Today as India celebrates her 78th Independence day, our guest on "U N' I with Rashmi Shetty is Special India's first Visually challenged Foreign service officer , the inspirational Beno Zephine N.L, IFS Under Secretary Policy Planning and Research, Ministry of External affairs.

Beno Zephine received the “First Women’s Award” from the hon’ble President of India, Shri Ram Nath Kovind in January 2018 for becoming India’s first visually challenged Foreign Service Officer. She secured 343rd rank in the all-India Civil Services Examination 2014. She was instrumental in bringing out MEA’s Annual Report 2019-2020 in Audio format for the benefit of public.

She excelled at learning French language, as part of her compulsory Foreign Language. At the Higher Secondary level, Beno attended Global Young Leaders conference in the US in 2008. She had Secured first place in the Secondary level Examinations, at the state level, among Visually Challenged Category.

She was instrumental in making the Government of Tamil Nadu pass a Government Order for honouring visually challenged students who secure the first 3 ranks in the Board examinations at the state level. She is the recipient of several awards like Woman of the Year Award by Deccan Chronicle and best Woman by Ritz Magazine.

Google has published herquote, “We are too precious to let disappointments enter our minds” as part of its Google doodle on International Women’s day 2019. Beno has a Masters in English Literature and believes Disability should not inhibit anybody from reaching the Stars. She is often quoted as saying, “I might not have vision, but I have a vision to be a hardworking Civil Servant”.

Listen in as Beno shares her love of life , her positive attitude and why she believes women are Precious.

The National Handloom Day is observed on August 7th every year, to recognise the efforts and skills of the community of weavers engaged in this sector. Our guest today is someone who has given up almost 2 decades of her corporate experience to work with the Ilkal weavers of the last 6 years.

Vrunda Sekhar is an Ilkal Revivalist, Handloom Researcher and Weaver Story Teller based in Bangalore. Facilitating marketplaces for weavers and bridging the gap between weaver and consumer have been her primary areas of engagement. Marketing and promoting Karnataka Sarees, as a must have for Indian women and propagation of Ilkal Sarees as a national weave of historical and cultural significance are also her other areas of work. Championing the rights of weavers, she is involved in research and revival of long-lost design palettes of Karnataka weaves. She is followed by a cross section of women on social media for handloom specific activities of Karnataka centric handloom sarees like Ilkal, Pattadanchu, Guledgudda KhaNa, Gomi, Kote, Molakalmuru, Charaka and Udupi Sarees. With a varied experience as a Communications Specialist, having handled external, internal, customer, retailer communications, Vrunda has worked in Corporates like Bharti Airtel, Hathway, Telenor and Heidelberg India. Apart from 18 years of corporate career, she also has served as a Consultant to the Government of Karnataka, in departments of Kannada/Culture and Karnataka Urban Water Supply Board, as a Media Specialist. Vrunda holds a Masters Degree in English Literature from Mysore University, with a Post Graduate Diploma in Public Relations and Advertising from Bhavans, Bangalore. She has served as a Member of Janapada Loka, Ramanagara, Karnataka and as Ex. Vice President of Karnataka Handloom Council. She is a certified auditor of POSH. A saree aficionado and a handloom lover, her interests include wildlife photography and Indian classical music.

Listen in as she shares her journey & the inspiring story of how she found her purpose.

The First Doctor’s Day was celebrated in India in the year 1991. July 1 happens to be the birth and death anniversary of the most famous physician of India - Dr B. C.Roy. It is a tribute to his contributions to the health domain in the country. We are in the last week end of July & so decided to make it a doctor’s day special.

Dr Sadiq S Sikora, Director of Surgical Services at Sakra Institute of Digestive and HPB Sciences at Sakra World Hospital in Bangalore, is a distinguished medical professional with an impressive background. An alumnus of the prestigious All India Institute of Medical Sciences in New Delhi, Dr Sikora completed his MBBS and MS (Surgery) training there before joining the Department of Surgical Gastroenterology at the renowned Sanjay Gandhi Postgraduate Institute of Medical Sciences in Lucknow.

Dr Sikora's contributions to the field of surgery are numerous and impactful. He has made significant strides in areas such as Safe Cholecystectomy, repair of bile duct injuries, and pancreatic cancer surgery. With more than 125 published articles and book chapters in peer-reviewed journals, Dr Sikora has established himself as a leading voice in surgical research.

Beyond his accomplishments in surgery, Dr Sikora is deeply committed to education and mentorship. His dedication to teaching and cultivating the next generation of surgeons is evident in the success of his trainees, many of whom are now making significant contributions to the field.

Currently, Dr Sikora's focus lies on promoting "Nontechnical Skills for Surgeons" in collaboration with the Royal College of Surgeons, Edinburgh, and advocating for gender equality in the surgical discipline.

Outside of medicine, Dr Sikora has a passion for sports, particularly cricket, tennis, golf, and Formula1. He also enjoys traveling to destinations rich in cultural and historical significance.