Nearly 20 years ago, at the age of 40, Padma Varatharajan believed that her career was over. “When I quit work, I thought that it was my retirement,” she says, laughing. “I never thought I would return to work at all.”
The 59-year-old from Slough made the decision to stop work to become a stay-at-home mum and focus on caring for her son. She describes the choice as being “complicated. Losing a second income was difficult, but it meant that I was able to give a lot of attention to my son,” which was a priority back then.
Varatharajan describes herself as being “very academic” at school. Growing up in southern India, her favourite subjects were mathematics and science and, after leaving school, she completed a degree in engineering. She then had a successful career as head of operations for a call centre, overseeing 200 people.
Shorts
In the early Noughties, her husband got a job in the UK, so the couple left India for a new life here. They had a child and Varatharajan made the decision to stop work – but, ironically, it was her son who prompted her return to the workplace.
