Shailesh Limaye Finds a New Voice in AI Data Projects with Voices
A New Chapter After a Long Career
Shailesh Limaye spent over 30 years in the mechanical industry before the COVID-19 pandemic inspired him to pursue his childhood passion for voice acting.
“I am a mechanical engineer and for the last 30-plus years I worked in the industry. After COVID-19, I started focusing less on my actual career and began to pursue my passion,” he explains.
Shailesh took professional training in voice over and dubbing, learning techniques for videos, eLearning, and film, and how to adapt his tone and breathing for different scripts.
Discovering Voices and Building a Studio
With encouragement from his trainer, Shailesh registered on Voices and began auditioning.
“Voices is the only platform which has given me a career start. My voice over career started from Voices. That is the only platform for me,” he says.
To meet professional standards, he converted a bedroom into a small studio and equipped it with a professional headset and recording software.
Breaking Into Voice Data Projects
Shailesh’s first voice data project came via an email from Voices.
“There was an email saying that there is a voice data set project and would you like to give an audition? For a voice actor, you have to try any type of job. It’s not that you should constrain yourself to only that type or this type,” Shailesh recalls.
The project involved recording scripts in different moods and languages, including English and his native Marathi. “I was very happy to receive that project and luckily I got selected. That project was great, really, that I could try my voice over skills showing different emotions. It was a real challenge and I really enjoyed that.”
Trust and Ethics with Voices.com
When asked about concerns around AI and data use, Shailesh is clear: “I trust Voices, so there is no issue. I could not find anything unethical. I relied on that. I got a good challenge, that’s why I accepted it.”
Voice Data Work: A Prime Opportunity
Shailesh sees voice data jobs as more than just a supplement to traditional voice over work.
“It’s not just a supplement. It’s a prime or primary source of income. Every voice actor or voice artist should try these data set jobs because it gives a real challenge to prove yourself as a voice over actor,” he says.
He encourages others to embrace these opportunities: “It’s a new challenge; Any actor should show the audience that he can do new roles. Same thing for a voice over actor. These data set jobs are a new challenge.”
Enjoyment and Financial Reward
Shailesh prefers voice data work for its creative challenge and satisfaction.
He is also comfortable with the pay: “Whatever pay I am getting for the time I am spending, for the project, 20-hour project or 10-hour project, sometimes a thousand dollars or fourteen hundred dollars, it is fine for the effort put in.”
A Learning Experience
Longer recordings have helped Shailesh hone his craft: “It gave me real satisfaction and a challenge to use my skills and different emotions. Whatever I learned in training, all those types of emotions I could bring out in my project work. It is getting utilized.”
Advice to Other Voice Actors
Shailesh strongly recommends AI voice data work: “Yes, I recommend 100 percent. If you start your voice over career, do voice data sets first.”
