The new-age Indian woman is a wonderful mix of being bold and yet rooted in reality

The women of today are focused, feisty and raring to go in pursuit of their true calling. And nothing seems to be holding them back. Because she knows exactly what she wants and is growing increasingly immune to petty criticism and stereotypical judgements.

In a fun chat, a bunch of women speak about the inanest comments that came their way when they chose to follow their heart. And what needs to change, as we celebrate another year of Women’s Day!

Don’t need sympathy
I am not a propagator of pushing or breaking the glass ceiling. We harp on and on about the fictional glass ceiling. In my opinion, we create our own reality by owning up to our actions. What glass ceiling are we talking about? It has always been a self-fulfilling prophecy. On one hand, we’re always talking about equality and on the other we expect praise for being a woman entrepreneur. Just like you have ‘a boss’ — not a woman boss or a male boss — you’re an entrepreneur, irrespective of gender. The term ‘woman entrepreneur’ is redundant. Your goals don’t know or care about your gender. Just keep going and rise through to where you ought to be.”
Ami Sata, Founder, Amouve

Be happy
One should follow their own soul’s calling. I’ve been told I was a dreamer, crazy, irresponsible and ungrounded just because I chose to do what made me happy. Women are questioned a lot more about their choices, and I really hope that changes. Most women today in my opinion are looking for freedom — and being able to do what you like is true freedom.”
Sheelaa Bajaj, Celebrity numerologist

No room for regression
A male acquaintance once said to me, out of the blue, ‘Honestly, Sanhita, I think you are trying too hard. You could have just put on some make-up, and dressed well and got married to a rich guy so that you don’t have to do anything and enjoy a luxurious life’.
I’ve often been asked when is my Chick Lit book coming out. This women’s day I wish we are inclusive of all genders when we make decisions. But above all, I wish that we are able to create a safe society which is more accepting of all kinds of people so that in the future we no longer need to celebrate a certain day to remind people of what more needs to be done to benefit us all.”
Sanhita Baruah,best-selling author of The Art of Letting Go in Amazon’s poetry category, 2020

Take charge of your life
I have heard many comments like ‘That’s interesting! What else do you do?’ Another regular comment is, ‘You must not be married. That’s why you are able to do all this. See how things change after marriage...’.
Truth is I’ve been married for 10 years now. My wish for every woman is to be able to take charge of their lives and be aware of their own capabilities, irrespective of people’s perceptions about them or what they do.”
Shambhavi Singh, (Runs Kaushalya.mantra, a wellness start-up, focuses on holistic health)

Freedom from bias
It’s high time people start to take fledgling women entrepreneurs seriously. I was once told that I could enjoy and have fun in life on the pretext of ‘entrepreneurship.’ These were their exact words, ‘No one will even question you. But if you are really serious, then let me tell you, building a sustainable business is not everyone’s cup of tea.’
So, from my experience, when women talk about wanting and finding freedom, it actually starts with the need for freedom against bias and stereotyping.”
Yogita Tulsiani, Director and Co-founder, iXceed Solutions