Empowerment

Women are increasingly breaking free of societal restrictions to explore their identities further. This International Women’s Day, Plan India highlights seven women who have become true examples of women going beyond traditional roles and boundaries.

Courage can take many forms. Leaving your home with your young children in search for a better life, and to escape the clutches of domestic violence, takes a special kind of courage, that Nirmala exemplifies.

As more and more Indian corporations and businesses grow and expand, the culture of corporate gifting is also seeing increased adoption. Through a simple decision to buy handcrafted products, corporate houses can turn this gifting culture into income and employment opportunities for rural Indian artisans.

Mantra4Change is a not-for-profit organisation working with schools in the not-so-popular lanes and alleys of urban and peri-urban Bengaluru. Through its key initiative, School Transformation and Empowerment Project (aka STEP), Mantra4Change takes a systemic approach towards improving the quality of education.

Inspired by the bravery of his peer, an actress who was reportedly sexually assaulted only days ago, actor Prithviraj vows never to do films with misogynistic themes.

Project Adhikaar aims to break gender barriers by enabling women to take up a profession largely dominated by men, and also tackle the issue of environmental pollution.

This is why Bollywood actress Disha Patani's Instagram post is being hailed by everyone across social media.

The inhumane and degrading profession of “manual scavenging” is still a reality for many Indians. India Fellow Aishwarya talks about how one such manual scavenger decided to quit the profession for a better life, and inspire others in the process.

Access to water and other facilities continues to be a problem for many parts of rural India. Recognising the need for a solution, three girls got together to help bring water access to their village through the construction of a borewell.

Employing and empowering the women from Mumbai's Mankhurd, Chindi makes home decor products and accessories using waste fabric from design houses and sewing units.