Durga's Fireside Chat

This episodes speaker is Milin Dutta. Milin Dutta grew up in Assam, North-East India as Mili Dutta and didn´t know that anyone else could be queer. Years later, she began to organize an annual fundraiser that supports women's financial empowerment in Assam, and founded Out in the Backyard (OIBY), a grassroots movement connecting LGBT and heterosexual people to neighborhood resources and education in Minneapolis while working as an IT Consultant. Mili returned to India in 2014, after a 20-year absence, and organized the first gay Pride event in North East.

In 2015, Mili changed her name and gender and became Milin Dutta.  In 2017, Milin took early retirement from work to follow his passion to build community, in Minneapolis and in Assam. He is focused on building a healthy LGBT community in South Minneapolis and women’s empowerment in Assam. His dream is to build bridges between Minneapolis and Assam, creating a healthier community in both locations.

Currently he is collaborating with various young leaders in Assam and working on STEM education, plastic pollution, solid waste management, LGBTQ awareness, animal welfare and eldercare.

Through his organization, Anaajoree, Milin tries to connect/promote/support/inspire local individuals and groups working towards improving the quality of life of both humans and animals, so that North-East India, emerges as a future hub of opportunities in India and the world at large.

Durga as a citizen sector organisation wants to build power and resilience in youth to act against sexual harassment in public spaces and also work towards a Gender Just society. Towards this, we do various strategic activities around engaging with youth in various places like colleges, schools, events, online forums, and also through active campaigning. Some of our efforts include VOICE (Gender Justice) labs in educational institutions, DAREs (Real Heroes who will be active bystanders) on streets, Unlikely Allies (with men, BMTC drivers, and Paurakarmika women) as well as social audits of public spaces that women should rightfully occupy.

To continue with this and show support to the Global 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence, Durga launched the India Gender Equity Week leading to the first-ever virtual forum named NGAGE to bring youth and others together to create awareness on the women’s movement, the issues of intersectionality, and also solutions aligned with the constitutional rights bestowed on citizens. The Fireside Chat is a continuation of the NGAGE forum. Through the Fireside Chats, Priya from DURGA speaks to Gender Justice activists across the country on their activism and inspiration to youth to further the movement.

Do you want to know what drives a true Activist? Listen to our Fireside conversations with some of the best Gender Justice Advocates, curated only for you - to question and dissent in your own way!

This episodes speaker is Bharat. Bharat is a specialist in the area of Education, Gender and Communication. He has more than three decades of experience around programming, research, and training. He has been associated with Vishakha right from the foundation and has led most of the major programs in Vishakha.

He is an expert in conducting training among varied groups, building perspective and planning initiatives around issues of gender and education. He has designed various communication strategies and tools, organized campaigns for rural audiences, facilitated special workshops on dealing with stress and emotion.

Durga as a citizen sector organisation wants to build power and resilience in youth to act against sexual harassment in public spaces and also work towards a Gender Just society. Towards this, we do various strategic activities around engaging with youth in various places like colleges, schools, events, online forums, and also through active campaigning. Some of our efforts include VOICE (Gender Justice) labs in educational institutions, DAREs (Real Heroes who will be active bystanders) on streets, Unlikely Allies (with men, BMTC drivers, and Paurakarmika women) as well as social audits of public spaces that women should rightfully occupy.

To continue with this and show support to the Global 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence, Durga launched the India Gender Equity Week leading to the first-ever virtual forum named NGAGE to bring youth and others together to create awareness on the women’s movement, the issues of intersectionality, and also solutions aligned with the constitutional rights bestowed on citizens. The Fireside Chat is a continuation of the NGAGE forum. Through the Fireside Chats, Priya from DURGA speaks to Gender Justice activists across the country on their activism and inspiration to youth to further the movement.

Do you want to know what drives a true Activist? Listen to our Fireside conversations with some of the best Gender Justice Advocates, curated only for you - to question and dissent in your own way!

This episodes speaker is Kalyani Subramanyam. Kalyani Subramanyam is the Chief Operating Officer at The Naz Foundation (India) Trust, a New Delhi-based NGO working on issues of HIV and Sexuality. She has 20 years of experience working on issues of HIV and Sexuality.

Kalyani is an avid sports enthusiast. As a strong advocate for women’s rights, she has been responsible for the development of the ‘Young People’s Initiative’ (previously known as ‘Goal’ program): A Women’s Empowerment initiative, which uses sport and life skills education to transform the lives of young disadvantaged girls and young women. Young People’s Initiative has reached out to more than 1,15,000 girls across the country.

As the COO, Kalyani oversees the implementation of all of Naz’s work and the smooth functioning of the organisation. She is responsible for the development of Naz’s strategic plan, establishing policies that promote company culture and vision and growth of the organisation. She was honored with the Life Time Achievement Award at the Global Goal Summit, 2017 for her commitment to providing safe spaces for girls to play and providing them with life skills education. This subsequently led her to being appointed as one of the members at the International Safeguarding Children in Sport Advisory Board at UNICEF. She is a Vital Voices Lead Fellow and an alumnus of the Dasra Leadership program.

Durga as a citizen sector organisation wants to build power and resilience in youth to act against sexual harassment in public spaces and also work towards a Gender Just society. Towards this, we do various strategic activities around engaging with youth in various places like colleges, schools, events, online forums, and also through active campaigning. Some of our efforts include VOICE (Gender Justice) labs in educational institutions, DAREs (Real Heroes who will be active bystanders) on streets, Unlikely Allies (with men, BMTC drivers, and Paurakarmika women) as well as social audits of public spaces that women should rightfully occupy.

To continue with this and show support to the Global 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence, Durga launched the India Gender Equity Week leading to the first-ever virtual forum named NGAGE to bring youth and others together to create awareness on the women’s movement, the issues of intersectionality, and also solutions aligned with the constitutional rights bestowed on citizens. The Fireside Chat is a continuation of the NGAGE forum. Through the Fireside Chats, Priya from DURGA speaks to Gender Justice activists across the country on their activism and inspiration to youth to further the movement.

Do you want to know what drives a true Activist? Listen to our Fireside conversations with some of the best Gender Justice Advocates, curated only for you - to question and dissent in your own way!

This episode's speaker is Zeba Khair. Zeba Khair is presently a member of the Supreme Court Of India Bar Association and Delhi High Court Bar Association. Ms. Khair is a well accomplished practicing advocate and litigation has been her forte. She appears extensively in various Courts and Forums like the Supreme Court of India, State High Courts, District Courts and the National Company Law Tribunal.

Ms. Khair had been sponsored as a delegate by the United States Embassy (New Delhi) on their IVLP programme to the USA, in 2011, to study the role of NGOs in promoting women’s issues. In May 2018, she was invited by University of Washington at Seattle USA for 7 Speaking engagements from subjects related to gender violence to challenges Muslim women face in the workforce - An appraisal of Muslim Women's Law against the backdrop of the Shariat. She took classes on Human Rights and also addressed law students on gender laws. In July 2018, Ms. Khair also addressed the Doughty Street Chambers, London on the topic of sexual harassment in the supply chain. In November 2019 she addressed a workshop at Paris on Intellectual Property Rights with respect to social causes, Ms. Khair specializes in cases relating to women and children. She is on the internal complaints committee of MNCs apart from engaging in conducting workshops on the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 (the Act). Ms. Khair has prepared modules setting out practical guidance on the implementation of the Act. This includes Modules targeted at capacity building of key employees; training of committee members, facilitating constitution of the sexual harassment committee and providing an insight into trial procedures.

Durga as a citizen sector organisation wants to build power and resilience in youth to act against sexual harassment in public spaces and also work towards a Gender Just society. Towards this, we do various strategic activities around engaging with youth in various places like colleges, schools, events, online forums, and also through active campaigning. Some of our efforts include VOICE (Gender Justice) labs in educational institutions, DAREs (Real Heroes who will be active bystanders) on streets, Unlikely Allies (with men, BMTC drivers, and Paurakarmika women) as well as social audits of public spaces that women should rightfully occupy.

To continue with this and show support to the Global 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence, Durga launched the India Gender Equity Week leading to the first-ever virtual forum named NGAGE to bring youth and others together to create awareness on the women’s movement, the issues of intersectionality, and also solutions aligned with the constitutional rights bestowed on citizens. The Fireside Chat is a continuation of the NGAGE forum. Through the Fireside Chats, Priya from DURGA speaks to Gender Justice activists across the country on their activism and inspiration to youth to further the movement.

Do you want to know what drives a true Activist? Listen to our Fireside conversations with some of the best Gender Justice Advocates, curated only for you - to question and dissent in your own way!

This episodes speaker is Shilpa Phadke. Shilpa Phadke is an Associate Professor at the School of Media and Cultural Studies, Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai. She is co-author of Why Loiter? Women and Risk on Mumbai Streets (20110 and co-director of the documentary, Under the Open Sky (2017). She has published widely both academically and in popular media.  Her areas of interest include cities and public spaces, middle-class sexuality, practices of consumption, feminist pedagogy, feminist mothering, young women's relationship with feminism, online public spaces.

Durga as a citizen sector organisation wants to build power and resilience in youth to act against sexual harassment in public spaces and also work towards a Gender Just society. Towards this, we do various strategic activities around engaging with youth in various places like colleges, schools, events, online forums, and also through active campaigning. Some of our efforts include VOICE (Gender Justice) labs in educational institutions, DAREs (Real Heroes who will be active bystanders) on streets, Unlikely Allies (with men, BMTC drivers, and Paurakarmika women) as well as social audits of public spaces that women should rightfully occupy.

To continue with this and show support to the Global 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence, Durga launched the India Gender Equity Week leading to the first-ever virtual forum named NGAGE to bring youth and others together to create awareness on the women’s movement, the issues of intersectionality, and also solutions aligned with the constitutional rights bestowed on citizens. The Fireside Chat is a continuation of the NGAGE forum. Through the Fireside Chats, Priya from DURGA speaks to Gender Justice activists across the country on their activism and inspiration to youth to further the movement.

Do you want to know what drives a true Activist? Listen to our Fireside conversations with some of the best Gender Justice Advocates, curated only for you - to question and dissent in your own way!

This episodes speaker is Pragya Prasun. Pragya Prasun is an acid attack survivor-turned-activist and social worker who has been fighting for providing relief and rehabilitation to her fellow acid attack and burn survivors from the past 7+ years now. She has been coordinating with eminent Doctors/Hospitals from across the country for medical advice and treatment. She also works towards personal counselling and generation of a permanent source of regular income for all of the survivors who are in need. Pragya is the founder of "Atijeevan Foundation" an NGO that, apart from facilitating free of cost Surgeries and other non-surgical procedures, also provides avenues for income generation to several Acid Attack and Burn survivors. Atijeevan trains them to create handicraft products, provides them skill and vocational training and get them placed in the Industry as per their capability. Pragya is a post-graduate in Fashion Management, and for her exemplary work in the field of Social Welfare, she is the recipient of several Indian and International awards and accolades. Pragya is the Mascot and Ambassador of Pinkathon, and the Ambassador of ASFI South India Chapter. She is the Honorary advisor of a few NGOs and the Social welfare community.

Durga as a citizen sector organisation wants to build power and resilience in youth to act against sexual harassment in public spaces and also work towards a Gender Just society. Towards this, we do various strategic activities around engaging with youth in various places like colleges, schools, events, online forums, and also through active campaigning. Some of our efforts include VOICE (Gender Justice) labs in educational institutions, DAREs (Real Heroes who will be active bystanders) on streets, Unlikely Allies (with men, BMTC drivers, and Paurakarmika women) as well as social audits of public spaces that women should rightfully occupy.

To continue with this and show support to the Global 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence, Durga launched the India Gender Equity Week leading to the first-ever virtual forum named NGAGE to bring youth and others together to create awareness on the women’s movement, the issues of intersectionality, and also solutions aligned with the constitutional rights bestowed on citizens. The Fireside Chat is a continuation of the NGAGE forum. Through the Fireside Chats, Priya from DURGA speaks to Gender Justice activists across the country on their activism and inspiration to youth to further the movement.

Do you want to know what drives a true Activist? Listen to our Fireside conversations with some of the best Gender Justice Advocates, curated only for you - to question and dissent in your own way!

This episodes speaker is Kanika. After 16 years of designing and facilitating interventions for youth centric development, Kanika sees herself as an advocate for youth work in India, a passion that befits her current role as Convener of ComMutiny – The Youth Collective.  She comes with a Bachelors’ degree in Psychology from Lady Shri Ram College and a Masters’ degree in Social Development from the University of Sussex.  During a gap year between her two degrees, Kanika volunteered at the relief camps in Ahmedabad post the Godhra riots of 2002.  This was a turning point in her life, and so began her journey into the world of self-transformation and social change.

Kanika started her career, working in the area of inclusion at the National Centre from Promotion of Employment for disability sector, where she coordinated and facilitated a national network of Disability Rights’ organisations.  Thereafter, she moved to Pravah, where she worked in direct programmes with adolescents, youth and youth workers.  As a mentor to several young social entrepreneurs, Kanika has been a part of the conception and growth of many youth led start-ups in the sector.

In her current role at ComMutiny, Kanika supports the facilitation of a national collective of over 100 organisations spread across 17 states.  Additionally, she is part of the core team that facilitates the vartaLeap Coalition – a cross-sectoral, multi-disciplinary coalition that is working towards the shared mission of ‘Every youth a Jagrik and every Space nurturing Jagriks’.  She is entrusted to build partnerships and alliances towards amplifying the 5th Space approach to youth centric development, this includes co-designing and co-creating tools, learning journeys, games, leadership curricula, facilitator’s guides and videos, along with the ComMutiny and vartaLeap teams.

Through both spaces, Kanika’s recent work has focused on designing, piloting and scaling innovations around inclusion – inclusion of young people and their voices through the Youth Duties and Rights Framework, promoting inclusion and harmony among young people through cross border friendships, creating gender justice by questioning norms around masculinities.

Durga as a citizen sector organisation wants to build power and resilience in youth to act against sexual harassment in public spaces and also work towards a Gender Just society. Towards this, we do various strategic activities around engaging with youth in various places like colleges, schools, events, online forums, and also through active campaigning. Some of our efforts include VOICE (Gender Justice) labs in educational institutions, DAREs (Real Heroes who will be active bystanders) on streets, Unlikely Allies (with men, BMTC drivers, and Paurakarmika women) as well as social audits of public spaces that women should rightfully occupy.

To continue with this and show support to the Global 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence, Durga launched the India Gender Equity Week leading to the first-ever virtual forum named NGAGE to bring youth and others together to create awareness on the women’s movement, the issues of intersectionality, and also solutions aligned with the constitutional rights bestowed on citizens. The Fireside Chat is a continuation of the NGAGE forum. Through the Fireside Chats, Priya from DURGA speaks to Gender Justice activists across the country on their activism and inspiration to youth to further the movement.

Do you want to know what drives a true Activist? Listen to our Fireside conversations curated only for you - to question and dissent in your own way!

This episodes speaker is Diti. Diti is the co-coordinator of Sangat, Delhi and one of the coordinators of Young Sangat. Young Sangat is a youth led network of advocates for diversity, equality, equity, freedom and pluralism. The network forms a platform connecting individuals, organisations, collectives working on issues of social justice with children, adolescents and young adults across the region. Our collective vision is aligned with the larger goals of the Sangat Network: to build a just and peaceful world which thrives on love, empathy and inclusion.

Durga as a citizen sector organisation wants to build power and resilience in youth to act against sexual harassment in public spaces and also work towards a Gender Just society. Towards this, we do various strategic activities around engaging with youth in various places like colleges, schools, events, online forums, and also through active campaigning. Some of our efforts include VOICE (Gender Justice) labs in educational institutions, DAREs (Real Heroes who will be active bystanders) on streets, Unlikely Allies (with men, BMTC drivers, and Paurakarmika women) as well as social audits of public spaces that women should rightfully occupy.

To continue with this and show support to the Global 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence, Durga launched the India Gender Equity Week leading to the first-ever virtual forum named NGAGE to bring youth and others together to create awareness on the women’s movement, the issues of intersectionality, and also solutions aligned with the constitutional rights bestowed on citizens. The Fireside Chat is a continuation of the NGAGE forum. Through the Fireside Chats, Priya from DURGA speaks to Gender Justice activists across the country on their activism and inspiration to youth to further the movement.

Do you want to know what drives a true Activist? Listen to our Fireside conversations with some of the best Gender Justice Advocates, curated only for you - to question and dissent in your own way!

This episodes speaker is Bishakha Datta. Bishakha Datta (@busydot) works on gender and sexuality in digital spaces, runs the non-profit Point of View in Mumbai, writes and films non-fiction and is part of the wikipedia family. In all her work, Bishakha explores marginal, invisible, and silenced points of view - or those considered illegitimate.  

Her documentary work includes In The Flesh, a film on the lives of three sex workers, and Taza Khabar, which explores Khabar Lahariya, a unique women-run rural newspaper. Books she edited include Nine Degrees of Justice, a collection of essays on the struggle against violence on women in India; and And Who Will Make the Chapatis?, an anthology on rural women's political participation. Award-winning online publications she’s founded include Deep Dives, which publishes long-form narratives on ‘the way we live now’ and Skin Stories, which runs first-person narratives at the intersections of gender, sexuality, and disability.

Since 2015, Bishakha has led Point of View’s flagship program on gender, sexuality and technology which equips and enables women, girls, trans and non-binary people to inhabit digital spaces – freely and fearlessly. Bishakha, who was a trustee of the Wikimedia Foundation (of wikipedia fame), is currently on the board of the global non-profit Association for Progressive Communication.

Durga as a citizen sector organisation wants to build power and resilience in youth to act against sexual harassment in public spaces and also work towards a Gender Just society. Towards this, we do various strategic activities around engaging with youth in various places like colleges, schools, events, online forums, and also through active campaigning. Some of our efforts include VOICE (Gender Justice) labs in educational institutions, DAREs (Real Heroes who will be active bystanders) on streets, Unlikely Allies (with men, BMTC drivers, and Paurakarmika women) as well as social audits of public spaces that women should rightfully occupy.

To continue with this and show support to the Global 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence, Durga launched the India Gender Equity Week leading to the first-ever virtual forum named NGAGE to bring youth and others together to create awareness on the women’s movement, the issues of intersectionality, and also solutions aligned with the constitutional rights bestowed on citizens. The Fireside Chat is a continuation of the NGAGE forum. Through the Fireside Chats, Priya from DURGA speaks to Gender Justice activists across the country on their activism and inspiration to youth to further the movement.

Do you want to know what drives a true Activist? Listen to our Fireside conversations with some of the best Gender Justice Advocates, curated only for you - to question and dissent in your own way!

This episodes speaker is Asma Khan. Asma leads youth-focused programming with a Rights-based approach in the direction of Child Rights at the organization AAWAJ, Madhya Pradesh. In her role, she advances young people’s capabilities to challenge systemic and structural injustices and claim their Rights and entitlements. She also prepare the young people to deal with the issues of children's safety. She has led a personal battle against institutional gender-based discrimination and overcome it.

Durga as a citizen sector organisation wants to build power and resilience in youth to act against sexual harassment in public spaces and also work towards a Gender Just society. Towards this, we do various strategic activities around engaging with youth in various places like colleges, schools, events, online forums, and also through active campaigning. Some of our efforts include VOICE (Gender Justice) labs in educational institutions, DAREs (Real Heroes who will be active bystanders) on streets, Unlikely Allies (with men, BMTC drivers, and Paurakarmika women) as well as social audits of public spaces that women should rightfully occupy. 

To continue with this and show support to the Global 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence, Durga launched the India Gender Equity Week leading to the first-ever virtual forum named NGAGE to bring youth and others together to create awareness on the women’s movement, the issues of intersectionality, and also solutions aligned with the constitutional rights bestowed on citizens. The Fireside Chat is a continuation of the NGAGE forum. Through the Fireside Chats, Priya from DURGA speaks to Gender Justice activists across the country on their activism and inspiration to youth to further the movement. 

Do you want to know what drives a true Activist? Listen to our Fireside conversations with some of the best Gender Justice Advocates, curated only for you - to question and dissent in your own way!