A couple of weeks ago, a few of us gathered to watch Pink Attidute's 2021 Awards gala online; this was its sixth event and the first gala of its kind in Canada. This organization is also the first non-profit organization in Canada where women of South Asian origin are empowered to achieve their full potential in their chosen endeavours. Its board consists of a cross-section of professionals with a shared vision of making a difference in this under-developed area. Pink Attitude aims to recognize and celebrate the significant achievements of South Asian women and young adults in their communities, in Canada and internationally through a series of awards. The recipients are recognized as leaders who have overcome personal and professional obstacles and made meaningful contributions to a wide range of fields. Each year the gala recognizes the exceptional artistic, professional, personal, political, and economic achievements of "Game-Changing" South Asian women who shatter barriers while inspiring and empowering others to be prominent leaders. Past honorees have included Manjit Minhas, CEO & Co-founder at Minhas Breweries, Distilleries & Wineries, Hon. Bardish Chagger, Leader of Government House of Commons, and Samra Zafar International speaker, to name a few.
This years winners are: (Reference: Pink Attitude Awardees 2021) Leadership Award Recipient: Fatema Dada - Counsel, Ontario Human Rights Commission Fatema Dada is a Windsor law graduate and currently holds a spot on the board of the Canadian Muslim Lawyers Association. She spent ten years working at the Crown Law Office, specializing in civil litigation. Fatema served as a Senior Policy Advisor to the Attorney General, and is currently a council member on the Ontario Human Rights Commission where she specializes in racial profiling and discrimination within policing. During her free time, she enjoys exploring the art of photography and dance and is a self-professed tree-hugger. Fatema is also an executive member of SMILE Canada, an organization that supports children with disabilities in minority communities. Inspiration Award Recipient: ElsaMarie DSilva - Founder of Red Dot Foundation ElsaMarie DSilva left a successful career in aviation in order to found her company, The Red Dot Foundation, a non-profit Mumbai based organization that works to combat sexual violence and harassment against women. As CEO of the company, she worked to cofound Safecity, an anonymous reporting platform that tracks reports of public sexual assault and harassment and maps the data; the platform has risen to become one of the largest of its kind in India. Rising Star Award Recipient: Nav Dhillon -Senior Fraud Technology Consultant & Founder of iCollective Nav Dhillon is an MBA graduate from Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto and is currently involved in leading delivery programs in CIBC's Technology and Fraud Management lines of business. After being involved in a freak accident that cost her half her eyesight, Nav founded iCollective as a platform to share her story and others alike in an attempt to reduce the stigma surrounding disabilities that women in the South Asian Community often face. She focuses on subjects such as vision loss and its effects on mental health as well as breaking down outdated beauty standards. Innovation Award Recipient: Vasanti Cosmetics Driven by the lack of South Asian representation in the beauty industry, Pinki Gosal, Monal Patel, and Gargi Patel Cofounded Vasanti Cosmetics in 1998. Their brand quickly become a coveted Canadian beauty brand that delivered skincare and products for all skin tones, types, and ages. In response to the Covid-19 pandemic, Vasanti cosmetics ceased the manufacturing of their makeup products and shifted to producing hand sanitizer to alleviate the shortage we experienced at the start of lockdown. They also launched a social media campaign called #WeSeeYou in order to support and raise funds for front line healthcare workers. On April 24th members of the Excelsior club attended a clothing drive organized by Kidsplay. The event attracted members of the South Asian community in the hopes of helping those struggling through these especially hard times. At this event we held and sponsered a raffle giving those who donated a chance to win a copy of the book, “Stories For South Asian Super Girls," a best seller that features a powerful combination of inspiring biographies and beautiful illustrations by South Asian artists. With a strong message of female empowerement resonating through the stories it’s the perfect book for young girls. Fifty copies of the book were given out, 25 of which went to the raffle and the other 25 were given to the Kidsplay volunteers in hopes of them passing the treasure trove of inspirational stories on to other members of the community. |