Fortune India MPW 2026: Women drive themselves harder than anybody else; my message is simple—you are enough, says Smriti Irani

India's economic growth will increasingly depend on women transitioning from job seekers to job creators, former Union Minister Smriti Irani said at the 16th edition of Fortune India's Most Powerful Women (MPW) 2026, calling for greater support to women-led enterprises, financial inclusion and gender-inclusive technology.

Speaking during a fireside chat on 'From Job Seekers to Job Creators' with Shashwat Goenka, Vice-Chairman, RPSG Group, Irani reflected on leadership, entrepreneurship and public service, while urging women to recognise their own potential and build businesses with confidence.

'Women must back themselves'

Irani said women often set higher expectations for themselves than anyone else.

"My message to every woman is simple: You are enough," she said. "Women drive themselves harder than anybody else. They set their own benchmarks, raise their own standards and compete with themselves every day while the rest of the world competes with them."

Reflecting on her own journey across media, politics and public life, Irani questioned why women are often expected to justify career choices that are rarely scrutinised in men. She said losing an election became an opportunity for self-discovery, adding that this phase of her life has been about drawing strength from others and giving back by helping people negotiate opportunities and build confidence.

She also had a simple message for women navigating personal and professional choices: "It's okay to choose yourself."

'Formalising women-led businesses'

Irani said her organisation, the Alliance for Global Good – Gender Equity and Equality, aims to engage with women entrepreneurs across nearly 300 cities and help one lakh women-owned businesses become formally recognised enterprises.

She noted that while many women-run businesses have benefited from initiatives such as the Mudra Yojana, nearly 90% still lack formal engagement with financial institutions, limiting their ability to scale.

According to Irani, many women entrepreneurs aspire to become part of national and global supply chains or even list their companies, but often lack access to capital, mentorship and institutional support. "My ambition is to have at least 200 such companies achieve that objective over the next two to three years," she said, adding, "In India, if women decide to do something, anything is possible."

Irani also cautioned that artificial intelligence cannot become a true equaliser unless women are adequately represented in the datasets used to train foundational AI models. "If algorithms aren't trained on data that reflects women's participation and experiences, AI cannot become a great equaliser for gender," she said.

Irani served as a Union Education Minister, handling portfolios including Women and Child Development, Minority Affairs, Textiles and Human Resource Development. She currently serves as Founder of the Alliance for Global Good – Gender Equity and Equality.