There is a prevailing belief among people that “it is rare to find a girl with beauty & brain”. Is it so hard to find the two features in a single girl? Are majority of beautiful girls dumb and unintelligent? Or are intelligent girls often less beautiful? Most importantly, how do we define beauty?
To find answers to our questions, we approached the girls of IIM-Rohtak with an intention to understand their perception on the topic. Our presumption was that since all the girls were part of the premium IIM fraternity, they would naturally be intelligent. In fact, we were intrigued to find that among the batches, the average performance of girls in academics as well as in extra-curricular activities was better than the boys.
We asked them several questions, and it was fascinating to see how the girls of IIM-Rohtak were challenging the age-old beliefs and standards by which girls are often judged or categorized. The highly aspiring girls of IIM-R presented us a whole new outlook.
The girls at IIM-R are redefining the old perceptions about beauty and intelligence by adding new dimensions. As Confucius states, “Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees it
For instance, Sanjali Jain, a student of pgp05 batch and a member of Placement committee, states that there are certain qualities that give an edge to girls. She believes that girls, especially Indian girls, find their strength in their culture. Quoting the example of Indian mothers, she said “We have been raised in such a way that we often prove to be better micro-managers than boys and hence are able to manage multiple tasks,” she said. She adds that beauty is not about externalities as often perceived, but it is how you feel from inside. She describes her success mantra as “being genuine”.
Vijayshri Kumari and Ritu Goyal adds that girls have an inherent ability to look into micro details and hence are able to manage efficiently everything from being presentable to studies and even extracurricular activities, all at the same time.
Sheetal Lakra, topper of 3rd sem pgp05 batch who is also a very good cricket player, states that categorization of girls into “beautiful” and “intelligent” is itself wrong. “Neither is beauty limited to physical appearance nor is intelligence subjected only to scoring good grades,” said Sheetal. Apart from that, intelligence quotient in girls is a direct result of emotions, which helps them take more humane decisions than boys. She describes her ambitions as her driving force and adds that the healthy competitive environment of IIM-R brought the best out of her.
On being asked how they managed to carry off stunning personalities with good academic performace, Sonal, a fresh engineering graduate from Lucknow, said that girls from their childhood are considered to be more sincere and responsible, compared to their male counterparts. This responsible attitude actually helps them give importance to everything, whether it is looking presentable or securing good grades. She added that beauty is not just limited to looks, but there are many other dimensions attached to it. People perceive beauty according to their limited understanding, constraining it to looks and external features alone.
Oindrilla Chatterjee says she feels immense pride in being a girl and says that inner beauty is of utmost importance. But at the same time she values the person who is presentable as well, as it shows respect towards what you are working for. She gives importance to overall personality development, more than just bookish knowledge or studies. Intelligence is when we develop our personality to make use of the knowledge we have learnt, she adds.
The girls at IIM-R are redefining the old perceptions about beauty and intelligence by adding new dimensions. As Confucius states, “Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees it”; we need to come out of the prevailing dogma that judges the beauty of girls solely based on her physical features. The fact that girls are able to manage so many things with efficiency is itself beautiful. Why limit beauty to her physical appearance?
Iqbal says :
“Wujood-e-Zan Se Hai Tasveer-e-Kainat Mein Rang
Issi Ke Saaz Se Hai Zindagi Ka Souz-e-Darun”
(The picture of the world gets its colour from the presence of Women
She is the music that impart warmth to human life”)
*Pgp05 = fifth enrolled batch
*pgp06= sixth enrolled batch
