Episodes

Who decides who leads? On The AboutHer Show, Dr. Sangeeta Relan speaks with Pankaj Raj, Co-founder & Director of Search Value, about leadership, power, accountability, and allyship. They discuss barriers women face in leadership, boardroom allyship, and Pankaj’s journey in executive search. Plus, The Reveal, where the little things tell us more. 🎙️ The AboutHer Show is a Feedspot Top 10 Women’s Podcast, where women are centred and men show up as allies. For more detailed insights, read the f...

Finance meets storytelling in this episode of The AboutHer Show. Urmi Hossain, a CFA and CAIA charterholder, mentor, and host of the podcast Stories Beyond Borders, joins Sangeeta to discuss building a career in finance while staying rooted in identity, mentorship, and self-growth. As an Italian-Bengali woman based in Montreal, Urmi shares how culture, language, and community shaped her path, and why she lives by the philosophy "Invest in Yourself." Ranked Top 3 on Feedspot's list of Indian Wom...

She runs a family shipping business, founded the world's largest gender equality conference in maritime history, has advised heads of government on ocean action, and now sits on India's apex shipping policy body. All in an industry never designed to include her. In this episode of The AboutHer Show, I sit down with Sanjam Sahi Gupta — Director of Sitara Shipping, Founder of Maritime SheEO, and gender expert at the IMO and UN ESCAP. She talks about the women who showed her what was possible, wa...

What does it look like to build two extraordinary lives and refuse to let either one shrink? Shravani Dang has spent three decades doing exactly that, rising to Vice President at Avantha, serving on global boards, & simultaneously collecting art, founding ArtAdda, documenting food history, & writing fiction. In this conversation, she talks about the instinct that built a creative community, what the corporate world taught her that art never could, & why culinary heritage is a story worth telling...

What if the kingdom that gave women the most freedom existed centuries ago, right here in India? Preetha Leela Chockalingam, author of the Girls of India series (Penguin Random House), joins Sangeeta Relan to talk about the matrilineal Kerala that history forgot, the ancient queens and ordinary girls who held power long before the modern world caught up, and why she is determined to bring those stories back to life. From her debut as an eight-year-old plagiarising Enid Blyton to writing historic...

She ran the world's largest public broadcaster. She dismantled a system built on middlemen. She navigated a Cola war live on air. And then she retired — and started over on Instagram. Vijayalaxmi Chhabra spent 35 years at All India Radio and Doordarshan, rising to Director General at a time when institutions like these weren't built for women like her. In this conversation, she talks about the career she chose when girls didn't choose this, the mid-career pivot that raised every eyebrow in the ...

What does it take to lead a deep-tech company in one of India's most male-dominated sectors? This episode features Pali Tripathi, CEO of Taabi Mobility, on navigating rooms where no one looks like her, selling AI to sceptics, and what it really takes to build a business that also does good. Raw, honest and full of insight. 🏆 The AboutHer Show is ranked in the Top 3 Indian Women's Leadership Podcasts on Feedspot 2026. Chapters: (0:00) 🎙️ Welcome Sangeeta introduces Pali Tripathi, CEO of Taabi...

Kavita Kane has spent her career giving voice to the women mythology chose to forget. In this episode of The AboutHer Show, ranked Top 3 among Indian Women's Leadership Podcasts on Feedspot 2026, she talks about what it takes to reclaim a story that was never really told right the first time. We get into why she keeps circling back to the overlooked, the misunderstood and the silenced. We talk about whether these women always had agency or whether we are the ones finally choosing to see it. And...

Rajan Mehta, tech entrepreneur turned climate changemaker, founder of Climate Action Labs and Climate Ventures Partner and author of Backstage Climate, joins Sangeeta Relan on The AboutHer Show. They talk clean tech in India, why women's leadership is non-negotiable in the climate fight, and the one policy he'd change with sixty seconds and the Prime Minister's ear. 🏆 Recognised by Feedspot as one of the Top 25 Leadership Podcasts in India. For more detailed insights, read the full article on ...

As the football World Cup draws to a close, we bring you a special conversation with returning guest Mallika Ravikumar, lawyer-turned-author of The State League. We talk corruption, courage and everything that happens beneath the surface of the beautiful game, plus her love for trees, her legal instincts, and the story she hasn't found the courage to tell yet. It's a conversation about finding your voice, choosing what to protect, and the quiet strength it takes to keep showing up. A fitting way...

In the Season 3 finale of The AboutHer Show, Sangeeta sits down with Rrashima Swaarup Verma—a senior director at a leading US-based consulting organisation, the author of five books, and a widely published columnist whose short fiction won the Orange Flower Award 2023. Together, they talk about her latest novel, Weight Wars, the role humour plays in telling difficult truths, and what it takes to nurture a creative life alongside a demanding corporate career. This episode explores Voice and Vis...

In this episode of The AboutHer Show, Sangeeta sits down with Tina Sapra, Registered Dietician and founder of Doctor Diet, for a conversation that moves well beyond nutrition. Tina spent 16 years in the United States at institutions including Kaiser Permanente before returning to India in 2011. After heading Clinical Nutrition at Fortis Gurugram, she built her own practice around one belief: lasting lifestyle change over quick results. In this episode, she talks about the place of nutrition in...

Anupama Jain has written six books, co-founded a startup, and reinterpreted the Bhagavad Gita for modern readers. In this episode, Sangeeta speaks with AJ about voice, reinvention, and the choices women make when the world offers no template. They cover what children's literature asks of the adult who writes it, the community she built for mothers no one was listening to, what startup life cost her as a woman, the unconventional portfolio she stopped apologising for, and the Gita's ancient wisd...

What does reinvention really look like for a woman who has already built a life most people would envy? Minal Srinivasan is a Managing Director, certified executive coach, abstract artist, and one of India's most distinctive ecopreneurs. After 17 years in corporate, she made a deliberate leap into environmental infrastructure and never looked back. In this conversation, Sangeeta and Minal explore what it truly takes for a woman to begin again: the doubt, the deliberation, the cost, and the ext...

What does it really mean for a woman to own her financial life? Not just earn, but decide, build, and lead her own wealth story? In this episode, Sangeeta sits down with Nita Menezes, Founder of Financially Smart and the visionary behind The Nucleus-an experiential cohort designed for women aged 40-60 to confidently navigate the prime years of their lives by taking absolute charge of their wealth. With over 30 years in the field and more than 20,000 client conversations behind her, Nita brings ...

Upasna Brar left a career, raised a family, and at 50 chose to reinvent herself: reclaiming her voice, her agency, and her ambition by founding UCreations. In this episode, she reflects on the choices women of her generation made without questioning, the fear of starting over, and why it is never too late to begin. Voice & Visibility; Money & Agency; Care & Choices Chapters: (0:00)🎙️ Welcome to her world Sangeeta introduces Upasna Brar, jewellery designer. (2:56) 🌿 The roots that shaped her ...

Reinventing Yourself | Ashima Gupta on Leadership, Mindset & the Courage to Begin Again What happens when a successful lawyer walks away and finds her real work? This episode explores what it truly takes to lead yourself and others. Executive coach Ashima Gupta opens up about blind spots at the top, the mindset shifts that drive real results, and the quiet courage reinvention demands. From courtrooms to coaching rooms, this is a conversation about leadership, resilience, and starting over with...

What does it take to walk away from a 30-year corporate career and build something entirely your own? Radhika Duggal has done it, more than once. From rising through the ranks at Hyatt to thriving in Dubai, pivoting into brand alliances, and then launching Sattika, her saree brand, she has reinvented herself at every stage with quiet courage and deep self-belief. In this episode, we talk about leadership, identity, the moment a life-threatening husky attack cracked her open, and what it really...

In this episode, a part of our TechHer Forward theme, I spoke with Shalini Arora, a global technology leader in digital banking and payments, to explore how AI is reshaping everyday banking, the future of digital platforms, and what it takes to lead transformation at scale. Centred around the pillars of Voice & Visibility and Power & Leadership, this conversation also dives into the underrepresentation of women in AI and tech, the importance of strong role models, and how organisations can buil...

In this episode of The AboutHer Show, I’m in conversation with children’s author Sonia Mehta, who has spent over two decades shaping young minds through storytelling. At the heart of her work lies the idea of healing through words, using stories to help children understand and process their emotions and feel less alone. Through books like On Air with RJ Rini, she gently creates spaces where children can find their voice and visibility, learning to express themselves in a world that often speaks...

What happens when a woman chooses herself after 25 years of choosing everyone else? In this episode of The AboutHer Show, I’m in conversation with Kavita Atroley, who returned to academics after decades of being a wife, mother, and daughter-in-law, only to discover a new purpose in motivational and leadership coaching. We talk about self-doubt, identity, family expectations, and the courage it takes to begin again. This is a story of quiet strength, late beginnings, and the power of listening ...

What does it really take to build influence at the highest levels of global organisations? In this episode of The AboutHer Show, Meenu Handa, a former Google APAC Communications Leader and trusted C-suite adviser, shares powerful insights on leadership, crisis management, women in power, boardroom governance, and resilience shaped through sport. This conversation reflects the pillars of Power & Leadership and Voice & Visibility, exploring what it truly takes to build credibility and sustain in...

In this episode of The AboutHer Show, Chandrani Ghosh, author of Heartlines, shares her journey from covering the Clinton White House and the Forbes Rich List to writing a novel that explores love, identity, ambition, and moral choices. Through Sharmila Basu’s story, we explore the emotional realities behind success, the Indian-American experience, and the courage it takes to claim one’s voice. Part of our Healing Through Words series, this conversation reflects the pillars of Power & Leadershi...

What begins as a mother’s concern can sometimes grow into a movement. In this episode of The AboutHer Show, Pallavi, Managing Director of Adya Organics, shares how her journey as a mother led her to choose the road less travelled—building a purpose-driven organic food venture rooted in trust, tradition, and community impact. This conversation reflects the pillars of Power & Leadership through values-based entrepreneurship, Money & Agency through creating financial opportunities for women, and ...