Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Indra Nooyi inducted into Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery

INDIAN-American former PepsiCo head Indra Nooyi and Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos have been inducted into the prestigious Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery for their accomplishments and positive impact on America's shared history, development and culture.

Founded by Congress in 1962, the Smithsonian National Portrait Gallery tell the story of America by portraying the people who have made significant contributions to the history, development, and culture of the people of the US.


Through the visual arts, performing arts and new media, the Portrait Gallery presents poets and presidents, visionaries and villains, actors and activists whose lives form America's national identity.

Over the years the collections - which were initially restricted to paintings, prints, drawings and engravings - have grown to over 23,000 items in all media, from daguerreotypes to digital.

"To be an immigrant, a South Asian immigrant of colour, a woman to be included in the Portrait Gallery... it really says that we are the country where people look for the people who make a positive impact and celebrate them," Nooyi, 64, told reporters during the portrait gallery induction ceremony on Sunday (17).

"It doesn't matter what your background, colour, creed, ethnicity is. As long as you've made a positive impact to the country, we are going to celebrate you - actually memorialise - which I thought was even more spectacular," she said.

The gallery has about 23,000 portraits in its permanent collection and adds 150 to 200 per year with 500 to 600 works on public display at any given time, the Washington Post reported.

Historians consider new names and then work with gallery board members to select who should be included and commission their portraits. The process can take a year, even more if the sitter and artist take a long time to complete a work, it said.

"I feel very grateful to be making a home here in this country because this portrait gallery is an accolade which I've never dreamed of. And it's heartwarming to see this," Nooyi said.

Among others included in the portrait gallery were Frances Arnold, Lin-Manuel Miranda and the Earth, Wind and Fire.

The portrait of Nooyi has been drawn by artist Jon Friedman and looks like a photograph. Nooyi said she watched Friedman paint it as she saw it in different stages.

"He wanted to bring the inner me out in the portrait. So he took hundreds of pictures, then he picked one and drew from that. I watched every hair being painted and so he did a great job," she said.

"I think the big difference in my portrait is that they asked me a question, what's meaningful for you - a picture of my parents, picture of my husband and kids, a picture of a PepsiCo annual report or a Yale (University) hat.

"All these are major factors in my life. So, it's in a way an unusual portrait because I have all that behind me, which most portraits don't have," she said.

Nooyi said when she received a letter last year, she thought it was a joke and asked her PR department to take care of it.

"They came back and said no, it's not a job, it's for real," she said, adding she came down to the Portrait Gallery thereafter to see for herself.

Nooyi said she realised that portraits at the gallery were chosen to tell the story about the history of the US, not just for the people here today, but for generations to come.

Kim Sajet, director of National Portrait Gallery, inducted Nooyi into the portrait gallery, recognising her accomplishments as a businesswoman and also as an immigrant.

"Indra has run a Fortune 500 company," she said on the sidelines of the National Portrait Gallery's gala that was attended by several celebrities including former First Lady Michelle Obama and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

The sold-out gala raised about $2 million.  Born in Chennai, Nooyi stepped down on October 2 last year as PepsiCo's CEO, after 24 years with the company, the last 12 as CEO of the global beverage giant.

During her 12-year tenure as chief executive, Nooyi transformed PepsiCo into one of the most successful food and beverage companies worldwide.

(PTI)

More For You

Campbell Wilson

Air India CEO Campbell Wilson steps down as Air India Express chair

Air India CEO Campbell Wilson steps down as Air India Express chair

AIR INDIA CEO Campbell Wilson is stepping down as chair of Air India Express, the airline’s low-cost subsidiary. He will be replaced by Nipun Aggarwal, Air India’s chief commercial officer, according to an internal memo sent on Tuesday.

Wilson will also step down from the board of Air India Express. Basil Kwauk, Air India’s chief operating officer, will take his place.

Keep ReadingShow less
Harry and Meghan urge tougher safeguards to protect children online

Prince Harry criticised tech companies for citing privacy laws to deny access

Getty

Harry and Meghan urge tougher safeguards to protect children online

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex have called for stronger protections for children online, warning that not enough is being done to shield young people from the dangers of social media

During a visit to New York, Prince Harry and Meghan Markle unveiled a new memorial dedicated to the memory of children whose families believe harmful online content contributed to their deaths. The installation, named the Lost Screen Memorial, features 50 smartphones, each displaying an image of a child lost to what their families describe as the adverse effects of social media. The memorial was made available to the public for 24 hours.

Keep ReadingShow less
Priyanka Chopra Teams Up with John Cena, Idris Elba in 'Heads of State'

An elite MI6 agent played by Priyanka Chopra Jonas

Getty

Priyanka Chopra fronts action thriller ‘Heads of State’ with John Cena, Idris Elba

A dynamic of action, comedy, and political misadventure is set to hit Prime Video this summer with the release of Heads of State. The newly launched trailer teases a fast-paced, explosive ride featuring Priyanka Chopra Jonas, John Cena, and Idris Elba in lead roles. The film is slated to premiere globally on 2 July 2025.

Directed by Ilya Naishuller, the filmmaker behind Hardcore Henry and Nobody, Heads of State is billed as a cross between Air Force One and Midnight Run. The film places mismatched world leaders at the centre of a chaotic crisis that forces them to work together, despite their egos and rivalries.

Keep ReadingShow less
Afghan exodus soars as Pakistan deadline nears

Afghan refugees arrive at a camp near the Torkham border last Sunday (20)

Afghan exodus soars as Pakistan deadline nears

MORE than 100,000 Afghans have left Pakistan in the past three weeks, the interior ministry said on Tuesday (22), after Islamabad announced the cancellation of residence permits.

Calling Afghans “terrorists and criminals”, the Pakistan government launched its mass eviction campaign on April 1. Analysts said the expulsions are designed to pressure Afghanistan’s Taliban authorities, which Islamabad blames for fuelling a rise in border attacks.

Keep ReadingShow less