Meet The Winners Of Digital Women Awards For The Year 2021

2021 Digital Women Awards winners: The winners for SheThePeople Digital Women Awards, 2021 presented by Google and empowered by Colors TV were announced on November 23, 2021. The ceremony was held virtually and also featured eminent guest speakers like Union Ministers Smriti Irani and Rajeev Chandrashekhar, Indra Nooyi, Sapna Chadha, Pooja Dhingra, Harsh Mariwala and many more.

The wide range of work that these women are doing in the field of entrepreneurship is both an inspiration and a sign of changing times in India. As more and more women spread their wings and challenge the concept, workings and thought process that goes into entrepreneurship, now is the time to sit up, listen to their stories and celebrate them.

So here are the winners of Digital Women Awards for the year 2021:

1. Lubna Naseem

The founder of DezignApe Technology hails from the small town of Bareilly in Uttar Pradesh. Naseem is an experienced digital business strategist working in areas of media, health, education and advertising. Having completed her BTech in Information Technology, she holds the experience of working with tech giants like Hewlett Packard, Suggestme, Rannlab Technologies etc.

Her company DezignApe is providing IT and marketing services to help with business growth. Naseem has also bagged "Excellence in Digital Startup Award" By Indian Icon Leadership Award for being an inspiration to many in her field.

2. Kunika Rathore

Kunika Rathore is the CEO and founder of The Unknown Agency, which specialises in building brands leveraging the media, technology and insights. She has introduced the innovative idea of bilateral interactions in her business wherein the customers can also connect and share the experience with the brands through technology to help them improve in areas.

Rathore has experience of many years in the field of marketing and advertising, she has worked with many companies that featured in Fortune 100 and 500 like Apple, Emirates, Bose, Google and Unilever. She also hosts a podcast that helps people navigate their day to day mental challenges, "The Kunika Rathore Audio Show".

3. Sapna Shahani

An alumnus of Gustavus Adolphus College Shahani has experience of around 13 years in video production. She has been a director, producer, trainer and editor for UTV and OML entertainment. As a development manager, she has also worked with Berkeley Community Media, US.

Having done her certification in entrepreneurial studies from Indian School of Business, Sahani has been running a Goa-based digital marketing agency known as Blurb for the past seven years. Blurb has been into catering for the hospitality industries in Goa, social media, graphic media design, videography and photography.

4. Mrinalini Shastry 

Shastry's venture Six Yards Plus was launched in 2017 to help urban women who wanted to drape the authentic weaves of India but could not do so due to a lack of information. Shastry has always been an active part of social media channels like the self help groups for women to help artisans gain more recognition in the market, in machine centered production environment.

Shastry holds a degree from the Indian School of Business and is known to have worked closely with many NGOs like Byyraju Foundation, Dr Reddy's Foundation and the Andhra Pradesh government programs to eliminate rural poverty. It was in 2017, when she launched Six Yards Plus to make her dream of promoting sarees of local artisans to households as per their demand. Mrinalini has helped in creating more than 200000 hours of work for the network of around 300 artisans across 10 states of India.

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5. Sinal Shah

Having completed her education from Australia, Shah has been part of global firms like AIESEC, Deloitte and Ernst & Young. She started her career with PricewaterhouseCoopers as tax consultant and says that she dreamt of becoming a partner someday. She believes in the concept of BHAGS (Big Hairy Audacious Goals) to transform an industry- which brought her to Petsy.

Shah is the co-founder at Petsy that aims to make ordinary pet parenting an extraordinary experience. Three basic pillars of the pet platform are- pet education and empowerment, community connect, thoughtfully curated merchandise for the pets. Founded in 2019, Petsy's online business deals with food, supplies and accessories for dogs, cats and other small animals along with articles on the topics of pet care and adoption help for the customers.

6. Babita Gupta

Her venture The House of Neeba aims at providing a royal and holistic culinary experience. With a special focus on the Made in India drive, the serviette products on her company's website carry a global aesthetic value.

The categories of products range from marble platters and serpentine trays, almond/walnut/peanut-shaped bowls, coasters, cake domes, animal logo on cutlery stand, candles, napkin rings and whatnot.

7. Raina Shariff, Poonam Sanghvi and Viinii Doshi

The three moms from Mumbai co-founded Oui Oui, a clothing company in 2018. Raina Shariff, along with her childhood friends Poonam Sanghvi and Viinii Doshi co-founded the company that takes up "made to measure" orders from customers for their kids. Having more than 7000 followers on its social media profile, Oui Oui is a favourite hub among tech parents who want something unique for their kids.

Shariff also works as Chief Brand Officer for Tao Design Studio Ltd and Aria Nice footwear in Mumbai. She has done her MBA in Retail Management and pursued luxury brand management from the London School of Trends. Doshi holds a BBA in Mass Communication from KC College, Mumbai and is also a London School of Trends pass out. The third partner, Sanghvi, also holds an MBA degree, that she completed from the UK.  The company boasts of having some very high-profile clients like Taimur Ali Khan, Inaya Khemu, Aradhya Bachchan and Mehr Dhupia Bedi.

8. Akanksha Savanal

Akanksha Savanal founded the inclusive clothing brand A Curve Story in 2019, in Mumbai. Her aim was to make fashion accessible, inclusive and intersectional. The website and online pages of A Curve Story received an overwhelming response within a span of one year of launch.

The body positivity icon, Savanal had completed her BCom from Narsee Monjee College of Commerce and Economics in Mumbai. She then completed a Fashion Entrepreneurship course University of Arts in London. Savanal has also worked as a fashion stylist in Bollywood, alongside many celebrities like Priyanka Chopra, Ayushmann Khurana etc.

9. Monika Shergill

The creative head of Netflix India, Monika Shergill joined the OTT venture's India wing in 2019 as head of series, international originals. Netflix India has seen a growth in gross revenue of over 66 percent as compared to previous cycle, post pandemic.

Having grown up in Uttar Pradesh, Shergill completed her education from Sophia Convent in Meerut, graduating in English honours from Miranda College, Delhi and following it up with a masters in journalism from Symbiosis College, Pune. She has been associated with many television networks like Zee, Star TV, Sony prior to her stint with Netflix. During her tenure at streaming network Voot, she was diagnosed with breast cancer, however she fought her battle against cancer while continuing to work. Fortune named her on their list of "Most Powerful Women in 2020".

10. DVL Padma Priya

Padma Priya has made her mark in the field of journalism through her articulate research, reporting and writings on various social issues. In 2018, she co-founded "Suno India", a multi lingual and multi generational platform for the pressing societal issues. The platform uses an audio podcast medium to convey stories that are well researched yet give a personalised touch. The company is offices in Delhi and Hyderabad.

Padma Priya is an alumnus of St Francis College, Hyderabad and Asian College of Journalism in Chennai. She has reported for India's leading newspapers like The Hindu, The Hans India and also freelanced for The Wire, Firstpost etc.

11. Shweta Dalmia

The climate advocate is bringing the stories of climate entrepreneurs to the forefront through The Climapreneur Show. Climapreneur has had a long journey from New York to London to France and finally to India. With Dalmia as its founder and CEO, the company visualises creating climapreneurs in schools, colleges and society as a whole.

Dalmia has also co-founded HouseofClima- a one stop shop for India's finest sustainable fashion. Being a Bachelors in Science from Amity University, she also studied with Birkbeck and Adelphi University as an exchange student and further pursued her masters with University College London in the field of climate change.

12. Anjalee Das

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13. Saumya Pankaj

Completing her Bachelors in Design, with visual communication and strategic branding, Saumya Pankaj worked on plethora of projects and designs. She has worked closely with brands like Asian Paints, Whack Thwack, Arts without Borders, InspiredTraveller to name a few.

In 2019, she started her own venture, The Indian Craft Project with its office in Noida, Uttar Pradesh. The company aims at reimagining design through collective crafts, working with artisans from local communities to advance India's creative heritage. They provide customised gift boxes, brand designing, accessories, sarees etc. , all curated in India.

14. Dolly Singh

Dolly Singh hails from the lake city of Nainital in Uttarakhand. Her humble beginning reflect in her content on various social media channels, including her Instagram profile and YouTube page named Spill The Sass which made her India's favourite. Her content on daily home struggles, and the portrayal of "Guddi Bhabhi", "Raju ki Mummy", which she says, are inspired by her mom, are a fan favourite.

Singh is a student of NIFT, Delhi and one of the very few content creators in India who brought home the affordable and classy fashion tips to millions of viewers. She frequently talks about mental health challenges through her own experiences.

15. Hansika Jethnani

Trying to get funky with the jewellery you wear? You need to try Hansika's Funky Maharani. The venture was co-founded by Hansika in 2020 to give our regular jewellery a touch of heritage and contemporary design. The products are handcrafted in India with sustainable metals and Swarovski crystals.

Jethnani is an alumnus of the European Institute University of Arts, London. She currently works as Chief Operating Officer for Funky Maharani as well as Kurtees. She has also acted as a visiting lecturer at SP Jain School of Global Management, FAD International Academy and Mount Litera International School.

16. Gayatri Gandhi

Gayatri Gandhi is India's first and only certified KonMari consultant. KonMari focuses on improved organisational skills. Following this approach, she opened up her own company, The Joy Factory in Gurgaon, Haryana to propagate methods of decluttering and organising.

With a masters in mass communication, she has had the experience of working with the strategy and local production team of Discovery Networks. She has also freelanced for production houses like Phantom films.

17. Sneha Bagrecha

In 2o20, Sneha founded IndieGood- a homegrown brand for designs focusing on sustainable variety for functional products. Her venture targets organised and comfortable living for pets and people.

Bagrecha holds her Master's degree in CS from The Institute of Company Secretaries of India. She later went on to complete her MBA from the Nirma University of Gujarat. Her educational experience with the University of Arts, London, helped her grow further in the fields of design and craft.

18. Shivi Kapil

Shivi Kapil holds a BTech in Electronics and Communication and Master in Design for Digital Experience from National Institute of Design. She has more than eight years of work experience in research, design and usability for health care in India and other developing countries. She founded the Empathy Designs Lab in 2017 for developing solutions towards "stillbirths" one of the major issues that women from developing countries face.

As a designer, she worked for Philips Research in 2014 and was also offered the BIRAC SIIP Fellow in maternal and child care under the Department of Biotechnology, Government of India. Currently, her company is developing a non-invasive pregnancy monitor for women and hospitals to avoid the risk of stillbirths.

19. Daisy Tanwani

Daisy Tanwani founded Pinklay which was honoured by Facebook at the World Economic Forum at Davos as one of the seven most influential small businesses globally. Tanwaniy laid the foundation of her company in 2016. Pinklay focuses on designing and handcrafting products for women, kids and homes. With a work experience of 14 years, her areas of expertise include cutting edge innovation, market research, web specialisation, content and feature writing.

Tanwani has worked with Corporate Executive Board (CEB), TNS Research International and Danone Baby Nutrition before starting her own business. She also has a paper published to her name on "Dramaturgy in the Research World", which explains how passion for drama can be harnessed and leveraged in consumer research through a case study on women and their multiple identity role.

20. Chaitsi Ahuja

Chaitsi Ahuja not only holds  BBA from Ahmedabad University, she also has a degree in Graphic design via Varia Design, and Masters of Art from London Metropolitan University and a Masters of Science. She began her career as a communication specialist at Psynox and later worked for top brands like Percept, Tommy Hilfiger, Geometry Encompass, Safari India in the area of marketing, advertising, promotions. She became a Brand Manager at Future Group India in 2019.

Ahuja is the founder of Brown Living which believes in promoting sustainable lifestyle in India, creating everyday products that are simple and close to nature. Besides, Brown Living Ahuja also offers consultations to small businesses to expand their revenue, become more sustainable and promote zero-waste methods at the enterprise.

21. Madhavi Adalja

Madhavi Adalja is a name to reckon with in the world of resin art, which is gaining lot of popularity among people. Her page on the Internet goes by the name "Art By Madhavi Adalja". She creates products using resin and geode, canvas, pet furniture and bespoke embroidery and also sells them through the platform.

Having a degree in Commercial Arts, Adalja creates objects that shows a connection with the world around us. She also works for NGO named BAR( Bombay Animal Rights) to create awareness on stray animals, against cruelty towards animals and taking up vaccination drives for them.

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22. Avni Aggarwal

Avni Aggarwal is an alumnus of Jamia Milia Islamia, completing her bachelor's from Delhi University and Masters from IGNOU. The social worker has worked with multiple NGOs like CRY, Don Bosco Ashalayam, Chinmaya Organization for Rural Development (CORD), Akshay Pratishthan, Gian Foundation and served as rehabilitator at Tihar prison.

Currently, she is looking after her own venture Sundarii Handmade that was established in 2017. She promotes sustainable homegrown brands through her platform, thus empowering Indian artisans and craftworkers.

23. Chandni Agarwal

Chandni Agarwal is an alumnus of Jesus and Mary College in Delhi. She established Little Tags in 2017 owing to her passion to create a bouquet of tender collections for the little ones. The brand caters to the apparel needs of kids between 0-14 years of age. They have a collection of many Indian designers in their catalogue- Nitya Baja, Masaba Gupta, Ridhima Bhasin to name a few.

According to Agarwal, the apparel market in India has evolved drastically over the past few years. There is an increasing demand for luxury and international kids apparel. Little Tags does the exact same thing in handpicking brands and providing them to the customers. Her philosophy is to"buy well look good" to promote quality standards for the product.

24. Kamiya Jani

Kamiya Jani's Curly Tales is a travel, food and experience content platform with around 1.28 million subscribers on YouTube. Kamiya specialises in live news production, scripting, anchoring, content creation. Curly Tales, established in 2016, speaks of "high priority to experience over possession, journey over destination and people over places- and its content stand by its words".

Jani has worked as a journalist with The Times of India, Sub Editor at CNBC, Anchor and Associate Producer at Bloomberg UTV, and Financial Market Anchor at ET Now. Having visited around 38 countries and over 100 cities, she believes in celebrating her experiences through her videos and posts on her channels.

25. Anjali Bawa

Anjali Bawa is a graduate of Lady Shri Ram College for Women, and also holds an MBA from Vedica Scholars Program for Women. She founded her own company in 2018- Heer Firangi that designed Indo-western outfits and later she joined OYO as Category Manager.

In 2021, she co-founded Voila Expert to bridge the gap between influencers, businesses and experts for better growth prospects. Voila is a tech-enabled network platform that put Bawa in "30 under 30 Achievers of India" by the Indian Achievers Club. She was also featured as the only Indian in June's Startup Grind-Medium issue on women founders changing the world.

26. Ruchi Garg

Being a BE in Computer Science, Ruchi served STMicroelectronics as Project Leader for around seven years. Later, she started her own venture by name of EventEve.com which dealt in customising e-cards. Currently, she works as CEO of the firm Venue Look, co-founded by her in 2013.

VenueLook deals in finding and booking pefect venue and vendor for people to organise functions like birthday parties, engagements, weddings, baby showers etc. Her company serves 10000+ events every month with more than 20000 venue profiles on their platform.

27. Agrima Wadhwa

Wadhwa is Macramé artist who designs environment-friendly products. Macramé translates to "hand-knotted works". The art form is quite old but has lost its value with time.

Agrima has worked and conducted workshops for many known brands like Fab India, PepperFry studio, Craftsutra, Hard Rock Café, Vajor to name a few. Her range of collections includes colourful dreamcatchers, plant holders, book sleeves, tote bags, keyrings, wall hangers and the list is endless. The textile designer from NIFT has 7000+ followers on her Instagram profile and her aesthetically handcrafted products are loved by all.

28. Nisha Mehta

Nisha Mehta started Little Birdie in January 2020. She manufactures, designs and personalises exclusive and unique kids gifting products – be it bags, study tables, kids room decor products. According to Mehta, “My aim is to give my brand Little Birdie, more recognition and visibility through various digital and non-digital platforms and establish its strong presence in this domain."

Her biggest challenge was to be able to deliver best grade products at competitive prices. As quality and pricing go hand-in-hand so they couldn’t compromise on quality and yet offer reasonably priced products to our customers. As per Mehta, COVID played a pivotal role in leveraging her business. The entire world’s focus shifted to digital media and that’s how Little Birdie took a quantum leap.

29. Namrata Sharma

Namrata Sharma's brand The Sandook is known for providing stylised jewellery at pocket-friendly prices. A jewellery lover herself, Sharma loves to have a different and unique collection of jewellery for casual, work, party, ethic, weddings. She likes to style every outfit differently with different jewellery for various occasions.

Hence, to give variety and uniqueness without burning a hole in pockets The Sandook was founded on 16 June 2020 by her. "During pandemic I and my husband were working from home and wanted to do something that drives us pleasure but with fair trading ethics and values", recalls Namrata Sharma, on her journey to embrace entrepreneurship during COVID-19.

30. Sandhya Sravya Malla

The Australia based entrepreneur was looking for perfect clothing for her newborn kid, when she thought of opening her own brand Little Souls Wardrobe(LSW). It was in 2017, that she picked up the idea of designing dresses for babies from scratch. She, along with her cousin Bindu- who is also a partner at LSW, have come a long way in building the brand.

LSW is now a seven-member team that specialises in apparel, toys, diapers and books for kids.

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31. Gaargi Prehar

Prehar, who holds an MBA from a Paris university, has ventured into an innovative concept of making gluten-free bakery items for pets through her bakery Puplords Barkery. It was her own experience of baking healthy munchies for her pet Pacho, to help him recover from an ear infection, that gave her the idea for this startup. Her top-notch baking for her pet gained momentum in no time when other conscious pet parents heard about it. At Puplords Bakery, she sells sugar-free, salt-free food and bakery products for pets.

Prehar's bakery caters to many celebrities including Anushka Ranjan, Zoya Akhtar, Rahul Vaidya and Dabboo Ratnani. With over 6000 followers on the bakery's page on Instagram, Gaargi constantly shares reviews of many happy clients and the love from their pets through her stories.

32. Chindu

Kalavai By Chindu is a Kerala based startup that deals in preparing botanical pressed real flower accessories. The diverse product lineup at Kalavai include- rings, pendants, necklaces, paperweights etc. Kalavai in Tamil means combination or mixture of different things and so are the products they represent.

Having done her masters in fashion management from NIFT, Kannur, Chindu did not want to become just another seller in the Indian jewellery market. To leave her mark, she decided to make fossilised products that became a hit. She picks the flowers used in her jewellery from her own gardens and curates them as per client demands by embedding them in resin.

33. Priyanka Yadav

Priyanka Yadav brand, Khwabeeda provides a variety of quirky handpicked Punjabi juttis. According to Yadav, her early marketing job did not give her the happiness of doing something, so she came up with an idea for a startup. She loved painting shoes etc. and saw there were juttis in the market but the regular embroidered ones which could go only with the ethnic wear.

So, she decided to make painted quirky juttis that could be paired with any dress of our choice. It was at the wedding of her friend, where she had gifted the juttis that everyone loved her products and that’s how she went go ahead with her brand- Khwabeeda.

34. Bhargavi

Bhargavi owns a boutique called VeebhaBoutique in Chennai. The brand caters an affordable range of kurtis for “mommies to be”. The idea for this venture came to her when she was going to have her own kid and her search for maternity wear in the market went in vain as she could not find pocket-friendly products that suited her need.

She always wanted to build a brand that could benefit numerous women. Her online presence helped VeebhaBoutique gain momentum which has now 4000+ followers and many resellers as well.