Olympic wrestling medallist Sakshi Malik has been listed among the 100 most influential people of 2024 by TIME magazine.
TIME released its list of the 100 Most Influential People for 2024 on Wednesday. The annual list, which asks cultural and political icons to highlight the changemakers of the past year, features dozens of athletes, entertainers, artists and politicians.
Sakshi has been honoured for her relentless fight against alleged sexual harassment of female wrestlers by former Wrestling Federation of India president (but still very much in control by proxy) Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh.
Sakshi is India’s first and only female wrestler to win an Olympic medal — taking home the bronze at 2016’s Olympics in Rio. But late last year, she quit the sport.
Sakshi was part of an outspoken group demanding the arrest and resignation of Brij Bhushan, an important Mmember of Parliament who had been accused of sexually harassing women athletes, explains Nisha Pahuja, a documentary filmmaker.
The women’s fight lasted throughout 2023, eliciting attention from around the world. Finally, Singh was charged by Delhi police with assault, stalking and sexual harassment, all of which he denied. Though he was removed as the chief of the wrestling foundation, Singh was replaced by his close ally and business partner late last year, only reigniting the controversy.
“Upcoming female wrestlers will also face exploitation,” Sakshi said at a press conference in December, following the replacement announcement. “If (Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh’s) business partner and a close aide is elected as the new president, I quit wrestling.”
The moment was an “emotional, public, and very brave act of defiance”, writes Pahuja.
“She did not, however, quit the battle,” she wrote. “Her light, and the light of all those standing against harassment, continues to shine.”
Sakshi, along with two-time World Championships bronze medallist Vinesh Phogat and Tokyo Olympics Bronze winner Bajrang Punia, had spearheaded the protest against Brij Bhushan at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar, demanding his arrest for intimidating and allegedly sexually harassing female grapplers of the country.
The protest, which began in January last year, became a year-long battle against Singh drawing support and attention both in India and abroad.
A charge sheet was filed against Singh but he continues to deny the allegations.
“This fight is no longer only for India’s female wrestlers,” said Sakshi of the movement she helped spark.
“It is for the daughters of India whose voices have been silenced time and again.”
Others of Indian origin to feature on the list include Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, actress Alia Bhatt and Indo-British actor Dev Patel.
