Google has
dedicated a doodle to India’s first woman pilot Sarla Thukral on her 107th
birth anniversary.

The doodle was designed by guest artist Vrinda
Zaveri.

In a statement, the internet giants said that they had
planned the doodle for last year as well, but withheld it due to the plane
crash that occurred in Kerala.

“We planned
to run this same doodle honouring Sarla Thukral in India last year. However,
when the tragic plane crash occurred in Kerala, we withheld the doodle out of
respect to the event and relief effort,” The Indian Express quoted Google as
saying.  

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“Though we
don’t usually run doodles more than once, Thukral left such a lasting legacy
for women in aviation that we decided to run the doodle this year in honour of
her 107th birthday.”

Who is Sarla Thukral?

Born in Delhi,
British India on August 8, 1914, Thukral was an Indian pilot, designer and entrepreneur.
She moved to Lahore in present-day Pakistan later.

She was
inspired to pursue a career as a pilot after being inspired by her husband, who
hails from a family of pilots. At the age of 21, she stepped into the cockpit
of a double-winged plane for her maiden solo flight, all while dressed in a
sari.

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She made history
as the aircraft took off, with newspapers soon picking up stories about her and
how the skies were no longer dominated by men.

Thukral was
a student of the Lahore Flying Club and she was the first Indian woman to
complete 1,000 hours of flight time, earning her A license. She had initially
planned to become a commercial pilot, but World War II disrupted her plans.

Thukral
then studied fine arts from the Mayo School of Arts (now named the National
College of Arts) in Lahore. She later returned to Delhi and continued painting,
building a successful career in designing jewellery and clothing.