What its like to start afresh/ ground zero
Core team member celebrates 1 year at Project Baala by looking at the year gone by.
At my interview for Baala, Aradhana and Soumya asked me, “Is there a reason why we should not hire you?” I was honest. I had no experience working in either a start up, interventions for adolescents and adults, or in the space of menstrual health and hygiene, and definitely not all of them together. I shared the same with them.
Now I forget the chronology of questions, but they did also ask me- Why should we hire you? I was honest again. I wanted to learn, I wanted to do something new, something that would shock the routine I had fallen into. Doing new things is scary; staying in your comfort zone even more.
Before exiting the room after the interview was done, when niceties were being exchanged, I blurted out in a rush of words- I am so impressed with the work you do, and even if I don’t get the job its alright and I am so excited to see where you go and I will cheer for you on the sidelines- and IMMEDIATELY regretted this outburst (its not exactly the professional look you want to show).
I got home, shared with friends and family that I potentially bombed the interview, was sad, but also filled with energy to see what amazing things people can do and are doing. And as I’m sure you’ve realised, I was proved wrong, and accepted an offer to join Baala.
Truthfully its been a scary journey. I entered Baala when there were shifts taking place internally, a lot of movement was happening. I was thrown into the deep end… but the good thing is that I love swimming.
My first on ground experience took place within a week of my joining, and last minute changes led me to taking on a slightly bigger responsibility… which was perhaps the best thing that could happen. It only cemented what I already knew. Baala was for me.
In the past year I have travelled to Maharashtra, Nagaland, Rajasthan, Haryana and parts of Delhi/NCR I’ve never been to. I have spoken to elderly ladies who have said “kya beti, iska fayda hi kya hai?” (What is even the point of what you’re doing), women with children who want to talk about periods with their daughters but don’t know where to start, and young girls who are so very bright, intelligent and excited to achieve all that they can, but pull in their energy when periods come about.
I have also met amazing leaders who represent Baala’s partners. They go beyond a role of a funder, implementor and collaborator, and actually take out time to help me with even small things (Help, I need to add columns in this complicated Excel table, help my maths isn’t mathing, help I feel a little lost and would like a pep talk).
At 28, I am the oldest team member (in age) at Baala, and that says a lot about us 😊 We all come from widely disparate backgrounds, academic training, hometowns and perhaps even worldviews. But our determination unites us. We take onus, we share disappointments. We’re also oddly organised- guys lets do a GMeet in 10 mins, and then we all wait for each other to send the meeting link.
Everyday I learn. I learn how to listen, to read, and to write. I learn to take constructive criticism and not turn it into self bashing. I learn that its ok to take breaks. I learn that sometimes indeed you do have to work within the system to fight the system, but you should never compromise on your ethics and values. I also learn that everyone is on their own path. And just like with the Baala workshop participants, you can only give nudges, but the choice cannot and should not be influenced.
I learn that risks have to be taken. I learn that there are heavy stakes.
I learn that we cannot do this alone. And I’m glad to do that learning at and with Baala.
Happy 1 year to me!
Parul is a Communication and Outreach Lead at Project Baala. Passionate about creating equity for equality, in her spare time you can find her buried in a book or looking up recipes for goodies that she will never end up baking.
