APARNA THAKUR, AGRA

CATEGORY: SOCIAL WORK

Aparna has won a medal in International Martial Arts Championship and awarded as 2nd Dan Black Belt, along with winning numerous national championships in martial arts too. After her masters in English literature and business management, she started working as an international tour manager in London for European countries.

This role required her to do a lot of research on the social system, religious beliefs, culture and also lead Aparna to open her mind and start noticing the unequal status of women in India. She wanted to help the downtrodden women of India and make them feel empowered. Aparna had indepth knowledge about their life and sufferings. She returned back to India, two years ago and devoted her life to do something for the women in India. Aparna came forward and started the “Pink Belt Mission”. She aimed to give every woman SELF - strength, confidence, respect and esteem to be able to see this world as a safe place for them to live.

It’s a revolutionary mission for women, which makes them a Certified Self Defender. Aparna believes, “strong woman make stronger the humanity, society, nation and the whole world”. In her sessions and workshops, she gives women training on selfdefense, nutrition and menstrual hygiene, digital awareness, legal rights and, good touch and bad touch. Molestation, sexual assaults and eve teasing acts can occur to any individual irrespective of age, size, time and place. Hence, learning self-defense for every woman must be mandatory, according to her.

Pink Belt Project provides the participants a great selfconfidence and an emotional, physical, mental booster for life and develops in them an understanding that they are not less than anyone. NOMINATED BY MOHIT KUMAR