"When I was 10, I saw my mother washing white clothes using Rin soap. When I understood that the soap would clean them and make them look more white, I immediately started washing my face with the soap believing that it would make my skin lighter. After all, if I were fairer it would be easier for my family to find me a groom when the time came for me to be married.

When my father found out what I was doing and why, he was very amused. Then he pointed out that if I want to achieve great things, how I look doesn’t matter. What matters is what I do. I took this lesson to heart and as an undergraduate, I discovered an interest in theatre and started writing. I went to Pune to study Law and promoted Hindi street plays in a Marathi speaking state. I not only wrote the plays, but also directed and even performed in the plays.

All of this brought my leadership abilities to the fore, so much so that I even won the Best Leader Award for a project in Bihar. Today, I fight for the homeless and indigent people of my state and champion the cause of the landless. When I win a case for them, even the middle-aged run to touch my feet. I stop them, of course, holding them close to me in a warm hug that reiterates that we are all equal"