A – D E – H I – L M – P Q – T U – Z
Edulji, Diana: (born January 26, 1956) is a former Indian women's Test cricketer. Born in Mumbai (Bombay) she was drawn to sports at an early age. She then went on to play basketball and table tennis at the junior national level, before migrating to cricket. At a cricket camp hosted by former Test cricketer Lala Amarnath she honed her skills. Edulji then went on to play for the Railways and then the Indian national cricket team where she was a successful slow left-arm orthodox bowler.
Faria, Reita: the first Indian woman to win the Miss World title in 1966, she serves as a role model for women who aspire for glamour. Reita Faria gave up modeling after her tenure as Miss World ended. She took up medical studies after that and became a doctor.
Fathima Beevi, M: She was the first woman judge to be appointed to the Supreme Court of India (1989) and the first Muslim woman to be appointed to any higher judiciary post in the country. She is the first woman judge of a Supreme Court of a nation in Asia. On her retirement from the Court she served as a member of the National Human Rights Commission and as Governor in Tamil Nadu (1997-2001).
Gandhi, Indira: Indira Priyadarshini Gandhi; née: Nehru; (19 November 1917 – 31 October 1984) was the prime minister of the Republic of India for three consecutive terms from 1966 to 1977 and for a fourth term from 1980 until her assassination in 1984, a total of fifteen years. She was India's first, and to date only, female prime minister.
Gandhi, Kasturba: (April 11, 1869 – February 22, 1944) affectionately called Ba, was the wife of Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, marrying him in an arranged child marriage in 1883. Kasturba Gandhi joined her husband in political protests. She traveled to South Africa in 1897 to be with her husband. From 1904 to 1914, she was active in the Phoenix Settlement near Durban. During the 1913 protest against working conditions for Indians in South Africa, Kasturba was arrested and sentenced to three months in a hard labor prison. Later, in India, she sometimes took her husband's place when he was under arrest. In 1915, when Gandhi returned to India to support indigo planters, Kasturba accompanied him. She taught hygiene, discipline, reading and writing to women and children.
Gandhi, Maneka: (née Anand; born 26 August 1956) is an Indian politician, animal rights activist, environmentalist, former model and widow of the controversial Indian politician, Sanjay Gandhi (son of former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi). She has been a minister in four governments, and has authored a number of books in the areas of etymology, law and animal welfare. She was appointed chairwoman of the Committee for the Purpose of Control and Supervision of Experiments on Animals (CPCSEA) in 1995. Under her direction, CPCSEA members carried unannounced inspections of laboratories where animals are used for scientific research were conducted. She runs an NGO, People for Animals, which has its shelters across India.
Gandhi, Sonia: born Edvige Antonia Albina Maino in Lusiana, Italy on December 9, 1946, is the Italian-born President of the Indian National Congress and the widow of former Prime Minister of India Rajiv Gandhi. She also serves as the Chairperson of the ruling United Progressive Alliance in the Lok Sabha and the leader of the Congress Parliamentary Party.
Ganguly, Kadambini: (1861 – 1923) was one of the first female graduates of the British Empire and the first female physician of South Asia to be trained in European medicine. Ganguly studied medicine at the Calcutta Medical College. In 1886, she was awarded a GBMC (Graduate of Bengal Medical College) degree, which gave her the right to practice. She thus became the first Indian woman doctor qualified to practice western medicine. She went to the United Kingdom in 1892 and returned to India after qualifying as LRCP (Edinburgh), LRCS (Glasgow), and GFPS (Dublin). After working for a short period in Lady Dufferin Hospital, she started her own private practice.
Gargi: was an ancient Indian female philosopher, daughter of sage Vachaknu, and born in the family of Garga, circa 800 - 500 BCE. In Vedic literature, she is honored as one of the great natural philosophers. Gargi was one of the Navaratnas in the court of King Janaka of Mithila.
Goswami, Jhulan: (born 25 November 1983) is an all round cricketer who plays for the India national women's cricket team, as well as the Asia Women XI women's cricket team. She is currently the Indian women's cricket team captain. In 2006-07 she guided the Indian team to the first test series win in England. She won the ICC Women's Player of the Year Award, 2007.
Govindarajan, Mirudhubashini: (born 1947) is an Indian born, women’s healthcare expert. She has been providing comprehensive women's healthcare and infertility management for the over 25 years in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu, India.
Gul, Nuzhat: is the first and only woman turf manager in India, and nurtures the Royal Springs Golf Course in Srinagar. She did a Masters course in turf management at the University of Massachusetts.
Hangal, Gangubai: (5 March 1913 – 21 July 2009) was an Indian singer of the khayal genre of Hindustani classical music, who was known for her deep and powerful voice. Hangal belonged to the Kirana gharana. She also served as honorary music professor of the Karnataka University. She was awarded the Padma Bhushan, the Padma Vibhushan, the Sangeet Natak Academy award, among others.
Hampi (Humpy), Koneru: born 31 March 1987 in Gudivada, Andhra Pradesh) is a chess grandmaster from India. Her January 2010 FIDE Elo rating is 2614, placing her number two in the world for women. In 2007 she broke the record of 2577 set by Susan Polgar for the second-highest ranked female player in chess history and became the second female player ever, after Judit Polgar, to exceed the 2600 Elo mark. From 2002 through 2008, Humpy held the record as the youngest woman ever to become a Grandmaster (not merely a Woman Grandmaster), which she achieved at the age of 15 years, 1 month, 27 days, beating Judit Polgar's previous mark by three months; however, this has since been surpassed by Hou Yifan. In 2001 she won the World Junior Girls Chess Championship. In 2006 she participated in the Women's World Chess Championship, but was eliminated in the second round. In the Women's World Chess Championship 2008 she made it to the semi-finals, but was beaten by Hou Yifan.
Hazrat Mahal, Begum: also known as Begum of Awadh, was the first wife of Nawab Wajid Ali Shah. Her maiden name was Muhammadi Khanum and she was born at Faizabad, Awadh. She was a courtesan by profession and had been taken into the royal harem as a Khawasin, after being sold by her parents to Royal agents. She was later promoted to a Pari. She became a Begum after being accepted as a royal concubine of the King of Oudh, and she was bestowed the title 'Hazrat Mahal' after the birth of their son, Birjis Qadra. After her husband was exiled to Calcutta by the British, she took charge of the affairs of the state of Awadh despite her divorce from the Nawab. During India’s First War of independence (1857-58), she led a band of her supporters against the British, and was even able to seize the control of Lucknow. She declared her son Birjis Qadra as the king of Oudh. When the British re-captured Lucknow and most of Oudh, she had to retreat to Nepal, where she was initially refused asylum by the Rana Prime Minister Jang Bahadur but was later allowed to stay. She died there in 1879 and was buried in a nameless grave on the grounds of Kathmandu's Jama Masjid.
Heptullah, Najma: Dr. Najma Heptulla is an Indian politician and a Rajya Sabha member from Rajasthan since July 2004. She is the grand-niece of Maulana Abul Kalam Azad, a prominent Indian freedom fighter, a strong proponent of united India, and its first Minister of Education after Independence. She lost to Hamid Ansari in the 13th Vice-Presidential Elections held in August 2007 by 233 votes.
Husain, Shahnaz: CEO of Shahnaz Herbals Inc is a prominent Indian female entrepreneur best known for her herbal cosmetics, particularly skin care products. Currently, the Shahnaz Husain Group has over 400 franchise clinics across the world covering over 138 countries. Her group’s products are sold in leading global stores including Bloomingdale's (New York), Galleries Lafayette (Paris), Seibu (Japan), Harrods and Selfridges (London), and La Rinaeccente (Milan). She has been awarded the Padma Shri, a civilian award in 2006, and Success Magazine's "World's Greatest Woman Entrepreneur" award in 1996.
