Artistic platform

Couples that work together, stay together! Lisa Jain and Varun Backliwal are a young entrepreneurial couple who are breaking boundaries with their start-up venture Artisera, an online platform which curates exquisite pieces of art. And what sets them apart, is that every piece of work on their website is either one of a kind or limited edition! The couple have managed to curate everything available on their website. In a candid chat with us, the entrepreneurial duo tell us more…

“Artisera which offers a range of products from fine art and furniture to home décor and even collectibles, is Varun’s baby,” insists his wife Lisa.

“He comes from a family of Indian handicraft businessmen, so it’s in his blood,” Lisa smiles. “I studied in Barcelona for a while and didn’t want to get into my family business after returning. Luckily my family was understanding enough, so they supported me when I joined a startup, which helped me learn so much about the startup ecosystem in the city. But my passion has always been art and handicrafts and that’s when I realised that there was nobody in India selling fine art online. There are stores that have their individual websites sure, but there is not one place where I can maybe get a vase from Vietnam and a mask from Bhutan,” pitches in Varun, about what inspired him to launch the online marketplace where the items start from Rs 3000.

And of course, working together seemed like a no-brainer to them! “We compliment each others skill sets so it’s actually perfect. True, it sometimes does get challenging to draw a line between professional and personal when we are working together, but we have managed successfully so far. It’s just actually so much more convenient than working with somebody else because we are going through it together,” admits Lisa who unlike her counterpart, doesn’t hail from an art background.

“I am also very passionate about education and believe that it is a necessity,” adds the young Bengalurean who also runs her own education consulting firm. Though running a star-up requires a huge amount of time, the duo manage to make time for other things as well!

“Photography keeps my creative side alive so I try to capture pictures whenever possible. Running also helps get rid of work stress so I try to run everyday and am training for a marathon,” reveals Varun. For Lisa on the other hand, “it’s all about reading and travelling,” she admits. Clearly, the duo compliment each other despite being so different!