Madhabi Puri Buch, the first woman at the helm of Sebi, the markets regulator, has brought in a data-driven approach
In her 30-year stint, Leena Nair managed to make Unilever a gender-balanced company across its management globally. Now, as CEO, she's poised to bring her inclusive worldview to luxury brand Chanel
Lakshmi Iyer started off marrying coding with markets. Today she heads Kotak's investment advisory business
Through media network Khabar Lahariya, Kavita Devi and Meera Devi are ensuring elected heads are held accountable by reporting on issues of women and marginalised communities from the hinterland
Actor Katrina Kaif turned her love for make-up into a business venture. Her label Kay Beauty has products for all age groups and skin tones, and also aims to be a community for women
While Jacinta Kerketta's poetry is about the lives and losses of indigenous communities in Jharkhand, her writing is about the conflict over land, the impact of risk management programmes on those living inside forests, and grassroots democracy among indigenous populations
Ashwini Deshpande, professor of economics at Ashoka University, studies the economics of discrimination—how do race, caste and gender affect economic outcomes. And unlike most economists, she doesn't limit her work to academia, but puts it into practice
Anju Srivastava wants people to realise that doing business thoughtfully is the future. And with Wingreens Farms, she is leading by example by empowering farmers and their families
In the Forbes India W-Power 2022 issue, you will find self-made women who created their paths to define their destinies. From the small-town girl story of Chanel boss Leena Nair to the tale of Sequoia India's Sakshi Chopra's patience and perseverance and the coverage of Khabar Lahariya's grassroots journalism, Varsha Meghani shares the details of how the list came about and the pages you must flip through in this edition
This year Forbes India's W-Power 2022 list features women who are breaking stereotypes, dismissing doubters and leading change
Forbes India's W-Power does consider conventional parameters of measuring success—wealth and valuation, power and position, and value-creation and performance—however, at the heart of the list is the self-made essence of these women. They're not dynasts or inheritors, but individuals who have imagined their own ideas, their own paths, their own destinies