Top 10 Social Entrepreneurs in India
India has been the Land of innovation for time immemorial. Entrepreneurship as a career field has seen massive growth and it is becoming a key driver of the country’s economic development. The country has witnessed a boom with many individuals realising the potential and opportunities available in the vast Indian market.
Social entrepreneurship refers to business ventures that are not solely motivated by profit motives they seek to bring positive social change as well. Social entrepreneurship works on the principle of triple bottom line with a focus on three key areas: profit, people, and the planet. Social entrepreneurship undeniably has the potential to fuel India’s growth.
This article covers the top 10 social entrepreneurs in India.
- Jeroo Billimoria
Imagine being a poor homeless child with no food to eat, and no place to call home. Spending days on the streets and footpaths. Not a situation our imaginations could fathom, but Jeroo Billimoria was the one to realise their plight. She began her journey in Mumbai working with the street children. A student of the University of Mumbai, Tata Institute of Social Science and the New School for Social Research.
It was way back in 1993 she started her first venture called Childline which provided an interconnected network for street children to access essential services and support. Childline was a great success that became an inspirational model for similar helplines all over the world.
She further went on to establish other NGOs including Aflatoun International, Child and Youth Finance International and Child Helpline International. The scope of services being provided for empowering youth and children has been widened to a great extent by providing financial literacy and startup training.
- Harish Hande
We all visit many places around the world as a tourist. While we cherish the beauty and attractions around us, but do we ever notice the situation of the locals in the area?
Harish Hande however started his instrumental journey as a social entrepreneur when he visited the Dominican Republic and observed the poverty and lack of access to electricity.
Harish studied at IIT Kharagpur and later at the University of Massachusetts Lowell and Co- founded SELCO India in 1995. SELCO was an application of the experienced benefits of solar energy in rural areas of the Dominican Republic and Sri Lanka.
Thus, it focused on providing the benefits of affordable and clean solar energy to the remote and not-so-developed regions of the country
- Sushmita Ghosh
Media is often called the fourth pillar of democracy. This explains the vitality of journalists in the current society. A journalist turned social entrepreneur with an aim to create a space for individuals to collaborate and generate practical imaginative solutions to current-day social problems.
She founded Changemakers, an organisation that in its primitive stages was a magazine but later saw an evolution into an online platform for open-source problem solving. She has also made a substantive contribution to the revival of indigenous craft.
- Ria Sharma
It is often said that scars are beautiful and each scar tells us a story. Some scars tell us about experiences one wishes no one ever experienced, this is true for acid attack survivors. Ria Sharma born in New Delhi graduated from Leeds College in the UK with a degree in fashion.
She returned to India to make a documentary on acid attack survivors in 2014. This is when she started an organisation MLNS Make Love Not Scars. This organization focuses mainly on providing holistic support to acid attack victims from medical, and legal to emotional support as well. The organisation also focuses on raising awareness about acid attacks and strict laws against them.
Her efforts in the field have been recognised both nationally as well as internationally. She has also been awarded the UNICEF Global Goal award in 2017.
- Sanjit Roy
An alumnus of St Stephens College Sanjit “Bunker” Roy is a prominent social entrepreneur known for his work in empowering rural communities. His journey in the field began when he left the comfort of his household to live and work in a rural village in Rajasthan.
He founded the innovative Barefoot College which took a unique approach to education and development. The college set its belief in practical knowledge and skills. It believes in the power of practical knowledge and skills in a wide range of activities such as solar electrification, water harvesting, healthcare, and handicrafts.
- Akansha Hazari
Mobile devices today are not mere tools of communication they can be tools of upliftment with the development of technology today. This idea was well understood by Hazari.
She started her journey with the actualization of the Idea that phones could be a gateway to accessing essential services and improving lives. With this vision in mind, she founded m. Paani. True to its name it fluidly provides rewards for products and services purchased by communities. The organisation also won the 2011 Hult Prize and the Vital Voices Global Leadership Award.
- Karthik Naralasetty
Social media holds the capacity to transform the society. This transformational reality was well realised by Karthik when he founded his venture Socialblood. He realised how social media sites can be used to connect people with blood donors. The inspiration was set by seeing his friend in New Jersey seeking a blood donor on Facebook.
Since its inception, Socialblood has made a significant impact in the field of blood donation. The platform has helped save numerous lives by connecting patients with potential donors. He has been featured in various publications and has received numerous accolades for his contributions to the field of healthcare and blood donation
- Urvashi Sahni
Urvashi Sahni is a renowned social entrepreneur, educator, and women’s rights activist who has dedicated her life to empowering marginalized communities, particularly women and girls. She has been actively involved in the field for over three decades
One of Urvashi Sahni’s notable contributions is her work in education. In 1990, she founded the Study Hall Educational Foundation (SHEF) in Lucknow, India. SHEF is a non-profit organization that focuses on providing quality education to underprivileged children, especially girls. Through SHEF, Urvashi Sahni established the Prerna Girls School, which offers education and various life skills to girls from low-income families.
- Aditi Gupta
Menstruation is a natural cycle of the female body. Yet we see that there is widespread stigmatisation and shame associated with it. The predicament of women was understood by Aditi and she co-founded Menstrupedia. This organisation ever since has been dedicated to spreading awareness about menstruation.
A student of the National Institute of Design she noticed the lack of information and awareness that led to taboos, myths, and misinformation regarding this natural process.
- Sheetal Mehta Walsh
Muhammad Yunus is a social life entrepreneur who pioneered microfinance in Bangladesh. Inspired by this story Sheetal founded Shanti Life with the sole aim to use microfinance as a tool for empowering individuals living in poverty.
Shanti Life offers microloans to aspiring entrepreneurs, allowing them to start or expand their business ventures and improve their livelihoods. In addition to her work with Shanti Life, Sheetal Mehta Walsh has also been involved in other initiatives and projects.
She is the founder of Kuuja.com, an online marketplace for microfinance recipients to sell their products globally. This platform enables entrepreneurs to reach a wider customer base and increase their incomes.
Conclusion
Social entrepreneurship in its true light is bringing societal change to a large extent. Being a Sociopreneur is a commendable job. The list above is just an enumeration of a few individuals with significant contributions there are many such people around making change every day.
