Guru like them is no coincidence, I might’ve done some good deed, good karma to find them.
Also the age when I started learning music was perfect as there’s no burden of any kind of responsibilities. I just have to study and Riyaz. And that’s how Indian Idol came into my life, before that I participated in all the competitions whether it be in Jai Hind College, or Malhar etc. I studied in Mithibai College and by god’s grace I always won. And Indian Idol 2 was such a different experience, the reality show where I have to put make ups. I’ve never put on makeup before, or known how the cameras work, where to look. You have to take care of a few things, present yourself glamorous on stage,and that is it.
Q2). Were there anybody before you, from your family who played music or are you the first one?
Meenal Jain: In my family, it is like they have a good taste in music- my father and my uncles but they never learned music. Music as a profession… nope. I’m a Jain Marwadi Malvi from Indore so I don’t think there’s any kind of connection with music here. I think my father was always meant to be an artist or a sportsperson. When he heard me singing for the first time he thought that I have something, some blessings for music. So he thought what can he do? All he can do is to make sure I get proper guidance and knowledge about music.
Becoming a successful singer was a different thing. Because today’s definition of success is getting 1 million views on the songs, reels that I post or being popular on social media. I’m a little laid back in social media though I try to push myself. I don’t see it as wrong but that is how I am. Off camera, I’m a very very jovial person but when it comes to camera I’m a little laid back in all these things.
Q3). At what age did you realize that you are ready to step into reality shows?
Meenal Jain: The time when Indian Idol 1 came I could have participated but I think it’s good that I didn’t participate because I still have a little bit of time. As I said I participated & performed in Mithibai since the first year itself but when it comes to reality shows, it’s a whole different thing. I think in today’s music world, especially for female singers, they want us to look like Kareena Kapoor and sing like Lataji, which is difficult. And our main thing is singing, so that should be our focus. This has been divided into different departments because being an actor is not easy. If you’ve naturally been that beautiful it is a different thing but to maintain that needs a lot of time and effort. Everything takes time and giving time to music is never enough.
People are always in a hurry to finish tasks, going from one reality show to the other. And they expect us to have loads of money which I wish and pray that we have. One of my friends used to say that it is necessary to be in love with music. Loving something takes time, whether it be a thing or a person, profession, or passion, it takes time. One should understand that the only competition is you, yourself. Because if you want to learn something, it needs time.
Q4). How did you manage to learn singing along with your school and college life?
Meenal Jain: That credit goes to my mother and my father. Especially my mother, she stayed with me. As I said, that was the age where I had no other responsibilities on my shoulders. The younger audience who wants to ask me about singing, I would always say take advantage of that age. You can practice singing, do Riyaz for more than 10 hours. As you have your parents, no need to worry about earnings, etc and your life is easy. Trust me these are extremely practical things which I’m talking about. Because today if I want to do Riyaz for 5 plus hours, I won’t be able to do it. As I have ten thousand other things to finish… I have responsibilities. And that was the time where I had no responsibilities.
Q5). Being from a different state & place, it is very difficult to manage our voice tone. How did you manage your voice tone?
Meenal Jain: Voice? It’s the same. As I said, I used to do Riyaz when I was younger, I have put a lot of time and effort… which helps me even today. That was a really important part of my life. And I really wish I could’ve given more time when I was younger, then I would be much better now. The more you practice and love your voice, the more others will love it.
Q6). Many viewers want you to sing, but before that I want to ask a question, what are the genres or languages in which you sing?
Meenal Jain: Honestly, I’m a singer. And I would love to try all the genres possible in this lifetime. I don’t want to restrict myself. I especially love to sing Ghazal, Sufi and of course old songs. But I also equally enjoy dance numbers. I want to sing everything… As a singer,I have sung in Punjabi, Gujarati, Marathi, Tamil, Telugu and Hindi of course,.. Also I love western songs.
Q7). What encouraged you to work so hard for you to make your dreams come true?
Meenal Jain: You get inspired by a lot of people in your life… of course the people who are already there, who you look up to as successful musicians and singers. But yes, my parents, my sisters, my guru inspired me. And my friends,they do so well in their lives and inspire me to do better everyday. We tend to learn some things from various people in our lives. And yes we somehow find inspiration… if we look at it, and use the inspiration, we tend to do better things than we already are.
Q8). From your family someone got inspired by you and started a career in music.
Meenal Jain: There is a nephew of mine. He really wants to learn music but of course he is studying as well. However, he is also doing music of his own. His name is Yash. And I’m so proud of him because he’s trying to find a way on his own.
Q9). What is your personal favorite genre in which you like singing?
Meenal Jain: As I said, I like to sing in every genre.. It mostly depends on my mood, sometimes I feel like I want to sing old songs and sometimes I just want to sing dance numbers… upbeat songs.. There’s no particular genre, it is all about mood.
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Shridhar Mankar who fairly is regarded as the saviour by many Computer Science students and related branch students, it does justice to his work! From making their academics easier with 5 minute videos to helping quick revise some topics this 5 minute engineer is a boon to the online community of students who prefer learning complex concepts through youtube. And with this interview you will know why he enjoys so much following and love from his students and subscribers!
- How has your Engineering background influenced the content you published?
I finished my engineering degree with a background in computer science, and now that I’m talking about my channel, 5 Minutes Engineering, I aim to provide answers to questions concerning CS. Since it took me 4 years to complete my CS engineering, I strive to provide solutions in my channel in a matter of five minutes. Both are connected because I am applying what I have learned over the course of my four-year journey and providing topic-related solutions within five minutes in the most easy manner. Additionally, I picked up time management skills while studying engineering, and I try my best to represent that in all of my videos. so that it takes less time for those watching, who also get the solution, and can also enjoy learning from it.
- What difficulties did you overcome to transition from Engineering to Content Creation?
I absolutely will not deny that it wasn’t difficult for me. Since it was something I had never done before, it was challenging. I had a difficult time changing from being an engineer to a content creator. I was the first person in my family to enter this industry, therefore I knew less about it and there was no instructor or someone to guide. Additionally, there are many challenging phases that people go through when you begin something new. However, I wanted to start a new and fresh concept for the people that could help in their growth as professionals. In the beginning, it was challenging to record using my camera because at that time, not everyone could afford one. I used to record it using my mobile instead, but it was challenging to look at the camera constantly, so I used to keep my toy nearby while recording and used to teach it so that I could record my topics’ related solutions. Students used to visit my channel throughout examination season, and that gave me the inspiration to keep going. It’s my turn to help the students in the finest and simplest manner possible. It was definitely challenging, but I’m glad to see that it benefits so many people broadly. I started this during my third year of college engineering, and I plan to grow my channel enormously.
- Could you briefly describe your college life?
Speaking of my college experience, I actually started crying during the first lecture on my first day of college. I cried because I was unable to respond to my professor’s basic conceptual questions on computer science. I wasn’t even sure I understood the questions he was asking at the time. due to the fact that I completed my 12th grade education through PCMB and had no prior experience of computer science. Above that, I noticed that my classmates were answering questions with thorough justifications and even engaging in debate with the professor. I got scared when I saw the scene in my class, but I didn’t give up; I kept working on myself and began making changes. Because of my persistence, I have reached this point in my life where I am doing interviews and people are watching my videos and learning from them. I went from being a student who struggled to understand basic computer science engineering topics to now making videos on YouTube and assisting many students in passing from it. All of this is a result of my perseverance and mentality of never giving up on myself. I was completely focused on my studies during my time in college, so I didn’t participate in any cultural activities and, when I did, it was only to enjoy as an audience. I ranked among the top students in my department. I first started interacting with people when I went for my masters.
- Which of your YouTube-related experiences have you found to be the most rewarding, and how have those experiences benefited your life and career?
YouTube has given me a lot of things. First of all, it has given my life direction in ways I could never have imagined. In addition, while working on it, I have learnt a lot from YouTube. I’ve discovered through YouTube that I can be a teacher who can simplify complex concepts. I used to teach the subjects during exam time, so learners would write and do well on their exams. Therefore, I then considered turning everything I had learned into an audio-visual format that would be helpful to many students taking exams. There is no alternative for YouTube, in my opinion, and it is the finest platform for those looking to start for a larger audience. It is the most priceless compliment a student can give to a teacher, and YouTube has made it possible for me every time I post a video and get to see those three magical words, “thank you sir.” When you receive feedback from others, it greatly motivates you to work more. For this reason, I am truly thankful to God for the learner’s feedback that I am currently receiving. YouTube has been extremely beneficial to me.
- What are your YouTube channel’s future goals, and how do you see its content evolving over the coming years?
We need to keep up with the times in this fast-paced world. As you can see from my youtube videos, I attempt to teach topics simply but in a more practical approach because students are more engaged in practical ways than in other ways. This also applies to the teaching profession. We must remain current in teaching as well, first in terms of knowledge, then in terms of upcoming new technology, and finally in terms of curriculum. As I previously stated, if you compare my current videos to those from the past, you will see a difference in the amount of practical advice I tend to give with conceptual solutions. I constantly work to integrate new technology and curriculum updates as the students become more involved. I’m working on it and will continue to work on it because the process is ongoing.
- What made you want to pursue a career in engineering, and how did you begin?
I’ve never considered becoming an engineer, and when I was younger, I didn’t even know what engineering was, so I didn’t consider it. However, I achieved grades above 90% in both maths and biology during my 12th grade year. People assume that if you are good at biology you will enter the medical field, and if you are good at maths you will enter the engineering field because maths is the dominant subject there. After giving it some thought, I decided on engineering because I had read that while medical required a large budget, engineering could also be accomplished on a smaller budget. This was my only goal, therefore I chose engineering with the idea that I would find employment after finishing my studies. But after enrolling in engineering, I discovered that we must specialise in a specific area. There were many alternative areas, but I decided on computer science because everyone around me told me it had a wide range of opportunities. As I previously stated, when I chose computer science as my area of speciality, I knew nothing about it. However, because of my persistence, I am now the person teaching on this subject.
- What led to the start of 5 min Engineering ?
5 minutes engineering has a pretty interesting backstory, When I was in my third year of college and it was examination time. I used to study everything at home before coming, and I never saved anything for the last minute. In order to ask me to clarify a few issues to them before the tests began, my classmates would gather around me at that time. I used to explain things to them so they could score marks. This was routine, but one day my peers informed me that although you were explaining concepts to them, there must be more people outside of this college campuses who needed assistance. They suggested ideas for videos because I had real proof—my classmates—that the topics I was discussing would help them do well on their exams. I can even make videos about the topics and assist people after that. I started making videos and posting them on YouTube because, as I’ve already stated, it’s the finest platform for reaching a wider audience. I didn’t receive much feedback at first, but as soon as the examinations started, my videos received a lot of views. At that time, I had only posted 25 videos, but I still received a lot of views during exam time. I was inspired to work harder after that. People began to give me positive feedback and create memes. The journey that I began when I was in my third year of college is still going strong and will be working on it much more effectively.
- How do you bring your expertise to your videos?
I create information in a way that requires that it be knowledgeable, simple to grasp, and short to create. I make an effort to create videos that students won’t view under stress but instead learn from in a more efficient and entertaining manner. The planning, updating, searching for examples, and creation of visualisations that take place behind the scenes are what give the camera its simplicity and flexibility. My whole focus is on making sure that the students understand the material on a deep level, especially so they will never forget it and so they can achieve good grades. Since the name of my channel is “5 Minutes Engineering,” it is maintained in a way that considers people’s mindsets. They would assume that it would be simple and quick because it only takes five minutes. It then says engineering, indicating that I will solely cover engineering-related topics in my five-minute presentation. However, because some topics are too broad and can be challenging to cover in five minutes, we still provide the best answer we can.
- Who is your favourite youtuber ?
I typically watch the videos of one particular YouTuber, whose channel is called Craylyf Rohit. He is Rohit Sharma in real life, and he is one of the persons whose videos I enjoy watching. I spoke with him and found him to be such a wonderful person. He tries to portray a cheerful existence through his vlogs, plays practical jokes, and engages viewers in his work. And this kind of content is something that people nowadays actually need. I like viewing his video, and he is like a genuinely nice person.
