There was Malvika Iyer, whose hands were blown off in a bomb blast when she was 13, but who went on to pursue her studies, earn a PhD and become a disability activist. There was Sneha Mohandoss, who is leading a crusade against hunger and runs a food bank in Chennai. There was Kalpana Ramesh, an architect who is doing commendable work in water conservation.

Then there was Arifa Jan from Kashmir and Vijaya Pawar from rural Maharashtra, who are empowering women by reviving local crafts; there was Kalavati Devi from Kanpur who is working to eradicate open defecation, and Veena Devi from Bihar’s Munger village who became a sarpanch.

Like a bunch of good thoughts, this was a bunch of women who could inspire us to do better, try harder, go higher. And personally, I am glad that tomorrow’s headlines will be not only about them, but also about you, our dear leader, and how you provided your incredible platform to seven incredible women on International Women’s Day.

For as much as you like to ride the headlines, we, your followers, also love to see you up there, charming us with positive stories. Frankly, it’s much better than all the depressing news about failing banks, the tanking economy, dwindling jobs, the rising death toll in communal violence unleashed in the heart of Delhi...

And so, let every day, including Women’s Day, be a day about you and what you are doing or plan to do for the people of India.

With respectful pranam,

Your faithful devotee.

(Shuma Raha is a journalist and author based in Delhi. She tweets at @ShumaRaha. This is an opinion piece and the views expressed above are the author’s own. The Quint neither endorses nor is responsible for the same.)