Word on the Street: Sarah Bagharib (Founder of Crazycat)

“Crazycat is a platform that hopes to inspire and empower everyday women. There are many women’s organisations here in Singapore, but most of them tend to cater to more privileged women who are already in positions of power.

The truth of the matter is, there are so many untold stories of the everyday woman who is serving her life’s purpose in her own unique way. She could be that lady you know who sells nasi lemak, or the single mom who’s supporting her kids while chasing her own goals too.

I just wanted to tell a different kind of success story – one that was real and authentic – because at the end of the day, the whole point of the platform is to let other women know that they’re not alone, regardless of what they may be dealing with or going through.

I used to be a documentary producer for five years. We did a lot of work on social injustices and highlighted issues pertaining to the likes of refugees and asylum seekers. Needless to say, work kept me incredibly busy, and I didn’t have time to do anything else beyond that.

But something I enjoyed doing was posting about amazing women who inspired me on Instagram. I would always use the hashtag #ShineOnYouCrazycat, which was inspired by the Pink Floyd song ‘Shine on You Crazy Diamond’.

Whenever I was having a bad day, I would refer to my personal collection of IG posts and be in awe of all of these incredible women who are so motivational to me. And that’s how the name Crazycat came to be.

When I started Crazycat with my team members Hannah Kamsadi and Cheryl Guzman Ng – two other inspiring women who share the same vision – it was really just a passion project.

But after the launch in April 2018, I realised this platform is bigger than me. Its purpose is to build a community of women who are supportive of one another, and we hope to do that through events and workshops.

For our first major event in April, we invited Noor Tagouri to be our keynote speaker. Have you heard of her before? She’s the first American journalist to wear a hijab on commercial US television. She’s also the first hijabi to appear on Playboy magazine.

She’s been breaking all kinds of barriers because she’s been unafraid of being herself, and she’s still working towards her goals while staying true to her identity. I just thought she was a great role model to kickoff Crazycat with us in Singapore.

We also invited musician and entrepreneur Arika Lee, writer and entrepreneur Aida Azlin, and TV presenter Anita Kapoor to have a panel discussion on the topic of ‘Letting Your Light Shine’. It’s essentially about unleashing your potential while staying true to yourself.

During the Q&A, a member of the audience shared how she wasn’t used to female companionship because she grew up with brothers. In a moment of self-reflection, she asked how she could change that for herself. The response from the panel was, ‘Look around you! We are your new friends; we are your community.’

Everyone was just incredibly supportive. There were lots of tears and laughter that day, and that was the kind of environment I had hoped for; one where women felt safe to open up and be vulnerable because they knew they wouldn’t be judged.

As a woman who’s still on the road of self-discovery, I think it’s so important to motivate and encourage other women. I still deal with a lot of self-doubt, and I know other women who also tend to downplay their strengths and not give themselves enough credit.

But if there’s one reason why Crazycat is what it is today, it’s because I had faith in myself and my idea. I doubt myself a lot, but when it came to Crazycat, I believed in myself so much. That’s the first time it has happened to me in 27 years of living.

I was in Hong Kong for work recently, and I remember sitting in the toilet of a co-working space, staring at this visual on the cubicle door. It was basically the word ‘DOUBT’, but the last three letters had a line across them, so you’re only left with ‘DO’. I just thought that was incredible. And it’s so true – just do!” – Sarah, 27