Successful women entrepreneurs in India -We see a few successful women entrepreneurs from India, who broke the stereotype image to pursue their dreams.
About thirty years back, when they wanted to start their journey to accomplish their dreams, they were told the same what we are told today- A woman can’t have it all.
Yet, they fought their way to success.
Entrepreneurship is tough- be it for a man or woman.
A stereotype woman in the Indian society is expected to be dedicate most/all of her time to her family, irrespective of they being capable of handling big successes and companies. However, there are also women who broke the stereotyped image, and created history, so as the world could see what they are capable of.
We see a few such women in India.
Indra Krishnamurthy Nooyi, CFO, PepsiCo
Born in Chennai, Indra did her Bachelor’s in Science from Madras Christian College, and holds a Diploma in MBA from IIM Calcutta. Nooyi worked with a number of brands before she finally joined PepsiCo in 1994. Taking it to great heights, Nooyi was conferred Padma Bhushan award for her business achievements and being an inspiration to the feminine power in the corporate industry. She was ranked third on the list of ‘World’s Most Powerful Moms’ list by Forbes.
Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CMD, Biocon
Born to Gujarati parents in the IT hub of India, she graduated from Bangalore University with a B.Sc. in Zoology in 1973. Though she wanted to be a doctor, she ended up studying fermented science, and got trained to be a brewmaster- an offbeat job for women. She earned the degree of Master Brewer in Australia. Overcoming a number of challenges as a beginner, she started Biocon India in 1978, in a small garage with a seed capital of Rs 10,000. Well, we all know what Biocon means to the Biology and Biochemistry industry in today’s date.
Naina Lal Kidwai, GM & Country Head, HSBC-India
Currently, the country head and group general manager of HSBC, India Naina has a Bachelor’s degree from Delhi University and an MBA from Harvard Business School. She was the first woman to own a degree from Harvard and started her career with ANZ Grindlays. Former President of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), Kidwai is the first woman to guide the functioning of a foreign bank in India.
Simone Tata, Chairperson, Trent Limited
Born in France and brought up in Switzerland, Simone is wife of Naval Homey Jahangir Tata and step mother to Ratan Tata. When the world did not know much about cosmetics, this personality changed a small subsidiary of Tata Oil Mills into the largest cosmetic brand in India, popularly known as Lakme. Trent Limited was founded in 1996, after Tata sold off Lakme to Hindustan lever Limited and created Trent from the money it made.
Chanda Kochhar, MD & CEO, ICICI Bank
Chanda Kochhar is the current MD and CEO of one of India’s largest private banks, ICICI. Born in Rajasthan, Chanda pursued MBA from Jamnalal Bajaj Institute of Management Studies in Mumbai. She received the Wockhardt Gold Medal Award for Excellence in management studies. Under Kochhar’s leadership, the ICICI Bank won ‘Best Retail Bank Award’ for five consecutive years from 2001. She is also mentioned in the list of “Most Powerful Women in Business” by Fortune Magazine.
Shaheen Mistry, CEO-Teach For India, Founder-Akanksha Foundation
Born in Mumbai in a Parsi family, she got to travel to many countries with her fther, who was a senior banker with Citi group. She graduated with a BA in Sociology from ST. Xavier’s College, University of Mumbai and later obtained a Masters in Education from the University of Manchester. Shaheen’s interest in chuldren’s education led her to volunteer as a teacher in diverse organizations. She founded the Akanksha Foundation with just 15 children from under privileged society, and took onto a leadership role in Teach for India.
Richa Kar, Founder, Zivame
Founder of an online lingerie website, Richa Kar, has been raising capital ever since her venture was launched in 2011. “When you are growing a business you cannot spend as much time with family and that is a choice I have made. I don’t have time to interact with my parents. But I know, I will make time for that once I have achieved my dream”, Richa says.
Shubhra Chadda, Co-founder, Chumbak
A website that creates and retails design focused India-themed souvenirs, online and offline was co-founded by Shubhra Chadha in 2010. Starting with a very less amount of capital, Shubhra headed the company that now has 130 partner stores in India and 70 in Japan. Raising children and growing a business together, she says “I never wanted it to be a niche business. I wanted it to be a mass brand, that keeps prices affordable.”
Women have reached space and taken care of their families at the same time. When it comes to relationships, they never give up easily. Well, if they think they can, they definitely can have it all. We salute every woman who made their own way to success.
