New Delhi: From boardrooms and art studios to rural heartlands and male-dominated industries, women changemakers converged at the NewsX We Women Want Shakti Awards 2025, sharing stories of innovation, empowerment, and the will to rewrite India’s social and economic narratives. Across three high-impact sessions, they explored themes of entrepreneurship, gender equity, and creative leadership—while breaking stereotypes at every turn.
Moderated by senior editors Priya Sahgal and Megha Sharma, the panels brought together an eclectic mix of trailblazers, including Kalyani Saha Chawla (Rezon Luxury Silverware), Shireen Mann (Needle Dust), Arunima Malik (Vedanta), Dr. Shwetta Singh (Enobble IP), Apurva Pande (Baby Forest Ayurveda), Sara Abdullah Pilot (Sequin), Radhika Bharat Ram (Karm), Charu Singh (Kissan Trust), Shafalika Panda (Basundhara and Ela Panda Foundation), Suzanne Khan (The Charcoal Project), Ritu Beri, Shalini Passi, Bahar Dhawan Rohatgi, and Garima “Guma” Agarwal (MN Design Company).
Breaking the Glass Barrier
Chawla traced her journey from Dior India to launching her luxury silverware brand, crediting even her Netflix reality show cameo for boosting global reach. Mann spoke of reviving the dying craft of the Indian jutti into a couture label, while Malik highlighted women-led mining operations at Vedanta as proof that entrenched gender barriers can fall. Dr. Singh outlined how her firm protects innovations in a rapidly evolving IP landscape, and Pande described how motherhood inspired her Ayurvedic baby care brand—now a favourite among Bollywood mothers.
Bringing Up Girls
Pilot emphasized that boys must be part of the gender equity conversation, using football as a tool for change. Bharat Ram addressed the economic dimension of empowerment, noting that financial security is crucial for women’s independence. Singh broke taboos around rural women’s health through grassroots outreach, and Panda called for sustained inclusion by addressing poverty and patriarchy across generations. The panel agreed that lasting change requires both systemic reform and mindset shifts, with men acting as active allies.
Creative Power and Soft Diplomacy
Khan spoke of building a 35,000 sq ft Hyderabad studio as a testament to Indian design talent. Beri revisited her pioneering Paris showcase, now channeling her vision into a design-meets-nature space in Goa. Passi reflected on how reality TV amplified her philanthropic work, while Rohatgi called for urgent legal reform to protect artists’ rights. Agarwal, balancing hotel building, interiors, and motherhood, defied the stereotype of a politician’s wife.
From candid humour to calls for policy reform, the sessions revealed a shared ethos—resilience, purpose, and an unflinching will to lead. As Rohatgi put it, “Women aren’t just shattering glass ceilings anymore — we’re redesigning the rooms.”
