Even before I enter Esha’s kitchen, I can already detect the homey, delightful scent of baking. As I open the door, I get a glimpse of Esha taking brownies out of the oven. “Oh hi! Come on in” she says as she places them on the kitchen counter. She quickly prepares two cups of the best hot chocolate I have ever had and sits with me.
At 25, Esha Afzal owns the most successful bakery in Faisalabad. Everyone knows her and yet, as I would soon come to find out, no one really knows her.
“Baking is something I’ve known since I was in 6th grade. I didn’t have an epiphany at any point in time. I just always knew that I wanted to bake. After my Alevels, I convinced my dad to let me go to a culinary school but he was adamant that I do my bachelors first. He told me I could do whatever I want after that. So I went to Dubai. I spent a year there and what do you know? I got bored. So I came back. I took a gap of six months and then went to LSE, Lahore. Two years of bachelors and I was bored. Again. So I left everything and went to Dubai. I spent four months there and convinced my dad to let me pursue culinary now.” Esha paused and laughed as if remembering something. “He finally gave up and said “Fine. You’re not doing your bachelors anyways so just go for it.”
It came as a pleasant surprise to Esha when she was able to open the door for a whole new industry in Faisalabad. “If I was living in Lahore, I would’ve thought a lot of people were doing it. But in Faisalabad, there was no one doing it when I started. Even bakeries such as Cakery have just now come about. I didn’t know if I wanted to become an entrepreneur as such. I just knew that I wanted to work in a really good hotel abroad. I’ve applied to one as well. Because obviously, you start small and then climb your way up. My aim is still that. I’m going to go to Dubai in November.”
A normal day for Esha consists of baking at least 20 cakes. When asked what kept her motivated and what she did to relax, Esha was quick to answer “I don’t care about the money or anything. I just want to have something to do. Even when I’m depressed, I’ll just go and bake a cake.” She laughs. “Baking is how I relax. It doesn’t matter if I decide to take an off day; I’ll still be doing what I love to do.”
Despite the level of success she has achieved, things are not always easy. Esha explains how baking is a tricky business. “I’ve dealt with failure but mostly before my diploma and internship. You have to understand that failure for a baker is maybe a ganache that’s gone runny or when the butter cream breaks. But then, there’s always google hacks!”
Esha talked about the struggles of being a 25 year old, unmarried woman running her own business in a conservative city like Faisalabad. To my surprise, she wasn’t the least bit worried. “That’s the best part, though! All my friends are married with kids. I’m 25. But thank God, my family isn’t like that! There was a time when they were worried but then I started my diploma and everybody just accepted it. The worst part of being a female entrepreneur and being solely responsible for everything is just the fact that I take orders online. And well, there are a lot of creeps online.”
As Esha reflects on her growth and how far she’s come, she lets us in on her thought process and the way she looks at life. Needless to say, Esha is all about self-love. “I’m so self-obsessed; I don’t even think about my weaknesses! I don’t care what anybody thinks. I like myself. I think I’m good at everything. I dealt with one particular fallout with someone extremely close to me and it just made me so much stronger.”
The incident was a game changer for Esha “It made me realize that I want to do something in life. I want to bake. I realized that I was much better than those who have wronged me.” She pauses, as if trying to communicate how crucial that change was for her. “It was such a strong realization for me, you know? Everyone was so surprised to hear I’d be abandoning my degree. But the thing is that the realization and then the decision I made, made me so much more adamant about every decision I made there on out. I don’t care what people think anymore. When they ask me when I’m getting married, I tell them to worry about their daughters, not me. If I’m 25, that’s my problem. Hell, I’m independent, happy, making money for myself and can literally do whatever the heck I want whenever I want! I feel sorry for those who can’t, to be honest.”
Esha had some valuable romantic advice to give girls who were caught between the decision to pursue their careers or to get married “Get married, sure. But at least get to know the guy, man. If he doesn’t appreciate your hard work or support your ambitions, he’s not worth it.”
As big a part of Esha’s life as E’s kitchen is, she doesn’t see it in her future for long though. “I don’t see E’s kitchen in my life in 5 years. I see myself working as an executive chef abroad. I really want to go to Dubai and work for 6 months and then transfer. I want to move around the world so I don’t see myself in one place at all. I want to work in one country for one year and then another.” Esha looks down as she remembers her late father and says “My dad was so hardworking. He was in Dubai and then he used to have a business here as well and came to work on the weekends. I feel like I have that in me. I don’t care how long I have to work. I will always get the work done.”
Looking back at her experiences, Esha says “You know, I don’t like things to stay constant anymore. I hate it. There have been so many changes in my life that anything constant is strange for me now. I’m always looking for something new. I mean, I’d even do a 9 to 5 job but there are no risks involved and it’s so monotonous! I remember when I used to tell people I’m going to do culinary; they always used to ask me what it was. They’d pass sarcastic comments about me leaving my bachelors but I’d just laugh. I’m so much better off than them and that is what matters. You have to fight for what you’re passionate about. Had I not fought for this opportunity and left my degree, I wouldn’t be here today. So the people who laughed at me, well, they haven’t fought for anything and they will regret it when they’re in their 30s.”
Recalling a golden moment in her career, a compliment she holds dear, Esha says “I have this Kashmiri friend who’s in Lahore and he’s the biggest foodie I know. He owns both a culinary shop and a culinary school there. He had my red velvet cake and told me it was the best red velvet he had ever had and it really stuck with me. It was big coming from someone who knows food so well!”
Towards the end of the interview, the only piece of advice Esha had to give was one she’d always tried to stand by in her life as well “I don’t doubt myself. I love what I do. If other people doubt you, that’s okay. Honestly. But if you doubt yourself, it can mess up a lot of things. So don’t do that. Have faith in yourself.”
Esha Afzal left us feeling surprised with the wisdom she had piled up in her 25 years of age. The young baker gave off the sort of confidence that young minds easily magnetize towards. It certainly left us more empowered, empathetic and full of hope.
Love her. Best chef in town!