Girl Up

What is your proudest Girl Up moment?

Over 7.5 years, Girl Up has become more than just the place I work. It has become my home, my classroom, and my community. To name one proud moment feels almost impossible, because each milestone has been a reminder of what is possible when girls are trusted with leadership. Still, I often return to three experiences that define me.

The first was in 2024, when we hosted the first-ever WiSci Girls STEAM Camp in South Asia. To see more than 100 girls from five countries, many leaving home for the first time, step into a space of curiosity and confidence reminded me why representation and safe spaces matter so deeply. The second was the Girl Up India Leadership Summit in 2023, when over 500 young changemakers filled a room with energy, ideas, and solidarity. It was one of the largest youth convenings on girls’ leadership in India, and in that moment, I saw a movement take shape. And now, supporting the education of 120 girls at Swarachna School with Milaan Foundation is a quieter but equally profound milestone. It reminds me that leadership is not only about grand convenings but also about showing up consistently so that one girl at a time can step into her future with dignity.

Each of these moments, different as they are, reflects the same truth: when we invest in girls, they transform not just their own lives but also the very fabric of society around them.

What’s one challenge in your region the world should know about?

The greatest challenge in India remains the pervasive and normalised reality of gender-based violence. It is both visible and invisible: from harassment in public spaces and violence in homes to systemic barriers that quietly deny girls their right to education, health care, and equal opportunity. This violence is not only physical but structural, woven into the very fabric of society through patriarchy, caste, and economic inequality.

Its impact is devastating. It shrinks the horizons of young women before they have even begun to imagine their futures. It tells them that their safety is conditional, their mobility restricted, and their voices negotiable. Until we confront this truth and make dignity, safety, and equality foundational to how we build our societies, the full promise of girls in India will remain unfulfilled.

The future of girl up in my region is…

The future of Girl Up in my region is fearless, disruptive, and deeply rooted in solidarity. It is a future where girls do not ask for permission to lead but claim leadership as their birthright. A future where young women reimagine systems that have historically excluded them. It is a future where our collective strength lies not in individual success stories but in the communities we build, the barriers we break together, and the legacy we leave behind for those yet to come.