WESA 2023: Top Women Entrepreneurs Breaking The Glass Ceiling

Women's participation in the startup ecosystem has long been a pressing issue. Similar to other industries, the Indian startup landscape requires a boost to encourage more women to pursue entrepreneurship as a career. According to a Nasscom report, 18 per cent of companies in India's startup ecosystem have at least one female founder or co-founder. 

It is truly encouraging to witness the increasing involvement of women in this space, as year after year, reports indicate their growing interest in entrepreneurship. To honour the journey of women entrepreneurs who have established successful enterprises and motivated others, BW is organised the 5th edition of WESA in 2023.

The Initiative

The Women Entrepreneur Awards, now in its fifth edition, aim to recognise and celebrate women leaders making strides across various industries. This year's categories spanned Creative Women Entrepreneur, Education and Edtech, Fashion and Lifestyle, Fintech, and more. The platform rightly included the ever-relevant Technology category, along with Young Woman Entrepreneur of the Year (Below 30) and Startup Women Entrepreneur. Additionally, BW Disrupt introduced Health, Wellness, and Healthtech Award, as well as the Social Impact Women Entrepreneur Award, witnessing substantial participation.

The Process

More than 100 entries were received which were then brought down to over 55 after the first screening round. Subsequently, after the second level of deliberation, they were invited to be present before the power-packed jury panel. Nominations received for BW Disrupt WESA were put through a multi-tier screening and shortlisting procedure.

The Jury

The esteemed jury panel included Rema Subramanian, Co-founder and Managing Partner, Ankur Capital; Bhuvana Ravi, Director, Drishya Education; Meghna Agarwal, Co-founder, Indiqube; Vaishali Sinha Nigam, Co-founder and Chairperson Sustainability ReNew and Chirag Shah, Senior Vice President, Blacksoil.

Winners
Category
Name
Designation
Company
Best Entrepeneur In Agritech
Rithika Agnishwar
Co-founder
Gaurda Aerospace
Best Creative Entrepreneur
Tanisha Fagwani
Co-founder
Stonks Studios




Nikita Prasad
Co-founder & Creative head
GIVA Jewellery
Best Entrepreneur In Ecommerce Tech
Soumya Kant
Co-founder & Chief Growth Officer
Clovia
Best Entrepreneur In Fashion & lifestyle
Vani Talwar Khosla
Co Founder
Tidy Up
Best Entrepreneur In Health & Wellness
Lalitha Palle
Founder, Director
ForMen
Best Social Entrepreneur
Anupama Katkar
Chief of operational excellence
Quick Heal Technologies
Best Entrepreneur Under 30
Aakriti Rawal
Co-Founder & CEO
House of Chikankari


Hinshara Habeeb
Co- Founder
Manetain Store
Startup women entrepreneur award
Priyanka Salot
Co-founder
The Sleep Company




Aakriti Rawal
Co-Founder & CEO
House Of Chikankari


Santhoshi Sushma Buddhiraju
CEO/Director/Co-Founder
Autocracy Machinery




Gunjan Taneja 
Founder, Head of Marketing & Product
UClean




Smiti Bhatt Deorah
Co-Founder & COO
Advantage Club
Best Entrepreneur In Technology
Rithika Agnishwar
Co-founder
Gaurda Aerospace


Smiti Bhatt Deorah
Co-Founder & COO
Advantage Club




Anubha Dixit
Founder & CEO
Tongadive
Women Entrepreneur Of The Year
Radha Basu
Founder & CEO
iMerit


Anshu Parmar
COO
Erisha E Mobility 


Shivani Malik
Founder and CEO
Mother's Kitchen 
Best Entrepreneur In (EPC) Engineering Procurement Construction (EPC)
Smita Tiwari
Co-Founder
Articlad
Best Entrepreneur In Commercial Real Estate
Priyanka Rathore
Co-Founder
Strata
Best Entrepreneur In Sustainability
Priya prakash
Managing Director
Eco Pallet


Pallavi Utagi
CEO and Founder
UNO | SuperBottoms