It’s International Women’s Day – a good time to celebrate the strong female rolemodels in our lives. So we’ve compiled a list of 10 Kdrama female leads who have inspired us to be strong independent women, and/or honour the strong independent women in our lives.
In no order whatsoever and in no way an exhaustive list, here we go!
1.
Saying she had a difficult childhood is an understatement. With a crazy mother who kept her indoors and treated her like a doll, it’s no surprise Moon Young ended up being different from other kids. But she shows us how you can struggle with life’s challenges and still enjoy the beauty of life.
2.
She was abandoned by her mother as a child. But she never lost her smile, even as she became a single mum working in a bar to support her family. Even as she was targeted by a serial killer. That’s a whole different level of bravery and strength!
3.
Being a detective is not for the faint-hearted. But what happens when you need to investigate the truth behind your husband’s identity? Do you have the courage to face the truth that the life you’re currently living may be based on a lie?
4.
She may be the strongest female weightlifter who can carry sacks of rice easily. But what happens when she falls in love and needs to pretend she’s not strong? She learns that when you truly love someone, you never need to pretend to be someone you’re not. And that you don’t need to conform to society’s expectations to be worthy of love.
5.
A mother’s love truly knows no bounds. Weol Ju had to relieve the grudges of 100,000 people in order to save her son’s soul from eternal damnation. We loved her fiesty character, fighting against injustice as she healed people through their dreams.
6 & 7.
What do you do when you’re asked to conform to gender norms at work? You go over-the-top with their requests so people realise how ridiculous they are for expecting you to behave a certain way. Our favourite scene has to be when Han Joo “oppa”s her way to get her male colleagues to do their jobs.
Eun Jung is a character who appeared strong and calm, even after she loses the love of her life to cancer. But we see her true strength only when she is finally able to let go and break down to properly grieve her lover. Because emotions are not a sign of weakness! Sometimes you need to break down in order to rebuild yourself. That is true strength.
8.
She’s a self-made successful businesswoman who tests her company’s products herself. Which lands her in North Korea in a paragliding accident. But not only does she manage to survive, she actually thrives in North Korea and learns to enjoy the simple pleasures in life!
9.
The healer of the group of counters, Mae Ok shows that you need to be strong in order to heal others. Because you cannot pour from an empty cup! But more importantly, she shows that tough love is never about violence, but about sacrifice.
10.
Being a neurosurgeon working irregular crazy hours doesn’t stop Song Hwa from making time for self-care. Because she knows that self-love is important! There is no point in living a busy life if you don’t make time for the activities that you enjoy, that give you pleasure, that make life worth living. She embodies the work hard, play hard motto!
BONUS!
Deok Mi is living every fangirl’s dreams. She shows how you can be both a dedicated fangirl as well as a successful career woman. She even gets acknowledged by her idol! Unfortunately none of us will be our idols’ sister-in-law… But we can be successful in our careers while enjoying our fangirl activities!
There are so many more strong Kdrama female leads but we couldn’t list them all. Did your favourites make our list? Share with us other strong Kdrama female leads who inspire you!
—
Do follow (x)clusive on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram for your updates on all things Korean in Singapore.
