In Conversation With Avanti Nagral, Listening To Her Remarkable Story On International Women’s Day

From the boardrooms to the battlefields, from laboratories to living rooms, women today are not merely making strides but are rewriting the narrative of empowerment, resilience, and progress. On this International Women’s Day, we want to salute women in every corner of society who are owning their space with unparalleled grace. Fortunately, on this exemplary occasion, we have the pleasure of sitting down with Avanti Nagral, a multifaceted artist and content creator who is on a mission to challenge societal norms through her music, stories, and conversations.

From a very young age, Avanti Nagral did not narrow herself down to societal stereotypes, both because of her progressive surroundings and her inherent awareness. Drawing inspiration from her diverse background, Avanti’s influences are reflected in her impactful work. Join us as we speak to Avanti Nagral about her women, the impact of women in her life and the need for building a strong community.

SN: What do you think is the best part of being a woman today?

Avanti: A woman in today’s world has the opportunity to choose. For many centuries we were boxed by the roles that they play, but in today’s world, we are so much more than that. The freedom to choose who you want to be, why you want to be, and how you want to move through this world is amazing about being a woman today.

SN: Specific to your life, how did this freedom to choose weave into your choices while picking up education or even picking up work?

Avanti: In my life, I am really grateful for the opportunity to choose and that honestly comes from a lot of women before me who’ve paved that path. Both my grandmothers were doctors and that paved the path for me to pursue all the opportunities that I wanted. 

It takes people creating and building that supportive community and you pass that on. I think too many women fall into the trap of scarcity where we only see ourselves represented in small percentages and so we assume that there’s only one spot for us and we get competitive with one another but in my opinion, rather than focusing on that one spot, let’s focus on creating as many spots as we can together because that’s the only way we will all rise with each other.

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SN: Speaking of the women in your family, you create a lot of contact with your Aaji. How did that start exactly?

Avanti: Back in 2020 which is around when I started the digital content space, I decided to be in India because I wanted to be close to my grandparents. Unfortunately, my baba, who was Aji’s husband, passed away and I got to spend more one-on-one time with her. We connected actually through the media.

We started watching a lot of Marathi films together and she would choose films that had very interesting topics such as drug abuse or complicated relationships. Once I had her watch the music videos of WAP and Anaconda. I placed my phone just to capture our memories and it turned into a conversation about objectification, women empowerment and our rights to our own bodies. 

We just started having conversations and she’s a natural in front of the camera. Now a few years later as her memory is starting to fail her more as she’s 91, it’s been nice to just sit, even if we don’t end up putting it out on the internet, I think for her it helps her collect her memory and be in a space where she feels like she’s able to answer with grace and recollect things.

SN: How did your grandparents and your parents influence your decision to take up music or then later pick up digital content creation?

Avanti: All of my grandparents were norm breakers in their time. Both my parents, they’ve also had different paths. I’ve seen all of them, my grandparents and my parents, go through their own journeys and I don’t think it was necessarily that that inspired me to do art but it inspired me to choose and it inspired me to not just fall prey to routine and what society presents to you.

I’ve been doing art and music since I was very very young and it’s been something that’s helped me through multiple health challenges. I’ve trained in Indian Classical, Church, Broadway, Gospel and theatre. All of these things came from the support that I had were people allowed me to choose.

I never thought I would be in the digital content space to be very honest. I thought that I would do something in the health or education space and figure out how to combine the arts with it, but I recognise that media is that bridge today. If you want to create impact and you want to especially connect with young folks and build community, you have to be here because that’s where everybody is.

SN: What are some issues you’re deeply passionate about?

Avanti: There are several, but I think the first is bodily autonomy meaning every single person should have the right to their own bodies and to understand their own bodies. Learning about your bodies through the lens of sexual health and sex education. Second, being able to move through this world in a way that you’re not discriminated against your biological sex or your gender on the spectrum. 

I care very deeply about mental health and health in general. Learning how to do basic first aid and CPR or understanding our own emotional and mental self, is important. 

SN: These thoughts that you have are extremely clear. Was it education predominantly that inspired this level of awareness in you, or have you always been somebody who seeks out how you can contribute to society?

Avanti: It’s a little bit of both. The fact that I am extremely aware of the privileges that I’ve had, I recognise the educational opportunities that I’ve had are not there by accident. I’ve lived exactly half my life between the US and India, my grandparents are from four different states, I’ve never felt this unique connection to one thing, and so as a result moving between places you constantly have an outsider perspective and as a result you’re able to see things in a different light. 

I’ve had a lot of personal health difficulties I was born with a heart condition I had a brain virus that affected my vision a lot of different things happened but I’m okay now and in all of those situations I had access to healthcare, that’s mostly because my family also had access to money to pay for that healthcare. I never took that for granted because I knew somebody in a different situation would quite literally not be here. 

It is also what pushed me toward art and music because I remember specifically this brain virus situation. It affected my vision but it also partially affected my memory. The only thing that I kind of remembered was music and it kind of gave me that outlet and so I knew from that moment on that I wanted it to be a huge part of my life.

 I’ve been given these privileges, I want to make the most of them and hopefully live a life where I continue to bridge that gap where more and more people can access that and even at the basic level of awareness, conversations understanding and then beyond that hopefully actually creating something more impactful in the long term 

SN: What’s the one piece of advice that you received from your mom that you carry to date?

Avanti: Many things! My mom is famous for her one-liners but I think one thing that stood out to me and has helped me in my work is, she said, the onus of bridging the generational gap lies on both or all generations. For example, if you as a young person don’t let us into your world, how will we ever understand what it is that you’re trying to say and vice versa? When I was navigating this new world, this new job they understood because I explained it to them.

SN: Your inspiration for your music is your Father, can you tell us a little about how he treated women around him that made you and became a benchmark for you?

Avanti: It’s funny to me that my dad did not grow up with any female siblings or cousins because of how gentle and kind of a person he is. He learned from his environment and I think his mom being a working woman and honestly the breadwinner helped shape that opinion because I think he saw women as autonomous individuals and not accessories to a family. 

I would attribute a lot of my independence and independent thinking to my dad actually because you know I have a brother and he was very clear about making sure that we felt very equitable in our treatment when it came to absolutely everything. He is someone who is quiet but holds a lot of respect and I think that’s the first thing I learned. Honestly, the first thing I seek out in any kind of relationship, friendship, romantic relationship or otherwise is respect, because love is super important but respect, if that doesn’t exist as a foundation then that’s really difficult to build. 

SN: What role do female friendships play in your life?

Avanti: Growing up most of my friends were male and I think that honestly comes from the scarcity mindset I was talking about earlier. I had female friendships growing up but they were very few. When I got to college I met so many amazing women who are so secure within themselves and I think we had this mutual ambition and support which was beautiful to see. Over the last couple of years is when I feel like I’ve truly become a girl’s girl because I now have girl groups which I’ve never had in my entire life.

What I love about the digital space is there’s so much emphasis on collaboration and I’ve met so many amazing people through collaborating with them. I am super grateful for all of the early adopters who showed people it was possible to build a community from scratch and leverage this new space to allow all of us to do it in our own unique ways.

SN: If you could send a message to the 10-year-old Avanti today at this date, what would you tell her?

Avanti: 10-year-old me was not in a great place and I think at 10 is when I probably had some of the most intense bullying experiences of my life. One of them ended with me being chased with a saw because of which I had put myself into some sort of a victim mentality. I would tell myself to stand up for myself more, to appreciate others around me and just to know my own worth.

SN: What would you tell your future self?

Avanti: I don’t even want to calculate my age 10 years down the line at this point. (Haha) A message to my future self would be, ‘Whatever it is you’re doing, I hope you continue to use your voice in all its ways. I hope you’re continuing to keep the community at its centre. If you’re at that stage where you have your own family and other responsibilities, remember to take care of yourself too.’

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As we conclude our conversation with Avanti Nagral, it’s evident that her journey is not just about breaking barriers but also about building bridges. From her upbringing in a family of trailblazers to her relentless pursuit of the greater good, Avanti embodies the spirit of a strong woman. As we celebrate International Women’s Day, let us take inspiration from Avanti’s story, recognising that the freedom to choose, to create, and to challenge norms is a journey we all embark upon together.