It goes without saying that being a woman should be celebrated every single day of the year. However, in celebration of the International Women’s day, we have an enlightened woman entrepreneur with us.
Sudeshna Chatterjee successfully runs three business’ under one roof. Owner of a continental cafe (Mad Hatters) -an apparel boutique (Firaangi Desi) & a soothing spa line (La Mode), might I add without any business education or background.
Her favorite part of the business days are the interactions with her clients when she is making a couture piece for them. Do you know the beauty of local couture designers? Each piece of clothing is exclusively made for you and with so much love.
And they say love is mightier than all!
Every stitch every fold is made in the memory of the client. The designer goes out of his/her way in making sure the garment fits and looks fabulous on us. The one-on-one interactions are just the best because of the clarity we get as a customer and much more aware of who is making our clothes. Sudeshna lives by those fulfilling interactions and finds immense joy in making clothes for her clients.
She has been brought up by an inspiring single mother and grew up to not being a victim of the patriarchal norms of the society. Thus in her mind, a father does the same job as the mother, a wife and her husband, a sister and a brother, a woman and a man. And while she was saying all these to me, I kept imagining this beautiful ideal surrounding. Why can’t this be a reality for us ALL?
So let us understand this clearly; if growing up with a single parent can lead us to a broader spectrum of acceptance then where do we go wrong when both the parent exists in the relationship. Why do we lose balance?
As the international women’s day approached Sudeshna started asking:
“what does being a woman actually means?”
Is it the endless struggle to keep proving ourselves? Fighting equality? Looking for that balance? Finding trust? Finding that little voice who always wanted to speak? Fighting against stereotypes? There are so many questions? Who has the answers? And what is the solution? You’d say Women empowerment, simple! But how do we exactly empower them?
So she organized an evening of women by women & for the women which is the start of a movement called #WeMakeADifference. The panel had six very successful women from various walks of life sharing their story and spreading awareness hosted at Mad Hatters in association with Melange Solutions.
Manogya Loiwal mentioned how she still needs to carry a bullet (read: chauvinist) proof jacket, even after a decade into her male-dominated industry, and sadly we noded in resonance with her. But the best part is, no matter how many times we need to mend the jackets we are NOT backing down!
The only thing stopping us from truly conquering is the prevailing notion of how we interact with other women. We compete – compare – undermine & undercut each other. Why?!! There are so many theories on it, Emily V. Gordon explains it so well in this New York Times article. If we can’t make our own clan feel comfortable how are we ever going to achieve a balance in this society?
Sudeshna says, next time you meet your gang of girls, ask each other what was their achievement of the day. We are in high need for motivation and inspiration. Surround yourself with positivity and happiness.
One of the things common between this powerhouse of six was that they realized their true potential, fought for it and carved their own path to success. So let us try to figure ourselves out first. Start questioning, look inward and honestly appreciate yourself, believe in your self. To conclude, fight that deeply rooted patriarchy if it still prevails subconsciously.
It’s the best time on earth to be alive as a Woman!
Because you get to be a part of a revolutionary time, where women are standing up, taking leadership, fighting for the present and the future generations to come. It’s an onward journey towards a carefree non-judgemental happy environment. Let’s join hands and motivate other women and create a world with much more simplicity.
Brilliantly expressed … Sudeshna is a fabulous, multi talented woman of earthy substance and her endeavors carry her stamp of grace, great taste and class.