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CNBC-TV18 spotlights future women leaders at Bengaluru summit
Future. Female. Forward. explores AI, leadership and women-led growth
MUMBAI: The future of leadership took centre stage and this time, it came with fewer glass ceilings and more growth charts. CNBC-TV18 brought together business leaders, entrepreneurs and policymakers for the Bengaluru edition of Future. Female. Forward. – The Women’s Collective, Season 4, where conversations centred on how artificial intelligence, inclusive leadership and entrepreneurship will shape India’s next decade.
Held on 15 July 2026, the summit presented by HSBC, co-presented by Cognizant, and powered by Reliance Industries Limited focused on a central question: What will leadership look like in the next decade?
Against the backdrop of rapid AI adoption, evolving workplaces and India’s economic ambitions, speakers argued that increasing women’s participation in leadership is no longer simply a diversity objective but a business necessity. Discussions explored building trust-led organisations, improving access to capital for women entrepreneurs and using technology to create more inclusive growth.
The event opened with Shereen Bhan, Managing Editor of CNBC-TV18, who outlined what she described as the “new rules of power”. This was followed by a keynote from Ranjan Bhattacharya, Managing Director and Chief of Staff, HSBC India and Head of Group Strategy, India & Middle East, who emphasised trust, compassion and inclusion as defining characteristics of future-ready organisations.
A keynote fireside conversation between Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, Executive Chairperson of Biocon Limited, and Bhan explored entrepreneurship, resilience and the structural barriers that continue to limit women’s access to funding.
Mazumdar-Shaw said women entrepreneurs continue to face credibility challenges while raising capital, stressing that stronger mentorship and easier access to funding remain essential for building more successful women-led businesses.
The summit also hosted the townhall ‘Powering New Possibilities’, bringing together founders and executives including Amitabh Malhotra (HSBC India), Ruchi Deepak (Jolene.Club and ACKO), Anjali Sardana (Pronto), Dekyi Yangtso Chawla (Reward360), Saroja Yeramilli (Melorra), Mansi Jain (Glance), Jo Aggarwal (Wysa) and Kirthiga Reddy (OptimizeGEO.ai). The discussion examined how AI, innovation and entrepreneurship are reshaping opportunities for women-led enterprises.
Highlighting the AI opportunity, Kirthiga Reddy noted that women remain significantly underrepresented in deep technology, with only 4 per cent of deep-tech founders globally being women and one in ten in India. She urged women to take ownership across the AI ecosystem as founders, engineers and researchers rather than allowing history to repeat itself.
The programme also featured an address by Rajesh Varrier, President – Global Operations and Chairman & Managing Director of Cognizant India, who argued that India’s opportunity lies not just in adopting AI but in helping build it. He said equity should be viewed as a long-term competitive advantage rather than merely a compliance requirement.
Other speakers focused on expanding economic opportunities for women through entrepreneurship and technology. Ruchi Deepak reflected on her journey from co-founding ACKO to launching Jolene.Club, while Anjali Sardana discussed how technology can create safer and more sustainable livelihoods for women working in India’s domestic workforce.
The Bengaluru edition concluded with the felicitation of the FFF Icons, recognising women who have broken barriers across industries. Broadcast live on CNBC-TV18, CNBCTV18.com and the network’s YouTube channel, the summit reinforced the growing consensus that India’s next phase of economic growth will depend not only on technological innovation, but also on ensuring more women have a seat at the leadership table.
