Hey!
I recently came across two different tweets that pushed me into writing this post on inspirational women (well women who inspire me shall I say), whether that be a real life person or their fictional counterpart.
The first
tweet was from B.J. Novak, who in a single tweet managed to show how far Mindy Kaling has come in her career which brought me so much happiness when I read it because even though it is something I think and feel, having visual proof is always so satisfying. The second
tweet I saw which was also a big part of me writing this was a video of a journalist giving Reese Witherspoon her dissertation that was written all about Legally Blonde, and you can just see how much it means to her and Reese which just made me super happy.
So lets get into it.
Mindy Kaling
I was 16 when I first started watching The Mindy Project and this was the first time I had ever heard of Mindy, it also came at such a perfect time in my life. I count this as the first time my life went a bit crap, it was the end of school/start of 6th form and I had just lost all my friends for some reason that is still unknown to me. Luckily I met my current best friends who drastically changed my life for the better, but at this time I still felt like the odd one out in their group and having this show was a big help to not go insanely crazy. I'm not one to throw around the word fate but I think I may just have to for Mindy/this show as a month before I heard about this show I was in LA and took a random picture of FOX studios and only when looking back on it a few months later I noticed the big The Mindy Project billboard in full view.
After the massive success of the show Mindy brought out two books, which made me love her even more! She talks about her life growing up, how she got into the industry/her struggles within the industry and her time on The Office. The Office was a show I had always heard of but had never bothered to watch until I read Mindy's book because even if I didn't like it (which if course I did) I would be getting to watch Mindy in not only one of her first acting roles but one of her first writing jobs, and it made me super happy every time I saw 'written by Mindy Kaling' on the credits, from reading where she started to seeing that just made me emotional. Hence the reason B.J's tweet was a big thing. Now I look back, I can't ever imagine my life without Mindy Kaling, she has brought a lot of joy and tears (Mindy and Danny forever!) to my life, but I cannot wait to see where her career goes from now, I'm excited to watch A Wrinkle In Time!
Reese Witherspoon
Reese is an amazing women but for now I shall get all my love for Elle Woods out before I explode. Legally Blonde is a film that I've actually only recently seen (probably only in the past couple of years) which is INSANE because it is a film that everybody needs to see at least once...I remember watching it and making my mum watch it after because it was just THAT good. Growing up my mum had always taught us that 'you don't need a man' not in like a forever way, men can be helpful...my dad and brother are my personal spider catchers (as well as being two of my bestfriends) but in a don't ever think you can't live without one. I know many many people who don't think like this and I have witnessed first hand the horror in their face when they find out I've never been in a relationship because to them that's all their life is which is quite sad, like Elle at the beginning of the movie; she thought her be all end all was to be Warner's wife but really she was capable of so much more, she defied all the odds and ignored everyone who doubted her and got that Harvard law degree once she realised she was so much more than someone's wife.
I don't know if Reese knew how many people Elle Woods would inspire when she signed up to the role but I'm so glad she did. She's such a genuinely lovely person and unlike some actors is proud of their early roles that brought success, like on the 15th anniversary of the film she snapchatted herself trying on costumes from the film because she knew thats what people would love to see (and yes it was amazing) which is why the video I mention at the start is so fab, she is so touched and you can really see that in her face.
America Ferrara
Ugly Betty was one of the earliest TV shows I remember being obsessed with and a big part of that was because Betty Suarez was just so relatable. The show as a whole, as cheesy as it sounds, shaped me as a person. The show and the characters were amazing, it dealt with so many important subjects in such a way that was enjoyable to watch but also educated you at the same time. At one point in my life not only did I have to wear glasses I also had braces, and at the age of 13 that wasn't exactly cool. This was around the time Ugly Betty was in its last season, so instead of being embarrassed of what I looked like I thought to myself that 'hey I'm just like Betty' and because I had already seen her grow so much from being that poncho wearing girl in the first episode it made me feel so much better of how I looked.
America Ferrara as a person though is just beyond amazing. Not only is she still acting she is also directing and proving how much of a star she really is. She is also a massive advocate for many issues that not only does she use her power in the industry to get the word out about things she will also help in any way she possibly can proving how much of an amazing woman she is. I think she's a very underrated person and deserves all the love in the world.
Giovanna Fletcher
Being a big Mcfly fan, I obviously know Giovanna through Tom but I am here to tell you today that she is SO much more than just his wife. My earliest memory of Gi is reading an article about her and Tom and all I could think about was how lucky she was to be with him and little did I know a few years later we would be here, me singing every praise under the sun to her. If you didn't know, Gi is an author...and such a great one! I've been in utter awe at every book I've read of hers (I'm two books behind...I'm slacking I know) but I love a good love story and she just has this way of adding a twist to them which gets you hooked so bad you cant put it down.
Another thing that makes her so inspiring, is just how real she is, like don't get me wrong all the other women in this are also real, but I've seen Gi in no make up and pjs more than I have myself...and I love that. She doesn't pretend to be something that shes not and I love how vlogging has become her thing because watching her with Buzz and Buddy is always the highlight of my day.
Demi Lovato
Camp Rock was the moment I truly fell in love with Demi, but my earliest memory of her was on a very short Disney Channel show called As The Bell Rings, which was set at a high school and everything happened at a window. She had been in the public eye since she was very young and her rise to fame through Camp Rock bought addiction to drugs and alcohol which combined with mental health issues such as self harm/eating disorders almost broke her. I remember the day I found out she was going to rehab, I was 14 and honestly so shocked...this was someone who I idolised and I didn't know that any of this was going on in her life, it was so sad reading all the articles learning that the singer I loved so much felt the complete opposite about herself, I've stayed such a massive fan through it all and I'm so glad she got the help when she did because she came back stronger than ever.
She is such an inspiration for how strong she is and how far she has come from those low moments, today actually marks 6 years of her sobriety which I'm so incredibly proud of because within those 6 years she has done so much to help people whether she knew she was doing it or not. After almost 10 years I will finally get to see her perform live in June and I am so beyond excited!
(
obviously gotta give my mum a shout out for being my inspiration because she won't be happy if I don't mention her haha)
I hope you enjoyed this post and I'd love to know who inspires you and why!
