Colonel Sofiya Qureshi: A family devoted to National service

Colonel Sofiya Qureshi and her family have served India for generations.

Transcript

00:00That's Sophia Qureshi's sister, Dr. Shaina Sunsara, her twin.

00:09When Colonel Sophia Qureshi stood before the nation during Operation Sindhur's military briefing,

00:14she wasn't just representing the Indian army.

00:16She was carrying forward a family legacy of military and national service that stretches back more than 150 years.

00:22When the woman is wrong, she doesn't have a better moment.

00:26Her great-grandmother reportedly fought in the 1857 revolt.

00:30Her grandfather is said to have served as a religious teacher in the army.

00:34Her father, Taj Mohamed Qureshi, fought in the 1971 Indo-Park War and served in both the BSF and EME court.

00:40For the Qureshi's national service isn't just a calling, it's tradition.

00:44When I was in that childhood, my two sons were two years old.

00:47I was shocked that my father and my dad were all in the army.

00:50I was born and my dad had a story, so I was also in the army.

00:54Her twin sister, Dr. Shaina Sunsara, is a star in her own right, an economist, national-level shooter,

01:01awarded by the President of India, fashion designer and former army cadet.

01:05She won Miss Gujarat, Mrs. India Earth 2017 and Miss United Nations 2018

01:10and was awarded the Dada Sahib Palki Award for her work in fashion.

01:13Sophia, born in 1974 in Vadodara, Gujarat, completed her master's in biochemistry before joining the army in 1999.

01:20In 2006, she was deployed to the Democratic Republic of Congo as UN military observer,

01:26where she risked her life to reunite a kidnapped child with her parents.

01:29She went on to serve six years in UN peacekeeping.

01:32In 2016, Colonel Sophia Qureshi became the first and only Indian woman to lead a contingent at the Multinational Military Exercise,

01:39Force 18 and earn the Chief of Army Staff's Black of Honor.

01:43In 2020, she was recognized in landmark Supreme Court judgment on gender parity in the army,

01:48helping pave the way for women in senior leadership roles.

01:51Sophia is married to fellow army officer Tajuddin Bhagavadi.

01:55The couple had a love-come-arranged marriage in 2015.

01:58She is currently posted in Jammu while he serves in Jhansi.

02:01Together, they are raising an 18-year-old son preparing to join the Indian Air Force,

02:04the fourth generation, in uniform.