Four Indian women were named in the Forbes' annual list of the World's Most Powerful Women for 2023. The list, released on December 5, names women who have had the most life-changing impact on the world this year.
The top 10 names are European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde, US Vice-President Kamala Harris, Italian Prime Minister Giorgio Meloni, singer Taylor Swift, CVS Health CEO Karen Lynch, Citigroup CEO Jane Fraser, Fidelity Investments CEO Abigail Johnson, General Motors CEO Mary Barra and philanthropist Melinda French Gates
Forbes compiled the list by ranking the women based on four metrics: money, media, impact and spheres of influence. The four Indian women who found a spot in the Top 100 are Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, HCLTech Chairperson Roshni Nadar Malhotra, Steel Authority of India Chairperson Soma Mondal and billionaire entrepreneur Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw.
Nirmala Sitharaman (Union Finance Minister)
Sitharaman who is India's first full-time female Finance Minister is ranked at 32 up from 36 last year. She is also the country's Corporate Affairs Minister. Before entering politics, Sitharaman served at the UK-based Agricultural Engineers Association and BBC World Service. She was also a member of the National Commission for Women.
Roshni Nadar Malhotra (HCLTech Chairperson)
Malhotra, 42, became HCLTech chairperson in July 2020 and is the first Indian woman to lead a listed IT company in India. Ranked at 60, she is the daughter of HCL founder Shiv Nadar and the richest woman in India as per IIFL Wealth Hurun India Rich List (2019). In 2019, Malhotra was ranked at 54 while in 2020, she was at 55th position. She is also a trustee of the Shiv Nadar Foundation.
Soma Mondal (SAIL Chairperson)
At rank 70, Mondal has many firsts to her name. Graduating in Electrical Engineering in 1984, she has more than three decades of experience in the industry. The 60-year-old was the National Aluminium Co Director (Commercial) and joined SAIL in 2017. She was the first female Functional Director and Chairman at SAIL.
Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw (Biocon Managing Director)
Ranked at 76, Mazumdar-Shaw is known for founding Bengaluru-based Biocon Limited and Biocon Biologics Limited earlier served as chairperson of the Indian Institute of Management, Bengaluru. In 2011, she was named in the Financial Times' Top 50 Women in Business list. She was conferred with Othmer Gold Medal in 2014 for her contributions to science and chemistry. She was ranked at 68 in 2019 and 2020 Forbes List of Powerful Women.
