Blessed and Grateful. And 36 feels pretty Awesome!
📷 @coryt 🐒♥️
🌲Merry Christmas from me and mine🌲
Sending love and smiles to all today♥️♥️
“Keep close to Nature’s heart… and break clear away, once in awhile, and climb a mountain or spend a week in the woods. Wash your spirit clean.” – John Muir
Looking back at this year…I realise I have so much that I just cannot dismiss. Yes, this year was challenging and how I hope those extreme uncertainties can just come to an end already. But, what I cannot ignore is all the lessons learned this year, all the education and critical conversations I had that was required to move the needle for humanity to have a chance to triumph, all the strength that came with unimaginable loss, all the pressure that was no longer on my shoulders as I didnt have to be in constant performance mode, all the people I no longer had to pretend for so I could be present for people who really needed me to be there for, all the comfort food I ate without guilt, all the sleep- ins I managed to have and didnt have to make any excuses for, all those family zooms even though we all eventually had zoom fatigue, all our essential workers who will forever be the true heroes and saviours in my eyes, all the hope I felt from both strangers and friends( both old and new) that kept me warm and comforted and allowed for total vulnerability.
Every experience I have had this year both good and bad has moulded me into who I am today as I get ready to unveil my 2021 curtain.
My dreams and intentions for 2021 are alive and bright but with the knowledge and acceptance to not be hard on myself if things don’t turn out exactly as I wished for.
So looking back at 2020, you were not in vain, at times you were certainly a pain, but I just cannot dismiss you! You forced me into a pause but I value very much what came from it:-)
Happy New Year!!
This Earth Day, I’m joining @NatGeo in sharing one of the places on the planet that matters most to me. Mother Earth has so many beautiful places but I am most content when I am in Big Sur. This place holds some of my most important moments and memories and I hold it sacred in my heart. This Earth Day, celebrate your love for the planet with us by sharing a spot you care about. #ShareYourSpot
Only smiles and sunshine for me today please!
My love, how blessed am I that you were born this day. Life has never felt so fulfilling and wholesome and I feel so grateful for your positive energy, your soulfulness, your intelligence, your street smartness, your goofiness, your kindness and empathy, your relationship with Mother Nature, your groundedness that have all been, by default, now added to my life. You make my world a better place everyday. With you by my side, I have the strength and courage to face the toughest challenges( oh yes we have!) as well as fully enjoy the sweetest successes( and we sure have!).Thank you for being my love, my best friend, my partner, my advisor, my rock and my loudest cheerleader. You give so much …May you always stay open to recieve all the love, adoration and appreciation you have coming your way. You deserve every bit of it!
Happy Birthday Monk!
🐒🐒♥️
This is Pinar Gultekin. She is the reason behind #challengeaccepted
Given what we have all learned in the recent months with BLM viral posts made me want to go deeper and get more context before posting. What came out of it is a few versions of its origins but this particular one was most quoted and felt instinctually like the reason it went viral. For those who haven’t yet caught up on this story..This one is very important. It is about gender based violence. I have quoted the journalist Bethan McKernan, Turkey and Middle Eastern Correspondant for The Guardian.
The Murder/ The Incident: Pinar Gultekin a 27-year-old woman was allegedly brutally murdered and burned by her jealous ex-boyfriend. Her body was found on July 21st. Her murder had sparked outrage in Turkey, shining a light on the country’s shockingly high femicide rate and Turkish government efforts to roll back legislation designed to protect women from gender-based violence.
What Followed: Marches in four Turkish cities mourning Gültekin’s death and calling on Turkish politicians to uphold the Istanbul Convention were accompanied by hundreds of thousands of social media posts: one initiative involved posting photos on Instagram with hashtags such as #challengeaccepted and #İstanbulSözleşmesiYaşatır, or “Enforce the Istanbul Convention”, quickly took off in Turkey to emphasise how pictures of murdered women end up in black and white in newspapers.
The Istanbul Convention Keeps Turkish Women Alive: Campaigners are also deeply worried about fresh efforts by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s ruling party to repeal a Council of Europe treaty known as the Istanbul convention, groundbreaking legislation from 2011 that protects victims of domestic and gender-based violence and effectively prosecutes offenders.
Final Words by me: As a South-Asian woman who constantly reads about violence against her country women, rape and honour killings in her own country, I couldn’t help myself from not re-iterating and highlighting the need for context when we co-opt a viral movement in the West.This movement is for Pinar Gultekin and the many victims of femicide #İstanbulSözleşmesiYaşatır
Happy birthday my beautiful big sister!
What I would do to be with you today and celebrate you endlessly.
P.S. I love being your baby sister.
Happy Hearts and ATX sunsets!♥️
It’s safe to say that 2020 was a doozy of a year. But if there is one thing it brought to the forefront for me, it is that taking care of my mental and physical wellbeing is an absolute non-negotiable. I went on a quest trying out various apps and tools, hacking and plotting more efficient and effective ways to understand my unique brain and body better and customize a program for me that was steeped in science and research.
For years doctors have been using genetics to better understand and treat patients. I was so excited to learn that scientific advancements now allow us to learn more about how our genes affect our mental health. The @genomindscience #MentalHealthMap helped me understand how I am hardwired by identifying my unique traits and predispositions across 7 core capabilities: Mood, Stress, Memory & Focus, Sleep, Eating Behavior, Social Behavior, and Habits & Substance Use.
For example, I learned how I was hardwired to respond to stress and how anxiety manifests itself in my body. I also learned (full disclosure) about my impaired relationship with food. To say I was blown away by how my test results basically mapped out my specific patterns that I am so aware of, but find difficult to manage at times, was an understatement. But the greatest part about this test was that it didn’t leave me stranded. While it is not designed to and shouldn’t replace your doctor and your therapist, it gives you some simple and doable tips on how you can improve your mental and physical health. Box breathing was my favorite!
I am so excited to offer you…. a discount code! Use code FreidaMHM (link in bio) I hope you feel as empowered, amazed, validated and armed with knowledge as I did.
Brydie and I are headed back to 1818.
#mrmalcomslist
I am so excited to share this piece of news with all of you. At a time in this world where we are all looking at leadership and courage to guide and lead us all back to some semblance of sanity and order, I take great comfort in the quiet strength, grace, intelligence and grit that Noor Inayat Khan possessed in the face of chaos during WW2. A real underdog who was written off as “not overburdened with brains” who ended up being the SOE’s first female wireless operator sent into occupied France who helped set up the Secret Armies that would rise up on D-Day, astonishing all those doubted what she was capable of.
My true partners in this Claire Ingham (producer), Andy Paterson (producer), Olivia Hetreed (writer), Anand Tucker (director) and my awesome manager Larry Taube… we have something so beautiful here. Thank you for being on this journey with me. I can’t wait to bring this to life!
Lastly, thank you Nellie Andreeva and Denise Petski for putting together a wonderful write up that honours the work of Noor Inayat Khan.
Ok World! It’s finally here. I have been patiently waiting to share this exciting news!
I am so proud and honoured to be producing/starring in The Henna Artist. This book was on @reesesbookclub for the month of May and so a special shoutout to the awesome @reesewitherspoon for constantly introducing the world to wonderful, unique stories that keep our imagination alive and creativity flowing.
@thealkajoshi is a phenomenal author who has painted a breathtaking world of India where the female characters are complex, nuanced and fight to have agency. Where the Indian culture of art and healing are both explored in depth and respected at the same time.
I cannot imagine doing this with anyone other than my producing partner, my dear friend, Michael Edelstein. When Michael asked me to read The Henna Artist and invited me to produce this with him, I simply knew he could already see the future of this book in his experienced eyes and it was about to be groundbreaking. Together, we have a beautiful dream for this book that we are so excited to bring it to life.
Thank you to Miramax TV for believing in this project, Marc Helwig and his entire team. To my fab team at CAA – Hylda, Ben, Harrison and Leah and my awesome manager Larry- your unwavering support and belief in me enables me to push the envelope and do all the things I dream of doing.
Also, thank you Lakshmi Shastri – You empower me!
There is no charm equal to tenderness of heart – Jane Austen
Brydie and Selina, England 1818
Today I’d like to highlight and help aid @chefjoseandres @wckitchen as they activate in hospitals across India. With 386,000 reported cases on Friday, and models showing the actual number could be closer to 10M infections, World Central Kitchen will be distributing meals seven days a week in overcrowded hospitals in Mumbai, Delhi, and Ahemdabad.
Much like spring of 2020 in the US, hospitals in India are over capacity with cafeterias shuttered, vending machines emptied and hospital staff working 12+ hours with limited meal options. People saving lives are struggling with food access. WCK is focusing on hospitals & frontline medical staff across India, hoping to secure funding to scale from thousands of meals per day in the region to hundreds of thousands, as they have been doing in the US during the pandemic. I have donated and I hope you can too. Each meal prepared by WCK costs just $2.50, so no matter how big or small your donation is… it counts. Go to the link in my stories for the donation link!
Today I wanted to take the time to highlight the incredible work the @hemkunt_foundation is doing as the Covid-19 crisis is only getting worse in my home country of India. The Hemkunt Foundation, led by Irinder Singh Ahulwalia and his family, have been on the ground and helping communities in New Delhi since 2010. This week I will highlight various Covid relief organizations, starting with this one that I have donated to, and encourage you to donate as well. I’ve put the link in my bio and in my stories for the next 24hrs. If you are able, please take the time to look into ways you can help.
It’s Halloween weekend and I’m excited to share my @americanfilminstitute Movie Club pick of the day THE SHINING! Check out AFI.com to learn how to watch the film and join the conversation at #AFIMovieClub.
I am proud to lend my support to an important charitable endeavor between @loropianaofficial and @savethechildren. For every year-end purchase at Loro Piana locations within North America, @loropianaofficial will donate one blanket to @savethechildren. So many young children and newborns have been affected this year because of the pandemic and other disasters and emergencies. The holidays always bring on opportunities to share our joy not only with our loved ones but also those we may not know of.
#loropiana #savethechildren
This is an uncertain time for all of our children, especially when it comes to their education and what school will look like in the months ahead. Sadly, for many girls around the world, the question isn’t when they will return to school—it’s if they will return at all. Due to ripple effects from COVID-19, experts predict that tens of millions more adolescent girls could remain out of school forever.
We can’t let these girls be left behind. Read about how we can all support them in a new op-ed by @MichelleObama and @MelindaFrenchGates on CNN.com. Then take action with the @GirlsOpportunityAlliance today through the link in my bio to ensure that girls can continue to pursue their education and their dreams—because when girls get the education they deserve, our whole world benefits.
I am thrilled to be serving as a judge for #MyStory, @GirlRising & @HP’s Storytelling Challenge. As COVID19 continues to reveal deeply seated injustices locally and globally, we are looking for stories of courage, impact and action. 15 Showcase Stories will receive a micro-grant of $500 USD and will be featured at Girl Rising’s #InternationalDayoftheGirl celebration in October 2020. Submissions are open through September 8th (link in my bio). I can’t wait to read your stories!
I’m so excited to be a part of a meaningful new project between @loropianaofficial and the artist @marie_watt_studio. Inspired by their initiative with @savethechildren, I was asked to donate a blanket—something personal and memorable, along with a description of what it means to me. I chose my quilted blanket from India that has travelled with me a lot, a constant reminder that I always had a piece of my home with me everywhere I went. We are all connected through our stories. Here’s mine.
#LoroPianaBlanketStories #SponsoredbyLoroPiana
Yes, the world is in chaos. Yes, we are back in lockdown/ semi lockdown or whatever you want to call these uncertain times. But there is no denying that there are rays of light in all the darkness too. And gosh, I want to read more of that and share more of that with all of you. I know the Holiday season is around the corner and we may or may not be able to celebrate that with our families and friends but we can certainly support these bright and beautiful girls in their quest to fulfill their educational dreams. It is heartening to learn that the pandemic didn’t completely stall their education and so I want to share this video with you to show you that your support counts even from afar!
Today, girls face even more obstacles to keep learning—and millions more could remain out of school forever due to ripple effects from COVID-19. We can’t let the pandemic derail their futures and dreams. That’s why I’m so inspired by the organizations in the @GirlsOpportunityAlliance community that are helping girls around the world to keep learning while remaining healthy and safe. On this #GivingTuesday, I hope you’ll support this important work. Click the link in my bio to donate and take action today.
