Most Inspirational Females of All Time
Mother Teresa
Mother Teresa is known all over the world for her selfless service for the poor and the sick. She is known as "Saint of the gutters", for her virtues of compassion and love, which she showed towards lepers and poorest of poor people of the world. She was awarded the Nobel Prize for peace in the year 1979. She was the fourth Indian to receive it.
She was born in a middle class family on August 26, 1910, to Albanian parents in Skopje, Yugoslavia. Her real name was Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu. When she was only nine years of age, her father died. Her mother was deeply religious and very sympathetic woman, who instilled the way of life of sacrifice and self-sacrifice in her.
She grew up into a good looking damsel. She did not wish to get married. She wanted to hand round the humankind. She entered Roman Catholic order of the sisters of our lady of Loretta in Ireland. Then she received training in Dublin and Darjeeling, India. After she became a nun, her name was changed to Teresa, after sister Teresa de lisieux, a French nun. Deciding to work in India, she joined sisters of Our Lady of Loreto and settled in Kolkata.
In 1971, she was awarded the Pope John XXIII Peace prize. She believed that the poor symbolized Christ and by serving them she and her sisters were serving Christ. He started "Nirmal Hriday", home for dying destitute in Kolkata, "Missionaries of Charity" and "Shishu Bhavan" for disabled and mentally retarded children. She extended her work to five continents. She served the poor, diseased and needy people until her last breath. She published her book, "Gift from God"! The angel of the humankind died at the age of 81, in 1997. She was the embodiment of kindness and compassion
Florence Nightingale
Florence was the founder of modern nursing. She was a pioneer nurse and a reformer of hospital methods and public health and innovator. She is better known the world as "the Lady with the Lamp". She got training in nursing in Germany and France.
She was born on May 12, 1820 in Italy. She was named Florence after the city where she was born. William Edward and Frances Nightingale were her parents, They were rich and wanted her to lead a happy domestic life, but she desired to serve the mankind. In 1837, while she was sitting in the gardens at Employ, she heard the God's love "calling" her to do her social work. But she had no idea what that work would be.
She renounced the comforts and luxuries of homely life. She made visits to the homes of sick and investigated hospitals and nursing. She travelled through Europe to study hospital systems and after which she recommended several reforms. Britain, France and Turkey declared war on Russia in 1854. They defeated the Russians. Sidney Herbert, the Minister at war appointed her to undertake a nursing mission. She found that more than 5000 British soldiers had not been provided even minimum medical care. She with 38 nurses nursed wounded soldiers, holding a lamp in her hand; thereafter she came to be called the 'Lady with the Lamp'. She worked 20 hours a day. Casualties dropped from 42 percent to 2.2 percent. Also she went home on behalf of the soldiers, sent their wages home, introduced reading rooms to the hospitals, etc. After the Crimean war, she founded a nursing school at London St. Thomas Hospital. It raised nursing to the level of a respectable profession for woman. It was her greatest achievement.
She received the British Order of merit. She was the first woman to receive it. Her writings on hospital planning and organization had significant effect across the world, especially in England. She died in London in 1910, at the age of ninety. She was buried at St. Margaret's, near her parents home, according to her wishes.
Sarojini Naidu
Sarojini Naidu is a brave freedom fighter who is called as the ‘The Nightingale of India’. She is the first Indian women to become the president of Indian National Congress and also the first women to become a State Governor. She was born in Hyderabad in 1879 February 13. Her father is Aghornath Chattopadhyaya, who was a scientist and scholar. Her mother is the famous Bengali poet, Barada Sundari Devi.
She passed Matriculation from University of Madras and went to England in the Age of 16. There she studied at King's College, London and later at Girton College, Cambridge. She married Paidipati Govindarajulu Naidu, a physician at the age of 19 after completing her studies. She joined Indian national movement activities in the wake of Bengal Partition in 1905. Sarojini Naidu became the president of Kanpur Congress Conference in 1925. She joined the freedom movement activities along with great leaders including Gopal Krishna Gokhale, Mahatma Gandhi and Rabindranath Tagore. Following the India's independence from British in 1947, She became the ever freedom Governor of the United Provinces (now it is Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand). Sarojini Naidu died on 1949 March 2. Her notable works are ‘The Golden Threshold’ (1905), ‘The Bird of Time’ (1912) and ‘The Broken Wing’.
Indira Gandhi
Indira Priyadarshini Gandhi is the first women prime minister of India, who is called as the ‘The Iron Woman of India’. She is the daughter of Jawaharlal Nehru and Kamala Nehru. She was born in Allahabad in 1917 November 19. She married Feroze Gandhi in 1942. She served her father, Jawaharlal Nehru unofficially as a personal assistant throughout his tenure as the first prime minister of the country between the years from 1947 to 1965. She became the Indian National Congress president in 1964 and became a member of Lal Bahadur Shastri's cabinet as Minister of Information and Broadcasting in 1964. She became the third Prime Minister of India in 1966 after the death of Lal Bahdur Shastri. Through the Land Reformation activities and Bank Nationalization, she got a place in history through her administration. It was in 1969, nationalization of the fourteen largest banks was executed. Also in the same year, abolition of the Privy Purse to former rulers is executed. Indira Gandhi raised the famous slogan ‘Garibi Hatao’ (Eradicate Poverty) in the 1971 election campaign. The biggest achievement in her career following the triumph of 1971 Election is the decisive victory of India over Pakistan in the Indo-Pakistani War.
Indira Gandhi got Bharat Ratna in 1971. She declared President Rule (The Emergency) in 1975 June 26. The President Rule became a black episode in the history of Freedom India. The country was under the President rule until 1977 March 21. The Congress Party was split during the election campaign of 1977 and following it, the Indira Congress lost 1977 election. The Janata alliance under the leadership of Morarji Desai, came to power. But she again became the Prime Minister in 1980 Election. The Second nationalization of Banks in 1980 was executed during her rule. The ‘Operation Bluestar’ is an army move declared during her rule for searching Sikh terrorists in the Golden Temple in 1984. Thereafter she faced fierce criticism from the Sikhs. Later Indira Gandhi was died after she was shot by gun from her own Sikh security soldier in 1984 October 31.
Lata Mangeshkar
Lata Mangeshkar was born in Indore of Madhya Pradesh in 1929 September 28. Her father is Deenanath Mangeshkar and her mother is Shudhamati. The famous singers Asha Bhosle and Usha Mangeshkar, Meena Mangeshkar, Hridaynath Mangeshkar were her sisters and brother. The first song sung by Lata was for the Marathi film ‘Kiti Hasaal’ in 1942 and after that, she acted in some films. One of the evergreen song from the throat of Lata is ‘Aye Mere Watan Ke Logo’ which was written and composed by poet ‘C. Ramchandra’. She received Padma Bhushan in 1969 and Bharat Ratna in 2001.
In 1974, the Guinness Book of Records has listed Lata Mangeshkar as the most sung and recorded artist in history, with more than 25,000 songs from the years in between 1948 and 1974. She was elected as Rajya Sabha member in 2006. She has conferred the highest French civilian honor ‘Legion D'honneur’ in 2007. Lata Mangeshkar is the first asian to get the Platinum Disc of EMI London. The Lata Mangeshkar Award was introduced in 1984 in order to honor the music experts by Madhya Pradesh Government.
P.T. Usha
Pilavullakandi Thekkepparambil Usha is a famous runner from Kerala. She is called "Payyoli Express". She brought fames to the nation. She was the sprint queen when she was active in athletics. She was born at Payyoli in Kozhikode in 1964. When she was thirteen she joined the government sports school in Cannanore, the land of Theyyam. O. M. Nambiar found an effective athlete in her and became the coach of her.
In 1984, she entered Los Angels Olympics. She showed her athletic strength there. Even though she didn't get even the Bronze Medal, she attained the fame as the first Indian woman to reach the finals of Olympics sports. She participated in different meters of hurdles 400m, 300m, 200m and 100m, in various Track and Field championships. Seoul Asian Games brought her four Gold medals and one silver medal. She was considered the best female athlete in the Asian Track and Field Meet in 1989.
She was got married in 1991. Her husband continually motivated her career. Thereafter in 1998, she won 2 Bronze Medals at the Asian Track and Field even in Japan in 1998. She won more than hundred international medals in her career. She got Padmashri in 1984. She also got the Arjuna Award, the greatest award given to the sports personalities. Her well-regarded career has surely enthused many female athletes in India. Kerala is grateful to her and overconfident of such a gifted and efficient woman.