Romeeta Bundela dreamt of a life at sea since she was a young girl. When she couldn’t get into the Indian Navy, she turned her attention to her next best option — merchant navy.

Since then, the 29-year-old from Bhusawal in Maharashtra’s Jalgaon district has shattered the glass ‘sea-ling’ on several occasions throughout her career.

An electrical engineer, Romeeta pursued an Electro Technical Officer (ETO) course at the Tolani Maritime Institute, becoming the first-ever female candidate to do so.

An ETO, or electrical officer, is responsible for all electrical, electronic, and control and automation systems onboard.

As part of the course, Romeeta completed four months of training on campus, followed by eight months of training on a ship. Out of the 40 students, she was the only woman.

After her training, Romeeta joined Maersk in 2017. Her first job was on a merchant vessel with a crew of 20 men, sailing from Singapore.

“What are you doing here? This job is not meant for you. We are still at port. You can go back home,” were the first words Romeeta recalls hearing from her manager.

Yet, she cruised through the four months, proving that women, too, can excel at sea. She answered her manager’s concerns through her aptitude, resilience, and proficiency.

“Other colleagues were nice to me but they all thought that I was not capable just because of my gender. Isn’t this the problem faced by women on land jobs, too? All you can do is focus and work hard,” Romeeta says.

At just 26 years of age, Romeeta became the youngest superintendent at Maersk, handling a fleet of 64 vessels.

Over the past six years, she has grown in ranks, from an ETO to a senior ETO to a junior electrical superintendent. Presently, she works as an ETO at Carnival UK, a cruise holiday company.

She joined Carnival UK in 2023 as the third ETO. Unlike a merchant vessel, which typically has only 21 employees, cruise ships have larger teams that include women.

Her biggest challenge came during the COVID-19 pandemic when she was stuck at sea for over nine months in China.

“We were stuck in China and had to wear PPE kits, coveralls, and masks. Life was hell as we had no flights back home. It was mental torture for all of us on board,” she shares.

Being on sea is also not for the faint hearted, as one has to work in engine rooms with temperatures reaching 50-55 degrees Celsius.

“It’s especially challenging during your ‘periods’. But I believe that you have to work hard to reach the top. A seafarer is a seafarer, it doesn’t have a gender,” she says.

Through her sheer grit, resilience and hard work, Romeeta has silenced everyone. She has proven that girls can achieve everything.

“Don’t listen to what others say. People might say, ‘You’re a girl, what can you do?’ Don’t get demotivated and just focus on your career. You can do everything that a man can do, and more,” she says.