On the Front Lines is a series of public conversations by India's leading thinkers, changemakers and activists. Each of them will authentically represent the struggles of dispossessed and vulnerable groups across India.
India's weakest sections today reel from one of the harshest upheavals of their lives: the lockdown and post-lockdown impact of the Corona epidemic. They face hunger, disease, discrimination, poverty and complete invisibilization.
Our speakers are some of the loudest and most passionate voices for a just and fair society. We hope these conversations will bring you closer to the suffering that a large section of Indian society is facing and inspire you to be part of the solution.
On the Front Lines is exclusively available on our Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and Twitch channels. Please register below to be reminded.
The Brokenness of India's Public Health System
Speaker: Dr. Ravikant Singh, Doctors for You
Thursday, April 16, 2020 at 6 PM
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Dr. Ravikant Singh started Doctors For You in 2007 when he was still a student at KEM Hospital in Mumbai. Since then Doctors For You has responded to every disaster India has faced and he now finds himself at the forefront of the COVID-19 response in 8 states.
Protection for Those Who Fuel India
Speaker: Ashif Shaikh, Jan Sahas
Friday, April 17, 2020 at 6 PM
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Ashif Shaikh has worked towards the eradication of manual scavenging, and empowerment of the Dalit, especially Dalit-Muslim women, through various campaigns of Jan Sahas, the organization he founded in 2000. Jan Sahas runs helplines and provides relief to migrant workers across North and Central India.
Meals for Those Who Feed India
Speaker: Natasha Badhwar, Karwan-e-Mohabbat
Monday, April 20, 2020 at 6 PM
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Natasha Badhwar is an Indian author, columnist, filmmaker, journalist and media trainer. She is also a key member of the volunteer group, Karwan-e-Mohabbat, which has set a goal to feed 3 million meals to people displaced because of the COVID-19 lockdown.
The Disaster That India Never Faced
Speaker: Prof. Janki Andharia, Jamsetji Tata School of Disaster Studies
Tuesday, April 21, 2020 at 6 PM
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Janki Andharia is currently the Dean of the School of Disaster Studies, Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), Mumbai and has over 32 years of experience in the field of community organization and social development. Her areas of work focus on gender issues, environmental concerns, democratic governance, addressing diverse forms of marginalization and vulnerability.
Circles of Kindness: Solidarity During the Pandemic
Speaker: Harsh Mander, Centre for Equity Studies
Tuesday, April 22, 2020 at 6 PM
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Harsh Mander is an Indian author, columnist, researcher, teacher, and social activist who works with survivors of mass violence and hunger, as well as homeless persons and street children. He is the Director of the Centre for Equity Studies, a research organisation based in New Delhi.
Protecting Women: A Forgotten Responsibility in the Crisis
Speaker: Sohini Bhattacharya, Breakthrough
Thursday, April 23, 2020 at 6 PM
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Sohini Bhattacharya is an intrepid intrapreneur and social change enthusiast who has 25+ years of experience in the development sector. Currently, she is President and CEO at Breakthrough, a global human rights organization working in the U.S. and India using multi-media, popular culture, leadership development, and community mobilization strategies to prevent gender-based violence promote values of dignity, equality, and justice.
Forgotten: India's Sex Workers and Transgender People
Speaker: Rajesh Srinivas, Sangama
Thursday, April 24, 2020 at 6 PM
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Rajesh Umadevi Srinivas works as the Executive Director of Sangama, a Bangalore-based organization working for the rights of sexual minorities, sex workers and people living with HIV since 1999.
Innocence in the Age of Corona
Speaker: Prof. Shantha Sinha, MV Foundation
Monday, April 27, 2020 at 6 PM
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Shantha Sinha is known for her pioneering work on child rights. She is also the founder-secretary of the MV Foundation, a rights-based grass root level NGO operating out of Hyderabad, which has withdrawn over 10,00,000 children from work and put them into schools. In recognition of her efforts for universalization of school education, she was awarded the Padma Shri in 1998 and the Ramon Magsaysay Award for community leadership in 2003.
Falling From a Cliff: The Economics of the Poor
Speaker: Prof. Jayati Ghosh, Jawaharlal Nehru University
Monday, April 28, 2020 at 6 PM
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Jayati Ghosh is an Indian development economist. She is the Chairperson of the Centre for Economic Studies and Planning at the Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi and her core areas of study include international economics, employment patterns in developing countries, macroeconomic policy, and issues related to gender and development.
Looking Beyond Relief: Engaging With Nature
Speaker: Dr. Krithi Karanth, Centre for Wildlife Studies
Wednesday, April 29, 2020 at 6 PM
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Krithi Karanth is Chief Conservation Scientist at the Centre for Wildlife Studies, and an adjunct faculty member at Duke University and India’s National Centre for Biological Sciences. Karanth has been involved in scientific research and conservation in Asia for the last 21 years, focusing on the human dimensions of conservation.
Breaking Point: The Fragility of Civil Liberties in India
Speaker: Gagan Sethi, Janvikas
Thursday, April 30, 2020 at 6 PM
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Gagan Sethi is the founder of Janvikas, a development support and training organization, and Centre for Social Justice, a human rights and access to justice initiative working in South Asia. He has more than 30 years of experience in organizational development, capacity building and advocacy at local, national and international levels across diverse cultural settings in Asia.
Rights 2.0: India's Blindspots
Speaker: Apar Gupta, Internet Freedom Foundation
Friday, May 1, 2020 at 6 PM
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Apar Gupta is a lawyer and the Executive Director of the Internet Freedom Foundation. He has worked extensively with activists and government institutions in public campaigns to advance net neutrality, reform defamation laws, fight against internet shutdowns and safeguard privacy. He was recently inducted as an Ashoka Fellow.
Risky Philanthropy: Direct Cash Transfers as a Response to the Pandemic
Speaker: Nithin Kamath, Zerodha
Friday, May 4, 2020 at 6 PM
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Nithin Kamath is an Indian stock broker and Internet entrepreneur known for founding Zerodha, an online-only Indian discount stock brokerage with daily retail trading turnovers crossing $1 billion. He is also the founder of Rainmatter, a Bangalore based financial technology startup fund and incubator.
Cultural Resilience in a Pandemic
Speaker: Arundhati Ghosh, India Foundation for the Arts
Friday, May 5, 2020 at 6 PM
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Arundhati Ghosh joined India Foundation for the Arts as its first fundraiser and became the Executive Director in 2013. She is a recipient of the Global Fundraiser Award from Resource Alliance International, fellowship under Chevening Clore Leadership Awards, and the Chevening Gurukul Scholarship for Leadership and Excellence at the London School of Economics.
