OFFICIALHUMANS

(1/3) "I used to wear jeans and shirts, and used to ride bikes. I used to stand for the monitor in class, participates in activities. I was very active!! All because of my dad.  He never stopped me from doing anything. Dad was the one to explain to me what voting is, how elections work, what a candidate is. He was the one to encourage me to stand in school competitions. He used to ask me to sit at our shop so that I could learn how to manage, and how to handle finance. I was 20 when I got married. Hementh was the one who actually approached me. He followed me, used to try to talk to me through friends. And that's how we meet. THROUGH FRIENDS!!  When my father came to know about Hementh, he liked him. After marriage, time just passed. But, financially we weren’t that good. One day our neighbors came over for lunch. And he loved it. And that’s how it started. My first order as a Tiffin service. He gave me my first order for breakfast, lunch and dinner. My first official salary he handed me was 3000 rupees. I was overjoyed . People started giving me orders. I started Tiffin service in telephone exchange, women’s college, general hospital students. I used to make 500-600 roti’s per day. All by myself. With that business we hired women for help.  Also we bought our own house. But, then I had to stop it because of my health issues. After few months I got a job offer as a teacher in junior school. I accepted it. By that time I had a job, my husband had a construction business, my son was in college. everything was falling into place."

"As a kid, I was naturally more anxious than my peers. As I grew up I became an extrovert & more confident but I still experienced anxiety & panic attacks during my teenage. Probably because the tendency to overthink never left me. Most of my life, I’ve had this anxiety of living with some disease that actually never existed. Due to this, I’ve got a variety of tests done very frequently & spent a whole lot of time, money & energy. 3 years ago, I started experiencing panic attacks frequently either during the day or night. Innumerable times it was daunting to even sleep due to the fear of dying while I was asleep. Then I perceived going to a psychiatrist as a personal failure & inadequacy of being able to control my own mind. I didn't seek help. Meanwhile, in order to become fit and fight my anxiety, I started running. The delay in my treatment just intensified my symptoms. In a few months I reached a point where the physical symptoms of my Anxiety knew no bounds. I forgot what it was like to have a healthy body. I was constantly living with anxiety 24x7. I started having negative thoughts about everything. My sleeping pattern went upside down. There were many days when I didn't even want to wake up because I felt the day held nothing for me. Ultimately my suicidal ideations increased so much that I could not trust myself with my life anymore. And that was when I decided to seek help. My life changed for the better when I met my psychiatrist in October last year who then diagnosed me with Depression and Anxiety & put me on medication & CBT. When I had lost hope in myself and everything around me, my doctor rescued me. After a few months when I was able to overcome the self stigma, I started blogging about Mental Health & it’s importance in our daily lives. I didn’t want anyone else fighting with their mental health issues out there to feel as if they are alone in this journey because I know how terrible that feels. At the same time pursuing my newfound passion in illustrating & helping out people through my blog genuinely helped me cope up with my depression too. It’s been a year since I have been on therapy & medications and my purpose is growing stronger.”

“I had a very active lifestyle as a young girl. I liked to swim, skip, and play kabaddi. After I got married, I did all the household chores on my own. I used to mop, pull water out of well, climb two flights holding on to pots and buckets filled with water. I also made masala at home using my hands as we didn't use store-bought masalas. But, in my 60s, I twisted my ankle and was wheelchair-bound for 3 months as I couldn't walk properly. My activity levels came down and I gradually became sedentary as other people were also helping out with the household chores. After some time, I tried to stay active by doing pranayama, Yoga and working my legs on the sewing machine every day. I however slowly began to feel weak. About 7 months ago, shortly after I turned 82, I accidentally fell off the bed and it caused some inflammation in my ankles. Recovery was long and I became even more sedentary because of the lockdown. With the constant pain and inability to do even routine tasks, I began to think my end was near. My grandson Chirag, who is a gym trainer, wondered if he could help me get stronger and stay active. In the last 3 months, we have been training with weights 3 times a week doing full body workouts. We do squats, banded rows, landmine presses, split squats, deadlifts, carries and so on using dumbbells, resistance bands and a bar. My goal was to get down to the floor and back up on my own without support. I achieved it in 2 months! Lifting weights has made me stronger and it is helping me do my daily activities too. By getting stronger, I feel I can manage my pain better now. I know I’m 82, but not OLD!! Because that’s’ just a number.”

"In 2012 we shifted to Bhuj from mumbai. After marriage my life was a simple living. Managing home, raising two kids. it just went through. After shifting I wanted to do something. my kids were still in school. Also, I wanted to help my husband financially, so I started taking tuitions. my husband is very supportive, so when i asked him if i can start he said "why would i ever mind!?" so I started. infact, it became one of the income sources. and I really loved it. even students started loving me as a teacher. As time went by, I started my own tuition coaching classes with one of the teachers. We ran that center for two years. But I continued my tuitions at home. and that went really well. After a year we had elections running in our village. one of my known was running for sarpanch. their whole team asked me if i can run as a candidate. i was in shock!! my husband and kids supported me fully. So after a long process I won the election and was one of the vardhaman panchayat members. managing time between everything was a bit difficult. For the next three year we made women organizing camps, we also gave projects to women's in need. In 2018, we started projects on stitching VARDHMAN GRUH UDHYOG. Within two years of the project, we started giving projects to other villages like MADHAPAR, DESALPUR, GADHSISA. women started working from their home so that they can manage time. Infact, during lockdown, we started a mask manufacturing project for 3 month. And it went really good. YES, it's difficult to manage time. But, with family support I am able to manage everything. from house chores to managing party campaigns. A wife, mother, teacher, and an elective member".

(2/2) "As a child I was extremely active in extra- curriculars and sports apart from my studies. I have won many medals and was a national basketball player for ASISC 2006. So, apart from taking care of my boy who is coping up with his health, I would juggle between these two interests of mine which slowly turned into career options. I started to receive a lot of appreciation from friends and family for my blogs and articles on fashion, being a well- known figure in the P3 circuit and media, brands started to offer me to work towards their label. I have always believed in authenticity and genuine content. Till date, I have never accepted any deal to which my morale does not allow. My audience trusts me for that and despite of my broad topics of interest, they find value in my content as this is what I am- A Mother who loves her Son more than anything else, a Wife who loves to cook & eat, a Woman who believes in self-care and fitness and a Girl who loves to stay updated with Trends. So far I have worked with more than 50+ brands and at least 10 National brands. Apart from being a successful influencer, I also run my Social Media Management firm, am a committee member of the prestigious TELANGANA ARTIST'S ASSOCIATION and have started with my YouTube channel to share my culinary expertise."

@Eshahindocha

“I was very young when I got married. But, my husband was an amazing man. We had a beautiful life, four kids. He was a big enthusiast for movies, and I used to hate it. I was never into movies or TV. At that time film tickets used to be around 2 rupees each. And he always gets two tickets for us, but I never went. One day I told him to give me those 2 rupees instead of buying me a ticket. He told me “Fine!!! But I’m going whether you are coming or not.” So every time he went for a movie, I used to save that money in one hand-made SAVING BOX. And I bought gold jewelry with that at the end. With that money and gold, I helped in my daughter’s marriage, and helped in building one beautiful house. That money I saved was a life saver I must say. We raised our girls to be independent, to have their own opinion, just like I did. Now, I’m 70 year old, I do my house chores along with handling my business. I still work at my store, and I love it.”

(PART-2) “So, one day I was talking to a friend of mine, telling her everything I had researched for Noor and how I wish there was some place where all this information would be easily available rather than being scattered around. She was amazed by my level of research and suggested that I should start writing a blog and help other moms with that research. Since, I am alone at home mostly as my husband @bistrobin is a professional cricketer (Ranji trophy, Ex-India A) who remains out most of the time for his practice and matches, I figured this could be a way to convert my loneliness, sadness into something helpful for others. So, I started writing on instagram, making content whenever my daughter Noor, naps, which is one of the reasons I don't get time to dress up or put makeup on. My goal is to help fellow moms by making them aware of tips and tricks to deal with those everyday baby issues, and not the usual gyaan on Google. I first try things, test them for a while and then put them out for others. I am extremely happy with the way the blog is picking up as more and more moms are relating to my content which is more than just ads for products. I want my blog to be as real as it can be. Just like when we call a fellow friend to ask for something. I’m trying my best to put out all that I know to help others and I hope I can continue to do so. Just from a mom to another."

@mehratanya @tannzymommy

“When I reflect on situations when I’ve consciously decided to either take the road less travelled or to face the unknown – those are the situations where I have learned the most and been challenged the most, and have contributed the most to my growth as a person and as a leader. Being a Physician I started my journey close to the practice of medicine and patients. As physicians, we are trained in the diagnostic, therapeutic and management aspects of patient care, but not so much in the conceptual and practical aspects of leadership. I often wondered if I could be more and tap into my full potential and creativity. So, I transitioned from practicing medicine to the Pharma business world. This shaped me a lot because it helped me to understand the real importance of how relevant enough a Pharma company is in the daily practice of medicine, and that what I do is meaningful & valuable. As doctors we all have different objectives, but ultimately, we have to deliver results in the interest of healthcare for patients. The healthcare ecosystem today is more complex with healthcare reforms and market forces transforming the way healthcare is delivered and managed. As a versatile leader, my journey has given me an edge with insight for creating innovative approaches to problem-solve and deliver strategy & objectives for healthcare. Today, as a healthcare professional, I’m a business leader leading a large size of the pharma business. I have a special interest and niche in mental health, lifestyle medicine, and thought leadership.” “I think one of the most important things we should be teaching girls today is leadership – across the society spectrum. It’s something that has been lacking in girls and women for a very long time – not because they don’t want to but because of stereotyping in society. I think education is very important to being self-made. And that is what we should be teaching young girls – to have vision and take up space. When you know your own mind, you are a powerful force.”

“I am Dr. Apurva Bhardwaj student of Indian institute of public health Delhi, pursuing my masters in public health. Being a doctor was something I always wanted to be as a child. As I grew up I pursed dentistry and then switched my profession entirely to public health due to my interest in preventive medicine more than clinical. Everyone suggested me to move abroad as I could earn so much better, but the feeling inside that when people like me go abroad maybe that's why we aren't there yet. So I took up the course in the institute I wanted, apart from that when covid-19 wasn't around in the world I took a solo trip to rishikesh, one major thing I did which made me feel liberated. “Traveling solo for a girl is still looked down upon and when you're not a celebrity doesn't come that easy” But having supportive family and fiancé I took the chance and enjoyed every single moment of it. Who said a doctors only want to make money? Or they can't sing ? Or dance? or be a solo traveler? My love for the music and different cultures of our country is beyond explanation and therefore traveling comes with it. Be a doctor be a good one. but, when you roam more you understand your country, your people and how they function even better. That is a social behavior you get to understand which changes every 10 KM in a diverse country like us. Normalize traveling solo, to not just get away but to learn and to see there is so much in our own land. Explore that before you explore the world.”