"I was In 8th Month of My Pregnancy When Shark Tank Was Offered To Me”
Comedian Bharti Singh, Actress Kareena Kapoor Khan, Mamaearth’s Co-Founder Ghazal Alagh, what do all these women have in common? Well, apart from being known names in their respective industries; these are one those few women who have proven their acumen not just by being good mothers but also as possessing exquisitely professional skills too. These women flaunted their baby bumbs with panache and worked till the very last day of their pregnancies and set a new benchmark in the society.
In the ever-evolving landscape of modern workplaces, the narrative surrounding maternity and career has shifted significantly. Gone are the days when women felt compelled to choose between motherhood and professional aspirations. Instead, a growing number of women are embracing the challenge of balancing both, navigating the complexities of childbirth, childcare, and career advancement simultaneously.
To amazement of many, Ghazal Alagh, Chief Innovation Officer & Co-founder, Honasa Consumer Limited recently penned a heartfelt post on LinkedIn, where she expressed a dire need for the society to revolutionalise their mindsets as women have come way too far now. From starting a company as a young mother to raising funds and child, she has done it all with grace, she explained exclusively to BW People publication.
Pregnancy isn’t an obstacle or a way to escape the hardwork, rather it energises you to take up more challenging roles and responsibilities. In today’s time, more and more women are choosing to continue working until the final days of their pregnancy, challenging stereotypes and redefining societal norms. Ms. Alagh has been one classic example of this bold move, amongst many. In her LinkedIn post too, she shared, “A lot of my friends and family suggested me to take it slow and not indulge myself in office work during pregnancy. Therefore I felt a dire need to address this tag. I decided to take up the opportunity while I was in my 8th month of pregnancy and shoot 12 hours a day along with others.” My goal was to inspire others and break this prevailing myth, especially amongst men, that women become less active or capable during this phase of their lives.”
Breaking Stereotypes
Gone are the days when pregnancy meant an automatic withdrawal from the workforce. Today, many women view pregnancy as a natural part of life and are determined to maintain their professional identity and contributions until the very end. By defying stereotypes and embracing their role as working mothers, these women are paving the way for a more inclusive and equitable workplace. Hence, Alagh too wanted to be a role model for aspiring working mothers to give them a taste of what women can do if they want to. “My goal was to inspire others and break this prevailing myth, especially amongst men, that women become less active or capable during this phase of their lives,” states Mamaearth’s co-founder.
When She came across the opportunity of Shark Tanks, Alagh states that she was in a dilemma whether to take up this challenge or not and even if taken then how will she be able to manage work during 8th month of her pregnancy.
“But I also realised that while physically your body is going through a lot of changes, mentally you're still active.”
Also, it takes sheer courage and will-power to be able to defy such age-old norms which have been embedded in minds of Indian society. She reminisces the time of her second pregnancy which in itself wasn’t a cake walk. Alagh feared reminiscing the time when her baby wasn’t doing too well physically and every day she had to take two injections on thighs and head to Shark Tank’s shoot. “I was swollen, I was in pain, other than the other than bearing the child, there were a lot of other pains as well. But mentally, I was very active. And it becomes very difficult for you to give up on your dream just because this natural, you know, life incident has happened, stated Alagh. But it was her will to take up that time in a strong spirit and become an example for other working women.
Further she also stated that “in those troublesome months there was no impact on deliverables, there was no impact on numbers, my team, managing all of that.”
Just because a woman is vulnerable during times of her pregnancy, one shouldn’t be putting judgments; take it slow, you've achieved a lot in life,-this is the time that you need to give to nurturing the baby in the womb, etc. Rather, it should be solely a woman’s choice on how she wishes to channelise her strengths.
Practices Into Action
While narrating instances of organisational practices at Mamaearth, she emphasised on how humble the culture at their organisation is when it comes to showing kindness to their employees.
Very proudly she stated how five women in her team are pregnant, and all at leadership positions, but are managing their teams so beautifully that Alagh doesn’t feel the need to intervene and see if things are going smooth or not. She told how surprised he feels on seeing that each one of them is training their teams to function smoothly; so that the working doesn’t get affected in their absence.
She further stated how a few of them are already going through difficult pregnancies. One of them who is leading innovation team has been advised bedrest by the doctor due to certain level of complications. “But as I stated previously that the choice of working or rest should lie with the woman herself and she states that work keeps her busy and going, leading to less anxiety too. To my amazement, all my teams are so caring towards her that they talk to her, time to time as her well-being and also helped her in calming his anxiety nerves so that she doesn’t take up unnecessary work related stress.
“Further, we also cut down on some of the things because I've seen a lot of other companies, and there's a report which has been launched by Fortune on India Inc, which talks about the fact that when women go through pregnancy, or come back to work post pregnancy, they're being offered softer jobs, which also means slower appraisals and no promotions during that phase. But, that certainly doesn't happen at Mamaearth, because I have myself gone through the journey, and I know what it feels.
For that matter, last year, they had a mother coming back to work and it was during the months of her maternity break that management decided to promote her and not even wait for her coming back she duely deserved ait and had put in all efforts to achieve it.
Right Infrastructure At Right Time
“I think very early on, we realised that when a woman get pregnant, there are a lot of physical changes that she goes through. Her body becomes heavy, feet get swollen, and physically it is very uncomfortable sometimes for them to evencommute from home to work,” explains Alagh.
Hence, she told us how Mamaearth has been mindful to taking care of a woman at bringing ease to her at work. They have been considerate enough of aligning small needs of women at this point. “And that's where we decided that every pregnant woman willget a cab to herself to commute, so that she doesn'thave to worry about traveling, catching the bus, or public transport. They have also been equipped with a creche facility available once women decide to come back to work. So I think a lot of things, but more than policies, it's about the actions that we take,” states mother of two kids.
Road Ahead
Proudly Alagh pointed out that 100 per cent of their women who have gone out on maternity leaves have come back to work with them. She cited that according to Fortune India Inc. paper, “companies have very low levels of women coming back to work after maternity leaves, and the biggest irony is that they are easily attributing it to women, that they want to take it slow.
But actually, when they delved deep down into it, they realised that 75 to 80 per cent women have come back to work after their maternity leaves, but not in the same organisation. The reason being when they resume work, they are being offered softer jobs and softer roles. While those women aren’t even not inclined towards it mentally, because they feel that they can do much better.”
So why is that trust factor not being shown to them. They have come back stronger, fighting a very tough battle. Why is their strength being measured to them being MOMS now? They deserve much better! And the irony is that most of these decisions are being taken on behalf of those women, not even including them in conversations. Decisions are made in boardrooms amongst a group of self-obsessed men, not having even one female included in that discussion!
As we continue to challenge stereotypes and embrace diversity in the workplace, it is essential that we support women who choose to work until the end of their pregnancy. By providing accommodations, fostering supportive work environments, and celebrating their achievements, we can ensure that all women have the opportunity to thrive professionally while experiencing the joys of motherhood. Together, we can create a more inclusive and equitable workplace where women feel empowered to pursue their passions and achieve their full potential, both personally and professionally.
