Meet the 2025 DARPAN Power Women of Influence Panel
Ish Sharma Darpan, 17 Mar, 2025 05:04 PM
The Power Women of Influence Gala 2025 comprises of a power-packed panel that includes Roshaneh Zafar, Founder and MD, Kashf Foundation, Farah Mohamed, Senator, CEO-The King's Trust Canada, and social entrepreneur, Belle Puri, veteran award winning journalist and reporter with CBC News Vancouver, Anoop Virk, TEDx executive producer and Ambassador for the Minerva Women’s Foundation, and Supinder Wraich, award winning Canadian actress of CBC's Allegiance.
Roshaneh Zafar is the thought leader & driving force behind Kashf Foundation, Pakistan’s first specialized microfinance institution. Since 1995, Kashf has empowered 8 million women micro-entrepreneurs, disbursing billions (1.1 bn USD) in loans and pioneering Pakistan’s first gender bond. Headquartered in Lahore, Kashf operates through 10 regional offices and a network of over 422 branches nationwide, with 5,000 staff members - 50% of whom are women - ensuring its reach into urban and rural communities while maintaining gender equality at all tiers. Kashf has been recognized by Forbes among the "Top 50 Micro Finance Institutions of the World" and Forbes has recognized her as a "Woman Changing the World".
Farah Mohamed served as CEO of the Malala Fund and founded Girls20 (now FORA), an initiative empowering women from G20 countries and Africa with leadership training. She is a recipient of the Order of Merit of Canada, the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal, and a Meritorious Service Medal. She served as Vice President, Public Affairs and Community Engagement for VON Canada, where she was successful in building government and private sector partnerships. She was recognized BBC’s Top 100 Women and is the latest appointment to the Canadian senate.
Belle Puri was the first TV journalist of South Asian heritage to make an appearance in mainstream media. She has made significant contributions to Canadian media, working as a reporter, producer, and host in both public and private sector television and radio. During her tenure with CBC Vancouver, she served as a business reporter on notable programs like Venture, Newsworld Business News, Money Weekly, and Canada Now while also covering major events such as provincial politics and federal leadership conventions. She has been recognized for excellence in Journalism with numerous accolades such as the Centennial Foundation Award in 2000 and the Jack Webster Award for outstanding journalism in 2005. In 2022, she was honored with the Canadian Screen Award for Best Local Journalist and last year she was the recipient of the prestigious Bruce Hutchison Lifetime Achievement Award.
Anoop Virk is driven by philanthropy and has a decade long track record of creating impactful businesses and purposeful initiatives. She is the founder of Project LOVE, which built a gender-equality-based school in Zambia. She co-founded Project H.E.L.L.O., which reconnected over 450 homeless residents in Vancouver's Downtown Eastside with their loved ones. She has met some of the biggest movers and shakers around the globe such Jimmy Carter, Chelsea Clinton, and Bono. She has been recognized Canada's Top 20 Under 20 and BC's 24 Under 24. She was honoured by former Prime Minister Trudeau and Governor General for her efforts.
Supinder Wraich is a graduate of the Canadian Film Centre’s applauded Actor’s Conservatory. She earned a Canadian Screen Award as the lead in the Emmy Award winning digital series Guidestones. Her series, The 410, which she created and starred in, was nominated for three Cdn screen Awards including Best Program, Best Writing, and Best Lead Performance. Some of other notable TV projects include the EXPANSE, PRIVATE EYES, CRAWFORD and CBC and HBO Max’s series SORT OF. She has garnered immense praise for her role as a lead rookie police officer in CBC’s ongoing hit TV series Allegiance.
Well known journalist and media personality Robin Gill is Darpan Power Women of Influence's panel moderator. She is a media strategist and was the face of Global National for nearly 3 decades in broadcast news. As the national correspondent and weekend anchor for Global National, she reported on some of the most pivotal stories in Canada and beyond, including federal elections, the pandemic, and the BC floods. With a career spanning CBC, Global News, and appearances on NBC and Fox, she has interviewed political leaders, business executives, and change makers shaping the nation. Her latest venture is being the founder of Robin Gill Communications, which specializes in media training, public speaking, strategic communication plans, and thought leadership, advising leaders across politics, finance, real estate, law, and non-profits.
The 3rd annual Darpan's Power Women of Influence 2025 event, proudly hosted by DARPAN Magazine, will take place on Saturday, March 22nd.
The evening will start off with a red-carpet reception and networking hour, leading to exclusive Power Talks from each panelist, offering personal insights and experiences, followed by a high-impact panel discussion addressing key issues facing women today, followed by top-notch entertainment, and a gourmet meal.
Event Highlights:
Date: Saturday, March 22, 2025
Venue: Vancouver Convention Centre
Format: Red Carpet Reception & Networking | Power Talks | Panel Discussion | Entertainment & Dinner
British Columbia's legislative session opens today amid what Premier David Eby describes as a time of "extraordinary change and uncertainty." Lt.-Gov. Wendy Cocchia is scheduled to deliver the speech from the throne this afternoon, laying out the B.C. government's plan as looming U.S. tariffs threaten the Canadian economy.
RCMP say five people went to hospital after an ambulance responding to a service call crashed with an SUV west of Edmonton. The crash happened Monday along a stretch of highway in Parkland County, south of Stony Plain.
Foreign Affairs Minister Mélanie Joly says she wants Canadians to play a role in keeping the peace in Ukraine after Russia's war ends. U.S. President Donald Trump has pledged to hold talks with Russian officials on how to end the war, which started with Moscow's 2014 invasion and escalated to a full-scale war almost three years ago.
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh says he sees an east-west clean electricity corridor as his first priority for expanding the Canadian energy market — not new pipelines. While Singh isn't shutting the door entirely to pipelines, he says pipeline projects must be accepted by the communities through which they're routed, must not hurt the environment, must provide good jobs and must meet Indigenous consultation requirements.
Former central banker Mark Carney is dominating the fundraising field in the race for the federal Liberal leadership. And his main rival appears to be trailing at the back of the pack. Financial data published by Elections Canada shows Carney raised $1.9 million for his leadership bid — more than eight times the sum collected by his nearest fundraising competitor.
Economists are more confident the Bank of Canada might pause its interest rate cuts next month — tariffs notwithstanding — as Canada's annual inflation rate ticked back up in January. Statistics Canada's consumer price index on Tuesday reported the annual inflation rate rose to 1.9 per cent last month, up from 1.8 per cent in December, as the effects from a full month of the federal government's GST break were offset by higher fuel costs.
