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The shoot last week made me realise this...

I was in Mumbai last week for an ad film shoot:
14 hours straight — 7 AM to 9 PM — with a team of about 200 people.
We shot 5 ad films.

It wasn’t my first shoot, but each time inspires me.
This time, I realised something: to the experts on the team — stylists, makeup artists, photographers — I’m not Ankur Warikoo or even a person.
I’m what their work demands.

As soon as I reached my hotel room, the styling team was waiting for me.
In the next 60 mins, I put on 30+ outfits and they clicked me.
For them, I was not a human, an actor, a personal brand, or anything.
To them, I was a mannequin.

To the makeup artist, a face;
To the hairstylist, strands of hair;
To the audio person, a voice;
To the art person, a piece of the set;
To the photographer, a model under lights;
To the cameraman, someone to keep in focus;
To the director, someone to emote;
To my assistant, someone to listen to.

They all had one task, executed perfectly, emotionlessly, and with exceptional skill.

It reminded me of the Mahabharata story where Guru Dronacharya tests the Pandavas with a bird’s eye as their archery target.
He asks, “What do you see?”
Others saw the bird, tree, sky, or branches.
Until it came to Arjun; the masterful archer.
"What do you see, Arjun?"
"I see only the bird's eyes, Gurudev."

That’s the difference between winners and losers.

Losers scan every possibility, and yet, miss the mark.
Winners only see the mark.
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Book I read this week

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Finished (finally) reading The Body: A Guide for Occupants by Bill Bryson.
I am glad I got to read the book, in between work and travel. Wonderful companion on flights and for my daily reading.
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I have shared several books in this newsletter over the years. A list of all of them can be found here.

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Build An Epic Career

The book has sold over 70,000 copies now, is ranked #2 on the Nielsen Bestseller List in India, and is currently rated 4.8 on Amazon.

But more than that, it is the feedback through emails, DMs, and Instagram stories that I get every day, which make up for so much joy! Thank you for all of it :))

Click to check out "Build An Epic Career" - in English, in Hindi​

Question of the week

When do you think is the right age to buy your own house?

• Between 18-22
• Between 22-27
• Between 27-32
• Between 32-40
• In your 40s
• Don't believe in buying a house

(and see the results of others, too)

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Results of last week's question

Most age groups believe 27-32 is the right age to get married, which is cool. It is interesting to see that 22-27 is dominant for the youngest lot (one would think they would want to get married last) and is actually high for 40+ category as well.
"Don't believe in marriage" is flat across age groups - another interesting result.
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​My response?​
I'd agree with the majority - 27-32 is the best age. I got married at 27.

3-2-1
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3 pics from last week

Pic from the shoot - this is the core production team. Fantastic experience.

Was at BITS Pilani Hyderabad Campus last week for their e-summit. Unreal energy :))

Was in Surat for an event and had the most amazing Gujarati Thali - absolute food coma after that, haha!

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2 quotes I wish to share

Wisdom is knowing what to change.
Maturity is knowing what not to.

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A toxic relationship is where both say, “I am more important”
A healthy relationship is where both say, “you are more important”

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1 new thing I learnt this week

There is a positive, near-linear correlation between GDP/Capita of a country and its Happiness Index.

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🎙️ My top content from last week
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📹 YouTube:​ I lost 1.5Cr in the market crash​

📱 Instagram: Your relationship with your siblings​

🐥 Twitter: I lack motivation​

🎧 Podcast: Offsite​
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You can, of course, always write to me by simply replying to this newsletter.

I love reading all your emails, even though I may not be able to reply to them all.
Yes! I READ ALL MY EMAILS. ALL OF THEM.​
​(March mein hi May ki garmi ki kasam)

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