May 15, 2017

Meet Yogesh Rana of Boston Sound and Light Company in Billerica and Cambridge

Local Stories

Today we’d like to introduce you to Yogesh Rana.

Yogesh, please share your story with us. How did you get to where you are today?
My father was a musician in England for an Indian band. Growing up in the states I learned music through him. Later in high school I earned a scholarship at the Longy School of music for playing the violin. I last all but 2 weeks, because I felt the Indian way of playing music was drastically different than the American. Later in life when I got introduced to deejaying, I learned that what I used to refer as “confusion” is now everybody’s fusion. The ability to blend genres on beats was in demand especially in the Indian and Persian wedding markets.

And if you can assume anything about this specific targeted wedding market, they are colorful, exotic, and require a massive production (as opposed to your typical wedding and reception). In providing DJ services for the last 21 years, Boston Sound and Light Company (BSL) has accumulated a vast array of audio visual offerings. Originally we reserved the equipment for BSL customers only, but now we are preferred vendors for audio visuals for many different venues, universities, other djs, event planners, even other audio visual companies and of course our customers.

While we know there are other audio visual companies around, our offerings are unique, and we bring a sense of style to your event!

Overall, has it been relatively smooth? If not, what were some of the struggles along the way?
I always tell my customers, family and friends that I always wanted to be an astronaut as a kid. My goal was to not only see the world, but to explore the unknown. And that nobody ever grows up, especially an Indian kid, wanting to be a deejay. The cultural pressure of “doing well” sent me down the path of a career in actuary, information technology, mobile technology, and I’m still pursuing my fourth master’s degree while running my business.

The pressure to justify my love for music and production forced me to spread myself too thin; because it was a constant job to convince others that it was a side job. About 3 years I let the pressures go, and focused on this business full time, and the growth of the business certainly shows I made the right move.

Boston Sound and Light Company – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
Boston Sound and Light Company, from its purity is an audio visual company, but it is also the premise and visionary to many sub-offerings and sub-companies such as a Luxury Wedding planning service, furniture rental, lighting business, and more. It’s basically a portal, especially for non-traditional weddings that require more attention than a typical ceremony and reception. As we focus in on Indian weddings, the requirements to support such extravagant weddings requires us to have the latest in technology, whether in sound or in lighting, of which can be used in any setting. We have sofas that light up, we have mirrors that talk to you as a photo booth, with have drapery, we have dancefloors that light up, etc. But beyond all the stuff we offer, our customer service is what people rave about.

As a company, our proudest moment was when India New England reigned BSL as the “King of Indian Weddings”. Since then we have carved our target niche in the Indian market; dominating it as the second most volumed vendor in New England. We have also received national recognition. Since then, we have been invited to service the CMO of WeddingWire.com’s wedding, we have done several weddings of Hollywood stars, and have gained respect as an insider with many of my peers in the non-Indian market.

What is “success” or “successful” for you?
Numbers are certainly good, but I started this business as a hobby when numbers weren’t very good. I’ve never worked for money. My goal in life was to prove to myself that I have tried my best and learned something new. As for this business, what drives me is how we impacted somebody else’s happiness; how we made their special day that much more special.

The reaction we get from the events we do is certainly the battery that keeps us going. The reaction we measure ourselves again are three fold. 1) Make sure the hosts were happy. 2) make sure those who witnessed our efforts were happy, all the way to the valet person. 3) make sure those who weren’t able to see our show were just as excited about our efforts through social media and blogging. If in any one event we fail at any one of these, we fail in total!

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