Some women don’t just live in history—they shape it. Across India’s vast landscape, from the palaces of Rajasthan to the banks of the Ganges, extraordinary women have defied tradition, broken barriers, and left behind legacies that still shape the country today.
Many of their names may not be as well-known in the West as Cleopatra or Joan of Arc, but their impact is just as profound. Some led empires with wisdom and foresight, others wielded art or science as their weapons of change. Today, their stories are woven into the very fabric of India—a place where past and present intertwine in ways that make every journey feel like stepping into a living history.
Join us on a journey through India, seen through the eyes of its most remarkable women.
The Filmmaker Who Brought India to Hollywood: Mira Nair
Her cinematic vision finds a natural home in Delhi—a city where modern energy and rich tradition meet.
Long before Slumdog Millionaire, Mira Nair was telling stories that introduced the world to the raw, unfiltered beauty and complexity of India. Born in India and educated at Harvard, she made her mark with Salaam Bombay!, a film that earned an Academy Award nomination and shone a light on the lives of Mumbai’s street children.
Legendary filmmaker Mira Nair
Her storytelling defies borders—her films, from Monsoon Wedding to The Namesake, bridge the gap between India and the West, exploring identity, family, and love across cultures. She founded the Maisha Film Lab to mentor South Asian and African filmmakers, ensuring that authentic, diverse voices continue to shape cinema. For those who want to experience the India she so vividly captures, a visit to the vibrant streets of Delhi or the historic homes of Kolkata is like stepping into one of her films.
From India to Cannes: Payal Kapadia Grand Prix Victory
Payal Kapadia’s narrative style is imbued with the spirit of Mumbai, where the pulsating rhythms of urban life shape her storytelling.
In 2024, the world took notice as Payal Kapadia became the first Indian filmmaker to win the prestigious Grand Prix at Cannes for All We Imagine as Light. A master of quiet storytelling, Kapadia blends documentary realism with poetic narrative, capturing India in a way rarely seen on the global stage.
Payal Kapadia’s directorial debut won the Grand Prix at Cannes
Her work, deeply personal yet universally resonant, is redefining Indian cinema and paving the way for a new generation of filmmakers. For travelers, her films offer a deeply immersive look into contemporary India—its struggles, dreams, and untold stories.
The Author Who Bridged Two Worlds: Jhumpa Lahiri
Jhumpa Lahiri’s evocative prose is steeped in the charm of Kolkata, a city whose cultural tapestry mirrors her nuanced narratives.
For many immigrants, home is not a place—it’s a feeling. No one has captured this experience quite like Jhumpa Lahiri. Born in London, raised in the U.S., and deeply connected to her Bengali roots, Lahiri’s stories reflect the quiet struggles of those caught between two cultures.
British-Indian Jhumpa Lahiri, Pulitezer-prize winning author
Her Pulitzer Prize-winning debut, Interpreter of Maladies, brought South Asian narratives into the heart of American literature. Later, The Namesake—which was adapted into a film by Mira Nair—explored the longing, dislocation, and transformation that come with forging an identity in a new land. Now, having immersed herself in Italian and even writing in a new language, Lahiri continues to push the boundaries of storytelling, proving that language itself can be a home.
The Princess Who Fought for a Nation: Rajkumari Amrit Kaur
Rajkumari Amrit Kaur at the Government House in 1949 with Burmese Ambassadors.
Born into the royal family of Kapurthala, Rajkumari Amrit Kaur traded the comforts of palace life for the frontlines of India’s independence movement. As a close ally of Mahatma Gandhi, she fought for women’s education, healthcare, and political representation, believing that true freedom meant nothing if women were left behind.
When India gained independence, she became the country’s first Health Minister and founded AIIMS, now one of Asia’s most prestigious medical institutions. She also played a crucial role in India’s fight against tuberculosis and in championing women’s sports. Her life is a testament to the idea that privilege, when wielded with purpose, can change the course of history.
The Doctor Who Defied Tradition: Anandibai Joshi
In the late 19th century, medicine was an unthinkable career for Indian women. And yet, at just 19, Anandibai Joshi set sail for America to study medicine. Dressed in a traditional sari, she attended the Women’s Medical College of Pennsylvania, becoming the first Indian woman to earn a medical degree.
Anandibai Joshee graduated from Woman’s Medical College of Pennsylvania (WMC) in 1886. Seen here with Kei Okami (center) and Sabat Islambooly (right).
Her story is bittersweet—she returned to India as a doctor but died of tuberculosis before she could fully practice. But her legacy lives on. Today, as medical schools across India graduate thousands of female doctors each year, many look back at Anandibai as the one who opened the doors.
The Woman Who Took on the British Empire—With Poetry: Sarojini Naidu
Sarojini Naidu’s indomitable spirit is best embodied in Hyderabad, a city that reflects her lyrical brilliance and revolutionary courage.
If Mahatma Gandhi was the face of India’s independence movement, Sarojini Naidu was its voice. Known as the “Nightingale of India,” she was not just a freedom fighter but a poet, a politician, and one of the most charismatic figures in Indian history.
Sarojini Naidu was the first woman to assume leadership as president of the Congress party in 1925
Born in 1879, Naidu was a child prodigy who wrote poetry in English, earning recognition in London and beyond. But it wasn’t long before she turned her gift for words into a weapon against British rule. A fiery speaker and advocate for India’s independence, she was arrested multiple times for her role in Gandhi’s nonviolent resistance movement. When the British imprisoned Gandhi in 1930, she fearlessly took his place at the forefront of the Salt March, a bold act of defiance that led to her arrest.
The Indian Woman Who Reached for the Stars: Kalpana Chawla
From left: Astronauts Leonid Kadenyuk, Takao Doi, Kalpana Chawla, Kevin Kregel, Winston Scott and Pilot Steven Lindsey at the Kennedy Space Center ahead of launch in 1997
Born in the small town of Karnal in northern India, Kalpana Chawla spent her childhood gazing at the sky, dreaming of flight. In a time when few Indian women even considered careers in science, she moved to the United States to pursue aerospace engineering. Her brilliance and determination led her to become the first Indian woman in space when she joined the Columbia Space Shuttle mission in 1997.
She went to space twice. On her second mission, tragedy struck—the Columbia disintegrated upon re-entry in 2003, taking her life along with six other astronauts. Yet, in India, her name lives on as a symbol of limitless ambition. Schools, scholarships, and even a meteorological satellite have been named in her honor.
The Woman Who Painted India’s Soul: Amrita Sher-Gil
Amrita Sher-Gil’s $7.5M USD record-breaking painting
Imagine walking into a grand art gallery in Paris in the 1930s. On the walls, bold strokes of color and shadow tell the stories of women—not in the way European artists had long painted Indian women, as exotic muses draped in gold, but as real people. Women waiting by doorways, deep in thought. Women working in fields, their eyes reflecting untold stories.
This was the work of Amrita Sher-Gil, an artist who refused to conform. Born in Hungary to a Hungarian mother and an Indian father, she trained in Paris but found herself drawn to India, the land she had spent her childhood in. She returned in the early 1930s and began painting the country as she saw it—raw, soulful, full of untold beauty.
Sher-Gil’s work, now housed in the National Gallery of Modern Art in Delhi, is considered the foundation of modern Indian art. Her paintings offer an intimate glimpse into life in India during her time, making her one of the most celebrated female artists in the country’s history.
The Queen Who Built a Kingdom of Temples and Trade: Ahilyabai Holkar
Ahilyabai Holkar’s visionary leadership is immortalized in Maheshwar, a city that embodies the elegance and resilience of her reign.
For travelers, her legacy is best experienced in Maheshwar, a serene riverside town in Madhya Pradesh where her palace still stands. Overlooking the Narmada River, the fort is now a museum that whispers of a queen who led with her heart—and changed history.
The queen who brought peace and prosperity with her wisdom.
India is more than its palaces and landscapes—it is a land shaped by the women who refused to stay in the shadows. Let Greaves Tours craft a journey that brings these stories to life, whether it’s through private art tours, exclusive palace stays, or heritage-filled experiences across India and beyond.
Image credits: Mira Nair- Dan Callister for The Guardian, AGF s.r.l./REX/Shutterstock
Jhumpa Lahiri- Montclair University
Rajkumari Amrit Kaur- Commons
Kalpana Chawla: Reuters
Amrita Sher-gil: Smith College Project
Ahilyabai Holkar: Google Arts & Culture
