About Us
Sixteen years of showing up in the same neighbourhoods, week after week.
Our Story
In 2009, six friends began tutoring nine children under a banyan tree behind Kothrud bus depot, using chalk boards borrowed from a shut-down school. There was no office, no funding, and no plan beyond Tuesday.
Word spread through parents, not marketing. Sixteen years on, Prayas runs 18 learning centres, a mobile health van and a livelihood collective for mothers.
Our Mission
To give every child in Pune's under-resourced settlements consistent access to quality education, basic healthcare and a safe place to grow — in partnership with families and communities.
Our Vision
A Pune where a child's postal code no longer decides their future, aligned with UN Sustainable Development Goals 3, 4 and 5.
What guides our work
Consistency
The same centre, tutor and clinic day — reliability builds the trust everything else depends on.
Dignity
We design programs with families as partners, never as passive recipients of charity.
Transparency
Every rupee is tracked and reported — our financials are open to any donor who asks.
Local roots
Most of our staff grew up in the neighbourhoods we now serve.
Board & leadership team
Meera Joshi
Founder & Executive Director
Anil Kulkarni
Programs Director
Dr. Farida Sheikh
Health Programs Lead
Rohan Mehta
Finance & Board Chair
Milestones
- 2009 — Six volunteers begin tutoring nine children under a banyan tree in Kothrud.
- 2013 — Prayas Foundation is formally registered; first rented learning centre opens.
- 2017 — Mobile health van launched with Sahyadri Community Hospital.
- 2021 — Women's Livelihood Collective formed; 80 mothers trained in its first year.
- 2026 — 18th learning centre opens; over 4,200 children supported annually.