Pod Insights The Brand Called You Transforming Lives Through Stories: Shibani Sethi, Founder of Chapters by Shibani, on Building Meaningful Book Communities About this episode Welcome to another episode of The Brand Called You! In this inspiring conversation, Ashutosh Garg speaks with Shibani Sethi, Founder of Chapters by Shibani, an innovative and community-driven book platform based in Gurgaon, India.
Drawing from her background in hospitality and telecom, Shibani shares her journey from corporate leadership to creating meaningful storytelling spaces through books and conversation.
Discover how empathy, emotional intelligence, and authenticity shape her philosophy, and learn why “Pause, Smile, Think” has become the foundation of a community built on reflection and connection.
If you are a bibliophile, an aspiring storyteller, or someone seeking deeper human connection in a digital world, this episode is for you.
Building emotional intelligence in leadership
Why books are gateways to self-reflection
Creating safe spaces for honest conversations
Redefining the traditional book club experience
The lasting value of in-person communities
Transcript 0:08 Speaker 00 Welcome to another episode of the brand called you a podcast and podcast show that brings you leadership lessons, knowledge, experience and wisdom from thousands of successful individuals from around the world. I'm your host Ashutosh Garg and today I'm delighted to welcome a well-known and respected storyteller from Gurgaon, India, Shibani Sethi. Shibani, welcome to the show.
0:28 Speaker 01 Thank you. Thank you very much, Ashutosh. It's a pleasure to be here. Thank you for having me.
0:33 Speaker 00 Thank you. Shibani is the founder of Chapters by Shibani. So Shibani, before we come to Chapters by Shibani, a few questions for you. You have spent over two decades in hospitality and telecom. What were the defining moments that shaped your leadership philosophy?
0:50 Speaker 01 Ashutosh, thank you very much for having me here. Like I said, a very relevant question and of course, something that I would love to answer primarily because I have worked across industries and they've been so diverse. Two industries, two very, very different rhythms, but there's been one common thread, which is really the people. Hospitality taught me empathy and every detail that can shape someone's experience versus telecom, which taught me scale, speed and resilience. But the deciding moments were always human, you know, leading teams through uncertainty, navigating high-pressure decisions and realizing that leadership isn't always about authority. So it's always about presence.
1:34 Speaker 00 Well said. Well said.
1:35 Speaker 01 That's really what, yeah.
1:36 Speaker 00 Well said. Your profile mentions strong emotional intelligence. How did you consciously develop this and how has it influenced your own career?
1:48 Speaker 01 So emotional intelligence really doesn't come, or I didn't learn it overnight, Ashutosh. It is built through observation, reflection and sometimes, you know, you really, really, really need to work on it and that actually happens to very difficult feedback that you get. And I think I became a very prone to a lot of kind of feedback, which I'm very grateful to my mentors. For I started paying attention to the rooms that I was sent into. I would listen before I reacted, which I think became the core of the EQ. And over time, I think the strongest lever helped me in building trust faster, resolving conflicts better and creating environments where people felt more seen.
2:33 Speaker 01 And I think when people people are felt more seen, they give it to you, give it your best. And I think that is where my EQ really started to develop.
2:40 Speaker 00 Very interesting. And you transitioned from corporate leadership into creating a community-driven platform, which is Chapters by Shibani. What trans what triggered this shift?
2:53 Speaker 01 So it wasn't really a dramatic moment. It was just, I think it was a realization that I had over a period of time. And the universe takes you into spaces which eventually become your mantra or your core. I wanted to create something which was more meaningful, though even though I was surrounded by people, there was always a growing disconnect in how I was engaging with people. And I knew that the meaningful bit would only happen wherever there were conversations and the conversations were not really transactional, but more transformative. And that's really what triggered Chapters by Shibani.
3:27 Speaker 00 Amazing. Let's come to Chapters by Shibani now. What was the exact moment or experience that gave birth to Chapters by Shibani? And why did you choose books as the medium to build a community?
3:42 Speaker 01 Oh, it that's a very interesting question, actually, Ashutosh. Thank you for putting that forward. It actually began with a very, very simple observation. Every time we spoke about a book, the conversations became deeper deeper and the book itself became like the the discussion point, which was very interesting because we were not discussing anything else but a book that kept us so engaged. It actually became a doorway in a in a in a sense. It, you know, it was. That was the one that led us into very, very interesting conversations that allowed people to express, reflect and connect in ways that I never got earlier. And I think I realized around then that something powerful was, was beginning to form. How and when, when that would happen.
4:26 Speaker 01 But I think over time, um, chapters by Shibani also got formed because I led a book club with a very large community of forty two thousand women. And I really realized that the essence of the core of what I felt was in, in not just about people, which of course was always my core, but also around books and conversations. And that's really the, how chapters by Shibani came into being.
4:49 Speaker 00 How interesting. You also, you described chapters by Shibani as a place where stories leave a mark. What kind of impact do you want each session to create? And give me an example if you can.
5:04 Speaker 01 Oh, you know, if you walk into a space and you walk out thinking a little differently, feeling a little lighter or seeing yourself a little more clearly. That's really what chapters by Shibani does. And that's the kind of mark that I wanted to create. It's not about finishing a book, but it's about beginning a thought. So really, when you walk into a room, you walk in to discuss a book. When you walk out of the room, you're connecting with people and you're discussing so much more. That's really what, what uh the space is all about. And this is the mark that I think the chapters by Shibani create.
5:39 Speaker 00 And can you, for my viewers and listeners, give me an example of something that you curated recently?
5:44 Speaker 01 Oh, yes. Uh, we have a, we host a monthly book meet every, uh, every month. Like I said, of course, monthly book meet is every month. And uh, you know, everybody comes, we read the same book and everybody comes with something that we call as perspectives. Because that is what it is. It's not a thought. It's not an opinion. It's just perspectives. You could have loved the book and I could have disliked it. But I can tell you uh every time and I'm, this is not just once, every time. I've been hosting this for now four years. And in all those years, we walked in, I walked in personally with a thought about a book and I walked out differently. I could have disliked it and the whole feeling changes when you hear fifteen twenty people talk about the same book and how they engaged with it and how they liked it and there's so much that you miss out when you're just reading.
6:29 Speaker 01 Which is why I said chapters by Shibani, the crux of it is people at the end of it, but leaving a mark is, you know, it's not really about finishing a book. It is about beginning a thought and that's really what we do and and yeah, we do that every month, every single month.
6:44 Speaker 00 Very well said. Shibani, what does pause, smile, think mean in practical terms during your events?
6:53 Speaker 01 Hmm, interesting. Uh, so pause, okay, so pause is basically to step away from the noise. Which is why we created this beautiful book club. Our noise is these are our social media. Smile is to basically create ease and openness. You know, when you're among, amidst like-minded people and you're comfortable being there, you can speak your mind. And think, of course, is, is the prospect as I spoke about and, and so much when you're dealing with people to think, to reflect and to connect very, very deeply. Uh, in practice, I think it means that you are slowing the room down, uh, you're allowing silence, you're encouraging honesty.
7:38 Speaker 01 And you're really creating a space where people don't feel rushed to perform, uh, but are invited to be.
7:44 Speaker 00 Very interesting, very interesting. Walk us through a typical chapters by Shibani evening. What makes your book club different from a conventional book club?
7:57 Speaker 01 Okay, lovely. Um, you know, on my social media, I talk about chapters by Shibani a lot. Uh, and I want people to join because it is not like a rigid structure. There is no pressure.
8:09 Speaker 01 Of course, there is pressure to read the book, but there is no pressure to read, to learn. You know, there are a lot of book clubs who focus on vocabulary, words, what have you understood of a particular sentence? I'm just saying, please read the book so that we can discuss it better. And most often than not, if you haven't read the book, then the end of the book just reveals itself. So it's always best to. Read, we begin with a theme, a thought or a passage and from there, the room just takes over. There are stories which emerge, perspectives which come by and emotions which really surface. We've had people really speak their hearts out and cried because they could resonate with a particular structure of a particular story.
8:46 Speaker 00 Yeah.
8:47 Speaker 01 So I think it's led, what chapters by Shibani offers is less analogy or less analysis and it's more about your experiences and your experiences. So we just don't discover just a book, we discover yourself throughout it.
9:00 Speaker 00 Hmm, how interesting. And do you normally get an author also to come and interact with your members?
9:08 Speaker 01 Oh, I love that you asked that because yes, I've been introduced a new structure in our book meet. Starting this month, we are going to get an author who's going to speak about his book.
9:17 Speaker 00 Okay.
9:17 Speaker 01 Uh, that is bar apart from what we are reading. So there are two different pieces to this book meet. There is a book for the month which we're reading called the, uh, the correspondent. And we have a brilliant author called Eric Chopra who's going to be talking about his book Ghosted. So yes, so this month onwards and I love that you asked that question. It just seems to be falling in place.
9:37 Speaker 00 Wonderful. Good. Good luck. My next question Shibani is what qualities make someone a great storyteller in your format?
9:46 Speaker 01 Just three simple, very, very simple words, honesty, vulnerability and presence. There's nothing about, nothing else.
9:54 Speaker 00 Hmm. But tell me a little bit about all these three words because they're important. But my viewers and listeners would love to understand honesty, vulnerability and present.
10:04 Speaker 01 Hmm. I think it's about, it's not really about how well you speak, but it's about how truthfully you really show up. And I think the most powerful stories are often the simplest and the most real.
10:15 Speaker 00 Hmm.
10:16 Speaker 01 Really as simple as that.
10:18 Speaker 00 Okay. In today's digital world, uh, why do you think physical storytelling communities still matter?
10:29 Speaker 01 You know, I'm loving your questions because of late, there's a lot of digital fatigue and the digital bit which is really lagging our thought process is what I've been writing about. And while digital gives us access, I think the physical spaces give us the depth. And there's something really irrepressible about being in a room with people than being on social media and trying to get validation from people you don't even know. So I think that kind of connection with people when you are with them stays with you.
11:06 Speaker 00 Yeah, I agree. In fact, you know, sitting quietly with a book is far, far more interesting than sitting with your phone and reading even Kindle, you know, so.
11:16 Speaker 01 Yes, absolutely. I think it's become very exhausting. Even though I feel I'm consuming a lot of interesting data and I think it's detox. It really is and my God, it just, it's becoming extremely exhausting, as I mentioned, yes.
11:30 Speaker 00 Very interesting. So you know, when I was reading about you and preparing for my conversation, I was fascinated about one phrase which that you build psychological safety so that people can open up deeply. Help me understand this and give me an example, no names of course.
11:50 Speaker 01 You know, I mentioned this earlier when I was talking to you about how people, if they resonate with something, they actually end up breaking down. So I think safety is something which isn't created with instructions. It's built through consistency and that's the core of Chapters by Shibani. Consistency has always been my core in whatever I take up because if you can't do it every single day the same way, then don't even bother getting into that stuff. So I think we listen without judgment, which is very rare these days. We judge at the drop of a hat. We hold space without interruption. And when people realize that they're not being corrected, they are not being rushed or evaluated, that's really when they begin to open up.
12:31 Speaker 01 And like I said, every single month, we host this book meet and every single month I have a story. Okay, I'll relate something that happened very recently and why I instead of telling you what the the psychological safety, I'll tell you about why people look forward to coming to this book space. So I have one of our regulars, a book, a bibliophiles. Whose mother-in-law actually met with an accident on the day of our book meet, an hour before our book meet, an hour before we were to meet for our book meet. And now she, there is no way that she wanted to miss this book meet and she really does look forward to it. The mother-in-law needed help and I I'm not, I'm not taking any credit or pride, I'm not saying it with pride, I mean, I'm just, I love that people look forward to something like this.
13:16 Speaker 01 She actually lied to her mother-in-law, saying that she had a had a hospital appointment and she had to make it for that. She called her sister-in-law in to help her mother-in-law in her absence. And for those two hours, she was actually sitting at the chapters by Shibani book meet and attending the book meet and she told us the story and we all actually rolled out laughing, of course, very concerned about her mother-in-law. And the lies that she told, but I think this is how we connect people and this is how people connect with with us. There are lots of stories, people have missed out their PTMs with the children, their children's school, saying that they have. Um, an office meeting and actually they're sitting and discussing a book, so yeah, I take really real pride in that and I love it, yes.
13:57 Speaker 00 Fascinating. You also talk about standing emotions and emotional depth. What do you think drives this level of engagement with your members?
14:09 Speaker 01 Hmm, uh, I think truth and honesty, as I mentioned earlier, is the core of everything that we do, Ashdosh. Uh, when someone speaks the truth, it reflects back to everyone uh in the room and. I think that shared recognition, uh, this is me too and I, oh God, I I feel it too, I feel you, is what creates those moments.
14:32 Speaker 00 Right.
14:32 Speaker 01 It's really not about um how you're performing, what you're doing, what you do, it's really about connecting. So it's performance, it's not performance, it's really the connection. That we build over these standing emotions and emotional depth.
14:45 Speaker 00 Absolutely, absolutely. My next question for you is how, have you ever seen a book or a story? Completely change someone's perspective or life and if yes, give me an example.
14:59 Speaker 01 Oh, I have to keep saying every month because it happens every month. I've seen people walk in guarded and leave with a sense of release. Someone is questioning their path to find a clarity and they, you know, or rather they find, they try to figure out or they're questioning their path to find clarity and they walk out so clear with that single conversation. I think when you're deeply real, when you're honest and you give space and many years to listen, it just takes one story to shift how you see your own. So that's really how.
15:37 Speaker 00 And then the most powerful stories are when people identify with the story and the author.
15:41 Speaker 01 Absolutely, absolutely.
15:43 Speaker 00 Very well said.
15:45 Speaker 01 Thank you.
15:45 Speaker 00 Tell me, tell me a little bit more about your words, wisdom and wonder philosophy and how did this evolve?
15:53 Speaker 01 Oh, I, I love this, but I need a minute to think about it.
15:57 Speaker 00 Please take a.
15:57 Speaker 01 Because I think words, because everything is, begins with expression.
16:04 Speaker 00 Correct.
16:05 Speaker 01 Wisdom, because every shared experience carries insight and wonder, because curiosity keeps the space alive. So the, the, the W cubes are words, wisdom, wonder is really expression, insight and keeping everything alive. And I think they create a balance of, as I mentioned earlier as well, reflection, learning and a lot of discovery.
16:28 Speaker 00 Hmm. And how do you use W cube in, in a session, for example?
16:34 Speaker 01 All of it, words, wisdom, wonder is, is around books, perspectives and the trust that we build and all that we've spoken about is all about the W Q. It's, you walk into chapters by Shibani and you know, you walked into W Q really. Words, wisdom and wonder. And I wonder how I, you know, I created this space because I have beautiful people and I'm so grateful to the universe for giving me an opportunity to create a book club as beautiful as this and to create space in chapters by Shibani as beautiful as this because chapters by Shibani is just not a book club. It is, it is a space where I give authors a platform to shine, so which means that I
17:13 Speaker 01 launched their books. I get in storytellers. Anybody who has a story is at Chapters by Shibani narrating and sharing stories. Also, you know, thought leaders, I interview a lot of thought leaders. They're very interesting. It's a very interesting space where I also go out and anchor you know, conversations for large events into embassies, talking about books, talking about their events. So yeah, it's all about, I'm constantly wondering how I'm doing this and how Chapters by Shibani so beautifully building and I carry gratitude with me all the time.
17:47 Speaker 00 Absolutely. They always say that if you can make your passion into a profession, nothing can be better and you seem to have done that. But tell me, do you write as well?
17:58 Speaker 01 The only reason I don't write, I think I only write on social media and I, I journal every day without fail. The only reason I don't write is because the authors need an audience and I, somebody has to be the audience. So that is me.
18:10 Speaker 00 Okay, wonderful. Shibani, I have time for two more questions for you.
18:14 Speaker 01 Yes, sure.
18:15 Speaker 00 What would you say to someone who hasn't read a book in years but wants to start?
18:22 Speaker 01 I want to say this to everybody, don't aim at finishing a book, aim at feeling it. And even a few pages will reconnect you to something that you'll be appalled in awe of. You, you'll be surprised at yourself. And allow me to tell you that reading isn't a task. It always feels like one, but I can tell you the moment you start, you will back, go back to it, you will return to it. It is beautiful and the way digital is going these days, I'm certain that people at some point in time and everybody is going to get back to reading.
18:53 Speaker 00 Yeah, absolutely. I agree with you. And my last question to you, Shibani. If Chapters by Shibani could be one lasting legacy in the lives of people, what would you want it to be?
19:09 Speaker 01 I think in this fast-paced world, if people learn to pause and truly listen to themselves and to others, I think that's the one thing that I would really hope people do because these days people don't listen. And that's also because we blame social media for it because there's so much,
19:26 Speaker 01 a lot of crap consumption we do as well. But yeah, there's a lot of knowledge too. I think even if it helps, even a few people maybe feel less alone in their thoughts and more confident in their voice and more open in their connections. I think that would be enough for me and that would, that is the kind of legacy I'd like to leave with Chapters by Shibani.
19:46 Speaker 00 Very interesting. And on that note, Shibani, I just want to say, what a fascinating conversation this has been with you, you know. I'm a published author of ten books and I always interact a lot with people who are readers. I read a lot myself, but somehow I think my conversation with you today gave me a very fascinating perspective on how you, as the founder of a book club, are able to really help human beings who are interested in reading, to be able to connect with each other, to be able to connect with the deepest thoughts of an author and then to be able to discuss all those different thoughts. Thank you for speaking to me. All the very best to you and to Chapters by Shibani.
20:28 Speaker 01 Thank you very much. I just want to mention, like I said, Chapters by Shibani isn't just a book club.
20:32 Speaker 00 Yeah.
20:32 Speaker 01 We do everything for bibliophiles and for authors and for thought leaders and for storytellers. So if you have a story, you know where to come. Thank you very much for this opportunity, Ashadhur. Really deeply grateful. Thank you.
20:45 Speaker 00 Thank you, Shibani. Good luck.
20:48 Speaker 00 Thank you for listening to The Brand Called You, videocast and podcast. A platform that brings you knowledge, experience and wisdom of hundreds of successful individuals from around the world. Do visit our website, www.tbcy.in to watch and listen to the stories of many more individuals. You can also follow us on YouTube, Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Just search for The Brand Called You.
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