Natasha is a badass boss and she is totally okay with it. She knows her goals, follows her ambitions and has a dream. Are you okay with that? Are most okay with a woman on a mission at work? If she is chasing her aims and it rubs others the wrong way - does it make her mean? Or are people simply being judgmental? Why are women always been asked to be 'nice' to people? Why does she have to be likeable? When was it the last time men getting told they have to nice and lead with likability? It's mostly about aggression. If they must stay in the game.
We are having this animated discussion one fine morning between author Yashodhara Lal and SheThePeople.TV founder Shaili Chopra organised by Gurgaon Moms. Yashodhara's newest book 'When Love Finds You' (2016) was in focus questioning norms at work via a piece of fiction. A fitness freak, yoga student, Zumba instructor, mother of three and corporate professional working a full-time job, Yashodhara dons many hats and this is her fifth book.
The conversation started off with the two authors talking about the workplace bias women face each day. Shaili talking about the media industry said,"In media, we have been lucky to have less and less obvious bias, but the fact that there is bias is pretty inherent. There are a couple of television organisations that seem to have women lead from the front. But in print, especially regional print, even to an extent radio, you will find a lot of women as the face but the people at the back are still men. The one who are controlling power and the ones who decide who gets the on-air time, are still men."
Talking about having it all, the author and mother of three said that it was about the choices one makes. She went on explain the gathering about her take on having it all. She said, "...I think who I am as a person is this all-rounder. As long as I recognise that and I am happy not achieving great fame, great success, and great riches, I should be happy."
Reading out her favourite paragraph from the book, Yashodhara Lal talked about the book as a reflection of her real life situations and experiences in the corporate world. Lal, answering questions about juggling full-time work and writing, confessed that she is yet to do that. The launch wrapped up with Lal promising the gathering to start writing another book this December.
The book launch saw around 30 mothers and a father, actively joining the conversation. Neela Kaushik, founder of Gurgaon Moms club, is pleased about that the number which she says, has constantly been growing with each meet they organise.
Yashodhara's book revolves around Natasha who is known to be the 'badass' boss. Inspite of getting the work done, a male colleague is preferred over her and she doesn't get her long-due promotion. With a lot happening in her life, she meets Nikhil, a single father, who makes workplace a little more tolerable for Natasha. "Natasha is suddenly beginning to find that everything she's ignored in the pursuit of success is now coming back to haunt her", reads the book cover.
Will you be there to know more about Natasha - the badass protagonist of "When Love Finds You" by @yashodharalal. https://t.co/rQj1xLCyPU pic.twitter.com/pk4RRWwkzE
— GurgaonMoms (@GurgaonMoms) November 16, 2016
We're live at @yashodharalal's book launch with @shailichopra and @GurgaonMoms pic.twitter.com/M7WY2yfLTl
— SheThePeople (@SheThePeople) November 18, 2016