Dubbo youth worker Taje Fowler made her television debut on Wednesday as one of 16 contestants to feature on The Bachelorette Australia 2021.
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The seventh season of the reality tv show will, for the first time, see both women and men compete for the heart of 2021 bachelorette Brooke Blurton.
Ms Fowler, a 24-year-old hailing from Narromine, said being a First Nation woman herself, she saw similar values in Ms Blurton, a proud Noongar-Yamatji woman, and that attracted her to apply for the show.
"I come from the belief that everything happens for a reason, and I truly believe that this was one of those moments," Ms Fowler said.
Although, it isn't necessarily a breeze signing yourself up to be filmed for national television to be ridiculed by thousands if not millions, for Ms Fowler, the debut is both exciting and nerve-wracking.
"I think I'm definitely more nervous than [my family and friends] are, but we are all really excited," she said.
"It's not every day that someone from a small town in the bush has the chance to be on The Bachelorette, so it's all pretty surreal.
A wise woman in my life taught me to never say never; when an opportunity pops up in your life give it a red hot crack and this is exactly what I did
- Taje Fowler
"The experience was like nothing else I've ever done before.
"I'm so used to working in grassroots community, mostly with kids, and I am also studying at the moment, so filming a reality TV show focused on finding love was a completely new and amazing experience for me.
"A wise woman in my life taught me to never say never; when an opportunity pops up in your life give it a red hot crack and this is exactly what I did.
"Being cut off to outside distractions really gives you a perspective of who you are as a person and the important stuff of what you can bring to a relationship."
Ms Fowler said she wouldn't say the experience has changed her, but it has prompted her to realise that she has a lot in her life to be "incredibly grateful for".
Season one of The Bachelorette airs on Wednesdays and Thursdays from 7.30pm on Channel 10 and 10play on demand.
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