Nungshi and Tashi Malik are twin sisters from Northern India who at the age of 23 became Guinness World Record holders for the youngest people (and first twins) to complete the Explorers Grand Slam (climbing the world’s seven highest peaks, including Everest and skiing to the North and South Poles) in April 2015. As part of Armadillo Merino’s Champion Programme, which recognises explorers and adventurers operating in some of the world’s most extreme conditions, Tashi and Nungshi are visiting the UK as brand champions until 15th September.
Tashi and Nungshi have been awarded India’s highest adventure award (Tenzig Norgay National Adventure Award) by the Indian President on 29th August. Nungshi and Tashi use their climbing as metaphor for the ‘invisible’ mountains of gender discrimination, exclusion and denial of basic rights that millions of girls in India have to climb daily. In April 2015, Nungshi and Tashi founded the NungshiTashi Foundation www.nungshitashi.org. The Foundation is a pioneering initiative for girl empowerment in India and is dedicated to advancing the lives of Indian girls and women through outdoors, adventure sports and mountaineering. The twins are also brand ambassadors of their state for its ‘beti-bachao’ (Save Girl Child) campaign.
