If success is a juicy mango, why did I eat it so self-consciously?

I am India’s first woman CCO and now a recovering ex-creative chair. I have won around 180 metals for eight projects in the last seven years. But why didn't this juicy mango taste all that sweet?

Is it because it was too much for one person?

Or is it because it was too much for a woman? 

One must work hard for fame, and then minimally claim it, almost apologetically. That’s what this industry has taught us women. A woman’s modesty is her jewel, not her award.

For the first 22 years of my career in JWT, I never entered or won globally and was often told, ‘We are going to decide bonuses with global wins. Yes, you are taking Horlicks, Slice and Maggi to the marketplace, but are you taking your brands to Cannes?’ That was the big appraisal question.

The years in FCB were different from day one. My boss and champion Susan Credle wanted me to take my work to the world and put the might of Fred Levron and the global council to work with me on my case studies. That's how the big bang began!

My Cannes debut was a big celebration within the walls of my office because it was the first for me and FCB India. But when it happened the 2nd, the 3rd, the 4th, the 5th, the 6th and the 7th time the celebrations grew quieter and quieter. Because, the organisation began to get concerned about everybody who could be hurting with my sudden career glow-up. Meaning, those who said things like, ‘But has she won on Horlicks in Cannes?’ ‘The real win is when you make others win, and not win it for yourself every year,’ or 'Swati has become the diversity doll of the west.’ 

These are some of the things that I regularly heard through the grapevine.

Organisations feel compelled to protect the egos of hurting men. Women are supposed to be given a chance, but the dance is for the men alone.

A woman's success doesn't just have a glass ceiling in the office, but at home too. How much can a mom go on about her glorious work day? With men, it is different, because they keep their gold dust on their bodies, in spite of showering. Mothers on the other hand have to leave their cape at the door. I mean, close your eyes and imagine saying congratulations to your mom 200 times, how exasperating would that be, even for Shravan Kumar.

So, I decided not to inflict my success on my young daughters, I began to choose the wins that I wanted to bring to the dining table. For a dinner out with ma and my girls, it had to be a Grand Prix, Fusion Pencil, Yellow Pencil, or Clio Grand. I decided to mention the gold wins casually, and maintain radio silence for silvers and bronzes. There were days when I was so amazed at what all I was doing - strategy, creative work, and servicing. Then on some days, I would be asking myself, ‘Am I the most selfish person I know?’

It's 2024 and still when I enter a room full of advertising big daddies, I start to feel like a menopausal debutante, like I have just begun.

 My friend, Paromita Vohra explained it the best when she said, ‘Women are made to wrest power from each other instead of the real beneficiaries and hoarders of power - the elite gents.’

True, and that's why we are in the women's lists, women’s rooms, and women’s mentorship platforms, but rarely in the industry power list.

There's such a limited imagination of a woman’s success that when we get it, we don't know where to keep it. Close or far? Visible or invisible? Do we verbalize or just fantasize?

Only when we know our strengths, do we become inconvenient to our organisations. So, step into your strengths ladies, instead of agonizing over your genius. You are not lucky, you are smart. You are not just bathing, you are swimming. Tell yourself this every morning.

Our success is our biggest dare. so don't get shy like I did for a bit. We are shattering the glass ceiling of opportunity, so now, let's shatter the glass ceiling of success.

Own it.

Don’t let anyone else define it.

Eat it like a juicy mango, dripping from all your fingers.