For our Special Edition January 2021 Series we are talking about "Embracing Your Uniqueness and Individuality” with three dynamic and diverse woman who have carved a niche for themselves by showcasing authenticity, Sobia Ameen (Prominent Social Media Personality, Baker, Activist and Architect), Prejual Chakma (Model, Humanitarian and Social Media Personality) and Hridi Ahmed (Entrepreneur and Instagram Blogger).
Editor of The Bedroom Journal Magazine, Sarwat Zahin, interview these wondeful women to get to know more about their personal journey and dig deeper into their roots to find out what makes them confident in their own skin and the people they are today.
Sobia Ameen
Born and brought up in Dhaka, Sobia Ameen is an Architect turned baker with little to no background in culinary arts, yet her skillset is so refined that it speaks for itself. Fun fact - despite being a baker for years and constantly making desserts she doesn’t have as big a sweet tooth as much as her passion for swimming. She has been a swimmer in the swim team for years and in her words she is a “low-key mermaid who enjoys baking.”
What ticks the most about Sobia is her crazy humor, her spirited nature and the effortless charm that she carries with her never ending smile. She has always been into different forms of art in order to express herself through different creative mediums.
Although being your authentic self comes with a great amount of criticism, Sobia has been someone who has been open about her insecurities, overcoming them and voicing her views openly through her social media platform where Sobia encourages people by advocating “Stop apologising for who you are, you are worth much more than the world lets you believe.”
She took to Instagram on June 2020 to write an extremely inspiring note to her younger self talking about body positivity, issues she faced regarding colorism and in the end accepting the person she is. The note goes like :
“Your skin is not like dirt, it radiates like the golden rays of the sun. Your hips and thighs are not colossal, they hold you up like columns on the days you feel like collapsing. Your eyes are not too small, they are a gift inherited from an ancestor long forgotten. Your nose is not too big or too small, it helps you breathe through out the storm. Your body is perfect, thought sometimes you might forget”
When we asked her about what is it that defines her uniqueness and individuality she said to us “I think I’m very quirky as a person, I feel like I am deeply protective of the child within me that allows me to be this colorful and a cheerful person most of the time but I also have a very dark and morbid side that I try to cover up with my sense of humor because I do not think it would be socially acceptable to speak about them without adding an extra layer. I have struggled with insecurities of not being enough from a very young age whether it has to do with looking different or being different. It took me years of self work to get over it. I think I still struggle with self worth time to time but when I look at the bigger picture I am so proud of how far I have come, a lot of it has to do with the amazing support system I built my time away from home. Women being majority of it, have accepted parts of me that I had trouble confronting and helped me grow into the woman I am or in the process of becoming.”
When asked about how her journey has been of accepting and loving her true self, she replied “It has been a long and painful journey. Self work has to be the most difficult yet rewarding process of all. I still struggle to love myself for who I am, I have my own set of insecurities and I realise I am kinder to someone else with the same insecurities so I tell myself that I deserve to accept myself for what I might see as a “flaw” in myself but beauty in someone else. It is vital to know and be your true self. If not publicly, at least to know for yourself so that there is no resentment or regret of never truly having explored the deepest parts of you.”
Everything aside we can’t help but acknowledge, that even though she has gone through her fair share of struggles, she is someone who has risen to success as a baker and large part of it comes with being original on social media, through which her daily orders made digitally, now range from 4/5 premium cakes per day. When being asked on how she takes on to the pros and cons of the platform she answered saying “When I started, I didn’t know what I was doing and was posting about my daily life on social media. I did not know too much about Instagram and would only post once in a while. I started becoming more regular which resulted in getting a lot of opportunities. I realised I had a platform to express myself and I try to convey the values that I support with as much honesty as possible. The cons that come with being vocal can be threatening or just being public leads to a lot of invasive questions or even arguments (ones I refuse to engage in anymore).” On a lighter note she ends the conversation by saying “I honestly can not say I ever see so far ahead anymore, especially after the pandemic. The only certainty I see is being surrounded with more dogs.” when asked about where she see herself in the future.
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