Throughout our latest Zoom name with 29-year-old Diksha Singhi — a Delhi-based entrepreneur and physique positivity influencer — her telephone wouldn’t cease ringing. Simply final week, she showcased her enterprise ‘A Little Further’ on the third season of Shark Tank India, securing funding commitments value Rs 60 lakh (for a 7.5% stake) from Anupam Mittal, the CEO of Shaadi.com, and Vineeta Singh, founding father of Sugar Cosmetics.
From enduring fixed ridicule, bullying and fat-shaming all through her childhood to rising as a outstanding voice in physique positivity on Instagram, establishing her personal unconventional equipment model and making a profitable look on Shark Tank India, Diksha Singhi has come a great distance.
Talking to The Higher India, Diksha talked about her journey of overcoming childhood trauma, sharing her story on public boards, and changing into a physique positivity influencer and entrepreneur.
‘At all times been a fats youngster’
Born and raised in Guwahati, Assam, Diksha recollects, “I’ve all the time been a fats youngster. As a fats youngster, you’re instructed essentially the most ridiculous issues by individuals round you. Rising up, I used to be in a boarding faculty and closely bullied for it. At school, I used to be not chosen for theatre or dance performances due to my look. Folks made assumptions that I couldn’t play sports activities as a result of I used to be fats. Folks began calling me a tomboy as a result of I might put on free garments.”
“Sporting free garments was not a acutely aware trend resolution. I may by no means discover garments in my measurement and needed to store within the males’s part. That’s why individuals began calling me a tomboy. However this type of bullying wasn’t simply restricted to high school. I used to be even known as out by my family members. In truth, there was a time once I used to like swimming. However someday my swimming instructor instructed me that I shouldn’t put on a V-cut swimming costume as a result of I regarded ‘hideous’. And that feeling of humiliation stayed with me for thus lengthy that I began hating swimming,” she provides.
It took Diksha a few years to unlearn all of these issues that have been stated about her physique.
“I may see the magic it [unlearning] did to my well being and psychological well being as soon as I began letting go of the issues that folks stated about me and the notions my rapid society had about physique form and appearances. What I’ve learnt in life is that if there are issues that hassle you as a toddler and if you happen to do one thing about them if you’re older, it offers you an innate type of satisfaction. I by no means meant to turn into a physique positivity influencer or creator,” she recollects.
And quite a lot of that unlearning started as soon as Diksha moved to Delhi for faculty in 2013 and began writing about her experiences in weblog posts after which on Instagram on quite a lot of topics.
“I used to be somebody who would write lengthy captions with every little thing I posted on Instagram. And that was simply my approach of telling my story. Regardless of having simply 500-odd followers on Instagram on the time, I might usually pen down my ideas on something from trend to journey. After ending faculty in 2016, I grew to become a contract social media advertising and marketing advisor, writing and publishing content material for various magazines or on-line platforms,” she recollects.
Ultimately, there got here a part when she severely started inspecting the issues that had occurred to her up to now and the way they impacted her choices. In a sequence of Instagram posts in March 2018, she posted footage of herself in swimwear for the primary time. This was Diksha reclaiming her physique and responding to those that traumatised her all these years.
“There have been these posts I wrote on social media about my story with my physique and it acquired quite a lot of traction. There have been quite a lot of ladies who wrote feedback on my submit sharing their very own tales and that’s how I began creating content material as a physique positivity influencer,” she recollects.
Right this moment, Diksha has greater than 1,26,000 followers on Instagram.
“I by no means meant to turn into a blogger or a content material creator. This isn’t a ‘job’ for me. Sure, cash is available in numerous kinds like model collaborations, however creating content material to generate profits has by no means been the target. It has all the time been about sharing my story,” she says.
As a body-positive content material creator on this house, Diksha has created content material starting from suggestions of manufacturers that make attire in plus sizes to [verbal] comebacks towards family members saying issues about her bodily look. “I’ve shared such content material all throughout my private social media web page. By means of making such content material, I grew to become that elder sister or pal [to my followers] that I by no means had once I was a toddler,” she provides.
From content material creator to entrepreneur
Rising up in a ‘enterprise household’, Diksha all the time had the need to start out one herself. However the resolution to ascertain ‘A Little Further’ in August 2020 wasn’t nearly following a household custom.
“There was a time once I was experimenting with trend however there weren’t sufficient garments [that fit my size] obtainable out there. So, I began using completely different equipment to look extra modern. Even whereas travelling to completely different nations, significantly in Asia, I couldn’t discover garments for individuals my measurement. My thought was to all the time store for jewelry,” she recollects.
“Whereas my mates went to the mall and shopped for garments, I additionally needed one thing to buy. So, I might go to the jewelry part as a result of the objects on sale there didn’t include the type of measurement limitations you see in attire put on. In truth, on one in every of my posts, I’ve had individuals writing feedback like ‘Went searching for garments however got here again with a scrunchie’. Over time, I grew to become a jewelry junkie and I made a decision to enterprise into the equipment house,” she recollects.
“Amid the [COVID-19] pandemic, I used to be again house fascinated by what to do subsequent with my life. What I discovered was a niche within the reasonably priced equipment section and measured all the professionals and cons related to working such a enterprise. Ultimately, I established ‘A Little Further’ in August 2020 with an preliminary funding of Rs 5,000, and right here we’re as we speak,” she provides.
A lot of the jewelry made at ‘A Little Further’ has a “distinctive aspect” to it, in line with Diksha.
“For those who purchase standard jewelry, they’re both stone-based or they’ve a sure design or aesthetic. We needed to make jewelry particular for an event, emotion or life-style. For instance, if it’s Navratri, what higher than to put on our ‘Durga earrings’ which might be vibrant, vibrant and have the chunkiest parts of shell, mirror, beads, and so forth? If you wish to watch a soccer match in a stadium, cheering to your favorite group, why simply put on these common earrings? Why not put on earrings formed and designed like a soccer?” she says.
“We need to create a sure emotional angle with the jewelry that you just’re shopping for. Given the type of event/emotion-specific earrings or the neck items we design, it additionally turns into simpler to offer the type of equipment we make to different individuals as presents. However we’re additionally conscious of a market which is in search of equipment with a minimal aesthetic, and consequently, we additionally make jewelry with minimal/easy designs however with an additional contact,” she provides.
For instance, they’ve this restricted assortment of very small gold-plated brass earrings designed within the form of a dragon. “This was impressed by a really energetic and galvanizing petite pal who was both bullied for being small in stature or not taken severely consequently. Regardless of individuals counting her out, her vitality has remained undiminished like a dragon. We additionally make use of completely different handmade artwork kinds like Kada, beadwork, Kundan, brass, terracotta, cane, and so forth,” she says.
How do they make these equipment?
A Little Further works with karigars (artisans) specialising in several handmade artwork kinds. For the reason that enterprise offers in numerous artwork kinds, Diksha argues that she will’t have one thing in-house for manufacturing functions.
“The best way our karigars transfer their fingers is one thing you and I can not do. They’re expert and work greatest once they’re of their neighborhood. You may’t decide them out of a village in West Bengal, convey them to Delhi, and count on them to do high quality work. They’d not be comfortable. They need to stick with their households. So our thought was to have these karigars work in their very own communities,” she explains.
“We current them with no matter designs we’ve provide you with right here. We ship the designs throughout to our supervisor stationed with these artisan communities who then sits with the karigars and develops these designs. Following this, they ship us objects for sampling, which we assess and see if there are any adjustments we wish on them. They ultimately ship us additional samples which we approve and ship for manufacturing. We comply with this course of for all our merchandise,” she provides.
Speaking about terracotta, Diksha’s group works with karigars from Assam and West Bengal. In the case of beadwork, they work with karigars from Delhi-NCR states. In the event that they’re using Kundan (a conventional type of gemstone jewelry), they work with karigars from Rajasthan.
“My mantra relating to working with karigars is to pay them what they ask for. All through my journey, I’ve seen individuals in my trade attempt to exploit them. My method has all the time been the extra they develop, the extra we develop. Efficiently promoting over 80,000 merchandise and growing a variety of equipment with over 500 designs, we’ve grown collectively. Right this moment, ‘A Little Further’ is a women-led enterprise, and I at the moment have eight full-time ladies staff with me,” she says.
The Shark Tank expertise
Diksha has nothing vital to say about her expertise of Shark Tank India.
As she recollects, “Though I did put together my pitch and labored on the attainable varieties of questions the Sharks would ask me, there was nothing scripted about what questions have been requested, whether or not I might safe an funding, or if sure Sharks have been already keen to put money into my enterprise. The Shark Staff India [production] group did help me in fine-tuning my pitch however in the long run, it’s your name whether or not to simply accept their suggestions or not.”
It was a one-hour-long pitch, she informs, which was then minimize right down to 17-20 minutes for viewers.
Though each the Sharks (Anupam and Vineeta) agreed to put money into her enterprise, there may be at the moment a extra detailed due diligence course of underway.
“If somebody is keen to take a position Rs 60 lakh into your enterprise, they need to safe their funding and know that they’re investing in a professional enterprise. On the entrepreneurial facet, I’ve to sit down with my group to evaluate the share agreements and different paperwork despatched by the Sharks’ groups as properly. All this due diligence work will take about six months or so,” she notes.
(Edited by Pranita Bhat; Pictures courtesy Instagram/Diksha Singhi and Instagram/A Little Further)