Instituted in 2016 to recognise women achievers with a Bengal connect, this year too saw the jury of The Telegraph She Leadership 2023 — Madhu Neotia, Sanjukta Bose, Rowan Ainsworth, Koel Mallick and Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury pick a set of illustrious awardees across disciplines. The evening of March 22 saw Ushoshi Sengupta host the award ceremony as winners were given beautiful trophies that were designed by Narayan Sinha and gifts that were sponsored by our gifting partner Sharbari. The proceedings kicked off with a performance by Aditi Bhagwat, a Kathak and lavani exponent, and Bettina Castano, a flamenco dancer and choreographer. The guests tucked into a yummy dinner spread presented by JW Marriott Kolkata.
When The Crossroads took over the stage, just before the spotlight was thrown over the winners of The Telegraph She Awards, they had a hypnotic effect on everyone present at the JW Marriott Kolkata ballroom. With their movements of the body and feet on the rhythmic notes of percussions, the Indo-Spanish collaboration had the undivided attention for their fusion act that melded two traditions of the world. Aditi Bhagwat, a Kathak and lavani exponent, teamed up with Bettina Castano, a flamenco dancer and choreographer, and presented a 20-minute piece, divided into multiple segments that not just showcased the flair in their own traditions but also the beautiful synthesis united by rhythms of cajon and tabla by Aditya Kudtarkar.
Bettina, who has been coming to India for the last 16 years, has collaborated with renowned percussionists like Sivamani, Padmashri Matanoor Sankarankutty, and Sukanya Ramgopal in India. She said, “I have been performing with mostly artistes in the South and thankfully Aditi met me and we started The Crossroads, which is an eight-member ensemble and includes more instruments. For this 20- minute segment, which is an abridged version of our extensive production, we rehearsed for four days. This is The Crossroads’s first performance in Calcutta and I am looking forward to the response.” Talking about performing at the She Awards, Aditi said, “It’s great that we could be a part of it. Luckily, Bettina was in India so we could perform here and it’s a prestigious thing to be a part of an event that honours the spirit of a woman.”
JURY SPEAK
From left: Suborno Bose, founder and chief mentor of the Indismart Group & IIHM and CEO, International Hospitality Council, UK, with jury members Koel Mallick, Sanjukta Bose, Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury, Rowan Ainsworth and Madhu Neotia
It’s always an enriching experience to be in the jury for She Awards. This is the seventh edition and I am a part of it for the sixth time. Everyone’s history is amazing to say the least. They are all avant-garde in their respective fields. Some categories made us storm our brains more, like the sports category had five names and it was very tough to choose one among the rest. We had our disagreements as well in some categories but we succeeded in zeroing down to one — Sanjukta Bose, director, IIHM Kolkata
Every year is a new experience. We have such wonderful women in Bengal who have done such remarkable work in their fields and never get their due recognition. And that’s what She Awards does. It takes out all the jewels and puts it on the paper for all of us to see and discuss. I believe that each and every name on the list deserves the award because their body of work is equally great. However, we have to make the hard decision of picking one name from each category — Madhu Neotia, entrepreneur
A s an outsider and a first timer, it was great for me because I learnt so much about these talented, brilliant and high-achieving women who not only succeeded in their fields but also contributed to the society. And it’s great that their contribution is recognised at a platform like this. So, well done The Telegraph and She Awards for that. It was a bit difficult for me because I didn’t know all of the nominees and I had to listen carefully to all the discussion at the table and I would describe the meet as lively, animated and, perhaps, some little disagreement and lots of strong points of view. The nominees were brilliant — Rowan Ainsworth, Australian consul general
T he nominees were excellent. It’s such a privilege that I get to know so many people as far as collaborators in arts, science, education, sports and other fields are concerned. And The Telegraph gives a big pat on the achievers’ back, it’s incredible. Disagreements and deliberations are part of a collaborative way in choosing the best. It’s a learning process for us as well as it’s a great exchange of ideas and perspective — Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury, filmmaker
She awards is all about celebrating women achievers from different walks of life. Being a recipient of She Awards, I feel enormously honoured to be doing this. All the nominees are such great inspiration, their stories have the power to motivate others and change lives. Talking about the selection process, I must say that it has been a great task because they are all deserving — Koel Mallick, actor
FILMS: RAIMA SEN
Raima Sen gets her award from Rituparna Sengupta, Parambrata Chattopadhyay and Shikha Sayal
HER STORY: Since childhood, Raima Sen always knew she wanted to be an actress like her grandmother Suchitra Sen. Raima made her debut in the world of films with the Hindi film Godmother in 1999 alongside Shabana Azmi. Her breakthrough in Bengali films came when she starred in Rituparno Ghosh’s film Chokher Bali. Praised for her graceful, spontaneous, versatile and effortless acting, she has given numerous hits both in Tollywood and Bollywood and worked with filmmakers like Aparna Sen, Buddhadeb Dasgupta, Vidhu Vinod Chopra, Pradeep Sarkar, Reema Kagti, Anjan Dutt and many more.
SHE SAID: I always wanted to be an actress ever since I was a little girl because living with my grandmother, watching her films, watching my mother go for shoots, it seemed all glamour and glitz to me. I realised how much hard work it was when I did my first movie Godmother with Shabana Azmi. It’s an absolute honour to be here today. I’ve known The Telegraph ever since I’ve known films and it’s been a long journey. I would like to thank my parents, my pillars of strength, my grandmother whose prayers are always with me, all my directors, my producers, my coactors, who have been with me in this long journey. And, of course, I would like to thank Rituparno Ghosh, without whom I wouldn’t have been here today. And lastly, I wish to thank the jury for honouring me with this award.
SPORTS: SWAPNA BARMAN
Swapna Barman receives her award from Manoj Tiwary, Major General VN Chaturvedi and Dibyendu Barua
HER STORY:Indian heptathlon champ Swapna Barman had come to Calcutta from Jalpaiguri to fulfil her dreams of being an athlete. Supported by the Sports Authority of India and her coach Subhash Sarkar, she won the first gold medal for the country at the 2018 Asian Games and was placed first in heptathlon at the 2017 Asian Athletics Championships. She locked 6,026 points in the Asian Games at Jakarta in 2018, making India proud on the athletic field. In August 2019, she received the Arjuna Award from the then President of India, Ram Nath Kovind, one of most prestigious awards for athletes in the country. In 2022, she won gold medals for high jump and heptathlon at the 36th National Games.
SHE SAID: I would like to thank The Telegraph for nominating me for such a prestigious award. I am from a small town in North Bengal and coming to Calcutta helped me achieve my dreams with the help of the Sports Authority of India and the immense motivation from my coach Subhash Sarkar. Since childhood I have worked hard to fulfil my dreams and I will keep working for the children in North Bengal who look up to me as their idol.
THEATRE: DOLLY BASU
Dolly Basu accepts her award from Arjun Chakrabarty, Gaurav Chakrabarty and Namit Bajoria
HER STORY: Initiated into the fine arts at an early age, Dolly Basu is a trained Bharatanatyam dancer, a trained vocalist and has also done a comparative study on Indian classical dance from Rabindra Bharati University. A passion for theatre made her join the Hindi theatre group Anamika Kala Sangam as a child artiste. After an eight-year hiatus from her chosen area of interest, postmarriage she returned to the world of performing arts by venturing into Bengali productions. She worked with stalwarts like Usha Ganguli and Asit Mukhopadhyay, who served as her mentors. In 1995, she established her own theatre group Choopkatha, with an aim to produce bilingual productions and Bengali translations of Hindi plays. Soon, she made a name for herself as a Bengali actress and is now a veteran of many significant roles in Bengali films and TV series. She also runs an integrated drama therapy organisation for children that, besides helping to spread the power of theatre to children, allows them to express themselves freely and helps them achieve their true potential.
SHE SAID: My sincere thanks to The Telegraph for the She Award. To me it is an indication that we have walked on the right path. It inspires me to work harder and harder, with more and more humility. My first mentor was my father, who encouraged me to learn music, dance and painting. I have also been really blessed with wonderful teachers. My principal in school, Pushpamayi Bose, and later Asit Mukhopadhyay, and many others have helped shaped who I am today. I count them as the blessings of the Almighty, who sent so many wonderful people in my life to show me the way.
DANCE: SOHINI ROYCHOWDHURY
Sohini Roychowdhury receives her award from and Ritika Karnani, Rowan Ainsworth and June
HER STORY: A woman of many parts, Sohini Roychowdhury was born and raised in Calcutta in a home where art was a way of life. Inspired to be a Bharatanatyam dancer after watching a performance by Yamini Krishnamurthy, she was also influenced by the abhinaya of Kathak legend Pandit Birju Maharaj. She developed her own language of dance by fusing Bharatanatyam tillanas with Western classical and world music. In 2008, she was invited by filmmaker Danny Boyle to perform at the premiere of Slumdog Millionaire, an honour which, ironically, gave her acceptance in India as a Bharatanatyam exponent. She also famously performed the opening act at the IIFA 2016 in Madrid with actor Hrithik Roshan. A choreographer, a producer, a visionary, a philosopher and a professor of Natyashastra, she handles multiple responsibilities with elan. She has also won the Mahatma Gandhi Probashi Samman awarded by the House of Lords of the British Parliament. She founded the dance troupe Sohinimoksha Artes de La India in Madrid, Spain, which consists of students from Europe, Latin America, the US and India. Having performed at prestigious events and festivals across the globe, she has most recently performed at COP26, a global climate conference in Glasgow, UK. She is currently the visiting professor of dance at a number of universities all over the world. She has also authored books on dance like Dancing with the Gods and Indian Stage Stories.
SHE SAID:I feel honoured and humbled to be a recipient of The Telegraph She Award. I also want to congratulate The Crossroads for their outstanding performance that set the stage on fire tonight. In answer to your query I will say that my experience while working with Hrithik Roshan was that he came across as a very committed performer when he joined us on stage as part of the choreography. He was a perfect gentleman and very rooted. He personally made sure that technical aspects like acoustics and lighting were exactly right so that dancers could perform their best. From him I learnt the importance of humility and empathy for one’s co-artistes.
CREATIVE ARTS: SWARNA CHITRAKAR
Swarna Chitrakar receives her award from Swarup Dutta, Koel Mallick and Kanaklata Datta
HER STORY: Hailing from a small, little-known village of West Bengal, Swarna Chitrakar has taken the traditional art form, patachitra, into global spotlight. Along with portraying the epics Ramayana and Mahabharata through patachitra, she specialises in creating scroll patachitra paintings portraying social evils like female infanticide, dowry, child marriage and women trafficking. She is also a singer of melodious folk songs. Through her patachitra paintings she also tries to speak about about women’s issues, their struggles and spread awareness about crimes against women.
SHE SAID: Everyone likes getting recognition. I am obviously very happy to be here today to be felicitated with this prestigious award by The Telegraph. Girls in our village are not much educated. I make these patachitra art to support them in some way. Making patachitra art and portraying such stories has given me the chance to travel to various cities and even overseas. My wish for every woman is that they always keep on moving forward.
LITERATURE: YASHODHARA RAY CHAUDHU
Yashodhara Ray Chaudhuri receives her award from Arindam Sil, Sudarshana Gangulee and Dona Ganguly
HER STORY: Yashodhara Ray Chaudhuri began writing poetry since childhood but became a published author only after she joined government service. Posted in Shimla, she sent her first poem to Desh magazine and it was published in 1993. Since then, the bureaucrat has published 18 collections of poetry and 15 collections of short stories. Her essays and articles on women’s issues have found a place in leading newspapers and magazines of Bengal. She has also written a few novels and novellas. Deeply interested in women’s studies, her works reflect her observations on the portrayal of women in films, theatre, television and also in real life. A recipient of many literary awards, she has won the Krittibas Puraskar, Anita Sunil Kumar Basu Smriti Puraskar by Bangla Academy and Barno Parichay Sharad Samman, among others. A fine translator, she has translated from French to Bengali, books like Leonardo Da Vinci in 2008 and Les combats de la vie by Dr Luc Montagnier in 2012. She was awarded a diploma in language by Alliance Française in 1998.
SHE SAID: It feels really good to get this award and I sincerely wish to thank The Telegraph for selecting me. Today my adrenaline levels are very high, so it is difficult for me to express my feelings. Since 1993, when I first became a published author, I have got some recognitions along the way. Yet I must confess that life is lonely for a writer, and more so for a poet. I have been mostly on my own, but today I feel surrounded by the most beautiful and gorgeous women. It makes me proud that these women who I greatly admire are also going to get the same award as myself today. I am fan of Sylvia Plath’s works, but today I specifically wish to name Ashapurna Devi as an icon of Bengali literature. An underrated author in her own time, I consider her writings on the life and struggles of women very progressive and socially relevant.
LIFESTYLE ENTREPRENEUR: SHANTA GHOSH
Shanta Ghosh receives her award from Richa Sharma, Devansh Jhajharia and Lovey
HER STORY: With a Bachelors degree in architecture from Jadavpur University and a Master of Architecture degree with a specialisation in Urban Design from the University of Pennsylvania, US, Shanta Ghosh has designed several landmark projects in India and abroad as architect and urban planner. Along with her artist friend the late Prabhas Sen, she founded Confetti Exports Pvt. Ltd, an organisation that works with local craftsmen and women to create handmade earthenware. As the president of the Craft Council of West Bengal she helps organise grassroot-level craft training and design development programmes all over Bengal. She is also the managing trustee of the Suresh Amiya Memorial Trust through which she organises Nabanna Mela, a platform for local artisans. At her daughter Shuli Ghosh’s Sienna Store and Café, Shanta serves home-cooked meals on earthenware made by the artisans she works with.
SHE SAID:I would really like to thank The Telegraph for bestowing this award on me. It is not only an honour but also an encouragement. I would also like to mention that while I humbly accept this award, there are hundreds of very brave and talented women who are often not acknowledged but who are leading and inspiring groups of other talented women to use their skills and creativity to have a steady income and bring equilibrium to their families. I salute all those women by accepting this award.
SHE FOR BENGAL: TAPATI GUHATHAKURTA
Tapati Guha-Thakurta receives her award from Sudipta Chakraborty, Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury and Sunil Agarwal
HER STORY:Tapati Guha-Thakurta is credited for taking Bengal’s biggest festival, Durga Puja, to the global stage. It is her extensively researched work that got Durga Puja the tag of UNESCO’s intangible cultural heritage of humanity. Currently, she is an honorary professor of history at the Centre for Studies of Social Sciences in Calcutta, of which she was the director from 2012 to 2017. She has written about and conducted workshops on the art and cultural history of modern India and delivered several lectures and keynote addresses in India and abroad. The Making of a New ‘Indian’ Art: Artists, Aesthetics and Nationalism in Bengal; Monuments, Objects, Histories, Institutions of Art in Colonial and Post-Colonial India; and In the Name of the Goddess: The Durga Pujas of Contemporary Kolkata are some of her major works. She is also credited with setting up Jadunath Bhavan Museum and Resource Centre in 2017.
SHE SAID:I’m grateful to be awarded by The Telegraphin this category for the preparation of the dossier which won the UNESCO inscription for Calcutta’s Durga Puja. I must say that my own profession, work and career goes back a long way and the dossier was the only public policy/document I worked in. My success in the work I have done is largely intensive to the immense support structure I’ve had both at my place of work and at home. I would like to remember the constant support and encouragement I got from my family, and my husband and scholar partner Hari Shankar Vasudevan who gave me encouragement, inspiration and support in everyday life and at work, which makes me truly fortunate. My book In the Name of the Goddess: The Durga Pujas of Contemporary Kolkata was completed in the middle of many personal losses. I was asked by the Ministry of Culture to lead a team to prepare the dossier for Durga Pujas in India but I fought to make the dossier about Durga Pujas only in Calcutta, because Durga Puja has become a symbol of the city. I said to them that it is in this city that the festival of the Goddess is celebrated with such scale and grandeur. So in a way, this award is not really mine but it belongs to Goddess Durga, because she is one of us. It’s also the whole team, the city and the people and craftsmen behind the festival who deserve this award. Being a completely accidental celebrity, I am honoured to receive this award, but I think it’s time to move from the She Awards to the ‘excellence awards’ were women will be awarded for their excellence from among equally talented men.
EDUCATION: BHARATI RAY
Bharati Ray receives her award from Abhishek Kajaria, Tanusree Shankar and Bickram Ghosh
HER STORY: A former professor of history at the University of Calcutta, educationist Bharati Ray served as its first lady pro-vice-chancellor from 1988 to 1995. She founded the Women’s Studies Research Centre at the university and was made the national vice-president of the Indian Council for Cultural Relations. She has written extensively on women’s issues in both English and Bengali, notable among them being Nari O Poribar, From the Seams of History: Essays on Indian Women and Women of India: Colonial and Post-Colonial Periods. Her latest book, Rahasya Kahini, is a translation of selected Sherlock Holmes stories. Bharati Ray was a Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha, from 1996 to 2003, and a member of the Joint Parliamentary Committee on the empowerment of women. She is now also the president of Children’s Little Theatre in the city.
SHE SAID:I am grateful that The Telegraph has chosen me as a recipient of the She Award. It feels lovely that I am remembered for whatever little contribution I have made in the area of education. Apart from my parents, I recall Minidi, the headmistress of the school from which I passed my matriculation, as the one who taught me life’s most valuable lessons. From her I learnt that children should be encouraged to dream and be imaginative and that they should be allowed to enjoy their childhood. I also learnt from her that the purpose of education is to make one self-reliant and confident. It was always my ambition to help my students as much as I could, and I was richly rewarded for my efforts with the love of my students. Their love sustains me, enthuses me and makes life worth living.
MUSIC: PRAMITA MALLICK
Pramita Mallick receives her award from Madhu Neotia, Ritesh Agarwal, Deepali Singhee and Tota Roy Choudhury
HER STORY: Born and brought up in Santiniketan, Rabindrasangeet exponent Pramita Mallick was trained by stalwarts like Santidev Ghosh, Kanika Bandyopadhyay and Nilima Sen. An A-grade artiste of All India Radio, she has over 25 albums of Tagore songs to her name. With Baikali, her music institution, she continues to impart the message of Tagore among children and young people. Besides touring and performing solo in several countries, she has extensively collaborated and performed on joint projects on Tagore with foreign artistes across the globe. A recipient of many prestigious awards, she won the Sangeet Samman and Sangeet Mahasamman awards given by the West Bengal government in 2013 and 2015, respectively. She is an empanelled artiste of the Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) and an advisory member of West Bengal Rajya Sangeet Academy.
SHE SAID: Besides my music teachers, I was fortunate to have exposure to singers of the stature of Dwijen Mukhopadhyay, Shyamal Mitra, Sailen Mukhopadhyay, and others, all of whom had an immense impact on me. To me, Tagore is a symbol of ‘breaking the barriers’, of overcoming differences and prejudices to find true expression of the self. Tagore also means to me an ever-youthful mind and spirit. I am really happy and grateful to The Telegraph that they considered me for the She Award and I hope I can live up to everyone’s expectations all through my life.