When Richa Singh walks into the room, she is as radiant as the diamonds she deals with. There are no airs about her; she’s direct, articulate and affable. With a career that spans over 19 years, she’s garnered extensive experience in consumer and business marketing, but at heart she’s still an entrepreneur who never wants… Continue reading Richa Singh, MD of Diamond Producers Association, on the hurdles she faced while rising up the ranks
When I lost my first congressional campaign, I went back to my hotel room and cried. I cried and cried. Surrounded by decorations that my staff had prematurely put up to celebrate a victory that never happened, I curled up into a ball and just lay there, completely devastated. But then something amazing happened. At… Continue reading Reshma Saujani’s manifesto to being brave in 2020
On a chilly winter evening, conversations and hopes for the New Year were shared between women leaders from across industries as part of Ladies Who Lead’s Wine and Wishes dinner on Dec 12. The networking dinner brought together like-minded trailblazers such as Gabriella Demetriades, Masoom Minawala, Ami Patel, Avanne Dubash, Jaishree Sharad, Shunali Shroff and… Continue reading A dinner organised by Ladies Who Lead brought like-minded trailblazers together
The time when professional roles were dictated by gender is now history and three exemplary women, Shonan Purie Trehan, Vinati Saraf Mutreja and Namita Thapar, trailblazers in their fields, lead by example. We find out how they are conquering more than just their rightful positions at the head of the table and walking the talk.… Continue reading Three successful women leaders share their top career advice
Christy Turlington Burns is one of those rare visionaries whose humility and hard work makes space for new possibilities. The iconic supermodel became a champion maternal health advocate when she suffered a near-fatal postpartum haemorrhage (PPH) after giving birth to her daughter Grace, in 2003. She founded Every Mother Counts (EMC), a non-profit organisation that… Continue reading Christy Turlington Burns, supermodel and our December cover star is on a mission to make childbirth safe for all mothers
I had postpartum haemorrhage when my daughter, Meera, was born in 2016. I still remember the day like it was yesterday. I was wheeled into the recovery room after the delivery. At that point, my head was preoccupied with names—we didn’t know what to name her. An old nurse, whom I knew from my son’s… Continue reading Our Editor-in-Chief on why our December cover star Christy Turlington Burns counts
Dior has a well-known history of creating a meaningful conversation around femininity and constantly reminding us of the power of the modern-day woman. Be it the T-shirts emblazoned with ‘We Should All Be Femnists’ or displaying sisterhood in its runway shows, the brand never ceases to empower women worldwide. Similarly, Lady Dior, the iconic emblem… Continue reading Dior and Ruth Bell redefine what it means to be ladylike
In the era of an acute obsession with #GirlBoss and #HustleHard, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed with the idea of crossing career milestones faster than you can say ‘rat race’. Add to that, the pressure of juggling several roles as a women and the gender disparity at workplace, and the road becomes all the more… Continue reading Boss woman Apurva Purohit’s top advice to combat working mom guilt
There are lots of momentous (and well-documented occasions) in the British royal family, but we’d have to say that very few of them are as cute as when a young royal embarks on their first day of school. In 2017, Prince William went solo with Prince George, when Kate Middleton was pregnant. But the whole… Continue reading Duchess Kate Middleton debuts her new hairstyle, the perfect fall crop
We’ll never deny the outfit amplifying powers a statement piece of jewellery brings, but perhaps, hefty accessories are not practical for everyday wear. That’s why a simple, understated, and practical piece seems so appealing when it comes to building a well-rounded wardrobe. Specifically, a sleek, minimalist yet powerful watch. Here’s where ELLE watches’ new fall… Continue reading These stellar timepieces from ELLE Watches are the only fall accessory you need
Last December, Baroda-based Nilima Sheikh became the first artist to be confirmed for this year’s Kochi-Muziris Biennale. A month before, her Terrain: Carrying Across, Leaving Behind, an eight-panel retro verso octagonal structure, comprising casein tempera paintings, was unveiled at Mumbai’s Chemould Prescott Road after its debut at documenta 14. Inscribed within the panels in eloquent detail were stories sourced from folklore and more recent events, such as the suicide of Dalit student Rohith Vemula. In August 2018, it traveled… Continue reading What’s next for artist Nilima Sheikh
Programme director at the North East Network (NEN), Nagaland and a member of the Mahila Kisan Aadhikar Manch (Women Farmers’ Rights Forum), Wekoweu Tsuhah is at the forefront of championing women’s rights and creating alternative development models by strengthening local food and farming systems. Under her leadership, community seed banks and organic markets are being established so locals have autonomy in food production; participatory videos on local culture, livelihoods, environment and other community concerns are being produced to… Continue reading Wekoweu Tsuhah
Priya Ramani is the journalist who called out the former newspaper editor, union minister MJ Akbar, opening the floodgates for more than 20 women—including New York-based journalist Pallavi Gogoi, who alleged Akbar raped her—to speak out. Her words began the chain reaction that eventually led Akbar to step down from his job as a minister. He filed a criminal defamation case against her that… Continue reading #MeToo: Priya Ramani, the journalist who took down MJ Akbar
Playback singer, Chinmayi Sripada exposed Tamil lyricist Vairamuthu for sexually harassing her on work trips 13 years ago and threatening to end her career when she didn’t respond. He denied it, but other women were inspired to come forward with their harrowing experiences with the lyricist. Sripada speaking up has highlighted the kind of discrimination that those in the performing arts face. Since she spoke up, she’s… Continue reading #MeToo: How Chinmayi Sripada stood her ground in the face of slut-shaming
The journalist is one of the first and most forceful voices of #MeToo, as she called out three senior journalists—former DNA and Times Of India editor Gautam Adhikari, former TOI Hyderabad editor KR Sreenivas and Hindustan Times’s Manoj Ramachandran— for sexual harassment. It wasn’t the first time that Menon was calling out sexual harassment in the workplace, but this time, she named names, and her series of tweets… Continue reading #MeToo: Journalist Sandhya Menon on how the movement changed her
Where do I look for an early example of what a woman’s anger can do? Being Tamil, Kannagi comes to mind—angered that her husband had been unjustly executed by the king—she burns down Madurai. The epic Silappatikaram speaks of how she plucked and flung her left breast, cursing that the city be reduced to ashes.… Continue reading #MeToo: The indisputable power of female rage
There are few women leaders in the unicorn club (start-ups with a valuation of US$1 billion), but Rashmi Daga is well on her way to changing that. Within three years of launching the healthy foodtech company FreshMenu, she has already hit 5,00,000 orders a month in an extremely competitive delivery market, and expects to achieve… Continue reading Meet the woman whose disruptive food start-up fuels you through the day
They’ve been bruised. They’ve been battle-scarred. But they never backed down. As part of the fourth season of Levi’s #IShapeMyWorld campaign, the brand features seven empowered women, each with a heart-warming story of trial and triumph that will inspire you by leaps and bounds. Right from rapper Hard Kaur who worked her way through a male-dominated… Continue reading From badminton player Jwala Gutta to rapper Hard Kaur, these empowered women will inspire you to beat all odds
This season has seen the film industry turned on its head. The floodgates opened last October when the New York Times published a story detailing the accusations against Harvey Weinstein and his alleged decades of sexual harassment, a tapestry of scandals that continues to unravel. Countless accusations, campaigns and protests later, we’re finally seeing years worth… Continue reading 13 kick-ass films with strong female leads you need to watch this year
As founder of Vu Technologies, Devita Saraf has a lot of fun breaking the rules. Here’s the young entrepreneur’s best advice for modern women looking to set up a multi-crore business. Growing up, I always knew that I wanted to be a leader or businesswoman. I was extroverted and expressive, and enjoyed having a variety… Continue reading How to build a multi-crore company as a female entrepreneur, according to Devita Saraf
These women from some of India’s most rapidly expanding tier-two cities are using their privilege and extraordinary vision to be the change they want to see. They talk to Aabha Bakaya about their path-breaking start-ups. SUBRATA PANDEY 29, ODISHA AND ASSAM MD and chief designer, Punarnawa Crafts In 2011, Subrata Pandey founded Punarnawa Crafts, a… Continue reading Meet 5 start-up queens who are changing small town India as we know it
