You've heard about becoming CEO for a day, what about becoming the British Deputy High Commissioner for a day? Two girls, one from each of the two Telugu-speaking states, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, got really lucky in this regard. While V Sneha Deepti from Visakhapatnam already availed the chance of becoming the British Deputy High Commissioner, for Nayonika Roy from Hyderabad, the opportunity is right around the corner. Both the girls submitted a one-minute long video wherein they spoke about gender equality and more and were selected for this programme. We find out how the girls feel about the programme.
Nayonika Roy
I see myself as someone who fights for equal rights and I believe I am on the right track
Nayonika Roy, Content and Communication Officer, Voice 4 Girls
Though born and brought up in Ranchi, Nayonika Roy came to Hyderabad to pursue a Master’s in Gender Studies and ended up staying on in the city. This 23-year-old youngster works as the Content and Communication Officer for Voice 4 Girls, an NGO which believes in empowering young girls with education and the skills they need. Nayonika comes from a household which does not discriminate between her and her brother. Even daily chores were equally divided between them which shaped her thoughts on gender. “My idea of gender equality does not concern upliftment of women alone. It’s more to do with bringing both the genders on par with each other and doing away with any kind of discrimination between them,” says Nayonika. On D-Day, she hopes to talk about three major topics — education and equal opportunity for all girls and a violence-free society. While about the future, she says, “I see myself as an activist who works for the betterment of all genders,” she says.
V Sneha Deepti
Sneha Deepti, Civil Services aspirant
V Sneha Deepti is preparing for the civil services examinations at Brain Tree in Hyderabad and has pursued her BA from St Joseph’s College For Women, Visakhapatnam. The 21-year-old had applied to become the British Deputy High Commissioner for one day last year as well, but this year, she got to live the experience. On the morning of October 10, when she essayed the role, her exciting day in Visakhapatnam started with an interactive session with the members of Magic Bus, an NGO which works with underprivileged children. Then she visited the HSBC office where a discussion about gender parity issues at the workplace ensued. “The video I sent to apply for the programme was also played,” she recalls. But the day wasn’t over yet. From there, she visited another NGO, Generation Yuvaa which works on different problems of the society and her last stop was the Red FM office, where she was interviewed by an RJ and the programme was aired. “At the end of the day, I understood how hard diplomats actually work. Hats off to them,” she said. The programme helped Sneha overcome her stage fear and instilled in her the need to work with an NGO in the future. “In retrospect, I felt privileged and grateful to be a part of this programme,” she concluded.
