We have read many such stories till now when people pursue their passion to achieve success and also achieve success by hard work. Hero of our today’s story Harshit Sahdev The empire of success, pursuing his passion, is also full of inspiration.
Harshit’s childhood was spent in quiet cities like Rishikesh and Dehradun. After completing his Masters in Psychology, he started working with the Indus Quality Foundation, New Delhi and later joined the Ramakrishna Ashram as a ‘Value Educator’. Working with the Ramakrishna Ashram, he got the opportunity to travel across the country and it also gave him a better understanding of Indian society. He also got a chance to work in the hill villages of Uttarakhand.
In 2013, after the ‘Kedarnath tragedy‘, Harshit was faced with a challenging situation, when an ITBP jawan told him that Deedsari village of Uttarakhand was the worst affected. He visited the village and started posting about the problem on social media. After the tragedy in the village, all the basic facilities were lacking. Even people had to walk for five kilometers to avail first aid. Harshit widely exposed these issues on social media, after that people started getting help. After completing his tenure as a social worker, he returned to the corporate world. But his passion did not stop him.
In the year 2018, a French girl read about Harshit and expressed a desire to meet him and visit the villages where he served during the ‘Kedarnath tragedy’. After a conversation with Harshit, she came to India and both of them visited the villages of the area to see the situation. The French girl was surprised to see the sufferings of the people in the area despite the natural beauty and resources. With the lack of education and opportunities, there was a mass migration of people from villages. The two decided to start an NGO to help people in this area but dropped the idea after preliminary research. He felt that instead of temporary help, he should start a start-up that could create permanent employment opportunities for the villagers.
Harshit and his French friend decided to start a company selling products in the region. He soon launched his startup under the banner of Himashakti, and his first product was ‘Flavored Gourmet Salt’ – a salt made from the original Uttarakhand recipe that incorporated the taste of everyday foods. You will be surprised to know that this startup started with a small capital of just Rs 10,000.
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Salt is made from many other herbs found in the Himalayan hills and is a traditional recipe of the region. They decided to start with this product in view of zero competition in the field without any training, high international demand and easy employment generation in the region.
The herbs found in the Himalayas are high in medicinal properties and help in curing many disorders. We started with our first product ‘flavored gourmet salt’, looking at the benefits consumers get and the villagers who make it. ” – Harshit Told in conversation
Today, Harshit’s startup ‘Himashakti’ is slowly and steadily making its impact. His startup was also supported by the Indian Institute of Management, Kashipur, and recently, renowned Indian chef Harpal Singh Sokhi has also joined his team to promote his product. Harshit’s startup is one of those upcoming social startups, which changes our attitude towards working for society and also creates awareness about ‘social entrepreneurship’ among the youth. His story is truly full of inspiration, which inspires us to pursue a passion.
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Inputs: tribe.kenfolios.com
