Suhasini maniratnam

Actor, Filmmmaker

Suhasini Maniratnam’s life is a tapestry woven with art, intellect and compassion. A pioneering presence in Indian cinema, she has spent over four decades shaping stories not only in front of the camera, but behind it — as cinematographer, writer, director, producer and mentor. The first woman cinematographer to graduate from South India, she wnt on to become one of the most respected actors across Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam and Kannada cinema, with over 350 flms that refect emotional depth and fearless choice. Beyond cinema, Suhasini’s journey has been guided by empathy. Through television, theatre and digital platforms, she has consistently cre-ated spaces for women’s voices and untold stories.

Her Naam Foundation, dedicated to empowering single women, stands as a living extension of her belief in dignity, solidarity and second chances.A former Honorary Consul, a cultural ambassador and a quiet reformer, she continues to build institutions, nurture young talent and serve society with humility. In every role she embraces, Suhasini Maniratnam reminds us that true legacy lies not in applause, but in lives gently transformed.

Mohana Sundari

Auto Driver

Mohana Sundari is a pioneering auto driver and the president of Veera Pengal Munnetra Sangam (VPMS), a collective of women auto drivers in Chennai. Challenging gender barriers in a male-dominated profession, she has emerged as a strong leader advocating financial independence, safet, and dignity for women in urban mobility. Under her leader-ship, VPMS was registered as a cooperative and won the Co-op 2026 competition at IIM Kozhikode. Featured in the internationally acclaimed docu-mentary Auto Queens, Mohana has received multiple national awards for driving gender equal-ity and empowering women through collective action and grassroots leadership.

Thulasimathi Murugesan

Thulasimathi Murugesan is a fourth-year veterinary medicine student at the Government Veterinary College and Research Institute, Namakkal. Trained by her father at the SDAT Government Stadium in Kanchipuram for the past 13 years, Thulasimathi has been a National Badminton Champion, competing alongside able-bodied athletes from Classes 9 to 12.

Nationally ranked world No.1 in singles and mixed doubles, she is also ranked world No.1 in singles, world No.2 in doubles, and world No.3 in mixed doubles internationally. In January 2026, Thulasimathi was conferred the Arjuna Award by the President of In-dia and received the Kalpana Chawla Award for Cour-age and Daring Enterprise from the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu. She is also the frst Indian woman shuttler to reach the fnals and win a silver medal at the Paris Paralympics 2026, among other accolades.

Dr. Thara Srinivasan

Psychiatrist

A psychiatrist by training, Dr Thara is the co-founder and vice chairman of SCARF (Schizophrenia Research Foundation), a not-for-profit NGO in Chennai. She was its director for 2 years. After her PhD on Disability in Schizophre-nia, she lobbied hard for the inclusion of psy-chiatric disability in the Persons with Disabilities Act 1996. This was then included as the seventh disability. She developed IDEAS, a measuring tool to assess mental disability, which was recognised by the Government of India. She initiated several community-based programmes.

She was on the Advisory Committee to the Director General of the World Health Organization, Geneva. She was the first Indian to win an award from the Schiz-phrenia International Research Society (SIRS) for research in clinical and community psychiatry in 2021. In March 2022, she received the Naari Shakti Puraskar award from the President of India.

Jayshree Vencatesan

Environmentalist

The frst Indian to receive the prestigious Ramsar Wetland Conservation Award for ‘Wetland Wise Use’ in 2026, Jayshree Vencatesan is an environmental scientist and wetland conservationist. Two decades before she won this award, she cofounded the conservation group Care Earth Trust in 2000. Over the years, she has worked tirelessly to highlight the ecological signifcance of wetlands and the challenges they face. What began as a personal mission and a relentless drive has grown into a nationwide efort to protect India’s marshlands.

She was one of the first to doc-ment the Pallikaranai Marsh in Chennai, once dismissed as a wasteland, bringing to light its critical role in flood mitig-tion and biodiversity. Beyond Chennai, she has applied her science-based model to restore 44 different wetlands acros Tamil Nadu, many of which are now designated Ramsar sites. For Jayshree, change isn’t about quick wins; it’s about persistence, often measured in decades, to ensure a lasting impact.

Aysha Rau

Founder, The Little Theatre

Aysha Rau’s pantomimes have a sepa-rate fan base in Chennai. This theatre practitioner, playwright and producer with over 34 years of experience in children’s theatre, children’s literature and puppetry, founded The Little Theatre in 1991 to provide creative training for children. It was later registered as a trust to support underprivileged students through education and the arts. In 2010, she pioneered toddler theatre in Chennai and introduced baby theatre in 2020, expanding arts-based learning to children as young as six months.

She has also begun develop-ing theatre strategies for children and young adults on the autistic spectrum. Aysha is the author of four children’s books, and has writ-ten extensively on marine life for children’s publications. Over the years, the trust has introduced thousands of hospitalised children to creative therapy and clowning, and brought international productions from across Asia and Europe to young audiences in Chennai through The Little Festival.

Muthamilselvi Narayanan

Mountaineer

uthamilselvi Narayanan’s life reads like a summit-to-summit chronicle. The frst Tamil woman to conquer Mount Everest, she has transformed personal ambition into a larger statement on women’s strength and resilience. Her journey across the highest peaks of the world’s seven continents places her among India’s most inspiring mountaineers and pioneers in adventure sports. Beyond mountaineering, she is a powerful advocate for women’s capabilities.

Through daring feats such as blindfolded mountain descents, symbolic archery-on-horseback tribute to Rani Velu Nachiyar, and awareness initiatives spotlighting wom-en’s talents, she has redefined how society perceive courage, capability and possibility. Her achievements have been recognised with several prestigious hon-ours, including the Kalpana Chawla Award, Singap-pen Award, Princess of the Himalayas and Shakti Awards. An author and motivational speaker, she has documented her experiences in the book ‘Oru Vetriyin Utchi’. Today, she continues to inspire students and young women to pursue self-belief, embrace chal-lenges and aim confidently for their own summit

Deborah Thiagarajan

Museologist

Deborah Thiagarajan founded and conceptualised the DakshinaChitra Museum for the preserva-tion and promotion of the arts, crafts, folk performing arts, and lifestyles of the fve South Indian States in December 1996. She is the founder and president of the Madras Craft Foundation and DakshinaChitra Heritage Museum, and a past director of the Mu-seum. Deborah was also the convener of INTACH Tamil Nadu from 1984 to 1998. She has written many articles on museology and museum education.

She has authored or been the editor of all the Madras Craft Foundation’s publications, including her latest book, Rural Creative: arts, architectural craft, and folk performing arts of Karnataka.

Mary Susanna Turcotte

Wanting to spend their retirement as a service to fellow mankind, Mary Susanna Turcotte, an educator whose life’s work has been rooted in early childhood care and community development, moved to India in 2006 with her late husband. Beginning with tsunami rehabilita-tion work in villages south of Chennai, their expe-riences led to the founding of a non-proft trust and later Mountain View Nursery and Primary School in Madurai district, created to support vulnerable and diferently abled children. Today, Susanna meticulously continues to expand educational access and community awareness programmes through Relief Projects India. What was once a shared mission with her husband is now a lived reality.

G Santhi

Staff Nurse, ICH

Ganapathy Santhi, a nursing superintendent Gr-II at IOG & Hospital for Women and Children, MMC, Egmore, Chennai, has a ca-reer spanning over 35 years. Having grown in ranks, she is adept in han-dling sick newborn babies. Santhi has been instrumental in establish-ing the Human Milk Bank (HMB) at the Institute of Child Health and Hospital for Children, Egmore, in 2014, a frst in Tamil Nadu.

She is a faculty member for the mentoring sessions for the FBNC, SNCU doc-tors and nurses in various states. For her exemplary work, Santhi has received several awards, including the National Florence Nightingale Award 2022 from the President of India in June 2023. Additionally, she has also been felicitated by the Trained Nurses Association of India and the Indian Nursing Council.

Vino Supraja

Sustainable Fashion Designer

inoSupraja Audikesavalu is the founder of the ethical fashion label Vino Supraja, and her work work fuses heritage, art, and ethics. With a global presence in the UAE, Singapore, and India, it is known for conscious couture and close collaboration with grassroots artisan communities. Her debut collection walked at Shanghai Fashion Week, and has since appeared at Brooklyn Fashion Week and New York Fashion Week.

In 2023, she presented Purisai at London Fashion Week, featuring an authentic Therukoothu performance. In 2026, she returned to London Fashion Week with her Bhavani Jamakkalam collection. She is the author of What is Sustainable Fashion: An Antidote to Fashion Pollution and host of the Via Vino podcast. She has addressed the British Parliament on garment workers’ rights, was awarded the Global Sustainable Fashion Trailblazer Award by the UK, and was felicitated by the Governor of Tamil Nadu for her contribution to craft and culture

Dr. Soumya Swaminathan

Paediatrician

Dr Soumya Swaminathan is a glob-ally recognised paediatrician and public health scientist with over four decades of experience in clinical care, research, and health policy. She served as the World Health Organization’s frst Chief Scientist, where she played a piv-otal role during the COVID-19 pandemic by coordinating global scientifc eforts and helping establish COVAX to ensure equitable vaccine access for low- and middle-income countries.

Formerly Director General of the Indian Council of Medical Research, she is currently Chairperson of the M S Swaminathan Research Foundation and Principal Advisor to India’s National Tuberculosis Elimination Programme. Her work con-tinues to shape global health, climate resilience, and nutrition security.