Rima Kumari

What ignited your pursuit for gender equality?

When I was young, I had many circumstances where I had to fade my dreams just because I was a girl. For example, school and sports were forbidden to other girls and me. All the situations I saw in my society and my experiences in life ignited my pursuit for gender equality.

Please share your biggest wins as an advocate for gender equality.

Facilitating workshops and coaching soccer for under-12 and under-14 girls teams in a small village is quite challenging. I started coaching soccer to these girls, but many parents forbid their daughters because they weren't supposed to play like boys and instead marry at the age of 16. Therefore, in the workshop, I explained to them their rights and about child marriage. Now, they have been playing soccer and they speak for themselves and stand for their rights. These girls are the change for the community.

Outside of your gender equality advocacy work, what do you enjoy doing?

Whenever I am free, I love listening to music and sleeping. I like playing Frisbee and hide and seek. I like chatting with people about different topics and watching different kinds of movies, but I prefer action or love story movies most.