Seema Rao is popularly known as “Wonder Woman of India” amongst the Indian media. She is India's first female special forces trainer, having trained Special Forces of India for over two decades without compensation. She is an expert in

close quarter battle Close-quarters battle (CQB), also called close-quarters combat (CQC), is a close combat situation between multiple combatants involving ranged (typically firearm-based) or melee combat. It can occur between military units, law enforcement and cr ...

(CQB) — the art of fighting in tight proximity — and is involved in training various Indian forces. She works in partnership with Major Deepak Rao, her husband.

Biography

Born to an Indian freedom fighter, Professor Ramakant Sinari, Rao has an MBA in crisis management. She was a Mrs India World beauty pageant finalist. Seema has also studied Immunology at Harvard Medical School and has an MBA from Westminster Business School. Rao earned her Para Wings by skydiving in the

Indian Air Force The Indian Air Force (IAF) (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the air force, air arm of the Indian Armed Forces. Its primary mission is to secure Indian airspace and to conduct aerial warfare during armed conflicts. It was officially established on 8 Octob ...

course. She is a combat shooting instructor, an Army mountaineering institute HMI medalist, and an 8th degree Blackbelt in military martial arts. She is one of a handful of instructors authorised to teach

Jeet Kune Do Jeet Kune Do (/ˌdʒiːt kuːn ˈdoʊ/; zh, c=截拳道, l=stop fist way' or 'way of the intercepting fist, j=zit6 kyun4 dou6; abbreviated JKD) is a hybrid martial art conceived and practiced by martial artist Bruce Lee. It was formed from ...

. She co-invented a new method of shooting, called The Rao System of Reflex Fire, for close quarters combat, along with her husband Deepak Rao. Together, the Raos are recipients of three Army Chief citations for over two decades of contribution to training 15,000 soldiers.

Awards and recognition

President of India awarding Nari Shakti Puraskar

Rao was ranked sixth in the 2019

Forbes India ''Forbes India'' is the Indian edition of ''Forbes'', which is managed by the Reliance Industries-owned media conglomerate, Network 18. History and profile Since its founding in 2008, ''Forbes India'' has achieved a circulation of 50,000 copies ...

W-Power Trailblazer list. She received

Nari Shakti Puraskar The Nari Shakti Puraskar () is an annual award given by the Ministry of Women and Child Development of the Government of India to individual women or to institutions that work towards the cause of women empowerment. It is presented by the presi ...

from the

President of India The president of India (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the head of state of the Republic of India. The president is the nominal head of the executive, the first citizen of the country, and the commander-in-chief, supreme commander of the Indian Armed ...

in 2019 and is a World Peace Awardee. She was included in India today 2024 She List of influential Indian women

Books

Rao has co-authored several books including "Encyclopedia of Close Combat Ops" and "A Comprehensive Analysis of World Terrorism". She has also written a book "Handbook of World Terrorism" along with her husband. Some of her books on combat training have gone to FBI and INTERPOL Libraries.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rao, Seema Indian Jeet Kune Do practitioners Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Nari Shakti Puraskar 2018 winners