Monday 28 March 2016

5 Indian Women Who Successfully Broke Gender Stereotypes

Ishita Malviya 


The ocean has always been a place for the men, they go to the ocean to fish while women sit at home. Even now, when women go to beaches, most of them are forced to worry about sunscreen and anti-tanning lotions more. Defying societal views on skin colour, and exploring areas that were reserved for men alone, Ishita Malaviya is just 25 and the first female surfer of India. 
 

Alisha Abdullah 

 


27 year old Alisha Abdullah, is India's first female national racing champion. When she was just 13 years old, she won the MRF National Go-Karting Championship and the Best Novice Award in the National level Formula Car Racing in the open class. Her best finish has been finsihing 3rd in 2009 Super Bike Championship.


Suhasini Mulay


Suhasini Mulay, the Marathi actress, who managed to get us floored with her performances, broke the stereotype of you-will-not-find-nice-a-guy-if-you-don't-get-married-early. She got married only when she felt the time was right, something almost every woman in India needs the liberty to do. Not only did she find her partner on social media, she married him at an age of 60. She hence proved that there's no right time for love and marriage. 


Shanti Tigga


Shanti Tigga was the first female combat soldier in the Indian Army, and she achieved this feat when she was 35 and had two children. While most women are told to leave their jobs after they give birth to children, Shanti Tigga not only succeeded in achieving her goals, but also defeated all her other male counterparts during their physical tests. And just a side note (for people who believe women are the physically weaker sex) she completed the 50-meter run in 12 seconds during her tests.
Although she met with a tragic death, after her abduction, she shall always remain a woman carrying valour beyond compare.


Roshni Sharma


An engineer by profession and biker by passion, she toured the entire length of India from Kanyakumari to Leh on a bike, solo, and is the first Indian woman to do so.She passed the lofty Himalayan mountains, tough terrains, high passes of Rohtang, Sarchu, Pang and Tangalangla and rode through the dangerous glaciers and nullahs and conquered over fear with her passion. 




- Compiled by Shambhavi Kamat

Wednesday 16 March 2016

One Person Is All It Took

A short story written by Akash Roy Choudhary about a boy seeing gender stereotypes and raising questions about them. I wish all of us were brave enough, like Rajesh, to ask questions! 


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As a child there were many thoughts that would just make you wonder about the way of things. Rajesh, the youngest child in a family of 4 was almost always in the limelight. He grew up in an orthodox family where questions asked about certain unspoken rules were treated like slaps on the parents' faces.
But, curiosity is the prime notion of knowledge. Maybe due to this sole reason , he had difficulty growing up following some "norms".

"Mom why does father always sit in that chair ?" (pointing out to the chair in the middle of dinner table)
"Why do you stop laughing when dad and his friends enter the room ?"
"Why do you allow me to go out all night but not Samiksha Didi, even after sunset ? It makes her sad."


Every time he asked, he received the same answer; "It's the way things are in our family. If you want something different, why don't you go try living with one of your friends' families?"

So, one day he stopped asking questions. He started to act to them. The day his deeds brought a change in his family was the day he stopped questioning about this norms.

All he was left with,  was a smile seeing his mother laugh freely.

Some things are hereditary, yes but there are ideas which are born naturally irrespective of the genes, race, gender or social status.


-Akash Roy Choudhary

Friday 11 March 2016

Kevin: A Man on a Mission

Here's a story about Kevin, CEO of  SVN, a real estate brand. He is one of the very few men who not just stood up for women, but also took some actions to empower them and embolden their capacity. This story is also an example of how women can successfully manage their personal and professional lives. Kevin is an inspiration to Mumbai OYE and should be an example for all the male corporate executives out there. After all, we are nothing without the support of each other.
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Kevin Maggiacomo is a man on a mission to create gender-balanced leadership in all organizations worldwide by the year 2020. 

What inspired him you ask?
There existed a disproportionate number of women who were high performers, yet his company wasn't bringing any intentionality to recruiting and developing women. There was a pool of talent not being fully tapped into. 

How did he incorporate gender balance in his company?
Looking around the conference table he saw that nearly all of our execs were white, male baby boomers. He recognized that bigger results would follow once he put in place a program which caused their leadership balance to shift. The company then restructured their executive team which is actually now imbalanced at 60 percent women. Their profitability has increased by more than 100 percent and they’re trending positive across all key performance indicators.

Why is Gender Equlity important in the United States' corporate scenario?
American women were paid 59 cents for every dollar their male counterparts made. In 2010, compensation for women rose to a mere 77 cents for every dollar men made. And if change continues at the same slow pace as it has for the past 40 plus years, it will take almost another 50 (until 2056) for women to finally reach pay parity. 

What can men do to help with this situation?
There exists a preponderance of men in leadership positions. Yet, there aren’t enough male ambassadors for this change.More men need to stand up for the rights of their female colleagues, keeping aside their ego and insecurity. If a woman is on a higher position than you, she is probably there because she is better at that job than you would ever be. Standing for gender parity does not make you weak, it makes you stronger. Standing for others' rights requires strength, resilience and commitment. If a woman has dreams, the least you could do is let her be and focus on your own work. If a woman truly stands for gender equality, she doesnot think women are better than men. Gender equalist women want to walk with men, not ahead of them. Accept the fact that sometimes, a woman "gets ahead" of you, not because she thinks you are inferior due to your gender but maybe because she is genuinely better suited for that job. Yes, corporate sexual harassment is increasing, but so is the wave of gender equality. The sooner you accept this, the easier it will be for you to perform well for yourself.

Here is a picture of Kevin Maggiacomo!



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Co-written by Krisha Panchal & Shambhavi Kamat

Tuesday 1 March 2016

Draw Some Inspiration

Inspiration is the process of being mentally stimulated to do or feel something. Ideally, this stimulation can be recieved from anyone- or anything. It may be an incident that you witnessed, something your parents said to you or even something as insignificant as a tree in the midst of shrubs.

Personally, inspiration comes from something that I have witnessed or seen.

Every woman I see in the locals who goes to work everyday inspires me.
Every man who works for women/LGBTQ rights inspires me.
Every little girl who studies everyday so that she can make her parents proud inspires me.
Every person who takes an initiative to learn inspires me.
Every girl who is living an independent life inspires me.
Every person who makes their own choices inspires me.

But, out of everything, there is no sight more inspiring than that of a person embracing themselves, all their beauty and all of their faults too.

Beauty, as quoted in BBC Sherlock, is "a construct based entirely on childhood impressions, influences and role models". Beauty comes from within and I, for one, truly believe that it only comes with acceptance.

The world would be a better place for all of us if we could accept ourself as "normal" before we even try pointing at who is "abnormal"- Because normality is a very relative term. Eating grasshoppers and roaches is normal is South Asia, but is it so in India?

Everyone feels like they don't belong, at one point of time. You are not alone. Self-acceptance will get you halfway down the road. Almost none of cross the other half anyway, so don't worry. We're all sailing in the same boat, in the end.

Also, didn't most of us turn out fine despite all the setbacks? Ofcourse we did.

- Shambhavi Kamat