Two to Tango

Parmeshwar Godrej may be their aunt, but the enterprising brother-sister duo of Sanjana and Uraaz Bahl has proved there’s much more to them than their envied lineage.

They are both entrepreneurs, but in separate fields. “I have always loved travelling and sourcing artefacts from various places,” says 35-year-old Sanjana Bahl. Her store Nostalgia, which houses South Asian artefacts, was born out of her dream to do something of her own.

Drawing inspiration from her mother and armed with a business degree, Sanjana decided to try and set up her own business without using her family’s contacts with ‘big’ artistes. “I source products from Aborigine tribes, Buddhist monks and various other craftsmen based in villages,” says the lady. Catering to a cross-section of customers, she admits that her grounding in business has helped her keep her books in order.

Her older brother Uraaz, on the other hand, has branched into a gastronomical venture. “I’ve always wanted to open my own restaurant,” he says, “and my father suggested that I talk to a friend who had brought ‘TGI Friday’s’ to Delhi and that’s how I decided to open up a branch in Mumbai.” With a second outlet having recently opened up in the suburbs, Uraaz is not ready to sit back. “I want to open seven more outlets and also take it to Pune.”

Ask them about interaction with each other on the business front and they laugh. “The age gap between us is very big.”But their camaraderie is evident. Along with being labelled as a restaurateur, Uraaz also has responsibilities in his father’s manufacturing unit that supplies to the Godrejs.

With regard to their relationship with Parmeshwar Godrej, they say, “It has been neither a hindrance nor something we have manipulated to our advantage! For us, our father has been our inspiration in the business field. He has let us go our own way and learn from our mistakes.”

c_shalinee@dnaindia.net