She was all of 20 when she started her own business – she had no money, no experience, and no team. “But I had a lot of confidence,” Shreya Naik (25) grins. “When I told my parents I wanted to start my own business as an artist manager, they were stunned. I just took their blessings and started my business on Facebook. With no team and no investment, that was the best thing to do.”
Her high level of confidence, stemming from her stint in advertising and client servicing bode well for Shreya, who started Dreammakers three years ago as a sole proprietor. Her very first musical gig happened at The Blue Frog, Mumbai. “I can’t really say why I got into artist management exactly. Probably my background in promotion and marketing helped. All I know is that I have enough confidence to make a pitch, and that helped a lot initially,” she says.
It could all have gone downhill for Shreya – she had no background in artist management, she had no inkling of latest music trends, she didn’t have a portfolio to boast of. “I had no idea of international music. As a child, I watched cartoons in Hindi,” she grins. “So I would be totally lost when musicians would discuss music. I couldn’t even tell the names of all the Pink Floyd band members.” She learnt about music on the way, as she collaborated with several musicians who later became clients.
“The first artist I signed up was Nigel Rajaratnam. He was also very new. And the first place I sold my pitch to was The Blue Frog. I just called them and asked for a meeting, when I spoke about my artist. They were really nice to me and quite receptive. My first gig happened with them and funnily enough, most of my work has revolved around them and continues to do so. Now, my artistes and I travel all over the country,” she explains, adding that she has managed artists like Vasudha Sharma (of Asma fame) and bands like Filter Coffee.
Today, the maverick artist manager and her firm, Dreammakers, has a team of four handling different aspects of artist management. “We handle all aspects of the job, and I’ve managed more than 25 prominent artistes already,” Shreya says.
What it takes
Shreya brought her own creativity and empathy to the job – not having done any of it before probably helped. “I figured that I could learn on the way. I get really involved with my artistes and I love to see them succeed. That’s how I work, at whatever I do – I just go out there and give it my all. And it works well for me,” she says.
Her inexperience could have tripped her up at some point, but she says she has lucky to “never have been caught.” She explains, “Of course, my unprofessionalism also showed up sometimes. I learnt to follow up a phone confirmation with an email. Then there were times when some of my artists suddenly left me for other managers. I’ve shed a lot of tears but I’ve also learnt so much.”
Shreya Naik is always bursting with ideas.
Why do it at all
Apart from the creative perks of the job, the monetary compensation is good as well. “Plus, you get to place your artistes at some really cool venues. The industry is growing and there is enough place for everyone.” But, she reasons, you also have to make a choice after a while. “By now, I’ve created my own space in the industry, however big or small. Once you reach a certain stage in your career, you have to decide how to proceed – do you want to manage one big talent or do you want to work with a variety of artistes?” she explains.
What’s next
Not content to peg away at just one thing – “I cannot stagnate. I’m constantly bursting with ideas” – Shreya is now exploring the relatively unknown art of ‘decoupage’, which is an Italian collage form. For this, she has started a new firm, Artsy Fartsy, which will spot talented graphic artistes and doodlers and work with them closely to best showcase their work. “I’m surrounded by music all the time, so this is a good break for me,” she says. “There is so much talent in the country and doodlers, especially, have the knack of coming up with some really cool art that people will appreciate. I’ve never believed art should be inaccessible and only for a certain section of society – all of us respond to art in our own ways, and enough of it should be available to everyone’s liking.”
Shreya can be reached on shreyarnaik@gmail.com.
Image courtesy: Shreya Naik
