Praba Ram: Hi. My name is Praba. It's a common name across many cultures and languages in India, like in Bengali, Hindi, Malayalam, Kannada, and Tamil, the Indian language that my family speaks. The name means to shine or to glow, and I like to think it is to be free-spirited and determined.

This is how we pronounce my name in India. Pra- with a sharp syllable and -ba with a long syllable. Praba.

Well, in the US, people usually stress the syllables differently, like the brand Prada. I used to tell them, "Okay. Take the D out and plug in the B," so I became Praba in the US.