Meet the entrepreneur bringing fashion in technology

Last year, as Vu Televisions forayed into the Middle East market, Devita Saraf decided to speak at a press meet which had the crème de la crème of retail sector and media. Working herself to the bone in the anticipation of the launch, Devita fell sick. Her immunity had already been low and she did not even possess the energy to get up from the bed. Over the next 24 hours, a group of doctors, headed by Dr Zainab Al-Hashimy, administered IV drips and nebulisers, ensuring she was in a position to speak at the press meet.

“We had a massive turnout of 150 people. I had cough syrups kept on the back of TV screens just in case I needed them. As soon as the press conference was over, I was rushed to the hospital where I received top notch healthcare. Dubai’s healthcare system is fabulous,” recalls the founder of Vu Televisions. “It not only saved my life, it also saved my Middle Eastern business.”

This small anecdote offers a robust glimpse of what Devita Saraf truly is — a resilient leader. As the daughter of Rajkumar Saraf, who founded Zenith Computers, Devita understands privilege and the power that comes with it. It’s just that she has refused to take either for granted, rather using them as a stepping stone to preside over a high-end television brand with an annual turnover of INR 1000 crore.

“Born and raised in South Bombay family, I always felt that the power and respect was with the men. I wanted to be the star of my own show because I knew I had the drive for it,” says Devita. It only helped that she was born into a family where gender divide wasn’t as steep. She was given the same opportunities as her elder brother, who now works in the artificial intelligence business. “However, as I grew up I felt the world outside was not woke enough to accept a daughter as an heir in the business or a founder of a business.”

This, despite her having an early start, being taken for press conferences, dealer meetings, trade shows and office openings from the time when she was 16. By the time she decided to plunge into business at the age of 22, she had already had a 7-8 years of training. No surprises then by the time she prepared her business plan and presented it to the top leadership, she sounded like anything but a novice. Devita credits it to a combination of self-belief and experience.

AN ENTREPRENEUR IS BORN

Creating her own template of success at an early age, Devita founded Vu Televisions when she was only 24, a time when luxury and electronics weren’t being spoken of in the same breath in India. The challenge, she reiterates, was not as much about understanding the domain, but grasping the complexities that come with leadership. She doesn’t mince her words when she says it is possible to “figure out” the machinations of an industry, but no one really prepares you for leadership. “One thing that impacted me is how much responsibility, constant effort and risk-taking goes into being in that ‘boss’ role. I don’t think people often give enough credit to leaders for how much they willingly take on. I have now run this business for 18 years now and have learnt so much. That learning, to be fair, is not gender-specific. You either like and love leadership or you don’t.”

Even if women like Devita are natural leaders, their journey to the top is no walk in the park. For one, tech, during the time when Devita started out, was still seen as a male bastion, as was entrepreneurship. An outlier, she found herself navigating these challenges by using them to her advantage. How?

“My brother often compares me to Seabiscuit in the eponymous film. It is the story of a tiny horse that runs alongside big horses,” she says. The rationale of this example is to use the perceptions and stereotypes to one’s advantage. “Often, even if women have self-belief, the world tends to perceive us differently,” she says. “If you ask me, it is an advantage to be a young woman in business because people do not have any expectations from you. As a result, you don’t have much competition that’s checking on you all the time. You can go unnoticed before someone realises the scale of operations. When you are considered a dark horse, you can use it to gather information and take time to build your business, and not actually look threatening to your competitors.”

THE MAKING OF A LEADER

There is considerable wisdom in that observation. Breaking the glass ceiling need not always mean standing apart, but also using the stereotypes to your advantage. Once it’s broken, not only will the external entities take not of you, but your own team views you differently. It’s often contended that it’s difficult for women to be leaders inside an outside an organisation. But Devita does not mince her words when she says that the power always lies with the person writing the cheques, and women need not undermine that agency they have in a business.

“When I started the business, if I saw someone being disrespectful towards my team or other women or younger people, I immediately knew this person would not last very long. But if I liked the character of a person, I would personally coach them. As a result, I have had people who were once janitors and are now store managers, engineers who have now become CTOs,” she says. “As a leader, I do not get carried away by fancy resumes. You really have to assess the person and get a hunch from them about whether they’d be able to work with you. That has been my hiring principle, and we have had some people who’ve been with us forever.”

• UAE: Meet the teen on a mission to preserve local trees and plants