Board of Directors, Patrons and Advisors

I believe that education is the biggest catalyst for the positive change that we seek in our society. Its a shame that nearly 50 years post independence, quality education is still a preserve of the privileged. Akanksha means a lot to me since its vision is to build a model of excellence for wholesome education for less privileged children.
- Amit Chandra

 
 
 

Board of Directors               Ms Shaheen Mistri- Founder
                                           Ms Anu Aga - Ex Chairperson Thermax
                                           Mr Amit Chandra - Joint MD DSP Merrill Lynch
                                           Mr Ramesh Srinivasan - Partner McKinsey & Co
                                           Ms Srila Chatterjee - Producer, Highlight Films
                                           Ms Nandita Dugar - Ex Consultant Boston Consulting Group
                                           Mr Neel Shahani - Head Trader Credit Lyonnais
                                           Mr Luis Miranda - MD IDFC Asset Management Ltd

Patrons                               Mr Deepak Parekh - Chairman HDFC
                                           Mr Anand Mahindra - Vice Chairman and MD - Mahindra and Mahindra
                                           Mr Arjun Waney - Chief Executive Argent Fund (UK)

Advisors                              Ganesh Natrajan, Deputy Chairman and MD, Zensar Technologies
                                           Rati Forbes, Director, Forbes Marshall
                                           Kumar Shah, CFO DSP Merrill Lynch


The Akanksha Board of Directors guides strategy and provides input on new projects, assesses impact and plays a high-level human resource role, and helps spread awareness and raise resources for Akanksha.

Here is what our board feel defines Akanksha:

"Life in this city is hard at every level and its the easiest thing in the world to deal with one's own trials and forget about anyone else's. I think its very special to be privy to a group of people who never forget about anybody else and do much more than just talk about it... Akanksha is so meaningful because it is so hands-on; every staff member, every Manager, every Trustee has real, hands-on experience of who an Akanksha child is and how he or she feels. There will always be a need to get cheques signed, but that is often the easy part. Actually dealing with lives, with heads and with hearts is the hard part - and everyone in the Akanksha world can only be there if they play some part in that experience."
Srila Chatterjee

"Akanksha is about potential. Every person's potential. It is about a belief that there is good in the world and in each of us. It is about a belief that if we work hard, and believe hard, and dream hard we can make the world better for all the world's children.

The poor children of India are its biggest and brightest future and the Akanksha team give them all the love and positive energy to make this world a better place to live in."
Neel Shahani

"In my view Akanksha is all about "caring" and "passion". Caring for the well-being of the children that we spend time with … caring for their development needs - both formal and informal - so that they aspire to do well in life. Passion to work like maniacs at what we do … our team is highly committed and dedicated to help kids."
Luis Miranda

"For the less privileged child, the only hope is education. When Akanksha offers
slum children an opportunity to learn, it is keeping their hopes alive.

While learning, Akanksha also helps children enjoy their childhood for a
few hours. They get a chance to express their creativity through art and
theatre. And, seeing the Akanksha staff walk the talk, the children
internalise healthy values.

What draws me to Akanksha is the enthusiasm and commitment of Shaheen and
the staff. I also feel this is one of the few NGOs, which is transparent
and encourages the Board to be creative and critical."
Anu Aga

"I think Akanksha is special for 2 reasons:

1. I think the impact that Akanksha has on the children's lives is tremendous and immeasurable. I have seen the kids change and grow in the eight years that I have been involved with Akanksha. Not only do our children gain confidence, but they also grow in a hundred different ways. For example, excelling in what they are good at, some academically in college, some in art, some in drama, etc. Akanksha draws out the best in our kids, making them realize their potential. I think all our graduates leave Akanksha very employable. Furthermore, I think some of our graduates are capable of bringing about substantial change in their own lives, and are capable of being leaders and agents of change in their communities.

2. As an organization, Akanksha tries to better itself constantly. Starting off 15 years ago with some amount of teaching and more play, Akanksha has added more programs each year, from Self Esteem to Values to Vocational Training to Learning to Lead to the Municipal Schools, etc. Over the years the Curriculum has been fine tuned and standardized. Very ambitious projects have been attempted and have succeeded, such as the Musical. At the same time, Akanksha also has internal checks and quality control to ensure that the high standards are maintained.


I really like the core values of Akanksha, and that is why I have chosen to be part of it.
In particular, I like the focus on kids at the heart of everything that we do...whether it be the activities at the centres or the scholarships or the musical or the art project - I am amazed at the way in which Akanksha is able to sustain the focus on kids."
Nandita Dugar

I am amazed at the extent to which people learn and grow in the Akanksha system - my wife Charuta and I have learnt a lot through our involvement with Akanksha (from teaching methods that we use with our own kids to building a deeper understanding of what motivates people).
Ramesh Srinivasan