This series features real and honest conversations with Southeast Asian women from Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and Brunei as a start, who identify with or feel connected to the Malay cultures of the Nusantara, also known as the Malay Archipelago.
In each episode, we will listen to the stories of these different women and explore what being a Nusantara woman means to them. What are our differences and commonalities? I hope this series will connect women across the Malay archipelago as we set out together to explore our identities and honour the various lived experiences shared.
Oniatta Effendi is a cultural entrepreneur and considers herself to be a proud "child of the nusantara". She is the founder of clothing line Baju by Oniatta and owner of Galeri Tokokita. Born and bred in Singapore, Oniatta has always had a love for artistry and was also an educator for over 21 years at various institutions.
She found herself drawn to batik on her many travels to different parts of Indonesia. Plenty of purchases of batik fabric later, she was spurred to share her passion for the craft and her desire to support the traditional ecosystem of this heritage textile. Her journey with batik has since brought her clothing line to Paris as part of a week-long showcase in Le Marais, initiated by Singapore Design Council in October 2021, together with 11 other selected Singapore brands.
In this episode, Oniatta opened up to me about her life as a mother to a teenage daughter who struggles with mental health issues. She also shared her thoughts on what being progressive means as a Nusantara woman and how we should elevate the discussion on race and identity in Singapore and beyond. This is a conversation about the value of introspection and the importance of taking stock of where we are because that’s how we can continue to grow. I hope you’ll enjoy and benefit from this conversation.
For more on Oniatta Effendi, you may follow her on Instagram -- @oniattaeffendi.
(Note: This conversation was held in English, some Bahasa Melayu and Bahasa Indonesia.)
31 Mar 2022
A Conversation with Nabeela Fadzil
Nabeela Fadzil is a multi-hyphenate who puts her soul in all that she does. She's a senior investment officer at Brunei's Strategic Development Capital Fund, a social media content creator who loves all things beauty and fashion, a part-time MBA student and a mum!
On top of all the incredible things that she does, Nabeela is also a breast cancer warrior after she completed her treatment in July last year. She shared that this experience definitely stopped her in her tracks but it became a reminder for her to pursue all that she loves and show up fully.
In this episode, Nabeela shared her breast cancer and adoptive parenthood journey, as well as her story of being a Nusantara woman. During this conversation, Nabeela and I also connected through a common lived experience which she shared that truly transcended national/ geographical boundaries and in that moment, I felt completely seen and heard. It was profound. I hope you’ll enjoy and benefit from this conversation.
For more on Nabeela Fadzil, you can follow her on Instagram -- @lipstickmyname.
21 Mar 2022
A Conversation with Dillah Zakbah
Dillah Zakbah is currently the Creative Director of global ad agency BBH in London. She has over 13 years of experience in the innovation, experiential and social space and has produced some of BBH’s most award-winning projects for global brands like Google, Nike and Netflix. In this episode, Dillah took us back to where it all began for her - being a toilet janitor and shared plenty of tips, advice and insights on how she has designed her life and gotten her to where she is today. She also shared her frank and honest thoughts on the importance of representation and how Singapore’s creative and media industry still has some way to go to be more diverse and inclusive. Dillah is incredibly inspiring and truly lives up to her name which means the light of justice and equality! I hope you’ll enjoy and benefit from this conversation.
For more on Dillah Zakbah, you can follow her on Instagram -- @dillyrious.
(Note: This conversation was held in both English and some Bahasa Melayu.)
11 Mar 2022
A Conversation with Anis Nabilah
Anis Nabilah is a celebrity and TV chef from Malaysia and was the youngest chef to be featured on the Asian Food Channel. With over 17 years of professional cooking experience and a variety of awards under her belt, Anis shares candidly and honestly about having to shed parts of herself and her identity for her job and talks about her journey towards loving and accepting herself fully. For more on Anis Nabilah, you can follow her on Instagram -- @anis_nabilah.
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