When your life is driven by passion, you find everything pleasant. This is what happened with Aditi Patankar Gupta, born and brought up in Mumbai, who later moved to Singapore and participated in Mrs. Singapore and was declared as a finalist and later in 2017, she started Mrs. India UK and has 
conducted four consecutive seasons till date. As a mother of two, she is at present a part of Ahura Racing, an all-women racing team, and is participating in the ongoing JK Tyre FMSCI National Racing Championship and is also working at the SBM Bank. In a detailed conversation with TMM, she talks about her passion and what keeps her driving.
Tell us about yourself and your passion for pageants.
Aditi, born and brought up in Mumbai – the city of dreams, is passionate about turning her dreams into reality. I am an experienced professional in Marketing & Branding & Events and currently a Private Banker. After staying abroad for over ten years I am back in Mumbai and currently working with SBM Bank India and also run my own company in the UK which owns Mrs. India UK – the pioneer trademark pageant for Indian married women.
The pageant is simply a merge of my personal story and professional experience. Being from a corporate world and experiencing the entrepreneurial journey and again multitasking has been always a part of my life. Through pageants, I aim to translate dreams by celebrating the achievements of accomplished women who become a part of the pageant family. Pageants have always played a crucial role in my life and the development has immensely changed my perspective towards achieving my goals.
In 2015, when you won the Mrs. India Singapore title, how did it change your life?
Mrs. India Singapore journey has been incredible! Unlike other pageants, there was a lot of learning 
on self-development, re-discovering yourself, and reliving the passion in talent that you have. Being a trained dancer, I could connect back to dance. As a pageant winner, you suddenly become a public figure and you get to network a lot with amazing people. My runway journey actually had kicked-off before even winning the pageant but the crown made a difference like a celebrity owning the platform. It allowed me to explore more about myself and made me work towards my potential much more till date.
Tell us about your brainchild Mrs. India UK and what’s the secret of its success for the last 4 years?
In London, launching a platform for talented women that celebrated accomplishments out of India was my aim. I wanted to stitch the gap between beauty and talent to portray the true essence of successful women. Being the founder of BrandWok, organizer of Mrs. India UK, my vision of establishing a platform to re-define beauty is the core objective. Encouraging new talent and creating new platforms is what BrandWok will continue to do in the UK and globally.
For me, the secret of success was educating people through my eyes and not just focus on the glamour quotient that is known for the pageant industry was the key objective. The training is extremely bespoke and unique that covers the main aspects from deep coaching to talent nurturing and that is what an ideal success strategy is for me with this platform. Providing ample opportunities within the pageant itself for those who join is our second USPs till date. Mrs. India UK is being recognized not just in the UK but we do have applicants across the globe and requests to join due to the quality training and mentoring we provide with the best in industry coaches. I am glad that we are in its 5th season now and as the pandemic waves would settle, we would launch the season with the same zeal as always.
At present how are you balancing between the SBM Bank job and for passion for racing?
I am fortunate to have great seniors and I would especially like to thank them for the encouragement and support they provide. Being in private banking sales isn’t easy as it deals with business and numbers each day and especially when you are catering to HNI & UHNI clientele. But thankfully I have managed it well by accommodating my official leaves against the racing and training without requiring any extra support. So while I try to attend training and races, I make sure that it does not come in way of my full-time job.
You have also participated in the ongoing JK Tyre FMSCI National Racing Championship. How has been the experience?
The experience to drive amongst champions is incredible. It is an overwhelming experience but teaches a lot about the sport. A three-day event that makes you belong to a different world of time, speed, and fun altogether. Men and women coming together to race on the track also reflect how far women have come in a wonderful sport like motorsport. Every aspect during the racing week is taken care of by the event organizers and detailing is extremely done proactively.
As a mother of two, what’s your secret of success as a working woman?
My mind works like a matrix, I have listed priorities and dedicated timelines for each. I am kind of a person who is methodical and pre-planning works for me best. Weekends are usually placed for family and friends. As a working woman, balancing work and home is a tough task but at the same time, if you believe you can prioritize things and put an effort to manage a household, you are very much able to do so.
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