Interviews by: Anjali Mangal and Anchal Surana

 

Monika Shukla: A big salute to womanhood

 

 

As she walks into her office with bright eyes, heavy voice and enthusiasm at its peak, her subordinates salute her while showing high regard for her. Indore Superintendent of Police (SP) Monika Shukla has earned this respect by spending over two decades of her life in police department.

“It did not come easily to me. I have proved myself a lot of times that I am worthy of it, “quicks Monika as we sit for an interview.

Born and brought up in Bhopal, she started off her career in police department during mid 90s when it was hard to imagine girls as police officers.

Before joining the department, Monika completed her MSc degree and PhD in chemistry, and was also offered a job. She did not want to do a routine job.

Fate had something else planned for her. She applied for IPS and got through in her first attempt. When asked what made her take an entrance test for IPS, she says she was inspired by her neighbor who was a CSP then. “I saw him interacting with public everyday and bringing change in their lives. It made me realize the importance of administration job,” recalls Monika.

Her decision was not easy to follow. Her father RS Pachauri, who was a director of Agriculture University did not approve of her choice. He felt that it was not safe for her, and she could rather become a deputy collector. “We did not have any background in police. Since I was a bright child, he felt I could give a try to any other government job,” she reminisces while telling us how she followed her dreams.

“All the credit for my successful career goes to my mother,” exclaims Monika as she talks about her mother, Shashi Pachauri. Shashi could not pursue higher studies because of social restrictions. She realized the importance of it and made sure that her daughter gets everything she wanted. “My mother is my role model. She had a great will power that convinced everyone to allow me to become a police officer,” remembers Monika.

And this was not enough. Monika’s real journey began after joining the department which had general notion that this job was not meant for girls. She was not given the charge of her duty for ten days after being appointed as CSP because she was a girl. “Though I was appointed as CSP of Bhilai, I was not given the real job because authority felt that it was not ‘safe’ for me,” she admits.

Luckily, there were elections going on during then. Monika grabbed the opportunity and proved herself with hard work, dedication and tenacious attitude. She convinced her bosses that she was at par with any male officer.

Despite all these, success came to her with condition. She was shouldered with responsibility for new Bhilai and not the old city. “My bosses felt that old Bhilai was not safe for me regardless of the fact that I could handle all the challenges, “she points.

With all the good and bitter experiences over the years, Monika has created a different place for her. She has realized that hard work is the answer to every question raised by male-dominating society. “Women can make anything possible with their hard work and dedication. We have to prove ourselves constantly, but respect does not come easily anyway,” adds Monika who is also a successful wife and mother.

What keeps her motivated and full of life even during hard time? The answer is God and her spiritual connection with him. “I believe in one true God who has given me this life for purpose. I want to fulfill it by performing my duty righteously,” concludes multi-talented Monika who is an avid reader, painter and also a gardener.

 

 

Ulka Sangore: A true spirit for everyone

 

 

People think sports is a field of males but there are many females who earned a lot of fame from sports. Today on International Sports Day we came to a very genuine and great sportswoman Ulka Sangore, who was a cricketer of her time and today at the age when people leave everything and sit at home she still represents the country at international level through badminton. A great salute to her.

What was your inspiration to make a career in sports?

There was no such inspiration for me; basically I never like studying I always use to run out for playing. From my childhood I had my interest in sports and finally I made it a career.

You were a cricket player, so how did you get into it?

During my school time I use to play baseball because we were not having cricket. Then I started cricket during my college day and I played cricket at National and International level. Now I play Badminton to stay fit and as a sports person I can’t sit ideal, so I entered in badminton.

What are your awards which were showered on you?

I received awards in international weighted category thrice, first in Canada, 2011 then in Turkey, 2013 and recently Sweden, 2016.

How do choose sports as a career?

Being a female it’s tough to choose career as a sports, because you don’t have a long lasting career. Till the period you are fit you will be entertained by the selectors and the day you are not playing good and become unfit you’ll be thrown out. That’s the reason people rarely choose sports as a career and even parents don’t allow them. Like even today we are representing at international level but no facilities are given to us, we are travelling at our own cost. These are the reason rarely females enter in sports. But if someone love sports then you should play it for your happiness and make it a career at least that will give you inner satisfaction.

What discriminations woman has to suffer in sports?

We has to suffer a lot of discrimination here, like if we talk about cricket only then you’ll see man’s player who have represented in Ranji Trophy are given pensions but woman’s are not even thought we also played Rani Jhansi Trophy which is equivalent to Ranji Trophy. This is sad in this growing era also people are not welcoming for woman’s.

How to stop the discrimination in sports?

We have to start the changes from selector’s level because females are treated as dummy though they are in selectors panel but ultimate selection will be made by the dominating male side only. If we’ll start from selector’s level then only all-round discrimination will stop.

We are coming up with a new project “It’s my city and I’m a city changer”, where we will come up with three important things people should work on i.e. safe city, clean city and helping city. So what are you view on ‘Indore a safe city’, ‘Indore a clean city’ and ‘Indore a helping city’ in the present time.

When we talk about safety I personally don’t feel Indore is safe at the level it should be because females even today are facing abuses so we need to work more on that, specially youth should be disciplined and follow some antiquates. They start abusing though they are wrong, they will not follow rules and regulation etc. Which is the top most reason why we are not safe in Indore? If we talk about cleanliness, then everyone would have the same answer that people should change their inner soul and try to make Indore clean because I have seen many states they are more clean and hygienic than Indore so we had to work a lot on cleanliness. Helping city Indore, ya I agree with this that Indorians are very helping.

 

Dr. Sonalee Nargunde: Great speaker and strong personality

 

 

HOD of School of Journalism and Mass Communication (SJMC), a journalism department art DAVV Indore, Sonali came up openly with all the view she has about journalism and how people see it. She told us everything about herself as a journalist and gave her valuable suggestion on how we can work to get a better career as a journalist.

People are opting journalism more for glamour in the present scenario.

Starting from the most important thing how did you decided to enter into journalism?

I use to love writing from very young age and I was a commerce student. I thought of becoming a C.A. but I dropped the idea because I thought it was damn tough and I don’t want to get into such a field and want to try something creative. So I entered journalism.

Were your parents supportive when you choose journalism?

Ya, parents were very supportive because I come from a family where education is very important and family never bound us for that. They were always supportive whatever we choose.

Were your in laws supportive for your career?

Yes, they were very supportive, even when I got National Award for my book and I was not able to go and collect it, they went on my behalf and proudly took the award. They always supported me and helped me grow to what I’m.

Being an HOD of SJMC, what changes you want to make in the current concept of studies?

I want that students should get a proper specialized knowledge during their studies, so that they can grow and achieve heights and fulfil their dreams.

What about the gender discrimination in journalism?

In journalism, females face a lot of discrimination in offices. They are treated as the weakest section and are not allowed to enter into main stream journalism especially in small cities. If you are in Delhi then you will not face such discriminations but other than Delhi females are treated as weaker person.

How do people see and opt journalism in present era?

In current scenario children opt journalism because they find glamour in this industry. They think that they will get a chance to come in front of camera and will become famous. All this started from 90’s, many are pursuing this course now but some turn out to be a master of it who seriously and passionately work in it, others just want a chance to enter the glamour world.

We are coming up with a new project “Its my city and I’m a city changer”, where we will come up with three important things people should work on i.e. safe city, clean city and helping city. So what are you view on ‘Indore a safe city’, ‘Indore a clean city’ and ‘Indore a helping city’ in the present time.

Talking about Indore as a safe city, so I think Indore is very safe even today, people can roam around any time without any problem. If we talk about Indore as a clean city, so every citizen has to work on it instead of blaming others. And the last one Indore as a helping city, so yes people in Indore are helping and that’s a very good quality.

 

Pammi Chawla: Fought for her passion and touched the sky

 

 

One of the best beautician of Indore  Pammi Chawala, owner of Style Nation gave a terrific interview on the event of International Women’s Day. She is truly an inspiration for very girl who want to live her dream. She did a lot of struggle to make her dream come true and now everyone know her name. She is damn perfect at her job and loves her work, which make her work like a free bird.

If we talk about females then it is said, “Girls are like bud and they should try to become a flower and then die.” By this she means girls are like bud, they should not kill their dreams

How did you come in this profession?

Actually I was in 9^th standard, when my father asked me what I want to pursue as a career. I answered him, that I wanna be an interior designer. He instantly asked me to abuse, I was shocked how I can do that infront of my father, but then I used some normal abusive words and he said these words are of no use, you need to be bold enough to get into this profession. Then they started changing my mind into some different creative things and finally i came into this profession.

Your parents even in those days were very liberal?

Yah, they never pressurized me. I was allowed everything what i wanted to do and they were very supportive at all the aspects.

After marriage were you allowed to work as a beautician?

In the early time of my marriage, my husband was not supportive and he didn’t like this profession. But i use to secretly work at my sister in laws salon and customers used to come and say that they want me to work on them. One day my husband saw me doing this and went out of control, at that time a lady who was sitting at the salon asked him to sit and said you can’t stop her doing this. Being a Punjabi if you can become a pandit then why can she become a beautician. This was the first thing that made him realize that no job is bad.

When you were not allowed to work as a beautician, what was your main focus and hobby?

When i was not allowed to work as a beautician, i use to do paintings which were sold in Surat and other places. I was a person who can never sit ideal. I use to do many creative this at home like making pillow covers, bed sheets etc, from old clothes which usually people through as a waste.

Which was your first branch in Indore and how you grew with other branches?

I opened my first branch at vishnupuri, where i covered my master bedroom with bed sheets and used it as a salon and I shifted to a small room. Then my second branch is at Khatiwala tank which is still in work, then I came up with my another branch at Hotel Fortune landmark. Recently I opened my new branch at 56 shop.

What message you want to give to our youth, especially for females?

Work for your dreams and never let it go, but that doesn’t means you’ll not listen to your parents. Your parents will always help you grow in your dreams and always try to motivate you and give you the right path. If we talk about females then it is said, “Girls are like bud and they should try to become a flower and then die.” By this she means girls are like bud, they should not kill their dreams and die like a wilt bud, instead they should grow as a flower fulfilling their dreams and then rest in peace after closing their eyes forever.

 

Amrita Rajput: An all-rounder personality

 

 

Fashion changes from time to time and the mind set of people too change with that. Every other person today thinks of wearing designer clothes and work as a designer. On this International Women’s Day we went to well-known designer and faculty in designing field from last seventeen years Amrita Rajput.

When and how you thought of entering into fashion designing?

Initially I was a student of Bio but that didn’t make me happy and satisfied. I use to see my neighbour who is a designer, she inspired me to enter into fashion designing. When I started studying and working as a designer I realized yes this is a field I’m made for.

From how many years you are working in this field?

From last seventeen years I worked as a professor in different colleges like SDPS woman college, IPS college, Govt. Woman polytechnic college. I gave these years as a professor then I thought that I should open something of my own and come up with my boutique. After giving so many years working for someone else you think that now it’s time you should own a business. But even today I work as a visiting faculty for many colleges.

What about the family support before and after marriage?

If you talk about family support then everyone in my family was supportive. My father use to accompany me for all the projects I do because I had to visit different places. After marriage also everyone was supportive but my husband never wants me to start my own business, so I convinced him for this and now everything is perfect.

If asked about today’s generation, then what do you think why people are entering in this field?

Our new generation is not working properly, they are becoming a bit over smart. They think they are the experts of this field just because they know the definition of fashion. That’s not true you need to work a lot to become a master of fashion. So I just want that instead of overestimating oneself people should learn the art of fashion technically.

We are coming up with a new project “Its my city and I’m a city changer”, where we will come up with three important things people should work on i.e. safe city, clean city and helping city. So what are you view on ‘Indore a safe city’, ‘Indore a clean city’ and ‘Indore a helping city’ in the present time.

If we talk about safety then I think today no girl is safe just because everyone is becoming abusive for us. Indore can become clean if people try to do that from their surroundings. Yes, Indorians are very helping by nature.

 

Komal Kalra Pagarani : Being a woman of substance

 

 

It is not easy to follow the unconventional path and still get respect from family and society. Indore lad Mrs. Asia International 2014 Komal Kalra Pagarani is one of those rare Indori women who broke stereotype and came out big in the league by believing in themselves.

She has come a long way in fashion world within short span of two years. When she began her career as a marketing manager, she had no idea that she would make it big to the glamour world and that too after marriage!

“People often pointed out that how could I wear bikini in a show or work during late hours,” recalls Komal while adding, “I contradicted them by keeping my mind open. You have to believe in yourself to make others believe you.”

It all started three years ago while she was working as marketing manager with Pune-based Company. She applied for modeling casting for an advertisement and got selected.  “I always had flair for modeling. When I got to know about that opportunity, I thought to give it a try,” remembers Komal.

However, that was not the right time to start modeling career. She had to leave offer for modeling because of sudden marriage to her boyfriend, Ravi. She was just 21 years old then.

People criticized her for marrying so early. They warned her that she could be making a wrong choice of partner or career would be ruined after marriage.

But who knew that it was Komal’s best decision ever. When Ravi got to know about her interest in modeling, he searched for suitable career options and asked her to participate in Mrs. Asia International beauty pageant.  He also managed to gain support from his parents to show green signal to Komal’s modeling career.

“My family is my motivation. They have supported me at every point of time. My success is my family’s team work,” applauses Komal  who will participate in more than five fashion shows like Kerala Fashion Week, Bangalore Fashion Week, etc in next two weeks.

Having done number of prestigious fashion shows across the globe, she feels that her journey to the ambitious world has just started. “I am at the basic stage of learning. I observe people, overcome shortcomings and evolve every day,” she says politely.

Her biggest challenge in Indian fashion industry is to ensure that work remain unaffected by marital status. She admits that fashion industry has very little space for female models who are already married. She has personally encountered such situations while applying for assignments.

“I was rejected twice because I am married. I don’t know why married female models are not considered by many show producers, “she complains.

Even this cannot stop or slow down talented Komal from following her dream. She works harder every day and makes herself flexible for all assignment. “I strongly believe that talent cannot be ignored. If it did not happen today, it doesn’t mean that it will never happen,” says Komal who is a fitness freak and a boxer.

Besides work, maintaining a healthy relationship with husband and family also requires constant effort and dedication. “The responsibility gets bigger as the relationship grows. My family members never ask for anything, but it is important to express my feelings for them,” opines Komal.

In order to do so, she spends all the festival and free time with family irrespective of hectic schedule or travelling. “I do not attend after parties of the fashion shows. I am always with family when I am not working. Sometimes, surprise visit from work also add to our beautiful family moments,” she signs off.

 

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