This collection of 20 stories brings you the account of the resilience and brilliance of iconic Indian women, who rose to be trailblazers and trendsetters against all odds.
Even in this day and age, when conversations about women empowerment and equality are at the forefront, we are only scratching the surface when it comes to knowledge about women’s contribution. Whether it is in the field of science, defence, law or literature, the contributions of women have been undermined extensively. With Rising 2.0, Kiran Manral aims to continue the work of acknowledging the contribution of women that she had started with her previous book, Rising: 30 Women Who Changed India.
Rising 2.0: 20 More Women Who Changed India brings you the stories of 20 exceptional Indian women, who tackled the tough circumstances of their time head on—whether through protest or perseverance—and rose to have a lasting impact on the world. With stories ranging from the pre- Independence era to the present day, this book explores the struggles of women who were army captains, botanists, lawyers, chefs, writers, performers and so much more. With exclusive interviews from some of the women and extensively researched pieces about others, Rising 2.0 brings you fascinating and inspiring stories of women like J. Jayalalithaa, Ismat Chughtai, Begum Akhtar, Dutee Chand, Mithali Raj, Kalpana Chawla, Irom Chanu Sharmila, Cornelia Sorabji, Anna Chandy, Rukmini Devi Arundale, Kavita Devi Bundelkhandi, Janaki Ammal, Tulasi Gowda, Seema Rao, Kamala Das, Garima Arora, Sindhutai Sapkal, Lakshmi Sahgal, Sarojini Naidu and Kamaladevi Chattopadhyay.
Kiran Manral is a writer, author and novelist based in Mumbai. Her fiction titles include The Reluctant Detective, Once Upon a Crush, All Aboard!, Saving Maya, Missing: Presumed Dead, The Face at the Window, All Those Who Wander, The Kitty Party Murder and More Things in Heaven and Earth. In the non-fiction category her works include Karmic Kids, True Love Stories, A Boy’s Guide to Growing Up, 13 Steps to Bloody Good Parenting, Raising Kids with Hope and Wonder in Times of a Pandemic and Rising: 30 Women Who Changed India.
She is a TEDx speaker and was a mentor with Vital Voices Global Mentoring Walk 2017. In previous avatars, she has been a journalist, researcher, festival curator and entrepreneur. She has received multiple awards, such as the Women Achievers Award by Young Environmentalists in 2013 and the International Women’s Day Award 2018 from the Indian Council of UN Relations supported by the Ministry of Women and Child Development, Government of India (GoI), for excellence in the field of writing.
In 2022, she was named among the '75 Iconic Indian Women' in STEAM by the Red Dot Foundation and Beyond Black, in collaboration with the Office of the Principal Scientific Advisor, GoI and British High Commission, New Delhi.
