WOMEN EMPOWERMENT

Born and raised in Bangalore, Rahila came to Goa after getting married. She did her preliminary studies in Hyderabad followed by the secondary education in Bangalore and she did a diploma in Fashion Design in Bangalore itself. She began her career in fashion in the late 80s when it was a brand-new industry very few people were aware of. Now she's one of the top most fashion mentors in Goa

FASHION IS MY HEART AND SOCIAL WORK IS MY SOUL

By Rajesh Ghadge

I was not born in Goa but I had travelled a lot because my father had a trasferable job so would be posted to different states. I had moved around the country for some 4-5 years but Goa is where I've spent the last 35 years and that makes me a true Goan.” “I moved to Goa after getting married when I was just 19 years old and when I was still studying for my diploma Fashion Designing. At that time, Goa didn't have such a course available, so I had to complete this in Bangalore. When I came back to Goa after finishing my studies, I struggled a lot since there was n o c o l l e g e s , c o u r s e s o r awareness in the fashion designing course in Goa. In fact, when I told people what I had done, the reaction would be “Oh so you are a tailor” and it was a big challenge for me to explain the difference between fashion designing and tailoring.” Rahila reflects on how she tried to work in the export oriented industries in Goa, dealing with garment exports, but there were very low salaries and no scope of appreciation. “I was the main designer that they had but I realised that those places had no value for a designer and I left with no other option but to go back to Bangalore. There I got an opportunity to work in a big export company for almost seven years and they paid well. The most important thing b e s i d e s t h e s a l a r y w a s appreciation of my skills which I found only in Bangalore. I started my job as a sampling co-ordinator and soon I was promoted to the post of Merchandiser, followed by Merchandising Manager and finally the General Manager. At the age of 26 I was handling a huge factory with 300 machines.” Rahila tells me that her father has been her strong support system throughout and he has always encouraged her to take up any career path she decided. “He always used to tell me to work for a place that will help you to serve society and when I received a job o f f e r f r o m G o v e r n m e n t Polytechnic for teaching, I jumped at the chance since it was my father ' s advice to serve society and what better place than an educational institute?” When Rahila received the offer from the Government Polytechnic, she was earning Rs18000 salary in Bangalore and it was in year 1996, “The offer from Goa was only Rs6500, almost 3 times less, but I decided to take up the offer to fulfil my father ' s ambition for me and now I'm about the complete 25 years in this college,” she narrated. Rahila pretty much knows every fashion designer in Goa, and they are either her friend or student! “I realised the value of my association with the students and fashion designers when I lost my husband. They all came to my support and at that time, I had no family in Goa so was all alone. When I lost my husband, I faced many hardships- taking care of my teenage son, I playing the role of both parents,” she said. “ W h i l e w o r k i n g a t t h e Polytechnic, I came closer to the fashion industry of Goa and got a great opportunity to do the first show in Goa for the students of the Polytechnic which was the beginning of my new journey into Goa's fashion arena. My first show was with Wendell Rodricks and from there on, I received many opportunities since everyone liked my work and sincerity. Although I received many offers to work with private fashion designers and their shows, I kept refusing them politely since I was working with the Government College. But one day, a parent of one of my students approached me for a fashion show and he took the permission from the college head to allow me to participate and that became the turning point in my career.” Today Rahila not only handles

the majority of fashion shows in Goa, but she also provides a platform to the students. “When I take my students for fashion shows, they meet m a n y o t h e r d e s i g n e r s , celebrities, and big national a n d i n t e r n a t i o n a l personalities which helps them in networking and they definitely benefit from it. When asked about what else she engages in, Rahila told me that besides fashion shows, she also dedicates some time to social causes. “I always wanted to help the needy and under privileged but did not get enough opportunities. O n e d a y h o w e v e r , t h e polytechnic made me the inc h a r g e o f a c o m m u n i t y d e v e l o p m e n t p r o j e c t . I t helped me to help others while I w a s w o r k i n g , a s t h i s community service involved training around 600 people in a year. I have been doing this for almost 15 years and lot of people in Goa know me for that.” Currently Rahila is a very wellknown fashion mentor in the state of Goa who has trained hundreds of students who h a v e e i t h e r g o n e o n t o become fashion designers themselves or have started their own businesses. She also supports many fashion shows and fashion related events across Goa and the best part is, she does most of these things for the betterment of t h e c o m m u n i t y a n d h e r students. Rahila has come through so far in life the hard way and she n o w w a n t s t o g i v e encouragement to other women who are going through similar struggles. “I believe that it' s a woman who will support women, whether she is a mother-in-law or a sister-inlaw. . A mother-in-law needs to be their daughter-in-law's friend and treat her like her own daughter. If they do that, then more than 50% of any issues can be solved. I have developed a very good bond with my daughter-in-law and we are more like friends and together we can achieve anything. Another thing that I want to tell women is that they should never allow any man or woman belittle them whether i t ' s t h r o u g h s h o u t i n g o r physical violence. It is not ok and they should not remain silent. The more you tolerate, the more they take you for granted. Don't allow torture or abuse to become a habit because then it's too late to change that person.”