“Growing up a girl in the age of Social media has birthed problems one often doesn’t expect. With perception being the reality of today, there’s a deep influx of insecurities and false longing over people’s onscreen lives. And even understanding this very truth comes post years of introspection and sufficient damage.

Now in my scenario particularly, having been raised by a rather orthodox family, my perspective of life and people was very limited. Right from a sense of dressing to my undergraduation, I did what was expected of me. In fact, It wasn’t until my last days in college and a series of bold decisions, that I finally decided to follow my heart and get into a job in communications as I’d always wanted. And today, I’m so glad I took that step, because more than the job itself, the experience of being in a completely new city like Delhi has helped me evolve leaps and bounds!

There, living with peers my age, whilst striking a balance between the spends and savings, was just the first of many learnings. The harsher lessons came in the form of fat-shaming and constant mockery over how I dressed, even amongst close circles. And such actions often implant self-doubt, even in the most confident people. I was no different and was immediately taken aback by the people’s response to something as natural as the human body. The most shocking part however had to be receiving such comments even amongst educated crowds that called themselves advocates of body positivity.

Slowly, the judgment did get the better of me and I used to burst into tears, angry over how unfair things were. Moreover, as a person wanting to get into hardcore media, I saw myself getting rejected for being chubby, despite acing all my interviews. The only good thing it led to was my gradual transformation into an evolved individual, free of judgment. My life experiences, today, have made me into the best possible version of myself- much more confident and self-assured.

Currently I’m an RJ working for a popular channel and living my dream, but what I honestly strive for is to use my platforms to voice body positivity and acceptance for anyone going through a similar situation. After all, beauty is just skin deep, and it becomes our collective responsibility to focus on the things that genuinely matter!”

#RJ #nevergiveup #lifeisbeautiful #life #strength #courage #overcomingobstacles #lifelessons #triumph #againstallodds #motivation #riseup #lifejourney #motivation #Madras #HumansofMadras