Seven Indians including Asha Bhosle, Sania Mirza and Kamini Kaushal have made it to BBC’s list of 100 most aspirational women.

It's all about Indian girl power! Making a mark on the global map, seven Indian personalities including singer Asha Bhosle, tennis star Sania Mirza and veteran actress Kamini Kaushal have made it to BBC’s list of 100 most inspirational women.

Each year, BBC names 100 women — a mix of influential women who are world leaders in politics, science and entertainment, as well as less famous but no less inspirational women from all over the world.

1. Asha Bhonsle

The legendary singer, who started working in Bollywood in 1943, has recorded songs to be mimed in 1,000 films by hundreds of actresses. Best known for her song In Aankhon Ki Masti in Umrao Jaan and Abhi Na Jaao Chhod Kar in Hum Dono, this is just another award added to her already long list of accolades.

2. Sania Mirza





Sania Mirza has grown by leaps and bounds this year winning accolade after accolade, tournament after tournament. She is one of India's most successful tennis players and in 2015 was both the Wimbledon and US Open women's doubles champion. In 2005 she became the first Indian woman to win a WTA title when she triumphed in her hometown and became the first Indian women's number 1 player in the doubles category. In a recent CNN interview, Sania shed light on some of the criticism she's endured over the years saying she endured "plenty of criticism came in 2005 for wearing a skirt on court — which is routine for female players — but that paled in comparison to the condemnation she received in 2010 for marrying former Pakistan cricket captain Shoaib Malik."

Mirza and Martina Hingis will attempt to win a third consecutive grand slam title at January's Australian Open. And we wish her the best of luck!

3. Kamini Kaushal

Kamini Kaushal, better known as the Vivienne Leigh of her generation in Bollywood, has acted in more than 100 films. She was the leading actress in “Neecha Nagar” which won best film in Cannes in 1946 - the first Indian film to do so. Last year, the veteran actress received the "The Lifetime Achievement Award" at the 60th Britannia Filmfare Awards 2014.

She made her debut in Bollywood as one of the leading ladies in Chetan Anand's Neecha Nagar and went on to star in several films opposite ​leading Bollywood actors like Ashok Kumar, Dilip Kumar and Raj Kapoor. She was last seen in Chennai Express, playing Shah Rukh Khan's grandmother.

Other names to crop up in the list are Rimppi Kumari (farmer), Smriti Nagpal (entrepreneur), Mumtaz Shaikh (campaigner) and Kanika Tekriwal (entrepreneur).

4. Smriti Nagpal

Entrepreneur Smriti was inspired by her work as a sign language interpreter in India, which has the largest deaf population in the world, to set up Atulyakala. Her organisation aims to “plug the gap and find a common platform to bring creative professionals from deaf and hearing-abled communities together” as detailed on their website.

“Both my elder brother and sister are deaf and mute, so interaction with the community for me started at an early age. When I was 16, the National Association of the Deaf (NAD) asked me to interpret on the occasion of the World Disability Day and that was the first time I was professionally involved in interpretation,” Nagpal told Metrolife in 2012.

5. Mumtaz Shaikh

Mumtaz's fight to get free facilities for women through the Right to Pee network earned her the honour. She ensured 96 toilets were free for women to use in Mumbai and made the government set aside 50 million rupees ($770) to build female-only urinals around the city.

Activist Mumtaz Sheikh told care2.com that, while the idea was initially thought a “little frivolous,” its importance was acknowledged and they have sought to spread awareness.

6. Kanika Tekriwal

After being Diagnosed with cancer in her early 20s, Kanika was determined to make her mark. She established India’s first and only marketplace for private jet and helicopter charters. Her company JetSetGo known as the Uber of Indian skies, charters private jets for birthday parties or a business trip.

The list ‘100 women’ is a part of ‘100 Women season’ on BBC World News starting from Wednesday.

With inputs from IANS