Influencer Spotlight- Rafiq Mandal: Many Sigils, One Purpose
October 2nd, 2013 by
Today I had the wonderful opportunity to sit down with fellow production department Influencer Rafiq Mandal and learn a little more about him. One of the most interesting things I learned about Rafiq is that he has a pet bearded dragon named Falcor (for all you The NeverEnding Story fans out there, yes, that’s where it’s from!). Rafiq was born in New York but grew up in Mexico City. He ended up in New Orleans when he decided to go to Loyola University. There, he studied creative writing as an English major and graduated in 2010.
About seven months ago, Rafiq joined the production department at Search Influence as an Internet Marketing Associate. On an average day, Rafiq spends much of his time troubleshooting technical issues with our keyword ranking software, making the keyword software run smoothly. Rafiq also writes, edits, and optimizes content for Search Influence. Rafiq says his favorite part about SI is the relaxed atmosphere and his colleagues: “We’re very open and know how to have a good time, even when things are tough and crazy. My coworkers are what makes Search Influence a great place to work.”
Outside of work, Rafiq, like many other Search Influencers you may have heard about through this blog, plays Dungeons and Dragons. He also runs his own radio show through crescentcityradio.com. His show, “The Music of a Blue Haired Modern-Day Samurai,” airs on Tuesdays from 7-9 p.m. This broadcast features primarily Japanese-rock, Japanese-pop, Korean-rock, Korean-pop, and other Asian-influenced genres. Rafiq also sings in the St. Louis Cathedral choir on Sundays along with his brother who is an opera singer.
I asked Rafiq what neighborhood of New Orleans he most identifies with and why. He said that he’s spent most of his time around Uptown, being someone who was introduced to New Orleans through college. Rafiq enjoys the fact that everything you need to access Uptown is within walking distance, very unlike his life in Mexico City.
Rafiq, like myself, is a huge fan of Star Wars, so I figured I’d close this interview with a pretty tough Star Wars trivia question.
Question:
A member of what diminutive race finds Luke’s cut-off hand and light saber?
Rafiq’s answer:
On first thought, I didn’t think anyone would have it, but I guess it would have to be somewhere on Bespin, the cloud city. So I assume Ugnaughts since they are the only creatures there.
REAL ANSWER?! Ugnaught! Go Rafiq!!
