Spirit W | Ready to take up challenges: Avneet Kohli, Image Strategists & TV anchor

Having worked with several celebrities such as Salman Khan, Shahrukh Khan and Sonam Kapoor, amongst others, Avneet Kohli has also studied ‘Image Strategizing’ from the London Image Institute. Being one of young entrepreneurs and brand image consultants she runs her own image consulting and strategizing firm- I opener.

Having worked with client portfolio consisting of the some of the largest brands such as HUL, Mercedes-Benz, Allen Solly, Microsoft, UTV, Vodafone, amongst others, Avneet has also made her presence felt as a successful emcee for various corporate and fashion-lifestyle events as well. She recently shot to fame with the Celebrity Cricket League (CCL) where she played official host for season 4… 

Born and raised in Abu Dhabi, she graduated with a major in Marketing, and is now, one of the youngest Image Strategists in the country to be certified as a ‘Personal Branding and Merit Image Consultant’ by the London image Institute.

Adgully caught up with Avneet Kohli to know more about image consulting industry, her career so far and more.

She mentions that her love and passion of working brought her to India; speaking about how she landed up being an entrepreneur and taking up a rare space to venture into, she said, “I was supposed to join my elder sister in Canada and go to York University for my undergrad. God has his ways to lead you to what you are meant to do. I never picked the career, it chose me. I first worked as a backstage assistant in various fashion events, from there moved to assisting various celebrities and singers.  Luck by chance; I was touring with a singer for a concert in Rajasthan, where in transit she had cracked the CD that introduced her on stage. She needed an introduction before her performance and the multi-tasker that I was, I was bestowed the task of doing the honors. That is when I held the mike professionally for the first time and then things went on and I landed up into an Image Strategists.”

Before getting into her own venture, Avneet has hosted numerous shows and events across sports, corporate and entertainment sectors. Sharing her experience on the same, she said, “CCL 4, hosting this league as an official anchor was the most memorable experience. The exposure and learning that I got on camera was extensive. Hosting live events is one thing; television is a whole different ball game. Stage allows you freedom of movement and a response from your audience based on which you engage the audience. However TV, Talking into a black box, restricting body movements to fit your frame, imagining an audience and responding to them was a great challenge, but I am glad I learnt.”

Multitasking as an anchor and looking after a newly set-up venture, requires courage and passion. When asked how her business outfit helps her in bettering both her jobs and what goes into managing both – anchoring and image consulting, she said, “Time, Energy and patience go into managing both professions. My business outfit when I go for an anchoring brief is different v/s what I wear to my training. I wouldn’t wear a business suit for an anchor brief. (Laughs).” Yes though a simple but an apt differentiation.

While we all know female anchors are usually seen as glamour entities on stage, when asked the same to her she positively said, “Well, it’s unfortunate that female anchors in our country are looked upon only for adding the glam quotient or look like eye candies. I am blessed to look like one; however, beauty with brains is a statement I choose to be known as. It’s the path you choose that differs you from the rest. I hope and pray I am able to be an exception to that perception.”

Every field and industry has its own set of challenges and anchoring and Image strategist for sure has many. Though the concept of Image Consultancy is very rare but big and being a young entrant surely holds a big responsibility. “There are many challenges. Firstly, any girl who looks reasonably presentable tried her luck at modeling and acting and the two didn’t seem to work out, tries to become an anchor. Please realize this is complete profession. Don’t get into it to make a quick buck. Secondly, any performing artist never has the peace of mind and comfort of knowing that ‘X’ amount is a guarantee this month, not keeping all your eggs in one basket, planning your finances is a lesson to keep in mind and thirdly, an anchor at a show is the Focal point. What an anchor is to a ship, a presenter is to a show. All aspects of your visual appearance, diction, confidence, knowledge of current affairs, command on language come into play when you choose to be in this profession. Don’t try to save money on your outfits and wear just about anything when up there”, she explained.

Keeping the above three learnings in mind, she focuses on her presentation and reads a lot to work on knowledge. While Avneet is shouldering multiple responsibilities and managing various task, venturing into films is one of her major focus points now. “They say never say never. However, TV serials don’t take my fancy at all. I would love to act in a 24 but general entertainment in India needs to evolve in order to push me that extra mile. Films, I haven’t trained as an actor and don’t have the time at the moment, however if there is a script and a director that can bring out my best, I would take it up as an experience to add to my kitty”, she said.

She states that I-opener was born to help people and clients open their eyes and realize what they could do differently to bring about positive change in their lives. In India, life is hard, be it the weather, financial pressures or job pressures. “Succumbing to these pressures, people don’t realize the smallest things that they take for granted which costs them opportunities. I-opener is an initiative to make people realize these small details that people judge them on and then help them by giving them a practical solution that they can incorporate with ease. Image building is a process, beginning with realization to evolution. Helping people projecting confidence and putting their best foot forward is what we do,” she concluded.

High dreams, high values, passion to work and make her business grow are few things that Avneet rides upon and truly being one of the young entrepreneurs she has a long way to go!