Smriti Zubin Irani: A Force To Be Reckoned With

From being television’s most loved ‘Bahu’ to becoming one of the most influential politicians in India, Smriti Zubin Irani’s journey is worth every word. The current Union Minister for Women and Child Development, Irani also happens to be the first non-Muslim to serve as the Minister for Minority Affairs, as per her Wikipedia profile.

Irani had shot to fame as a household name playing Tulsi in ‘Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu thi’. But what saw her emerging as one of the strongest women in India, ruling not just the political circles but also the Indian gender economics is her win in the 2019 general elections which got her into the Parliament as an elected MP.

Irani, who had earlier represented the Rajya Sabha, defeated Rahul Gandhi in Gandhi’s stronghold, Amethi in Uttar Pradesh. While in 2014 Irani had lost against Gandhi, she defeated him with a margin of 55,120 votes, grabbing 49 per cent of the votes in the constituency. A strong Congress bastion for over four decades, Amethi finally saw a new leader emerging, and a strong one indeed.

Political experts in India say that after veteran leader late Sushma Swaraj, Irani has emerged as one of the strongest women leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party. Whether it was representing India at the World Economic Forum meeting at Davos recently or interacting with global leaders like Bill Gates, Smriti Zubin Irani is the chosen face of the Modi government. And the actor turned politician effortlessly performs all her roles with ease. She has been controversy’s favourite child but manages to sail through every time, making her emerge as an even stronger leader not just within the party, but in the country too.

Irani was in the eye of the storm when she was chosen in the Modi cabinet as the Union HRD minister in 2014. Her lack of formal higher education was always pointed out by the Opposition at several occasions but she managed to overcome these controversies.

The 2019 general polls turned out to be the turning point for her and she emerged as one of the strongest woman leaders not only in BJP, but across party lines.