BENGALURU: Twenty women warriors from various fields, from leadership and environment change to radio and literature, found a common platform to voice their convictions and bask in some moments on glory on Saturday. Hailing from different parts of the state, these women were honoured for their work in areas of their expertise at Karnataka Women Achievers Awards (KWAA).
The event marked woman power across age groups, with one of the winners being Nikhitha C, the 23-year-old Co-Founder of Society for Space Education, Research and Development (SSERD) who won the youth icon award for her work in inspiring students in the field of space, while 106-year old environment activist and Padma Shri recipient Saalumarada Thimmakka spoke about how her work assumes an increased importance in current times.
“I am glad that platforms such as KWAA recognise and honour the efforts of women across the state. One should be proud to be a woman,” D Roopa Moudgil, Inspector General of Police, Railways, who was present at the event, said.
Among those to be honoured was Dr Shanti Tummala, a former dentist who gave up her job to become an environmentalist six years ago. She was felicitated with the Outstanding Environmental Change Maker Award. “My target is waste segregation and banning the use of plastic along with educating people on the need for this. A majority of people today don’t consider segregating waste as their responsibility, but this needs to change because we are already facing the effects. We achieved this target in HSR layout where 90 per cent of the people now segregate waste and lead a plastic-free life,” Tummala said.
Some of the other women who won the award were blogger Bharti Yadav, fashion designer Latha Puttana, motor sports athlete Aishwarya Pissay, and entrepreneur Aruna Sampige.
The initiative by actor Spoorthi Vishwas, in association with C. Krishniah Chetty Group of Jewellers, also recognised the efforts of 10 differently-abled women. Among them was Dhanya Ravi, a freelance content writer and disability evangelist who has spent over 10 years empowering the disabled people through her motivational talks. Ravi was born with Osteogenesis Imperfecta, a rare disease, and she narrates her personal accounts with the challenge in her talks. “Most of us come from middle-class families and most disabled people are confined within four walls. Such events and platforms helps us voice and normalise the perception in society,” said Ravi.
Talking about the thought behind constituting the awards, Vishwas said the spotlight is usually on celebrities. “Being an actor isn’t an easy job, and after becoming a mother I decided to focus on providing a platform to the many women whose efforts are yet to be recognised. Recognition gives us the motivation to do a lot more,” she said.