Google honored Arati Saha with a beautiful doodle on her 80th birthday anniversary. In case you would like to know more about Arati Saha, here are some inspiring facts that make her special.
Arati Saha was the first woman to be awarded the Padma Shri in 1960.
Born on September 24, 1940, in Calcutta (then British India), Arati learned to swim on the banks of the Hooghly river. Later, she received training under Sachin Nag, one of India’s best competitive swimmers.
At the mere age of five, Arati had won her first gold medal.
By 11, Arati had broken many swimming records. When Arati was just 12 years old, she joined India’s first team to participate in the 1952 Summer Olympics in Helsinki, Finland. During those times, it wasn’t common to find women on the Olympics team. She was one of only four women, who made it to the team.
And when she was 18, she attempted to cross the English Channel. Though she failed at her first attempt. But in the next attempt, she managed to complete the journey and became the first Asian woman to do so.
Google’s doodle was just a reminder of Saha’s extraordinary swimming skills. With a compass and a view of the ocean, Google honored her journey across the English Channel. This beautiful doodle was designed by Kolkata-based artist Lavanya Naidu.
In an interview, while talking about her doodle, Naidu mentioned,
“Saha was a known household name growing up in Kolkata. I hope it adds to the celebration of female figures in our country’s history and human resilience. I also hope it’s an inspiration to people everywhere to dream big, no matter where you come from.”
At IFORHER, we are in awe of Arati Saha, who shattered the glass ceiling many times in her life. We hope her story would inspire many more women to create their own paths and build new records.
