Shraddha Joshi Sharma is an Indian Revenue Service (IRS) officer of the 2007 batch. She is the wife of IPS officer Manoj Kumar Sharma on whom a biopic, 12th Fail, was released in October 2023.
Wiki/Biography
Shraddha Joshi Sharma was born on Monday, 5 March 1979 (age 44 years; as of 2023) in Almora, Uttar Pradesh (now in Uttarakhand), India. Her zodiac sign is Pisces. She did her schooling from the Uttar Pradesh board and managed to secure 13th rank in the state in class 12th board exams. She earned a bachelor’s degree in ayurvedic medicine and surgery at the Gurukula Kangri (Deemed to be University) in Haridwar, Uttarakhand. After completing her formal education, she worked as a doctor in a hospital in Uttarakhand. She began preparing for the Uttarakhand Provincial Civil Services (UK-PCS) exams soon after. In an interview, Shraddha claimed that she and her friend decided to become civil servants after a woman, who was domestically abused, was admitted to the hospital with severe burn marks on her body, died. Shraddha began preparing for the exams; however, due to a lack of mentorship in her hometown, she decided to shift to New Delhi, where she joined Drishti IAS.
Physical Appearance
Height (approx.): 5′ 5″
Hair Colour: Black
Eye Colour: Dark Brown
Family & Caste
Shraddha Joshi belongs to a Brahmin family in Almora, Uttarakhand.
Parents & Siblings
There is not much information about her parents. Her sister, Deeksha Joshi, is a doctor. Her brother, Himanshu Joshi, works in the corporate sector.
A photo of Deeksha Joshi with Shraddha Joshi Sharma
A photo of Sachin Joshi
Husband & Children
Her husband, Manoj Kumar Sharma, is an Indian Police Service (IPS) officer. She got married to him on 5 December 2005. They have two children, a son named Manas Sharma, and a daughter.
A photo of Manoj Kumar Sharma with Shraddha Joshi Sharma
A photo of Manoj Kumar Sharma with his son and daughter
Relationships/Affairs
Manoj Kumar Sharma entered into a relationship with Shraddha Joshi when he was preparing for the UPSC. According to him, he initially hesitated to propose to her as he had failed in class 12th; however, he proposed to her and said that if she accepted his proposal, he would work hard to change their future. He also claimed that Shraddha always motivated him to prepare for the UPSC civil services examinations and supported him despite stiff opposition from her family.
Shraddha with Manoj
Career
In 2005, Shraddha Joshi Sharma managed to clear the PCS exams. She was then appointed as a deputy collector in Nainital. In 2007, she appeared in the civil services exams conducted by the UPSC and managed to clear it. She was allotted the Indian Revenue Service’s Indirect Taxes (Customs and GST) department. She later attended the National Academy of Direct Taxes in Nagpur, Maharashtra. On 18 September 2007, she completed her training module. Thereafter, she was posted to the Ministry of Tourism of the Government of Maharashtra. On 21 June 2018, she was appointed as the Additional Commissioner in the Mahila Arthik Vikas Mahamandal (MAVIM), Ministry of Woman & Child Development, Mumbai. There, she worked with many women-operated Self Help Groups (SHGs) and played a crucial role in drafting and implementing gender-neutral policies in the state. She went on to become Vice President and Managing Director of MAVIM.
Shraddha Joshi Sharma (left) with other IRS officers during the Young India Unchained event
On 30 September 2022, she was posted to the Maharashtra Tourism Development Corporation (MTDC) in Mumbai, where she was appointed as the Managing Director. At MTDC, she played a vital role in the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) regarding the bilateral promotion of tourism between Maharashtra and Japan. She has also served in the tax investigations in the Goods and Services Tax (GST) department.
Shraddha during the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between India and Japan
Facts/Trivia
- While giving an interview, Shraddha said that when Manoj, her husband, was undergoing police training at SVPNPA, he would call her at night or during breaks to ask her about her UPSC preparations. She talked about it, and said,
He was in SVPNPA and there he used to call me with a Docomo landline whenever he had time. His schedule was packed yet he took time to ask me how my preparations were going. He also asked me questions on general knowledge, as his knowledge is really good in it. He also kept me motivated.”
- According to Shraddha, her parents were hesitant to marry her to Manoj, even when he had become a police officer because he was assigned to the Maharashtra cadre. At that time, Shraddha was in Nainital, Uttarakhand, serving as a PCS officer. To convince her parents, Manoj lied to them, saying that if they got married and he presented their marriage certificate to the government, the government would allow him to shift his cadre from Maharashtra to Uttarakhand on compassionate grounds.
- Her favourite song is Senorita from the 2011 Hindi film Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara.
- In an interview, Shraddha said that she learned how to handle firearms while undergoing IRS training.
- According to Joshi, she is not a good swimmer. When asked how she managed to pass her swimming tests during the IRS training, she said that while passing swimming tests is mandatory for the undertraining IPS officers, it is not mandatory for the undertraining IRS officers.
- Shraddha has served as the secretary of the Maharashtra State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (MSCPCR).
- In October 2023, a biopic titled 12th Fail, directed by the popular director Vidhu Vinod Chopra, was released. Actress Medha Shankar portrayed her role in the film.
Shraddha during the screening of the Hindi film 12th Fail