Women Empowerment

Delhi-based Kalpana Vishwanath launched Safetipin, a crowdsourcing app where a user can login and submit key information regarding streets, and how safe they are to use. The app has also reached cities such as Bogota, Hanoi, Manila, Bengaluru, Dhaka, Nairobi, and many other urban spaces.

Till Dr Mangala Narlikar from Pune became a mother of three, she was known as the wife of celebrated scientist Jayant Narlikar. Very few knew she was a Math wizard waiting to explode. #WomenInSTEM

Tripura-born Chandra Shekhar Ghosh started Bandhan Konnagar in 2001 with the aim to move beyond awareness and empower the rural population, particularly women. Through various financial inclusion and healthcare programmes, Bandhan Bank has around 2 crore customers.

70-year-old Kanchan Parulekar helms Swayamsiddha, a Kolhapur-based organisation that, in the last 28 years, has worked to create women entrepreneurs. The businesses range from bakeries to food processing units, bag manufacturing units, beauty parlours and handicrafts.

Hindustani Classical vocalist Hirabai Barodekar of the Kirana Gharana was a recipient of the Padma Bhushan and paved the way for female artists at a time when they were not allowed to perform on stage. Her immense talent and popularity earned her several awards and disciples, including Padma Shri winner Prabha Atre, Vrinda Limaye, Bakul Pandit, Saraswati Rane and many more.

Delhi-based ORCO offers natural, healthy and certified organic condiments and spices, which are hand ground, hand pounded and cleaned by women

A victim of child marriage and domestic abuse, Laxmi Waghmare still chose a life of uplifting and empowering women.

After being debt-ridden for years, these two middle-aged women from Hooghly took up farming and are now inspiring other women in the rural areas.

"The lack of women in this industry would always be a concern and at several instances, people have tried to insinuate that I was nothing more than a showpiece. But, I have worked my way through all this, taught myself, and now I’m proud,” says Zainab Raj from Rajasthan.

Started as a lockdown project to help the women members of a local self help group in Kodaikanal, Smriti Lamech and her teams makes rag dolls that honour feminist icons like Kalpana Chawla, Savitribai Phule, Frida Kahlo and more.