He kick-starts the conversation by apologising for the state of his hair, although I can’t tell that it’s dishevelled. “Sorry, it’s a bit of a mess. It’s been a mad morning,” he says unassumingly, over a video call. “We are making our first wedding cake,” he confesses. “I have a friend who’s refusing to get married until I make the wedding cake so I’m going against myself in saying I’ll never make a wedding cake to now frantically making a wedding cake,” he finishes in a single breath. At 26, Prateek Bakhtiani has been termed something of a prodigy in the Indian chocolate- and pastry-making circuit. How does he react to this, I ask him. Although momentarily taken aback, he regains his composure swiftly. “Badly,” he smiles, shyly. “I’m a millennial, and we are really not adept at taking compliments, although I’m happy with the response.” And then I catch a glimpse of that other prized millennial trait — individualism — along with a whiff of the piquancy that will season the rest of our chat: “Even if people really hate what I do, I’d still come back and do it tomorrow; I do what I do for me”.
It took a detour for Bakhtiani to find his true calling. After some coaxing, he reveals reluctantly, “I graduated in chemistry from Washington University at 20. I was sort of intrinsically good at it so I could rush through a lot of the semesters. And I was lucky enough to skip a few courses because I tested out of them. Since I managed to get some more coursework done while I was working for a research lab over summer, I graduated early…. The university had offered me a teaching job that I had applied for while I was an undergraduate student myself. I had to break down how my peers learn, which is different from how I learn. That experience really helps me now that I have chefs working under me.”
Diese Geschichte stammt aus der December 2019 - January 2020-Ausgabe von Verve.
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Diese Geschichte stammt aus der December 2019 - January 2020-Ausgabe von Verve.
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Making Amends
This generation’s penchant for thoughtless consumption gets Madhu Jain roiled up, and she wonders if nature is getting its own back for our missteps…
Diamonds With Provenance
In keeping with the company’s commitment to environmental and social responsibility, Anisa Kamadoli Costa, chief sustainability officer at Tiffany & Co. and chairman and president at The Tiffany & Co. Foundation, enlightens Shirin Mehta on the efforts that make the jewellery giant an industry leader in transparency
SARTORIAL ECONOMICS
Sisters Tashi and Tara Mitra demonstrate to Akanksha Pandey how deviating from the mainstream can bend the way we think, live and dress
NOTES TO SELF
An anthropomorphized tiger’s perspective, a viscerally worded futuristic interpretation of loss, a critique of performative activism, a meta reflection on the earth’s crises. Told through different lenses, Janaki Lenin, Indrapramit Das, Keshava Guha and Roshan Ali’s stories — written exclusively for Verve — attempt to make sense of the fraught reality that we exist in today
The Eternal Optimist
As Generation X and xennials grapple with fully transitioning to conscious living, young millennials and Generation Z are leading the charge to reverse human-caused environmental damage. Sahar Mansoor, founder and CEO of the Bengaluru-based zero-waste social enterprise Bare Necessities, has a simple overarching philosophy: consume less and stay positive. Verve gets deeper into the mindset of the action-oriented earth advocate
Redemption SONGS
Indian music festivals have been demonstrating a refreshing sense of responsibility in terms of their ecological impact. Interacting with stakeholders who strive to make these large-scale events greener, Akhil Sood investigates the reasons behind the improved attitudes of audiences and the increase in corporate support.
earth hour
Crafted using nature’s elements, these dials draw inspiration from the many heterogeneous materials and hues around us.Verve turns its lens onto a mesmerising few
THE KIDS ARE ALL RIGHT
Children are holding adults accountable for both the grim future they are facing and the toll this is taking on their mental health. Madhumita Bhattacharyya initiates conversations with families of young climate activists and observes the extent to which parenting has changed in the face of catastrophe
NATURAL JUSTICE
Most of us are only just waking up to the urgency of climatic action. When the stakes are so high, what can individual action solve? Mridula Mary Paul, an environmental policy expert, is proof of the tenacity needed to effect systemic change. It’s not glamorous, and the rewards are few and far between, but that doesn’t stop her from aiming big, finds Anandita Bhalerao
Along For The Ride
Navigating Indian streets as a woman is hard enough. But what is it like while riding a bicycle? Bengaluru-based Shreya Dasgupta, a regular cyclist, speaks to five urban women about the pros and cons of this increasingly popular means of transport.
