Panel Discussion on "Lifestyle & Wellness" - 3rd Women Conclave By Bharuch District Management Association (BDMA)

Date: 26/11/2021

Venue: Online

Organiser: Bharuch District Management Association (BDMA)

The Women's Forum of Bharuch District Management Association organized it's 3rd Annual Conclave on 26th November 2021, in the form of a Panel Discussion.

The Theme of this Annual Conclave  was "  LIFESTYLE AND WELLNESS ". Its touched upon all aspects of Wellness : Physical, Mental, Spiritual, Emotional, Social as well as Environmental.  

WELLNESS is defined as "The quality or state of being healthy in body and mind as a result of deliberate effort" .  The emphasis is that one has to create it for oneself by consciously designed and passionately pursued LIFESTYLE. The theme is meaningful for all age groups, all genders, professionals and otherwise. 

Personalities from all walks of life were invited to share, how they defined wellness and how in their journey of life, attained wellness. 

After the welcome address by Sh. Harish Joshi, President, BDMA, the Vice President of BDMA Sh Pravindan Gadhvi introduced the activities conducted by Women’s Forum. This was followed by Ms Punam, Chair, Women’s Forum, talking about the relevance of organizing a conclave on the given theme.  

The Key note address was given by the Guest of Honour, Sh R Shiva Prasad, Director - Corporate Programs, The Art of Living Foundation. The Inaugural address was made by renowned playback singer, Padma Shri awardee Dr Anuradha Paudwal . Sh R Shiva Prasad highlighted how important it is to attain an equilibrium between body and mind which in turn affects emotions and actions. He emphasized the aspects of Timing, Quality and Care with regard to the use of body and mind and how meditation helps. Dr. Anuradha Paudwal emphasized that amidst everything one does in pursuit of attainment of wellness, how appreciation for the good qualities in others and how making small contributions to the community around us brings simplicity which in turn makes life enjoyable. She emphasized that success is feeling good and motivated about the small small achievements one makes in life. She gave a discrete emphasis on the necessity of a feeling of satisfaction ( Trupti ) in all directions and actions of one’s quest. 

After the Inaugural address, we had in series, three sets of Panel discussions on all aspects of wellness namely i) Physical Wellness, ii) Spiritual, social and emotional wellness as well as iii)Psychological wellness.  

In the first panel, Dr Annie Kuruvilla, Professor , Foods and Nutrition, M S University, guided on nutritional value of the variety of foods that we consume and how they contribute to wellness. Dr Vinay Vora, a world renowned ayurvedic doctor, shared how important it is to co-relate what we consume and how much we consume with what time of the day we consume food. Both of them shared that recognizing the science behind this will help us in preventing diseases and keeping healthy in body and mind.  Ms Priyanka Amar Shah, founder of ikheti, emphasized that co-existing with nature/ environment is the key to a sustainable lifestyle/living. When one enjoys doing what they do and persistently continues doing so, one feels physically and emotionally energetic. The first panel discussion ended with Ms Manisha Dialani , Founder, Manisha’s Food Products, emphasizing on an optimal input of nutritious diet clubbed with proper exercises to be made as a way of life. 

The second panel discussion had speakers on spiritual wellness, emotional wellness and social wellness. Dr Subhash Yadav, Associate Proessor, Narmada College of Management, shared the details of  8 Rasas-emotions, as  enumerated in our classical literature and the related emotions we experience in our normal  state of living and how the 9th Rasa – Shanta Rasa- which  is a Rasa of  our core self, is always present as the substratum in our experience of the 8 Rasas and is always untouched by the surroundings. He emphasized how Wellness comprises of Jnana, Bhakti and Karma in that order.  This was followed by an address by Ms Rashi Anand, Founder of Lakshyam, who emphasized on the need to co-exist with the people and environment around us. She said true wellness is from within when we positively touch the hearts of others, impact others’ lives positively. She further emphasized the need to be committed to our passion which in the long run is sure to bring wellness to us. This then was followed by an address from Mr Nisheeth Mehta, CEO, Microsign Products. He emphasized on the need for a learning attitude, a need for appreciating what others can do. According to him, lifestyle is basically the choices one makes for a one’s body , mind and soul, following the process of being a trustee of one’s belongings, inspiring one to give happiness to gain happiness. He is a believer of Karma Yoga and believes that good actions always lead to satisfaction and therefore a feeling of wellness. This panel discussion ended with the address by Dr Dipti Joshi, a psychologist and CBT therapist. She beautifully presented her point on how both, positive and negative emotions are to stay, and it is for us accept and honour both and have a positive reframing of our negative emotions. A right balance between heart, mind and body, she says, is the way to achieve wellness. 

The last panel discussion focused more on psychological wellness which comes from following one’s passion and enabling others to discover their strengths and passion as well. The discussion started with Ms Arti Patel, Actress, Producer and Writer. She very lucidly put forth the importance of prioritizing, having honest and open communication as well as disciplining oneself. She emphasized on the need to remain grounded, working hard, continuously learning and training oneself in the attainment of what one enjoys doing.  This was followed by a very sensitive touch by Mr Gaurang Raval, founder - Sauhard, to what can lead the youth to essentially discover their true passion and live it through to get a feeling of wellness.  He set forth a very critical need to allow the youth for questioning, allow them to make mistakes, allow them to express freely, allow them to spend time with themselves. According to him, keeps the youth away from the FOMO effect ( Fear of Missing Out) and helps create a SAFE SPACE for them to identify their passion. He believes that moving from self to a psycho-social society is the key to improving one’s wellness quotient. The last session on this panel was by Ms Vispy Kharadi, an expert in Marshal Arts and a 7 times Guinness World record holder. He emphasized that there can be no short cut to knowing one’s strengths and passion. It has to be learnt through self exploration and expert guidance. Having discovered that, disciplining and consistency are very critical. The only measure of one’s destination of life is that what makes one feel good. And when what one does what one enjoys, hard work also seems simple, meaning that the plan that works for you is the best plan. Following this plan is then the key to attaining wellness which can be retarded by none – not age nor time. 

These Panel discussions were very effectively moderated by Ms Chaitali Thakore, Co-Chair, Women’s Forum and Mr Manthan – Head HR, Perstorp. The MOC of the event was Ms Yesha Sheth. 

The event concluded with a Valedictory Address by Dr Trupti Samir, Chair, 3rd Women’s Conclave organized by the Women’s Forum of Bharuch District Management Association.