Team

Akash Raman

Senior Portfolio Manager, Incubator & Accelerator

With a decade of experience in for-profit and not-for-profit sectors, Akash is passionate about bringing large-scale social transformations by leveraging the strengths of social impact organizations and businesses. At The/Nudge Incubator at the Center for Social Innovation, Akash nudges and nurtures committed and motivated startup founders solving for poverty. Prior to The/Nudge, he worked at social impact organizations such as the Azim Premji Philanthropic Initiatives (APPI), Ashoka Innovators for the Public, PATH, and Karnataka Health Promotion Trust. He co-founded and led Oodio - an Indian premium design startup, consulted for Deloitte, and taught at BITS Pilani. Akash holds a BE from BITS Pilani, an MBA from the University of Washington at Seattle, and an MS from Harvard University.

Ayushi Bhati

Head of Operations, Incubator; Project Manager, Meri Mitti

Ayushi is an experienced development sector professional with a history of working in grassroots organizations in the livelihood sector. She is skilled in strategy, social innovation, entrepreneurship, market research, and financial sustainability. Ayushi has done her Master's in Social Entrepreneurship from TISS, Mumbai, and has worked in Kerala and Bihar before joining The/Nudge Institute.

Manoj Joshi

Associate Director, The/nudge Incubator

Manoj has 10 years of experience in the tech-product domain. In the past, Manoj has led product for Airtel, Times Internet and ICICI Lombard.He has also founded a startup exploring value addition opportunities in the unorganised MSME ecosystem in rural Uttarakhand. Manoj holds an MBA from XLRI Jamshedpur.

Namratha Dasalukunte Sridhar

Head of Operations, The/Nudge Accelerator

Namratha has close to 7 years of work experience across the impact and IT sectors. At The/Nudge Institute, Namratha is the Head of Operations for the Accelerator program nudging and nurturing social entrepreneurs in the livelihood space. She believes in educational equity and equal opportunity for underserved communities and is passionate about enabling other non-profits to reach their full potential. Before joining The/Nudge Institute, she worked with one of the top IT companies in India, Wipro Ltd., as a test engineer for Ford Motor Company (USA) and as an executive in the Workforce Management Group. Namratha holds a B.Tech degree from Chandigarh Engineering College. She is recognized as a McKinsey Next Generation Women Leader APAC 2022 and a Google tech4good fellow. In her free time, Namratha mentors students at an NGO - Akshar, and actively participates in the leap.club.

Shivani Jain

Head of Operations, Accelerator; Project Manager, Research Innovation Program

Shivani has close to 5 years of experience across the government and impact sector. At The/Nudge, Shivani manages the operations for the Accelerator program and the research on resilient livelihoods through the Research Innovation Program. Prior to joining The/Nudge, she worked with the Irish State Children's Services Regulation Division National Office. Shivani pursued her Bachelors in Social Work from the University of Delhi and her Masters in Gender, Globalization and Human Rights from the National University of Ireland, Galway.

Subhashree Dutta

Managing Partner, Social Entrepreneurship

Subhashree Dutta leads Social Entrepreneurship at The/Nudge. She believes that social entrepreneurs can play a critical role in bringing out catalytic change to India. Subhashree has 30 years’ investing experience in the Asian credit markets across the broad spectrum of credit strategies and has lived in 6 countries. Subhashree worked for 20 years with Fiera Capital (Asia) (formerly Clearwater Capital Partners) and her last assignment was as CEO of its Singapore office. She started her career with ICICI Bank in India. Subhashree has a PGDM from IIM Calcutta and is a CFA® charterholder.

Dr. Gayathri Swahar

Senior Director, Social Entrepreneurship

Drawing upon more than two decades of rich and diverse experience spanning corporate leadership, entrepreneurial ventures, and working closely with government departments, Gayathri is deeply committed to leveraging her experience to strengthen and empower social sector organizations, enabling them to create meaningful impact at scale. Prior to her current role at The/Nudge, Gayathri's career included leading Nielsen's Consumer Neuroscience practice for India Region, co-founding an award-winning food technology startup Ycook India, and being part of the pioneering cohort of the Indian Administrative Fellowship, where she served as the Fellow Designate to the Department of Horticulture, Government of Karnataka.

Nitin Malik

Portfolio Manager, Incubator

Nitin Malik is a portfolio manager at The Nudge’s Centre for social innovation and leads the alumni product. He has over a decade of experience in inclusive finance and insurance sectors. Recently, he led Bharti AXA’s emerging customer portfolio focusing on rural customers where he onboarded two small finance bank partnerships. Previously he had led digital finance and fintech projects in Africa and SouthEast Asia. He is passionate about the role of technology in scaling and deepening social impact. Nitin has a masters in international affairs from Fletcher School and an MBA from Institute of Rural Management Anand.

Krittika Sridharan

Head of Operations, Accelerator Program

Krittika is a development sector professional, with a diverse experience of working in school education, policy implementation, advocacy, and end-to-end implementation of impact programs. Her career journey has been driven by the belief that every individual should have access to quality education and opportunities for a brighter future. She is committed to the cause of education equity and dedicated to building sustainable, scalable social programs that can make a lasting difference for communities. She holds a bachelors and masters degree in Sociology from the University of Delhi.

Preethika Sabu

Junior Associate

Preethika recently obtained a Master's degree in Public Policy from St. Xavier's Mumbai, following her Bachelor's degree in Economics, Political Science, and Sociology from St. Joseph's College in Bengaluru. Her academic journey reflects her diverse interests, including female labor force participation, labor issues, and the intricate connection between gender and climate change. She has actively volunteered with education based organizations, contributing to tangible positive impacts.