DAY IN THE LIFE: Theatre brings me to life

 Jinita Desai is a co-founder of Aperture Africa Productions, and the chief marketing and strategy officer at the Sous Chef Group.

“I studied mathematics at the university, but I have always been artistic, though for a long time this aptitude was confined to teaching children art in my backyard on Sunday mornings. Meeting my husband, a theatre and television producer opened up an avenue to express my art; together we create theatre productions through Aperture Africa.

“By day I work as a marketing and strategy officer at the Sous Chef Group, where I make strategic decisions, deal with marketing and do food tasting to come up with new products. Sometimes I liaise with clients and suppliers, do social media campaigns or source for better products. One minute I will be having a serious discussion with the MD of a bank, the next I’ll be chatting about how one of our factory workers aspires to be another David Rudisha. I love the fast pace and high energy on this job; it is like working out from eight to five, but mornings are my most productive time of the day.

“When I am not working, I indulge in my other passion – art. With the theatre productions, I am in charge of the costumes and the stage. When I am not creating the costumes and props, I am involved in the auditions for talent and looking for sponsors. My background in mathematics also helps me take on the ticketing role. We just closed our biggest production – The Jungle Book Musical in Nairobi. We had a crew and cast of 80. There was so much to do. So many things that could go wrong. There are always disasters looming in the horizon. I have learnt that you can either choose to get stressed or you can look at the lighter side of things and laugh it off. We are now laying the groundwork for our next project, a dance musical. I am happy to provide a platform for tens of youth to hone their talents.

“Most days I leave work at 5pm, and if there are no theatre rehearsals, I wind up the day by going to the gym. After that I cook and have dinner with my husband and then I turn in, but not before reviewing the day and planning for the next. Sometimes I read to lull myself to sleep. I am currently treading The Elephant Whisperer by Lawrence Anthony. It is an incredible story by a wildlife conservation guru who tries to save a herd of elephants from being shot because they are too ‘rogue’.

“I unwind by getting away from civilisation. A lot of my time away from work is spent travelling, trekking, camping and mountain climbing. Over the years, I have found that animals and trees are generally better company than humans.”