CORPORATE STORY 5

AKSHUNA BAKSHI HAS STARTED HER OWN COMPANY "TRAVELISTA" LAST YEAR. SHE IS A GRADUATE IN MASS MEDIA AND COMMUNICATION FROM THE DELHI UNIVERSITY.  AS A CHILD, TRAVELS FOR BAKSHI MEANT CHANGE IN LANDSCAPE BUT IT ALSO MEANT LEAVING YOUR OLD FRIENDS BEHIND AND BEGINNING THE SEARCH FOR NEW FRIENDS. BAKSHI SAYS- "MY FATHER WAS IN THE DEFENSE SERVICES AND EVERY FEW YEARS, WE HAD TO RELOCATE TO AN ENTIRELY DIFFERENT PLACE. I FELT BAD AND I DID NOT LIKE THIS NOMADIC LIFE BUT AS I GREW UP AND UNDERSTOOD THE FACT THAT LEAVING DOES NOT MEAN END, IT ALSO MEANS KEEPING THE FRIENDS WHOM I AM LEAVING BEHIND CLOSER TO HEART. THUS, RELOCATING TO EVERY NEW PLACE MEANS LEARNING A NEW LANGUAGE, UNDERSTANDING CULTURE AND ENJOYING NEW EXPERIENCES. I ALWAYS WANTED TO DO SOMETHING OF MY OWN. MY MOTHER HAS TOLD ME THAT WHEN I WAS JUST SIX, I WANTED TO PUT UP A GOL GAPPA STALL OUTSIDE THE HOUSE. DURING MY GRADUATION, MY FRIEND AND I THOUGHT OF MAKING MONEY BY WRITING LOVE LETTERS AND SELLING THEM TO COLLEGE STUDENTS. IT DID NOT WORK OUT BECAUSE OF SOME LOGISTICS ISSUE OTHERWISE I WOULD HAVE BECOME A LOVE LETTER SPECIALIST." AFTER COMPLETING HER GRADUATION, BAKSHI PURSUED A COURSE IN CREATIVE, CULTURAL AND MEDIA INDUSTRY FROM KINGS COLLEGE, LONDON AND SHE FEELS THAT THE EXPERIENCE AND THE COURSE PLAY AN IMPORTANT ROLE IN SHAPING UP TRAVELISTA AND HER OWN IDEAS. DURING HER STAY IN LONDON, BAKSHI ALSO WORKED WITH BRITISH COUNCIL BUT DECIDED TO STAY ON AND START SOMETHING OF HER OWN.

          TRAVELISTA WAS FOUNDED IN 2012 AND THE IDEA WAS TO MAKE TRAVEL FILMS THAT PROMOTED THE CULTURAL SPIRIT OF THE PLACE, PROVIDE A PLATFORM FOR SEVERAL EXHIBITORS WHO ARE WORKING AROUND THE CULTURE AND TRADITION OF DIFFERENT PLACES, SCREEN TRAVEL FILMS, TRAVELS PHOTOGRAPHS ETC.

BAKSHI AGAIN SAYS- "LAST YEAR WE RECEIVED 200 FILMS ENTRIES AND AROUND 30 EXHIBITORS. A LOT OF TRAVELERS AND BACKPACKERS HAVE BECOME A PART OF TRAVELISTA NOW. AKSHAY CHUGNANI   OF INDIANBACKPACKER.COM IS ALSO THE PART OF TRAVELISTA THIS YEAR. I WOULD LIKE MORE AND MORE PEOPLE TO VISIT THE FAIR AS IT WILL NOT ONLY ENCOURAGE US AT TRAVELISTA BUT ALSO CREATE A SUSTAINABLE MODEL FOR MANY  OF OUR EXHIBITORS."

 TRAVELISTA FAIR ORGANISED FROM OCTOBER 11 TO 13 WAS BIGGER AND BETTER AS THERE WERE MANY MORE EXHIBITORS. OUT OF 700 TRAVEL FILMS RECEIVED  AND 30 SCREENED DURING THE THREE DAY EVENT.