Swapnil Tiwari is a sharp businessman even if he claims to be ‘not so good’ with Finance! The business, however, is not a strictly financial venture. Founder Chairman of Naked Colours, Swapnil explains that his venture is working in the sectors of poverty alleviation, opportunities enhancement and preservation of ancient art forms across ancient tribes and cultures in India. “I use creativity for social good. Focused mostly on Naxal-infested areas, the venture intends to save art forms and the culture of ancient tribes from extinction, through innovation in those arts and finding them a viable market.”

Working on the maxim of ‘Be the change you wish to see in the world’, Swapnil set up his business to offer services in five verticals – Neo Indus Arts, Psyche Art, Freethot Business, Freethot Education and Naked Colours Innovations. He incorporates innovation in all strata of his business, especially in product, service, advertising and HR development. An entrepreneur at heart, Swapnil completed his PGDM from Jaipuria Noida in the year 2007. He was selected as a Marketing Officer at Bank of India and had spent 7 months on the job when his entrepreneurial spirit took him to his destiny. He first experienced the joy of entrepreneurship by participating in a ‘Business on Campus’ competition organised by NEN at Jaipuria Institute of Management, Noida. Ever since, NEN has been an inspiration and a silent support to Swapnil. In an interview, he said, “The fact gave me courage in tough times, that there are people out there who understand the worth of an idea and the purpose of a thought.” NEN, Swapnil says, is his Dronacharya.

Swapnil is an artist himself, with more creative than analytical skills. However, he built up his management and business skill base to recognise the gaps in the market for art. ‘Sarv Managalam’ or ‘Good for All’, drives this man, who grew up with dreams as his constant companions. “With great power comes great responsibility. And with this thought, I decided to invest my power of creation towards a greater good – Naked Colours was born.” Swapnil believes that Jaipuria helped him become market-ready, specifically the training and mentoring that he received. He says that the faculty at Jaipuria helped him and guided him through the process of placement. “Commencing from the initial GD preparations to the interviews, we all had hand-holding training sessions. We were quite ready to face the real fire.”

Through his ventures – Naked Colours, 3 patents, 28 Copyrights, India’s first Hinglish novel in writing – Swapnil has achieved a lot in his young life. His passion drives him, and his advice to his juniors is, “The biggest power lies within you. Never lose belief in yourself. The biggest inspiration lies within you. Search for that and pursue your dream”.

“My admission interview for Jaipuria Institute of Management remains the toughest interview I’ve faced to date; even tougher than making it to Deloitte. It turned me into a new person.”

Sameer Vivian Joseph believes that if there is one event that changed his life, it was the interview for admission to Jaipuria Institute of Management, Noida with Professor Anurag Singh.

“To date, that remains the toughest interview that I have ever appeared for,” recollects Sameer. “The learning from it was so intense that it simply blew away all my inhibitions and set the tone for the coming two years at the college. Ever since Professor Anurag Singh has had the most active role in shaping my career path and in my overall development as a good management student. Before joining Jaipuria Institute of Management, Noida, Group Discussions were always my pitfall. But participation in the mentor discussion programmes and personality development classes turned this into my strength.”

Today, Sameer Vivian Joseph is not only a star performer at Jaipuria Noida but also the toast of the town with friends and relatives in his hometown Meerut. Right at the beginning of the placement season, Sameer has landed a plum profile with one of the dream companies for any youngster – Deloitte. The diffident young Meerut boy has grown wings, and is all set to fly!

“It is indeed a dream start. In the short run, I see myself working hard and smart, climbing up the corporate ladder with better responsibilities and good all-around performance. In the long run, I wish to become an entrepreneur in the field of education.”

Sameer feels that Jaipuria Noida has the right approach towards placements, starting to prepare its students as early as July with mock interviews and guest lectures. Having pursued Finance in his MA, he didn’t have much trouble brushing up on taxation and revising core concepts in the build-up to the Deloitte interview.

“The Deloitte selections were divided into two stages. In early October, I managed to clear the first stage rather easily and qualified for the three rounds of interviews scheduled later in the month. The initial HR round was a test of confidence in which various behavioral and job-related questions were asked. It was followed by the business interview round. From basic accounting terminology to technical concepts of finance, this interview tested my analytical abilities. The final round was a mix of all that had we had faced in the earlier rounds; it was more of a check on the consistency and performance level as a candidate for the job.”

Sameer believes that the first-year experience at Jaipuria Noida made a difference to his personality. In the very first trimester, he broke into the top three in his course in terms of his CGPA. He also blossomed on the co-curricular front, securing the runner-up position in the intra-college Marketing quiz of 2011-12. Given his flair for writing, he was entrusted with the tasks of writing reports for the Marketing Conclave – 2011, as well as the Law Conference.

“I did my summer internship at the Central Bank of India, New Delhi. I worked at both the regional as well as the branch office level. From the SIP experience, I certainly realized that the world out there is altogether different from the classroom. The experience at Jaipuria Institute of Management, Noida has taught me to multi-task and manage time effectively. One has to plan for goals to be able to achieve them. Therefore, my learning stems from the fact that I prioritized my goals on the basis of importance, time, and strategy.”

Sameer believes that a good B-School must critical factors: Placement, Faculty, and Infrastructure. He points out that in his case, Jaipuria Institute of Management, Noida has proven excellent on all three counts.