Amid talk in India about the daily horrors that women face across the country, a debate renewed by the mass molestation in Bengaluru on New year's Eve, it is important to remember that women played a leading role in almost everything that makes this nation great.
A stellar example of that role is the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), where women engineers were the backbone of India's path-breaking Mars mission.
No country has ever reached Mars in the first try, except India. And we did on a small budget and within just 18 months. And at the forefront of various departments and the overall mission were woman engineers. They became famous thanks to a viral photo, which showed a group of them celebrating the success of the Mars mission, amid a sea of sarees and traditional decorations.
But that visual metaphor aside, these women have dedicated their careers to take India into the stars. And as they are all based out of Bengaluru, where ISRO is headquartered, it adds a special shine to Karnataka's capital.
You can watch an excellent profile of them by 'Science Friday', a public broadcast radio show in America, that also makes digital videos. The profiles were part of their 'Breakthrough: Portraits of Women in Science'.
Watch: