As Forbes released its most popular and influential people list just a few days back, we were left wondering how many Indians were on it. Proud moment;and then we tried to think of women who have influenced our ideology and the world. Sure we have our Michelle Obamas, our Hillary Clintons, and our Oprah Winfreys. Pleased Moment– and we tried to think of someone influential back home, in India. Nada. Pathetic Moment.
It is not that Indian women haven’t contributed to the progress of our Country or that they haven’t done anything noteworthy. It is just that we have forgotten to take notes. So now we are at a juncture where we cannot even remember the great achievements of the ladies who have brought us laurels. Nevertheless, we have tried to bring together some highlights of the heroines of our nation to the forefront. Here is an insight in to the excellence of India:
- Uppma Virdi
Chai is such a common concept for Indians that we put it away as an ordinary thing. But it is those ordinary things that make our lives extraordinary. Uppma Virdi with her brilliant business acumen cashed in on this concept to become a ‘Chai Walli’. Working at a law firm, she started selling herbal teas and other chai concoctions in Australia as part time. The girl from Chandigarh was awarded the ‘Businesswomen of the Year 2016’ and has become an inspiration for women world over.
- P.V. Sindhu
It was a glorious year for India when it came to sports, the headliner being the Golden Girl of Badminton – P. V. Sindhu. The 21 year old from Hyderabad broke through the sweat and sarcasm of the society to bring home a silver in the sport for India at Rio Olympics. And while we are on the topic of sports, there were other ladies too who were brilliant this year like Sakshi Mallik and Deepa Karmakar.
- First Female Fighter Pilots
Talking about breaking barriers, we think no one did it better this year than these terrific trio who have broken down their inhibitions and society’s narrow mindset by becoming first ever females to join the combat squadron in the Indian Air Force. Avani Chaturvedi, Bhawana Kanth and Mohana Singh are living their dream of serving the Country – by not making rotis for their husbands but out there in the battlefield keeping us all safe.
- Tessy Thomas
You have heard of the Missile Man of India but have you heard of the Missile Woman? Tessy Thomas is your classic Indian wonder woman who makes projectile missiles while wearing pattu saree. She is the mastermind behind many a ventures at Defence Research and Development Organizaton (DRDO) and is currently heading Agni V missile systems. The Agni Putri has received many laureates for her contributions, which are well deserved with her balancing her professional and personal life beautifully.
- Arundhati Bhattacharya
From an intern to chairperson, Arundhati Bhattacharya, now 58, joined State Bank of India when she was just 21 years old. But SBI is not the only place she is changing, Forbes listed her as the 36th most powerful woman of the world in their 2016 list. Born in Bhilai, she doesn’t have any financial background but exercised her experience and hard work to reach this stage. She is speedily changing the working place for women especially pioneering a two-year sabbatical policy for female employees in need of maternity leave or those wanting to provide extended care to their families in case of medical emergencies, etc.
- Every Working Women
Let’s clarify for a moment that even housewives come under working women. India has a gamut of potential women who daily spend all their waking hours to the betterment of their Country or their house. These unnamed yet unquestionably wonderful women are the backbone of our country. Through their drudgery, their morals and their values that they pass on, they make for a better generation. The working women are an inspiration to people all over, proving that no excuse is big enough.
With the decade of cognizance that we are living in, it is quite shameful if we don’t allow for such amazing people to be recognized. Of course, the government is doing all it can to elevate such motivational ladies but as an everyday citizen who finds pride in any small achievement of the country, we must also strive to talk more about our feats. In the New Year, let’s share our success than our selfies on social media, shall we?
