Rising: 30 Women Who Changed India
"Rising: 30 Women Who Changed India" was released on the occasion of Women's Day in March 2022, when I got a chance to meet with the author and engage with her. This book focuses on 30 women who have changed the mindset and broke stereotypes, giving a new definition of what an Indian woman or girl can do and achieve. Now that the author has announced a second book in the series, I picked this up again, for the purpose of reviewing it.
Kiran Manral has chosen women from diverse backgrounds, including entertainment, movies, sports, entrepreneurship, government jobs, judiciary, education, science, and rural panchayats. She has also included lesser-known personalities who have left a lasting impact on Indian women. Each personality is dedicated a chapter of 5-10 pages, providing a brief summary of their life.
The book highlights how women are often stereotyped and face numerous challenges in achieving their dreams. It showcases the achievements of these inspiring women who did not let the constraints of society or family stop them from pursuing their aspirations. Many of these women had to go against their spouses, families, and even society to achieve their goals, and some even faced divorces.
The book starts with politicians such as Sushma Swaraj and Sheila Dikshit and then moves on to film personalities like Lata Mangeshkar, M. S. Subbulakshmi, Madhuri Dikshit, Rekha, Ekta Kapoor, and Aparna Sen. It also showcases the achievements of women in sports, including Karnam Malleshwari, Hima Das, P. T. Usha, P. V. Sindhu, and Mary Kom. The book also delves into the achievements of women in special fields, such as the Missile Woman of India, Tessy Thomas, and the entrepreneur Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw.
The book also highlights the struggles of Shakuntala Devi, who became famous for her quick mathematical calculations, and Menaka Guruswamy, who fought for the rights of the LGBTQ community in court. There are many other inspiring personalities included in the book that may not have had such an impactful journey as the ones mentioned before but they do manage to inspire, nonetheless.
"Rising: 30 Women Who Changed India" is a must-read for anyone who wants to know about the inspiring women who have helped shape India into what it is today. it is an exciting book that deserves a place on your bookshelf.