BucketList Dreams: Addressing growing lifestyle care demands with a vision to promote healthy living
Economic advancement across the world has led to a high rate of lifestyle changes leading to the cultivated a new crop of disease- Lifestyle diseases, often labeled as “diseases of civilization”. With our tamed and sedentary routineand inadequate health systems, we are creating a favorable platform for the growth of these diseases. Health problems have shifted from infectious diseases to chronic diseases like heart attack, cancer etc. The worrying combination is the ‘favorability’ of poor lifestyle choices, unhealthy food habits, mounting alcohol consumption, lack of physical activities and prolonged stress. Despite understanding the sense behind these lifestyle-linked diseases, people seek cure or treatment rather than preventive options, thus playing with their health. This radical change in the lifestyles of Indians is now becoming an epidemic. Aparna Goenka, too, saw herself getting drowned in the swamp.
Leading a polished life for nearly a decade with a handsome perk, her professional voyage was sailing smoothly. She started off on her journey in the Indian IT industry by joining Microland. After a couple of years,she moved to Infosys and spent more than a decade there. Her tenureat Infosys polished her skills, taught her work ethics, process and program management and other logical thinking skills, still being used in her everyday life.She then took a break from her peaking career after her younger fellow was born. Completely switching off from everything, she became a full-time mom.
Further, the need for intellectual stimulation and the urge to do something more, got her involved with an NGO – Advaith Foundation where she ended up running the place as a Trustee & Director.Here, she spenta decade in transforming lives of the underprivileged. She started the initiative with 2 children, and last year this first batch graduated with honors. Today the program pansacross cities with multiple centers. Eventually, all the pieces fell into place, except one. While taking care of the lock stock and barrel, she completely tossed aside her health due to an unbalanced personal time.
Aparna took the symptoms with a straight face. Getting help from one of her friends, she brought a change in her habits and the results were fruitful. The experience metamorphosed into a Eureka moment for her. Having experienced the consequences of compromising with health due to asymmetrical lifestyle, she decided to empower people’s overall lifestyle by addressing their nutritional needs with result-oriented healthy lifestyle programs. And thus, began another chapter for Aparna Goenka as an entrepreneur, taking to market what she personally benefitted immensely from. She brewed up a vision, nurtured it and shaped it into BucketList Dreams in 2016 with co-founder Maj. (Retd.) Lalit Singh.
Working on prevention rather than cure
“Understanding that 80 percent of all the problems are caused due to deficits in nutrition, it is our solemn duty to enlighten people with a diet plan based on quality, quantity, timings, and the choice of what to include and exclude,” asserts Aparna Goenka while throwing light over the conceptualization of BucketList Dreams. This online lifestyle platform provides a wide range of healthy lifestyle programs that are a result of extensive research conducted by an experienced team, keeping in mind the requirements of a person and his family. Without throwing an extra burden on one’s pocket, BucketList Dreams is bringing a holistic difference to the lives, where one can discover a healthier, happier and a fitter version of himself. Blending the traditional values of healthy living with the magical powers of eating healthy and locally, BucketList Dreams works around one’s present eating habits and lifestyle routine by concentrating on nutrition with assisted fitness.
BucketList Dream’s area of expertise covers:
NUTRITION
FITNESS
HEALTHY MIND
BucketList Dream’s plans are contrary to the conventional diet charts and fitness goals. The team of nutritionists work very closely with the clients. The belief that everyone is unique and can’t be tied to a fitness tracker or a mechanical gadget pushes BucketList’s experts to interact closely and personally and provide regular counseling and guidance, giving a hand till one feels positive, confident and upbeat about achieving his/her dreams. Fortune smiled early on BucketList and the company has already established a niche for itself. Ensuring full adherence of information privacy, all personal data is kept confidential, thus maintaining the trust of its esteemed clients like Infosys and many more.
Meet the lady behind this lifestyle magnet
Aparna Goenka
Co-Founder & Director
Aparna epitomizes Walk the Talk. Her passion and zeal for excellence in everything she does have given her success. Home to an experience of 15 years in the IT industry, that includes a decade-long stint with Infosys, Aparna also chairs as the Vice President of VIR INDIA, which was founded in the year 2015 with the intent of giving back to the Armed and Paramilitary Forces, withrespect and honor for their courage and sacrifice.
First-of-its-kind social impact initiative, VIR India serves the special needs of the Armed forces community by honoring the community with the VIR Honor Membership. This enables them to avail exclusive offers and privileged pricing for education, insurance, farming, banking services as well as discounts with its select retail and F & B partners (outlets & online), VIR India is working with a mission to enhance and enrich the lives of the Armed Forces and Paramilitary Forces personnel, both serving and retired, and their families. For when a service personnel retires and moves tocivilian life, or dependent senior citizen care is needed for parents of officers on duty in remote areas, or online higher education support for the children is required, VIR is a partnerin many such journeys.
Additionally, the VIR Foundation leverages the CSR spends of like-minded corporate organizations and provides rehabilitation services, medical assistance and scholarships to the Armed forces personnel and their dependents amongst various other objectives. It is working to fulfill its mission while upholding the highest standards of ethics, ensuring that the corporate activities are consistent with the core values of Service, Integrity, Loyalty, mirroring those of the military community.
Aparna continues to be associated as a Trustee with the Advaith Foundation, which promotes philanthropic ventures in the field of education and research. She has been with them since the inception in 2005. The foundation provides comprehensive residential education programs for the children from economically deprived sections of society and is currently operational in Bangalore & Coimbatore.
A go-getter, Aparna recently completed her Master program in Special Education from the University of Northampton, U.K. which has helped her insteering Advaith Foundation in the right direction. Of course, nothing comes easy….her willingness to walk the untrodden path, with a do-it-all energy and a never-say-die attitude continuing to drive her journey.
It’s only the tip of the iceberg of Aparna’s entrepreneurial journey, who is still a hands-on mom, still studying, still heading the NGOs and also learning the nitty-gritty of entrepreneurship!
