What makes a woman? Who is a woman? Is she the beauty found in poetry and prose? The ability to be a muse? Or the countless accounts of sacrifice, struggle, discrimination, and more that continue to ache the annals of history? Or is it the silent stories of grit, brilliance, perseverance and power to overcome all odds and shine the brightest? 

Some would agree that women are all this and much more. 

This finds evidence in the countless inspiring stories of women who chose to rise to their potential and make the most of it, carving out extraordinary examples for many to follow. Tales of leadership can be found at home in those who run households, or in businesswomen, who run companies. Their experiences could be shared but their journeys, struggles and triumphs in several male-dominated industries are unique and remarkable.

Below are women entrepreneurs who have broken the glass ceiling, made it big and influenced millions with their work: 

Growing up seeing a lot of struggles, Papiben Rabari was always pushed to work hard. This is what helped her get famous at a young age. Today she is the founder of one of the first women artisan enterprises in the country. 

Pabiben stands as a brand ambassador of the colorful Kutch district and has expanded the tribal legacy of Rabari embroidery. 

Initially, she joined a Rabari women’s group, then ended up crafting unique styles of embroidery, including Hari Jari and Pabi Jari. Further, she took the bold step of starting her website to showcase her products. 

Currently, her business based in Kukadsar employs over 60 women making more than 25 designs, and her website is quite popular across the world.

Ampere Electric is a Coimbatore-based company that locally manufactures electric vehicles like e-cycles, e-scooters, e-trolleys, special-purpose vehicles for waste management and differently abled people. 

It was founded by Hemalatha Annamalai. She has emerged as an innovative technology creator in India’s nascent e-vehicle industry. Hemalatha has made a name for herself in a field that was strictly limited to male entrepreneurs.

Born in a middle class family in Salem, Hemalatha was the fifth among six siblings. Her father is a professor and mother a teacher. Hemalatha attended school in Chennai and got her Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science Engineering from the Government College of Technology (GCT), Coimbatore. She feels that the best part about her growing up years was the freedom that her parents entrusted her with. 

It led her to pursue her fields of interest and inspire millions with her work.

Planet Abled was conceived in 2016 by Neha Arora after she realized that differently abled people found it difficult to travel around India. 

With tour packages that include special portable ramps for easier accessibility, Neha has managed to successfully conduct a 17-day tour that spread across two countries, five states and 13 cities, with many differently abled people, and aims to plan many more such trips. 

For Neha, the drive to establish Planet Abled has been very personal. Coming from a home where both her parents have had to deal with disability – her mother has polio from childhood and is wheelchair bound while an infection rendered her father visually impaired when he was in college – she is acutely aware of deprivations and discrimination in the system and fully understands their needs.

By employing dedicated moderators and tour guides who help the differently abled pursue their dream of traveling without any barriers.