Being Women | Nothing is difficult when dreams are big...!

A beautiful woman draws strength from troubles, smiles during distress and grows stronger with prayers and hope. It’s that time of the year when we celebrate freedom, power and confidence that every woman does and should carry. On 8th March, the entire world celebrated the power of womanhood and the role that ‘she’ plays in our society. 

In our country where a goddess is worshiped quite extensively and respected but at the same time, in earlier days the women in the society were not bestowed an ounce of respect. But with time, eventually as like any other country, India too has slowly over passed the gender bias and today the scenario has changed completely.

We have dynamic women leading various industries be it holding a public office or any other role which glorifies the success of women. In fact, over the years we have had several women being the face of various respectable streams. Be it Indira Gandhi, who was the Prime Minister of our country; be it Kiran Bedi who was one of the first women IPS officers or Pratibha Patil, who was the President of our country or Meira Kumar, who was one of the first woman Speaker of Lok Sabha, an Indian politician and a five time Member of Parliament or any other.

We at Adgully thought of engaging with some leading women from the industry about the way they feel being a dynamic lady in their respective industries and if they have any piece of advice for the today’s women professionals. We spoke to, Savvy Dilip, iTV Network Group CMO; Myleeta Aga, Senior Vice President & General Manager India and Content Head Asia; Sangeetha Aiyer, VP & Head, Marketing A+E Networks, TV18; Debarpita Banerjee, Vice President – Marketing and Communication Fox International; Manisha Sharma, Head of Programming, COLORS; Simran Hoon, Head of Sales, COLORS; Anurita Chopra, Marketing Director, Personal Care, Philips; Anupama Mandloi, MD, Fremantle Media; Priyanka Tiku, VP and head mktg CNBC TV18 and forbes India; Sonia Huria, Head, Corporate Communications, Viacom 18 and Deepika Tewari, General Manager, Marketing, Jewellery Division, Titan Company Limited.

When asked Dilip how she feels, she said, “I feel extremely blessed and privileged to be part of the leadership team in ITV Network and it is incidental that I am a woman.”

Aga said, “I always focus on leadership as a professional. Not a woman. Being in a position of leadership it is more important to have a strong sense of values and purpose.”

Aiyer said, “Being innately optimistic, I view our society very differently from the general perception bias that is prevalent. Also, I think I have been blessed with working in places where the perceived differences between men and women have been negligible, so my response would largely be gender agnostic. As a leader, I am tough on myself, thereby raising the standards for everybody. However, I also try to nurture my team instead of pushing them because I want them to excel at what they’re doing and aspire to achieve greater heights.”

Banerjee stated, “Being a woman, having a job I like, with a team I like to work with is fulfilling and rewarding. Other than that,  I think a lot of our modern day work places just look upon us as individuals rather than through our gender lens. I don’t think my team and my organization would have felt any different towards me if I was what I am, as a man.”

Hoon feels, "I would want to believe that our industry is gender neutral. So it doesn't really matter of you're a woman or a man as long as you bring value to the organisation."

Sharma said, "I love television and entertaining audience. My role as a programming head enables me to live my passion every day. COLORS has a so much variety in its fiction and non-fiction offerings, that you are always on your toes and thinking of how your next show can do better than your last! At the end of the day however the sense of fulfilment is immense and the recognition you get for a job well done keeps you going to achieve your next big success. Managing a team of like-minded motivated individuals, encouraging them to push their boundaries for content generation, and delivering path-breaking properties to engage and entertain viewers at all times – is what drives me and allows me to lead in the space that I am in."

Huria said, “The journey to having a voice on the table as a communications professional has been an arduous one. I constantly sought new experiences to ads onto my skill set. As Head of communications at one of India’s fastest growing networks, the demand to dial up efforts is constant; one is competing with oneself! And there are no precedents or reference points to take forward. As a communications professional, with a high sense of ownership, an administrator and people-manager all rolled into one. I aimed to get to a competitive position and that I think also helped ground me in my work and ensure it stayed true to what I wanted to do in communications.”

“In today’s age, a mere title does not make a leader. A lot of initiative in terms of seeking opportunity as well as offering lucre to one’s team is involved in being a leader. Leading by example is no more a text book dictum – it is a way of life. The best part about my industry is that women are naturally known to be more inclined and adept to the art. So the competition is not with patriarchal conventions so much as equally talented other women,” Huria added.

Tiku said, "Have never really thought of it like this... May be it's the organisation that I  work for or the media space where the man and woman ratio at work  is much better than most industries that I have never felt singled out or awkward about being a woman."

Tiku believes that good work always stands out in the long run and it doesn't matter if it's a man or a woman . Mandaloi said, “How I feel about my work is not driven by my gender and that’s probably because of my upbringing.  I feel like any other professional in the creative space.”

Tewari said, "As a leader, I am proud of my journey to date and continue to challenge the expectations in my role. Balancing my priorities on a daily basis keeps me focused and encourages me to give everything my best shot." Chopra feels quite empowered being a women leader in the marketing space.

Piece of Advice:

Dilip said, “Have a career plan and don’t fit your career into the next available opportunity, but find an assignment which takes you forward in your career. And don’t expect any special treatment because you are a woman.”

Aga said, “Be good at what you do. Have integrity and be prepared to work hard.  Success is relative to how you define its context.” Aiyer said, “I think the most important thing which any young, aspiring woman must inculcate is belief in oneself. You must always hold true to what you firmly believe in and not be afraid to speak your mind and be true to yourself.”

Banerjee said, “We should recognize our strengths. Women come with inbuilt microchips of sensitivity and care. One should not sacrifice this at the altar of aggression, following norms set by a male dominated industry. Team leaders who care and understand their people are equally capable of getting delivery and discipline than just aggressive growth drivers.”

Hoon feels that Hard work & passion are cornerstones to excel at any job. "For young women professionals in media, it is important for to be good at multi-tasking as there could be professional and personal situations that could test you. Striking the right balance between the two is prime," she added.

Sharma stated, "The one piece of advice that I would like to give all young women professionals is to focus on the end result while maintaining a balance between their personal and professional lives. Give your ideas wings, as nothing is impossible. Putting in your 100% while striking the perfect balance is the mantra that I live by."

Tiku here opined that it is important to be passionate about what one does as it will help one excel in what they do. "For a women it is really important to as then she will enjoy putting in effort, learning and you will also enjoy deadlines and all the madness that comes with it. I have seen a lot if bright girls quit post marriage or post babies as in the long run when the responsibilities on the personal front become larger you can keep working only if you love what you are doing ... The fact is you can quit your job but never your passion!"

Huria said, “In my experience, any industry – not just media & entertainment – or function, now prioritises the growth of the organization over petty discrimination. More and more companies have a gender parity policy which they actually live up to. In this context, it is not to outdo the men in your space, but set yourself high benchmarks to conquer. And while your career soars, as they say, keep calm and carry on… Only then does family, friends, work, and self, transcend the murky space of jugglery and attain seamless balance.”

“With the Government’s initiative to support and educate the girl child and provide her with a plethora of opportunities and subsidies, both, parents as well as girls themselves should take the onus of developing into superior individuals – whether professionally, at home, or spiritually. That, to me is the single biggest goal that can keep one driven to a higher plane,” Huria adds.

Tewari feels, "I think regardless of wether you are women or men, everyone should focus and work hard. One advice that i would like to give is that be ambitious and determined. This will take you to places and help you reach your ultimate goal."

Mandloi said, “Be yourself.. Focus on the work. Respect yourself and those you work and work towards being solution oriented. The rest falls in place.” Chopra believes that it is important to stay true to you... Believe in yourself.

Women every day perform various roles and responsibilities from morning to night...with a lot of effort and passion these women have made their presence felt in such a competitive space....Three Cheers to their spirit and we at Adgully salute them....! | By Aanchal Kohli | Twitter: @aanchalkohli
 

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