Blank Noise Office Notes

from the team over the years.

Eeshita Kapadiya

The Blank Noise office is an exciting and stimulating workplace and one that constantly encourages you to extend your abilities. As Community Coordinator, I had a multi faceted role where I engaged and worked with a community of Action Sheroes, Heroes and Theyroes and also acted as assistant to the organisation's director. As part of the Blank Noise team, I took a deep dive into organising community, co-building public events and interventions, co-designing communication strategies and assisting community led research. At Blank Noise, not only was I propelled into a personal journey of building capacity and taking ownership of the issue, but also learnt to enable a space for persons who wished to do the same. Working at Blank Noise is about stepping in and doing what it takes to build a global movement, one that is intersectional and built with collective effort.

DAMAYANTI SAHA :

Working at Blank Noise, I was able to listen to and learn from thoughtful and sensitive feminists.  It gave me space to reflect on my own convictions and think about what I want to say and why, to be deliberate with my language and communicate my ideas and politics. I reflected on my responsibility to educate members of my caste community and work on making visible what has been invisibilised in our families, communities, and institutions. I often tended to put forth my side of the argument on social media as content to be consumed, and often assumed that my audience would not be understanding towards me. I would be defensive about my ideas, ready to justify myself in long arguments with strangers. However, I learnt the importance of engaging with a community, asking questions, reflecting together, and creating space for a process of understanding. I learnt that assuming empathy and willingness to listen from the audience and giving it in return as well is important to build solidarities and a safe space where everyone can connect their personal journeys to that of the larger community. This entire process of communicating helped me clarify my own thought processes to myself as well.

Damayanti has worked at Blank Noise between October 2020- January 2021. Damayanti contributed to building anti caste consciousness through research.

Somya Mata

Working with Blank Noise has been a very enriching experience. It has made me unlearn, relearn, and question my own assumptions. It has made me understand the work that goes into movement making, community building, and bringing a change. Before starting work at Blank Noise, I used to think in theories and academic jargon. Working here has made me realise that people's experiences and their voices are paramount and should be given more importance. 

The working environment is nurturing, I was always encouraged to share my opinions and voice my questions, participate in deciding the next course of action, and even talk about what I felt needed to change.The best part of my learning experience here has been that I was never asked to limit myself or limit myself to doing what I already know. Instead, I was given the opportunity to gain new skills which added onto my development as a professional and as a person. When I made mistakes.

The best part of working here is that at Blank Noise you’re never just an employee, but you become an Action Shero/Hero/Theyro.

- Somya Mata has been a past intern (2020) . Somya has worked at Blank Noise as a Research Associate in 2021.

Abhaya Tatavarti worked at Blank Noise for one year between 2020-2021.

Abhaya Tatavarti

I first came across Blank Noise when I was a 12-year-old, and looking for organisations that worked in confronting sexual harassment in public spaces. I followed the work of Blank Noise since then (2007), and became an Action Shero Volunteer in 2018. I joined the Blank Noise Office team in 2020. Throughout the evolution of my engagement with Blank Noise, my interest and desire to be part of the organization has stemmed from the organization’s commitment to survivors’ voices. 

The dynamic nature of the work at Blank Noise has taught me to constantly strive to do better and to be better in order to meet the needs of the organization. I have been introduced to the various dimensions of movement building, and the labour that is necessary to sustain change-making. 

Working at Blank Noise has deeply informed and enriched my understanding of social justice. I discovered and engaged with the importance of ‘calling in’ while movement building. I began to understand that people are on their own journey of practicing social justice, and that change-making is only possible by respecting every stage of that journey. I also came to understand the value of working with, rather than working against, powerful stakeholders. Social justice, by its very nature, must be inclusive. The culture at Blank Noise taught me to embody such inclusivity by approaching our work from a lens of empathy rather than judgment. 

A significant portion of my learning and growth is a result of working closely with the Director, who provided me with mentoring, support and a model for feminist leadership. I was encouraged to participate in decision-making, invited to share my opinions, and even critique aspects of our work to strengthen it. Moreover, my work was evaluated with respect. When my work had errors, the feedback that I received fostered improvement, and contributed to my overall professional development. The close working relationship that I shared with the Director, where she took out time to upskill me, made me feel like my mistakes were not failings, but opportunities to improve. 

Before joining Blank Noise, my understanding of sexual violence was largely personal and theoretical. The Blank Noise community, which extends from 2003 to today, has been an invaluable space of learning and developing of my understanding of sexual violence. The participatory nature of the community has broadened my perspectives on what sexual violence is and how it affects individuals that rest on different social intersections. I have also witnessed the power of owning our narratives of sexual violence through the community. I believe that the Blank Noise community organizes the strength of the individual and the collective to work together to end sexual violence. The collective empowers the individual, and the individual empowers the collective. 

I have felt valued, heard and nurtured at Blank Noise. During my time here, I have grown immensely in my own capacity as a feminist as well as a professional. 

Harini contributed to Blank Noise in 2021 in the capacity of a video editor.

My first interaction with Blank Noise was during my first year of college, when Jasmeen and Action Shero Gagana visited our class to talk about the work that the Blank Noise team does. Back then my reaction was neutral -- this seemed like a nice thing to do, but not necessarily something that I would actively participate in.

A lot has changed since then. Political climates feel drastically different, my peers have begun speaking out for causes they feel strongly about, and the bubble I had been living in for 15+ years shattered as students around me took matters into their own hands and started organizing and leading protests all over the city. Having defined myself as a leader for the longest time, my fear and my inability to participate in these made me question myself. Who was I? Was my 'leadership' just a show?

Without my realizing it, a lot of questions about my identity started taking shape within me. They shook away my centre. Then came an opportunity to work with Blank Noise on a short-term project, almost 2 years after our first introduction. This started out for me as another gig but has grown on me since.

The team at Blank Noise gave me an energy I never knew I was capable of having. Everybody was strong and vocal about issues women face around the world, yet everyone had a different way of expressing it. Some would do research, some created designs, and some took part in exhibitions and in-person events -- it seemed like there was a way for everyone to contribute, and this made me feel right at home.

For me, the Blank Noise workplace showed me a way to utilize my passion for video editing and technical work and protest in my own way. By editing testimonials, I was helping spread this movement that years of work at Blank Noise has developed. This was a safe space where I was given a chance to create my own form of protest, within a community that was accepting, fierce and passionate. My role grew from an intern to a part-time employee, and despite my inability to be there as much as I can, I still feel confident of my identity as a feminist. I don't feel like a ‘pseudo-feminist’ anymore.