In a spin-off from her own story, Asha Arondekar is
constantly on the lookout for women, who like her, have taken a detour from the
beaten path to carve their own niche.
She wants to salute, commend and encourage them. Instituting the ‘Orchid Awards for Women
Achievers of Goa’ in 2011, she has achieved a milestone in this respect. “I am
glad that people are identifying with the Orchid Awards. Throughout the year, I receive several
nominations, especially on social media,” avers Asha, co-Founder of the Orchid
Group.
Keen to acknowledge these women, most of whose efforts have
gone unrecognised, Asha’s selection criterion is ‘achievement solely through
merit’. “There are a lot of women who shine in their respective fields, but
have never received the recognition they deserve,” she maintains.
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Encouraged by her own husband and family to be the best that
she can be, Asha hopes that other women receive similar backing. “It must first
come from within, but for women, especially freshers, to come forward to prove
their mettle, they need a lot of encouragement and support. It makes all the
difference,” shares this entrepreneur who is now encouraging and empowering her
own 14-year old daughter Niharika to make the right choices and take a step in
the right direction.
“This May during her holidays, she wanted a summer job at my
Spa. But I encouraged her to look at other avenues where she could have a
different experience. She volunteered to
teach conversational English at Hamara School for six weeks for which I paid
her a stipend,” reveals Asha who reasons that as a parent she needs to
sensitise her child and make her adaptable anywhere, be it in Hamara School or
an upscale place like New York. It was
an experience that has, self-admittedly taken this student of Victorious Kidds
Educare, Pune to a different level of understanding and perception. “I was so impressed with these young children
who were so responsive, talented and intelligent. I also felt very grateful for what I have and
how I am brought up. It was a very
inspiring experience, one that stood me in good stead when I went to do social
work at a remote village in Bangalore,” confesses Niharika.
The awards which will be held on November 27 this year will
award women in eight categories – education, sports, social work, art and
culture, business, rural employment, journalism and girl child prodigy. “In Goa
we see more women achievers in the art and culture field. In sports there is a new generation of young
achievers thanks to encouraging parents. Politics is negligible and social
service hardly has any youngsters. In the business sphere there are quite a
few, but they need mentoring. However, in the last two years, I have noticed
women in the rural areas who are venturing into business, however small,
despite a lack of formal education. The
important thing is that they are not only becoming independent, but also
educating their own children, in cities, in professional careers. In the cities unfortunately, there are not
many prospects for women who then move out of the State and most of them who go
rarely return to do us proud,” observes Asha.
Gathering orchids in Goa has been a pleasant task for Asha
who firmly believes that if one has the inclinations, the opportunities are
never lacking.
