By Lokesh Chawla

In life, a person experiences several firsts. Whether it is the first time you are riding a bike, a first kiss, or a first car. People are constantly exposed to new experiences. This has been very true for me. I have had many new experiences that have added to my “skill set.” My most recent first time endeavor has been that of working in a feminist organization called Feminist Approach to Technology (FAT), a not for profit organization working on multiple issues relating to women and girls (ranging from domestic violence to early marriage or any other gender related socially relevant issue) through the creative use of technology.

It is a very exciting, challenging and definitely one of the best working experiences I have had so far. On the first day, however, I did not know what to expect. I was very nervous and I anticipated the work space to be dull and boring because there are no other male employees in the organization with whom I could talk or connect. I can still remember my feelings: it was the last working day of the year (December 30, 2014). Since it was the end of the year, the entire team at FAT was in the mood of partying, gearing up for new year eve's celebrations. I wanted to attend the celebrations but due to my commitment with the previous organization where I was serving my notice period, I was unable to attend the big FAT new year party.

I was happy to note that I had officially joined FAT with the beginning of the new year. FAT’s team is a small yet vibrant bunch of young women in office. And now, me! All the team members are very diverse from each other, with each one of us coming from a different background. And this is what makes the FAT team a strong and powerful one that works best collectively. I was glad to know that I wasn’t the only new member—two of my teammates had also recently joined, a week or two before I did.

In the beginning, I expected that it will be tough for me to settle in this kind of a work space. Regardless of what our gender may be, we all need some time to adjust and adapt to a different working environment and a new work place. And  in my case, where all my teammates were women, I felt it will take more time for me to break the ice. Perhaps two or three months, to make myself comfort and win the trust to work in a team, where I used to feel like a minority owing to my gender identity. For instance, in my previous organization, it took me around six months to even strike a conversation with another female employee. I was actually clueless about how to act in a gender mixed team. I used to be very pensive and reclusive and was worried that I might unintentionally hurt someone with my words and comments.  

I still remember my first lunch break with the FAT team though: all of us opened our lunch boxes and started eating and within seconds, we were so comfortable that we began relishing each others’ food. Any question, doubts or hesitation that was there in my mind simply vanished. That was the first time I let go of my inhibitions and we started interacting with each other. Together, as a team.

The next day was like any other regular day. I started work again and realized I am one of them. We all celebrate together, we are always united and perhaps it is our fate that we are in a space that allows us to work on something that binds us all. I began working closely with, learning more as well as unlearning about feminism.  In the end, I just want to say it doesn’t take much courage to do something new in life and exploring newer ideas. Now, I am peaceful again and enjoy my work here at FAT.

Lokesh is a new FAT team member who handles admin and accounts of the organization.