Know Why Bollywood Actress Taapsee Pannu Made into Entrepreneur's 35under35 List From teaching consent to the nation through Pink to explaining women are no less than men in Baby and Naam Shabana, Taapsee Pannu has always impressed as an actress. But do you know she is also slaying as a shepreneur?

By Vanita D'souza

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Entrepreneur India

Blenders Pride Reserve Collection presents Entrepreneur's 35U35 list included some path-breaking names from the field of entrepreneurship and Indian Actress Taapsee Pannu made it to the list for enabling aspiring entrepreneurs to have an online presence.

Why Taapsee Pannu?

From teaching consent to the nation through Pink to explaining women are no less than men in Baby and Naam Shabana, Taapsee Pannu has always impressed as an actress.

But do you know the actress is also an entrepreneur? Apart from her full-time acting job in the India film industry, Pannu is the founder of The Wedding Factor and the Owner of Pune Pistons (Badminton Team).

Discussing what prompted her to take up entrepreneurship, Pannu in conversation with Entrepreneur India shared that acting was never her plan in life but entrepreneurship was.

"I was planning to do an MBA and then work as a marketing professional, eventually, starting some creative business by myself. But when I started acting, I started loving it and after a few years, I thought it would be nice to diversify which help me grow beyond an actor. One of my friends Farah, who was a professional wedding planner along with my sister, who loves organizing events – it just hit me that it good to invest (in The Wedding Factory) and I don't have to be physically present the entire time."

Presently, the Mumbai-based wedding company has tie-ups with the hotels across the country and have organized domestic destination wedding. Pannu is now keen to expand it to international locations too.

For Pannu, this is a recession proof businesses as India loves to celebrate weddings. "It is a trust-based business and that's the only thing you have to track. Post that, the word of mouth spreads like fire and your road then goes upwards," she added.

More to Her Kitty

Discussing her second venture, the 31-year old actress says she loves sports and follows it beyond cricket and football. "I am a jack of all trades and master of none," she joked.

Having said, Pannu belives the Badminton should be named as the family sport of India because all of us have spent once in our lifetime. "I think after cricket if there is a sport that our athletes have put us the world map it is badminton. There is a huge gap between cricket and badminton which needs to be bridged. With IPL and PBL, the gap is huge. Even sports like Pro Kabbadi and ISL are viewed more than badminton," Pannu noted.

The Factor

Even though entrepreneurship rejuvenates Pannu as human, the game isn't very easy for the actress to master. Talking about the hurdles, the actress shares, "It is never easy to get money out of people – be is it as a wedding planner or getting sponsorship for your team.

People think it very easy because you are an actor and here is the face people want to spend money on. Yes, they want to spend on me as an actor because of the services that I can provide. It is not the same when you get into other businesses."

Before bidding goodbye to us, on asking who is the women that inspire the entrepreneur in her, she promptly says Indra Nooyi.

Vanita D'souza

Former Senior Correspondent, Entrepreneur India

I am a Mumbai-based journalist and have worked with media companies like The Dollar Business Magazine, Business Standard, etc.While on the other side, I am an avid reader who is a travel freak and has accepted foodism as my religion.

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