SOUMINI JAIN, Kochi

The mayor of Kerala’s port city since 2015, Jain has come to acquire a reputation of being modest but firm. In April, she put Malayalam film director Jude Antony Joseph in his place after he publicly abused her for denying him permission to shoot for a film in a park. Jain lodged a complaint and Joseph was arrested.

PAST & PRESENT:

A post-graduate in economics, Jain said women need to be treated better. “Our society is still male-dominated and many find it difficult to recognise the feat of women. We need drastic measures to change this old mindset,” Jain, who is also a singer and painter, argued. Her achievements have been many and include taking the plunge into politics a decade ago and becoming a councilor for the first time in 2010. “I love to take up challenges,” Jain said. Born in a Hindu Nair family, she married a Christian businessman. Both keep their respective faiths. Her ambition is to transform Kochi into the “Queen of the Arabian Sea”.