Zameen Se Asmaan Tak: Desi Women Owning Their Dreams

A poetic, inspiring wrap-up for the month—celebrating South Asian women who are confidently building lives bigger than what anyone expected.

@diet_paratha

She ate them UP. This International Women’s Day, we’re honouring Mallika Sherawat for this crazyyy read of Indian media hypocrisy nearly a decade ago. Exposing the deep, systemic misogyny ingrained in our society. The backlash she faced was insane. The media dragged her. At the time Priyanka Chopra described Mallika’s critique as an “extreme representation of our nation” and called her comments “callous” saying she didn’t agree with her perspective in a clip that didn’t age well. Looking back, it’s great reminder of how of far we’ve come with the accessibility of information and education, thanks to social media and the internets evolution. Growth should be encouraged. We must normalise changing our stance when confronted with new perspectives and deeper truths. 
Women’s Day isn’t just about celebrating women—it’s about demanding women’s rights. It’s about calling out the systemic failures that continue to endanger women every single day.
It’s clear how ahead of her time Mallika was in addressing the realities of gender inequality in India. Long before conversations about feminism and women’s rights became as mainstream as they are today. 
She challenged an industry that often sought to silence women who spoke too boldly, and in doing so, she paved the way for the very discourse that many now embrace. The criticism she faced serves as a reminder of how difficult it has always been for women to speak truth to power. Especially when those truths are uncomfortable.
Ten years later, what has changed?
We need more than conversations. We need action. We need accountability. We need change. And we need more women like Mallika Sherawat. Thank you for paving the way. #iwd #bollywood #mallikasherawat #womensrights #womensissues

♬ original sound – Diet Paratha

She was told to stay grounded.
To be “practical.”
To not take up space, not dream too big, not ask for too much.

“Shaadi ke baad kar lena.”
“Log kya kahenge?”
“Beta, thoda kam socha karo.”

But she didn’t shrink.

She looked at the sky and whispered,
“Main bhi toh asmaan hoon.”

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This month on Boss Beti was more than a content series.
It was a reclamation.
A declaration that South Asian women don’t just survive expectations—we exceed them.

Whether you’re chasing a dream, building a brand, healing a wound, or just beginning to believe you deserve more—you’re already rewriting the narrative.

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🌱 The Girls We Were. The Women We’re Becoming.

@seeratsaini_

Im so sick of the narrative that indian women are not beautful…and this whole “great shift” narrative makes me want to scream lol. We’ve BEEN STUNNING

♬ original sound – Seerat Saini

We grew up with quiet ambitions.
Secret journals. Hidden hobbies. Hushed “what ifs.”

We were the daughters who were told:

• “Don’t be too loud.”
• “Modesty suits you better than ambition.”
• “You’re too sensitive / too smart / too much.”

But look at us now:

• Pitching ideas in rooms that once felt intimidating.
• Wearing our roots with pride in places we were once told to hide them.
• Saying yes to dreams and no to limitations.
• Becoming the women we needed to see growing up.

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🚀 Dreams Don’t Need Permission—They Need Protection

https://www.tiktok.com/@briipatell/video/7115564339964398894

Owning your dreams in a South Asian context isn’t always easy.
You will face resistance. Raised eyebrows. Silences louder than words.

But here’s what confidence sounds like:

• “This dream is mine—even if no one else understands it.”
• “My worth is not tied to tradition, timeline, or approval.”
• “I am allowed to evolve.”

You don’t have to choose between culture and ambition.
You can carry your roots and reach for the sky at the same time.

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💫 You Are the First, But Not the Last

@theconsciouspsychologist

Don’t get me started on how racist the Indian community can be towards other racial groups, but that’s not what I’m discussing in this video. #racism #racismawareness #southasian #southafrica #southafricatiktok🇿🇦 #indian #brown #desi #psychology #therapy #therapist

♬ Éphémère – Tony Anderson

Maybe you’re the first in your family to:

• Say no to a pressured engagement.
• Pursue art over engineering.
• Speak openly about your mental health.
• Wear your culture with intention—not obligation.

But you won’t be the last.
Because every boundary you break becomes a path for another girl to walk through more freely.

Every time you rise, you lift others with you.

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🌙 Zameen Se Aasmaan Tak—And Beyond

This is for the girl who started a business from her bedroom.
The hijabi who dominates her field.
The dreamer who dropped out to start over.
The writer who finally published her story.
The mother who’s parenting with intention.
The daughter who dared to want more.

You are the revolution.
You are the storm in a silk saree.
You are the calm after years of surviving silence.

Your dreams are not too much.
Your timing is not too late.
And your story is not over.

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So dream in Urdu, Punjabi, Tamil, Hindi, Gujarati, Bengali, or English—
Just don’t dream small.

Because from zameen to asmaan,
This world wasn’t ready for you.

And that’s exactly why you’re going to change it.