Our Story

August 2012 saw the registration of the Trust, and a few months later, with INR 20,000 in the Trust account, and great and humbling faith reposed in me by the Trust’s lawyers, the Woman of the Elements Trust started its first project.

We had no office – our first meeting was held at the Rajasthan Stall at Dilli Haat.

One laptop lent by my son and one by a friend came to the Trust as an added blessing at the start-up stage.

The Superintendent of Tihar Jail no.2 had 100 file covers made for the Trust. I spent a day with the convicts of jail 2 in Tihar - and it was a soul-stirring experience. That day taught me about human nature - about how quick we are to sit on judgment about wrong and right - and how badly our souls yearn to be free.

We started our journey with 24 files - women who needed legal help and earned below INR 5,000 a month. Women along with their children who had been left destitute and abandoned, who had been battered and abused and had no recourse to the law.

We have come a long way. The Trust’s little chamber at Saket District Court is today a source of great succor and support for many. And we are grateful for every bump in the road that got us here.