3 Indian Women Icons That You Should Follow

Indian women are turning heads and killing the game and receiving their long overdue global recognition. Gone are the days, where Indian women were just known for taking over conventional career paths. Nowadays,  you will see Indian women representing themselves and setting trends in all fields of life.  From being global entrepreneurs, having their own skincare and collaborating with top notch luxury fashion lines, to being comedians, to having their own successful food series, Indian women are doing it all. Below are some of our favorite Indian women crush taking over the world by storm:

1. Padma Lakshmi

Padma was born in Chennai and moved to the U.S. at an early age. With many achievements under her belt starting at a young age, Padma is best known for her hosting gig on the Emmy Nominated show, Top Chef. She currently has a Hulu series called Taste of Nation which was recently nominated for Gotham Award for Breakthrough Series. She's also a food expert, artist ambassador for American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU)  for immigrant rights and women’s rights, and a New York Times best-selling author. While struggling with endometriosis herself, a gynecological condition which is often discovered later in life, Padma co-founded the Endometriosis Foundation of America (EFA) to bring awareness, start research,  and educate other women. It is amazing to see Indian personalities bringing awareness about a major fertility problem which is overlooked and often kept secret in our society.

2. Dolly Singh

Dolly Singh comes from humble beginnings and grew up dreaming of becoming famous one day. She certainly worked hard to achieve that dream by creating content that is hilarious and relatable for her audience. She now has over a million followers on social media. It is rare that you find an Indian woman that is a comedian and a fashion blogger that is authentic. What makes Dolly Singh unique is that her content is not scripted and presented without the heavy editing. The content  is based on normal and relatable things that other Indian women often encounter issues like arranged marriage to struggling with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). On her YouTube channel, she plays a character called  ‘Raju Ki Mummy’ on the Raju Ki Mummy chat show. On her show, she collaborated with Bollywood celebrities like Priyanka Chopra, Sonam Kapoor,  Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Pankaj Tripathi.  She recently appeared in the Netflix web series  called  Bhang Beanie Bhaag.  In today’s digital area, where content creators only show curated content with a certain aesthetic, it's great to see Dolly Singh keeping it real.

3. Diipa Büller-Khosla

Born in Delhi and now based in Amsterdam. An important goal of Diipa is female empowerment. Diipa is an influencer and  an entrepreneur.  She was named Elle India’s Influencer of the Year in 2019.   She is the founder of Post of Change, a non-profit organization that brings together the reach of social media  influencers and online platforms to successfully bring social change. In 2019, she was awarded “The Changemaker Influencer” by Inflow Summits. She collaborated with big brands like Dior, Louis Vuitton Armani, Fendi, Jo Malone, Mac, Bvlgari, and Spotify.  Recently, Diipa launched her own skin line called Inde Wild, skincare products made with Ayurvedic remedies that she grew up using.  Growing up, Diipa was often bullied because of her skin color, Diipa turned a negative into a positive and has become a proponent  of skin pride and  has shown the world that being brown is beautiful.   Recently, Diipa discussed body positivity and reminded women that instead of hiding, they should be proud of their postpartum stretch marks and body. Diipa has become a social media clout.

The above Indian women have built a one of a kind relationship with their audience by bringing awareness to issues important to women. It is empowering to see Indian women taking on vital roles and winning in life. They have shown the world that the future will consist of powerful and successful Indian women everywhere. 

Overall, this year was a big year for Indian women as they were spotted in major roles from the White House (Vice President Kamala Harris) to being Miss Universe 2021 (Harnaaz Sandhu) to being global CEO of luxury brand, Chanel (Leena Nair).  The glass ceiling has definitely been broken by Indian women and this is the start of the world recognizing the shift in power.  Indian women are making history and this is just the beginning.