Millennial Mantra: Shashank Neralla

Shashank Neralla is special projects director at Lakshmi Cottage Industry. He tells Charmiane Alexander what he likes about print and packaging

09 Sep 2020 | By Charmiane Alexander

Which is your favorite book?
Don’t Startup by Evam Karthik Kumar.

If you could time travel, where would you go and why? 
I’d probably go back to Kumari Kandam time. I would be curious to learn their lifestyle and how things existed 2,000 years ago. 

Are millennials loyal to brands or do they prefer exploring other alternatives?
Millennials explore new brand alternatives, generally looking forward for sustainable products. For me, brand loyalty comes into play only in the case of high priced products. 

Which is better — a novel or a movie?
Movie with nachos and salsa. 

How can digital printing help in boosting creativity and consumer connection through packaging?
With the advent of digital printing, the era of true personalisation and customisation began. I would be happy to receive a package that is specifically curated for me instead of getting a generic sample. Since the cost per print is higher in the case of digital, I would recommend luxury brands or those brands that target the upper middle income sector to focus on having a customisation option always. 

What accomplishment are you most proud of?
I was the co-founder of my University’s (Anna University) Entrepreneurship Fest – Enantra, that focuses on startups and mid-sized brands during my third year. I see that as an accomplishment. I was also the PrintWeek Student of the Year in 2018. 

Describe your dream visit to a factory?
A factory that is enabled by IOT sensors and uses AI to track every action in the factory and uses AR-VR processes to reduce human errors, with an analyst who records and updates the data. All the stakeholders in the system need to know the exact status of a product that is under production – a transparent system. 

In your opinion, what’s the best film about print you have ever seen?
Netflix series: Money Heist, White Collar. The movie Catch Me If You Can is also really interesting and there is also a Tamil movie called Kanithan.