Who wouldn’t love to work on a Monday when the day gets to start with a brewed coffee in the beautiful lounge of Hotel Marriott? 

I was scheduled to meet Jagrati Shringi, the CTO, and Head of Online Marketing, Voylla.com – India’s omnichannel platform which deals in exclusive jewelry and accessories.

We shook hands and placed ourselves at the corner of the lounge, enjoying the pool view of the hotel. I immediately decided to keep the chat to the point after I saw her donning a corporate-ish look and carrying a laptop bag along. Maybe, she had a meeting to attend right after ours!

Little did I know, I was about to erase this insight within two minutes. She initiated the conversation by telling me about her kids and how interesting it becomes to handle work with family. This chat went on for an hour or so. And during this time, I realized how this woman from the tech-world is the epitome of the kind of females we talk about in JWB.

My parenting style is guilt-free.

There are days when I reach home extremely late. Sometimes, I am traveling and don’t get to see my family for days. But I don’t feel sorry for not being around, and therefore, I don’t tag myself as a Bad Mother. I reschedule my official meetings to attend my kids’ school tournaments and PTMs. I know exactly when and how the family becomes my priority. My parenting-done-right formula is to read to my sons and play WWE with them. Reading is a ritual ever since their early childhood. We read one book in two days. Amazon India has started me sending books as gifts, already!!

Being a working woman.

This label comes with lots of burdens. Being one comes with a lot of responsibilities. And, when you are married, it becomes a balancing act. I cut short my social life because, after work, I prefer staying with my family. Call it a sacrifice, but I do it without any regret. You can call me Calculative as I invest my time wisely.

People expect me to feel distressed. Instead, I take pride in being a working wife/mother. One of my sons wrote an essay during a school competition wherein he expressed how proud he is of his mommy. He wrote, “My mom doesn’t bake cookies; she bakes programs!” I think it was wonderful.

Outsourced-Parenting.

I invented this term. It signifies my team back at home that takes care of my kids when I am not around. Women are very hesitant in asking for help, especially the working women.

To look strong, we assume that asking for help will make us a coward or weak. It’s foolish. I happily let the kids’ grandparents take up the responsibility during my busy hours. For me, this act strengthens the family bond. What’s not to love in Outsourced Parenting?

Searching for a house maid is a Community Project.

Another beautiful aspect of working in India is the love you receive from Thy Neighbors. When I shifted to Jaipur, I was in a search of a maid. I guess, I asked my immediate neighbor if she knew one. The other day, I got calls from so many people residing in the colony that they had found me a maid. Indians are warm and lovely.

Women in the tech world are brave AF.

We are treated badly. I, for one, had to work twice as hard as any male Engineer. I was supposed to prove my skills, whereas things came easy for my fellow male colleagues. I am glad all that happened because it made me push myself a little extra. While communicating with my clients via e-mail, they would assume a Mr. Shringi speaking to them. Typically, having a woman techie around was not common for most of them.I was told some terrible things like “You don’t look like a nerd, how you landed this job?” and “How do you do the hardcore protocol writing, isn’t it tough for you?” I take comments like these as my source of encouragement. This could help me win the Best Employee of the year for three consecutive years in my ex-company.

Working with husband.

It’s tough to pretend that we are not husband and wife at work. Couples who announce that they stay like professionals while working together are lying. Where on one hand, slamming the doors over a heated argument is common, eating the lunches together is also a custom. You can’t imagine the kind of fun we have doing the eyestalks during meetings! Ha-ha!

Power dressing.

In school, I was a beauty contest winner and the news somehow got floated in the college. To maintain a low-key, I began dressing-down. With time, I forgot to dress myself up; and when I joined my first workplace, I quickly realized I had to buck up. Today, I love wearing pencil skirts, mid-length dresses, and shift dresses. I think, it comes with one’s job-type. Red is my color, the color of power! Other times, I love wearing blues, whites and peaches.

We love how Jagrati is working out the “working mom” scene in Jaipur. She is one of those few who are bridging the gap between the “Ideal Worker” and the “Ideal Mother”.