Rekha Menon: Marketing & Communications Professional, Renowned TVAnchor, Celebrity Interviewer and Media Professional. Carrying on the tradition of celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of the women on Women’s Day, FWD Business took the opportunity to have a conversation with a few young inspiring women who have climbed the ladder to success, surpassed the odds and continue to do so every single day. They are a very clear what they want, how they want it and when they want it, and have set about to go get it, irrespective of what society has to say about it.

They have set out to break glass ceilings and pitch on the same playing field as their male counterparts and be treated as nothing less than equal. More than 100 years after the first International Women’s Day was celebrated, the women of the 21st century, the ones who have been empowered, who were raised to be strong, who have read ‘The Feminine Mystique’ and Hélène Cixous and have interpreted and woven it into their lives the ones who have seen their mothers tread on eggshells as they balance work and family, have set unreasonably high standards for themselves.Īs far as we have come, there is still far to go, but a few women have made it their God-given purpose to break stereotypes, beat the odds and set the standard for the rest of us to follow.

The women of our mothers’ generation – those who have lived to see empowerment grow from the women’s suffrage, to Kudumbashree and the dawn of women assuming the roles of mayors, doctors, lawyers and police officers the generation of women who fought hard to get as far as they have – believed that the road to equality was a long and hard one. Women are highly educated, extremely successful in their careers and will not cower away from a challenge, women juggle their family, social life, work and other responsibilities on a daily basis and there is a strong and well rooted representation of women in the public sphere as well. Women empowerment and the much feared ‘F’ word – feminism, has come a long way since burning the bra and fighting for the right to vote. Text: Rochelle D’Souza & Shalet James Photos: Various Sources

Women who have beaten the odds and emerged as catalysts for change

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