The proof that we are in the 21^st century lies in the fact that women are breaking the glass ceiling, rising in power, and establishing themselves in the world of business and entrepreneurship. Take inspiration from some of the most successful and powerful women in the business sectors of India:

Chanda Kochhar
Being the MD and CEO of ICICI Bank Limited, Kochhar is known for her role in shaping the modern retail banking sector in India. She has represented India globally and has won numerous accolades. She was conferred with the Padma Bhushan in 2011, for various achievements at the international level. For seven years, she had featured in the list of “The World’s 100 Most Powerful Women” by Forbes. In 2015, she had featured on TIME magazine’s list of “100 Most Influential People in the World”.

Naina Lal Kidwai
She is well known as the CEO and country head of HSBC India. She is also a former president of FICCI. Throughout her career, she has widely contributed towards the global trade and industrial operations of India. She was awarded the Padma Shri for her intellectual support to the banking sector. Kidwai has also represented India in numerous international platforms and won several other titles.

Chitra Ramkrishna
While only one-third of the employees in the National Stock Exchange are women, this iron lady fought her way upwards to become the first woman MD and CEO of the financial organization. She started her career with the NSE during its formative years in the early 1990s. Her dedication and perseverance lead her to be chosen for being a part of the leadership team set to provide a fully automated and screen-based trading system for the country.

Arundhati Bhattacharya
In 2013, The State Bank of India saw its first woman chairperson. She was prompt to set some important goals like taming quality deterioration, improving risk management, checking costs, improving delivery levels, and incorporating more technology-oriented baking operations.

Aarthi Subramanian
 In 2015, she was the first woman to make it to the board of directors of TCS. She is now the Executive director of the company. Her most challenging assignment soon after, was the Passport Seva Project, looking forward to digitizing the passport issuing process. Being the perfectionist that she is, has earned her the fond name of “Ms. Fixit” in the office!

Indra Krishnamurthy Nooyi
She is an Indian-American business executive, who is popular as the current chairperson and CEO of PepsiCo. Way back in the 1980s, Nooyi moved to the US for higher education and simultaneously started her career there. Being a hard nut to crack, she worked her way up the professional ladder, breaking patriarchal business values and achieving one of the highest positions in her organization. In 2014, she was at no. 13 in Forbes’ list of “World’s 100 Most Powerful Women”. She took the media by storm in 2010, while delivering her speech at the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum, held in Switzerland.

Shobhana Bhartia
She is the chairperson and editorial director of the Hindustan Times, one of India’s leading media houses. In 1986, she rose to be the first woman CEO of a national-level newspaper. In 2005, she raised more than Rs. 4 billion from a public equity launch of HT media. Her work has called for numerous applauses. In 1996 she received the “Global Leader of Tomorrow” award from the World Economic Forum, and in 1992 she received the “National Press India” award for her outstanding contribution towards nationalized media development.

Priya Nair
She has come a long way since she joined the consumer insights team of HUL in 1995. Currently, she is the executive director of the Home Care section of HUL. She single-handedly works on the consumer insights, customer development, and marketing mechanics of the whole section. Under her leadership, the detergents department of HUL won the hearts of millions of people across the country. She has been applauded by international business leaders for her path-breaking endeavors and a new outlook. In 2014, her launch of HUL’s rural mobile marketing initiative called “Kan Khajura Tesan” had received 3 Golden Lion awards at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity.

Let us give these warriors thumbs up for their relentless efforts to break stereotypes and move ahead towards achieving their dreams!