They’re young and restless, brimming with ideas, courage, determination and passion. Being the best in their field of expertise is all they strive for, and failure is not a word present in their dictionary. Striving against the odds surpassing all obstacles and impediments, this cache of new age South Indians have made an indelible mark for themselves before they’ve hit the big 30. RITZ salutes the spirit of today’s new age achievers in the first of this multi-past series on the occasion of our 11th anniversary.
Abhinav Nallamani – 23 years
Abhinav Reddy Nallamani, born and raised in Hyderabad, being a businessman comes naturally. That’s why he started his first business venture at the age of 18. He first entered the F&B sector and worked as a director (development and marketing) for a Canada-based beverage company followed by a successful entry into different entities, including imports, agri-based commodity trading, infrastructure, financing and of course, the F&B sector. It has always been his dream and passion to be in this field that gives him happiness and a chance to grow. From the day he started as director, he has been able to takeover and merge six new companies into his group and presently is working on couple of multi-hundred crore projects in the retail sector across India. The work pressure and challenges are what inspire him to excel.
Deepika Reddy – 25 years
What started as a trunk show is now an established and full-fledged store – Almari. Deepika Reddy did her B.Sc in Marketing and Apparel Merchandising from Indiana University, Bloomington and after that she completed her M.Sc in Social and Public Communications from the London School of Economics. When she came back to India, she started working in advertising even though her interest was always in fashion retail. After realising that there was a dearth of specialised stores in India which are both contemporary and young in their approach whilst offering affordable luxury options, she started her stint in the retail world with Almari Trunk Shows. The success of these shows is what led her to the opening of her store.
Yamini Reddy, Dancer – 30 years
Born to noted Kuchipudi dancers and Padma Bhushan award winners, Drs. Raja Reddy and Radha Reddy, Yamini is a veritable prodigy who gave her first performance when she was only 3. She did her schooling and graduation in Delhi and later an MBA after which she turned down an offer to do medicine in order to pursue dance. Yamini has many awards to her name, some of them are the Yuva Ratna Award, Youth Vocational Excellence award, FICCI Young Achiever’s Award and the Sangeet Natak Akademi Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar for dedication towards Kuchipudi Dance. Yamini stays with her husband in Hyderabad where she teaches at the Raja Reddy Radha Reddy Institute.
Sreeram Chandra – 29 years
This Indian Idol 2010 winner has been into music since his school days. He started playback singing at the age of 17 and holds a grade 5 in Carnatic vocals. He used to participate in ETV’s singing reality show where music director Mickey J Meyer spotted him and offered him a song in the Telugu film called Notebook. He got his first big break singing Nammalo Ledo and Thidathara Kodathara in the 2008 flick Ashta Chamma. He has since worked with many prominent music directors in the industry and finally got to Bollywood where he recorded a duet with Shreya Ghoshal. He released his debut Hindi album Rehnuma in 2010 and immediately recorded his new album called Crazy Love. Sreeram also entered the acting arena in 2013 with the movie Sri Jagadguru Aadi Shankara.
Chaitanya MRSK – 25 years
At the age of 17, to have had a vision of helping government schools function better, is what sets Chaitanya MRSK apart. He started the NGO Passionate Foundation in 2007 and provided government schools by providing for mid day meals and constructing toilets; he also does his bit to improve health care for the poor and works towards involving youth in community work. In 2010, Chaitanya was the youngest speak at the TEDx held at ISB and spoke about the work undertaken by his NGO and how the youth can act as change agents in society. He was even awarded the United Nations Youth Excellence Award for Community Service and Social Entrepreneurship at the age of 17.
Kynan Chenai – 24 years
A shotgun shooter prodigy, Kynan Darius Chenai took up the sport in 2003. He’d always been actively involved with all sports during school, though shooting was never part of the activities. Around the time of the 32nd National Games hosted in Hyderabad, an international class trap shooting range was built and made accessible to aspiring shooters from the city. Kynan started training initially with his father and later with other professional shooters like the legendary 4-time Olympian Mansher Singh. Kynan has many victories to his name. He’s held the title for National Junior Trap Champion for 4 years consecutively from 2007 to 2011, came 6th in place at the Beijing World Cup, 5th at the Qatar Open Championship and is currently gearing up for the World Cup at Gabala.
