Namaste, Brown Girl. ✨
It’s that time of the year - when the inbox is quiet, the chai is spiced (or spiked), and you finally have a moment to look back and say: wow, that actually happened.
And when we look back at this year? One thing is clear: brown girls showed up in meaningful ways.
From headlines and award lists to major funding rounds and international product launches, our community didn’t just make noise in 2025; we moved capital, shifted culture, and created real momentum around who gets seen, who gets funded, and who gets to fund.
We launched Brown Girls, Money Moves this year to spotlight brown girls building wealth, backing one another, and stepping into rooms that once felt out of reach. Thank you for being part of this growing community.
Here’s what’s inside our last issue of the year:
🔥 Year-end brown girl wins across tech, media & venture
🎁 The spiciest Brown Girl Holiday Gift Guide
🚀 A Forbes list that reminds us how far brown girls have come
📣 Ways to close the year by joining, supporting, and investing in brown girl founders
Pour the chai (or eggnog), celebrate the wins and let’s close the year with momentum, pride and plenty of spice. ☕🌶️
spicy money moves
👑
As the year winds down and the reflections begin, one thing is undeniable: brown girls showed up in big ways. From major funding announcements to iconic media moments, you’ll definitely want second helpings of these spicy wins.
👑
💰 Entrepreneur Magazine says founders should be pitching to brown girl investor Maya Bakhai - and we agree. From early-stage conviction to thoughtful capital deployment, she’s helping shape what the next generation of companies looks like. ****
🎙️ Forbes editor Maneet Ahuja is bringing brown girl energy to a bigger stage with the launch of her new Vodcast, Iconoclast, taped live weekly from the Nasdaq market in Times Square.
🍠 Eco-chef Priyanka Naik brought brown girl flavor to the Today Show’s 10th Anniversary Thanksgiving Special alongside Martha Stewart.
🚀 Brown girl CEO & founder Ruzwana Bashir, closed out the year strong with two acquisitions and $70M in funding for her experiences platform Peek.
👗 Anita Dongre made history by bringing Indian luxury to one of fashion’s most iconic streets with a flagship store in Beverly Hills.
We love celebrating brown girl wins ✨ Got a recent win, milestone, or shoutout you want us to know about? 📩 Submit your win by filling out this form and let the BGA community hype you up. 🤎
the brown girl founder’s club
🏆 The 2025 Forbes Most Powerful Women list just dropped, and South Asian women are reminding the world what leadership looks like.
From global finance to biotech, entertainment, and policy, these women are shaping industries at the highest levels
✨ Gunjan Kedia, President & CEO, U.S. Bank
✨ Nirmala Sitharaman, Indian Minister of Finance and Corporate Affairs
✨ Shemara Wikramanayake, CEO & Managing Director, Macquarie
✨ Bela Bajaria, Chief Content Officer, Netflix
✨ Jayshree Ullal, CEO, Arista
✨ Roshni NadarMalhotra, CEO, HCL Corporation & Chairperson, HCL Technologies
✨ Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, Founder, Chair & Managing Director, Biocon
The future of global leadership is more diverse - and more South Asian than ever.
And for every woman on this list, there’s a generation of brown girls watching and realizing, “Oh, we belong here too.”
brown girls making moves
🌶️🌶️🌶️ We’ve been cooking up something spicy for the end of the year.
In 2025, we spotlighted hundreds of brown girls making moves — across tech, media, investing, and beyond. What started as a small, monthly series quickly turned into a weekly ritual, because the wins simply didn’t stop.
Brown girls showed up in every room this year. So as the year winds down, we’re ending it the only way that makes sense:
👑 Top 10 Brown Girl Moves of the Year.
The full list drops exclusively on IG next week. Make sure you’re following us.
BGA in the wild
🫖 During the holidays, Brown Girl Angels joined leaders from Stripe, SVB, Foley, and Alumni Ventures to co-host an intimate holiday tea for some of New York’s most enterprising female founders and funders at Ladurée SoHo.
Chandeliers sparkled, macarons towered, and conversations were as rich as the pastries.
✨ The room brought together inspiring women building, scaling, and funding the next generation of companies - a space to connect, exchange ideas, and take a well-earned pause before year-end.
🛍️ The afternoon also featured a Founders Faire, spotlighting beautifully crafted gifts and products from female-founded brands.
🤎 Moments like this are at the heart of BGA’s mission; bringing female founders and funders into the same room to build relationships, move capital, and create access together. Want to be part of what we’re building? Learn more about the collective here.
GUPSHUP
📣 Hey aunties, South Asian women are interested in a new type of chai - building wealth.
🎅🏾 Brown Girl holiday season is here, and to celebrate, we curated the spiciest holiday gift guide with 400+ brown-girl-owned brands and businesses across jewelry, fashion, tech, beauty, wellness, home, and more.
Save this guide for your future gift-giving needs. 🌶️
🎁 Let’s use our spending power by intentionally putting our dollars towards supporting South Asian women who are building, creating, and scaling their dreams.
😴 And finally, a gentle reminder for the founders and funders in our community: you’re allowed to rest.
Even in December.
Even as a founder.
Even when your to-do list is louder than your own thoughts.
This season asks a lot of us—giving, hosting, building, showing up. But you deserve to receive, too. Slowness. Warmth. Quiet joy.
Your business won’t fall apart if you pause.
Your vision won’t vanish if you step back.
And your worth isn’t measured by how much you produce.
So take the nap.
Light the candle.
Read the book in the bath.
We’ll still be here when you’re ready. 🤎✨
call to action
📣 SPREAD THE LOVE
📩Got a brown girl founder or product you love? Submit their info
🙋🏾♀️We love celebrating brown girl founders who are building bold, brilliant, and inspiring companies. Got something in the works or looking to raise soon? We’d love to hear from you.
🫱🏽🫲🏾If you’re looking to get your brand, product or service in front of a community of South Asian women who love to uplift, invest, and support each other—this is your sign. Reach out to learn more about our sponsored content opportunities
If you missed our poll last time, let us know now what you’re interested in!