Canadian Minted Immigrant

The immigrant has made Toronto the most multicultural and diverse city in the world. More than 200 ethnic groups live here and speak 140 languages. Toronto is one of the most educated cities, creating more jobs in tech than New York and San Francisco put together. There are more cranes here building high-rise condos than any other city in North America. The Canadian Immigration system has allowed Toronto to become the financial, sports, cultural and immigrant capital of Canada.

Immigrants continue to shape this dynamic city and make it ‘the promised land’ of ‘milk and honey’ with the promise of ‘freedom and quality of life’. Immigrants pursue economic opportunities, better education, and create diverse businesses. They take the green card also called the PR card and enhance this city. Toronto has been converted into a world-class city by the immigrant.

Four Columns has had the privilege to interview an immigrant who has gone from a bank teller to a vice president, an F&B manager to vice president of operations, food bloggers, STEM entrepreneur, beauty products entrepreneur, social entrepreneur, and an accountant.

Minnat is a new immigrant and has gone out of her way to get to know the city and the country. Her IG profile is about helping new immigrants get to know the new city, learn the soft skills, and embrace them. I talk to Minnat about her journey.

Hi Minnat. I always thought mint.in.Canada meant made in Canada. I now realize it is a play on your name. Tell me something about you?

My name is Minnat. I am originally from India and I currently live in Toronto. I work in the accounting industry for a living. When Covid hit, I finally found the time to pursue my passion for creating social media content. The story behind my social media handle is sweet actually. I wanted a unique yet descriptive social media handle and I wanted something that could be attached to my past, present, and future. My friends back in India called me Mint instead of Minnat, so that brings back memories of the past. “In Canada” signifies my present and future life here. Hence, it is “Mint in Canada”. I started my Instagram page as a hobby and just went with the flow. As time passed, I started gaining followers and started generating revenue out of it. My account is still growing, but I love that people are actually loving and recognizing my work. 

Walk me through your immigration journey. The highs, lows, and why you started a blog on helping immigrants?

I moved to Canada 2 years back. It was not at all easy to leave everything behind and start life from scratch at the age of 25. I felt that when you move to a new country, you have to spend a lot of time and energy researching everything. I had my spouse here to support me whenever I needed help, but what about an individual who doesn’t have anyone there for help? I thought about that person and started creating content with an aim of helping as many newcomers as I can.

Talk to me about your culture, food, and festivals. Explain what Holi is all about?

India is a culturally diversified country. We have a festival almost every month in one or the other part of the country. The food, climate, dialects, etc. are quite varied across the country. My favorite festival has to be Holi. It is celebrated to mark the victory of goodness against evil. It is celebrated for 2 days. On the second day, known as Dhuleti, people come together and put colors on each other while singing and dancing.

Help me understand what women’s empowerment means to you as a modern-day woman? How was it different for your mom and grandmom?

My mom and grandmother didn’t have the freedom to make their own decisions when they were young. As per the Indian culture, they had to obey what their family decided for them. They didn’t have a choice to go to work or to give their input for any financial decisions. Indian society, being a patriarchal one, it was always the men in the house, who were the prime decision-makers. Now things have changed a lot, especially in the urban areas of India. If I talk about me for instance, I was given the freedom and the opportunity to make my own decisions. For me, women empowerment is the freedom of thought, the freedom to speak my heart out without fear of being judged, to be considered at par with men- in personal life and at work too.

Mental health is not discussed in the South Asian culture. Walk me through how a woman who lands here as an immigrant can improve her mental health?

Mental health wasn’t a topic of discussion in India 5 or 10 years back. There was always a social stigma attached to it. Now things have changed. People have started being more open about it and having conversations around the topic. After moving to Canada, I felt that mental health is given as much importance here as physical health and I loved that. For new immigrants, there are quite a few newcomer centers that could help if someone is in a mental health crisis. I love how the Canadian government has provided all the related resources on their official website.

‘The Canadian Experience”…..so much of it is soft skills and to see if you fit in the company’s culture. What can immigrant women do to get this Canadian experience?

When I first moved, I heard a lot of new immigrants talk about the Canadian experience. They said that when they were interviewed for their first job in Canada, they were asked if they had any Canadian experience. When I first thought about it, I didn’t understand how was it possible to get Canadian work experience before actually working here. Later I joined a government-funded placement program for new immigrants. It was then I got to know that the employers want to know more about your transferable skills- communication skills, networking skills, etc. There are many ways to improve those skills like volunteering, bridging programs, etc. I have discussed some of them in detail on my Instagram page.

I love your slogan ‘wear your culture proudly’. I want to know more?

To be honest, I didn’t like to wear Indian outfits when I was in India. Whenever there was a social function to attend, my mom had to literally force me to wear a cultural outfit. Everything changed after I moved here. I got more attached to my culture than I ever was. I started wearing Indian outfits and got photoshoots done even in winters. I love when people told me that they loved what I was wearing. I remember when I wore an Indian outfit known as Lehenga Choli to a Canadian castle, a little boy walks towards me and kept staring at me. Later, his mom approached me and told me that his son thought that I was the princess of the castle and so he wanted to click a picture with me.

Where does Minnat see herself in 5 years?

5 years down the road I see myself as a happy, financially secured, and independent woman, who is making her family proud, by giving her best in whatever she does.

I invite myself to your home for a meal. I tell you I am vegetarian, my daughter loves butter chicken and my wife loves naan. What will you make me and why?

I will make Paneer butter masala (a vegetarian replacement for chicken) and naan. In Indian culture, they say- Atithi Devo Bhava, which means that guests are equivalent to god. Hence, it is important that everyone coming to my home needs to be felt welcomed and happy.

You are chosen to go to Mars and can take only five things. What would it be and why?

1.Water- To survive, 2. Oxygen cylinder- To Breathe 3. My family- I can’t function without them 4 & 5. FOOD

You have a choice to wear the clothes of one designer, live in one city for a day, eat one meal during that day and choose one person to have a meal with. Name me your designer, the city, the meal and person you would choose and why?

Designer- Sabyasachi Mukherjee

Wearing an Indian Lehenga designed by him would be the dream of every Indian girl. He is a famous fashion designer from Kolkata, India. The outfits that he designs are a perfect balance of ethnic designs with a contemporary touch. He has designed costumes for Bollywood movies too.

City- Mumbai (aka Bombay)

It is the city where I was born. I love the cosmopolitan vibe of the city. I find it similar to Toronto in a plethora of ways. Not only it is one of the most vibrant cities of India, but also it has the most amazing food.

Meal- Pav Bhaji

The origins of this dish are in the state of Maharashtra, India. The spicy version of the dish is also known as Bombay Pav Bhaji. Bhaji is a gravy made of multiple vegetables and it’s served with a type of bread known as Pav.

Person to have a meal with- My husband

Although I get to share my meal with him every single day, yet I’ll choose him to be my meal partner for the rest of my meals. He’s the best company that I can have.