The world of work is traditionally an arena where many women struggle to find the same level of success and respect as their male colleagues. The recent action taken in Hollywood toward equal pay for all actors, regardless of gender, highlights the international progress, but in India, there has also been a recent movement toward recognizing the achievements of women in a whole host of occupations. One example of the new wave of adaptable, ambitious Indian career women is Muskan Sethi. Trained in fashion journalism, social work and professional poker, she represents the modern Indian woman who can claim expertise in her area, many transferable skills and a steely determination to succeed.
The 27-year-old studied business and IT subjects in New Delhi before moving into the field of fashion at a university in the U.K. During her schooling years, she focused on the world of commerce and marketing but decided to change direction once she realized that this path was not right for her. Rather than concentrating on building brands and selling products, Sethi chose to move into social work. The extreme contrast between these two career paths goes to show how women can expertly transfer skills cultivated in one field over into something different and achieve success as a result.
Of course, the advent of the internet has opened up the international job market to women in a way that was never previously imagined, utilizing their ability to reuse well-honed skills. Beginning with online resources in the fashion and journalism worlds, Delhi-educated Muskan Sethi eventually went on to develop her online career in professional poker. She is now a high-profile female poker player in India, alongside Aditya Agarwal, her teammate.
Sethi is an excellent example of how the internet allows more freedom of movement between career paths and a wider use for transferable skills. Being able to use the internet in this way is especially useful for women as it is still difficult for them to achieve recognition as equally suitable candidates for a job alongside their male colleagues. Online work tends to be less biased and presents an opportunity to prove yourself on skill and capability alone as well as having an increased hand in managing your career.
Muskan Sethi can now bring her practical business training to her current career while at the same time raising funds and supporting the social causes close to her heart. Such a marriage between separate areas of interest is one of the best things that women have to offer the workplace: a desire to engage both with the fast-paced business of making money and being successful alongside investment in a more caring and nurturing arena. It is also one reason why Sethi was honored by the President of India, Ram Nath Kovind, along with 99 other women who have achieved success in a traditionally male-dominated field. It shows that India values women like Sethi and the unique contribution they are making to the working world.
Sethi is the perfect illustration of a career woman who invests as much time and energy into furthering her career as she does into her family and the good causes that remain close to her heart. Her meteoric rise to success over the past four years also goes to show that times are indeed changing, and women are taking advantage of these societal shifts to make their success. Sethi is now a recognizable face representing not only Indian women in international poker but also those women across the globe who are grabbing every opportunity and making it their own.