I MISS THE FIRE IN MY BELLY

“I am not a woman prime minister. I am a prime minister”. Indira Gandhi

There is a saying that “if you cannot find it on google, it does not exist”. Now you check your search engine for “Asian women leaders quotes” and if you get one headline result, get back to me please! With this pretext, I researched on women’s leadership in Asia and I must say I am so disappointed at the moment, more so when I look at the situation in my own country!

More women have reached the pinnacle of power in Asia in recent years than in any other part of the world. If you look at the record, Sirimao Bandaranaike of Sri Lanka became the world’s first female elected head of state in 1960, has been followed by female leaders in India, Pakistan, Indonesia, Bangladesh, Thailand, Myanmar and the Philippines. The other side of this record is that almost every one of them has actually risen to power through a family connection. They are all the daughters, wives, or widows of former government heads or leading oppositionists. But, what’s wrong with this?

Female leaders and family connections

The rise of female leaders does not seem to reflect any change in the patriarchal nature of Asian societies. It has only helped to demonstrate the power of a name and the persistence of political dynasties. Megawati Sukarnoputri, the daughter of the founder of Indonesia, Sukarno, during a mass campaign once asked, “So what’s wrong with being a housewife?” The number of women leaders who have attained top political positions in their own merit is so low. It also reflects on the rarity of policies in Asian countries that favour the equality of women and that liberate women from traditional roles in households.

Not to blame the system but we also need to see the character of our politics, which has come to political maturity following the examples of dynasties. Where is the figure who will change the way we do politics? Will we get more Modi in our politics who paved in way for seven prominent women leaders in India’s high cabinet ranks? Twenty five percent women in Indian Cabinet is perhaps the first in the history of Indian Government. Notably except for one minister, all six women made to top political power on their own caliber, without having to depend on family connections!

The other day I was so proud see Sushma Swaraj, India’s External Affairs minister in Nepal, who stood out amongst male politicians, wearing a smile and emanating the woman power alongside the state power she was entrusted with. I did not see a single woman leader on Nepal side at any occasion!

Token women leaders
I know that most of us are in business to help and empower other women and to make a difference. But I believe that now it’s time for us to step into our power and make the changes we want to see in the political arena. We should stop pledging our refuge in the cosy and secured space of party politics - the space which is controlled by male politicians who love to maintain women’s “tokenism”! 

It also looks as if we will need to skip a generation before someone arrives with the guts to carry out the necessary revolution. We may not yet have even heard the name of the next great women leaders in this political arena of Nepal. But I am hopeful, some women will surely emerge from the large untapped reservoir of empowered women. And, to state the least, I feel some fire in my belly! Shall we challenge our heroes and go out looking for our she-roes now?

Follow me on twitter @sobst

WEARING AN ATTITUDE OF GLAMOUR

Glamour is an attitude; it’s the expression of a certain kind of confidence
It’s about possessing an air of mystery and excitement

For me glamour is a sense of understanding, a freedom to emanate your charm and elegance; I consider it beyond the notion of luxury and high fashion of Bollywood or Hollywood – it is not merely an aesthetic signal! It is a form of communication to incite respect for and around your aura and to challenge the boundary that our culture and society often dictates on freedom of expression. It is therefore a form of non-verbal rhetoric that persuades others to notice you not through words but through images, concepts and totems.

Most times you deliberately craft glamour by ignoring your discordant elements while heightening appealing characteristics. In that sense, glamour is just about the right coupling of your performance and the perception of others. By binding such performance and perception, glamour gives us pleasure, even may heighten one’s yearning. However, there’s a fine line to it – the moment you de-couple performance and perception, you either create ‘vulgarity’ or ‘luxury fashion’.  

Glamour is a SPELL and a GRAMMAR

Glamour could be in your lipstick; a sari or gown draped around your body; a thin strand of hair that a gust of air moves in & out of your face; an artful pause when you speak; or, a romance and distance between you and your audience! You do have to get it right in order to be seen as glamorous as opposed to pretty, polished, vulgar or chic. You don’t stumble into glamour; you create it, even if you don’t realize that’s what you are doing! That’s why it’s important to learn and understand the art of glamour.

- drinking champaign in the night is glamorous but the hangover next day is not;

- high heels are glamorous but the bleeding and blistering feet are not;

- walking on red carpet is glamorous but displaying nudity is not;

- speaking your mind is glamorous but uttering stupidity is not;

 

But, if you indulge too much on consciously creating a glamourous you, you might just end up working on your illusions better and instead deceit yourself with false glitters of glamour. And, that is what will become the ‘dark side of glamour’. You will increasingly try to communicate to others who you are not – in a bid to grab people’s attention towards you. It is then when you tend to move away from your own reality, your own freedom; and, that is dangerous for your persona and for your confidence!