“I am a fat girl who loves dancing and enjoys fashion…and you thought that could never happen?” Meet Tanvi Geetha Ravishankar who started Confessions of The Chubby Twirler when she realized that a lot of women are not secure and confident about their bodies. Growing up, Tanvi was always cheerful, happy go lucky and a fashionista who, when clothes did not fit, resorted to designing them herself. Based in Mumbai, Tanvi currently juggles several roles – a fashion blogger, freelance fashion stylist, voice over artist,

“The feeling of being independent inspires me” says 40 year Rashmi Kulkarni from Belagavi, a small town in North Karnataka. Having chosen to be a stay at home mom , Rashmi was keen to find a way to use her spare time meaningfully. After much deliberation she decided to set up two creative ventures focused on children, one called Tarang Hobby Studio and the other Kiddy Cluster. While Tarang is a creative club through which Rashmi designs innovative products (some

Meet Ranjini, a cheerful, hardworking and ambitious auto rickshaw driver in Kochi. Ranjini has been driving for the last 10 years and loves her job. She starts her day at 6 AM and finishes at around 8:30 PM. Her husband is a taxi driver. She has two children, one studying in 10th standard and the other in 6th standard. Ranjini says she took up this profession because the timing is flexible and she is her own boss. Her fellow drivers smile when they see her

“Being a teacher in several colleges for over a period of 28 years has been a wonderful privilege. I have received so much love and respect from students and colleagues that I’m simply overwhelmed. At present I’m leading a tranquil retired life. When I look back at my career as a teacher, I realize that everyday was a joyful and challenging experience. My greatest achievement I think lies in motivating average students to aspire for excellence. Even now I get

17 year old Madhoomitha Rajamanickam was thrilled to be done with her board exams! All she wanted to do was relax and enjoy her well-deserved summer vacations. Little did she know that things were going to take an exciting turn! Madhoo still remembers the day as if it were yesterday. She was taken by surprise when a friend’s mother, knowing her passion for baking, asked her if she could place an order for chocolate chip cookies. It was an offer

At 67, Nirmala Nair is an epitome of grace, poise and beauty. She is also a very well-respected interior designer in Kochi. Nirmala is accustomed to raised eye-brows and dropped jaws when she tells people that she started her career at the age of 51. “Age should not stop you from doing something you love” she says. In fact, after 16 years in this industry, she feels that it is her work that has helped keep her mentally and physically active.

At 50, Wanitha Ashok, India’s leading fitness expert and Bangalore’s Fitness Queen still gets asked how long she will continue teaching people ways to get fit! To which she patiently replies “Why should I stop when I have the strength of a 20 year old?” Wanitha is the Founder and Director of Wanitha Ashok’s Moving Body, she has a daily fitness show on a leading radio channel, writes a weekly fitness column, is a motivational speaker, has authored a book,

  “A writing course changed things for me”, says 38 year old Lakshmi Mitter, a post graduate in Economics and Management Research. Lakshmi decided to take a break from her job at an MNC to enjoy motherhood, thinking she would return someday to corporate life. But it was during that break she participated in a writing course and discovered the writer in her. Lakshmi started writing for The Deccan Herald on a myriad of topics like Economics, Finance, etc. and also contributed

Oormila Vijayakrishnan Prahlad, a self-representing artist, has lived in many places but, calls Kuwait her home. Currently in Sydney, this 40 year old lives with her husband and two kids, aged 12 and 9 years. For those of you who don’t know what a ‘self-representing artist’ is – it is someone who creates and sells their own work and they do not mass produce their creations. Oormila, who started out as a teacher, has always loved art. Even as a

“I always knew that I wanted to teach, but I was petrified.” Meet 27 year old Sheryl Puthur, who has come a long way since that feeling of uncertainty. Now, five years into the profession, she cannot imagine doing anything else! You may be curious to know how Sheryl overcame her fear. So was I. And she was happy to share her story. Sheryl comes from a family of teachers and always loved the idea of teaching. It was when