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Dubai, May 7: It is said that a great speaker is usually  seen as sincere, knowledgeable and humorous.  If such a person is  blessed with other qualities like a photographic memory, a booming voice  and mastery over the language, he holds the advantage of arresting the  attention of his audience and satiates them.  While not many people have  a way with words, one person who comes very close to enjoy all these  qualities in abundance is Frank Fernandes, Managing Director of Mosaco  Shipping & Forwarding (LLC) Dubai.  
He is a  successful businessman, a dream he nurtured in his childhood.  His  success story is all the more exemplary   because of his humble  background he came from.   Having tasted success in business Frank got  into film production by a few years back by    producing a Konkani film  “Kazaar” and followed it up with a Kannada film “Ellellu Neene Nannallu  Neene”.    Above all, he is a humanitarian, with concern for the fellow  human being and is   known for his wide-ranging philanthropic activities  which have benefitted many individuals and institutions across the  country. 
Frank Fernandes
Listening  to him speaking in Konkani, Tulu, Kannada, English with ease  interspersed with Sanskrit verses and shlokas, is an absolute pleasure.   Though Frank Fernandes has made Dubai his home for the last three  decades his roots in his native place in Thottam,   are as strong as any  other local resident of undivided Dakshina Kannada.  He has clearly  demonstrated that no matter where he lived his emotional connect with  his moors was strong and steadfast.      
As a  child growing up in the hinterland of Thottam, in Udupi in the late 60’s  young Frank had dreamt of becoming a businessman, having seen other  rich people   in the vicinity. “Whenever I saw these rich people moving  around with pomp I used to get goose bumps and felt the surge of a  feeling that I too should become like them.  Though I did not have the   wherewithal it terms of money or resources I  don’t  know from where I  got a feeling that I could be successful provided I take risks.  That is  what I did and today I am what I am because of my firm belief in my own  capabilities” he explains. 
Though he was  ignorant what it entails to be a successful entrepreneur,   there was no  dearth for his imagination to think or dream big.  It stemmed from his  firm belief that if he worked for others he will never be able to  fulfill his dreams.  While many of us dream, the difference with Frank  is that he did not allow his dreams to overpower him.  Instead he  overpowered his dreams in his own inimitable style to carve out his  success story.   The company he started in Dubai Mosaco Shipping &  Forwarding is completing 25 years   on May 9, 2014, standing as a  testimony to his grit, determination, foresight and perseverance, in his  pursuit to reach the goals he set for himself. 
The  success of Frank Fernanades, a small village boy with a humble  background reads like a fascinating story.  He is the eldest among six  children of his parents and was the eldest among the two sons.  After  completing his high school from Government Fisheries High School in  Kemmannu he left for Mumbai to join his father who was working there as a  domestic help.  So in 1967 at the age of 16, a young Frank Fernandes  arrived in the dream city Mum bai and the city did nurture his dreams  giving him the initial impetus.    He started off learning  shorthand-typing, worked as a driver for sometime before graduating to  find a job in Larsen and Toubro as a machine operator.  Being an  under-aged he could work only for three months at a time with a break of  three months.   By 18 he had acquired a driving license and used the  break of three months to drive and deliver vehicles of Mahindra and  Mahindra to some of the northern states.  This was quite an enriching  experience for young Frank who by now had gained wide exposure and had  mastered many languages. 

 

 
The risk paid off
His  risk taking ability came to the fore when he left the job at L &T  where he was earning about Rs. 350/-  per month and  joined Shapoorji  Palloonji, a leading construction firm of Mumbai  at a salary of Rs.  150/- per month.  He recalls saying “having gained valuable experience  due to the wide exposure I could realize that if I were to continue in L  & T, it would seal my future forever as the promotional avenues  there were few.  That would have been the end of my dream”.  His gamble  paid off as the management identified his leadership capabilities and  promoted him as a supervisor in to time.  However, in the absence of a  proper diploma Frank scouting for opportunities and it came when he went  to Dubai on a visiting visa.  He had two options to choose from -  namely joining a construction company at 3000 dinars per month or  joining a shipping company at 1700 dinars per month.    
Since  he did not have liabilities he took the job that offered him less  salary but tremendous potential to grow.  He joined the Kuwait Shipping  Company of United Arab Shipping and with that his life had taken a  complete U turn for the better.  
Having worked  for the company for 9 years Frank was armed with necessary ammunition  to be his own master.  True to his name Frank is   known for his  candidness which brought about his termination from the company.   Undaunted by this development he accepted the challenge  leading to the  establishment of Mosaco Shipping & Forwarding which  was formed on  May 9, 1989.   His stint in the Shipping field kept him in good stead  and the good rapport he had established with the clients helped him to  establish a strong foothold.  Again, it was a huge risk but nevertheless  his gamble paid off.  Frank Fernandes the naïve village boy, who dreamt  of making it big a few years back, had created a flutter with his  success. 
“My work experience was my main asset  and my cordial relationship with the clients was my major strength and I  utilized it to my advantage when I got into business.  It is my good  fortune that I have never made a loss in the last 25 years since Masao  Shipping was set up.  There is a downslide in the business field from  2007 onwards because Dubai has grown exponentially.  But my company has  not incurred any loss since its inception”, he avers.  He attributes his  success to his disciplined life, his avowed resolve to succeed and the  willingness to take risks and his conscientious efforts to reach the  targets. 
As the business progressed he has  groomed his children (4 boys and 1 daughter) to look after the business  and he now scuttles between his home town and Dubai attending to his  multifarious activities.  A few years back he got into movie production  when he produced award winning Konkani film “Kazaar’ directed by Richard  Castelino, starring his second son Rohit  (Larry) Fernandes.   He  followed it with a Kannada flick “Ellellu Neene Nannallu Neene”, once  again starring his son directed by Castelino.   Frank is the co-producer  of   the Kannada movie “Karkalada Pavada Purusha Santa Lawrence” which  was released in January this year.   He decided to be a co-producer to  extend his support to Divine World Television Channel. 
A Bundle of Talent 
Franks  is gifted with a booming voice which is often mistaken for being  bombastic by those who do not know him closely.   Philanthrophy is  something that is close to his heart though he does not want to speak  much about it.  He has been generously donating to some of the old age  homes, orphanages, homes for the poor, cultural and educational  institutions  and other organizations involved in public service and  those promoting art,  culture and sports.  Philanthropy is an  inseparable part of his life because he says “whenever I get involved in  philanthropic activities my tension gets released and I feel very  happy”.   In the same breadth he adds that whatever he has done so far  is very meager as there is so much to do.  
Frank  is blessed with two very profound   qualities like a sonorous voice and  a photographic memory and he has accentuated these qualities with his  reading habits.  He is a voracious reader who reads all sorts of books  and scriptures and these qualities have made him a top notch public  speaker.    His fluency in Kannada language (despite being in Dubai for  more than three decades) is commendable  and is a sheer joy to listen to  as he narrates quotes from  Puranas and  scriptures  and also quotes  some of the well-known personalities from  diverse fields.   
He  strictly adheres to a daily regimen of exercise and eats moderately  which he says keeps him healthy and energetic to face the rigors of  life.  He gratefully recalls the calming effect his wife Alice Fernandes  had   in his life as she had taken up the full responsibility of the  family.    This helped him to divert all his energies in strengthening  the business.   “Ours was an arranged marriage.  My wife hails from  Niddodi in Moodbidri and she played the ideal partner of being  supportive and caring.  We balanced our roles perfectly and I never had  to worry at the home front.  This is the secret of my good health and  youthful looks”, Frank admits.  
Several  religious and cultural organizations of undivided Dakshina Kannada have  invited and honoured Frank Fernandes for promoting religious harmony and  brotherhood and his speech naturally comes as a bonus and he is quite  generous with it.