March 5th

March 4th

March 3rd

2009 was a big year for me. I went off the proverbial radar for a while to take stock of my life, had a good think about where I wanted to be, what I wanted to do and most importantly exploring the person that I am at this point in my life. I had some damning lows but it was the highs that made 2009 truly my year to shine. Without digressing too much from the point of this post, I’m just grateful for the growth, insight and well-being that has come of my experiences thus far.

In February last year, I wrote about a movie that inspired me to connect with my Indian-ness and it coerced me to consider visiting India to explore and connect with my ancestral heritage. I’m glad that I did because my first trip to India was my almost a right of passage in some respects. I discovered my link to India as the motherland and feel more enriched now that I have come to understand and accept my Indian heritage. it’s funny that whilst growing up in South Africa for the past 26 years, I have always never fully understood why I was categorised as being ‘Indian’. t always felt like a stereotypically offensive classification that I could never accept or belong to because I personally could never identify with the ‘India’ that was so dear to the generations that came before me.

Anjuna Beach in Goa

Don’t get me wrong, I celebrate the fact that my parents and their parents’ parents all could relate and identify with what they taught me was to be my distinguished Indian-ness, but never one to take anything lying down – I always questioned why we had to wear certain clothes or speak differently or eat really spicy food all the time…

To cut a long story short. Whilst in India, I was able to piece together why I at times have felt a certain uncomfortableness with my religion and cultural beliefs, and I, in turn also managed to come back home with a great deal of understanding for the rich culture and part of the world from which my ancestry hails.

I identified and relished in the fact that I got to experience a rich and fulfilling side of my Indian heritage as I had never before been able to, and I’m glad to say that it was a wonderful and moving experience. I am deeply grateful for my forefathers for deciding to take up residence in South Africa Leaving the only home you had to start a new life somewhere completely alien to one’s experience must not have been an easy decision to make, and I appreciate the sacrifices they made almost 150 years ago. If it was not for my forefathers whom I assume came to Natal, South Africa as indentured labourers, I would not be afforded the opportunities and freedoms of which I partake and am privy to in this day and age.

So for me, India was the best encounter I could have had as it not only opened doors for me to parts of my history that I thought was lost to me forever, but it also set me off on a new journey of self-discovery too. And this new start is one that I’m lucky and honoured enough to be sharing with my life partner and soul mate; one which all started very majestically in a village called Anjuna in Goa, India

More posts coming soon! Promise.

Another phenomenal brand for which I have just taken over the reigns. The Microsoft SA project holds much potential and with an already established fan base, taking this brand to the masses on social media networks is going to be insanely cool and a lot of hard graft, but I'm up for it and am really excited to be involved in such a well-established household name.

The Melrose Arch project is an interesting challenge for me, as working on such an elite and opulent brand has definitely made me take a step out of my comfort zone of being someone who does care about designer trends, and I have turned into quite the fashionista overnight to keep up with the brand's target market.

Working on the Gordon Institute of Business Science is a great way to start acquiring good business know-how. It is also an awesome brand to be involved in on the social media scene, as GIBS seems to be a one-of-a-kind educational institute in the current SA social networking environment.

A fairly new blog that I am Community Engagement Manager on. Gospel music is one of the largest and fastest growing sectors of the SA music industry, and Gospel Life is a thriving blog based around informing, entertaining and sharing great stories around this popular music genre, which is sponsored by Cell C.

A creative and fun FNB sponsored campaign that I have taken over this month. I enjoy the interaction and spirit of the community that has been watching Thomas do his thing inside the Connect Box.