Swaran Sandhu - Changing lives with Raffles Educity & Star Crew
New Delhi : Led by a strong desire to do something significant for the betterment and growth of the youth of his community, Swaran Singh Sandhu left his flourishing business abroad 14 years ago to start Raffles Educity - one of the most reputed immigration consultancy firms in North India.
Swaran Singh Sandhu, who was living a comfortable life in Canada, thought of establishing Raffles Educity when he could no longer bear seeing illegal immigrants from India living in deplorable conditions in Canada - all because of the fraudulent immigration agents back home who showed them dreams of settling abroad without fulfilling the legal requirements.
"I was personally moved by seeing so many talented and educated youngsters doing odd jobs at paltry salaries just because they were misguided about the Visa requirements. There came a time in my life, when I felt that I couldn't just sit here and do nothing. That's when I decided to come back to India and started my efforts to raise awareness about the entire process of moving or studying abroad, " reminisces Swaran Sandhu.
Today Raffles Educity is undoubtedly, the numero uno choice for students in Punjab aspiring to go abroad. The primary reason being the guidance which the founder and Managing Director, Swaran Singh Sandhu provides to the youth personally as well as through various media platforms. Recognizing Electronic and Social Media as powerful tools for influencing the youth, Swaran Sandhu reached a wide audience and didn’t hesitate from exposing the deceitful practices undertaken by many immigration agents prevalent in the State.
“Initially we had to make a lot of efforts to make people understand the value of proper guidance and awareness before reaching their dream destination abroad, but today I feel really contented to see the fruits of the strenuous efforts we took 10 years back,” he recollects with a glimmer of satisfaction in his eyes.
When asked did he have to go through a similar struggle when he decided to launch his own film and music production house in Chandigarh - Star Crew, which was launched in 2020, quips Swaran Singh Sandhu, "Of course, we did go through our own share of struggles as we launched Star Crew, when the pandemic had engulfed the whole world and entertainment industry was the most severely hit. However, I am glad today that in just about a year and a half, we have surpassed all the expectations while having learnt from the various challenges that came across our way."
He further says, "This was the best time to foray into something new and learn the ins and outs of the industry. I got enough time to understand and offer the kind of entertainment that people actually wanted to consume. So the result is that we are getting millions of daily views across our three entertainment channels digitally - Star Crew Punjabi, Star Crew Dhakadz (Haryanvi music), and Star Crew Kirtan (a channel dedicated to Devotional music)."
Star Crew's debut Punjabi song released under the label, Star Crew Punjabi with superstar Punjabi singer Preet Harpal – Yaari Tutt Ju – garnered over three million plus views and became a runaway success in no time, inspiring the proficient team of Star Crew to deliver more outstanding music videos.
"We also launched Rajveer Rajaa’s Jatt Kahuga Kaun, another thumping Punjabi video which received appreciation from audiences all over the world," says Swaran Sandhu.
Star Crew's success continued with JSran’s heart-wrenching Yaari Tutti, Dumdaar by Rajvir Kingra, Beparwah by splendid Anjusha Sharma, Old Sinner by Lucky Pabla and We Coming by Harvy Singh.
As far as Star Crew Dhakadz (Haryanvi) is concerned, its chartbusters like Untani by singing sensation Renuka Panwar, Gori Kalai by Mohini Patel, Darubaj by Manisha Sharma and Jali Aali Chundri by Raju Punjabi – have brought a new revolution in the world of Haryanvi music.
Swaran Singh Sandhu's Star Crew Studios are well-equipped with the most modern technology and the world-class infrastructure. Whether it's the superlative sound system or the high-end cameras, technicians, recordists, and so on, he ensures that once an artiste reaches the Star Crew Productions office, he or she doesn't have to go anywhere else to give wings to their creative talent.
Talking about the main motivation behind launching Star Crew says Swaran Sandhu, "Being an immigration consultant, I had seen how the youth of Punjab was often misguided just to fulfill their dream of studying abroad, and I was startled that the same was happening to the people who had marvelous artistic talent on them. So, to contribute in their artistic development and save our youth from getting exploited in big cities, I decided to launch Star Crew."
Swaran Singh Sandhu's future plans include, launching more and more talented singers, musicians, models and actors through Star Crew's various channels." Besides music, we are now planning to shoot a few short films as well. Some webseries are also in the pipeline," he says.
