Raga Olga D’Silva- Author | Influencer | Speaker | LGBT+ Advocate
An entrepreneur by profession, LGBT+ advocate at heart, mother of twins, media professional, marketer by profession and a versatile speaker by experience, Raga Olga D’Silva is everything she is, as described by various media internationally.
Having worked with some of the biggest agencies in India , she went on to become the Vice President and Branch Head of Lintas Direct in 2001, before she moved to New Zealand with her young family to further expand her horizons.
Raga also found professional success in New Zealand through various high performing roles in advertising and marketing, and then went on to establish her first entrepreneurial venture, ‘Global Village Unlimited’ – An Agency set up to provide networks, support, knowledge and experience for market entry into India.
In 2007, she expanded her business presence into India with her consultancy company, ‘Red Hot Mirchi Ltd’; she then further expanded into the UK in 2012. Along the way Raga received many notable awards and achievements. In NZ Raga was the first-ever woman to be elected to the board of the prestigious India New Zealand Business Council. While living in the United Kingdom, she became the South Asian Ambassador for Diabetes UK. Media savvy, Raga has appeared on numerous media platforms in the UK, India and New Zealand, including The BBC, Sky TV, ITV, Channel 4 and TVNZ, and numerous magazines and shows over the years.
Raga published her first book in 2019 titled ‘Untold Lies’. This unique book is a set of stories and poems, which she describes as a book of ‘storyeoms’, where a short story segways smoothly into poems. ‘Untold Lies’ was recognised by various personalities, including Dr Shashi Tharoor, Javed Akhtar Sahab, Vidya Balan, Barkha Dutt, Vidya Balan and brought in much attention from media worldwide.
Raga now uses her social handle @TotallyOutNow both online and offline as the basis for her public and corporate speaking engagements.
Raga is often called to share her personal journey that led to her finally being Totally Out Now, as an inspiration for others to live their own truth.
Raga is also invited to share her insights on topics such as
- Unconscious Bias
- LGBT+ Issues/Stories
- Diversity & Inclusion
- Building Your Personal Brand
- Doing business in India
Raga leads a very private life with her partner and children. Her TedX talk, ‘50 and Out’, speaks of her journey and decision to finally Come Out at 50. Raga now lives her personal brand ‘Totally Out Now’ and has a large following through her inspiring blogs, social media posts, corporate speaking, Podcasts, Books and through hosting various online shows. The movie rights of a story she has written during Lockdown have been optioned by the award winning filmmaker Onir and will be made into an international feature film. Raga is currently writing her memoirs due to be published late 2022.