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Juggling career and family is nothing short of an art. And women are influencers who have mastered multitasking and prioritizing to get it all done. In today’s society, women are faced with questions like, “What’s the point of having children if you love working so much?” Or “Shouldn’t you be spending all your time looking after your kids as they need you the most now?” Why call mothers who work as working moms but dads are just men who work! Women are more than just mothers. But motherhood is the only label that society likes on women who have children. Here are 6 women who showed us that you can be a mom… and other things too.
1. Mary Kom
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The nickname Magnificant Mary completely holds true for this Olympic boxer from Manipur. Time and again she proves why she is considered the best of the best. She made history by becoming the first ever woman to clinch 6 gold medal titles at the Women’s World Boxing Championships. She is a mother to 3 kids and is able to balance the demands of both career and family, and exceptionally well at that.
2. J.K. Rowling
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The idea of Harry Potter struck her when she was riding a train to London from England one night in 1990. Her story is one for the movies. She was struggling financially when she was writing her book. A single mother, and battling depression at that time, her finished manuscript was rejected by a number of publishers before it finally got a book deal in 1996. After the book got released, it started selling like crazy. It was followed by movies which were box-office hits, plays, and even a theme park. She is also a philanthropist and has been vocal about free expression, social exclusion and her stand against censorship. She is a mother to her three children, Jessica, David, and Mackenzie.
3. Madhu Chopra
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The famous mother of Priyanka Chopra has served the Indian Amry for the longest time as a physician. Did you know that she was also a certified pilot? She is also a businesswoman and a film producer. Madhu Chopra has always been on her daughter’s side every step of the way through her journey. In fact, she was the one who sent her daughter’s pictures to the Miss India pageant of 2000. She didn’t ever force her daughter to get married and has been the biggest supporter of her career. She had been actively involved in the wedding preparations of her daughter Priyanka Chopra to the American singer, Nick Jonas. Priyanka Chopra considers her mom as a superwoman and her biggest influence.
4. Sania Mirza
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Sania Mirza is a name every Indian is proud of. She has secured the number one position (doubles) in the 2015 Tennis world rankings and is the first woman from India to do so. She burst on the scene as a top teenage tennis player winning several tournaments in India before making it big at Wimbledon by winning the Girls’ Doubles title. Despite going through a rough phase in her career because of a wrist injury, she came back stronger than ever in the Grand Slam tournaments. She gave birth to a baby boy in October 2018. She is now hustling hard to return for the Summer Olympics in 2020. And we can certainly say that we can see more of her in the coming years conquering new heights in her career.
5. Shonda Rhimes
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Shonda Rhimes is the queen of your primetime television if I might say so. She is a creator, writer, and executive producer. Who can forget the strong women-centric roles like Meredith Grey and Christina Yang of Grey’s Anatomy? She didn’t disappoint us with the political thriller series Scandal either. In one of her interviews, Shonda Rhimes said that if given a choice, she would rather choose to raise a stubborn girl over a nice one. She was open about getting help to balance her work and being a mother to her 2 kids as she believes it’s unfair to let women assume that she is doing everything all by herself. More power to her!
6. Neena Gupta
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Neena Gupta is a name that has been in the film industry for over 37 years now. She has won the National Film Award for her role in Woh Chokri. She has a daughter, Masaba Gupta from her relationship with Vivian Richards, but they never got married. The single mother broke all societal norms when she decided to raise her daughter on her own. Masaba is now a very well-established fashion designer. In one of her interviews, she talked about how hard it was to raise a child outside of marriage even in today’s time. We agree not much has changed even now, and being in the minority, she managed to raise a strong independent girl just like herself.
Women today are abandoning the outdated concept of what it means to be a mom. They are more than just caregivers to tiny people. Women always feel the need to reassure everyone that they, in fact, care about their children just like anyone else if they achieve something professionally or don’t look for an alliance as soon as their daughter hit their 20’s. It’s high time we realize that motherhood is also about achieving success in the professional front or supporting the kid’s sexual preference or raising a kid on their own without a man’s help.
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