Story Makers

Save the Earth – Get a cup

I started using sanitary napkins since I reached puberty at the age of 13 and it was an utter annoyance for me. The constant chafing, foul odor and fear of staining while doing most regular task had gotten into me. I have always had a normal menstrual cycle but despite the protection offered by overnight pads I would still cover the mattress with a layer of an old sheet/old towel with the fear of leaking and waking up to stained sheets. But for a long time this was part of my life

Like a halo, an internal voice always used to run in my head throwing up questions on how, where and when does the garbage created by humans degrade? Do they ever degrade or we have taken Mother Earth for granted by mistakenly confusing all human inventions as a gift to the universe. To make peace with my inner voice, I always tend to look for options to reduce waste towards nature’s gift be it water, food, paper, plastic or any other thing. And again an alternative that is environment friendly was always an icing on the top of a cake.

I began my quest for this transformation when my maternal instinct during pregnancy grew stronger. I understood the responsibilities of a bond that umbilical cord shared, but alas I had forgotten the bond with our mother planet that provides the same care, though not visible but omnipresent with the air that we breathe.

I was elevated the day my child was born, and I gifted him cloth diapers in place of disposable diapers and began my journey of self-transformation. However I admit that I was too late to do my part for the mother Earth. I started the use of menstrual cup for myself in place of sanitary napkin/tampon at the age of 30. Primary reason was not to abstain from it, but there was lack of awareness on my side. With increasing penetration of social media, I came across this product and it changed my life for good.

This magical cup brought immense change in my life & gave an internal happiness and satisfaction. Going for a holiday- trekking, road trips or camping, menstrual cups are the best feminine hygiene product of choice. No worries about buying or disposing the tampons/sanitary pads. It is a leak free alternative and good for overnight protection, once you get the hang of inserting it, there’s no need to wear a backup pad or liner. In fact, I don’t even feel the cup when it’s in place. Besides being ecofriendly it is absolutely safe, hygienic, comfortable and affordable

Just imagine, I need to just empty the cup after 4-6 hours, wash it properly and use again. No wastage, no disposing of vestigial human waste in landfills, nothing. Just a simple cup that made a huge difference. For one, it seems insignificant, but when multiplied it by the no. of menstruating female population * 5 days* 12 times a year, will throw up a magical no. that will be added to landfill. Besides they are cost effective and longevity of such products is up to 10 years.

I started using menstrual cup from 2017. In 2018, with the launch of movie Pad Man starring Akshay Kumar, people started discussing about Menstrual Hygiene. Ironically, like in the movie, Akshay Kumar was explaining benefits of using sanitary napkin over unhygienic cloth; I land up explaining benefits of menstrual cup over sanitary Napkin/tampon.

None the less, I had my own shares of ups and downs, when I started discussing my new exploration to my close friends, colleagues. It was difficult to make people believe that this invention is safe, hygienic, and comfortable. People heard about it but never believed me unless one took it up as a challenge for themselves. Some sexagenarian ladies who had left this menstruating phase of their life, appreciated my efforts and motivated me, however when it came to recommending them for their daughters put a distress on their own face. But these distresses only transformed into wonderful smiles when they took a first step towards trying it.

As days passed by, my belief grew stronger and stronger and I started sharing it with more people who were ready to give a thought about this. I feel there is a basic awareness which is missing that needs to be percolated among the society.

To start with, I just ask my readers who have taken some time out to ready my story, to search on Google/Youtube about the disposal methods for sanitary pads and diapers. I am confident that if you love greens, rains, smell of mud, food, it would leave you in splits as to how these sophisticated and comfy pads/tampons damages our mother nature and it takes decades to heal.

I felt the similar pain that helped me take up this journey of making a small change and I am happy to see other such women & men joining in their duty towards Mother Earth. Use and throw options are always lucrative but for sure we have this only one beautiful planet in the whole Milky Way and it’s our duty to restore its glory and beauty. And to add, we are just travelers on this wonderful journey of life, and need to leave back a wonderful memory and planet for our kids and future generations. As the saying goes ‘Sankalp se Shrishti ka nirman’, the menstrual cup is one of our Sankalp to restore the beauty of our Shrishti.

Story by Maitree Pandya

Edited by Raavya Sarda

Real life story of how awful people can get: #Stop Cyberbullying

On 10^th August 2020; I was doing my regular office work from home and suddenly in the evening my phone flashed with many follow request on Instagram. I started receiving obscene messages from all sorts of numbers- Are you up for one night stand? Let’s hook up tonight. The numbers were increasing within seconds. Through those messages I got to know someone had created a fake profile on Tinder by my name and gave away my number calling me a sex worker!

Just next to my name was written that I am available for hookups and wild sex.

I froze! The post was lurid…the worst.

I was drifting, unsure. What was happening? Neither did I know what to do except that this had gone too far and my parents deserved to know about it. How do you think parents feel when something like this happens to their children? My parents were shocked when they saw the fake profile and read those vulgar messages. This was their daughter, they had never seen or heard anything scandalous than this! My father is a heart patient and my mom was out of a surgery just few days before the incident but they ignored their health and were completely supportive, gave me strength to keep going when I was feeling like giving up!

Furious and frightened, I couldn’t sleep at night. Every time the phone flashed my mind was racing with questions – Are my friends or relatives seeing this profile? Have they already? What will they say? What if my pictures get morphed? I just wanted to run away and escape the torture, the mental harassment. So I deactivated and deleted all my social media profiles from Facebook and Instagram. I did not report the harassment the same night because I had no idea how to. But I was determined to find out who was making my life miserable so next day I filed a complaint at the Cyber Crime Branch Mumbai. It was a pain staking process. Cybercrime officials cannot directly look into Tinder for the information, they must send url’s to Tinder seeking Ip address details of the account and then wait for the company to respond. I did not suspect anyone to be behind the crime. After coming to know about it I took screenshots of fake profile and also Url of profile and gave it to the police while lodging the case. Tinder did eventually respond that the account was deleted and once the account gets deleted no application can keep information, track down or locate who created the account. The police showed me emails and confirmations from Tinder. But we didn’t get to know who the culprit was and the case got closed.

If that fake profile had been active, we would have been able to catch the imposter. Had I been known about the online portal (National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal) where cybercrime can be reported? I would have filed the complaint immediately the same night. But as I was not aware of it, the imposter deleted the fake profile and we couldn’t catch him.

Sometimes I felt that I had a magic wand, I would solve this. There is no closure to my story. I need answers for everything- why would someone create my image as a prostitute? Why was I targeted? I will never forgive the person for the damages done. But, the question remained: Who is this person?

My mom says you shouldn’t stop your regular life and not be scared of anyone but I won’t be coming to social media as I don’t trust anyone now. It was easier for me to get over the incident because of my parents support. There is no one technology that will keep you safe so be aware of people you are with, It could be anyone friend, relative or a co-worker. But to overcome it, be courageous to file a complaint. If a person sends you threatening, abusive or offensive messages via Facebook, Twitter or any other social networking site, they could be committing an offence. Do not get scared. There is no room for panic!

The easiest way to get back at someone is online “You don’t have to face the other person. So you can say or do things you wouldn’t in real life. You can knock someone down in front of hundreds of people who are on the site. It’s worst. It is important that you know this. Creating a fake Facebook/Instagram/ Tinder profile in India is a child’s play.”

Be careful out there!

(For Security reasons name and image of the victim is hidden)

(Written by Raavya Sarda)

Your private content is your own. Storymakers wants you to know that it’s wrong for someone to share or threaten to share your intimate images, videos or messages without your consent.

If this is happening, it isn’t your fault, and you can take steps to protect yourself.

File a complaint at the National Cyber Crime Reporting Portal: The website has thorough explanations about the legal provisions, the documents that need to be submitted, collecting screenshots and other evidence.
You’re not alone: People who experience these kinds of situations can sometimes feel scared or desperate or can experience depression. If you’re struggling and thinking about hurting yourself, get support. Please don’t wait.
Tell someone you trust: Message or call a friend or adult you trust, such as a relative, teacher, school counselor or family friend. They can help you protect yourself.

Mrs Moonbow: Niyati Agarwal a modern mom shares why she switched to cloth diapers.

Motherhood changed my perspective towards the environment and surprisingly made me switch my career.

I am Niyati. A fashion designer by degree, now a cloth diapering consultant, freelancer and mommy blogger.

Love knocked pretty early on my door and I got married at the age of 23. After 3.5 years of marriage, I was blessed with a daughter.As a mother, I wanted to give the best to my baby. And I always thought premium quality disposable diapers were unsurpassed.

But suddenly I realized having a baby and nurturing her is expensive! And my major expense was disposable diapers; 3-4 diapers a day were burning my pocket and heart.

I realized how disposable diapers were harming the environment by adding to the landfills. As a mom I worry about the shape the environment will be when my daughter gets older, there can be many other reasons motivating you to switch towards cloth diapers.

Our mothers used traditional triangular cloth nappies ( langots), but changing them after every pee is tiresome especially during naps, outings and sleep, so it was impossible for me to use langots.

This is when I started doing research about the modern age cloth diapers.I had heard about them, but wasn’t sure if they would function just like disposables. A whole new world of environment and skin friendly cloth diapering opened up for me and using them for my daughter was the best decision I took in my motherhood journey.

Took a leap of faith, and ordered SuperBottoms for her.

Initially found it tough to get the right fit. But as I got the hang of it, I started building my stash; they function just like disposable diapers but are reusable with much absorbency.

During this time my family opposed cloth diapers stating they are bulky and would restrict baby’s movements, they add to the work of washing, and won’t last long.But I was adamant and continued using them. Slowly gained the confidence to take her on walks for an hour or two in cloth diapers. I tried the UNO diaper for night and voila! It lasted 10+ plus hours! Finally after Aavya turned 5 months old, I started using cloth diapers exclusively. Now even during travels I am comfortable with them.

If you ask me why cloth diapers?

Chemical free and made of organic cotton; cloth diapers are made from natural fabrics hence do not contain plastic or any other material which are harmful for babies skin. Disposable ones use chemicals to increase absorbency. These chemicals can be harsh on babys sensitive skin and so parents are required to use thick layer of diaper cream to prevent rashes.

Economical and cost saving; one diaper lasts 3 years! Even more if reused for siblings. It may sound weird but same cloth diaper is perfectly safe to be used on multiple children. You may find it expensive to buy Rs 900 diaper but if you calculate, spending Rs 900 every month was definitely expensive than buying 6-8 Rs 900 diapers which could be reused over and over in long run.

Environment friendly as the poop goes into the toilet (where it should go) and not end up in dustbins and rot in the environment for 300 years like disposable diapers.

Suitable for all climatic conditions especially hot/humid Indian weather

Such cute prints, you can’t resist. Yup, a cloth diapering mommy is obsessed with a cute bum and cute prints.

Trust me when I say this, my daughter has achieved all her milestones in cloth diapers. No, they are not bulky and they do not restrict baby’s movements.

Facing opposition from family who thought cloth diapers would hamper her growth to the same family recommending cloth diapers to others, I have come a long way!

My suggestion to all the mommies out there, just give it a try once, you’ll never look back at disposables one’s ever!

After using cloth diapers for my daughter Aavya, I became more environment conscious and now I am trying to adapt a sustainable lifestyle by making bio enzyme; have started using bamboo toothbrush, cloth pads, natural grooming products which come in plastic free packaging. I carry my own bag for shopping and avoid buying plastic even in toys as much as I can. I collect plastic that comes in my house and give it to a local organization that makes floor tiles out of it. Still a long way to go, but at least my journey towards saving environment has started.

Currently, I am working for the best cloth diaper brand (Superbottoms) In India as a cloth diapering consultant and doing my bit towards the environment and run my blog (Mrs Moonbow) where I share everything from food to fashion, life lessons and DIY activities with my daughter.

Motherhood has given me new career opportunities and made me march towards becoming an eco-warrior.

And am I complaining now? Definitely not!

Edited by Raavya Sarda

Happily Divorced, ” I am better Now” – Raahat Shaikh on separation and getting judged in our society.

Don’t let anything affect your mental peace…Raahat Shaikh breaking the stigma around divorce and living life on her own terms @storymakersonline

Video edits – Dhriti Mall

Interviewed by Raavya Sarda

Atul Kishan Sharma – The Young Business Tycoon And Social Media Sensation.

At the age of 22, Atul Kishan Sharma (Young Indian Entrepreneur) is the founder and CEO of Kishan Events, Chief of Rashi Cables and a social media sensation.

Atul who hails from Delhi/NCR started his entrepreneurial journey when he was 17 years old doing his diploma and launched his first company Kishan Events in the year 2015, which is currently one of the leading artist and event organizing company of Haryana. Chief of Rashi Cables and a social media sensation. “The idea of for Kishan Events struck me when I was attending a college festival. I was creative and overall confident about my interest so I started organizing events locally by connecting and networking like-minded artist in at one place,” shares Atul with Storymakers.

At the age where most boys attitude towards life is erratic and unplanned our young tycoon on the flipside was more determined and focused. When kids of his age were busy playing video games Atul Sharma launched some of most loved and renowned artists of present like Akki Kalyan, Sumit Goswami, Shiva Pandit, YC Gujjar, all these artist are rocking in music industry and many of the mainstream Punjabi artist like Karan Shembi, Parmish Verma. Other than conventional entertainment industry Atul has worked a lot with popular YouTubers such as Half Engineer, Jatin Sharma, Pradeep Khera.

The young magnate has been just around few years but he has managed to grow his business significantly and expand his reach to international level. He has sent many people to Thailand via Travailino creators and learnt all concepts and practices for event management with his training in fields like Office Assistance, Marketing Administration and Artist Management.

Since his college days Atul Kishan Sarma has been an exemplary networker and has worked very hard to be where he is at today. He is regarded as enthusiastic young entrepreneur in India and is popular for his interacting style. Atul started a humble beginning and now he also heads ‘Rashi Cables’ which is a well-known brand of cable manufacturing industry. He is an active social media influencer having more than 115k followers on Instagram and strongly believes that there is no shortcut to success.

Atul shares words of encouragement for newbies-

“One should find the passion, work hard and always be open to ideas, if you have right spirit, sky is the limit.”

(Written by Raavya Sarda)

Meet Indian Folk Sensation | Aanchal Shrivastava; The singer with a powerful voice.

Aanchal Shrivastava an euphonious singer, songwriter and composer is talk of the town who recently sung the song Din Shagna Da for Amazon prime series Four more shots, please. The folk sensation hails from Gwalior Madhya Pradesh and started learning music at the age of two. She was introduced to music by her parents who love music and folk has always been part of her life. “My father had a transferrable job and so he would be posted in several places including Maharashtra, Gwalior, Himachal Pradesh, and Chandigarh so I practically grew up listening to folk and learnt classical vocal wherever we stayed. I have vivid memories of singing hymns around the house and I still remember testing my mother’s patience by belting at the top of my lungs” chuckles Aanchal.

Shrivastava’s Journey is just as fascinating as her driving music career. A lot changed during her growing up days and the change was her voice, the singer who had a very sweet voice as a kid grew up to have husky voice and started facing criticism and crushing comments like ‘fati hui awaz’ ‘khar khar awaz’ from her friends. In 2014 the singer moved to Mumbai from Delhi where she worked as a RJ for ‘My FM’ and also woked for a PR firm. “This is when I was introduced to other forms of folk music and people started appreciating my voice. However PR agency – ‘Value’ would push and promote me towards my passion. As music had been part of my life and I worked up the courage to take a chance on my talent. I began participating in reality shows like India Idol, Fame X but nothing worked positively. This is when my younger brother who is a social media marketer helped me define my voice and platforms and also put things together. If it wasn’t for him, I would have given up much earlier. I would share my voice samples to almost every possible composer in the industry and meet everyone who would revert positively,” recalls Aanchal.

The singer bagged ‘Love Games’ title track her first assignment with music composers Sangeet and Siddharth Haldipur making her dream come true.

In 2018 she gave up her successful corporate career and followed one in music. Even though she is relatively new to the field, she has had astonishing success. In short span of time Aanchal has her own band ‘Yatra with Aanchal’ and has started her own music label ‘TAA’ with an emphasis on bringing new artists in the industry and more content in the ‘Earthy’ style and genre. “We do not care if the artist has zero activity on social media, all that matters are talent. Everything else is secondary,” says the folk singer.

Watch and listen to her hits like ‘ Chamba Kitni Duur ’ a Poignant unplugged version with a fresh feel.

Beautiful Himachali song by music label TAA

Despite all odds Aanchal Shrivastava has made monumental mark for herself. Her affinity for folk music got her an opportunity to work with coke studio with Pakistan artists for the song ‘Laut aao na’. She tries to sing not just Indian folk music but music across the globe. Her powerful husky voice rips to pieces the ideas that linked music to only one kind of melody.

Aanchal’s enthusiasm to work in different realms of music is never ending. She doesn’t get the concept of taking break from work. “Lost time is never found again so make most of it. And if you truly love what you do, you wouldn’t think of taking a break. My wish is to be able to perform continuously with no stopping” she smiles.

What makes Aanchal Shrivastava distinct is the fact that she can sing as great as a pure folk traditionalist and at the same time make her music accessible and enjoyable to audience who haven’t experienced folk music before. The power in her voice is unmatched that reflects our nations fabric.

Aanchal Shrivastava doesn’t live because of music but instead she lives for music.

Photo/Video credits: Aanchal Srivastava

Written by Raavya Sarda

From Ramp to Kitchen a self-made success story of Celebrity Chef Aditya Bal.

With Inspired dishes like Shaami Kabab, Keema Bhopali and Rajasthani Kabuli Celebrity Chef Aditya Bal has become renowned for his culinary skills, A self-taught Chef. Aditya’s story is an inspiring one of someone who fought against all odds to follow his passion of becoming a professional chef.

Aditya Bal grew up in Kashmir in a typical Punjabi family watching his grandmother swirl up delicious meals and bake passionately. During his university days in Delhi at the age of 19 he got his first modelling assignment and without any plan he accepted it. Soon he rubbed shoulders with the likes of Dino Morea John Abraham and Arjun Rampal on the ramp. He was later spotted on big screen starring opposite Meghna Naidu in the film Mashooka in 2005. The film was forgettable.

“I did the film because I didn’t know where I fit in, nobody takes you seriously when you are a new comer so you do what you know best, be in front of camera and go with the flow and make your own path,” recalls Bal.

When nothing was working out for him during his free time he would read through Jamie Oliver’s cookbooks. His interest was conspicuous enough and prompted him to acquire his newly passion for cooking. As fate would have it Bal went ahead with his love for cooking.

“If you really want something so bad in life, go for it” shares Aditya to Storymakers.

Soon love for cooking took over; I landed in Goa and worked in a friend’s restaurant for two years. Goa is the only place that could give me work as I had no formal training in catering. During this period I had trained at an Italian Mediterranean and Goan restaurant. I was back in Mumbai looking for a job but hotel kitchens didn’t hire me for less experience. This is when one of my friends advised me to approach NDTV GoodTimes. After 4 months of audition I received a call from the channel informing I had been selected for their upcoming show. I made debut with the show ‘Chak Le India’ in 2010, recollects Aditya.

The show features Chef Aditya Bal as host who travels various parts of the country in search of authentic flavors and tries his own variations of these traditional dishes in his kitchen. ‘Chak Le India’ was a program of its own kind on Indian television and people immediately connected to it because it was more than a tour guide a food guide series. The show gave his culinary skills a new direction and today he is the most celebrated anchor Chef’s on ‘Chak Le India’.

Watch below video of Chef Aditya Bal showcasing culinary feast in Gujrat from ‘Chak Le India’

Luscious and mouth watering dishes, right!

Bal hosted many other travel food shows for various channels like Lost Recipes on Epic channel where he is seen travelling extensively to many interior packets of the country in search of age old recipes that have been saved by a few families. There were recipes that were thousand years old and according to him Malabari Andhra and Bengali recipes stand out in India.

Chef Aditya Bal in Hampi to rediscover some bygone recepies with Rajmata Chandrakanta Devi

The Chef Says people like to experiment in process of adding new element to a dish gradually compromising with the essence of original technique as a result losing soul of the recipe so I don’t like meddling with traditional recipes. His best experience was cooking in larger kitchens of Gurudwara in Amritsar and Jaganath temple in Puri. “Though I was not allowed inside the Jaganath temple Kitchen, I was told many fascinating facts about Mahaprasad and Chappan Bhog for lord Jagganath and the cooking customs by the Suaras (cooks) of the temple. The time spent in the community kitchen in golden temple Amritsar where the food is being prepared by the sevaks and volunteers was overwhelming. The experience of cooking dal rice in the langar in Gurudwara was elevating for me.

Ask about his favorite food the chef replies with a smile, “I am a simple dal chawal and dahi person.”

Having lived in many different states in his life – Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Maharashtra, Goa- where he learnt to cook, Karnataka, Delhi and currently in Kolkata West Banal. Aditya says I hardly stayed at one place and every time I moved it made me more creative and ingenious. Making me the man I am today!

Speaking about the current Pandemic situation with restaurants being closed or operating on an adjusted basis to supply take-out meals to loyal supporters in an effort to help them keep the lights on Chef Bal has been cooking at home for his fellow neighboring residents in Kolkata using ingredients sourcing from local vendors he prepares individual meals and gives them in vacuum sealed bags including reminders about hygiene and self-care, establishing workable business practices and need of remaining flexible during these trying times.

To Aditya Bal the ability to blend various ingredients and bring them together in a beautiful way is exciting and having the potential to deliver such unique happiness to others through food provides him a level of personal satisfaction incomparable to any other quest.

Chef Aditya Bal is a self-made success story. He has learnt through experimentation and has incorporated variety of traditional food techniques by picking up some tips while travelling.

“During my culinary journey, I haven’t had a mentor neither I have worked under any famous chef. I have learned while travelling remote areas and through cookbooks.”

He is a perfect example that nothing is impossible with hard work, commitment and dedication.

( Written by Raavya Sarda)

What is it like to be a pilot during pandemic? Meet Susmita Kumar an Indian pilot who is no less than a warrior.

On 24^th March as lockdown was announced in India, Susmita Kumar; A Boeing 737 Captain for Spicejet flew from Mumbai to Patna.

The experience was stressful and uncanny, Susmita tells Storymakers. “There was chaos everywhere, Airports were Crowded with people wanting to go to their families. The plane was packed. In few minutes several questions popped in my mind, what if I get infected? What if I am virus carrier way back home? I would have to be obligated to go on quarantine on return. But I knew it’s my duty to fly and there is no way I could refuse for this opportunity to serve my nation. You have to behave like a soldier. It is like our doctors and healthcare workers, housekeeping staff — some jobs have to be done, so you take precautions and carry on. At the same time it was a different experience. Our temperatures were checked and we were wearing enhanced protection with masks, gloves and PPE kit. We were like Ninja’s taking precautions and learning measures to deal with Coronavirus. Social distancing becomes a problem in pit as pilots sit just three feet apart, both are required to touch same buttons and switches, Radio headsets provided in aircraft are shared by both pilots, so there’s not much distance you can keep from other pilot. Once we touched Patna, we were taken to an isolation area where the ground staff wearing PPEs and carrying huge fumigation spray tools, disinfected us.

All the passengers followed strict guidelines. “We had an amazing crew, who kept safeguarding everything was alright.

Cargo Operations:

In India with passenger services suspended since March, Cargo operations have been stepped up and repatriation flights have been in operation to and from several countries. Captain Kumar have flown across and delivered more than 100 tons of essential including vegetables and medical cargo across the country under ‘Lifeline Udaan Scheme,’ which was launched by the Ministry of Civil Aviation to ensure a steady supply of essentials, even in the remote locations of the country.

Susmita during one of her Cargo flights transporting medical essentials.

Honorable Minister of State for Civil Aviaition, Hardeep S. Puri, expressed his views on the ‘Lifeline Udan’ initiative, “My deepest appreciation for the Corona Warriors operating and facilitating the ‘Lifeline Udan’ flights for transporting essential medical cargo to the remotest corners of our country. India will win the war against COVID-19, definitely and decisively.”

Flying after Lockdown:

On 25^th of May as restrictions following the lockdown was lifted in India, domestic flights began its operations. I was scheduled for Bombay-Delhi-Bombay flight. The passengers were eager to return back to their families, it was an emotional moment. As soon as I landed, I could hear people clapping for me from the tower”, – that day, I truly felt the acknowledgment that I am right where I am supposed to be and doing exactly what needs to be done. A sense of achievement, something that a lot of people dream of.

The passengers and their families were greatly relieved for making the journey back home. The evacuees who included kids left heart touching ‘Thank you’ messages and notes so efforts we took felt worth it. The process to ensure their safe transport amid the COVID-19 fright involves a high degree of rigor, hard work and sacrifice for pilots, cabin crew and ground staff. Our job as pilots is better than cabin crew and check-in staff. At least we can distance ourselves, but these young staff has no choice. They face the crowd. It’s a tough job for them and they do it enormously well, says Kumar who became the youngest female flight instructor in India at the age of 19.

After a successful touchdown, Susmita Kumar with her co-pilot and cabin crew.

Her outstanding efforts were admired by several people across India for airlifting 189 Indians stranded in Muscat and bringing them back to Kannur in the middle of the novel Coronavirius pandemic. On 24^th June as the Boeing girl landed from Muscat, she received a water cannon salute at Kannur Airport, which is a traditional act of respect to honor military veterans or pilots. It’s a fairly common practice in the aviation industry and is usually performed to celebrate a landmark flight. The plane passes through the guard of honor on the runway.

Here is a video of water salute for the pilot on her flight.

It looks majestic doesn’t it?

Health Concerns:

I have been tested more than 5 to 7 times, recalls Susmita. Every single time we land, whether it’s a cargo or repatriation flight, we have a team that come on to the aircraft and screen our temperatures. If we get the green light here, we can come ashore and every person involved in that flight then has a nasal swab test. Only after that, can we go back to the company accommodation. It happens on every single flight. Now that I am back in isolation, I already have my next schedule which will take me to Varanasi, Riyadh and Dhaka. With restrictions around the world to curtail the spread of Covid-19 a lot more turnaround flights have been taking place.

But flying in the pandemic is unpredictable, and scheduling can change at any minute. We used to know our schedule before 15 days but now it’s less than 4 days and you have to be ready.

It’s not the same when layovers do happen. Gone is the desirable way of life of those working in aviation and getting to see the world through their job. Spicejet insists staff stay in their hotel rooms even if the country is open. So we are confided to our rooms with food water and watching movies.

Once back in Mumbai, I wash my hands leave my bag in the corner of my house and isolate myself. Coming back home is not the same no more welcome hugs or physical touch from mom; it’s difficult but life has to go on as we need to protect ourselves and our families too. So we have to follow the protocols as a health worker.

Flying in Pandemic:

Empty skies, empty terminals, empty planes, we do not have many air planes flying around it’s a different experience, when you are used to be surrounded by thousands of people, but the good part is less traffic, I am always before schedule.

Best Unforgettable aspect of flying during pandemic is the view up there; it’s just astonishing, reduced pollution, clear and bright skies, it’s lovely and stunning up there right now.

Family and Education:

Susmita joined aviation training in 2006 and at the age of 18, before getting her driver’s license she got her pilot’s license in year 2008. She later hinged with Bombay flying club as an instructor and also completed her command papers. Susmita is from Haryana and hails from a family that has a long history in Merchant Navy. So she has seen different places and currently settled in Mumbai since 1998. Her father Dr. Surendra Kumar is Dynamic Positioning and simulator instructor fondly known as DP Guru by his students and Mother a homemaker who has been pillar of strength and always supported in achieving her dreams. Her brother Rahul is presently working as a mariner in merchant navy.

After serving as a co-pilot with Air Costa, she is currently the Captain (aeronautics) at Spicejet and has completed 6000 hours of flying.

In these tough times our Air Warrior continues to fly passengers across the country and around the globe. She flew more than 30 aircrafts including domestic and international flights and Cargo operations in past three months amidst Pandemic.

My parents are anxious at the same time they are proud of me; I get to serve our nation says Captain Susmita Kumar.

We salute Captain Susmita Kumar, the unsung warrior, working proactively and tirelessly for saving lives of millions of Indians.

Did you like this powerful and inspirational story of Captain Susmita? Share like and give your comments below.

(Written by Raavya Sarda)

Act early if you’re concerned about your child’s development says Dr. Mihir Parekh an Indian Psychologist.

Getting to know your child can be one of the most satisfying parts of being a parent. Teaching your child new skills and learning how your child views the world and mentoring them as they route enormous new feelings and changes is all part of being a parent, but it’s not easy!

Dr. Mihir Parekh is a Psychologist and a Special educator. He has Ph.D in Psychology and is a counsellor in more than eleven schools in Mumbai. He is also the founder director of Urja Counselling and Remedial center. It’s a center for children with special needs. Dr Parekh deals with Autism, Learning disabilities, Slow learners, ADHD and other neurological and developmental delays. He started Urja Special school in 2008. The idea behind starting the school was that, education should be considered as basic need of all children, especially those detected with special needs. The main motive is to provide early intervention to children at risk; who need it most.

Founder director of Urja Counseling And Remedial Centre Dr Mihir Parekh

Child Psychologists can identify deviant behaviors in children early by detecting the root of common behavioral concerns such as hyperactivity, anxiety or learning issues and help children work through early childhood trauma. They also help to prevent, evaluate and diagnose developmental delays or abnormalities such as autism and other cognitive delays.

Everyone wants their child to have healthy development, but it’s not always clear if a child’s behavior is a symptom of normal stage in development or a mark of an abnormality. Dr. Mihir shares Child Psychologists aid you to understand the difference, accepting the normal and atypical developmental patterns of a child and help parents understand the best way to communicate and connect with their child, teach their kid coping mechanisms for managing emotions, help them progress and thrive in each new developmental stage.

According to Dr Mihir there are four main domains of child’s development.

Physical development:

Physical development in children is naturally in an expectable order of events. Your child grips his head up, rolls over, crawls, walks, and runs in this series. Any delay in the growth can be identified by your pediatrician, which serves as an important milestone to anticipate the child’s future growth. This information becomes utmost vital for the Child Psychologist to guide the parent in the direction to avail therapies if needed.

Cognitive development:

Cognitive development is the construction of thought processes and intellectual learning of a child. It includes the observation and understanding of the world around them, language learning, memory, decision-making, problem-solving, how the child uses their imagination and basic reasoning. All of these factors are influenced by a child’s genetics and environment.We now know that even newborn babies are aware of their environment and are interested in it, even before they have the language to express that. The Child Psychologist can guide the care takers to nurture the child by giving them the right exposure to enhance the brain development and also warns about the red flag if seen in the process.

Social development:

The way a child feels, understands, and expresses their feelings has a direct impact on how they interact with other people. Social development is about how the child develops the values, awareness and social skills which are necessary to relate to the people around them; their parents, peers, authority figures, and animals. A child’s early relationships can have a huge impact on their development of age-appropriate social skills. Trust, friendship, conflict management, and respect for authority are examples of social development. Peer acceptance or rejection builds the child’s attitudes towards self and Society at large.

Emotional development:

Emotional development refers to how the child feels, understands, and expresses their emotions. Emotional development is expressed in very young children through the expression of basic emotions like fear, joy, anger, and sadness. As the child develops, more complex emotions such as confidence, hope, guilt, and pride emerge. It also includes a child’s ability to feel and understand the emotions of other people through empathy. Learning to regulate and express emotions appropriately is difficult for many children. Helping children understand their emotions early can have a powerful impact on current and future emotional development.

As to why he chose to specialize in Child Psychology, Dr Parekh says; “it’s easier to counsel children than adults because they are more receptive, transparent and open to challenges and learning.”

At times it becomes very difficult to convey parents that their child has been diagnosed with Autism or Cognitive impairment or he/she is a child with special needs. Therapy is not always an easy go ahead for parents because of the stigma attached. This is when interpersonal skills and ability to win trust by establishing rapport with the client works. Through intensive counseling of parents, an optimistic approach to deal with the problem is built up; they develop positive coping methods which in turn helps the child to develop positive traits.

We focus on child centered therapy but in practice this isn’t always the most effective route. I have had far better results working with parents and children together. We adults with our jobs and high qualifications might think we know best but kids often heal themselves through their friendships. It’s a big thing to ask any kid to open up to a stranger they see once or twice a week for an hour. Children who constantly get in trouble tend to develop low self-esteem, no matter how hard they seen on the outside they get to be known as the ‘bad kid’ and they soon see themselves that way too. “The way we treat our children directly impacts, what they believe about themselves.”

Dr Parekh explains that Psychology is becoming more and more important to society because people are in danger of becoming isolated and lonely. People speak less to others face to face because they use many different media platforms to communicate. I believe in importance of human interactions so I train people in inclusive techniques such as storytelling and playground games.

Dr. Mihir Parekh during one of his oration

In an ocean of chaos my wife Pooja has been the strength and pillar of my life and she has always guided me through my best and my worst and my daughter has been a blessing; she inspires me to live life to the fullest. “My highest accomplishment, my extreme pride and joy are my children who come to me for counselling, they truly are my greatest success,” Shares our mind doctor.

few quotes and tips from Dr Mihir Parekh

Dr Mihir Parekh is a fecund writer, his books Life Tweets for parenting part one and two both share useful tips for parents to understand their kids better. And his third book ‘Why’? Which will be published in November this year is based on questions and activities on curious and tender minds. The book encourages kids to explore and engage with the world around them by asking fun, open-ended questions. Dr Parekh has given more than 500 lectures on training parent and children and has written more than 300 quotes and tips for parenting on his page. He has also started story telling sessions every weekend and life skills videos which help parents to engage their children develop day to day skills and also for parents who can’t reach the therapist because of distance and financial strain. Please follow him @Dr. Mihir quotes and tips on Facebook.

A click on the screen gives immediate answer; the same is not the case with our children. Be patient when you teach them they are thinking beings and not programmed beings – Dr Mihir Parekh.

(Interviewed and written by Raavya Sarda)

#Sharingstories- Aastha Mataliya

I was always into extracurricular activities since school days and pretty good at everything I did. Like there was no other choice but to be good was the ideology that the perfectionist in me had developed since I was a kid. But something I really loved the most was dancing. In my heart somewhere I knew I wanted to dance and perform for the entire life. That feeling of being on stage and performing gave me a different high altogether. And then the deciding year came, the 10th standard board exams, after which I had to choose what I wanted to do in life. That was a true turning point for me. My result was really good, scored 100/100 in maths and 90 in science. And that made the choice of me choosing my career even more difficult.

I had two options in mind, engineering and dancing. Both very time consuming. And knowing me, I knew if I picked any one, I wouldn’t be able to give time or justice to the other one, so had to be a choice between the two. And that’s when I chose dance over everything else!

I landed in Mumbai in year 2013, the city of dreams to complete my graduation. Although like most people who come to this city; I thought my career as a dancer performer and choreographer would just jump start in Mumbai, which certainly was my assumption. Coming from a small city in Gujarat to a metro like Mumbai gave me a big time reality check about how there were thousands of people coming to Mumbai with the same dream that I did, each of them extremely talented and full of potential and how unprepared I was to deal with all of that.

I was 17 and completely on my own. My parents had my back but they were equally new and unaware of what I was doing in this career I picked. I was clueless and didn’t know where to start.

I enrolled myself in a college for B.com and started finding a dance class for professional dance training. After checking out almost all the big dance studios and a debauched experience of even being conned by few for money, it was a roller coaster experience and finally I reached my Alma Mater SDIIPL – Shiamak Davar International India Private Limited. I started as a student of Shiamak’s half year intensive programme then got selected as a student in Shiamak’s One Year Programme; where we danced 12-14 hours a day for 6 days a week for an entire year getting trained in various dance styles like ballet, contemporary, modern, jazz, hip-hop, salsa, bachata, yoga, Shiamak style (Shiamak’s own style where he amalgamates various dance styles like kathak, contemporary, jazz and various other styles) and eventually danced professionally with his troupe for award shows and events like Radio Mirchi awards, Indian Super League Opening Ceremony, Zee Cine Awards etc. with a lot of well-known Bollywood celebrities. And with that, enrolled in a distance learning University and switched my studying field to Arts with Psychology and literature as the main subjects.

After almost 3 years of being with Shiamak, I realized how competitive the showbiz world is and how unhappy I was as my motto from just dancing which I loved changed to losing weight so as to keep in shape, dancing for my insecurities, dancing for others and dancing to constantly prove that I’m good enough to be in the business, and that realization was enough for me to take a step back and look at what I actually wanted to do. And then Psychology came to my rescue. In my years of college, I realized a deeper connect with Psychology.

In Shiamak’s, we were introduced to something called Creative Movement Therapy, where body movements where used therapeutically and that left a great impact on me. Amalgamating two things I’m passionate about – dance and psychology was something I immediately decided on doing. Being on the participant’s side and witnessing the magic of Movement therapy for myself, made me wonder the feeling of being on the facilitator’s side and being able to touch multiple lives with this beautiful science.

DMT or Dance Movement Therapy is a technique that helps the body communicate and release its innermost thoughts and emotions. By linking the breath to various somatic awareness exercises and free ranges of movement, it becomes a useful tool for exploring difficult thoughts and sensations.

So I started with my research on what all platforms offered studies in this yet to develop field in India. To my disappointment, only countries abroad had the platform to provide master’s level of degree in the field where as India only had two institutions conducting short-term course and a diploma level course in Dance/Movement Therapy. Meanwhile I decided on joining MA in Clinical Psychology and after a year, got myself selected for Diploma in Dance Movement Therapy from Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai in collaboration with Kolkata Sanved and joined the band wagon of being one of the very few certified dance movement therapy practitioner in India.

Currently I’m pursuing my Master’s in Clinical Psychology which I continued after taking a break for completing diploma in DMT, I’m a choreographer and founder of my own platform called Danspiration Dance where we conduct a lot of dance classes and workshops for various styles and DMT sessions, I’m a practicing Dance movement therapy practitioner and a certified and practicing Yoga teacher. With all that I’ve on my plate – Dance, dance movement therapy, yoga, Clinical psychology, passion and training for physical fitness, my end goal is to provide a platform to people with a holistic approach to wellness – where equal importance is given to physical, mental, emotional and spiritual health. We’re working on a module which amalgamates Movement, yoga and meditation which is something new that we intend on offering to people.

A survey by Cigna TTK Health Insurance, a health insurance firm, in 2018 revealed that 89% of Indians suffer from stress. The survey also revealed that 75% of the respondents did not feel comfortable talking to a medical professional about it. “Dance Movement Therapy is seen as an alternate space to general talk therapy. But it is a holistic practice in itself. People find dance and movement more comfortable and non-threatening medium of expression.”

“I have seen clients so frozen by fear, numbed by trauma, and crippled by anxiety because words alone aren’t enough to express the underlying pain.”

“People living with trauma often don’t have the words to express their feelings, or find that their voices have previously been undermined or taken away. The body speaks its own language and releases the suppressed voice and emotions hidden deep within their bodies and minds, and dance movement therapy has the ability to free an individual from turmoil and give a quality of life to someone who doesn’t feel deserving.”

Dance Movement Therapy has become a part of professional counselling programmes and there is this feeling of giving back to the society, being able to help to people and to destigmatize mental health and it’s problems with the use of something like Dance movement therapy, which I’ve a feeling will reach to more people eventually than the normal talk therapy because of our love for dance and movement in general as humans. Movement is the most primary thing a baby does, even before talking or walking. We have movement in us ever since we are in our mother’s womb. DMT is not just limited to people suffering from a mental trauma or problem, it is for everybody and anybody who wants to destress, vent and connect with themselves.

I hope it reaches the maximum number of people someday and people start giving importance to their mental and emotional health just as they are concerned about the physical health.

Story shared by Aastha Matalia

Edited by Raavya Sarda