21. Ninorah Fernandes-Brookshire - a varied and eventful life

There’s so much to talk about with this week’s guest, Ninorah Fernandes-Brookshire and I’m delighted to have her on the show. Nino is the co-founder of NRI Women, a platform supporting non-resident Indian women across the world. It has now grown to be a community of over 3,000 women living in a multitude of countries. You’ll hear Nino talking in this episode about how Indians traditionally "do not like to air their dirty laundry in public" as she puts it, but moving internationally away from strong family and community connections is HARD, and the organisation aims to support and nurture women through the transition and challenges they may face. Earlier this year Nino and her co-founder and friend Bettina started the NRI Woman podcast, showcasing the stories of Indian women abroad and telling their stories to a wider audience. 

Nino also co-founded the Naya Jeevan foundation with her husband Edward, an NGO that partners and supports the work of the Rescue Foundation, a multi-award winning charity based in Mumbai that fights human trafficking of girls into prostitution. The Rescue Foundation, led by an engaging and determined woman named Mrs. Triveni, a former investigative journalist, has so far rescued over 5,000 girls from prostitution all over India, pursuing prosecution for their pimps and captors, and rehabilitating these girls through education, healthcare and counselling. Numbers are hard to gather accurately but NGOs estimate that somewhere between 20 and 65 million Indians are trafficked year. Men, women and children are trafficked for diverse reasons but the abduction of girls and their brutal forcing into prostitution is a major problem. 

NinO has lived around the world and has a wealth of stories about her fundraising by walking a frozen river in -25C conditions, running a marathon in someone else's shoes (literally), her business, Nindi Bindis and her passion for tribal belly dancing. This is a varied and ranging conversation that I really enjoyed so have a listen now! 

Links

NRI Woman 

Website: www.nriwoman.com 

Instagram: www.instagram.com/nriwomanpodcast 

Twitter: www.twitter.com/nri_woman 

Facebook: www.facebook.com/nriwoman

Naya Jeevan Foundation

Facebook: www.facebook.com/nayajeevanfoundation 

www.rescuefoundation.net

Nindi Bindis

Instagram: www.instagram.com/NindiBindis 

Facebook: www.facebook.com/NindiBindis