Hello ELSAs!

New year wishes from ELSA EC 2019. We hope that the year ahead is full of promise and hope and peace!

The ELSA has been busy over the last two months with many different activities, and we thank all the ELSAs who have been a part of these activities, with all their energy and enthusiasm.

38 beautifully saree clad ELSAs got together in Gurgaon City Club, Phase IV, to meet the new ELSA batch Reps. Good food, lots of merry making, good old Antakshari and a quiz about sarees and weaves made for a wonderful winter afternoon spent together. And the sarees were stunning!!! All handloom, all exquisite, our commitment to the sustainability of handloom weavers.

ELSA welcomes the new Batch Reps, who will help us to reach out to and connect with more ELSAs across the batches.

ELSAs, Manisha Priyam and Shehla Hasan, took part in the 7th Annual Clash of the Titans debate organized by the Hindu Ex Students’ Association, between six prestigious colleges of the Delhi University at the India Habitat Centre. The topic was ‘Social Media Poses A Threat To Democracy’ and representatives of the alumni of six prestigious colleges shared their views.

The event was well covered in the media. Kudos to Manisha and Shehla for representing and participating in this prestigious annual event!

ELSA EC gave a boost to the Global Mentor Network (GMN) by asking for ELSAs to come forth and register themselves as Mentors or Protegees under the Global Mentor Network, open only to ELSA lifetime members. The EC’s call for GMN has received a great response.

Please look up the ELSA website for the mentorship categories we had shared and choose the one you would like to seek mentorship for http://www.lsralumna.org/elsa-mentor-project.php

The EC is planning a series of events under this program, such as webinars, mentorship walks and much more. The invite for mentees is still open and you can send your names to become a mentee to admin@lsralumna.org by Jan 7, 2020.

ELSA EC organized a Heritage Walk with renowned historian, Sohail Hashmi. More than 20 ELSAs, some of them with their families, walked the roads of Mehrauli water bodies and Zafar Mahal together, listening to stories and anecdotes, appreciating architecture and design, clicking some brilliant photographs, and enjoying a crisp winter morning with hot, spicy bread pakoras, kachori and garam meethi chai!!! Some even stopped and bought some brilliant gajak and moongphali ki patti! Bhai wah!

Stay tuned - we have more such interesting walks coming up!

It’s time to be a Boss!
ELSA Talks In conversation with APURVA PUROHIT

ELSA Bangalore hosted a highly contemplative and often hilarious ELSA Talks session with Apurva Purohit, President of Jagran Prakashan on November 14 at Yugen Art Studio in Bangalore. Apurva recently launched her second book, ‘Lady, You’re the Boss!’, focused on helping women achieve their potential, in the workplace and beyond.

In her freewheeling talk and book reading, interspersed with personal anecdotes and wise advice, she stressed on questioning our conditioning, taking charge of our choices and not being held back by status quo, stereotypes – from the ‘seductress’ to the ‘pet’ to the ‘mother’, and insecurities. She said that it was time we create new, nuanced managerial styles that is relevant to today’s woman. Apurva also spoke passionately about the Imposter Syndrome that leads women to doubt their accomplishments and stop them from being ambitious and effective in the workplace.

Apurva’s talk resonated at multiple levels for attending ELSAs (a full house with over 30 participants) who animatedly added to the discussion with their own stories and learning. “There was a lot of learnings and takeaways, because of the high degree of resonance in these issues and also the discrete points that each of us is on in our journey,” said Yumna Hari Singh.

The spirited conversations ran long after the session was over, fueled by chai and the delicious cake baked by Anjana Ajit to celebrate fellow ELSA Sahana Das’s birthday.

Some of you may not know but we have an active LinkedIn page 'ELSA - Lady Shri Ram College Alumni Association' and we request you to join the page. Please note this will soon be a members only page by Jan 31, 2019.

• Webinars
Under the Global Mentor Network initiative, the EC will be hosting ELSA E-TALK webinars on topics related to women in leadership, strategies to advance career, building personal brand, work life balance, issues at work and how to resolve and many more such interesting topics. There will be also a series on 'ELSA Woman and Her Story' by accomplished alumnus who will share their story and their journey to reach where they are today. Stay tuned for more updates on our social media on this topic. If you know about someone whose story or whose experience would be a great topic for a webinar, please write in to admin@lsralumna.org (Attn. to Sunetra Vijaykar, VP-ELSA EC)

NOTE: The first webinar details are out! Save the date - Jan 10 at 3pm to join us for the webinar on Prevention of Sexual Harassment at workplace by Adv. Kiron Prabhakar. Link to register for the event:

http://lsralumna.org/elsa-e-talk-webinar-january2020.php

• Basant Bazaar

February brings with it better weather. And it brings the Basant Bazaar by ELSA in collaboration with Dastakar- celebrating artisans and handicrafts from all over the country. ELSAs, come one, come all. Fill the Bazaar with your colorful presences, make handicrafts self sustaining and purchase bits of india to take home with you. Waiting to see you there!

The dates for Besant Bazar are - 22nd,23rd, and the 24th of February, 2020

• Get to know your car workshop
ELSA EC is planning a ‘get to know your car’ workshop with Nidhi Salgame, of Wander Beyond Boundaries Fame. She is the first one to drive solo to Siberia, on the Road of bones. She will take a workshop for lifetime ELSA members, who wish to learn more about their cars and become more movement empowered!!

• ELSA talks
TravELSA Amritsar
21-23 Feb 2020– A a specially curated trip to Amritsar is being organised in February 2020, especially created for travELSA by Elsa Kishwar Desai, Chair Partition Museum, Amritsar. The trip includes the Golden Temple, Jallianwala Bagh and of course the Partition Museum, all five minutes walk from each other. This is a 2-3 day trip as there is lots to do in Amritsar.. from sight seeing to shopping it’s all been packed in.

• Upcoming in Bangalore
Sunday 19th Jan 2020. We bring in the new year with a fun family day. “Let’s Have a Picnic”!! elsabangalore@gmail.com

On behalf of the ELSA family we warmly welcome our new members