Stephanie Is Bringing Her A - Game

From being a teen who never really fit into a bona fide activist to a well-loved beauty queen to a local and international comperer and singer, Stephanie Siriwardhana has been through the mill. But, she’s ready to do what she does best: Empower women.

- Shihaam Hassanali

“YOU HAVE TO TRY THIS CHEESECAKE! IT’S THE BEST!” STEPHANIE SIRIWARDHANA PUSHES A PLATE TOWARDS ME, AND AS I TAKE A FORKFUL OF THE DECADENT GOODNESS, I HAVE TO AGREE.

Stephanie unapologetically loves her food and I love that about her. As I sit down next to her with my own slice of cheesecake, I take in the jeans and shirt ensemble, bare face with smidgen of tinted lip balm, and her oh-so-beautiful eyelashes. She looks effortlessly put together and I can already feel all eyes at the café focusing on us as they register who she is.

This wasn’t always the norm for Stephanie. She’d grown up as a young girl full of insecurities and suffered at the hands of many bullies. But, fortunately, Stephanie always had a fantastic support system in her family, especially her parents. Her mother would always tell her, “Darling, it’s so easy to try and change to fit in, but being different takes a lot of courage. So, have the courage to be different!”, and her father firmly believed you don’t need anyone’s character certificate. So, over the years, Stephanie worked on herself, learning to define who she truly is and what she wanted to stand for as a human being. This process, slowly, yet steadily, empowered her. It is this journey that has inspired her to create an anti-bullying campaign and empower women and children to find the courage within themselves to stand out—to be whoever they want to be. “What’s important for me is that these individuals believe in themselves and realise that they really have the strength within to make their dreams come true.”