We would like to kick off this week-long series of interviews with Dr. Angana Bhattacharya who is a Consultant Paediatrician with special interest in Development Paediatrics. She is also the Lead Doctor in Safeguarding Children and has over 25 years of experience of dealing with child health, both emergency and chronic, and parental communication in India and UK. Additionally, she supports Parental workshops in Communication, Autism, and behaviour. She is also an Author of Publications in peer reviewed journals and International Presentations along with being a teacher and Ex Examiner.

In your opinion what does it mean to be an empowered woman?

“An empowered woman, in my opinion is able to make choices and decisions about her own life freely without external pressures. They have power and control to lead their own lives fully without having to listen to what they should do or is good for them”.

How important is health in the context of women empowerment?

“As we rush through life taking care of a hundred and one things, women tend to keep themselves at the bottom of their own priority list. When we are taking our life and future in our own hands, it’s very important to keep health at top. You cannot enjoy a productive, fruitful life if you are plagued by worries about your health, be it physical or mental. Empowerment and independence go hand in hand; losing control over one’s body will endanger that independence. So, a truly empowered woman will consider health very important and take the right decisions regarding it”.

Do you feel women should be celebrated on all days and not just today?

“I don’t think the purpose of International Women’s Day is to celebrate women for a day only. It’s a chance to remember all that has been achieved by the women trailblazers in the face of insurmountable hardships.
It’s an opportunity to remind ourselves and learn from each other, acknowledge and get inspired by women leaders, past and present.
It is an everyday process but having a day devoted to the cause raises awareness and underlines the purpose to many people at same time across the globe”.

What would be your advice for all the women today?

“Listen to your heart only, don’t listen to the naysayers. People will have their opinions; you have yours. You don’t have to be someone or something that others expect you to be.

Dream big, work hard, take responsibility for your choices, and live them”.