Unstoppable Woman with Shailja Saraswati

For more than two decades, Madhu Dutta built some of India's most recognisable brands - Tanishq, Raymond, Pantaloons and more - and believed that the work itself would be the validation. Then came a harder realization: good work does not always speak for you, titles are transient, and waiting for someone else to vouch for you can carry a cost. In this episode of Unstoppable Woman, Shailja Saraswat...

How do you keep building, growing and changing without losing the feeling that your life is still yours? That became the deeper thread in my conversation with Tanvi Ghate, Founder of OLAK. Her journey moves through law, venture capital, women’s stories, Indian craft and eventually building a new lingerie brand. But underneath those milestones I kept seeing an operating system: Do. Discover. Become...

For years, Shailja Saraswati has asked the questions. In this episode, for the first time, she answers them. She grew up in a household where the written word was almost a religion, and where she learned early to observe far more than she ever said out loud. That pattern followed her into her first job — where she describes freezing on stage, and crying in a washroom after feedback she took straig...

Madhumita Arolker is a PCC (ICF), EMCC and MCCP-credentialed high-performance leadership coach, coach educator, supervisor and mentor coach — the person other coaches go to. Her work today is about sharp focus, cut-through-the-noise clarity, and calm, decisive confidence under pressure. None of that came naturally. In this episode of Unstoppable Woman, host and founder Shailja Saraswati sits with...

Before he's a founder, a marketer, or an AI builder — Pratik Gour looks at everything through a human lens first. In this conversation, Shailja Saraswati sits down with entrepreneur, marketer, and AI-systems builder Pratik Gour — and finds a man who keeps returning to the same question no matter the domain: what actually makes us human, underneath the label? That human-first gaze shows up everywhe...

Some people are not meant to fit into the life handed to them. Tanvi Gandhi built a powerful career across television, films and production — with acclaimed projects like Queen, Udta Punjab, Mardaani 2, Super 30 and Vikram Vedha forming part of her journey. But this conversation is not just about cinema. It is about the woman behind the credits. In this deeply reflective episode of Unstoppable Wom...

A coaching certification can teach you the craft. But can it teach you how to build trust, ask for money, create visibility, attract clients, and stay aligned with who you are? In this conversation, Shailja Saraswati sits down with Akilesh Narayanan to explore what the coaching industry often leaves unsaid. From leaving behind traditional career paths to working unpaid just to enter the industry,...

She became Mrs. India World. But the real crown was not the title. It was the inner work that helped her rebuild herself after class shame, violence, self-doubt and years of trying to find where she belonged. In this conversation, Rinima Bohra opens up about the discipline behind transformation, the courage to heal without becoming bitter, and how her journey became bigger than herself through Mis...

What if your clutter is not just clutter? What if the things you keep are carrying fear, grief, memory, identity, family conditioning, emotional avoidance, and parts of your past you have not fully released? In this episode of Unstoppable Woman, Shailja Saraswati sits down with Gayatri Gandhi, founder of Joy Factory and India’s first certified KonMari consultant, for a deeply personal conversation...

What happens when a life built on discipline takes an unexpected turn? In this episode of Unstoppable Woman, Shailja Saraswati sits down with Captain Rupinder Kaur (Retd), whose journey spans army life, leadership, adversity, healing, and reinvention. Growing up in an army environment taught her resilience, adaptability, service, and the ability to keep moving forward no matter the circumstance. B...

They wanted her to change. Her name. Her smile. Her skin. Her definition of success. Vishakha Singh chose something far more difficult. She chose herself. In this episode of Unstoppable Woman, Shailja Saraswati sits down with actor, producer, entrepreneur, investor and storyteller Vishakha Singh for a powerful conversation about identity, rejection, reinvention, emotional resilience and the courag...

Women today have more education, more opportunity, more visibility, and more awareness than ever before. So why do so many still feel trapped? In this powerful conversation, Shailja Saraswati sits down with leadership coach and author Nirupama Subramanian to explore one of the most important questions facing women today: If awareness has increased, why hasn’t transformation kept pace?  Together, t...

What happens when a shy child, placed in reparative therapy, turns to poetry and discovers a voice that spans continents? In this episode of Unstoppable Woman, Shailja Saraswati sits with Kiran Bhat, Indian American novelist, traveler, and polyglot, for a conversation that moves far beyond the visible writer’s journey. Together, they explore the inner shift from silence to expression, from alienat...

What happens when a woman moves from waiting for validation to claiming her own spotlight? In this episode of Unstoppable Woman, Shailja Saraswati sits with Navixha Bagga for a conversation that goes far beyond the visible corporate and coaching journey. Together, they explore the inner shift from self-doubt to self-worth, from silence to voice, from external validation to inner authority, and fro...

What happens when a leader leaves the speed of global boardrooms and chooses conviction, clarity, and contribution instead? In this episode of Unstoppable Woman, Shailja Saraswati sits with James Joseph, Founder of Jackfruit365, for a conversation that moves far beyond the visible entrepreneur story. Together, they explore the inner shift from validation to conviction, from balance to resonance, f...

What happens to a woman when she has built through pressure for years  and then begins to see more clearly what success has cost, what it has taught, and what now matters more? In this episode of Unstoppable Woman, Shailja Saraswati sits with Lizzie Chapman for a conversation that moves far beyond the visible founder story. Together, they explore the inner shift from ambition to awareness, from pa...

In this episode of Unstoppable Woman, Shailja Saraswati speaks with Sharmilee Kapur about women’s wellness, healing, energy, emotional recovery, and starting again. This is not just a conversation about health routines. It is about what happens when women keep showing up, keep carrying, keep functioning — even when their body, mind, and emotional system are asking for restoration. If you are a wom...

Most people think imitation is harmless. But over time, it does something deeper.  It weakens voice.  It blurs identity.  And it slowly distances people from what is truly their own. In this episode of Unstoppable Woman, I sit down with artist Savio Dsilva for a conversation that begins with art but quickly opens into something larger. We explore originality, dyslexia, education beyond the classro...

What happens when success validates you… but still doesn’t get you work? In this episode of Unstoppable Woman, Arunima Sharma speaks about rejection, resilience, creative purpose, and why awards and opportunity are not the same thing. Arunima won the National Film Award for Best Direction (Non-Feature Film) for Shyam Raat Seher (Blue Dusk Dawn), her FTII diploma film. She has also contributed to p...

Why do some leaders get noticed while others, equally capable, stay unseen? The real gap isn’t talent. It’s visibility and the identity behind it. In this episode of Unstoppable Woman, Lulu Raghavan unpacks a tension most leaders quietly carry: • Talent may open the door but visibility shapes the trajectory. • Doing great work isn’t enough if no one knows the value behind it. • Leadership presence...

Ram Madhvani is one of India’s most respected storytellers; the creative force behind films like Neerja and the acclaimed series Aarya. A legendary advertising filmmaker, he has spent decades shaping how India sees stories, brands, and human courage. But long before the awards and recognition, there was a constant reinvention. In this episode, Ram Madhvani opens up about identity, labels, reputati...

This Women’s Day, we’re not celebrating slogans. We’re studying what strength looks like under fire. Rajita Kulkarni survived the 26/11 Mumbai attacks. But survival was not the headline of her life. What followed was harder: Rebuilding identity. Recalibrating ambition. Choosing institution over ego. Building leadership rooted in inner steadiness. From global banking to leading Sri Sri University,...

Megha Bajaj is one of India’s most loved contemporary authors, founder of WOW (a life-skills movement for children), TEDx speaker, and a voice many turn to for faith, growth, and emotional strength. But long before visibility — there was silence. At seven, she chose to sit alone on a terrace facing the sea instead of going to school. That decision shaped her inner architecture. In this episode, we...

What happens when designation replaces craft? In this episode of Unstoppable Woman, I sit down with Roshan Abbas — storyteller, cultural architect, performer, and founder — for a conversation that goes far beyond career highlights. We speak about: • Why curiosity is the only real career insurance • The trap of hierarchy and title-chasing • The difference between random success and cultured success...

What does it take to keep going when the glamour fades and the work gets lonely? In this episode of Unstoppable Woman, host Shailja Saraswati sits down with actor and performer Priya Chauhan for a rare, grounded conversation about craft, resilience, and staying present in an industry built on pressure and comparison. From growing up in the stillness of Shimla to navigating the speed of big-city li...