Indian Women's Association Sounds of IWA, Singapore
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IWA DHWANI 1 Indian Women’s Association Sounds of IWA, Singapore September 2018 • MCI (P) 143/05/2013 iWA DHWANICare Connect Celebrate CONTENTS 14 03 1 Letter from the President 2 IWA Committee 30 From the Editorial Team 13 Tips for a Healthy 3 Taste of Eid Vegetarian Diet 5 Being a Woman in 2018 14 Gourmet Goddesses By Aruna Shahani, Tara Dhar Hasnain, Puja Chandra 16 Summer Bazaar April 2018 Nanda, Rohini Ghosh, Azeena Badarudeen and Mita Bhatt 18 Ten Tips to deal with rising cost of living 10 By Vidya Dasgupta 20 IWA Club Activities 7 Changing Portrayal of Women in Bollywood 30 Trip to Hanoi by Travel Club by Hetal Shah By Sukanya Pushkarna 8 A Story of Jewellery By Rashantha Therese Devanesan ERRATA 9 Travel Tips The name of Raji Viswanathan By Neena Mittal as Summer Bazaar Advisor was inadvertently missed from the Committee Members list in the April issue of Dhwani. 08 10 IWA Connect The omission is sincerely regretted. IWA DHWANI 1 LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT Dear Members, am humbled, honored and privileged to assume the self-worth and materialism; from learning tips on how role of President of the Indian Women’s Association, to ace an interview and marketing in the digital world, to Singapore. I’d like to thank outgoing President learning to cook Thai recipes from a celebrity chef; from Garima Lalwani, for her outstanding contributions discussing books, movies and writing styles of authors, I to playing games of mahjong, scrabble and bridge; from to IWA during her presidency, and the members of the Executive Committee. I am inspired by their a kids’ outing to the future world exhibition, to learning commitment and all their achievements. Indeed, the the art of paper quilling - it has been wonderful seeing growth of IWA has been propelled collectively by all my colleagues bring meaningful content through past presidents, committee and all the members of vibrant and diverse activities to engage our members. IWA. I look forward to continuing this important work towards fulfilling the vision and objectives of the We are committed to remaining relevant to not only association. our members but also to the community at large. In this endeavor, I am joined by my colleagues on The festive season is upon us and so is our IWA Festive the Executive Committee – Anuradha Shroff (Vice Bazaar 2018, the happiest bazaar in town. Amidst the President 1), Gowri Aiyar (Vice President 2), Rajashree festive joy, we invite all vendors, shoppers and members Viswanathan (Treasurer), Selme Singh (Secretary) and of the public to join us in our “less plastic is fantastic” Tejali Sarangdhar (Assistant Secretary) campaign. With more than 80 vendors bringing in their best products from India, Philippines, Hong Kong and It has been a very exciting time since we resumed in Italy, it’s time to shop for the best deals of the year! We July after the summer break. look forward to seeing you on the 11th of September. From learning fitness format of belly dance, to In the spirit of volunteerism and sisterhood, volunteering and celebrating with SWAMI Home, TWC2 and HOME; from singing and dancing welcoming the Chandan Lehal monsoons, to meaningful and insightful discussions on ON THE COVER: Woman A woman has always put herself last while playing different Kavita is a Digital Marketer by roles and adding meaning to the lives of those around her… training and is passionate about but not anymore! Today’s woman may be traditional in looks creativity through design. She likes to write short stories and create but is unconventional in her outlook - strong inside and out. graphics for visual storytelling. 2 IWA DHWANI IWA Committee 2018 From the EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE Social Media Bhargavi Rathi President [email protected] Chandan Lehal Editorial Team [email protected] Website Jyoti Verma Vice-President1 [email protected] Anuradha Shroff Being a Woman in 2018 [email protected] COMMUNITY SERVICE Vice-President2 Beyond Social Services Writing about being a woman in 2018 is like arguing Gowri Aiyar Bhanu Ramchandran from both sides of a debate! On one hand, we have [email protected] [email protected] strong women who have shattered glass ceilings on Secretary Migrant Workers’ Relief Team many fronts while on the other, there are those who are th Selme Singh H.O.M.E & TWC 2 still shackled by obsolete 18 century ideas. For every [email protected] Neeta Kapoor woman who has the freedom to choose for herself – a Ruchita Chheda career, a partner, motherhood – there are many others Assistant Secretary [email protected] Tejali Sarangdhar who are following the path earmarked for them by [email protected] SWAMI Home society. Raji Viswanathan Treasurer Bhavani Banerjee Raji Viswanathan [email protected] In this issue we have poems and articles sent in by our [email protected] members talking about the lives of women today – CLUBS where we are strong and where we still need to work on SPECIAL TASK COMMITTEES AND ourselves. OFFICES Acts of Kindness Club Ritu Kapoor IPP [email protected] Here’s to strong women – ‘May we know them. May we Garima Lalwani be them. May we raise them.’ - Anonymous [email protected] Adda Club Nirupa Vasudev Advisory [email protected] Preeti Dubey Sukanya Pushkarna Book Club Neeta Mirchandani Lakshmi Padmanabhan [email protected] [email protected] WORKING COMMITTEE Children‘s Club Praveena Jain Bazaar Chair [email protected] Priyanka Chandhok [email protected] Creative Hands Club Monica Dovedy Bazaar Co-Chair [email protected] Sudeepta Dasgupta [email protected] Dance Club Arpana Sarkar Bazaar Advisory [email protected] Gowri Aiyar Raji Viswanathan Entrepreneur Club Vidya Dasgupta Dhwani [email protected] Alka Joglekar [email protected] Fitness Club Padmaja Balaji Events Chair [email protected] Neeta Mirchandani [email protected] Games Club Manju Banka Membership [email protected] Gauri Savadi Abhinika Mittra Gourmet Goddess Club [email protected] Gurpreet Kaur [email protected] MEDIA TEAM Movie Club Media Director Selme Singh Kavita Daga [email protected] [email protected] Music Club Media Sales Madhu Suri Seema Gupta [email protected] [email protected] Travel Club Membership Privileges Sukanya Pushkarna Vidya Dasgupta [email protected] [email protected] Writing Enthusiasts’ Club Newsletter Shilpa Dikshit Thapliyal Sudeepta Dasgupta [email protected] [email protected] IWA DHWANI 3 From the Taste of Eid Editorial Team IWA participated in ‘Taste of Eid’ organised by Siglap South CC IAEC. The unique event brought together 300 guests - wheelchair bound seniors from Shree Narayan Mission, migrant Bangladeshi workers and residents of Joo Chiat. The Chief Guest was Mr. Edwin Tong, Senior Minister for Law and Health. 4 IWA DHWANI Today’s Woman By Aruna Shahani Literate or illiterate, Her silky soul Smartness and self- esteem to hold reins of her fate is tough now. are her substance. she is gaining Without a reason She is keen to grow, develop a new awakening...... she will not bow. with patience and persistence. Along with love Tears are not meant for her She looks for her freedom she commands respect. she likes to only smile. by growing her own wings. Her tender self To the world she wishes to prove She wants to shape her future, she is learning to protect. she is special, not fragile. in her own way do her things. Once considered weak Fond of defying wrinkles, Are you trying to extinguish she’s striving to be strong. she also defies that burning flame within her? She writes lyrics of her destiny, many other things Sorry, you’ve got wants to sing her song. that she doesn’t like. a wrong number. Please do not dial again; She loves to sail Now, her battles, this line is busy forever. in waters she doesn’t fight alone. that for her, so far Aware, wide eyed, Dr. Aruna Shahani were unchartered. holding hands of her herd A Medical Microbiologist she achieves her cherished goals. by profession. Now Her grace matched retired for the past few years to chase her with her strength, Adventurous, she loves passions - painting, neck and neck, to face new challenges. writing, reading, traveling. A trained Yoga she walks along with men. At one time, with ease, therapist from a Yoga University, she came to many tasks she manages. Singapore 9 years ago with her husband who is also a doctor. What Does Inequality Look Like? By Tara Dhar Hasnain You ask, It’s the man scouring Obviously shocked, Challenging me, through dustbins You reply: “Show me what inequality Pulling out empty cans to sell “Can this be happening looks like”. To the scrap dealer In my caring, compassionate Ok, let me try. For a few extra pennies. country?” It’s the poor schoolboy It’s the old woman Judge for yourself, Whose mother can pack Bent with age and stiffness, But open your eyes wide him no food, Carrying the leftover trays To really notice Pretending he isn’t hungry, Of tai tais out for a leisurely the almost invisible ones. As he watches his lunch. schoolmates eat. It’s the tired man soldiering on, Tara has worked as a university teacher most It’s the little girl Putting on a brave smile, of her adult life, including Whose father can’t buy Pretending he’s okay, as permanent faculty at her text books, While pawning every precious Delhi University for many years, and at SMU as Leave alone ballet classes thing. adjunct faculty. She loves or tuition, books, and is currently an editor with a renowned While her classmates Most of all, publishing house. go on foreign trips. It’s the daily hurts, The deprivations, the insults, Implying the poor are lazy, good- for-nothings.