Time's 100 Most Influential People: Indians Shine with Ajay Banga, Alia Bhatt, Sakshi Malik, and More Making the Cut

World Bank President Ajay Banga, Bollywood actor Alia Bhatt, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, Olympian wrestler Sakshi Malik and actor-director Dev Patel are among the Indians who have made it to the prestigious Times's list of 100 most influential people in the world released on Wednesday. 

Time’s ‘100 Most Influential People of 2024’ also includes US Department of Energy’s Loan Programmes Office director Jigar Shah, Professor of Astronomy and Professor of Physics at Yale University Priyamvada Natarajan; Indian-origin restaurateur Asma Khan; as well as Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny's widow Yulia Navalnaya. 

Ajay Banga

Former CEO of MasterCard Ajay Banga has risen to the ranks to serve one of the leading Multilateral development Institutions today, the World Bank. His Time’s profile written by US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, said, “It’s not easy to find a leader with the skill and drive to take on the monumental task of transforming an essential institution, but since becoming World Bank president last June, Ajay Banga has done just that." 

Alia Bhatt

Alia Bhatt is an actor who has proved her mettle by playing versatile roles and getting global appreciation for her role in Gangubai Kathiawadi movie. Tom Harper who directed her in the movie Heart of Stone said in her Time's Profile “Alia’s superpower is her ability to mix movie-star magnetism with authenticity and sensitivity. As an actor she is luminous, and as a person, she brings the grounded assurance and creativity that make a truly international star.”

Dev Patel

A British actor of Indian origin who is well known for his performances in movies like Slumdog Millionaire and Life of Pi, made it to the Time's List this year. His Time profile by Oscar-winning actor Daniel Kaluuya read that he “radiates goodness. His humanity shines through every time he graces the screen, leaving you no choice but to root for him even when his character is doing something foul; his presence makes you understand where he’s coming from”.

Priyamvada Natarajan

Priyamvada is an Astrophysicist and professor at Yale University. Shep Doeleman, an astrophysicist and the founding director of the Event Horizon Telescope, wrote in the profile for Natarajan that a novel approach developed years ago by her “brought us closer to under­standing a basic mystery in astron­omy: How do the supermassive black holes that lurk at the centres of most galaxies form?” 

Satya Nadella

Satya Nadella is the CEO of software and computing giant Microsoft. On Nadella, Time said he is “profoundly influential in shaping our future. And that’s a good thing for humanity. Microsoft’s significant investment in OpenAI and partnership with Mistral AI puts him at the forefront of the artificial intelligence revolution. A technologist with heart, Satya sees AI as a tool that will empower humans."

Sakshi Malik

She is the first Indian female wrestler to win an Olympics medal. Sakshi was the face of Wrestler's protest against alleged Sexual Harassment by WFI Chief. On Malik, Oscar-nominated documentary filmmaker Nisha Pahuja writes that she was among India’s “most celebrated wrestlers” who had gathered at Jantar Mantar in Delhi in early 2023 to demand the immediate arrest and resignation of chief of the Wrestling Federation of India Brij Bhushan Singh, accused of sexually harassing female athletes.