An ode to this quaint suburb!

We’ve all had strong bouts of nostalgia strike us every now and then. But, for Sharmila Shah and Sarah Zareen, wanting to turn back the hands of time and re-live their growing up years in the city is what gave rise to Eat Pray Shop- Malleshwaram, their maiden YouTube vlog series, which is garnering attention of ‘neti’-zens by the hordes. In a candid chat with Bengaluru Chronicle, the duo shares the inside track with us — about a collab, born out of a wide-eyed trail across one of the oldest market-laden towns, ridden with rich history and architecture in the city.

“I’ve been a photographer all my life. Colours, variety and finding the beauty in the mundane are what I love. Be it the iconic ‘Hali Mane’ or the majestic vibe of the decades old Malleshwaram railway station, there’s something undeniably magnetic about this side of the town,” shares Sharmila, who teamed up with her college mate Sarah on July 18 to spread a rather interesting message about the quaint locality. “Five years ago, Malleshwaram was a thriving market space. Today, a lot of it has dropped, what we see are a measly portion of vendors selling on the roads. Yet, the charm of the old part of town never fails to die out,” she adds.

The alumni of Mount Carmel College, Vasanth Nagar, believe it was all truly serendipitous.  “The original idea was Sarah’s. She’s been doing the travel series for a long time now. During a casual chat, we decided to come together as I have always been from this part of the world. And, my love for shooting still and video format sealed the deal,” says Sharmila.

A couple of days since the YouTube video went live, and the responses (with 2000+ views)  have been encouraging enough. “Lot of people connected and remembered that old world charm of Bengaluru city.  It has inspired people to visit Malleshwaram and know the shortcuts! And the shots of me eating has made a lot of people hungry!” quips Sarah. An entrepreneur by the day, who loves to moonlight with all things ‘lens worthy’, Sarah adds,  “We have careers to fall back on. But, this debut collaboration had brought us closer, all thanks to our love for this city.”

When quizzed about their other interests, Sharmila responds, “I like hosting photography gigs. Sarah is an explorer.”  Hopeful about what’s next, Sarah concludes by stating, “The travel collaboration bug has bit both of us hard. We are actively looking  for sponsors for national and international ventures. This is our first, with more to come, god willing!”