International Women's Day is celebrated annually on 8th March. It offers an opportunity to reflect on progress made, to call for change and to celebrate acts of courage and determination by ordinary women who have played an extraordinary role in the history of their countries and communities.
It is a day when women are recognized for their achievements without regard to divisions, whether national, ethnic, linguistic, cultural, economic or political.
Here are a few such incredible women who travelled the path less taken and serve as an inspiration to millions of people around the world.
Flight Lieutenant Bhawana Kanth, who was commissioned into the Indian Air Force as one of the first women fighter pilots in 2016, had created history by becoming the first woman to qualify for combat missions on a fighter jet. She has successfully completed the operational syllabus for carrying out combat missions on MiG-21 Bison aircraft, during the day.
She is also the first woman fighter pilot to take part in the Republic Day parade. She was a part of the Indian Air Force's (IAF's) tableau that showcased mock-ups of the light combat aircraft, light combat helicopter and the Sukhoi-30 fighter plane in 2021.
Gita Gopinath, a United States national and an overseas citizen of India is the First Deputy Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) as of January 21, 2022. In that role she oversees the work of staff, represents the Fund at multilateral forums, maintains high-level contacts with member governments and Board members, the media, and other institutions, leads the Fund’s work on surveillance and related policies, and oversees research and flagship publications. Financial Times named her among the ‘25 most influential women of the year’ in the year 2021.
Known as the ‘missile woman’ of India, Tessy Thomas is a scientist at the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). She served as the Project Director for the Agni IV and V missiles, making her the first woman to lead missile teams in India.
Dr. Thomas has received several prestigious awards for her work, including the ‘DRDO Scientist of the Year’, in 2008, DRDO Performance Excellence Award for 2011 and 2012, India Today Women of the Year award in 2009, Lal Bahadur Shastri National Award for Excellence in Public Administration in 2012, CNN-IBN Indian of the Year in 2012, Sir Mokshagundam Visvesvaraya Award in 2016, and Outstanding Woman Achiever Award by Women in Science and Engineering (WISE).
Teenage aviator Zara Rutherford has become the youngest woman to fly around the world solo.
A solo journey by Zara commenced on 18th August, 2021 and ended on 20th January, 2022 made credited her with the tag of the youngest female pilot to complete a circumnavigation.
There is so much to learn from these great women. One of the most important things we can learn from them is that, no matter how weak we start off as, it is the journey that makes us strong. It is not easy to achieve what we wish to, we must give our everything and make it a memorable process that we can be proud of and admire at a later stage of our life. This will be possible only when we appreciate smaller milestones in our lives and are ready to move out of our comfort zone.
- B Trisha Raj, XI
The Fault In Our Stars by John Green, is a story built out of darkness and distress. He takes the tragedy of cancer and submerses us in the lives of characters that could very well be real. The scars left by those who fight the fight last a lifetime for most who deal with them.
He brings his story in the form of a teen girl, Hazel Lancaster. Diagnosed with cancer at a young age, she believes she has come to terms with how her life has evolved. Then she meets a young man, Augustus Waters, a survivor of cancer. He is attracted to her in a strange way. As she tries to push him away in her sarcastic vein, he finds her to be exactly the type of girl he has been looking for. Throughout the story, there is loveliness and humour, a 'candle in the wind' for each of those whose lives have been touched by such a cruel disease. For cancer touches not just the victim but all those who love and are in any way touched by them.
Green develops the personalities of teenagers that can bring both laughter and tears in a story filled with romance and anger, enthusiasm and humour, and friendship and bravery. The stories that cover each individual give you a glimpse of the character and daring as well as an abiding hope. As they try hard to protect their family and friends by showing only strength and smiles whenever possible, beneath that strong foundation they also conceal sorrow and hopelessness. Written so beautifully that your heart melts. You feel a part of this group as well as their families, their conquests, and their defeats. Families' efforts to prepare for the unexpected, while still holding out hope, and the friendships they form are like a beacon of light. The bravery and humour, the energy and despair all keep you on a roller coaster of emotion. Green takes you on a journey both dreadful and beautiful.
While a difficult book to categorize I found it to be one of the most fascinating finds of the last few years. Green shines a light on cancer in a way that sends a tremor of ideal awareness. It is an incandescent monument to those that have both won and lost the fight, as well as the harm is done to those closest to them. The story explodes away from the veil of secrecy and hooks you from the very beginning.
- Melvin Shaji, XI
