On 9 December 1934, one of the best regarded stage actresses and one of the most influential British performers was born in Yorkshire, England. Dame Judi Dench may now be a major film star, her long resume includes six appearances as M in James Bond movies but Dench is best known as a stage actress. Judi Dench was initially trained as a set designer for stage productions, her first foray into acting came in 1957.

Since then she has starred in various lead roles in high profile productions such as Shakespeare’s plays and have received plenty of recognitions, awards and honors for her work in theater and in television and film. Besides winning ten BAFTAs, two Golden Globes, an Oscar and a Tony award for her acting skills, most importantly, Dench was awarded the OBE in 1970, became a Dame Commander of the British Empire almost twenty years later in 1988 and a Companion of Honor for her outstanding achievement in the arts in 2005.

Dench’s best roles in theater are arguably her roles in Shakespeare plays. Her role as Lady Macbeth in Macbeth in 1976 won critical acclaim amongst critics and fans and shot to fame in the theater industry. Dench has also landed roles in the prestigious West End, but perhaps the role that led her to worldwide success is her role as M, the head of M15 in James Bond movies. Her role as James Bond’s boss has been reprised over sixth time, with the seventh being the next James Bond movie in production, Bond 23, set to be released in 2011.

While Dench has been largely influential on stage and on screen, 9 December was also the birth of another influential female, a political figure born halfway across the world from Dench. Born on 9 December 1946, Sonia Gandhi, widow of former Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, is considered to be one of the most influential women in the world, according to Forbes and Time Magazine. Gandhi, chairperson of the United Progressive Alliance in the Lok Sabha or House of the People and is also the President of the Indian National Congress.

Despite her immense influence and popularity, Gandhi’s political career has not been particularly rosy. One of the main criticisms of Gandhi is that she was born and raised in Italy and had her education in England, many of her political peers felt her foreign birth showed a lack of nationalism and even within her own party; tensions were rife between her and some of her fellow party members of the Congress Party.

Gandhi has been largely seen as a refreshing and intelligent political figure in the Western world, as the Chairperson of the ruling United Progressive Alliance (UPA), Gandhi, recommended current Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for the Prime Ministerial post, the economist has since then largely reduced the government’s fiscal deficit and provided much relief in the form of funds for poor farmers in the country. Gandhi also led the UPA to win 206 Lok Sabha seats in the 2009 elections, the highest seats taken by any party since 1991.

Dench and Gandhi may excel in different aspects of life but they share several similarities. They are each influential within their own circles and they also share the same birthday. Perhaps December 9 could be a good day for girls to be born, they could end up being ultimately influential in whatever they do.