30-year-old Anjana is a rule-breaker and a trendsetter. The world was busy criticizing her for being too fat. Rather than feel disappointed and give up, Anjana decided to participate in a modelling competition and ended up winning it!
Everyone has big dreams when it comes to having a career. Money, success and being famous is what any girl would want. And they choose the careers accordingly too. There are so many career options available for girls today,and we hear so many inspiring success stories of women in different professions.
What makes Anjana different is that she converted her life's most significant challenge into a career opportunity for herself!
But it was not easy for Anjana. Being a fat girl meant being a subject of a joke many times.
Anjana was always on the heavier side as a child. Other children in school made fun of her. She was constantly insulted for being fat and overweight. It was not easy for her to wake up every day, go to school, listen to nasty comments about her weight and come home sad and unhappy.
Criticizing people based on how their look and the shape of their bodies is called body shaming. Anjana experienced this body shaming in school as well as college. It was a difficult childhood.
Even relatives used to criticize her without thinking how would a small child feel.
Going to family gatherings was painful. Holding a plate of food in hand was risky. It just meant someone would come and give her a lecture on her weight and make her feel bad.
Being a plus-size model in a world that appreciates slim and thin people
But as Anjana grew up, she did not let her weight come in the way of her dreams. Instead, she started wearing plus-sized clothes specially designed for people on the heavier side.
As her confidence increased -- she started adopting a healthier lifestyle. She started yoga, running and even joined a belly dancing course.
Along with all this, she decided to participate in a modelling contest meant for people who were plus size.
"I knew if I could perform on the ramp, I stood a chance. And there was no better platform to spread my message of body positivity. I wanted to tell women that they are beautiful, no matter the size or colour of their skin."
Anjana ended up winning this competition and became a model for a brand that designed plus-sized clothes -- it has all plus sizes such as - large, extra-large, extra extra large and so on.
After that, there was no looking back; Today, Anjana is a successful plus-size model and a great belly dancer.
Choosing a career is not always easy. There are some careers like being a plus-size model that people are not even aware of. It is good to go for career counselling to get more information on the different career options available today.
