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MAIN SHOW_ Bela Bajaria FULL ACCEPTANCE SPEECH
Variety
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10/25/2024
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Transcript
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00:00
I'm not going to thank my mom because I'm actually going to talk about her.
00:04
So that's later for you, mom, not yet.
00:08
So standing up here today, I'm thinking about my two great-grandmothers.
00:15
So one got married at the age of 13 and the other got married at 14.
00:20
Neither of them finished secondary school because they had to do household chores and
00:24
help with the family.
00:26
That was the expectation for many girls in rural India.
00:31
Things were a little bit better for my grandmother and my mother, but they were also expected
00:35
to skip college and get married, which they both did at the age of 20.
00:41
That didn't stop my incredible mom, Reko's here tonight, from creating an extraordinary
00:54
life.
00:55
She and my dad, immigrants to America, built successful businesses together.
00:59
She also went on to build a Hindu temple and open a domestic violence shelter here in Los
01:05
Angeles.
01:11
But she did it all in spite of her circumstances, not because of them.
01:16
And even though my family moved to America when I was nine, I too had to push against
01:21
traditional Indian gender expectations.
01:25
As Jay said, I failed because I'm not a doctor.
01:28
I think it turned out fine, so don't worry.
01:31
The point is, though, my daughters are the first women in my family to have the freedom
01:38
to forge their own path.
01:40
I know they don't take it for granted.
01:43
They understand, as does my son, that they stand on a lot of people's shoulders, including
01:50
my mothers and great-grandmothers.
01:53
And they know plenty of women aren't so lucky.
01:56
Around the world, millions of little girls are born with the same brilliance and potential
02:01
as little boys.
02:03
But as they grow up, they learn that their future is more limited, mostly because they
02:07
just don't have the same access to education.
02:11
In many countries, girls are expected to spend more time than boys caring for younger siblings,
02:17
feeding livestock, or walking miles to fetch clean water, which doesn't leave time for school.
02:24
In other places, families just can't afford to give their daughters an education.
02:29
Right now, 122 million girls are still out of school.
02:35
Room to Read's girl education program is working to change that.
02:40
Because keeping girls in school is the best way to empower them and give them a choice
02:45
for their own future.
02:48
Data shows that girls who finish secondary school have smaller and healthier families,
02:53
lower HIV infection rates, higher wages, and are more likely to educate their own children.
03:00
And that, to me, is a really powerful thing.
03:03
That means that stops some kind of cycle, right, eventually.
03:07
So a few years ago, my daughter Rami and I visited Room to Read schools in Tanzania and
03:12
Cambodia.
03:13
The community of girls was amazing, but we were especially impressed by the adults supporting
03:19
them called social mobilizers.
03:22
These local women, employed by Room to Read, support the girls from 6th to 12th grade.
03:28
They're part mentor, part big sister, and part social worker.
03:33
They help girls become advocates for themselves and discover their own power.
03:39
Because they're part of the community, they also build trust with parents and community
03:43
elders.
03:45
Because prioritizing an education isn't about rejecting your community or your culture.
03:52
It's about strengthening your community and your culture.
03:55
And when women have financial influence, each dollar goes back into the village or the family,
04:01
which makes society stronger.
04:05
So I can't go back in time and give my great-grandmothers the freedom to live their own lives and chase
04:12
their own dreams.
04:13
I sometimes do wonder what those dreams were.
04:17
But what I can do, and what we all can do, is make sure girls growing up today can discover
04:21
their voices and have more control over their lives.
04:26
That's what Room to Read is doing, and I am so grateful to Variety for giving Amy, Carol,
04:33
Zoe, and me a platform to celebrate and support the causes we care about.
04:39
We tell stories to entertain people, and these stories help people feel seen and heard.
04:47
By honoring us tonight, you're doing the same thing, making sure these amazing organizations
04:53
get the recognition they deserve.
04:55
So thank you to everyone at Variety for this lovely honor, especially Michelle, Ramin,
05:02
and Cynthia, who I've known since we started in the business together.
05:06
A big thank you to my friend, Jay Shetty.
05:11
Let's hike.
05:12
I mean for real, not LA hike, like real hike.
05:16
Thanks to my family and community for the strong foundation.
05:19
Thank you to my mom, who models all that is good in the world.
05:23
And to Doug, Rami, Sophia, and Enzo, you are my whole heart and then some.
05:28
Thank you so much.
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