It takes an insider to know what's wrong inside. Having participated in the reality singing show Sa Re Ga Ma Pa in 2012, performed in over 127 stage shows and even worked in an event management company in Bhubaneswar, RK Mishra is a certified insider when it comes to the creative field in Odisha. And the problem he identified was that those from rural areas who come to the city with dreams of becoming an actor, technician or crew member in a film just don't know where to begin. That's why he started Destarity Entertainment, that goes by the brand name Way2star, in July 2018. The model is that they train upcoming actors or technicians who aspire to work in the industry, for free, and then help them get jobs via the start-up's own network. And this month, they are finally ready to step up their game and launch their app.
This edutainment start-up has tie-ups with dance academies, gyms, aerobics centres and the like, and they take up their space to conduct two-hour-long workshops over the weekends. "Owing to the fact that we can't go to every village and the pandemic is upon us, we have onboarded about 40 to 60 academies across the country where we will offer training. Soon, we are planning to take the model online too. The aspirants can find an academy near them as per the training they are looking for," summarises the 26-year-old. Then, these aspirants can go on to pick jobs that are listed on their app — from spot boys to extras and also, roles like background dancers and actors, there is something for everyone.
But what is non-negotiable is training. "This is because, for example, a lighting man usually earns `200-300 a day and a supervisor earns about `1,200. When the director says 'I want to take a 180-degree shot', the lighting technician is unable to understand and needs a supervisor to tell him exactly what to do. But if the former comes with the right know-how, then there are chances that he will earn more," explains RK, as he is fondly called, who has an MBA from KIIT. They have already conducted about 120 physical workshops, some of which were delivered by noted directors like Jyoti Das and Rasesh Mohanty, and helped over 100 people find their dream job. Tarang TV and Manjari TV have hired from their pool. Now, the app is all set to help more people.
For the start-up, their app is certainly their future. But they have planned for beyond the future as well. "We want to provide training at the college-level as well and talk to colleges to integrate these skill training workshops into the curriculum for those who are interested," concludes the Dhenkanal-born.
For more on them, check out destarity.com
