A Life Less Ordinary

Taking Batik to New Places: Fern Chua, Malaysia

Fern Chua is the award-winning founder of FERN [https://fern.gallery/], a Malaysian sustainable and high-end fashion label rediscovering the elegance of the ancient Asian fabric art form, Batik.   Fern and I chatted earlier this year on the unexpected path that led her to Batik, the challenges building and growing her team of artisans from the ground up, and pushing the boundaries of the UNESCO listed heritage.   Check out FERN’s incredible looks at fern.gallery [https://fern.gallery/] or follow @fernbatikcollective [https://www.instagram.com/fernbatikcollective/?hl=en] on Instagram.

Creating Australia’s First Anti-Racist Comedy Club: Tina Zaman, Australia

Tina Zaman [https://www.instagram.com/tinateacher/?hl=en] is a comedian, writer, teacher and founder of Tight5Comedy [https://tight5comedy.com.au/] a unique platform in Sydney’s comedy scene. Tight5’s comedians of colour and allies have entertained thousands of fans, handpicked for their originality and social impact. Acts are empowered to explore both their comedic and cultural identities in careful curated venues from theatres in Sydney’s Inner West to Ethiopian restaurants in the outer suburbs of the city.   Show host Udhara [https://udharadesilva.com/] chatted with Tina about growing up in Los Angeles, how she landed in Australia by way of a teaching gig in Korea, and why she decided to double down on building a platform for Australia’s marginalised voices through Tight5Comedy.   Recorded in early 2021.   Thanks for listening to this episode of A Life Less Ordinary. To stay up to date with our latest episodes be sure to follow to the show.

The Relentless Optimist: Matthew Chapman, Singapore & New Zealand

Matthew Chapman [https://chapmancg.com/team/matthew-chapman/] is an entrepreneur and investor who has mastered the art of relationship building. His company ChapmanCG [https://chapmancg.com] finds HR leaders for the world’s leading companies. He's an investor in Bawah Reserve [https://www.bawahreserve.com], a luxurious and sustainable tropical island retreat that's a Condé Nast Traveler Top 10 resort of Asia [https://blog.bawahreserve.com/top-resort-asia-conde-nast-traveller-readers-choice-awards-2019]. And he's a co-founder of the 300km Snowman Race [https://www.snowmanrace.org/the-race/] in Bhutan, one of the world's toughest ultra-marathons in the world, focused on raising awareness of climate change [https://www.snowmanrace.org/be-a-climate-hero/].   He does all this while living on a farm, Parihoa [https://parihoa.co.nz], in coastal New Zealand with his many collaborators working all over the planet.   Show host Udhara [https://udharadesilva.com] chatted with Matthew to talk about his beginnings in rural New South Wales, Australia, why he fell in love with Singapore and became a Singaporean citizen, how he builds his businesses, as well as his thoughts on remote work and the future of the 5-day work week.   Thanks for listening to this episode of A Life Less Ordinary. To stay up to date with our latest episodes be sure to subscribe to the show.

On writing her first book, rejection, and diversity: T.P. Tovenaar, Sri Lanka

T.P. Tovenaar [https://www.austinmacauley.com/author/tovenaar-tp] is a writer from London, born to Sri Lankan parents. For the last decade, she’s called Colombo home. Her book, 'Mum’s the Word [https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07WYL2X1J/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1]', is a collection of hilarious and heartwarming stories about the relationship between a Sri Lankan mother and her British-born daughter, both trying to live within a complex mix of cultures, customs and environment. The stories light-heartedly remind us that we’re more than our place of birth and that immigration isn’t a bad thing. Show host Udhara [https://udharadesilva.com] and Tovenaar spoke about her career at the BBC, how she learned from crushing rejection, why diversity is one of humanity’s greatest strengths, and how her book makes you appreciate the joys of family.

The Warrior of Singapore’s Kranji Countryside: Ivy Singh-Lim, Singapore

Ivy Singh-Lim founded Bollywood Veggies Organic Farm [http://bollywoodveggies.com/] with her husband in Kranji, a northwestern suburb about 22 kilometres from the towering skyline of Singapore, showing an alternative, greener side to the country.  Visitors can explore the village-like tropical farm, eat a mouth-watering, farm-to-table Nasi Lemak served on a banana leaf, and learn about the history of food and its influence on civilisation. In our Season 2 finale, hosts Vanessa Fernandez [https://www.soundslikevan.com/] and Udhara de Silva [https://udharadesilva.com/] visited her home in the middle of the farm, where she lives with her husband and dogs. They spoke about:  * how she decided to start Bollywood Veggies  * how at nearly 70 she has a lot in common with millennials than others  * why in the context of Singapore, nature is the future. A Life Less Ordinary is produced by Nomads Bazaar [https://www.nomadsbazaar.com/] and sponsored by Audio-Technica [http://audio-technica.com/], who create high quality content creation tools.