To celebrate 75 years of Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav, social activist Sarmistha Acharya took the initiative to honour the daughters with ‘Banglar Sona Maa’ from different walks of life in Rastra Vijay Utsav Banglar Sona Maa 2022.

Presented by Ankit Shaw and The Junction House, the event was held on September 11 at Biswa Bangla Convention Centre, Kolkata where the women across the country were honoured and felicitated for their contributions in respected fields. The initiative also supported and recognised Tribal Community Women and Acid Victims.  

Laxmi Agarwal, an acid attack survivor and Chapaak movie protagonist attended the event as the Chief guest. Among other notable dignitaries were Chirag Paswan, Member of Parliament, Bihar; Salil Acharya, Bollywood Actor; Vishal Madan Mitra, MLA and Rajesh Sinha, Councillor.  

Speaking to the media, Ms Sarmista Acharya said, “It’s a daughter’s month celebration. It’s a salute to the woman who has given birth to such pride in our nation. When you come across a strong daughter, you’ll know it the moment she enters the room. She gives off a vibe of self-confidence that anyone could spot from a mile away. She knows what she wants in life, goes after it and doesn’t depend on anyone else for what she wants, so we are presenting such proud daughters of our nation like Laxmi Agarwal and many others from different generations of the sector.”

Among the award winners of Banglar Sonar Maa were Laxmi Agarwal, acid attack survivor; Dr. Maria Fernandes, WB Commission for women and VC WBFDCL; Richa Sharma, Actor; Aindrila Sharma, Tollywood actor, Jessica Gomes Surana, educationist; Mallika Banerjee, Tollywood Actor; Tanusree Chakraborty, Tollywood Actor; Ushoshi Sengupta, Miss Universe India; Ila Pal, Eminent Indian Swimmer; Urwas Jaiswal, Ms Asia World 2022; Dr. Rupali Basu, MD & CEO Woodlands Hospital; Santi Das, Additional special superintendent at CID, WB; Ranjita Sinha, Transgender Activist; Megh Sayantani Ghosh, Transgender Lawyer, Classical Dancer & Choreographer; Sanchayita Jadav, Acid Attack Survivor; Piyali Basak, Mountaineer; Sampa Guha, International Powerlifter & Kolkata Police Officer; Sudeshna Roy, Eminent Tollywood actress & Child rights crusader; Poulomi Ghatak, International Table tennis Player, Olympian & Arjuna Awardee; Srovonti Bandyopadhyay, Member: WB Commission for Women & Co founder of The Bengal Ghorana.

Talking about the initiative Mr Ankit Shaw, celebrity anchor and national record holder of West Bengal said, “We are honoured to celebrate 75th Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav by honouring Daughters of the country as Rashtra Vijay Utsav Banglar Sona Maa 2022. Daughters will be felicitated who have contributed to the nation. I feel so privileged to plan and organise this esteemed program as this is a noble message to society that Tribal Community Women are an integral part of our society.”

Mr Raja Roy, Director of The Junction House said, “Women are somehow neglected and have to go through a lot in society, this initiative is to bring a revolution in bringing all the community under one platform. Tribal Women, Transgender, Acid Victims, Bureaucrats, and athletes have been contributing but there are other sections of women who are left behind, we have to come forward and take them ahead. We are so happy that Laxmi Agarwal & other Chief Guests have come to support the cause too.”