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BREAKING STEREOTYPES, PURSUING UNCONVENTIONAL CAREERS
DigiLit JMC conducted a live with Prachi Tehlan - actress, sportsperson, entrepreneur and Alumni of JMC on “breaking stereotypes and pursuing unconventional careers”. She credits a part of her success to her teachers and swears that being part of a girls’ college mace her stand out in the crowd.
She found women to be extremely supportive of each other in contrast to common stereotypes. She admits that negative comments still makes her question herself at times and forces her to toughen up and deals with it by ignoring those comments. She commended the efforts of DigiLit JMC in educating the public on the adverse impacts of social media and its effects on mental health. She shared her experiences and challenges in dealing with judgement and how its different from her male counterparts. She acknowledges that women receive more backlash and harassment on social media so her advice to the younger generation is to be more careful and less personal on social media platforms.
BODY POSITIVITY & SELF LOVE
DigiLit JMC went IG live with Sanchali Chakravorthy , India’s youngest plus-size Model, on 9th March 2021, to discuss “self-love and acceptance” and she shared her experience as a plus-size model in the Indian modelling industry. She talked about how Indian society try to suppress women to fit into a particular beauty standard and body image. They are teased and bullied, which greatly affect their self esteem. She reiterated that there is no one ideal body shape and everyone is beautiful just the way they are.
Sanchali shared that she had been interested in modelling from a young age and said that the plus size beauty industry is more accepting than the mainstream modelling industry. She has faced abusive trolls online and is very keen on shielding herself from negativity. Her final message to teenagers was to not get influenced by the unrealistic beauty standards put forward by social media and to carry oneself confidently and not let others determine the way we view our body.
Women Change-makers: Making The Online Space Safe
To commemorate Women’s Day, DigiLit put together a reel that brings attention towards women who have tried to make the online space safe for women. It features Jaya Baloo, team member at Avast and an expert in topics including lawful interception, mass surveillance and cryptocurrency, Hue Harguindeguy, the Co-CEO and Chief Financial Officer at Guardian Analytics, Sri Subramanian, Senior Director of Product Management at Netskope, Nighat Dad, a Pakistani lawyer and Internet Activist who runs the not-for-profit organization Digital Rights Foundation, Christina Ayiotis, Co-Chair of the Georgetown Cybersecurity law Institute and an internationally recognized cyber attorney, Joyce Brocaglia, founder of the Executive Woman’s Forum and CEO of Alta Associates.