HZ Awards 2023: Top 3 Nominees For Woman Social Entrepreneur Of The Year & Jury Criteria

The HZ Womenpreneur Awards is all set to be held on February 23, 2023, in Delhi, and the nominations have already been filed. It aims to honour the most significant change-makers in the direct-to-consumer (D2C) sector, who are dedicated to creating a more fair and sustainable business.

With this project, HerZindagi is committed to recognising female entrepreneurs in ways that go beyond "empowerment". Its goal is to recognise and support female leaders and achievers who have made new opportunities for themselves in the last year via exceptional performance and success.

The women entrepreneurs will be recognised in as many as 19 categories. Check out the top three nominees for the Woman Social Entrepreneur of the Year award as well as the criteria used to determine the winner.

An entrepreneur who has created, acquired funding for, and put into practice solutions to social, cultural, or environmental problems will be awarded under this category.

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Jury Criteria

The award will honour social entrepreneurs who are under 30 and have been in business for at least three years. examine specific instances of the beneficial effects the company has had, such as its dedication to the environment, assistance for local communities, and promotion of diversity and inclusion in society.

Nominee 1: Laxmi Idulwar, Udan Solar Energy Pvt. Ltd

A woman from the dreaded "Naxalite area" of Maharashtra's tribal Gadchiroli population. Laxmi rallied the female members of her village to construct solar lanterns. They received training from IIT Bombay and began with a single product range of study lamps before diversifying to 11 different items. They began with 28 women and were affiliated with IIT Bombay and UMED (MSRLM). The company currently produces solar panels with power outputs ranging from 2.5W to 100W along with little items like LED bulbs, compact home lighting systems, and solar study lamps (5W to 18W). A pioneer and entrepreneur from a marginalised group (Tribal) who has no formal training in developing such a business is working to turn it viable.

Nominee 2: Jigisha Shukla, Bageeya

The sustainable business, Bageeya, was founded by a craft entrepreneur, and it uses leftover temple flowers to create 150 different textures on Indian handloom fabrics. They began with 12 clothes and now have a manufacturing facility with solid scientific support. With sales of 20 lakh last year, they closed as a successful business and worked with firms like Fabriclore for bulk orders. They managed to put all of their studies in one location and create 140 textures. They teach local women the art of modern natural dyeing and assist them in appreciating the worth of their labour. Also, they use packaging made of recycled cotton cloth bags and seed paper for their zero waste patterns.

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Nominee 3: Dr Saina Siddiqui, Humjoli

Dr. Sania Siddiqui is the founder and director of the Humjoli Foundation, an organisation based in Pune that educates women and young girls from low-income groups about menstrual hygiene and health. She has experience and competence in clinical practice, preventative healthcare, and creating medical material. She is a certified health and wellness coach. She has already trained more than 400 volunteers, led more than 500 awareness campaigns in 10 cities, and distributed more than one million sanitary pads. She also holds the Guinness World Record for making the largest sanitary pad mosaic and is listed in the India Book of Records 2022. In three Indian regional languages, she has written the first and only book on period education for young girls in India.