FEBRUARY 2025
IN FOCUS
Purpose and intention now drive my actions, not mere success & failure.
SAKSHI SINGH on how the Emerging Leaders Fellowship impacted her.
This Gandhi Fellow from Madhya Pradesh is a graduate in Rural Studies and is working with Piramal Foundation in Jaipur, Rajasthan.
I have always been curious about developing an understanding of human values, shared humanity. The Ananta Aspen Emerging Leaders Fellowship helped me gauge myself better — emotionally, intellectually and socially. I learned to solve problems, think strategically, and connect meaningfully with people in a relevant way. Able to think better helped me critically reflect upon actions taken or to be taken, driving me to make decisions in a reasoned and responsible manner. Socratic Reading guided me to hear myself better, helping me turn my thoughts into action. This experience inspired me to stay true to my values and provided clarity about my career and higher studies. Apart from Socratic Dialogues, excursions, preparations for theme-based skits, late-night practice exercises, meaningful conversations and a sense of togetherness and teamwork were what I enjoyed most during the fellowship.
I have always believed ‘success’ and ‘failure’ are subjective, the measure being the level of satisfaction. Post the fellowship, I now feel that the purpose and intention behind any action or desire are what decide an individual’s level of satisfaction or dissatisfaction with any task as ‘success’ or ‘failure’. Fellowship holds high significance for young people starting on their journey to self-dependence, guiding them to understand complexities of their surroundings and nurturing a sense of accountability and leadership within. My choice of career is driven by compassion — to be in a role where I can create meaningful change, whether in education, social development, or leadership. Five years from now, I see myself as a confident and emotionally aware professional who understands people and situations with empathy, taking thoughtful decisions, and handling challenges with patience and positivity.
The resilience and determination of women and girls in rural communities are my greatest motivators.
Dr MONALISA PADHEE, Program Head, Education and Wellness Initiative, Bindi International Association; GP Birla Fellow Class 4
What does it mean to lead with values? How do you integrate your personal values into your leadership style and decision-making processes? Leading with values for me is being authentic to oneself and grounding decisions on values of equity and dignity. It’s a continual reflection not only on decisions taken but how I arrived at these decisions. I take every effort to co-create spaces where voices from the community, especially those leading to gender equity and diversity are not only heard but take the lead in driving the narrative. How has the fellowship impacted you? The GP Birla Fellowship is a deeply personal journey for me where I have constantly challenged my imposter syndrome and the pressure to “always be in work mode” and not slow down or take time for reflection. I work on creating safe spaces for women in rural communities around their health but irony is I did not realise I needed such safe space for myself too. The fellowship provide me that space. I’ve been vulnerable, deeply listened and shared, respected differing opinions. And, as I did so for myself, I felt better prepared to do so for others. What’s fuelling your enthusiasm for your work? The resilience and determination of women and girls in rural communities are my greatest motivators. Watching swasthya netris like Pooja-ji advocate menstrual health, women like Salma take charge of her sexual and reproductive health by opting for contraceptives methods of her choice, to women raising their voices against years of gender based violence — their victories are a constant remind me of the incredible potential possible when barriers are removed. What leadership challenges do you encounter at work? How do you address these? Working on building women’s leadership is a prolonged journey; it can be incredibly challenging. The real hurdle extends beyond simply integrating women into the workforce — it lies in cultivating an environment that genuinely nurtures and sustains grassroots women leaders. There are substantial gender biases and restrictive traditions. Many women lack confidence, have limited autonomy, and inadequate understanding of their own areas for improvement. On occasion I’ve been impatient, attempting to impose my idea of leadership or evaluating success using metrics detached from these women’s realities. We’re now taking small, intentional steps, allowing women to shape their own growth paths, simultaneously co-creating spaces that foster awareness and self-determination, leading to aspirations. If you had the chance to begin anew, what’s the single change you’d make? If I could start over, I’d focus on building stronger partnerships earlier in my journey. When I started I saw so much competition in the development sector that I too became territorial. But that approach isn’t going to take us anywhere and defeats the entire purpose of working for a cause bigger than us. As realization dawned, I started collaborating with diverse organisations keeping in mind the cause. What was to you the most significant aspect of the fellowship experience? Would you endorse it for others? The most significant aspect was the incredible tribe of women you meet, engage with, and build lasting friendships with — women who become your cheerleaders, sounding boards, and constructive critics. The friendships formed are truly unique, and I can say this with confidence because the nature of the facilitated discussions around the diverse readings fosters deeply nuanced conversations about our own lives. These interactions often lead to sharing some of the most challenging personal experiences, allowing you to see and connect with others beyond biases or judgments, creating bonds authentic and profound. What achievement would you like to share with your GP Birla community? One of my proudest achievements has been to lead a team to implement the AAA (Awareness, Access, Advocacy) model in 5 states, empowering over 200,000 women and girls with knowledge and resources on sexual and reproductive health. This work has been a collaborative effort, and its success is testament to the power of grassroots leadership and community-driven solutions. The second achievement is around creating an enabling environment to support women leadership in the organization — I led the implementation of menstrual health policy within the organization, wellness policies to provide support during miscarriage and abortions and increasing representation of women in advisory and key forums.
MILESTONES
Pranshu Singhal awarded Global Inclusive Growth Spark Grant for Circular Economy Innovation
Pranshu Singhal, founder of Karo Sambhav and a Kamalnayan Bajaj Fellow of Class 7, has been awarded the 2024–2025 Global Inclusive Growth Spark Grant by the Global Inclusive Growth Partnership (a collaboration between Mastercard’s Center for Inclusive Growth and The Aspen Institute). His initiative, Circularity Solutions Private Limited (CSPL), is focused on enabling a circular economy in India by addressing inefficiencies in e-waste management, reducing material loss, and reintegrating valuable resources through responsible recycling.
CSPL is building scalable collection systems by collaborating with retailers, repair shops, offices, and waste aggregators to ensure end-of-life products are responsibly recycled. The initiative has already established recycling facilities near Ghaziabad and Nashik, with more in the pipeline, including advanced solutions for processing complex e-waste fractions like printed circuit boards (PCBs). In a major milestone, CSPL has partnered with MKS PAMP GROUP to launch India’s first PCB recycling solution, unlocking critical and precious metal recovery. Additionally, the organization is working on cutting-edge projects such as recovering rare earth metals from e-waste in collaboration with IIT Roorkee and the Ministry of Mines.
PThe Pride Fund
By PARMESH SHAHANI, Kamalnayan Bajaj Fellow Class 10
The Aspen Fellow get-together at the launch of the Pride Fund
When Radhika Piramal, Keshav Suri, and I commissioned Against All Odds — a landmark report on LGBTQIA+ equity in India with Dasra — we envisioned it as a call to action. As queer individuals, we have experienced first-hand both progress and persistent challenges in our country. While our privileges have offered some protection, many in our communities remain vulnerable. This report serves as a foundation to unite allies, mobilize resources, and drive real change to ensure that equality and inclusivity are not just aspirational values but lived realities.
Aditya Garud premieres his Kathak piece
The findings of Against All Odds make the urgency of our mission clear. India receives less than 1% of global funding for LGBTQIA+ issues, and only two of India’s top 50 philanthropists prioritize LGBTQIA+ causes. This underfunding is exacerbated by growing uncertainties around foreign funding, leaving many grassroots organisations struggling to sustain their work. Despite these challenges, India’s LGBTQIA+ civil society has remained resilient — spearheading legal battles, advocating for social and economic justice, and driving change from the ground up. From the HIV/AIDS activism of the 1990s to the fight for marriage equality today, these organisations have been at the heart of progress.
Parmesh Shahani, Dr Aqsa Shaikh, Keshav Suri, Chandini, Maya Sharma and Radhika Piramal speak at India’s Queer Futures
To accompany this report, we launched the Pride Fund, India’s first dedicated philanthropic fund for LGBTQIA+ causes. This initiative aims to empower grassroots organisations that work to improve lives of queer individuals, recognising that real change happens at the community level. The Pride Fund will support advocacy, legal aid, mental health initiatives, economic inclusion programs, and other essential services that strengthen our movement. We envision the Pride Fund as a catalyst for systemic change — one that amplifies queer voices, strengthens the fight for rights, and builds a more inclusive India. Over the next few years, we aim for tangible progress: influencing policies, reshaping societal perceptions, and ensuring that LGBTQIA+ individuals are not just included but celebrated.
Guests at India’s Queer Futures engage with the Aravani Art Project exhibit at Godrej One, Mumbai
The overwhelming support at our launch event on February 4, 2025, reaffirmed our mission. Friends from the Aspen community, including Prasad Dandekar, Pallav Patankar, Neha Kirpal, and our patron Pheroza Godrej, stood with us in solidarity. Their presence underscored the shared belief that Aspen’s vision of a “good society” must be an inclusive society. A Viksit Bharat — a developed India — cannot exist without LGBTQIA+ inclusion at its core. We invite all our fellow Aspenites to join us in this journey — whether through funding, advocacy, or amplifying the voices of queer communities. Together, we can ensure that the future of India’s LGBTQIA+ citizens is not just one of survival but of thriving, dignity, and celebration.
Breaking Barriers: Advancing Menstrual Health at MHM Summit 2024
Dr Monalisa Padhee, Program Head at Bindi International and a Birla fellow was honoured to speak at the 4th MHM India Summit 2024 at Delhi’s Bharat Mandapam, where the G20 summit was held. The summit marked a significant shift: menstrual health, long stigmatized, is now being addressed on national platforms of global importance. This progress underscores the power of inclusive, community-driven policies in ensuring menstrual dignity for all.
During the panel discussion, “Breaking the Silence: MHM Beliefs, Myths, and Taboos”, Dr Padhee emphasised that menstrual health policies must be built around the voices of grassroots leaders and community members — those who experience and challenge societal taboos first-hand. Bindi International’s approach focuses on co-creating solutions with communities by developing bite-sized, context-specific educational videos and training Swasthya Sakhis, a cadre of local health leaders. These champions create safe spaces for discussions on menstrual health, nutrition, mental well-being, and other key issues, fostering long-term, systemic change. In a pivotal moment, two of Bindi’s community champions — Pooja and Asha — joined the summit, stepping onto a national stage to share their work. Initially uncertain about how they would navigate an event where many discussions were in English, Dr Padhee soon witnessed their confidence and remarkable adaptability. They engaged with delegates, built connections, and forged meaningful collaborations, proving that grassroots leaders belong in high-level policy discussions.
This experience was a powerful reminder of the need to amplify diverse voices in decision-making spaces. Frontline champions like Pooja and Asha bring lived expertise that enriches dialogues and shapes real-world solutions. Their participation reinforced the fact that investing in local leadership is essential to make progress.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Kamalnayan Bajaj Fellowship, Class 10 Seminar 3 March 10–14, 2025, Jodhpur Ananta Values-based Leadership Programme, Class 5 Seminar 3 March 17–21, 2025, Virtual Emerging Leaders Fellowship March 24–29, 2025, Baggar Navani Rising Generations Fellowship (Omega) April 5–12, 2025, Yercaud, Tamil Nadu GP Birla Fellowship, Class 5 Seminar 1 April 8–13, 2025, New Delhi The Shri Ram Ananta Aspen Leadership School May 23–June 4, 2025, Rishikesh Ananta Values-based Leadership Programme, Class 6 Seminar 1 July 14–18, 2025, Virtual Kamalnayan Bajaj Fellowship, Class 10 Seminar 4 August 12–17, 2025 Ananta Godrej Ideas India 19–21 September, 2025
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