When I was growing up, little girls weren’t told that they could be ambitious. A path was set out for them and deviations weren’t allowed. Sometimes when I think about my growing up years, it feels almost miraculous that I was able to get into an MBA and a corporate job, let alone give it all up to take a road less traveled.
It wasn’t easy. There was self-doubt at every step. I was a literature graduate, how could I possibly compete with lakhs of students in CAT? Much to my surprise, I got accepted at the International Management Institute, New Delhi. But there were personal and financial pressures. And there was a huge, unseen readiness gap too. I worked very hard to bridge that gap, not just through B-School but also through the first few years of my corporate job. In a lot of ways, it felt like I had to rewire my brain completely.
There were so many times when I wanted to quit. But I knew that if I did that, I would be used as a bad example. Little girls might be told that if they tried to pursue their dreams, they would end up a failure, just like me. Even the thought of that was unbearable, so I had no choice but to tough it out.
And I’m glad that I did, because I can see the conversation shifting. Even though there’s a long way to go, little girls aren’t told to stick to the template as rigidly. There’s room for them to dream and explore. They’re given the support that they need to be the best version of themselves. And the best part – some of them say that someday they’d like to have an adventure too, just like me!
This photo was taken during one of my trips to Spiti Valley, a remote corner of India (that’s Asia’s highest bridge in the background). I run a free children’s library there, where little girls can read stories about those who dared to dream.