“ I like to be curious, to step outside of my bubble and look to others. Creativity is sparked from that ”

Artist, writer and diversity consultant Pragya Agarwal’s life changed when she sat at a pottery wheel and the experience fuelled her imagination

- Ellen Tout

Education was always crucial to Pragya Agarwal. ‘Growing up in India, there was a huge gender divide. I didn’t see any of my female cousins focusing on having a career. For my mother, it was always really important; she told us that we needed to be independent. It was drilled into me from a young age,’ she remembers. ‘I was competitive and wanted to do well – but the only two “good careers” when I was growing up were engineer or doctor. I never thought of creativity in terms of a career; it was a sidelined part of my life.’ Pragya studied architecture and came to the UK in her early 20s.

Working as an accomplished academic and senior lecturer, Pragya experienced workplace bullying and burnout. ‘I had a veneer of strength and I didn’t want to admit to feeling vulnerable or harassed. Workplace bullying is one of those situations where you think, “If only I had done something better, it might have improved. It’s my fault.” I was struggling and, especially as a woman of colour, you feel you have to prove yourself again and again,’ she says. The 24-7 work culture didn’t help. ‘Everyone else seems happy, I thought, so there must be a problem with me. I had a real crisis of self-confidence. People didn’t talk openly, and it really affected my mental health.’

Connecting with creativity helped Pragya move forward. ‘I was a parent and juggling so many things. I thought I didn’t have space in my life for anything else or a hobby but I began to step back and think about what I actually wanted to do.’ She decided to sign up for a pottery class. ‘It was the most amazing experience. It was so mindful but totally out of my comfort zone. I had to really work at it and focus on the process, not the end result, and that’s when I made the link between my mental health and creativity. I felt so good.’