In the earlier days of IITs, the engineering profession was socially considered to be almost a no-go for women. It is worth pondering what a bold step these first-generation women alumnae of our Institute had taken.
Ever since it was set up in 1958, IIT Bombay has enrolled extraordinary women students who have been leading very successful and fulfilling lives after graduating from the Institute. This coffee table book and accompanying podcasts showcasing a few of our women engineers who graduated from IIT Bombay are a labour of love for the Institute. The goal is to highlight and applaud the incredible journeys and accomplishments of women alumni of IIT Bombay. The author(s) conducted in-depth interviews with these women as part of a podcast series and then converted it into a coffee table book titled, “Her Story – IIT Bombay Gen Zero Women”. IIT Bombay has always been at the forefront of the gender equality movement. A book like “Her Story – IIT Bombay Gen Zero Women” is timely and essential. While the world slowly takes strides toward gender equality, there is still a significant divide in many fields, including within STEM in academia. I hope that this book will ignite passion in young minds across the globe, especially young girls, and that they will find their future at IIT Bombay.
The list of thirty women profiled in this book is inspiring. They have broken the glass ceiling and created a path not just for themselves but also paved the way for the next generation of women engineers to come forward. American poet Robert Frost once wrote,
“TWO ROADS DIVERGED IN A WOOD, AND I—
I TOOK THE ONE LESS TRAVELED BY,
AND THAT HAS MADE ALL THE DIFFERENCE.”
— Robert Frost
Indeed. The women of “Her Story – IIT Bombay Gen Zero Women” took the tough and difficult roads ahead of them and came out stronger and more successful. And that makes their stories truly inspirational. While each alumna scripted her own story, someone had to take the initiative to stitch all these stories into a coffee table book and that credit goes to one of our very distinguished graduates, Mr. D. C. Agrawal. The Institute is thankful to Mr. Agrawal for the initiative and funding support.