Palki Sharma Upadhyay is a popular Indian journalist and news anchor who is well-known for being the leading anchor at WION (World Is One News). WION is India’s first privately owned international news channel aimed at explaining global issues in greater depth and with an Indian perspective.
She worked as a managing editor of WION till September 2022. And now she has parted ways with the channel but still remains quite an influential face in the industry.
Palki Sharma has been in the journalism industry for more than two whole decades now. She’s currently reportedly appointed as the managing editor at Network18 with a new show on Firstpost which is owned by Network18 Group.
Education and Beginning of Career
Palki Sharma Upadhyay was born in Pilani, Rajasthan, and has a master’s degree in Communication, Journalism and Related Programs from ICG Institute of Educational Research and Development, Jaipur, Rajasthan.
She worked as a news anchor for Doordarshan News from 2002 to 2005 and worked as a staff writer for Hindustan Times from 2004 to 2005. Furthermore, she worked for CNN-News18 as an anchor and senior editor.
She then joined WION in March 2017 and worked as a managing editor till 2022. Through WION, she has addressed many social and environmental issues that needed to be touched upon such as body positivity, climate change, armed conflicts, mental and physical health, etc. We can’t wait to witness where her journey leads her next.
And lastly, for the language enthusiasts, she has quite mastered the French language. She has a C1 certification in French from Alliance Française de Delhi and has professional working proficiency in the language.
Opening up about the misogynistic environment in newsrooms and the struggles she’s faced in the industry
Recently, an interview video of Palki Sharma Upadhyay was published on YouTube where she opened up about the misogynistic environment in newsrooms and the struggles she’s faced in the industry.
Being a woman, especially in India, comes with a lot of unsolicited criticism. There are scrutinizing eyes following us everywhere and we’re endlessly judged for everything we do. We can’t seem to catch a break.
Palki recently opened up about the toxic workspace she is constantly surrounded with.
She narrated some of her dreadful experiences and said that she was told to take a woman off the air because of her weight.
Additionally, when she was expecting her first child, she told this very pleasant news to the boss, to which his reply was, “but you have to come back in shape quickly”. This act is an example of how the industry revolves around the objectification of women, and this happens even if a woman is bearing a child.
She adds that newsrooms are full of predators and they get away with vicious stuff all the time, their abusive behaviour is always overlooked and they still are in positions of power.
Despite everything, she still manages to rise above them all, as we all should.
“We are supposed to look a certain way. If we’re too soft and smile too much, we’re diffident. If we are too aggressive, we’re too rude. There’s never a good fit”
“I want to wear Jhumkas with a jacket, I’ll wear it. You don’t like it, don’t watch it,” she says. This nonchalant attitude serves to be crucial for enduring today’s generation.
Achievements of Palki Sharma Upadhyay
In 2007, she received an award for Best News Reader. In 2020, she won the Best International News Show award for WION. And in 2022, she won an award at AIMA Managing India Awards for her outstanding contribution to media.
In addition to these awards, what she has achieved is the love of the audience. And after some weeks when an interview video of her was published on YouTube, the people showed their full support.
Paki Sharma is also truly passionate about the unending potential of personal stories. She believes that our stories deserve to be heard.
“What is your story? When you grow up and talk to your grandchildren, what’s the story you want to tell?” she asks, talking about the art of storytelling in the news world.
“Think of the story you want to tell to your grandchildren and start writing it today”. These words hold so much power in them. What will your story be? Would it just be a mundane story with barely any zest or an influential one as you’d hope it to be?
FAQs
Palki Sharma Upadhyay is a popular Indian journalist and news anchor who is well-known for being the leading anchor at WION.
Palki Sharma was born in Pilani, Rajasthan.
Palki Sharma left WION confirming her exit on Twitter, but the actual reasons behind resigning are not known.
Palki Sharma is now working at Network18 with a new show on Firstpost which is owned by Network18 Group.
Palki Sharma is now the managing editor at Network18.