Rohini Nilekani

Rohini Nilekani (born 1960) is an Indian writer, author and philanthropist.[1] She is the founder-chairperson of Arghyam Foundation, a non-profit that focuses on water and sanitation issues, founded in 2001.[2][3] She also chaired the Akshara Foundation, which focuses on elementary education. Nilekani serves as the co-founder and director of non-profit education platform, EkStep.[4][5]

Rohini Nilekani
Rohini Nilekani in January 2013
Born1960
NationalityIndian
Other namesNoni
Alma materElphinstone College
St. Xavier's College, Mumbai
OccupationWriter, Philanthropist, and Chairperson of Arghyam Foundation
OrganizationInfosys, Arghyam Foundation, Akshara Foundation, Pratham Books, EkStep
Notable work
Stillborn (1998)
TelevisionUncommon Ground (NDTV)
Spouse(s)Nandan Nilekani
WebsiteOfficial website

Early life

Rohini grew up in a middle-class family in Mumbai, India. Her father was an engineer and her mother a homemaker. She holds a degree in French literature from Elphinstone College.

Career and work

After completing her studies, Rohini started working as a reporter at the now-defunct Bombay Magazine in 1980 and later worked in Bangalore for Sunday magazine.

In 1998, she released her first novel, Stillborn, which was published by Penguin Books. Stillborn was a medical thriller novel and was well received by the readers.[5] She has written and published her own children's stories, Sringeri Series, published by Pratham Books, a non-profit publisher of children's books, which she co-founded in 2004.[5]

The Union Minister for Rural Development, Jairam Ramesh briefing on 'Nirmal Bharat Yatra' to create awareness about sanitation, in New Delhi on September 28, 2012. The actress Vidya Balan and Rohini Nilekani are also seen.

Her second book, Uncommon Ground, a nonfiction work based on her reporting as an anchor of the 2008 Indian TV program of the same name. Uncommon Ground was also published by Penguin Books in 2011.[6][5] In 2001, Rohini Nilekani founded Arghyam Foundation, a non-profit that works on water and sanitation issues and is funded by her personal endowment.

Nilekani is on the board of trustees of Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE).[7] She serves on the Eminent Persons Advisory Group of the Competition Commission of India since May 2012.[8] In July 2011, she was appointed as a member of the Audit Advisory Board of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India.[9]

Published books
  • Stillborn, 1998, Penguin India, ISBN 9780670085620
  • Uncommon Ground, 2011, Penguin India, ISBN 9788182638945

Personal life

Rohini is married to Nandan Nilekani. She met him at a quiz competition at her college in 1977. The couple has two children, Janhavi and Nihar.

References
  1. Kallury, Kruttika (January 24, 2011). "The fountain heads". India Today.
  2. "Woman of 2013 - Rohini Nilekani: One of India's best-known philanthropists". The Economic Times. January 5, 2014.
  3. "ET Women's Forum: Kiran Nadar, Rohini Nilekani, Dipali Goenka battled sexism, prejudice to stay on top". The Economic Times. February 11, 2019.
  4. Goyal, Malini; Aravind, Indulekha (July 12, 2015). "Nandan & Rohini Nilekani's 'world of good': How they are working on community-minded projects like EkStep". The Economic Times.
  5. "Balancing Act: How Rohini Nilekani juggled motherhood and career pressures". CNBC TV18. September 28, 2019.
  6. "Rohini Nilekani's book launched". Deccan Herald. October 14, 2011.
  7. "Boards". atree.org. Retrieved 25 April 2020.
  8. Nigam, Aditi (May 8, 2012). "Competition panel sets up eminent persons advisory group". The Hindu Business Line.
  9. "New audit advisory board for CAG". The Hindu. July 23, 2011.
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