Relatability • Community • Togetherness

Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in mental wellness but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Tanushree Sengupta, Creator of The Desi Condition, located in New York, NY, USA.

What's your business, and who are your customers?

I run a platform called The Desi Condition. Our mission is to educate South Asian diasporic individuals on mental health and wellness and to increase South Asian representation in the professional arts by interviewing and spotlighting the experiences of unique community members.

We run a podcast of the same name, raising awareness of mental health and wellness by deconstructing stigmas specific to the community. The podcast hosts interviews with diverse individuals from all over the world -- our guests might be your neighbor or a rock star. Our well-known guests include Jai Wolf, Young The Giant's Sameer Gadhia, and actors Sujata Day and Ritesh Rajan.

As a platform, The Desi Condition encourages the exploration of aspirations, conflict, and emotionality as they relate to mental health, often finding an outlet in creativity. As such, we created the first-ever directory for South Asian creative professionals (called The Desi Collaborative), which showcases the breadth of South Asian talent and success despite cultural barriers, discrimination, and stigmas.

The Desi Collaborative allows community members to foster meaningful and lucrative professional connections in the arts. Through the directory, artists may contact, support, and collaborate with like-minded individuals. In addition, users may attend the directory's informational and skill-building services events, which span a variety of topics that aid professional development via other experiences creatives.

Tell us about yourself

The idea to podcast came from my own experience with mental health. I have had issues with depression for my whole life, which I kept to myself well into adulthood. I began recognizing the cultural stigma against mental health as the reason I never sought help. I realized that to talk about de-stigmatization, we must talk about culture. We must be critical of it and implore our peers to do better.

The Desi Condition is what most may consider a "side gig." During the day, I am a high school math teacher. Still, I have a background in industrial design and mechanical engineering. In design school, I realized there are very few people who look like me in creative fields. I believe there is a real need for representation and support among the South Asian diaspora in the arts.

Becoming a teacher has helped me realize and expand my natural tendency to support and provide people with resources that help them grow. The Desi Condition and Collaborative were created to help me help my community understand the human condition from a South Asian perspective.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

One of our most significant accomplishments has been increasing mental health awareness by expanding our reach. We have spoken on various panels and events on the unique mental health issues the South Asian and more significant AAPI communities face. We hope to continue our advocacy for them.

We have also been fortunate enough to have an incredibly loyal fan base that trusts us. It's always a joy when we receive a listener's message about how a particular episode impacted personal lives or made them feel seen. Knowing that we have helped people understand themselves in a way they never thought possible keeps us going daily. We're incredibly passionate about our mission and proud of our work.

What's one of the hardest things that come with being a business owner?

For me, one of the hardest things I contend with is believing that what I am doing is good enough and doubting whether I deserve any of the success I've had. It is easy for me to become overly critical of my work. Imposter syndrome is real! But it's important to have perspective people engage with our content for a reason. I have to trust that I know what I'm doing, even when I'm not feeling the most confident.

What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?

Accept that sometimes you need help, which is not bad! If you are suffering, so will your business and your clients. It's a lose-lose-lose situation.
Never underestimate the power of social media. It's important to have followers but more important to have loyal followers. Be honest, be yourself, and the rest will fall into place.
Managing time is difficult when you have so much on your plate, but if you don't set boundaries in your work, you, as a human, will suffer. Try not to get too anxious about time. Few tasks are so pressing they need to be done 10 minutes before bed. I like to tell myself that if I need "only ten more minutes" to finish something, I can find those ten more minutes the next day.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website:
https://tdcpodcast.com/
https://www.desicollaborative.co/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thedesicondition
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thedesicondition/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/tdcpodcast_

If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.

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