Don't be fooled, though — Tanya's confidence wasn't something that came to her very easily. "Growing up, I was constantly bullied for not conforming to feminine beauty standards: I had very short hair, I wore clothes from the boy's section, and I only had friends who were boys," Tanya said. "Now, after I have changed a lot from who I was back then, I am still made fun of for my skin tone, my style being too extra, and just being brown overall. [It's] unfortunate and things need to change, but it is inevitable no matter who you are and what you do. So, if you are going to be criticised and made fun of no matter what you do, why not just be who you are and do things that make you happy?"
"If you are going to be criticized and made fun of no matter what you do, why not just be who you are and do things that make you happy?"
As for how she's manageing to deal with any negativity that may come her way, Tanya has a way she keeps herself grounded to block out the noise. "The media constantly influences how we perceive ourselves and can have a negative influence on the evolution of who we are becoming. To prevent that and to stay authentic, we need time as humans to step away from the social media world and be in tune with who we were before we even started being on these platforms. I constantly remind myself of my own philosophy: 'Who cares what other people think of you, you only have one body and one life, enjoy it and wear things that make you feel like art every day.'"