What happens when the career you spent 20 years building no longer feels like the life you want?

In this episode of Unblur the Path, I speak with Ritu, who spent two decades as a pharmacist before changing direction at 40.

Her journey took her into education, charity work and the creative world. Today, she is a trustee at One Kind Act, a volunteer-led charity that has raised over £4 million, and also serves on the advisory board of the UK Asian Film Festival.

We talk about what it takes to change careers later in life, how a charity grows from its earliest fundraisers, the work behind running a film festival, and why purpose does not have an age limit.

Ritu also shares how One Kind Act grew from a £150 home cinema fundraiser to major events raising hundreds of thousands of pounds — and why meaningful work, contribution and creativity have made her sixties one of the busiest and most fulfilling phases of her life.

This is a conversation about career reinvention, passion, volunteering, social impact, creativity and having the courage to begin again.

00:00 Introduction
01:45 What Does Passion Mean?
03:21 20 Years as a Pharmacist
04:21 Changing Careers at 40
05:38 Moving Into Education & Teaching
07:07 Finding Purpose Through Charity and Film
08:54 How One Kind Act Began
12:17 Who Does One Kind Act Help?
14:58 How Do You Start a Charity?
16:54 Building a Team, Network & Community
19:15 From a £150 Fundraiser to £320,000
21:30 How a Growing Charity Plans Ahead
23:38 Joining the UK Asian Film Festival
27:42 How Film Festivals Find & Select Films
32:29 Challenges, Creativity & Social Impact
37:59 Finding Purpose and Reinventing Life in Your 60s

career change, career change at 40, career reinvention, second career, finding purpose, life after 40, life after 60, women changing careers, pharmacist career change, pharmacy career, education career, charity work, charity sector, how to start a charity, One Kind Act, nonprofit leadership, volunteering, social impact, charity fundraising, UK Asian Film Festival, Asian film festival, film festival careers, how film festivals work, British Asian creatives, creative careers, women in leadership, purpose after retirement, meaningful work, career journey, career podcast, Unblur the Path, Lakshmi Seth

What is it really like to become a doctor — and what happens when life takes your career in a completely different direction?

In this episode of Unblur the Path, Lakshmi speaks with Dr Gauri, a medical doctor with nearly three decades of experience in health and wellness, including 15 years in psychiatry in the UK.

Dr Gauri shares her journey from studying medicine in Bombay to taking a career break to raise her family, moving countries, requalifying as a doctor in the UK through PLAB, and eventually building a career in psychiatry.

This conversation is especially useful for students considering medicine, parents supporting career decisions, overseas doctors thinking about requalifying in the UK, and anyone questioning whether it is too late to restart after a break.

We discuss the reality of MBBS, medical college, cadaver labs, hospital exposure, psychiatry, burnout, work-life balance, motherhood, identity, and the courage to change direction.

This is Part 1 of Dr Gauri’s journey. In Part 2, we explore how her psychiatry background led her towards Ayurveda, diet, lifestyle and preventive health.

Chapters:

00:00 Preview: Doctor, Psychiatry & Ayurveda

01:33 Introduction to Dr Gauri’s Journey

02:29 From Doctor to Ayurvedic Practitioner

03:57 Why a Doctor Looked Beyond Allopathy

06:20 How Asthma Led Her Towards Ayurveda

10:04 Why Gauri Chose Medicine

13:24 Is MBBS Really Difficult?

16:47 First Day in the Anatomy Lab

21:21 Challenges of Medical Training

26:49 A Career That Did Not Follow a Straight Path

30:16 Choosing Family and Taking a Career Break

33:27 Returning to Medicine in the UK

36:00 Why Gauri Chose Psychiatry

39:10 What Psychiatry Taught Her

46:43 Burnout, Vulnerability and Changing Paths

50:15 What’s Coming in Part 2

[doctor career journey, psychiatrist career, psychiatry career, medicine career, MBBS journey, medical college experience, career break, returning to medicine, PLAB UK, overseas doctor UK, doctor requalifying in UK, women in medicine, motherhood and career, burnout in medicine, work life balance for doctors, mental health career, Ayurveda practitioner, doctor to Ayurveda, healthcare careers, career guidance for students, careers for teenagers, Unblur the Path, Lakshmi Seth]

In Part 2 of Sai’s conversation on Unblur the Path, we explore what a career in marketing and branding really looks like.

Sai explains the difference between sales and marketing, how B2B marketing works, what brand teams actually do, and why marketing is not just about making things look good. She also shares her journey across analytics marketing, digital solutions, insurance, banking and brand leadership, along with lessons on curiosity, self-doubt, learning, support systems and work-life choices.

A useful episode for students, parents and professionals exploring marketing, branding or corporate career paths.

Chapters:

00:00 – Welcome Back to Sai’s Story00:12 – Sales vs Marketing Explained02:31 – How Sai Entered Marketing04:29 – What a Marketing Job Really Looks Like05:20 – Brand, Demand Generation and Communications08:40 – Marketing Technology and Creative Teams11:29 – Managing Marketing Across Cultures13:22 – Sai’s 14-Year Marketing Journey19:10 – Marketing Across Business Verticals22:27 – Moving into Brand Leadership22:54 – Rebranding a Global Company27:53 – Understanding the B2B Customer28:34 – Why Research Matters in Marketing30:01 – Rapid Fire: Books, Skills and Career Lessons34:30 – Reflections on Career, Self-Doubt and Support40:06 – Work-Life Balance and Career Seasons

[marketing career, branding career, B2B marketing, sales vs marketing, brand strategy, business marketing, marketing jobs, corporate marketing, career growth, women in leadership, work-life balance, AI in marketing, career guidance, Unblur the Path, Lakshmi Seth podcast]