Growing up, Vaishnavi Murali was always intrigued about . While in school, she painted on glass, napkin holders, and sarees. Years later, she founded Eikowa, an online art gallery that has expanded into two physical spaces in Hyderabad and Gurugram.
While her heart was set on art school, her uncle’s advice led her to focus on business education. "He said, ‘Make sure you get your education in order, because then you can do whatever you want.’ So, I went ahead and did my BCom and an MBA," Murali tells HerStory.
She explains, "I figured, if I wasn’t going to be an artist, I can still be on the business side of art and follow my passion.” The drive behind Eikowa Murali’s education at Indian School of Business (ISB) Mohali proved pivotal as she witnessed the institution’s support for art firsthand. "Every three to four months, there was a new wave of art coming into the campus," she says, recounting how fascinated she was by the quality of work.
“I wondered, if we had such good artists in the country, why weren't we aware of them?” This question became the seed for Eikowa. While the startup culture in India was booming, Murali realised that no one was talking about art in the same way. “Everyone around me in my network—at IIMs and ISBs—were talking about doing startups in different spaces.
But no one was talking about tapping into the art market, which has so much promise and scope,” says Murali. With a background in luxury brand management, following sti.
