Daddy's girl

Anjani’s day out 7.30 a.m.: Wake-up 9.30 a.m.: Breakfast with family 9 a.m.-7 p.m.: At work. Review meetings. Meeting senior management etc. 8 p.m.: Back home 8.30 p.m.: Dinner with family 9.15 p.m.: Occasionally head out with friends for a party or catch a movie

Anjani Kasliwal says success and money come and go but friends and family remain forever. Profound words from a 22-year-old. This chirpy young woman loves filmmaking and, in fact, did her Bachelors in Media Management from Bombay University. So, what’s she doing in retail? “I always wanted to be a part of the family business. Fashion and luxury are inherent in me since, honestly, I have always lived a luxurious lifestyle,” she says, sipping her sparkling water with ice and a slice of lime at the Taj Wasabi in Mumbai.

“My dad has always let me do what I wanted and encouraged me. Today, I feel I am capable of carrying the business forward,” she adds. That probably explains her decision to head to the Escada headquarters in Munich, Germany, to do her internship right after her graduation. She currently manages two international luxury brands—Escada and Alfred Dunhill—as the head of luxury at Brandhouse Retails.

Her passion for brands is evident as she lives and breathes these brands. Even for the interview, she is dressed in an elegant grey Dunhill blazer (specially tailored for her as Dunhill only makes men’s clothes) over a jet black Escada formal dress. And she sports a Rolex watch on her left wrist.

“My everyday wardrobe is Escada, and since my father wears Dunhill, I have grown up with this brand. Alfred Dunhill’s German Street store is home to me. I can just sit there for hours.” So, does that mean she does not like other brands? “It would be sacrilege for me to talk about other brands,” she smiles sweetly.

While I sip on my watermelon juice, I wonder what I am going to order for lunch as I am a vegetarian. Kasliwal enlightens me with her knowledge of Japanese food. “I am a vegetarian, too, but I love Japanese food,” she smiles. She orders vegetarian sushi rolls like the Spicy Shitake Roll to begin our meal. Kasliwal is a foodie to the core and Japanese is not the only cuisine she likes.

She thrives on Baverian, Thai and Chinese cuisines as well. But heck, she is also a normal 22-yearold. So, she knows ballroom dancing and loves to shake a leg with buddies once in a while. Does the responsibility of being the heir apparent to the multi-crore family business scare her? “No way. If I did not have responsibilities, what would I be doing? Life would be so boring,” she says.

Inside Track Born: 1986, Bombay Family: Daughter of Nitin and Jyoti Kasliwal Educated: Bachelor of Media Management from Jaihind College, Bombay. Internship at Escada, Munich First job: S. Kumars Nationwide First salary: e435 and 77 cents a month Music: Anything to dance to. Also enjoys Mozart & Buddha Bar Film: Taare Zameen Par Hobbies: Dancing, filmmaking, listening to music Food: Anything vegetarian Drink: Sparkling water with ice and a slice of lime Best advice: To succeed, look back with satisfaction and look forward with confidence

What’s the one thing she would love to do if she had all the time in the world? “I would like to go on an extreme adventure sports holiday. But then, maybe my dad won’t like it,” she says. Daddy’s little girl is growing up, though!