Many of us are smitten with collecting. By surrounding themselves with the things they have worked so hard to gather, collectors get to enjoy their collections differently than those who choose to preserve or display them. One such collector is Monica Tata, the vice president, advertising sales and networks, India and South Asia for Turner International India.

Monica has a fabulous collection of shoes, bags and costume jewelry. Her keen sense of fashion and the sense of enjoyment in having a great collection of shoes, bags and jewelry is what attracted her to start collecting these items.

She has 150 pairs of footwear and 100 bags. And as for costume jewelry, Monica says, "It's difficult to put a number to what I possess but if I were to wear my jewelry everyday without repeating even one earring... I can do that without a problem for at least 500 days in a row!"

Traveling across the globe has helped Monica expand her collection. She has picked up these items from the US, Europe, Asia and Latin America. With a little knowledge and effort, everyone can find their own gems. Each found gem has its own 'story.' Whatever the reason for collecting, it fulfills emotions that lie at the heart of our personalities.

"In every visit of mine, five-six pairs of shoes and three-four bags is a very expected thing in my bag! This of course is not including my shopping binges in my India travels," says Monica.

When asked since when she has been nurturing her collection, Monica smiles, "Since I started affording it!" She admits to buying most herself but does have friends and family contributing to her collection and adds, "Yes, more of such gestures are more than welcome!"

She looks for colour, uniqueness, design in her favourite items and the fact that it should fit well and go with her personality.

Initially, when she started the collection, she was not much into brands. But, over the years she prefers to check out her preferred brands before the final buy. Says Monica, "Nine West is my favourite footwear brand but that doesn't stop me from buying shoes, bags and accessories from fancy malls to flee markets! As long it appeals to me - I just buy it!"

Monica doesn't reveal the amounts she spends on her collections. All she says is," If I tell you then I will have to kill you! Let's just say...A LOT!"

Name: Pradeep Hejmadi

Designation: Director - Research, Turner International India

Sun Sign: Libra

Educational Experience
Felt a lot shorter than it was. Enjoyed watching figures through college life - I mean studying mathematics and statistics. Graduated with a major in physics not too long ago!

Professional Experience
Made a foray into the media sector as an advertising sales executive in Times FM - the FM radio venture of the Times of India group way back in 1994, at the inception of private enterprise in FM broadcast.

Moved to media planning and buying, sensing the winds of change that were to sweep across the then existing television landscape - the cable & satellite era. As part of Hindustan Thompson Associates' national media buying unit, it was a great learning experience on brands like Kelloggs, Godrej & Boyce, De Beers amongst others.

Sensing the growing consumer interest in the area of specialised content channels, moved over to the other side of the table yet again - this time as a research manager in Discovery Communications India, in the year 1997.

Job Profile
Currently, my scope of responsibilities covers four media properties under the Turner umbrella - CNN, CNN.com, Cartoon Network & Cartoonnetworkindia.com.

As the head of research for Turner, I seesaw from one demographic to the other. On the one hand, one has to get into the wonderful, dreamy minds of kids, and then, on the other hand one has to probe the best-informed, affluent CNN audience.

What adds that extra zing to my work is the amazing reliance of Turner on consumer insights across the company, be it advertising sales, consumer marketing, programming or distribution and network development.

Research and media planning as career choice
One thing, for sure, I did not make this choice as a function of my personal involvement with the medium. I was an extremely outdoor type of a guy; by nature extremely selective when it came to viewing television. My choice was more rational and was based on the potential the medium had.

I also believe that researching media habits is one of the most challenging and not much of a chartered space, providing great opportunity. Thus, media research! (Would you have expected any other response from a researcher?)

Current Television scenario
Television has emerged as one of the strongest means of entertainment over the last five years. This has seen the simultaneous explosion of the TV landscape with mass entertainment channels entering areas of niche interest and vice versa.

The net result - an increasingly demanding and constantly evolving consumer. Some might argue that television viewers are 'content with familiarity,' while others would say that 'innovation pays dividends.' The inherent dichotomy presents for some an irresistible challenge and for some a painful reality. All in all, from my perspective, THE place to be!

Right and wrong about current Television scenario
The entire industry seems to be divided on what makes a TV channel tick - art or science. I think it's this divide that's wrong.

Clearly, to the well-informed eye, it's the multiplicative effect of science over art (and vice versa) and not one without the other that ticks. The polarisation on the two ends dampens the growth rate and we all end up playing a 'zero sum game.'

Five years from now
Given what seems to be on the platter for our industry (the beginning of a new era), the market will present even greater opportunities. I intend staying ahead of this curve, all the way!

Hobbies
Sports, reading and spending quality time with my family.

Idea of enjoyment
A chilled beer after a really tough game of cricket!