Madhulika Jhawar will conduct more such workshops if need be | (Pic: Madhulika Jhawar)
Madhulika Jhawar will conduct more such workshops if need be | (Pic: Madhulika Jhawar)

How to cram all your clothes into a carry-on bag? Ask Madhulika Jhawar

Madhulika Jhawar talks about minimalistic packing and why no one needs excess baggage in their life

Raise your hands if you are guilty of overpacking, even if it's just a one or two-day-long trip. And with the travel bug doing the rounds these days, isn't it better to travel light? So to Marie Kondo your packing (she's a famous organising consultant, in case you're wondering), Madhulika Jhawar has been conducting Pack like a Pro workshops which will help you travel with no extra baggage. It was while packing for a friend that Jhawar, who's in charge of marketing and merchandising at the functional art space Creatif in Banjara Hills, realised that she is a pro when it comes to packing. 

Madhulika has also worked with Label Bazaar, a multi-brand exhibition endorsed by tennis star Sania Mirza herself

"Nowadays, consumerism is so intense that we mindlessly buy things which we might not even need. Going minimal, especially while travelling, can really ensure stress-free journeys," explains the 27-year-old, who has been cutting out the clutter for four years now. Her inspirations are not only YouTube videos, but even her own persistent organising streak, which she suspects she inherits from her maternal grandmother. Coupled together, these factors help her keep her luggage light, which is very important for her as Madhulika is a travel junkie. In fact, we caught up with her when she was on her way to the airport to catch a flight to Sri Lanka, the tenth country she is visiting. 

All smiles: Madhulika loves travelling (Pic: Madhulika Jhawar)

Now, you'd think that a serial packer would swear by a travel list, but Madhulika says that travel lists are a bane and the basic thumb rule is to cut the list in half. "Every place has everything nowadays, supermarkets are just around the corner, so there is no need to take every small thing," she says matter-of-factly. She even advises that, to begin with, we must use smaller bags so that the tendency to overpack is defeated right at the beginning. And her workshops too are full of practical tips and demonstrations to modify packing for a weekend trip or a three-day trip. The philosophy is to be minimalistic and to ask yourself just one question every time you pack — Does this spark joy?


How to pack like a pro
- Make sure all your tops match all your bottoms. This way, your looks and combinations will increase while the number of clothes will remain the same and you can mix and match them 
- We are all used to folding our clothes and stacking them while packing, but rolling them up instead saves on a lot of space. The packing too will appear to be more compact and neat
- Carry multipurpose products in smaller sizes. For instance, a body oil which can also be used as a makeup remover. Buying them in travel-friendly or smaller sizes helps with space management
- Repeat your clothes, it's fine! I personally feel that we need to take on a more hipster and gipsy outlook when it comes to this because, just like them, we need to learn to manage our resources better 

For more on her, click on facebook.com/madhulika.jhawar.9

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