Founding Philosophy

India is a vast country with a huge number of children in state run schools. By the time OBLF was founded in 2010, the Government of India had done an excellent job of starting schools in almost every remote/rural area. So the first crucial step in reaching the target of One Billion Literates had been taken. Unfortunately, massive learning deficits were being reported throughout the country year on year by NGO Pratham. Even though only a tiny percentage of children were not in schools, children were dropping out of the school system before high school.

One Billion Literates is an aspirational effort to break an enormous problem into smaller/manageable parts. The vision leverages the existing physical infrastructure of public elementary schools and outlines a customized curriculum to support students beyond classroom learning. 

From one school, one rural district of Anekal outside Bangalore, we expanded to 100+ schools. We believe, the program can be replicated in other parts of the country and has the potential to educate all ages from childhood to adulthood. OBLF leverages the “multiplier effect” of literacy to empower people, enabling them to participate fully in society and contributing to improving livelihoods.

We are dedicated to creating equitable platforms to bridge the urban rural divide in rural India.

Board of Trustees (India)

ANAMIKA MAJUMDER

FOUNDER & MANAGING TRUSTEE, TECHNOLOGY PROFESSIONAL

ANAMIKA MAJUMDER

Anamika, the Founder of OBLF is a Software Professional, based out of Boston, MA. She has worked for companies like Sun Microsystems, Thomson Reuters/DTCC, The MathWorks, Optum/UnitedHealthGroup in the USA for 2 decades. With an undergrad degree in Architecture from MNIT Jaipur and a Master’s Degree in Computer Science from the University of Massachusetts, Boston, Anamika also has a demonstrated history of working in non-profit management. When she moved back to India in 2010, Anamika spent her time traveling to government schools in Bangalore and interacting with the children.  Her experiences at these state-run schools cemented her beliefs about improving the quality of education and enhance learning experiences for children in rural India. Anamika’s mission to instill a love of learning in underprivileged children became the founding philosophy for OBLF and in July 2010, the organization was set up to meet those ends. Anamika has run full marathons for OBLF in Berlin, Mumbai, Chicago and Cape Town. She aspires to also run marathons in the remaining 3 continents for this cause that is very close to her heart. 

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ARVIND MALHAN

SR ADVISOR, PVT EQUITY
FORMER PARTNER, NEW SILK ROUTES

ARVIND MALHAN

Arvind is a Senior Advisor to Private Equity firms and was formerly a Partner at New Silk Route. Prior to joining NSR in 2010, Arvind served as the Executive Director at JP Morgan Private Capital Asia, the Asian private equity arm of JP Morgan, where he was part of the founding team. He previously served as Director of TVG Capital Partners, a private equity firm focused on telecom, media and information technology investments across Asia, where he started the firm’s India office. Arvind began his career at McKinsey and Company, where he developed strategic initiatives for leading global companies in the information technology and financial services industries, and has also worked at Morgan Stanley Venture Partners and Pequot Capital Management. Arvind has an M.B.A. from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, and a Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

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AASHU CALAPA

SOCIAL ENTREPRENEUR
FORMERLY CEO, LIVE LAUGH LOVE FOUNDATION

AASHU CALAPA

Aashu was heading ‘The Live Love Laugh’ Foundation where he spent 18 months working on building mental health awareness. Prior to his social ventures, Aashu worked extensively in Human Resources (HR) sector. He began his career in Wipro where he spent 11 years, followed by another 11 years in Firstsource Solutions Limited. During his time in HR, Aashu was also associated with Red Bus. He has a Masters in Personnel Management & Industrial Relations from Tata Institute of Social Sciences. Aashu has done his masters from Tata Institute of Social Sciences in Personnel Management & Industrial Relations.

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ANISH RAMACHANDRAN

CEO (HON.), OBLF
FORMERLY VP ASIA-PAC, INTEL CORP.

ANISH RAMACHANDRAN

Anish is our passionate and driven CEO – a man of many talents who has spent more than twenty-five years as a business leader at the helm of corporate leadership. Prior to his retirement from the corporate sector, Anish served as the Vice-President and Director of Intel’s Greater Asia Region operations, and has worked at Intel across various leadership positions for over eighteen years. An alumnus of XLRI, Jamshedpur, Anish brings with him extensive leadership chops, a passion to work with marginalized under-privileged communities, and a thirst to bridge educational learning gaps enabling every child to reach their potential. When Anish is not busy working on OBLF’s funding, pedagogy, marketing, impact assessment strategies, you can find him penning down his thoughts most-eloquently or jamming to Simon n Garfunkel.

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SANGEETA P MAHENDRAN

FOUNDER, ANTRAPRERNA VENTURES
FORMERLY DIRECTOR, HP INDIA

SANGEETA P MAHENDRAN

Sangeeta has recently made her transition to social entrepreneurship after a bountiful 27-year career across companies like Hewlett Packard, Compaq, Digital, Microland and TVS Electronics. She plans on investing her vast experience from the corporate sector towards enabling aiding social enterprises & foundations in scaling up. Her venture ‘Antraprerna’ seeks to empower enterprises innovating for social impact by leveraging an ecosystem of experts, technology and resources available. Passionate about Women’s empowerment and Leadership, Sangeeta is also a Business mentor at the Cherie Blair Foundation for Women and an avid contributor to Diversity & Inclusion (D&I) Forums and Councils Globally. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Engineering (Electronics & Communications) from BMSCE, and an Executive MDP from IIM, Bangalore. Additionally, Sangeeta is an Executive Leadership alum from Harvard Business School. Sangeeta lives in Bangalore with her husband Mahendran Balachandran, who is a VC with Accel Partners.

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SRINIVAS KATTA

FOUNDER, INDUSLAW PARTNERS

SRINIVAS KATTA

Srinivas is a founding and senior partner with IndusLaw with over 15 years of experience and specializes in mergers and acquisition, strategic alliances, private equity investment, joint ventures and corporate governance. Srinivas has been consistently listed in Band 1 for Corporate/ M&A and Band 2 for Private Equity by Chambers & Partners in its Asia guides. He has also been consistently recognized as “one of the leading lawyers of India” by Asia Law Profiles. Furthermore, he has been recognised in ‘The Mint’ for being one of the 40 who ‘matter’ in the start-up ecosystem. Srinivas has also been widely endorsed as one of the most trusted lawyers in India in ICCA’s latest publication “The Vanguards”. Srinivas is a member of the board of several companies and is also a trustee and advisor to charitable foundations and projects.

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DR. TRISTHA RAMAMURTHY

FOUNDER, EKYA SCHOOLS
PROVOST, CMR UNIVERSITY

DR. TRISTHA RAMAMURTHY

Dr. Tristha is the founder of Ekya schools. Established in 2010, Ekya is a chain of progressive K-12 schools offering Kindergarten, Montessori and Grades K-12 . She spearheads K-12 initiatives under the CMR Group, overseeing State Boards, CBSE, ICSE, IGCSE and Pre-University Institutes, with an overall strength of 7000 students. She is also the Provost of CMR University and leads the academic development initiatives. She aspires to transform higher education by preparing youth for future work and enabling them to drive meaningful change. Dr. Tristha Ramamurthy has a Bachelors in Business Management and Political Science from the Singapore Management University and a MA in Education from Stanford University. She followed this up with a PhD in Education from Kings College, London. Her past research has focused on topics including educational equity, teacher motivation, education policy and curriculum construction. 

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Advisory Board (India)

Dr. Raj Kumar Khatri

IAS (Retd.) MBBS, MBA
Senior Advisor and Mentor

DR. KHATRI

An accomplished civil servant, Dr Khatri has more than 33 years of rich and varied experience in the Indian Administrative Services. Dr Khatri has previously held esteemed positions such as Additional Chief Secretary in various departments, including Commerce & Industries, Education, and Labour. 

Dr Khatri's experience and mentorship will surely help the Board and the Management Team help advance the mission of OBLF, in various areas of advocacy, program effectiveness, and scaling of impact.

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DR. RAJEEVAN KARAL

ADVISOR - EDUCATION (HON.)

DR. RAJEEVAN KARAL

Dr Rajeevan Karal has been an illustrious English teacher and Master trainer for over 45 years. For over two decades he was a member of the Faculty at the English and Foreign Languages University, Hyderabad. Later he moved into the Publishing industry to set up the Publishing Division for Cambridge University Press, India and retired as the Senior Vice-President of the Press in 2012. Since then he has been an independent English Language Consultant offering consultancy services to different publishers and is actively engaged in training teachers and developing content for teaching-learning purposes. He has authored many course books for teaching English to both the school and university level. His major areas of interest include training, content development, curriculum development and self-directed learning.

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POONAM VARLANI

ADVISOR - FINANCE

DR. RAJEEVAN KARAL

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PREETHI MADAPPA

ADVISOR - HUMAN RESOURCE

PREETHI MADAPPA

Preethi has 25+ years of experience as an HR Practitioner. She has a demonstrated history of working in the Information Technology industry having spent the bulk of her tenure in varied HR leadership roles with Intel India. Her total experience spans across companies like Intel, Titan, and Warner Lambert, where she was deeply engaged in leadership & management development, talent management, organization development, employee engagement, DEI initiatives as well as HR Operations. Today, she works as an independent consultant, working with startups in the IT and high tech space, providing them strategic and tactical support in setting up their organizations for success. Preethi is interested in the social sector and volunteers with OBLF as a teacher trainer. She advises OBLF on HR related matters and is a member of the OBLF Advisory Board. Preethi is a Post-Graduate from Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai.

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DR. DEVADASAN

ADVISOR - PUBLIC HEALTH

DR. RAJEEVAN KARAL

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Management Team (India)

Sudha Upadhyayula

CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER

SUDHA UPADHYAYULA

Sudha Upadhyayula is an accomplished professional with a diverse background in the corporate and social sectors. With an MBA in HR, a PG Diploma in Business Management, and a PG in International Humanitarian Law, Sudha believes in lifelong learning and has acquired a solid educational foundation to complement her extensive experience.

Currently pursuing a Ph.D. in Women's Studies from the prestigious Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Sudha demonstrates a strong commitment to advancing knowledge in the field and addressing critical social issues. With an accumulated 21 years of experience in both corporate and social sectors, successfully managing a wide range of multi-locational programs and multi-cultural teams, her expertise lies in program and people management, process training, operations, monitoring and evaluation, and quality assurance.

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Vinita Kurup

LEAD, COMMUNITY REHAB (HON.)

VINITA KURUP

Vinita is an Electrical Engineer with 25 years of Corporate experience, passionate about simplifying and professionalizing writing and communication. Vinita also consults with start-ups and believes in empowering young adults, with extra-curricular skills for succeeding in their careers and lives. Vinita manages OBLF’s Community Rehabilitation Project on a plethora of activities – including running classes at the Learning Centre for the children of the community, arranging regular health checkups and hygiene camps for the women and other community members. Vinita played a very crucial role in organizing Covid vaccination camps for the underprivileged in our area of operation. 

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Dr. Roopa Devadasan

CO-DIRECTOR, PUBLIC HEALTH

DR. ROOPA DEVADASAN

Dr. Roopa Devadasan has been working as a Public Health expert and school teacher, alternately and sometimes in parallel for the past 35 years. Trained in allopathy, there has been ongoing learning in other healing systems along the way, working with tribal and urban populations. The challenge ahead is to discover, in the Anekal Taluk , ground realities of the disadvantaged and to look for more equitable holistic health care solutions. Much work could be in collaboration with the government and other stakeholders, always with the community at the center. 

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Faiza _Picture

Faiza Khan

LEAD, PROGRAM DESIGN & MEL

FAIZA KHAN

Faiza Ruksar Arif is a gender specialist currently engaged in interdisciplinary and multi-domain grassroots initiatives. She holds a Master’s Degree in Gender from the Tata Institute of Social Sciences and a Postgraduate Diploma in Research for Social Action from Azim Premji University. She is also actively engaged in LGBT+ inclusion and advocacy through training and research. Faiza’s research endeavors on gender, identity politics, and the lived experiences of marginalized communities. 

At OBLF, Faiza leads the Monitoring and Evaluation (MEL) vertical and program design efforts. Her work encompasses developing evaluation tools and processes, building monitoring systems across the program verticals, program evaluation and data visualization and managing donor reporting processes. She has also been instrumental in designing and co-leading the Sexual Reproductive Health & Awareness program, working with both community women and men at OBLF.

You can check out Faiza's work on: https://www.mavenofoddities.com

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Tuhina Nair

FUNDRAISING & PARTNERSHIPS

TUHINA NAIR

Tuhina has been instrumental in helping OBLF build fundraising and resource mobilization capacity by developing functional linkages with both corporate and social sector donors. Inspired by her mother, Tuhina began her career 18 years ago at HelpAge India going on to work for esteemed organisations like SOS Children’s Villages of India, CRY, Smile Foundation, Hope Foundation & Concern India Foundation. Tuhina is a talented cook who enjoys traveling and spends every minute away from work making memories with her 10 year old munchkin!

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Dr. Anvita Shetty

MEDICAL OFFICER, PUBLIC HEALTH

DR. ANVITA SHETTY

Dr. Anvitha has a Bachelor’s degree in Surgery and Medicine (MBBS) and is currently pursuing a Post Graduate Diploma in Family Medicine (PGDFM).

With four years of professional experience, Anvitha has previously served as a COVID Medical Officer, handling inpatient care, emergency cases, outpatient services (OPD), vaccination drives at the community level and managing non-communicable diseases at the NCD clinic at the Udupi District Hospital.

Currently, Anvitha is a Medical Officer at the OBLF Mobile Clinic, and specializes in providing essential healthcare services via a mobile clinic at the Indlawadi PHC area.

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Shree Vidya Lakshmi

FINANCE CONSULTANT

K SHREE VIDYA LAKSHMI

Shree Vidya qualified as a CA in 2005 and has been in practice for the past 4 and half years. She also completed IFRS (ACCA) & Dip. In. Forensic Audit & Fraud Detection (ICAI). Her mantra ‘Learn till your last breath’ makes Vidya a keen learner who is open to new experiences. She enjoys music, playing chef in the kitchen and traveling! 

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Sunadini

DIRECTOR, EDUCATION & TRAINING

SUNADINI

Sunadini is our Master Trainer and currently oversees the training and development of our para-teachers and field trainers. You are most likely to find Sunadini in a classroom in her element. She believes that classrooms are a microcosm of the world outside and if we achieve equity in classrooms, it ripples outside into the world. Working with strong, gritty and vibrant women fuels her motivation to work at OBLF. When she is not working you can find her playing with dogs or Netflixing something questionable!

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Sonali Gupta

SENIOR MANAGER, EDUCATION & TRAINING

SONALI GUPTA

Sonali has been working on creating meaningful and engaging learning experiences for learners and teachers for over a decade. In the past, she has worked on creating facilitator led sessions and digital toolkits in areas like English, Life Skills and Career Skills for children, adolescents and young people. She has worked closely with facilitators in training and supporting them to create 21st century classrooms. She has completed her Master's in Social Work from Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai. At OBLF, she manages the development of learning products for students and teachers. When she is not working, Sonali enjoys sketching and oil painting. 

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Safoora Noor

PROGRAM MANAGER, EDUCATION & TRAINING

SAFOORA NOOR

Safoora has a Bachelors in Psychology, Sociology and Economics from Christ University, Bangalore. She was previously part of the Teach for India Fellowship, which gave her the opportunity to teach in a low-income private school for two years. 

Safoora discovered her passion for teaching and education at a very young age, while helping her mother tutor children. This helped her carve out a path towards teaching and training after her graduation. This inspired her to take up the Fellowship, an experience that shaped her worldview. Her vision is to scale impact from one classroom to many. She is passionate about her work and committed to her vision as they resonate with the causes that are deeply personal for her—education and women empowerment. 

Safoora also happens to be a cat mom who befriends every cat she crosses paths with. She also loves exploring new restaurants and cuisines.

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Dr. Ankita Kar

PROGRAM MANAGER, PUBLIC HEALTH

DR. ANKITA KAR

 

Ankita has a formal background in Bachelors in Homeopathic Medicine and Surgery along with a professional background in Masters in Public Health. She started working as a Physician and then shifted to the domain on the larger public wherein she entered the Public Health realm. As a Public Health Professional she started her own project focusing on the Jan Aushadhi Program. After that Ankita worked as a Consultant in an evaluation project of the Maternity Waiting Homes in tribal areas and also in urban slums focusing on menstrual hygiene. At OBLF, Ankita works as a Public Health Consultant. Her personal interests include identifying the social determinants of health, strengthening of health systems and also gender equality. 

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Monisha Maria

PROGRAM MANAGER, EDUCATION & TRAINING

MONISHA MARIA

Monisha transitioned from a career in structural engineering and design to focus on education. After two years as a designer, she realized her passion lay in teaching.

With a background in STEM training and teaching, she spent two years helping students to pursue their dreams. A desire to create some impact led her to join the Teach for India Fellowship, where she deepened her commitment to help underprivileged children to reach their potential.

As Program Manager at OBLF, she continues to focus on supporting educators and students, believing that talent is most valuable when used with purpose.

Outside of work, she enjoys spending time with her family, including her three young children. Gardening and traveling also soothe her soul.

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Anuradha Ganesan

SENIOR MANAGER, EDUCATION & TRAINING

ANURADHA GANESAN

Anuradha is a Senior Program Manager at OBLF, where she leads the training team and contributes to the organization's Ed-Tech strategy. With over a decade of experience in education, Anuradha is driven by the desire to deepen impact and empower teachers to create engaging and effective learning experiences. Her ultimate aspiration is to make teaching a highly sought-after profession within the education ecosystem.

Outside work, she has been instrumental in developing the TPD Lab, a short-term community of practice for Teacher Professional Development (TPD) practitioners, which resulted in participants producing case studies based on their work contexts and learnings.

When she's not working, Anuradha enjoys spending time with her beloved cats, Inji and Puli, as well as exploring her creative side through clay modeling and calligraphy.

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Dr. Gopukrishnan Pillai

CO-DIRECTOR, PUBLIC HEALTH

DR. GOPUKRISHNAN PILLAI

Dr. Gopukrishnan Pillai is a physician with a clinical background in Palliative and Old Age Care. As a public health specialist he focuses on health system strengthening that accommodates and empowers vulnerable individuals and marginalised communities. A Distinction and dual Masters holder from University of Leiden and KIT Amsterdam, Dr.Pillai has additional qualifications from National Law School of India and Rome Business School.

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Prakash Bettegowda

MANAGER, FIELD OPERATIONS, EDUCATION & TRAINING

PRAKASH BETTEGOWDA

Prakash has over 10 year's experience in empowering educators and holistic development of children, across the Karnataka state. In his current role as Program Manager, he works towards forging new partnerships, ensures effective implementation of programs. trains the supervisors to overcome the field challenges and takes new initiatives for effective operations of the program.  As a 'change leader', He is passionate about designing impactful and contextual interventions while ensuring all practices align with the organizational mission and the foundation's code of ethics."

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DR. MANASA M.C.

Medical Officer, Geriatric and Palliative Care

DR. MANASA

Dr. Manasa MC graduated in medicine from Jinan University in Guangzhou, China. She acquired valuable experience in Clinical Medicine and Neuro-rehabilitation at Apollo Hospitals before joining the OBLFin 2024. As the daughter of a farmer from Anekal and the first doctor in her family, Dr. Manasa possesses a unique and personal insight into the barriers faced by marginalized communities in accessing essential healthcare services in Anekal. Her background fuels her commitment to addressing these healthcare challenges and improving services for those in need.

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Poojasree Balamurugan

Program Officer, Geriatric & Palliative Care

POOJASREE BALAMURUGAN

Poojaasree Balamurugan is a Physiotherapist with a Master's in Public health focusing on Epidemiology. She is passionate about elderly health, improving the quality of life of the  population and individuals with disabilities through evidence-based approach and population level interventions.

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Sakshi Kumar

Program Manager, Fundraising & Partnerships

SAKSHI KUMAR

Hailing from Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, Sakshi is a dedicated professional committed to making a positive impact in her community. She has experience as a Partnership Manager, where she led CSR fundraising initiatives for a year, building strong relationships and driving meaningful projects. Prior to this role, Sakshi spent 4.5 years at Adobe as a Software Developer, where she honed her technical skills and contributed to innovative projects.

In addition to her professional achievements, Sakshi is a passionate dog lover, often volunteering at local shelters. She finds joy in dancing and baking during her leisure time, reflecting her creative side. Sakshi is also interested in community development and often participates in local initiatives aimed at improving quality of life in her area. Her diverse interests and professional background highlight her commitment to personal growth and community service.

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SUSAN CHRISTI

Senior Manager, EDUCATION & TRAINING

SUSAN CHRISTI

A storyteller at heart, Susan believes in the power of literature to transform minds and lives. After completing her M.Phil. in English from the University of Delhi in 2012, she worked as a teacher for nine years. A propitious stint with The Community Library Project, Delhi renewed her faith in community libraries as the nursery for modern citizenship education and critical thinking.   The search for deeper engagement with the field of education that would weave together her love of books and libraries, and growing interest in educational policy brought her to Bengaluru, where she pursued  Master of Arts in Education (2021-2023).

At OBLF, she works closely with the teachers as well as co-designs curriculum artifacts in her role as a subject matter expert. In her free time, she joins her cats in looking out of the window.

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Chandrika Ramnath

CHANDRIKA RAMAKANTH

PROGRAM Manager, EDUCATION & TRAINING

CHANDRIKA RAMAKANTH​

Chandrika is an educationist and brings in pedagogical expertise leading a Subject Teacher Allocation and Training Program at OBLF. She comes with over nine years of experience working in the education sector. She started off as a teacher and pursued roles that contributed towards teacher professional development, overall school development and stakeholder management. Chandrika is a foodie, minimalist and nature lover.

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Mansi K

Mansi Koshyari

Project Manager, Tech & Content

MANSI KOSHYARI​

Passionate about leveraging technology for social good, Mansi holds a Master’s degree in Public Policy from St. Xavier's College, Mumbai, and began her career as a Teach For India Fellow. Prior to joining OBLF, she gained invaluable insights into the global and Indian education landscape while working with organizations such as BYJU’S, StayQrious, and NewGlobe Education.

Beyond her professional endeavors, Mansi has a strong interest in French culture and language. An enthusiastic sports lover, she enjoys playing badminton, pickleball, and football in her free time. As a proud dog parent, she loves to explore off-beat destinations with her furry companion and has a deep appreciation for nature. During her downtime, she relishes listening to audiobooks, experimenting with new recipes, baking, and dancing.

At OBLF, Mansi manages various tech and content projects, collaborating closely with both internal and external stakeholders to ensure the successful implementation of diverse initiatives. A lifelong learner, she thrives on overcoming challenges—both personal and professional—and is dedicated to making a meaningful impact in the world around her.

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Madhura_edited

Madhura

Trainer & Coordinator

MADHURA

Madhura embarked on her journey with a degree in biology, driven by a fascination with life’s complexities. She worked as an educator and coordinator, guiding students through the challenges of remote learning with creativity and support.

Now, as a Trainer & Coordinator at the One Billion Literates Foundation (OBLF), she collaborates with the team to empower individuals through a livelihood programme, equipping them with valuable skills for their futures. Outside of work, Madhura enjoys getting lost in the world of books.

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Dr Madhavi

DR. MADHAVI R.

Medical Officer, Public Health

DR. MADHAVI R.​

Dr. Madhavi R, an MBBS graduate from ESIC Medical College, Rajajinagar, brings a wealth of experience in both clinical and community healthcare. During the first wave of COVID-19, she worked as an intern, contributing to the frontline efforts in combating the pandemic. She has also served as a duty doctor in rural Primary Health Centers (PHCs) at Bettahalasur and Bagaluru, and at the Epidemic Diseases Hospital in Indiranagar, honing her skills in managing diverse patient needs.

With a keen interest in preventive and social medicine, Dr. Madhavi  now serves as a consultant medical officer in the  OBLF mobile clinic that provides NCD ( Non communicable diseases )care and primary essential healthcare services in 31 villages of the Indlawadi PHC area. Over the past year, she has been instrumental in delivering comprehensive healthcare to underserved communities, striving to improve overall health outcomes through her compassionate and dedicated approach.

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Board of Trustees (OBLF USA)

ANAMIKA MAJUMDER

FOUNDER & PRESIDENT

ANAMIKA MAJUMDER

Anamika, the Founder of OBLF is a Software Professional, based out of Boston, MA. She has worked for companies like Sun Microsystems, Thomson Reuters/DTCC, The MathWorks, Optum/UnitedHealthGroup in the USA for 2 decades. With an undergrad degree in Architecture from MNIT Jaipur and a Master’s Degree in Computer Science from the University of Massachusetts, Boston, Anamika also has a demonstrated history of working in non-profit management. When she moved back to India in 2010, Anamika spent her time traveling to government schools in Bangalore and interacting with the children.  Her experiences at these state-run schools cemented her beliefs about improving the quality of education and enhance learning experiences for children in rural India. Anamika’s mission to instill a love of learning in underprivileged children became the founding philosophy for OBLF and in July 2010, the organization was set up to meet those ends. Anamika has run full marathons for OBLF in Berlin, Mumbai, Chicago and Cape Town. She aspires to also run marathons in the remaining 3 continents for this cause that is very close to her heart. 

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SCOTT FORTMANN

TREASURER

SCOTT FORTMANN

Scott Fortmann is retired after a career as a lawyer in private practice and then a career in human resources with Intel Corporation. Based upon his experiences working with non-profits in the US, Africa, and Asia, Scott believes strongly that the education of children, particularly girls, is critical to reducing poverty and promoting the economic development of communities.  Scott joined OBLF in 2021 and serves as President of OBLF USA. In his spare time, he travels and rides his bike.

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DAAMAN HEJMADI

VICE PRESIDENT

DAAMAN HEJMADI

Daaman Hejmadi is an accomplished semiconductor executive with a passion for working with diverse people and teams to bring life-changing products and technologies to market. He has a proven track record for achieving bold objectives and transforming global teams to deliver predictable, high quality, and repeatable results. These results span a diverse range of customers, technologies, products, markets, and supplier eco-systems.

Under Hejmadi’s leadership, he and his teams have consistently applied this passion delivering technological advancements benefiting global societies, and the companies in which they have served. Tenets to his success include strategic planning, design transformation, customer focus, technology innovation, operational and organizational excellence, and business expansion.

His extensive executive leadership and engineering experience spans semiconductor device manufacturing giants over the past three decades. Hejmadi’s most recent tour with Intel began in 2016 culminating in the role of Corporate Vice President & Infrastructure and Platform Solutions Group General Manager propelling the recovery of process technology leadership by creating a development platform for internal and external customers. This was preceded by nine years with Qualcomm in the capacity of Vice President of Engineering revolutionizing their development landscape, transforming their Bangalore design center from a small augmentation team to an engineering powerhouse comprised of ~4K staff.

Hejmadi’s initial service with Intel (1991-2007) is where he launched his career as a CAD Technologist pioneering the use of inter-tool communications to deliver integrated CAD solutions. In recognition of his achievements and leadership potential, he advanced into CPU Engineering Management (Itanium™ Processor Family and Whitefield™), followed by Director of Engineering (Bangalore Chipset) where he was accountable for leading core and global design efforts maximizing the output of 100+ engineers building high-performance Xeon server chipsets (a $4B adjacent high-volume chipset market for Intel) and supervising operations of a $25M+ datacenter.

He currently serves as a Strategic Advisor to Silicon Catalyst and is a volunteer at the San Jose Family Shelter. He also serves on the board of One Billion Literates foundation and does fund raising for the Akshaya Patra foundation. Hejmadi speaks English, Hindi, Punjabi, and Urdu.

Hejmadi holds a Master of Business Administration in Organizational Behavior and Finance from the University of California, Berkeley, and a Master of Science in Computer Science and Engineering from the University of Massachusetts. He earned his Bachelor of Engineering (Computer Science and Engineering) at the Indian Institute of Science preceded by a Bachelor of Science in Physics/Electronics from the Sri Sathya Sai Institute of Higher Learning.

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LEENA JANARDANAN

SECRETARY

LEENA JANARDANAN

Leena is a seasoned engineering leader and lives in Santa Clara, California. She is presently a leader in the personalization org at Netflix. Over the last 20 years, she has worked at companies ranging from small startups in the smart grid sector to large e-commerce companies like eBay. She has a Master’s degree in computer science from Arizona State University and an undergraduate degree in Computer Science from the University of Mysore. Over the years, she has volunteered in an individual capacity at various organizations like BestBuddies, Maitri and Habitat For Humanity as well as supported organizations like Asha and Surkitham in India, all serving a wide range of communities and needs. Having directly seen the impact non-profits can have, she has taken that passion to OBLF and is excited to help grow it’s impact. Any spare time she has is devoted to her family, her two dogs and her love for gardening.

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SARATH KURAVI

TRUSTEE

SARATH KURAVI

Sarath Kuravi is an Entrepreneur and Community Organizer spending time building IT services organization specializing in Data Engineering & Analytics and volunteering for charitable organizations. For the past 20+ years he has been highly involved in community related initiatives providing leadership, vision and strategy for furthering the cause of Non-profits. He held board positions and executive leadership positions with IndoUS Chamber of Commerce Northeast Florida, Ekal Vidyalaya Foundation, Hindu Society of Northeast Florida, Children’s International Summer Villages whilst also volunteering for few other organizations. He received “40 under 40” award from Business Journal honoring 40 of Jacksonville's up-and- coming leaders under the age of 40 contributing to the local community. He holds a Master’s degree in Computer Engineering from University of Toledo, OH and an undergraduate degree in Electronics and Communication Engineering NIT Jaipur.

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ABHI BHATTACHARY

TRUSTEE

ABHI BHATTACHARY

Abhi is the founder of a digital marketing agency that has partnered globally with several startups to Fortune 500 companies. With a background in engineering and marketing, he combines his analytical skills with his creative skills to help his clients build and launch innovative brands and marketing campaigns. He's always been driven by a desire to make a real positive impact in the non-profit sector. Using the power of marketing for good, his goal is to help amplify OBLF's story and generate empowering change in creating lasting and scalable social good for all.

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