[Year in review 2021] Here are 10 women who went viral this year

As we look back at 2021, Indian women took the centre stage in every field, from science to corporate to the entertainment industry.

From flying across the globe to breaking two national records among other things, women are going above and beyond. 

Here are 10 women who went viral in 2021:    

Gagandeep Kang

During the coronavirus pandemic, the top virologist of the country who has been on her toes to keep the country safe is Gagandeep Kang. The Professor in the Department of Gastrointestinal Sciences at the Christian Medical College, Vellore, India, Gagandeep is a leading researcher with a major research focus on viral infections in children.  

During the pandemic, she co-authored Till We Win: India's Fight Against The COVID-19 Pandemic, with Chandrakant Lahariya, a leading Indian medical doctor, public policy and health system expert and Randeep Guleria, the director of AIIMS, New Delhi. The book has become a bestseller. Since 2020, Kang is an ex-officio member of a working group on COVID-19 vaccines established by the Strategic Advisory Group of Experts at the WHO.

Mirabai Chanu

This year, women stole the show at the Tokyo Olympics and one of the Indian women who truly shined is Mirabai Chanu who won the country’s first weightlifting silver in the 49kg category. She lifted a total of 202kg (87kg+115kg) to win the medal. 

Manipur-based Mirabai has been so focused towards improving her game that she barely visited her home for five days in the last five years. This year, she went to her home with the Olympic medal. 

This year in April, she also won a bronze medal at the Asian Weightlifting Championships in Tashkent where she lifted 86 kg after which she went on to create the world record by lifting 119 kg in the clean and jerk, for a total of 205 kg. 

Leena Nair

Leena Nair, who grew up in Kolhapur, Maharashtra recently became the first female and youngest-ever CEO of Chanel after a 30-year stint in Unilever. The British Indian executive managed the human capital of Unilever, which operates across multiple regulatory and labor environments spread over 190 countries. 

In a statement, Chanel said Nair would join the group in January, adding that the recent appointments would ensure its "long-term success as a private company." 

Mamata Banerjee

West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee won a tight fight against the BJP in the recent state assembly election. While she lost from the Nandigram constituency against Suvendu Adhikari of the BJP, she won the state with a landslide two-thirds majority. AITC’s campaign tagline “Khela Hobe” charmed the state and the country alike as she took to the chief minister’s position for the third consecutive time.

Harnaaz Sandhu

Indian model, Harnaaz Sandhu was crowned Miss Universe 2021 becoming the first Indian woman to win the title after Lara Dutta who won in 2000. She had been previously crowned Miss Diva Universe 2021, and is the third entrant from India to win Miss Universe.

One of Harnaaz’s statements that stood out was when became one of the 10 semi-finalists during the grand finale when she said, “From a young girl with fragile mental health who faced bullying and body shaming to a woman who emerged like a phoenix, realising her true potential. From an individual who once doubted her own existence to a woman who is aspiring to inspire the youth. Today, I stand proudly in front of the Universe as a courageous, vivacious, and compassionate woman who is all set to lead a life with a purpose, and to leave behind a remarkable legacy." 

Captain Zoya Agarwal

Four commercial women pilots scripted history in India as they flew the world’s longest haul from San Francisco to Bengaluru on January 10 - a distance roughly 14,000 km being the only pilots in the cockpit. Air India’s Capt. Zoya Agarwal commanded an all-women crew of pilots Capt. Shivani Manhas, Capt. Akansha Sonawane, Capt. Thanmai Papagiri and achieved the landmark feat by flying over the North Pole as they flew between the two diametrically opposite cities in the world which have a time difference of around 13.5 hours.

Capt. Zoya is also the youngest pilot to fly the Boeing-777 and earlier this year she was chosen by the United Nations as its spokesperson for Generation Equality.

Nodeep Kaur

Earlier this year, Dalit labour rights activist from Punjab, Nodeep Kaur was arrested on 12 January for protesting outside a factory on the outskirts of the capital, Delhi. She was charged under sections of the law that deal with attempt to murder, extortion, rioting, unlawful assembly and criminal intimidation.

Several influential people including Meena Harris, niece of American Vice President Kamala Harris called for her release after which she was granted bail a month after her arrest. She has also been a notable participant in the farmers’ protest. In her petition, she said that she was "targeted and falsely implicated in the matter as she was successful in generating massive support in favour of the farmers".

Reshma Patel

Racewalker Reshma Patel won the Gold medal in the under-18 girls 5000m race walk in the national junior athletics championships in February this year. She clocked 23 minutes 38.57 seconds, breaking KT Neena’s 2014 record of 24:11.70 set in Bambolim in Goa.

In a two-week span, this was Reshma’s second record break as she broke Priyanka Goswami’s national record as a debutant in the under-20 mark in 10,000m race walk at the Junior Federation Cup in Bhopal in January.

Disha Ravi

This 22-year-old climate change activist from Bengaluru was arrested by the Delhi Police on 4 February this year on charges of sedition and criminal conspiracy for editing a public-enabled toolkit that Greta Thunberg had tweeted about in support of the farmers’ protest. Ravi’s arrest led to global criticism.

She was later granted bail on February 23 as judge Dharmendra Rana stated, “Considering the scanty and sketchy evidence on record, I do not find any palpable reason for keeping a 22-year-old in custody."

Ravi is one of the founders of Fridays For Future in India (FFF India). She is also reportedly a part of the MAPA (Most Affected People and Areas) wing of the FFF movement – countries and peoples of the Global South (developing world), who bear the brunt of carbon emissions and climate change.

Priya Ramani

In February, journalist Priya Ramani was acquitted in a very prominent defamation case filed by former journalist and BJP minister, MJ Akbar, who she had accused of sexual harassment during the MeToo movement in 2018. The case, filed in 2018, was intensely followed by the mass media and generated a lot of public interest. 

Finally, this year, the trial court dismissed the case against Priya, and judge Ravindra Kumar Pandey stated, “Despite how well respected some persons are in the society, they, in their personal lives, could show extreme cruelty to the females," and "The time has come for our society to understand the sexual abuse and sexual harassment and its implications on victims."