Women who Made Headlines in 2022

Six of the newsmakers, including a child prodigy, belong to Assam, while four hail from Manipur. Two are from Nagaland, and one each from Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh

1. Saikhom Mirabai Chanu: She is a champion weightlifter from Manipur, who needs no introduction. Mirabai Chanu clinched the gold in the 49-kg category at the Commonwealth Games, 2022, held in Birmingham, England.

The 28-year-old had brought glory to India by winning the silver medal in the same category at the Tokyo Olympics held in 2020. Mirabai Chanu is a recipient of the Padma Shri award and the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna.

Born into a Meitei family at Nongpok Kakching, Mirabai Chanu fought against all odds to shine in her chosen field. She received her initial training at the Sports Academy in her home state. After her Olympic feat, Mirabai Chanu extended a warm gesture of gratitude to the truck drivers who used to help her reach the training academy by offering free rides.

2. Linthoi Chanambam: She is India's first athlete to win a gold medal at the World Cadet Judo Championship, 2022, in Sarajevo, Bosnia. All of 16, Chanambam made history by defeating Bianca Reis of Brazil and clinching the coveted medal. For her inspiration she mentions Kosovo's first Olympic judo champion, Majlinda Kelmendi, who has now retired.

Chanambam hails from Mayang Imphal in the state of Manipur. A sports enthusiast from the beginning, she has played football and even dabbled in boxing. She has been training under the watchful eyes of coach Mamuka Kizilashvili at the Indian Institute of Sports in Bellary, Karnataka since the age of 11. Chanambam, who loves to eat pizza, has set her eyes on the Olympic Games of 2028, to be held in Los Angeles.

3. Aimee Baruah: She is a leading Assamese actress, director and producer. Baruah received the National Film Award for her directorial debut, Semkhor, a Dimasa language film, in 2022. Despite courting controversy, the film won rave views and accolades galore in the international festival circuit, which include the Special Audience Award at the 20th Dhaka International Film Festival.

Baruah appeared on the red carpet, draped in mekhela chador, at the 75th Cannes Film Festival, 2022. The filmmaker was officially selected by the Government of India to speak on Semkhor, at the Indian Pavilion of the Cannes Film Festival. In her earlier years, she acted in several Assamese films including Kadamtole Krishna Nache and Jetuka Pator Dore. A new documentary film, Screaming Butterflies, has been critically acclaimed too. Baruah is married to Assam Minister Pijush Hazarika.

Sanjukta Parasor: She is a prominent IPS officer belonging to Assam. Parasor (43) was in the news for receiving the Union Home Minister's Medal for Excellence in Training in April, 2022 while on deputation to the National Investigation Agency.

Her no-nonsense style of functioning while holding key police posts in Assam won her several sobriquets including 'Iron Lady of Assam' and 'Lady Singham'. Parasor did her school education in Assam before proceeding to New Delhi for her higher education. She studied at Indraprastha College for Women and Jawaharlal Nehru University.

She cracked the All India Civil Services Examination in 2006 by securing the 85th rank and joined the Assam-Meghalaya cadre as an IPS officer. Parasor was first posted as an Assistant Commander of Assam Police at Makum. She has also served as the SDPO Rangia and SP of Jorhat and Sonitpur districts.

4. Andrea Kevichusa: She is a 21-year-old model and actress from Nagaland, who made her debut in Anubhav Sinha's film, Anek, opposite Ayushmann Khurrana in 2022. She was cast in the challenging role of a boxer keen to get into the national team. Kevichusa is the first actor from North East India to play a lead role in a Bollywood film.

Starting her modelling career at the age of 15, this Kohima girl – the youngest among five daughters – moved to Mumbai when she turned 18. She has worked with the likes of Sabyasachi Mukherjee. Initially she wanted to become a doctor, but she is now happy being in the show business. Kevichusa has appeared on the pages of several leading fashion, film and lifestyle magazines.

5. Celesti Bairagey: She rose to fame as a social media influencer during the lockdown induced by COVID-19 restrictions in 2020. Her Instagram account was an instant hit, garnering a huge following in the matter of months. Bairagey immediately clicked with netizens for her striking resemblance to Bollywood actress Alia Bhatt. Soon she landed plum modelling assignments and appearances in Assamese music videos.

Bairagey featured in 'Tumi Ruwa', 'Protitu Pol 2.0', 'Dhon Keteki', 'Julie', and 'Premore Behela' – all music videos by Assamese artistes produced in 2022. She has also acted in an Assamese web film, Niveer Aru Tara, on YouTube. Bairagey, who is only 23, is currently playing the lead role in the Star Plus drama series, Rajjo, opposite Rajveer Singh.

6. Dr Purnima Devi Barman: She is a wildlife biologist from Assam who has been working relentlessly for protection of the endangered greater adjutant stork (Leptoptilos dubius), a scavenging bird locally known as hargila. Dr Barman raised the Hargila Army, an all-women conservation initiative, to champion her cause.

Dr Barman received the United Nations Environment Programme's 'Champions of the Earth' award for 2022 in the Entrepreneurial Vision category. The Champions of the Earth, regarded as the United Nation's highest environmental honour, is an appreciation for innovative measures to support nature's extraordinary capacity for self-regeneration.

An alumna of the Gauhati University, Dr Barman received twin honours in 2017 when she was presented the UK-based Whitley Award for her conservation work as well as the Nari Shakti Puraskar, the highest women-exclusive civilian award.

7. Lourembam Bino Devi: She is a practitioner of the appliqué art of Manipur called 'Leeba' in the Meitei language. In 2022, the Government conferred the Padma Shri award on her in recognition of her service as a "Veteran Appliqué Textile Artist preserving the Leeba textile art of Manipur for over five decades".

Nearing 80 now, Bino Devi had learned the nuances of the art from her mother-in-law, Lourembam Ibetombi Devi, who was the first to receive the National Award for Handicraft in 1969. Apart from handicraft items, she also designs traditional pieces for specific occasions like marriages.

Bino Devi has been training willing women in the traditional art in collaboration with the Heritage Foundation of Mankind.

8. Moirangthem Muktamani Devi: She is an innovator and entrepreneur from Manipur who founded a firm, Mukta Shoes Industry, in 1990 to manufacture hand-knitted woollen shoes. The shoemaking unit is located at Kakching and registered with the District Industries Centre, Thoubal, under the wool and knitting embroidery section.

In 2022, the Government of India conferred the Padma Shri award, the third highest award in the Padma series, on Muktamani Devi in recognition of her service as an "Inspirational Woman Entrepreneur from Manipur exporting and popularising handcrafted woollen shoes".

The indigenous shoemaker, who is in her 60s, uses woollen and nylon yarn, gum and rubber to make her products. And yes, all her shoes are handmade and free from leather.

9. Gamchi Timre R Marak: She is the head teacher of Educere Higher Secondary School in East Garo Hills district of Meghalaya. Marak received the National Award on the Teachers' Day, 2022, along with 44 others, from President Droupadi Murmu. She calls the award a "hard-earned title and her "lifetime achievement".

As one wholeheartedly committed to her profession, she introduced innovative teaching programmes and helped children come out of the shadow of alcoholism, domestic violence and early marriage. She incorporated soft skills into the educational curriculum for the overall development of children. Marak highlights the role of education in ushering in development in the Wlliamnagar area where her school is located. Her association with NGOs also helped Marak win the confidence of the local people.

10. Meenakshi Goswami: She is among the 45 teachers and the only one from Assam who received the National Award from President Droupadi Murmu in 2022. Goswami is the principal of Chandra Nath Sarma Higher Secondary School located at Bihaguri in Sonitpur district.

She designed the curriculum with other teachers to achieve the desired objectives, removed the fear of learning other languages and concentrated on overall personality development. She is said to have established "a positive school culture by treating the people the way they would like to be treated". Further, "she has concentrated on social skill development and overall personality development along with acquisition off knowledge of the child".

11. Mimi Yhoshii: She is the head teacher of GMS Officers Hill Government School in Kohima district of Nagaland who is among the 46 teachers who won the National Award in 2022. Yhoshii received the award for providing midday meals from an indigenously developed kitchen garden, building useful objects out of waste materials, and introducing vocational classes for students. She has built additional classrooms and given a facelift to the school campus. Yhoshii also conceived the idea of developing plastic waste into baskets and floor mats, and old clothes into potholders and doormats for sale to generate income for her school.

What has made her work more challenging is the fact that nearly 80 per cent of her students were domestic helpers and school dropouts. Yoshii conducts classes for the domestic helpers after school hours to reduce the dropout rate.

12. Chum Darang: She is a model, actress and entrepreneur from the small town of Pasighat in Arunachal Pradesh. Darang (31) played the role of Rimjhim Jongkey in Badhaai Do starring Rajkummar Rao and Bhumi Pednekar. Rimjhim Jongkey is a bold, outspoken and dignified woman who confronts her family about her sexuality and is shunned by them.

Darang also portrayed the role of a Chinese spy in the Amazon Prime series, Paatal Lok. She was seen in a role in Gangubai Kathiawadi too.

Darang runs a coffee shop, 'Cafe Chu', in her hometown. She has participated in several beauty pageants, representing India in a fair number of them. She was crowned Miss Tiara India International in 2017.

13. Gunjan Sinha: She is an eight-year-old from Guwahati who won Sony TV's reality show, Jhalak Dikhla Jaa Season 10, along with her dance partner, Tejas Verma. In October 2021, Gunjan participated in the dance talent show, Dance Deewane Season 3, on Colors TV as a contestant in the company of choreographer Sagar Bora. She was the show's first runner-up.

Gunjan appeared in an episode of reality show Big Boss, Season 14, with Raghav Juyal. Bollywood superstar Salman Khan hosts the show. She featured in a music video, "Kaali Shirt Waleyaa", by Simran Raj on YouTube.

The daughter of a police officer, the little girl started taking dance lessons at the age of five. She dreams of becoming a Bollywood actress and teaching dance to Tiger Shroff and Madhuri Dixit!

Also Read: Ruling the World of Sound

Also Watch: