Archana Surana, the Flag Bearer of Global Mentoring Walk Jaipur since 2010, is organising this year’s mentoring walk on March 5^th to celebrate International Women’s Day.

The Mentoring walk is commenced with the purpose to empower women of the city. Under this, mentors and mentees walk together in the city’s Central Park, where the mentors guide their mentees on the professional and personal fronts. The mentors are allotted to their mentees as per the latter’s interest areas so that a better understanding and relationship amongst them can be developed.

On Feb 26th, an orientation session was organised at the ARCH Academy of Design for the registered mentors and mentees.

After attending the session, we spoke to Ms. Archana Surana and the committee members about this year’s Mentoring Walk.

Me: How many women are participating in 2016’s Mentoring Walk?

Archana:  We are aiming at 200 women. 100 mentors and 100 mentees from all walks of life will together mark this year’s Women’s Day. But since March 8^th is a working day, we are conducting the event on March 5^thso women can join the walk without any stress of home and office.

Me: How is 2016 message going to differ from 2015’s?

Archana:  This year is going to be grand concerning the number of women participating, and the sponsorships we have received. It’s all the more empowering because 87 walks across 57 countries will take place on the same day i.e. March 5^th! In this way, about 10,000 women will be uniting for the cause.

This is the 6^th year we are organising Global Mentoring Walk in Jaipur, and I am happy to announce that it’s been organised by Women’s Mentoring Forum. As the Flag Bearer of the walk in Jaipur, I have set up this forum which engages twenty-five influential women of the city to encourage and support women leadership at career and professional front through peer mentoring.

Me: Wow, that’s great! Who will be the guest of honour this year?

Archana: Well, Suman Sharma, the chairperson of the Rajasthan State Commission for Women, has consented to be a part of the walk.

Me: I am intrigued, please tell me about your first mentor.

Archana: My first mentor was Andrea Jung, former CEO & Chairwoman of Avon Products Inc. She was also listed in Forbes Magazine’s ‘100 most powerful women’. She has been a part of Avon Foundation for women and has mentored many women from various fields.

I have also been a mentee of the Vital Voices Bank of America Global Ambassadors Program mentored by Geraldine B. Laybourne, a Media Icon & Co-Founder of Oxygen Media with Oprah Winfrey.

Me: That’s inspiring! Back to the Mentoring Walk, tell me about your expectations from the mentees.

Archana: The foremost thing for a mentee is to have clarity of what she wants for herself. She should beforehand write her goals and the areas in which she needs guidance. In this way, it will become easy for her to seek advice.

Me: Well, that’s true. And, what are your guidelines to the mentors?

Archana: (laughs) See, the most challenging thing for mentors is to be heard. At the orientation program, I always suggest Mentors to first become good listeners in order to know what the mentees are seeking. And in turn, they will be heard, too.

Me: Apart from the professional guidance, what else women seek through this walk?

Archana: That is the beauty of this mentoring walk. It’s not just about their professions, career, or personal life. As women, we tend to understand the psychology and emotions of other women by empathizing with them. 

Committee Member: Women participants join the walk without any fear of being judged. They are less hesitant and hence, speak openly about their insecurities to their respective Mentors who guide them without any prejudice.

If you wish to enrol for the Mentoring Walk 2016, the registration is open till March 2. The registration fee for a Mentor is Rs. 500 & for a Mentee, it’s Rs. 300. For Registration contact Arch Academy of Design on /02/03 or .

Photo Courtesy: Pallav Bhargava