Rachna Dandwani sure-footedly converted her dreams into reality and today works as Associate Engineer – Flight Physics with Airbus – the international aerospace giant.
Clarity in professional ambition is something that many adults lack even after completing their academic pursuits and joining work. However, a class 8 student knew exactly what she wanted to become when she grew up. She was intrigued by the idea of building satellites and designing aeroplanes and dreamt of becoming an aerospace engineer.
Machine Maker spoke to Rachna about her inspiring journey, the ‘speed breakers’ therein and how she overcame all odds to be a role model for those who have the will to dream big, especially if they are girls. Here’s why.
Family support
One can sense Rachna’s gratitude to her parents for the way they brought her up. “My parents never held me back from doing anything,” she says. “They have been really supportive. They don’t discriminate between girls and boys so they raised me that way. They are really proud of me and have always been very accepting of my career decisions.”
With the home front being such a strong foundation, Rachna’s college life turned out to be a testing ground of sorts – where she learnt to make the most of any given situation despite the gender-related odds.
No level playing field
Rachna explains. “There was a rule in my college (RV College of Engineering, Bengaluru) that girls would not be allowed inside the campus after 6 pm. We had our classes from 9 am to 4 or 5 pm.”
She was frustrated with the time constraint. “You can’t give us one hour to be as productive as the boys who stay on the campus to work in technical teams.” There should be level playing fields, feels Rachna, emphasizing the need for at least some more time on campus if not the same as enjoyed by the male students. She could not understand why there were four hostels dedicated to boys on campus and three for girls, all out of the campus. “If you are so concerned about girls’ safety, why can’t you keep the girls’ hostels inside?”
Being the Mission Manager in a technical team ‘Team Antariksh’, Rachna felt the pressure of not being given adequate time to do her job. Even though she needed to stay back after college to discuss the project management aspects of her team with the college administration, she could not do so after 6 pm. This was the plight of the girl students despite being 1/3rd the class strength. “This is not just happening in my college but in other colleges as well.”
Rachna belonged to the second batch of aerospace engineering in her college, the first that was approached by Airbus during campus placement. She is modestly practical about getting selected. She feels lucky to be ‘in the right place at the right time’. The callousness of a few people appalled her when she was told that she had been preferred in the interview BECAUSE she was a girl when she was selected along with a couple of male friends.
All about theory
Bias and campus placements apart, Rachna dwells on the fact that engineering focuses primarily on theoretical education. “There is still a big bridge that has to be built between the theoretical and industrial ecosystem. Unless that is done, it is very difficult to ask big companies to come and set up their manufacturing or advanced engineering plants in our country.”
She is glad, however, that her college is trying to upgrade manufacturing, structural and mechanical laboratories, which she says, is not being done by other colleges, even though an engineer needs to undergo practical experience as well as theoretical. A holistic approach is missing as well, she adds while observing that there are two parallel streams running in research and engineering. She observes a disconnect between the research she did in the past and her current work in an industrial environment. However, she feels she is learning to bridge this gap while working for Airbus, a company that has a healthy work culture.
Stand up for your dream
Rachna introspects on mindsets. “We have all grown up in a society where roles are subconsciously demarcated as per gender. If a fan doesn’t work, obviously it’s the man who has to step up and repair it. If there’s a festival, obviously the girl has to do the decorations.”
After her intense learning experiences, Rachna feels everything should be based on merit regardless of gender. Equal opportunity actually means removing the gender bias that exists and not introducing it. After all, demand for equality is about sharing equal opportunities — not getting special privileges. Gender inclusiveness is about sharing the right opportunity. She affirms, “I am not denying that biologically the genders are different. If I demand equality — that is really the equality of opportunity.”
So, her advice to the boys out there is: “You can always be there for your sister, mother and friends. If you decide that you will not be gender-biased then I believe half the problem is solved. You have to consciously make those choices.”
For girls who want to pursue engineering:
If you really want to do it, JUST GO FOR IT. Do not listen to others. If you don’t stand up for yourself, no one is going to do that for you.
If you believe there are no rules in gender, there will not be.