Ariana Abadian-Heifetz

Author, Artistic Director, & Production Manager

Ariana is a writer, educator, and consultant on gender and sexuality, social-emotional learning, violence and privilege, and leadership development for folks of all ages. Most recently, she worked for a number of years as the Head of Social-Emotional Learning for the Heritage Xperiential Learning School in Gurgaon, India - a Pre-K through 12th Grade school, with 3000+ students, ranked one of the best co-ed day schools in India. In this capacity, she launched the school's SEL program, designing curriculum across all the grade levels, facilitating overnight experiential workshops for 500+ high school students, and leading teacher trainings for the 250+ teachers on topics, such as, restorative justice, crucial conversations, and gender implicit bias in our classrooms. Ariana co-created the cutting-edge Me in Motion curriculum for Pre-K through 3rd Grade students, which integrates SEL with movement pedagogy, and co-authored the Human Framework High School Curriculum on religious diversity & interfaith dialogue, gender identity & violence, and philosophical inquiry, ethics, & human rights. Her innovate work has been featured in numerous articles, and she has also published pieces on these topics. 

 

Ariana formerly lived in Uttar Pradesh (UP), India working for the Rajiv Gandhi Mahila Vikas Pariyojana (RGMVP) as a Program Expert on Leadership and Communications. While in UP, she led trainings for young women on menstrual hygiene, discrimination, and social myths relating to women's health. Spreading Your Wings was inspired by her work at RGMVP. Additionally, Ariana has conducted workshops on leadership development and gender stereotypes for organizations in India and the United States, such as Sewa Bharat, and continues to be a Visiting Faculty for the I am a Teacher training program. She worked as the Deputy Director for the United State of Women Summit that was held in June 2016 in partnership with the Obama Administration’s White House Council on Women and Girls. 

 

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Pia Alizé Hazarika

Lead Illustrator

Pia Alizé Hazarika is an illustrator and designer, primarily interested in comics and visual narrative. Her independent work has been published by Penguin India (The PAO Anthology), Manta Ray Comics, The Pulpocracy, COMIX.INDIA and Captain Bijli Comics - as a contributor/book designer. She runs ‘PIG Studio’ and is based in New Delhi.

 

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Nyamat Bindra

Project and Research Associate

Nyamat comes with over 9 years of work experience in the development sector. Her skills range from project implementation and advocacy to preparing training modules and monitoring and evaluation. She has worked on the public distribution scheme with Shri Arvind Kejriwal and current Chief Minister of Delhi state and Malnutrition in India. She took a lead in writing a research paper on Organ Donation in India for Consumers India and it won her team the title-  Top 3 Well Researched Paper Award in 2014.

 

In 2016, Nyamat served as a National Health Coordinator with Sewa Bharat, India, where she was in charge of health projects across five states in India. The projects were on nutrition, tuberculosis, adolescent health, and sexual and reproductive rights. She also worked as a consultant with Make Love Not Scars. From that work, she wrote an acclaimed paper on Acid Attack survivors in India. Additionally, she’s worked with adolescents on menstrual health and sexual reproductive health and rights, as well as, teaching Life skills English classes in Delhi and Nepal. Presently an independent consultant, she’s writing a research paper on Sexual Rights for women in urban India in partnership with Indiana University. She’s currently living in New Delhi.

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Dr. Bandana Sodhi

Gynecologist, Medical Consultant

Dr. Col. Bandana Sodhi (Ex Army) is a skilled Obstetrician and Gynecologist, Laparoscopic Surgeon practicing in New Delhi. Dr. Sodhi has an illustrious experience of more than 20 years, and has worked at one of the best medical institutions of India like Research and Referral Army Hospital, New Delhi and has served patients coming from every strata of society. She received her medical degree from Armed Forces Medical College, Pune and pursued Masters in Obstetrics and Gynecology from the same institute ranked as top 3 Medical Colleges of India and has also received Diploma in Gynecology Endoscopic Surgery from Internal School of Medicine, Kiel, Germany.

Dr. Sodhi holds her expertise in treating and managing conditions requiring Laparoscopy & Hysteroscopy and Gynecological facilities ranging from Antenatal Check-Up, Painless Delivery, Care of Pregnancies and Deliveries including High risk Pregnancy, Infertility Treatment, Family Planning Consultation, Cervical Cancer Vaccination, Pap smear, abnormal Uterine Bleeding Pelvic reconstructive surgery, Female Urinary Incontinence, menstrual abnormalities, ovarian cysts, endometriosis, vaginal infections, fibroids, HPV, incontinence, infertility, PMS (Premenstrual Syndrome), polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), and urinary tract infection (UTI) etc.

She has vast experience in normal and operative vaginal deliveries, modern methods of fetal monitoring, painless labour, water- birth, and VABC (Vaginal Birth After Caesarean Section). She strives to provide treatment that is based on evidence, is recognized and is recommended internationally and agreed mutually with patients. She also gives special emphasis on patient counseling, discussion regarding management and patient education.

Dr. Sodhi has received many awards and accolades for her significant contributions to the medical literature. She has to her credit many scholarly articles published at various internationally acclaimed medical journals, and is also invited as faculty in several national and international conferences. She is an active member of many esteemed medical organizations and keeps herself abreast with all the latest advances in her field. At present she is practicing at MoolChand Medcity, New Delhi. This is based at one of the prime locations of Delhi, and is very well accessible and connected by the common modes of transport; like the Delhi Metro. 

 

Dr. Monalisa Padhee

Editor & Translator

Dr. Monalisa Padhee currently works as a program coordinator for the women wellness initiative and ENRICHE health at Barefoot College. She has a PhD in Medical Science from University of South Australia where her research was focused on understanding the impact of nutritional environment during the periconceptional (pre-pregnancy) stages on long term health of the children.

She moved back to India to understand the impact of her research at the grassroots level and joined a rural development fellowship. During this period she designed a three pronged approach to disrupt the vicious cycle of poor health in women which involved designing an interactive curriculum on menstrual and reproductive health for illiterate and semi-literate women, providing access to basic diagnostic care and using traditional solutions to fight anemia. 

 

 

Purnima

Editor & Translator

Purnima is a development professional who has been engaged with gender and sanitation issues particularly relating to women and adolescent girls both in rural and urban geographies. Her work includes facilitating sessions on myths regarding menstrual hygiene. She is a firm believer in community empowerment through Self-help Groups as it brings women specific issues to the fore. Her works has also focused on the creation of open-defecation free environments as it links with women’s hygiene. Additionally, she has worked as a consultant, providing trainings to ASHAs and ANMs on the usage of mobile kunji and mobile academy for institutionalization of deliveries and pre and post natal care.

 

Purnima holds a masters degree in management and social work. She has worked with organizations like the Vigyan Foundation as a Monitoring and Documentation Coordinator & School WASH Coordinator, which led her to serve girls in urban areas. Later, she worked with the Rajiv Gandhi Mahila Vikas Pariyojana (RGMVP) as a Programme Coordinator of Gender and Sanitation (WASH), which led her to serve women and girls in rural parts of Uttar Pradesh.

Purnima has an ongoing association with Astha Kiran, an NGO working for the education and behavior change on hygiene practices among girls.

 

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Ritika Sharma

Editor

Ritika Sharma has worked in the development sector for over six years. She completed her B.Sc. in health sciences and health management from Allahabad Agricultural Institute Deemed University and has a dual masters degree in hospital administration and NGO management from YMCA. During her career, she has managed a range of health projects focusing on HIV/AIDS, diet and nutrition, hematological support, and women’s reproductive care.

 

Starting in 2012, Ritika joined Sewa Bharat as a Health Coordinator for the World Bank Urban Sexual and Reproductive Health Project, New Delhi. Subsequently, she designed and strengthened Sewa Delhi’s skill development program for youth in seven of Delhi’s slum areas and became the District Coordinator of Sewa Delhi. In these capacities, she coordinated and grew the variety of programs Sewa Delhi offers in the slums including the creation of youth clubs to utilize youth leisure time for health information sessions and life skills trainings. Ritika was instrumental in helping Sewa Bharat expand these Sewa Youth Resource Centers in other locations across India such as Bihar and Rajasthan. Recently in partnership with Indiana University, Ritika conducted research in Delhi on the use of female condoms and role of sexual pleasure.

 

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Charu Choudha

Concept Illustrator

Charu is an illustrator and designer living in Delhi, India. She has a B.Des in Communication Design from National Institute of Fashion Technology, Mumbai. Currently, she works as a product designer in Zomato pvt ltd. Previously, she worked at Adobe. She spends her free time working on comics and children's books. She’s won the 'National cartoon for climate change' award by Dr. Shashi Tharoor, conducted by Delhi NSCAIR. Recently she conducted a workshop on doodling and sketch-noting at the National Institute of Technology, Raorkela. 

 

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Arima Singh

Additional Support

Arima Singh is a development professional with almost eight years of program operation and management experience. Over the last three years, she’s been with the Rajiv Gandhi Mahila Vikas Pariyojana (RGMVP) – a special initiative of Rajiv Gandhi Charitable Trust – and is now leading the Lucknow region as a Regional Program Manager. Her work with RGMVP includes developing the Young Women’s Self-help Group Program, managing water and sanitation (WASH) projects, and facilitating trainings on menstrual hygiene management and gender discrimination.

 

Prior to working at RGMVP, she worked with Voluntary Health Association of India (VHAI), Action AID Association, Mahila Samakhya Programme, and Association for Stimulation Know-how (ASK), India. Arima did her post graduation in Cartography from Allahabad University.

 

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Our team would like to give a special thanks to the Rajiv Gandhi Mahila Vikas Pariyojana for initial incubation of this project.