"I decided to let my work do the talking.”
Vineeta Singh, Shark Tank judge, has opened up about her battles with sexism in the business world.
The entrepreneur currently appears as one of the seven ‘sharks’ on Shark Tank India, the new reality TV show airing on Sony TV.
Vineeta Singh is the co-founder and CEO of Sugar Cosmetics.
Based on BBC’s Dragon’s Den, Shark Tank India is a show on which budding entrepreneurs pitch their business ideas to a group of self-made entrepreneurs and seek their investment.
In a post shared by Humans of Bombay, Vineeta recalls her journey as a female entrepreneur when she faced casual sexism.
Vineeta said: “I invested my own money and even got funded!
‘But being a woman in a ‘man’s world’ had its challenges.
“Once, an investor refused to hold a meeting just with me. He wanted to have the business talk with a ‘man’.
“But I decided to let my work do the talking.”
Vineeta also recalled how her love for running kept her sane when her business faced setbacks.
The entrepreneur added: “I continued to run.
“I even completed the Ironman Triathlon!
“That win kept me going, especially when the company ran out of funds.”
Vineeta Singh described how she would juggle work and motherhood, from pumping breast milk, working out and handling office calls.
She said: “At times I’d be pumping breast milk, working out, handling office calls, and hoping to not wake my son up.
“I’d have sleepless nights, but I loved what I was doing.
Vineeta mentioned that despite her achievements, people still question her choices.
She further added: “It’s been 5 years since; we’re now a team of over 1500–75% of which are women!
“And I’m continuing to do everything I love.
“I run my company, I’ve run marathons even when I was 6 months pregnant and run circles around my children.
“Still, people question my choices.”
“I’m often asked, ‘How will you raise 2 kids and run a company?’
“But why is it so tough to believe that a woman can play more than 1 role?
“I walk into the office with my files in one hand and my baby in another.
“The juggle is real, but it’s also totally worth it.”
Vineeta appears as a judge in Shark Tank India alongside Ashneer Grover, Namita Thapar, Aman Gupta, Anupam Mittal, Peyush Bansal, and Ghazal Alagh.
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