Nandita Nagangoudar, 31, is the first civilian woman from Karnataka to have conquered four of the Seven Summits of the world. She is now out to climb the other three.
When she first shared her mountaineering dreams with her family, she met with scepticism.
“I was told the sport was risky to life and limb, and definitely not for women. We hail from small-town Hubballi, and that made my family more apprehensive,” she says.
Nandita lost her father at a young age and was well aware of the many difficulties in her path. She eventually convinced her family. “Though hesitant in the beginning, my mother is now confident and encourages me,” she says.