Born on September 15th 1991 in the land which is famous for the Jain temples called as Moodbidri. Completed my schooling from Rotary English Medium School, Moodbidri. 11th and 12th from Alva’s PU college and graduated as a Computer Science Engineer from MITE, Mijar, Moodbidri. Worked for IBM and Amazon; quitting corporate career chose to follow my passion as a professional Compere.
As a child, my parents told me that I always loved talking and was speaking to everyone who had come home. May be an artist was always inside me somewhere. I developed my MC skills back in school as an Mc for school annual days or preparing myself for a debate competition or elocution. I loved standing before an audience; talking to them; making them laugh etc.
That’s how years later this very skill of communication helped me understand the love for stage, mic and an audience.
Tell us about yourself, your background and what you do currently
I am fun loving, charismatic and love & live life on my terms. Born and brought up in a middle class family in a small town in Mangalore called as Moodbidri; Life for me was all about completing my engineering & getting a job. But things changed in my 2nd year of engineering when my professor Mr. Gerard D’souza recognised a talent in me and provided an opportunity in coastal Karnataka’s commercial channel Namma TV as an anchor. There was no stop after that; Tv shows became live shows to stage shows. Eventually I realised what I wanted to become in life. A professional compere. Today as a corporate presenter I have hosted for over 150 brands ; 1000+ shows; travelled 5 countries ; seven years of experience; speaking 8 Indian languages and my joy continues.
Tell us about any current projects or initiatives you wish to promote
Know about my detailed work on: reenadsouza.com
On August 18th, My new production – a talk show named as “Let’s Talk” will begin on YouTube; Every 1st and 3rd Friday of the month at 3pm.
On September 5th, ReenaStyleBuzz.com – an ecommerce website will be launched under my banner Dsouza 3 Ecommerce Pvt Ltd
I am an aspiring author, currently working on my first book. Which should be released by beginning of next year. However, would not want to reveal the title now.
What has been your biggest challenge in achieving your success?
- Lack of information/ Lack of guidance – As I was from a small town I had to come to Bangalore and it is the green city which has taught me a lot & helped me become a professional in my work. I did not have anyone that time who could guide me through the way; I got into event industry and learnt it myself.
- Fear – Those times I would fear to fail; I quit my job while working for Amazon and took compering as a full time profession. There was a lot of fear back then; but today I am ready to fail. And the fact is it is those failures who have made me what I am today. We get to learn a lot from our own mistakes.
- Money – As a compere, you need to look good and there is an expense in making you look better. In those initial days, earning well was challenging and eventually when you get better at what you do; you earn well and start investing well.
- Limiting beliefs – We all have a set of beliefs by which we live our lives. These are set in our subconscious at an early age. Sometimes these beliefs can hold you back and limit your ability to achieve you goals.
What has been your greatest achievement personally?
There are quite a few achievements which makes me happy about my career choice:
- When I shared the stage with Jeff Bezos, Founder & chairman of Amazon and managed to get a selfie and a picture with him. It felt awesome.
- I hosted a cricket tournament in Dubai for Pakistan Super League (PSL) in 2016. It was my first experience with cricket; indeed in the sports league.
- I am the winner of Mrs. India Earth Talented 2016
- I shared the stage with IPL teams Kolkata Knight Riders team and Gujarat Lions in 2017. KPL team Mysuru Warriors alongside Manish Pandey in 2016.
- I shared the stage with Master Blaster Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman and Amitabh Bacchan in a hologram.
If you weren’t doing what you do now, what would you be doing?
May be worked as a computer science engineer.
Who has been your biggest inspiration?
Oprah Winfrey (professionally) – I love the way she talks and besides all I have learnt a lot from her anchoring videos online. She is great human.
But my biggest inspiration comes from my mother, my mom took care of her 2 daughters when my dad was sick after his byc accident in 1989. My mom always supported me in all ways but was scared about my safety. Almost the entire city told my mom that the field I opted for isn’t safe; doesnot last long and due to societal pressure she was in fear. However, as a mother and a great support my mom stood by me besides all the odds of life and told me that “I must believe in myself”. For me my mother is my hero.
What does the future hold for you?
I am certain it’s going to be great and wonderful. However, would not like to talk about it here.
