Women have carved a niche for themselves in all the fields. The field of Chartered Accountancy is no different. Let us take a moment to know about the lives of few distinguished Chartered Accountants.
1. R. SIVABHOGAM
R. Sivabhogam created a history by becoming the first woman Chartered Accountant of India in 1933. Her inspiration to pursue this course came during her imprisonment by the Britishers. She was an active participant in the Non- Cooperation Movement led by Gandhiji.
Becoming a CA for a woman was a difficult task back then. She fought all the odds to become one.
She was a true fighter in all respects. During the British Raj, people who had undergone imprisonment were not allowed to begin their own practice. She filed a writ petition for the same and won the appeal. She started her independent practice.
She also became the first lady Chairman of Southern Region Council of India. She proactively participated in various endeavours relating to women education and empowerment.
To pay a tribute to her true spirit of service and a lot of records to her name, ICAI introduced R Sivabhogam Memorial Scholarship Endowment in 2006.
2. RAJANI GOPALKRISHNA
Rajani Gopalkrishna is the first ever visually challenged Chartered Accountant from India .
She was not visually impaired from birth. She was diagnosed with Steven Syndrome during her childhood days, owing to a wrong prescription of medicine. She started losing vision thereafter.
After completing graduation, she lost complete vision in her right eye. While pursuing Chartered Accountancy, her left eye vision began to reduce. She faced a struggle reading books.
As the days went by, she lost her complete vision. But she was not ready to give up. She used JAWS software for reading and availed a scribe during CA exams. She came through with flying colours.
She has been awarded numerous times: Cavinkare Ability Mastery Award in 2005, Karnataka State Award on International Day of Persons with Disablilities.
3. NAINA LAL KIDWAI
Former country head of HSBC India, Naina Lal Kidwai is a well known business tycoon of India.
She has several records to her name: the first Indian woman to graduate from Harvard Business School in 1982, the first woman to head a foreign bank in Indian, one of the first women to train at PWC, the first woman president of FICCI. Many a times, she faced criticism of people for they were accustomed to the idea of a man leading a team. She proved all of them wrong.
She currently heads India Sanitation Coalition and works closely with issues relating to women empowerment and environment.
She has been awarded Padma Shri Award for her exemplary work in trade and industry. She has also featured on Forbes list of top women in business several times.
4. VISHAKA HARI
Vishaka Hari is one of those Chartered Accountants who pursue their inner calling. For her, it was becoming harikatha teller, an ancient form of storytelling. It combines both music and storytelling.
She has received various awards: Yuva Kala Bharati from Bharat Kalachar, Ustad Bismillah Khan Yuva Puraskar of Sangeet Natak Academy.
All these women inspire us to continuously work towards our goals and never give up on our dreams.
Keep striving for the best!
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