Breaking stereotypes comes naturally to women. Belying the myths that women are moody and arguably their own worst enemies, are some women who prove that they can not only work together but be best friends and reliable business partners, efficient co-workers, fun CEO or the most badass secretary, in a professional setting.
ADVERTISEMENT
Udaya Gottipati and Rithika Velchala agree to disagree on whether women can work together harmoniously. The two Hyderabad-based women have been running Sobremesa, a cafe in Jubilee Hills successfully for almost two years. Udaya shares, “Ritika and I have known each other since 2015. We were colleagues first, I was her reporting duty manager. Right from the beginning of our business in 2021,we had demarcated our area of work: while I look at operations, Ritika looks after kitchen-related matters. The secret of our successful partnership is: we do not step on each other’s toes. ” Udaya agrees, adding that at work, “I play the bad cop and Rithika the good cop.”
Working together invariably involves a difference of opinions, understanding business differently, meeting deadlines and putting in extra hours. In such a situation, how does the mother and daughter duo Fareeda and Kiswah Ashfaq running Le Tesoro, handcrafted artisanal dessert brand in Hyderabad function?
ADVERTISEMENT
Kiswah with Fareeda Ashfaq | Photo Credit: Special arrangement
Kiswah says, “It is a lot of help to be working with mom. While I do most of the baking, mom handles everything else. She helps me with the inventory and when I am busy, she handles orders — big or small — on her own and on time.” Kiswah also relies on her mother’s expertise and experience when trying out a new recipe. Having started as a small home baking unit, they now cater for parties and corporate hampers.
Sisters Sujata and Taniya Biswas of Suta Bombay, an e-commerce site for handloom weaves, say the flip side to working with each other is there is no separation of business from personal life. The elder sibling Sujata says, “Our families are such a close-knit unit that we live together and holiday together. As a result, we never cease to work; even on holidays, a simple shopping trip gets altered into a business idea and a discussion on handlooms.”
Sujata and Taniya Biswas | Photo Credit: Special arrangement
Taniya says having grown up together, they know each other well and don’t have to tread on eggshells when there is a difference of opinion.
ADVERTISEMENT
Alnaaz Humayunia of Hadeed’s makeover studio in Hyderabad says working with her sisters Honiye and Hadia makes work fun. “All three of us are easygoing and pick up after each other without any discussion. Our business is service-driven sp paying attention is very important. We know our clients’ specific needs and maintain a personal rapport with them, so we have built up a good relationship over the years.”
Hadia, Honiye and Alnaaz Humayunia | Photo Credit: Special arrangement
Also, there is always one sister who makes sure they are not skipping meals. Hadiya says, “Work is stress-free with my sisters and our clients love the friendly energy at our studio.”
Anshi and Sheetal Saxena | Photo Credit: Special arrangement
Does the most caring sister with the most professional experience make the best co-worker? Anshi Saxena thinks so. As co-founder of Delhi-based Colocal, a bean-to-bar chocolate maker, she says her sister and cofounder Sheetal is a perfectionist and quite demanding. “When I signed up to work with her, I didn’t expect anything different. At work, she is like an elder sister and a demanding boss rolled into one and I cannot do anything about it.” Sheetal agrees: “I am quite demanding and I take the liberty of dumping work on her without asking how much is on her plate.”
Sujata likes to add that when siblings and friends of a family work together, they can play and also rely on each other’s strengths when deciding on the roles at work. She sums up, “At the end day, the goal of every business is to make the brand/business soar and also help those who work with us benefit.”