All set to conquer the world

I personally believe that nothing in life is easy or tough. I absolutely love my job. Considering the field that I work in, challenges and demanding situations are a part of my everyday routine. But these are challenges for which one is mentally prepared as it’s something that you knowingly sign up for. You almost become an expert at it”

Shubhra Bhardwaj started Ferriswheel Entertainment in 2009. She is also a published poet and has produced several music albums. She has received the Best Student Guide Award by the then Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi and Women's Achiever Award for contribution to Literature in the year 2010.

Being passionate about promoting art and culture, Shubhra will be launching World Fest, a first of its kind week-long cultural exchange programme that will host delegates from over 30 countries who will exhibit their specialties on home turf. The Mumbai-based woman entrepreneur has over two decades of experience in managing large-scale events in the field of sports, performing arts and entertainment.

Excerpts:
Why did you foray in this field?
I forayed into this because I love this field. It’s my passion. Since childhood, I was always inclined towards art and culture. In addition, my wide-minded family of brave individuals has always been an inspiration. My family is a wonderful dysfunctional bunch of people who have a brave nonconformist view of life.

My life skills have been developed because of the exposure that my parents gave me through exchange programmes, camps and the wide social fabric that we were engaged in at home. Our drawing room was a place where the brightest minds and talents of the country socialised. I look back at those memories as strong breeding grounds for my life philosophies. Being surrounded by rich performing arts and culture, event management was the obvious career I saw myself growing in. Owing to this, it was a gradual progression.

How were your initial days?
I personally believe that nothing in life is easy or tough. I absolutely love my job. Considering the field that I work in, challenges and demanding situations are a part of my everyday routine. But these are challenges for which one is mentally prepared as it’s something that you knowingly sign up for. You almost become an expert at it. It is something that people would encounter one day in life whereas it is routine for me.

I believe in potential and capacity rather than the presumed judgement of what is tough or easy. I only think solutions, actions and ‘what next’, not about problems. Not to forget, it all completely depends on one’s attitude. When you believe that you’re in the right place and you go forward with a smile on your face one step at a time, success will definitely be yours.

Tell us about your journey in event management?
It has been an exciting journey all along with a team of intelligent, talented and hardworking people. Every day is a new day with unforeseen challenges and exciting work. We operate on a few principles, which dictate everything that we do internally or out there.

We believe in quality, client satisfaction, respect for an individual, his growth and freedom this is practiced across the board from artists to client. Honesty and integrity are a given in the company which has enabled us to be better time and again. This would explain the unassailable success story of Ferriswheel as a brand in this industry.

What is the idea behind every concept?
A lot of thought goes into planning and execution for an event. Every concept is for an event is based on the requirement of the event and the focus is on delivering a good event according to your client’s expectations. It is tailor-made.

Various factors come into play when we conceptualise an event. Factors like the target audience, budget and its constraints, whether or not will the event be telecasted, the venue, the socio economic structure and a lot of other things are taken into consideration.

What is your favourite concept till date?
I loved World Cup Kabaddi Punjab 2014 Opening Ceremony because of the scale of 3D mapping we did for it. It was an amazing experience! The concept was to provide the audience with a bigger, better and a novel experience - something they had never seen before.

The idea was to offer a spectacle keeping in mind the entertainment quotient, limitations of the venue and the ethos of the game. Ferriswheel Entertainment used “3D mapping with cyclorama effect” to create depth and stunning visuals on stage.

What is the current scenario of event management in India?
Event management will boom and how! The entertainment industry in India is getting extremely growth oriented. There are new revenue models emerging and more job opportunities being created. We are now also on an infrastructural upswing as far as venues are concerned.

There are better quality stadiums and venues available. Even high-quality technical equipment is available within the country now. The future of the industry is in its IP’s. Companies are trying to find new avenues for increased revenue and talent presentation.

There is a tremendous amount of growth in niche festivals and unusual entertainment offerings in the market. As the audience matures, so will the market. Ultimately it’s a simple equation of demand meeting supply. There is maturity in the audience’s choice in terms of spending their money and free time. Due to the booming economy, today we have a large middle class with great spending capacity.

We now have the first generation of cultivated audience. Having their weekends free, people are looking for more options in entertainment than just eating out and watching a movie. This has led to a demand for IPs, EDMs, festivals and alternate entertainment like comedy, drama, theatre and many more options.