For India's city kids, one job isn't enough. Welcome to the age of hustle
All you need to ace it are mega multitasking skills — and the resilience of camels in a desert
Student, makeup artist, stylist, YouTuber, part-time unicorn. It’s increasingly common for young Indians to present themselves as multi-hyphenates, even if they’ve officially been adults for less than two years.
Living in the age of hustle, every minute counts. Each additional skillset puts you in the fast lane to a flourishing career, and whether it’s college students juggling classes or professionals making extra bucks from their various side gigs, time is literally money.
Some do it out of necessity, trying to make ends meet in an expensive city, while others are just overflowing with talent and passion that bottling that up might cause a human implosion.
Four young hustlers take us into their world, showing off their multitasking skills and their passion to do and have it all.
Tanishaa Cunha, 22, Mumbai
Creative director and partner, Plane Crazy Studios; co-founder, A & T Cunha Mosaic
What does the world ‘hustle’ mean to you?
Hustling is working relentlessly even when I know I can’t expect instant results. As the creative director at Plane Crazy, my role is to coordinate all things design. At A & T Cunha Mosaic, it involves everything from digital drawings to the plotting of colours to the actual execution of the mosaic artworks.
What inspired you to start working while in college?
I volunteered and freelanced while I was pursuing my undergraduate degree in design from Goldsmiths University, London. Work-life balance is my mantra, if you’re not able to manage your time, you will stop enjoying your work.
What keeps you going?
When our work gets recognised, it’s a proud feeling. My goal is to create beautiful works of art in every medium— whether at a home through our mosaics or creating the look of a new brand.
Are you worried about burnout?
Sometimes, but a short getaway or break always does the trick. And the unflinching support and motivation from my friends, family and colleagues keeps me going.
How do you deal with the pressure of juggling your commitments?
It’s very important to ask for support, if I didn’t delegate I would not be able to finish the work successfully. Teamwork is everything.
How has hustle culture impacted society?
The start-up culture in India has fuelled born hustlers (we do love jugaad). That sense of belief that you can achieve anything is inspiring. Now, our society is more empowered than ever — and all this energy can only help us grow.
Kalyani Adhav, 23, Mumbai
Fashion styling student at Istituto Marangoni Mumbai, freelance stylist, co-founder of Khwam Spa
What does the world ‘hustle’ mean to you?
Hustling means pushing myself to do my best at all times. Studying is my priority, followed by managing the spa with my mother. I also take up styling projects and am building my own website.
What inspired you to start working while in college?
I wanted to make use of what I was learning. I’m super critical of my own work and subconsciously feel like I need to do my best all the time. The “pushing myself” mentality comes from the fact that I’m never quite happy at one place — stagnancy scares me.
What keeps you going?
To-do lists that help me prioritise are my saviours. Ticking those tasks off is my number one motivation. My other motivations include treating myself with Bacon Kimchi Fried Rice, a massage or watching an episode of a show I’ve been watching.
Are you worried about burnout?
Whenever I feel like I’m burning out, I catch up on sleep, stop accepting more work and complete my on-going projects. I’ve learnt that your health should be your topmost priority. I deal with anxiety and stress and sometimes when I have pending tasks and cannot get myself out of bed, I remind myself that I cannot let depression take over.
How you deal with the pressure of juggling all your commitments?
I do put in extra hours at times because I feel no matter what I do, I’m still not doing enough. My need for perfection gets exhausting and I wouldn’t be able to do as much if it weren’t for my family and best friends. I consider myself privileged.
How has hustle culture impacted society?
Hustling is important, but people need to know that it can get toxic at times if you don’t live a balanced life. Burnout, severe stress, all of these problems are related to the hustle that’s been romanticised to a large extent. We’ve been told you’re ungrateful or lazy if you don’t do anything for a few days. I wish people stressed on taking care of oneself as much they stress on the hustle.
Raghav Tribrewal, 22, London
Masters in Fashion Promotion, communication and promotion; freelance celebrity stylist
What does the world ‘hustle’ mean to you?
Hustling for me is going above and beyond your requirement to fulfil goals, and achieve the desired outcome to keep others and most importantly yourself satisfied.
What inspired you to start working while in college?
You are presented with opportunities at all times, you have to identity them, seize them and work hard. Fashion is so fast paced and there’s so much competition. Also, it helps develop skills and gives you experience of the real world.
What keeps you going?
At this moment, I’m satisfied. Do I feel like I can do more? Always. It is important to pace yourself so you don’t burn out.
Are you worried about burnout?
I’ve experienced burnouts numerous times — physically you feel drained, you have no energy, your body clock is so messed up — you’re surviving on coffee and energy drinks. Mentally, everything frustrates you, you cannot give it your all even if you try hard and you start resenting the same work you used to love.
How do you deal with the pressure of juggling all your commitments?
This industry strives on perfection and attention to detail and the fact that there are so many other people out there who can replace you overnight is scary. You have to pace yourself, take time out, as much as FOMO sucks, you have to say no to keep your sanity. I seek support from my friends, family, and counsellors.
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Sakshi Shah, 19, Pune
Fashion communication student, lifestyle blogger
What does the world ‘hustle’ mean to you?
Hustling to me means be able to juggle your commitments without making excuses. It’s been a year since I started my blog, and let me tell you it’s not easy being a perfectionist, completing college assignments and consistently coming up with great content.
What inspired you to start working while in college?
I was 16 when I started following bloggers and loved the idea of using social media to do something productive. I started my own blog during my first year in college, because I loved blogging so much.
What keeps you going?
I’m satisfied with how things are taking shape but I believe I can do better, so I consistently push myself to do better. My goal is to influence people so they can understand and emphasise “Flaunt your Flaws”, I do my work and leave the rest in the hands of the audience. When you have to manage tasks, meet your deadlines, hop from one commitment to another, you may not even have time to sleep but the love and appreciation shown by the audience keeps me going.
Are you worried about burnout?
It has affected my physical health. I’ve had hundreds of sleepless nights trying to cope with my courses and career. Luckily, when it comes to my mental health, I don’t think it’s made that much of a difference.
How do you deal with the pressure of juggling commitments?
My busy schedule makes it almost impossible to manage every single thing by myself and that’s where my family comes in. My mother is there for every single shoot and my dad handles my finances. My team is the reason I’m here today.
How has hustle culture impacted society?
I feel like hustle culture has impacted everyone in various different ways. Being a millennial myself, I feel like our generation goes by a very simple mantra: Grind, Hustle, Strive. The only con to it is that the pressure could affect one’s physical health. For me, hustle culture has worked in my favour.
Thirty-year-old Eklavya Sakpal, filmmaker, writer, director, spiritual healer and clearly, multi-hyphenate, has a word of caution for all young hustlers. He believes that most teenagers enter the world of hustle for the ‘experience’ and that they should know the difference between being ‘busy’ and being productive — it could make all the difference to your mental health. The hustle may be the quickest way to your dream career, and all the perks that come with being a wunderkind but if you’re not kind to the needs of your mind and body, you won’t be able to enjoy the fruits of your labour. Like the OG hustler reminded us, Apna time aayega.
With inputs by Ayushi Bothra and Muskaan Gandhi