I have always been intrigued by ideas of feminine heroism which I like to call sheroism. Women empowerment, gender equality, workplace equality and related issues that demand sheroism are the topics of debate, concern and revolution at present. The past few years saw the rise of women organizations and women supporting organizations like He For She, Lean In, Women for Women International etc in support of such ideals. Behind every successful organization were successful women who embody sheroism in its highest glory. These four women are few of my greatest inspirations and so of millions.

Here is what the world has learnt from their sheroism:

1. Emma Watson

She must have been the childhood crush of boys for years but this actress who rose to fame with J.K Rowling’s Harry Potter series is a champion of feminism. Even when she acted in movies, she studied at the prestigious Brown University. She also took a year off from acting to study at Oxford. But her sheroism does not end there. It only begins when she launched the He for She campaign to promote gender equality. If there is anyone who can attract men with her beauty but rather chooses to influence them into the world of feminism then it is Emma Watson. The UN Women Goodwill Ambassador took this year off from work to educate herself more on feminism. She has her public group on Goodreads called Oursharedshelf, where she shares her book of the month and holds discussions with group members. When I watched Harry Potter as a kid, I always felt there was something magically different about Hermione. Fearless, smart and tough as she was, Emma Watson is just like her character of 10 years.

2. Sheryl Sandberg

The COO of Facebook and a true shero, Sandberg is a mother, activist, author, speaker and leader. Her recently published book ‘Lean In’ is already a major hit. Through her book she conveys that women can be great mentors for each other. The so called image of women being related to cat fights even in workplaces is flawed. I remember watching a Ted Talk of hers, where she spoke about ‘Why we have few Women leaders?’. In her talk she encouraged women employees to be fearless and demanding. She believes that until women demand equality and power in all spheres, of which work is a very important part, the plight of women leaders will not change. There is a friend of mine who is a Stanford graduate. She was hired by Apple a couple of years ago. But eventually she quit, not because she hated her work but because she couldn't bear her juniors receiving a higher pay for the work that was her routine for years. The next thing she did was write a resignation letter when she should have actually talked the matter out with her boss, demanding a pay rise. Fear and not ego was her setback. Sandberg, is the one who condemns this fear driven submissiveness in women . Thanks to her, I know what I will be doing if ever in the same situation

3. Reshma Saujani

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An American Lawyer and politician, Saujani lost her first run for the 2010 Democratic Primary for the US house of representatives in New York’s 14th congressional district. Being the first Indian- American to do so was intimidating but Reshma is a shero and from that she draws motivation for her Ted talk “ Tech Girls Bravery, Not Perfection”. In her talk she clearly states that when every culture aspires of obedience, sacrifice and selflessness from women. They paint a picture of perfection which becomes the symbol of womanhood. But instead, bravery is the single most important quality that every women should learn and posses for there is no greater shero than one who has no fear. She later founded the Girls Who Code organization as an answer to the gender gap in technology.Well it seems, this Shero is also multi-talented woman.

4. Malala Yousafzai

This 19 year old shero was the greatest miracle of 2012 when she recovered from a gun shot aimed directly at her head. She fought for her life just as she had fought for women’s educational rights ever since she was a kid. Malala however was never ready to give up. Even after death threats from Taliban, she continues to strive for women’s rights for basic education. The Malala fund is her brainchild for helping girls with finances and resources to receive a quality 12 year education. On your next birthday, when you receive gifts loved ones, request them to donate to the Malala Fund instead or teach girls in summer camps organized by the Malala Fund and see what difference it makes. Malala has been striving to create this difference for years because she has a dream that one day every women will be able to build their lives out of the education they achieve.

Everyday we encounter women who make our lives special in some way or the other. My mother is that one woman for me, so is my history teacher of 3 years. In each of them is a shero that we discover silently, a shero who we watch but never see. Of course like Emma Watson they aren’t celebrities neither are they highly paid executives like Sheryl Sandberg, but they are sheroes because they inspire the women of today and tomorrow to be independent and fearless. There are women who even inspire others to achieve what they couldn’t and women who fight for others because there weren’t people to fight for them. All in all, sheroes everywhere are the same, they are built of flesh and bones and not of fear and cowardice.