Sateesh K Vemunuri is a happy man at the moment. He goes for a long walk in the morning, reads a couple of newspapers leisurely and then finally settles for his oatmeal porridge, some fruits and an aromatic cup of coffee. Until a few months ago, his routine wasn’t anything like this. Work involved long hours of checking construction sites, dealing with dealers of brick, cement, sand and the only mixer he knew was that of concrete. Though a enthusiast of all genres of music, this man from Warangal loves rock. His first most expensive cassette during his student days was the Michael Jackson special edition collection that cost₹250; he even had a long argument with his dad on why he should have that album.
Radio was the only window to the world of western music; “But it didn’t satisfy my requirement. My access to music was limited and I mostly had to do with what the radio channels played or tune to BBC for trending music charts,” recollects Sateesh.
Though Sateesh was a civil engineer, the stream wasn’t his first preference. He was keen on mechanical but his EAMCET score made him settle for civil. As an engineer he was busy constructing roads, buildings and highways. “Money was good but that wasn’t satisfying my soul. If one has to ask me about my success then I must say that I rose up the ladder much earlier than my contemporaries. By the time I was in my 40s I had become Vice President of some construction companies.”
This however, wasn’t enough to keep Sateesh and his wife happy. He felt something creative, something constructive from within was missing, only the couple couldn’t figure out what. Finally after many talks and brain storming sessions, he decided to quit his job and take things forward.
It took them a couple of months to realise that a creative space is what was lacking. “Since we were exploring a lot of ideas and thoughts we decided to name the place ‘Explore.. The you’. A place where one can find themselves and their creative streak,” says Sateesh.
Explore.. is a coffee shop in Defence Colony, Sainikpuri with a space to read, to paint, to exhibit you art and also to sing and play. It isn’t the everyday coffee shop with a designated place for bands. Explore... lends the space to budding groups and so has so far been able to cater to a host of talented musicians and singers in various South Indian languages.
