About Me

“Opportunities don’t happen, You create them”

‘Just one small positive thought in the morning, can change your day, and, over time, change Your Life’.

August 2022, when I finished my first feature film, and presented director’s first cut to my cast, their joy was the first award for me, with a feeling of achievement within. Because, since I was 16 years of age, I’ve been passionate about filmmaking. And when in life, you achieve that first passion, for a moment, you feel at a loss of words, because, thats when your soul feels in harmony, again with Our Universe.

March 2022, life has given me an option, either to stay quarantined as all of Europe and rest of World did. Or, gather all my experiences and dreams and self motivations together with my passions and work to achieving them. By June 2022, I was working with a goal to style for artists and designers and work together with them, to showcase their works of arts and creativity, thus, develop new brands together-with new and striving artist and designers. With a belief, that, over time, we will have fine new brands, who will have strived to be with people, for people and by the people who believed in them, since the very beginning. Mohinder Pal Singh Sobti, born 15th June 1973, an artist by heart, producer at work. Most importantly, in love with my inner peace and silence.

More About Me

I’ve always been passionate about my life and works. Though born in a traditional and religious Sikh family in India, I was more eager to study religion, as a philosophy, than being a blind believer in its heritage alone. When in India, one grows up in a multi-cultural society, where one learns from the cultural heritage from Hinduism, Sikhism, Islam, Christianity, Buddhism and even Jainism. Having studied religion as a keen student of philosophy, it was Osho wisdom, which I took to my life, in order to seek for my own inner peace and self development. And, over time and experiences from travels and works, I found my inner self, from lessons from Bhagwat Gita, and singing and dancing in the tunes with ‘Hare Krishna’

When still in my teens, I started my career working with my father, my hero, my guide, my first professor at work. I was working in his shop in sales. While working with my father, I was also freelancing with my uncle and god-father, who I continue to respect as my first financial professor as well. I was working with his business as sales on commissions. And, these were some of the finest lessons of my life, which I still suppose no business school could share. “It is very important for one to start working, early in life, in order to develop respect and discipline for life and works“. I don’t come from a family of artists, hence, it was hard for me to convince my passion for advertising and filmmaking and photography. Because, these were my passions for life and works, and, there was a quest at times, as to where, or who and how was I inspired by these performing arts, because, I come from a family with men in business, of taxi and with repairing and maintenance of cars and trucks. Maybe this was one key reason, I gathered all that early experience from my father and went ahead to work with my passions. During my early 20s, just fresh out of my teens and with fresh experiences, I first dare to start my own indie studio, producing photos for ads and start up models. And, even today, I still charm myself when I recall having worked with some fine advertising projects during my very early start up days. However, start up even back then, was challenging. That is one reason, I had to give up working with my passion. Because, I had started working with little funds, to support the drive to work, though I had lots of passion and love for my works with me.

I joined an advertising agency, first as client serving and then got promoted as an account manager. It was while working in this filed, I had access to larger companies and even corporates, and MNCs, which opened up whole new learning sciences in my career. Because, I had come from family owned businesses and knew not much about the corporate collar world. Once while pitching for a client, I got an opportunity to work with a leading MNC in sales, which of course, I went with. I joined with an open heart, to be able to work hard and learn new experiences. I had worked for about a year, when, I could see opportunities opening up. And I let myself sail with the tide.

I left India during October 1999, and since then, my life has been a beautiful journey of learning, traveling and self development. Having lived and worked in India, Nepal, Bhutan, Thailand, Bangladesh, and then moving to the Caribbean where I lived and worked in Jamaica, Trinidad, and even in South America in Guyana, Suriname, Brazil, Venezuela, those were truly blessed days and experiences. USA, was also one fine experience, but, I just couldn’t see myself there for the rest of my life. Around the year 2005, while working on a very important project I was asked by my employers to relocate to Europe, where, I was based in Netherlands (and still continue to have my studio there). And, with over time, I traveled and worked in Portugal, Spain, Italy, France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Switzerland, Poland, Czech Republic, Sweden, Lithuania, Latvia and each of these, have been one fine learning experience in my life.

While I was good at my job, and loved my work always, I had started to feel it was time to hone my love and passion for advertising and filmmaking. Something which I’ve always wanted to do, and even enjoyed working in the field, from my own struggles and experiences. I knew I had experience, and some savings, and could have taken on to work on this segment. Yet, I wanted to feel my passion and study in a film-school, so that, I could feel, what happens in those classes and, what makes those film-makers travel festivals. It was this zeal to a new learning, which motivated me to go for my film-studies with the New York Film Academy. I finished my course as producer-director with the NYFA in Oxford in UK. Got my passions together, used my savings and founded my indie-film productions studio in The Hague, in Netherlands during mid 2007. And, within 6 months, experienced that, no matter how much passion you have for filmmaking, it’s something which can be achieved only together with a great team, who has the same passion for filmmaking just like you do. Or, you pay and get that team together. While I had invested my savings to start my studio and, those were also times, when digital filmmaking was going through new heights and challenges. I had to carry on working to be able to survive and pay my bills. And, because, my passions with films stayed awake and were at its peak, I started to work as a freelance cameraman with journalism. Having worked for a few years with journalism gave me insights to see a new life experience. Because, while working with advertising and management, we lived a first class fashion trendy lifestyle, whereas, as journalists, we were out in streets interviewing rioters, or even drug abused or users and victims of women trafficking at times even traffickers, rape victims and, the list was endless. Till a time, when I felt, this was just a life experience for me, to see the same world, but from a different view. I knew, this experience will some day, show up in my storytelling. I also knew, that I would not continue too long working with journalism, although, I still freelance as a cameraman, since I continue to hold an international press card and would never want to let it go. And after a few years with a life full of new struggles and experiences, I went ahead to work with my strengths with management. Because, I wanted to come back to working with my passions with advertising and filmmaking.

Since 2014 I’ve been together with Hagardhs, in Netherlands, as a co-founder. Once again, with a success track these recent years having developed projects, from scratch and truly out of passion and love for brand development. From some fine Bordeaux French Chateau wines, to Italian pasta, and Spanish extra virgin olive oil and then, to something even more challenging and luxury. During 2017, I explored the world with fashion, first hand, while working with Swiss Watch and slowly moving on to working with Italian leather and jewellery.

My struggles and experiences was now forming new charm and elegance, as a co-founder and, I was just enjoying my new glory, as a spokesperson for startups in Europe, when life took my dad away from me during October 2019. He was struggling with his health, and I was traveling often to spend time with him, I guess, he had achieved his meaning of life and silently said his goodbye to the world. The year 2019, shall be remembered always, as a year with a blend of happiness, success, sorrow, grief and, memories which will last forever. It was also then, when I spent time with my god-father too, recalling all our past glory days.

“There is opportunity in everything”

Starting with 2020, We had lovely great plans to start and launch some fine new projects. As the year started, our excitement got elegant and charmed. However, slowly, we realised the challenges we had all got into. And before we knew, the tide took us to a total lockdown. Something so challenging which we had never thought of, never debated, never brainstormed before. Our generation, had experienced something new. And, sayings such as ‘our grandfather went to fight wars to fight for our freedom, while, we have to stay at home to win our war’ got popular.

As the month of June ended, we had witnessed a new life, new experiences, new challenges and above all, still waiting to see how the tide will change and, when! Some of my clients, artists and designers, who actually worked from their home studio and handcrafting fashion goods, were the worst hit. We realised the blunders brands had made by outsourcing the manufacturing of their luxury products to a country who never respected human rights, yet, because of the low cost of production, they continued to be in the supply chain. Brands outsourced the making of their luxury products for cheap, out of Europe and then got them to sell in Europe, for a luxury price tag, which got them huge profits but, none of those could heal the world in these crises. While this outsourcing gave profits to one nation, who could have stopped the global pandemic, but didn’t and even didn’t come to help and heal. The outsourcing also forced close small industries within Europe, and thus took away jobs from many! All these thoughts and findings gave birth to new cause.

It’s time, ‘We stand up for and with our artists and designers in Europe and support them’. And in doing this, we will give birth to a new industry, bring opportunities to our people in Europe. And for those brands who want to do volume business, they must also respect our decision. If they want to sell their products to us in Europe, they must also get them MADE IN EUROPE. This is one way we will be able to come out from the present crises.

We must also support local people and businesses too. We must buy from our local family owned grocery shops, buy from our farmers and the farmers markets, travel to small towns and cities and live in Air BNB homes or local hotels, eat out at local restaurants so that, there is work and employments and opportunities for our local people. Only when we support local, we will be able to save the present global crises and challenges.

“Because, together, we can win challenges”

And, with this vision, I started to style to fashion. No longer do we need a luxury brand to present our style. Rather, we chose bespoke or made to order from artists and designers or even exclusive handmade goods, and, our style is the fashion which will be our drive to build new brands from some new artists and designers. Style is here to stay, fashion, will change every season.

“Every one has a story, depends how You say it”

This has been my belief since a while and, I have been letting my passions for filmmaking sleep, after my bitter experiences during 2007, when I had started my first indie productions. However, since then, life has taken me places, and with new experiences, and achievements, I suppose, I prepared myself, for my story as well.

During June 2020, I launched my ‘Stylish Indian’, with a goal to style for our brands of Swiss Made Watch and Italian designer leather bespoke bags and jewellery, as a LifeStyle Blogger. And by October 2020, I honed myself to once again, drive my passions for indie filmmaking. And this time, the story-telling must happen. A passion which has been with me since my early teens, and finally, I made it happen. By November 2022, I had once again gathered all my savings to founding my own indie-film productions studio, and, with a goal to strive working multi-tasking as an actor, producer, director or as better said as “an independent gorilla filmmaker”.

“Your passions and zeal will bring you to like minds”

And here’s to Amit R Agarwal, whose passions for gorilla filmmaking, inspired me to take the leap

“Let’s come together, like minds and passionate souls, lets team, and lets make some films for the coming times to remember us, that, while, the mass was walking with the crowds, we dare to make our mark in the history as daring independent gorilla filmmakers, because, fact is; if you are a filmmaker, you got to make films, and if you want to be an actor / actress, you need a platform to showcase Your talent. So let our passions carve this way to future”.