In conversation with one of the most successful relationships both on and off-screen, PEAKLIFE scoops in on MissMalini and husband Nowshad Rizwanullah’s love secrets.
“Success requires hard work, especially when you’re talking about a digital media startup back in 2012 when the internet was still a privileged resource in India and social media was just finding its legs.” says Malini Agarwal, Founder and Creative Director, MissMalini.
Along with husband and CEO, MissMalini, Nowshad Rizwanullah, Malini pioneered the Indian lifestyle blogging with her blog MissMalini.com and today enables to reach 30 million people a month across their owned channels, with over 10 million direct social media followers.
Compassionate, hardworking, and crating out the middle ground of their different personalities, take a peek into the couple’s journey in both professional and personal lives:
1.) Share a little history about your relationship.
We met in 2007 at an event that Malini was hosting as part of her Friday Club social group. Nowshad was added as a last-minute guest when someone else dropped out and the rest is history. A year later Nowshad was accepted to Harvard Business School and by that time, our bond was so strong that we decided to fight all odds and stay together in a long-distance relationship. It was a challenging two years but we made it through thanks to Skype and the occasional holiday visit.
By that time Nowshad permanently returned to Mumbai, MissMalini.com had been operational for about a year as Malini’s hobby blog. Nowshad had a day job working in finance, but would spend his nights helping Malini and their third co-founder Mike spin up business plans until we raised some angel funding. We got married in February 2012, received our funding in March, and have been building our lives and MissMalini Entertainment happily together ever since.
2.) Could you please elaborate on your work ethics as a couple and how do you work together as a team?
What has worked well for us is a good distribution of responsibilities. As CEO, Nowshad handles the business aspects of the company while as Creative Director Malini looks after our content and creative operations. We do our best to respect each other’s domains while contributing our inputs where appropriate. It’s not always easy but our respect for each other ensures we make it work. And of course, we have an amazing team across our various operations that truly brings MissMalini to life, without whom we wouldn’t have made it this far.
3.) MissMalini is India’s biggest media network for today’s gen. How do you keep up with the changes in content of the digital era?
When we recruit we make sure anyone we hire is a digital media enthusiast in their personal lives. Another way we remain current is to recognize that the digital age has now enabled countless new individual content creators and influencers who are very attuned to what their audiences want. We recently launched MissMalini Trending, which is our influencer news desk that covers all of today’s digital stars.
Last but perhaps most important, we listen to our audiences. We track our data to see what is resonating with our community, and try to provide relevant content and experiences. The best example of this is Malini’s Girl Tribe. This is a closed, women’s-only digital community that we strictly moderate as a safe space to speak your mind, give and receive support, and make genuine connections with other women.
4.) What advice would you give to working couples in managing their personal and professional commitments?
First and foremost, before getting into a co-working situation with your partner or spouse you need to ensure your roles are well defined, that you respect each other’s individual skills, and that you check your ego at the door. This flows into the second most important piece of advice, set and know your boundaries. This not only means knowing when to switch-off at home after a long day at work, but also knowing how to differentiate between your personal and professional domains.
5.) In any relationship, growth is an important aspect. How do you two manage to keep growing in your marriage?
In our case building a company together has played a big role. Every day is a new adventure and keeps us on our toes. It definitely helps that we are in the entertainment domain – our work commitments can be quite fun, including social events, food, nightlife and travel.
That said, all jobs can be stressful and stress makes relationships shrink, not grow. You cannot make this work if you are both putting in 100-hour weeks with no time for each other and yourselves. Make it a point to have fun together. Stay close to your family and friends. Spend time on yourself to recharge your batteries, and be understanding if your partner needs to do the same. In fact, make sure you spend some time apart because absence makes the heart grow fonder.
Most importantly, listen to each other, be kind, and be empathetic. If your relationship is truly built on love, trust and respect, then there’s no limit to what you can conquer together.
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