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judy smith May 2016
Don’t take them at face value. Several leading actresses in Mollywood have shown themselves to be keen businesswomen too. So, if Poornima Indrajith, a fashionista in her own right and designer-in-chief of fashion store Pranaah, was the lone name in the list till recently, Kavya Madhavan, Lena, Kaniha, Shwetha Menon, Rima Kallingal and the like too have joined the fray to establish their credentials as entrepreneurs.

While Kavya owns Laksyah, an online fashion store, Rima runs Mamangam, a dance school in Kochi. Lena is busy with Aakruti, her weight-loss centre. Kaniha’s focus is on health care, as a franchise partner of Medall Diagnostics in Chennai. Shwetha, meanwhile, has opened a restaurant, Shwe’s Delight, in Dubai. Mallika Sukumaran owns Spice Boat, a restaurant in Doha, Qatar… The actresses talk at length to MetroPlus about why and how they went about it, the lessons they learnt and what lies ahead.

For Kavya it was the realisation of a long-cherished dream; of starting a business venture while she is at the peak of her career. “I zeroed in on a fashion boutique from several other options, such as dance school, beauty parlour, restaurant…,” says Kavya. “It was the safest and best choice because my father had been in the textile business back home in Neeleeswaram for nearly four decades. My brother, Midhun is a graduate in fashion technology and my mother and my sister-in-law too share the same passion. Laksyah is really a family-run enterprise,” she adds. Laksyah, which sells a range of one-off designer saris and daily wear and based out of Kochi, will be celebrating its first anniversary next month.

It was a photoshoot that lead Lena to open Aakruti. She had to lose a few kilos to get in shape for the shoot and her childhood friend, Louisa David, a physiotherapist, helped her achieve that goal. “I was happy with my weight loss and so we decided to launch a physiotherapy-based slimming centre. Louisa has been running her centre at Thrissur for five years and she helped me start Aakruti, in Chevayur, Kozhikode, in September last year,” Lena says.

Kaniha, always a multi-tasker, has a solid reason for taking the health care route too. It was the closest she could get to her childhood ambition to pursue medicine! “After coming back to India from the United States, my husband, Shyam Radhakrishnan and I wanted to start something. Since I couldn’t fulfil my dream of becoming a doctor and had to study engineering instead, I thought I should do something related to healthcare and that’s how Medall happened,” says the actress.

In Shwetha’s case, her restaurant was a venture waiting to happen. “In fact, those who know me for long are not surprised with my decision to open a restaurant. I am an absolute foodie. I am so very careful about what I eat that my cook always travels with me on my shoots. I also love hosting family and friends and often hold pyjama parties at home. That’s why a restaurant was the obvious choice when I thought about starting a venture,” says Shwetha. Shwe’s Delight [“I was called Shwe by my friends in modelling circuit”], which opened its doors last month, is a North Indian fine dining restaurant. “I wanted to give expatriate Malayalis in Dubai a different taste from the usual fare. We dish up a bit of Chinese food too,” she adds.

Being a celebrity helps, most of the time, especially to get publicity, say the leading ladies. For instance, Kaniha says she could bank upon her celebrity status to get corporate tie-ups. They also talk of brand value going up when a known face opens a venture. “There is a certain level of trust with potential customers because you are a known face,” explain Shwetha and Lena. “On the flipside, you are always under scrutiny. At times, I feel acting is much easier,” adds Shwetha. Kavya says it is not easy being the face of Laksyah. “I can’t go wrong with what I wear!” she adds, with a laugh.

Celeb status and a pretty face, though, is no guarantee for a successful business. All the actresses say that they put in a lot of hard work to get their businesses up and running. “The execution part was not easy, be it finding the right location, getting the interiors done, purchasing the machinery, appointing qualified staff, training them and even finalising the colour of the uniform. But I have become more confident now that we are opening a new branch in Kochi,” explains Lena. Kaniha, meanwhile, admits that she has learnt to be “more patient and be diplomatic.” Well played.Read more at:www.marieaustralia.com/cheap-formal-dresses | www.marieaustralia.com/****-formal-dresses
Ciarra Reneé Jan 2014
feminism isn't just burn your bras and let your leg hair grow
it's standing up and recognizing that gender inequality exists
and we love to slip it under the rug because women are allowed to do things like rid themselves of unwanted pregnancies and
men expect that to be enough they expect that because we get control over our own bodies that we're equal
simple rights allotted to human beings are given to us and we're supposed to throw a ******* parade?
Pat Robertson said "the feminist agenda is not about equal rights for women. It is about a socialist, anti-family political movement that encourages women to leave their husbands, **** their children, practice witchcraft, destroy capitalism and become lesbians."
and what I don't get it is
how people pretend like this sexist ******* doesn't exist
I'm not saying all feminists are right
but I know for a fact all sexists are wrong
and I don't mean to go left but Just because I want to be able to have control over my own body and have equal opportunity in the work place and not have to wear makeup and do my hair and shave my legs does not mean that I'm an evil lesbian baby killing husband leaving capitalism destroying witch
I can promote women's rights and be a mother and a wife
you can promote women's rights and be a mother and a wife
and men who believe that feminists are just a bunch of ******* with hairy legs and heavy hearts are sadly mistaken
we as women carry a substantial undeniable and unbearable burden for being something that we didn't ask to be
I can't walk outta my house after dusk without praying that I don't get *****
I can't show skin because I'd be asking for it
I can't even mention *** without being a ****** *****
I can't walk into an interview without having to work twice as hard against male competitors
I can't cry without being needy and over emotional
I can't embrace the beauty that god gave me without makeup without being plain and low maintenance
I can't say that things aren't equal and that double standards are in place without being an evil lesbian baby killing husband leaving capitalism destroying witch
and you think things are fair?  
just because we've left the kids and the kitchen from 9-5 does not mean we've entered equality
because guess what we all personally know at least 5 mothers who go out and work just as hard and just as good as men do and still go home and take care of their children and their household
so basically men want a pat on the back for doubling the work load?
and I'm not a woman who does not recognize that there are double standards in place for men
they can't tell another man he looks good or be emotional or sensitive without being gay
what but men don't get is
I can't be alone on the street  without a whistle or a cat call
I would rather tolerate what they have to
women are forced to spend every waking moment outside of their homes worrying that they might get ***** or assaulted or drugged and ******* or brought into *** slavery
maybe I'm paranoid or maybe you just don't get that women are being ***** in their homes, teens are being roofied taken advantage of, and then slandered, 8 year old girls in Singapore are forced to have *** with multiple men a day or their families are murdered
don't you realize, the burden we are given just for having an extra X chromosome
men may be are stronger but women are
stonger
we carry worry and burden on our shoulders and still manage to be beautiful creatures
we are not just **** and ***
we are mothers  and daughters and nieces and cousins and sisters and lovers and friends and businesswomen and nurses and doctors and soldiers and lawyers and teachers
we've moved an inch with miles to go
in the great words of Malcolm X
"you don't stick a knife in a man's back 9 inches and then pull it out 6 inches and say you're making progress"
you don't let women in the workplace but not give them the same treatment as male employees and call that equality
I am black and I am a woman and whether whites or men
like it I refuse to stop fighting for not only feminism but for progression
kanda Mar 2014
the girls who are made from fire
the girls who run with the wolves
the girls who know diamonds are only carbon
the girls who still give a ****
the girls who cry themselves to sleep at night
the girls who are good
the girls who are bad
the girls who are bound by religion
the girls who **** anyone they like
the girls who smoke cigars
the girls who crash against the shore

write em all.

the **** survivors
the drug addicts
the businesswomen
the doctors
the teachers
the mothers
the lovers
the daughters
the sisters
you
me
us

write em all.
happy belated women's day!
proud to be a girl.
judy smith Mar 2016
Continuing her ******* of the fashion industry, Victoria Beckham proudly opened her second boutique in Hong Kong this week. The designer was greeted by crowds of fans as she posed happily for pictures and celebrated her latest achievement.

Victoria, 41, kept her social media followers in the loop with a stream of behind-the-scenes pictures and, in her style, appeared to poke a bit of fun at herself. Standing next to a mannequin dressed in one of her designs, she wrote: "I'm wearing VVB… what are you wearing?"

The mother-of-four also uploaded a clip of her with a hologram fish, and jokingly asked fans to help name her new friend. But it wasn't all fun for former Spice Girl Victoria; her social uploads revealed a very late night ahead of the store opening as she prepared to face her Chinese customers and press.

As usual Victoria looked effortlessly chic for the launch, dressed head-to-toe in black. The businesswomen opted for a fitted turtleneck teamed with a calf-length skirt and black heels. Her trademark oversized sunglasses completed the look, and she had her long brown hair tied back into a ponytail.

Discussing the launch with the South China Morning Post, Victoria said: "I know Asian women really understand luxury, good quality and appreciate when garments are made well – and my clothes are.

"Every time I've visited over the past few years, I've taken time to meet with my clients [here], to really get a sense of what excites them and what they want."

Three years ago Victoria, who shares children Brooklyn, 17, Romeo, 13, Cruz, 11, and four-year-old Harper with husband David, opened her flagship store on London's Dover Street, and its Hong Kong sister store follows the same architectural design.

Victoria once again stressed her involvement in all areas of her fashion empire, explaining: "It's important to me that I'm part of the decision making in all areas, whether that's deciding what the changing rooms look like, to what fragrance we use in store, to what the receipts look like. I enjoy all of that, and I'm a perfectionist. I believe it's all in the details."

She added: "I am feeling very excited. The process wasn't easy… opening a store is a huge project. Together with my team, I've worked really hard to get to this point."See more at:www.marieaustralia.com/formal-dresses-sydney | www.marieaustralia.com/formal-dresses-brisbane
Venny Mar 2016
Missing the trains, cars, and 3 AM bars. Excitement of the city, and the ache brought a pity. Of wanderlust she had once held in her hands and taken for granted. The adventure she had left there still overflowing in her heart. She had forgotten to appreciate the crowded avenues and beeping buses. The soft, gentle green grass of Central Park. The quiet and timid clink of silver spoons in coffee and tea shops. She missed the old rickety benches full of history and graffiti. The rough paved streets lined up with taxis. The food trucks overflowing with various smells calling your name. Even missing the loud taps of heels as businesswomen rushed passed her, to catch a meeting, a lunch date, a train. She realized what she thought she didn't want, was all she really needed. She thought she needed quiet and she thought she needed serene, but we all begin to realize nothing is what it seems. She knew what she needed to do, and she knew she would do it alone.  She would pack to go far, and get in a car,  going back to New York.... Her real home.

— The End —