Power Women: Debanjali Kamstra of Veloche Contracting On How To Successfully Navigate Work, Love and Life As A Powerful Woman

BUILDING TRUST: When you want to be powerful, the first thing you need is for others to trust you and your judgement. Every business meeting I attend, the most important thing I do is to make sure my customer or business partner feels comfortable working with me. I strive to earn their trust and respect for my decision-making skills. This ongoing effort will eventually give you the power to lead any position.

How does a successful, strong, and powerful woman navigate work, employee relationships, love, and life in a world that still feels uncomfortable with strong women? In this interview series, called “Power Women” we are talking to accomplished women leaders who share their stories and experiences navigating work, love and life as a powerful woman.

As a part of this series, I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Debanjali Kamstra.

Debanjali Kamstra is a renowned entrepreneur, brand ambassador, and role model to the Indian community in the UAE. She has been featured in various media outlets such as newspapers, magazines, TV shows, and social media platforms. Internationally, she is recognized as a successful businesswoman managing three thriving organizations, including Veloche Contracting LLC, Ventura LLC, and Brewer Street Cafe. Her companies provide employment to over 100 individuals and offer opportunities for food and education not only in the UAE but also in rural areas.

Debanjali Kamstra is also a mother of two children and advocates for children with autism and encourages financial independence for people of determination. Her dedication to empowering women and leadership has earned her the title of the pioneer of Mrs. UAE World, where she represented the country on an international platform. She was honored with the Award for Most Exotic National Costume and secured a top-three position among 45 equally empowered women from around the globe.

Before her success as an entrepreneur, Debanjali Kamstra started her career as a cabin crew for the UAE’s flag carrier over a decade ago. With a background in Interior Design and Architecture from Kolkata, India, she founded Veloche Interior and Exhibition in 2011. Her hard work and dedication to her businesses have made her an inspiration to many young entrepreneurs.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dig in, our readers would like to get to know you a bit more. Can you tell us a bit about your childhood “backstory”?

I was born in Kolkata, India, also known as “the city of joy”. I went to a private English school, which helped me to grow my language skills in English. My brother, Debasish Chakraborty, was a big inspiration to me as he was seven years older than me and was a great student. He always led me in the right direction. I was an extreme extrovert, which made many alpha men feel uncomfortable in the society of India. Therefore, I felt that moving abroad would be the only way to live the life I dreamed of. I decided to work for an airline to explore the world, as travelling was something I was passionate about. In 2008, I landed in Dubai with Emirates Airlines as a cabin crew and flew all over the world, making many friends of different nationalities. This gave me the maximum exposure to life and nature. Then I decided to touch base with design and architecture, and made the decision to start Veloche Interior and Exhibition. The name represents speed, as living in Dubai, speed is something that we need to manage all the time. Travelling also helped a lot, as staying in five-star hotels and visiting different countries gave me many ideas of different cultures and the choices of people while designing their property.

Can you tell us the story about what led you to this particular career path?

Since childhood, I have always been keen on making creative ideas and taking an artistic approach in my career. Interior design became my career path when I started seeing the evolution of how a place can change its looks and become fresh and new, even if the structure is 20 years old.

Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began your career?

Ohh! There are so many incidents that can be counted as interesting in the path of building an organization. 1. Working in a construction site while being seven months pregnant could be interesting for a woman who is adamant to prove to the world that nothing can hold a woman back from reaching her goal, as many women still believe that being pregnant could be a hindrance for their career. 2. Completing a 25 million AED project in seven months with design, sampling, approval, and construction could also be counted as interesting; we shrank the time in our favor, where this big project usually takes more than two years to complete in the real world of architecture.

You are a successful business leader. Which three-character traits do you think were most instrumental to your success? Can you please share a story or example for each?

A. Confidence is a real trait.

B. Continuing to learn even from those junior to you is considered an important factor in your character.

C. Being grateful and humble, while knowing your inner value and protecting the interests of your company, is important.

D. When I started the company, many people told me that it was difficult, hard, and impossible to run a business from scratch. However, I only listened to my inner self and kept believing that with hard work and the right approach, nothing is impossible.

E. The most important thing is to convince yourself. As an entrepreneur, we need to convince the world to trust in our inventions. If we don’t trust ourselves, how will we convince others to trust us?

Ok, thank you for that. Let’s now jump to the primary focus of our interview. The premise of this series assumes that our society still feels uncomfortable with strong women. Why do you think this is so?

History has often portrayed women as primarily responsible for their families and homes, rather than as corporate decision makers or leaders. As women began to explore the outside world, which was largely dominated by men, they faced and continue to face situations where they are discriminated against as being weak.

The society at large became concerned when it saw that many industries were experiencing huge transformation and growth due to the involvement of women’s brains. However, this made many men, and even some women, feel intimidated. As a woman leader, I face this kind of discrimination every day even in the 21st century, where many men do not want to accept that women can be better leaders, CEOs, or directors of a company. They worry that their wives, mothers, or sisters might get influenced and they might lose control over their domination in their household.

However, on the other hand, I also work with men who are very supportive of women’s equality, and this is how society is growing. One day, the world will see a balance and equal platform for both genders in family and the corporate world.

This perception and acceptance of women as holding higher or equal positions in society can slowly change with more examples of women’s equality and international exposure to certain segments of our society.

Without saying any names, can you share a story from your own experience that illustrates this idea?

Fortunately, I am the only female child in my dad’s family. All of my siblings and cousins are male. When I was young, our older generation believed that in India, women should only get married and bear children, and that school education was more than enough. So, there were discussions in our family about not providing me with more opportunities. However, my brother and mother insisted that I receive equal opportunities in the family, whether it was in education or career.

I made sure to make them proud, and today, I am one of the most influential people in my family.

What should a powerful woman do in a context where she feels that people are uneasy around her?

A powerful woman should always hold her ground, not with arguments, but with logic. Her intelligence should speak for her. Sometimes, it’s better to not answer every single provocation. Rather, wait for the time when your action will make the other person realize your power.

What do we need to do as a society to change the unease around powerful women? More opportunities should be given to women, so that we can set more examples. Eventually, society will accept that women and men are equal. We are talking about mental equality here, as by nature, men are physically stronger, which does not mean that women shall be deprived of the opportunity to become a leader.

We must also remember that women should not use power in the wrong direction and should not take it for granted and start making a man feel ignored or intimidated. Women should equalize their value while balancing their life, with everything they are expected to do in the roles of mother, wife, daughter, or sister.

In my own experience, I have observed that often women have to endure ridiculous or uncomfortable situations to achieve success that men don’t have to endure. Do you have a story like this from your own experience? Can you share it with us?

When I became Mrs. UAE 2021–2022 and went to America to compete for Mrs. World, I was told by many men that “beauty pageants” were what I should focus on instead of trying to become a businesswoman, as that suited me better. “Business is for men, not for women,” they said.

I came back from the competition, winning the 2nd runner-up title and beating contestants from other countries. This also proved to the world that women are not just beauty products; we are multitasking, intelligent, and loving humans who can balance life between motherhood, being a supportive wife, a responsible daughter, and a powerful leader.

In your opinion, what are the biggest challenges faced by women leaders that aren’t typically faced by their male counterparts?

Due to our physical weakness, which is a natural characteristic of women, we are perceived as less masculine. As a result, women in many parts of the world face physical harassment. When men cannot win an argument based on logic, they use their physical strength to dominate women.

Woman leaders are often criticized for taking a break in their careers due to pregnancy or childbirth, which men never experience.

We must accept our natural differences and not misuse power. It is important to promote mental equality in all aspects of life.

Let’s now shift our discussion to a slightly different direction. This is a question that nearly everyone with a job has to contend with. Was it difficult to fit your personal and family life into your business and career? For the benefit of our readers, can you articulate precisely what the struggle was?

It’s never easy to strike the perfect balance, but starting early can work in your favor. If you begin your career at a young age, your partner is already trained and aware that you are not just his wife, but both of you are individuals with your own lives. However, it’s our responsibility to stand our ground, whether male or female, and ensure that our spouse understands and respects our values.

Even if you start your career later in life, you must be confident about your vision. A great partner will never become an obstacle and will make it clear that having a supportive spouse is crucial when trying to balance your family and career.

What was a tipping point that helped you achieve a greater balance or greater equilibrium between your work life and personal life? What did you do to reach this equilibrium?

When I started growing the company, bringing in great business, and accomplishing them successfully, I proved myself worthy of an investment, and all obstacles were cleared. Greater equilibrium was established between my personal and professional life. Life is all about setting an example, which involves greater risk, and there is no success without risk.

Ok super. Here is the main question of our interview. Based on your opinion and experience, what are the “Five Things You Need To Thrive and Succeed as a Powerful Woman?” (Please share a story or example for each.)

• BUILDING TRUST: When you want to be powerful, the first thing you need is for others to trust you and your judgement. Every business meeting I attend, the most important thing I do is to make sure my customer or business partner feels comfortable working with me. I strive to earn their trust and respect for my decision-making skills. This ongoing effort will eventually give you the power to lead any position.
• BE HONEST: Never misuse the trust that you have built in your profession. It takes a long time to gain someone’s trust, but losing it takes only a fraction of time. All of our business alliances compliment Veloche for its humble and honest approach. We always advise our customers on possible ways to save costs, and this approach gives us the opportunity to grow our business and work with customers repeatedly.
• TAKE RISKS: There is no business in the world that can grow without taking risks. I have always taken risks, from the first day of making the decision to start the business until today, whenever there is an important project. We have to take many risks to make those projects successful.
• EVOLVE: I always make sure to keep up with the latest trends in our designs, whether it’s the latest materials, shades, or technology. Clients do not like to work with companies that are stubborn with their offerings and expertise. Keeping up with the latest trends is very important to run a successful business and become powerful with your approach.
• KNOW YOUR WORTH: It’s essential to take care of yourself in terms of physical fitness, grooming, and mental stability. I make sure to go to the gym, eat healthily, spend time with friends, meditate, and take care of my nails and hair. I also maintain a great wardrobe to ensure that when I’m out in the business world, people look up to me as an example of a “woman with beauty and brains.”

We are very blessed that some very prominent names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this if we tag them.

Priyanka Chopra Jonas is the lady I want to spend a day with. She is my inspiration and I look up to her for many things. It would be lovely to connect with her and spend some quality time together.

Thank you for these fantastic insights. We greatly appreciate the time you spent on this.