Meet our featured beauty with brains Ripsy Mongia, a businesswoman based in Melbourne, Australia. She is the owner of Ripsy’s Boutique in Melbourne. Her boutique deals in ladies western gowns as well as Indian dresses. She is happily married and the mother of two beautiful children. Since childhood, she loved playing dressing up games, which she still loves doing. She feels there is nothing better than turning your passion into a profession. She loves dressing up others as well, as it gives her immense pleasure to see her clients happy and smiling when they look at themselves in the mirror.

Here is an interview with her.

1. How do you define style?

I feel style is a distinctive manner of expression. It is something very individual and unique, everyone has their own style. I believe everyone is stylish in their own way.

2. Who or what inspired you to start your own business ?

If you are passionate about something then you will have all the inspiration you need to make it happen, just believe in yourself. Because I had the passion to start my own business, anything and everything was my inspiration.

3. What is the best thing about owning your own boutique?

The product selection process, as I get to handpick from all the fantastic stuff I see. I am also very proud of the relationships we have developed with our customers who are very loyal to us. And I love the freedom having my own boutique gives me, while raising my two small children. It never feels like work.

4. What was the biggest challange you faced?

Spreading the word and getting the boutique known to people was hard in the beginning. Social media was a really usefull tool in this respect and we used it right from the beginning.

5. What has the feedback been like so far?

Absolutly brilliant, the nicest part is when I receive thank you texts from my customers. I know then that I am doing it right. I love my work.

Meet our featured beauty with brains Rachna Mittal, a Makeup Artist based in Melbourne, Australia. Here is her story.

“Let me Introduce myself. I am Rachna. I believe in a simple life but don’t mind living it with a little style. I belong to a Punjabi family and was born and brought up In New Delhi, India. When I was little, I lost my father. I can’t even remember his face. My Mum was my super Hero. She looked after me and my little brother really well even without any support from family. I love and respect my mum a lot. Hats off to her for everything she did for us. She passed away in 2016. I miss her a lot. Hope her soul rests in peace.

I was lucky to get married to my husband in 2009. Settling down in Australia was not easy as finding a job here was difficult. In 2010 I was blessed with a daughter. She is my life.

A year after she was born, I started looking for a job again. My husband suggested that I do a childcare course so that I can get a job easily but I wanted to get into the Beauty Industry. At that time we were not financially strong and couldn’t afford the fees of Beauty Training in Australia.

Finally I had to go for a Government funded Childcare Course. After finishing the course, I got a job in childcare. I was earning money and life was good but I still wasn’t happy. I wanted to do what I love to do. So with my husband’s support I took up a part time job and enrolled in a Diploma of Beauty Therapy course with few other courses like Makeup, Hairstyling, Skin Analysis etc.

It was time to do what I love to do. I Started my home based salon in 2017 with the blessings of God, my parents, family and friends. Then I approached the Media as a MakeUp Artist should work with Models, Photographers and event Managers. I am loving it.

I believe all women are beautiful. They just need a little magic touch and they look gorgeous. Every woman has the right to look her best.

I started enjoying my life again. I don’t have to look at my watch again and again as now I don’t feel like I am working since I love what I do. When I see my clients’ smile, I feel so good about myself. To me, it’s not about the money, it’s about making people happy, making people beautiful and and making people feel relaxed. I get a sense of self-satisfaction and self-achievement from that. I am thankful to God for blessing me with skills and ability to make people happy.”

Feel free to check out Rachna’s Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/MakeoverbyRachna/

Meet our featured beauty with brains Rupali Katoch, a Makeup Artist based in Melbourne, Australia. She is only 23 and feels that often people don’t trust her to do a good job as they think she is too young and doesn’t have enough experience. Well they don’t know that she started doing Makeup when she was just 5. She used to do makeup on herself and her mom. She was an artistic child, painting on her house’s walls as well as portraits. She did a diploma in Makeup and Hair Artistry after finishing her secondary school.

Here is an interview with her.

1. Tell us a bit more about your childhood. What were your parents and family like and did your parents support you in your goals?

I was the first child of my parents. My parents were very happy to be blessed with a baby girl. I was the first child so obviously I got more attention and love until my younger brother came along.

I was around 5-6 years old when I started doing painting and colouring. My father worked for a private firm and his pay wasn’t much. But my parents still admitted me to an ICSE(Convent) school which was expensive. My Mom and Dad are both well educated and hard working. Whatever I have achieved today is because of them.

We are from a small town in Punjab (India). So there weren’t much opportunities in my hometown. My mom and dad were very choosy about my and my brother’s education.

I completed my secondary school. Then one day my father asked me “Do you want to go abroad for further studies?”. My Mom was like “No, not at all.” I was scared as well. I was scared how will I survive as I had never lived without my parents. But my Dad gave me confidence and we decided to give it a go.

I passed every exam with good score, then I researched which country is good and which course to enrol in. I wanted to do Interior Design but it was too expensive. I joined a Makeup academy in India and did a diploma in Makeup and hair artistry. I started earning at the age of 17. I started a home business and started giving lessons to poor girls for very low fees, on eyebrow threading, waxing, bridal makeup and so on. After a year, I joined an academy as a Teacher. I was the youngest teacher there. After a few months I got my Australian visa.

Starting here was very hard as a Makeup artist because everyone thinks I am too young and sometimes don’t trust me. I started doing free makeup just to showcase my talents.

2. What fascinates you about your work?

I was very creative from childhood and painted on the walls of my house. I still have them at my home. I used to do makeup from when I was a kid. Makeup always fascinated me. After learning proper makeup, I started watching youtube, then started trying what I learnt on my Mum.

I am fascinated by Indian bridal Makeup. It always looks flawless and I try my best to learn how to do that.

3. Tell us more about you as a person. What are your dreams and hobbies.

Me as a person, hmmm, I think I am friendly and love to talk to people. I am confident about my work but not over confident.

I love to learn from my seniors. I think we should support each other, I have never missed a chance to support anyone because in return I want the same as well.

My hobby, passion, everything is Makeup.

But I am a good cook as well according to my mum and dad.

My dream is to be a renowned Makeup artist and be very successful in my own business before I get married. My second dream is to be able to give everything to my parents. I hope I can fulfill all these dreams. I am trying my best. I am studying, doing part time job and managing my little makeup business as well.

I think my hard work will pay off one day.

Feel free to check out Rupali’s Facebook page https://m.facebook.com/katochrupali/

Meet our featured beauty with brains Sanjivani Kalsi, a Tarot reader and Reiki master based in Sydney, Australia. Here is her story.

“Hi, I am Sanjivani Kalsi, tarot reader and reiki master. I work with tarot cards and energies. I started using cards to find out what God and Spirits wanted me to know. I offer my advice and guidance through the cards and divine messages. Tarot is not about revealing the past, present or future, but about giving you access to self knowledge.

I have been a professional Tarot Reader and a Reiki Grand Master for over a decade. I work from home. I am a mother of two, blessed with one boy and one girl. Tarot was introduced to me as a gift from the Universe. It came into my life as if I have been chosen and it was God’s wish that I should do tarot. Many times I decided to do different ventures but every time I found myself surrounded with spiritual energies and I embraced my intuition gifts; working as a healer, tarot reader, teaching reiki. I take my passion as a profession, l might make less money but the satisfaction and blessings are more valuable than anything. My approach to tarot is to provide a positive, insightful and meaningful experience for each client. I want to help everyone find their wisdom in the card.

Very typically, a reading can give us a lot of information that helps us take decisions in each aspect of our life. It can give us a bit more detail or guidance. It can tell us how new things are trying to work their way into our life and what we need to do in preparation.

My spiritual journey led me to explore and study Reiki and numerology as well. I consider myself a regular girl. I love spending time with my husband and my kids.

I have had the honour of reading for family, friends, neighbours and clients. It has been my privilege to be of service as a confidante and advisor/counselor.”

Meet our featured beauty with brains Rashi Sethi, a mortgage broker based in Sydney, Australia. Here is her story.

“What’s behind the numbers? It’s not everyone’s cup of tea. We all live in a world of cash and profits. Everyday we talk about numbers which is related to our past, present and future. I am Rashi Sethi (founder of VIRTUE HOME LOANS), a mortgage broker by profession. I do what I love and I don’t think I would’ve fit in any other industry. I came to Australia in 2003. I started my career with GE money and moved on to different levels and companies within this respective industry. It was never an easy journey for me to dream and work on my dream of becoming an entrepreneur. Being a mother of two girls, I have always given my family a priority before anything else but never let my dream die. I decided to be an independent broker and work for myself in 2016. This was the year when I decided I no longer wanted to work for any bank or institution particularly. This doesn’t mean that I gave up on my hobbies which included singing and little bit of modelling as well as socially helping women to achieve their self confidence in their respective lives. I believe every woman is strong and worth the wonderful life she desires.

Being my own boss gives me an advantage of being with my family when they need me and at the same time working with all the banks. I think neither everyone is suitable to any one lender nor one lender is suitable to all. Everyone’s needs and requirements are different and doesn’t fit the same frame every time. I love my job and this gives me a sense of satisfaction in what I do.”

Meet our featured beauty with brains Simran Gulati, a model based in Sydney, Australia. She is the reigning Mrs India Global 2018 and Mrs India Australia 2016 – 1st runner up. She is also an actor and a humanitarian who uses her pageant platform to raise awareness about social causes close to her heart. She is the Brand Ambassador for a couture Indian brand, Elysian Desire. Simran is a mother of two and very active in the Indian Australian community where she encourages and supports women in the community by empowering them. Her education background is a Double Degree in Bachelor of Business (Banking and Finance) and Information Technology (Information Systems) from RMIT, Melbourne.

She helps in raising awareness of community issues. She feels there are women who are struggling to juggle their multiple roles in life – a professional, a mother, a wife, a caretaker and many more. There is a lot of stress that comes along with that, and a woman often forgets or selflessly doesn’t think about her mental health while she is busy keeping up with her responsiblities. Simran’s role is to help women individually and in a group environment and connect them with like-minded women to empower them so that they don’t feel that they are alone and connect with others to instill mental stability. She has teamed up with Liptember, an organisation which focuses on women’s mental health and she is currently helping raise funds and looking for ways to raise even further awareness in the Indian community.

She works with the women across the Indian community on a one to one basis and helps them raise their confidence and makes them believe that anyone is capable of achieving anything they set their mind to.

Here is an interview with her.

1. What do you think are the main challenges today in reaching gender equality?

I believe as the world is evolving, we have already made great strides towards reaching gender equality. However, there are still some countries which are trying to reach the status quo. Some of the challenges we face are based on the traditional thinking of where a place of a woman is in this world. I believe it’s about education and challenging the norm to overcome that. Women are always going to have a chip on their shoulder to prove themselves, and I believe it’s a good thing as that gives them an edge and more motivation to prove themselves. The best way to overcome a challenge is to prove you can do it and I believe women all over the world are doing more of this than ever before.

2. Share an experience where you helped/ empowered a woman and it changed her life.

I have worked with many women from all facets of life including women who have been scared to challenge themselves because of what others would think. One experience I would like to share is when I met a woman who was very stressed about her role as a professional, mother, wife, and a caretaker and that affected her mental health. I felt I could relate to her as we are all busy. I spoke to her on a regular basis and gave her tips on how to deal with stress and juggle life roles. I also told her not to forget about taking care of herself. I helped her develop a fitness regime and to take care of her mind and her body. It helped her to challenge herself and to become a better person. By just being there for her and empowering her to look at life through a different lens has helped her excel in all facets of life. Giving your time to someone is the best thing you can do for them.

3. What is your advice to young girls who want to grow up to be beauty queens?

Just be yourself. Beauty isn’t about what is on the outside, it’s about how you are on the inside. Staying true to yourself and having a cleansed mind is the most important part of being a beauty queen. People judge beauty queens on not only appearance but how much difference you can make in lives and the community that surrounds us.

4. What is the most rewarding part of your work?

The most rewarding part of my work has to be the joy that I feel by helping others. It’s nice to see my efforts come to fruition when I am able to make a difference in people’s lives, whether it’s just giving advice or making a difference in the community where a little thing one does can have drastic effect on others.

Meet our featured beauty with brains Jasmin Shojai, a model based in Sydney, Australia. She is an internationally published model, entrepreneur as well as an aspiring actress.

Here is her story.

“My dream to become a ‘supermodel’ began when I was a young girl. I was inspired by many models and TV shows such as ‘The Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show’, and ‘Next Top Model’. My journey in modelling all began in 2015. I have since taken the industry by storm, competing in the National finals of pageants in Australia, including Maxim’s Australian Swimwear Model of the Year, while also appearing in Playboy and Maxim magazines internationally, and appearing on National TV, most recently Channel Ten’s The Sunday Project.

One of my biggest achievement so far has been winning the National title of ‘Australia’s Top Glamour Model of 2017’, which has since given me a lot of local and international exposure.

Modelling and acting has been my passion since the beginning. I am striving to achieve many more inspiring goals that I have set up for myself, within the modelling, business and screen acting industry.

When I am not working I love going to the beach and keeping up with my fitness regime. I love animals and am a big believer in justice. I want to do more charity work and hope to make a difference in society.”

Here is an interview with her.

1. Who or what inspired you to become a model?

As I was growing up I was always inspired by the models I saw on TV and in magazines, for example ‘The Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show’, ‘Next Top Model’ and Vogue. They were really amazing to see. I did my very first photoshoot 2 and a half years ago and I remember having so much fun. It was such a wonderful experience, I wanted to be there all day. Since then I have never looked back.

2. What is your advice to girls who want to be successful models when they grow up?

Definitely be persistent and most importantly be yourself. The industry undoubtedly is a competitive industry, for everyone. Invest time and also money into developing yourself, and your career. Things like one on one posing lessons, catwalk training and short/long term courses make a massive difference. Especially for beginners, you need to know what you are doing and have a foundation of knowledge, and training.

3. Which part of your job do you find most exciting?

Every second of my career is always exciting. Being on set and working for the camera is what I love most.

4. What are your future goals?

I have many future goals. I look to progress with my career as a model and do covers for major magazines. Being featured in Playboy, Maxim and FHM has been so phenomenal. I would love to be on their covers one day. With my developing career as an actress I look to act in a Television series and in Films one day. At the moment I am doing acting classes and I am enjoying it so much. There are a lot of amazing things to look forward to in the future.

Meet our featured beauty with brains Malti Kumar, a beautician and event organiser based in Sydney, Australia. Here is her story.

“Hi, I am Malti. I am from Chandigarh, India. I had a really good upbringing and was taught culture and dicipline. I never thought I would migrate to a place so far away from India (a country I still refer to as home). I was very social in India and organised many parties with friends. Life gave me an opportunity to migrate to this beautiful place Sydney and start a business that I was already working on, when living in India. In the last 21 years of my career as a trained professional beautician and event organiser, I have met so many different and diverse people in my community as well as outside my community.

Every year, I organise an event called ‘Sakhi Celebration’. The event was originally designed and created for ladies of all ages and eras. It’s about enjoying and celebrating beauty with friendship. It is a place where once a year ladies can keep all their worries at home and be there at the event to enjoy the moment and bask in sheer happiness. It’s an one stop shop for fun, games, dance, raffles, prizes, competitions, shopping, photo booths and a dance floor to get all your energy out. The ladies who attend feel refreshed and energized at the end of the day. The remnants of this fun filled day remains in your soul for a long time. Come along with your girlfriends, neighbours, sisters, mums, aunties, daughters etc, and you would be re-living those fun and happy moments with them again and again.

Growing up, I never faced any discrimination due to my gender. People talk about Gender Discrimination in India especially from where I come from, but I was raised by a man who loved his daughters way too much to even let us know that women are not the preferred gender in our area. I never faced any roadblocks as I grew up, learning to respect the oposite sex and vice versa. I have learnt to be independent and have my own voice and opinion. Women empowerment is a very broad term. It has its own meaning to every woman and its definition varies according to one’s perception. For me it is about being independent, having my own opinion and choice in everything and having control over things in my life. Giving my daughter the same upbringing is what I feel is truly respecting womanhood. As girls we all compete with each other but as women we empower each other. That is what I see in my daughter who seems to be growing up to be my reflection and is empowering others. That does give me the satisfaction of being a good parent.

I would like to conclude by telling all the women around me: ‘Love and respect yourself for who and what you are.’

My definition of Women Empowerment is:

‘A strong woman stands up for herself. A stronger woman stands up for everybody else’.”

Meet our featured beauty with brains Tarnya Cook, a beauty and wellness therapist based in the Mornington Peninsula in Victoria, Australia. Here is an interview with her.

1. Tell us a bit about yourself and what you do.

I am the owner and operator of Tarnya Cook Skin and Wellness, I have been inspired by beauty my whole life but only recently has it become a full time career choice for me. When I was younger I was always doing my friends’ make up, or at home beauty treatments, styling their hair, sometimes even cutting it. I had absolutely no experience, just a passion for doing it and some crazy friends who let me do it. So later on after getting to a cross roads of sorts, I decided it was high time to take it up professionally. I’m now passionate about providing my clients with treatments that not only are results driven but a form of ritualistic self care. Something we all need in our everyday lives. Like my tag line says “Your skin will be glowing, hydrated and plumped. Your soul will be rejuvenated.”.

I’m on my own self love journey, now in my 40’s I’ve realised how important it is to create a life you love and not just play victim to the life you have. I think thats why I’m so drawn to helping others through my own little niche of the beauty and wellness world, not only do I get to help others but I also get to explore my own path and begin a new journey of re-invention. My twenties were all about looking forward to what I thought I needed to be really living and then in my thirties after becoming a mother, I spent a lot of time looking back to what I now had lost from my twenties. So my forties are about just being present, living the life I have and not spending too much time on the what ifs or dwelling on the past. Just trying to accept life where I am and make the most of everyday.

2. Growing up, what were your goals and dreams? Have you fulfilled them?

My goals and dreams have evolved with life and experience. I’ve never been one to only have one destination in mind. I’ve lived my life by allowing opportunity to take me in different directions, to constantly re-visit what makes me happy and most importantly what’s not working for me. I’ve always let go of things that weren’t working for me in terms of jobs, and opportunities that haven’t turned out to be the right fit for me. I don’t believe in the old school beliefs of going to school, getting a job and doing that no matter what for the rest of your life.  But I do believe in exploring life and getting out of it the most you can.

3. According to you, what makes a woman truly beautiful?

Beauty is just a concept. Physical beauty is different to everyone, what one person finds attractive another might not. So I think beauty is about being the best you can be which isn’t to be confused with being perfect or setting yourself impossible standards and expectations. Its about being comfortable in your own skin, embracing your own inner beauty and letting that shine through. When we like ourselves, it shows. When we’ve done the work to accept ourselves, it shows. And of course looking after your skin and maintaining a natural glow is of utmost importance!

4. Who or what inspires you?

I’m inspired by people who are going for what they want in life. It doesn’t matter what it is, but if they’ve conquered their own inner critic and are working towards their goals then I find that majorly inspiring. I’ll often be brought to tears by these stories and it doesn’t really matter who it is or what they are achieving, for me its more about that struggle of acheiving. Its not always easy to go after your dreams and the rollercoaster ride can be really hard. So when I see someone achieving a major goal or accomplishment it really triggers an emotional response and a connection in me. And its these connections rather than the people behind the stories that fill me with emotion and inspiration. But of course it would be remiss of me to not say that my kids are a constant source of inspiration. I want my children to be inspired by me, to make what they want out of life. To stray from the normal course and really explore what their passions are and what connects them to their experiences of life.

Meet our featured beauty with brains, Aayushi Kumari, an IT professional and fashion blogger based in Sydney, Australia. She is one of the top Australian brand influencers. Here is an interview with her.

1.      Tell us a bit about yourself and what you do.

Hi, I am Ayushi, an ordinary girl with extraordinary dreams. I work for Adobe as an IT engineer. Right from my childhood, I had a passion for fashion and beauty, perhaps inherited from my mum.

I always believed in the significance of “Me Time”. I always wanted to do something apart from my regular IT job. So I did a diploma in Painting and used to conduct art workshops for kids and adults during weekends. And when I migrated to Sydney, I thought let me do something about my strong passion for Fashion and Beauty. Thus Sydneyfashionlife was born, now competing with the top Sydney Influencers, collaborating with top Australian and International brands and fashion events .

Blog: https://livewithayushi.com/

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sydneyfashionlife/

It’s tough to balance between a full time job and blogging which in itself is a full time job. But I am learning to balance between the two with time.

2.      What challenges did you face in your life and career and how did you overcome them?

Well, I strongly believe that the biggest challenge a person can face is “the person himself/ herself”. We often have a lot of stigma against ourselves, negative vibes and low confidence. The day we learn to fight and win against these mini obstacles that we have created for ourselves, no one can beat us.

I will give you my example. When I came to Australia and thought of starting blogging, I suffered from low confidence. I started thinking I would never ever be able to make a name for myself among the fashionable, beautiful top notch Australian influencers. Who would want to see my posts on Instagram or read the content on my blog? But I didn’t give up because I thought, I am not starting fashion and beauty blogging to compete with anyone. Its my passion and I will work for my passion because the end goal is my happiness. So I tried and failed a couple of times because I had no direction or guidance as to how things work in Australia. I failed multiple times before I attained top position among Australian influencers. So guys, never ever give up on yourself and your attempts.

3.      What is your advice to girls who want to be successful fashion bloggers?

Be fun, be yourself. The moment you try to copy someone else’s ideas or styling, you already have lost the originality. Be original to gain followers, be consistent with your blogging and work hard on your digital content.

4.      What do you think, we as women can do, to reduce gender inequality and empower other women?

I am a person who strongly believes in woman for woman. We may not need to do things out of our way to empower people. Even simple things work.

Let’s not intrude into other’s lives, let’s be less judgmental and help people around us – both men and women to strive towards a better tomorrow. Do good and good shall come back to you.