Are you Team Navya yet?

She's just a girl and she's on fire. At 25, Navya Naveli Nanda is turning privilege and power into a force for women's rights. Comic books are just part of the mission

- Urvee Modwel

In a year of nepo babies (can't wait for the Archies movie BTW), 25-year-old Navya Naveli Nanda seems almost like an anti-hero. She'd prefer anti-heroine, though. Much of her work in the public eye, since she was 21, has been in gender inequality and getting India to treat women better. Her initiative, Project Naveli, works towards women's education and economic independence battling domestic violence, and issues in mental and physical health. She also cofounded Aara Health, a women-centric health tech company. She's edging close to a million followers on Instagram. Her podcast, What the Hell Navya, has fans, awards, haters the usual.

 

It's an unlikely path for anyone in their 20s, but one that's been smoother for her than for most young women. Nanda is the eldest granddaughter of Amitabh and Jaya Bachchan. Her father is Nikhil Nanda, grandson of actor Raj Kapoor and chairman and managing director of the storied Escorts Group. So, it's no surprise that she starts with a disclaimer. "For me to be able to do what I wanted to do at 21 only happened because I come from a lot of privilege and I had a lot of support from my family, whether that was financial or whatever," Nanda says. "I'm grateful for the opportunities that I have been given and the ones I continue to get." 

Comic timing