Rohini Nilekani

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.[11] She has done a postgraduate diploma in Mass Communications from St. Xavier's College, Mumbai.[2]

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.[2]

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.[7] 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.[7]

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.[12][7] In 2001, Rohini Nilekani founded Arghyam Foundation, a non-profit that works on water and sanitation issues and is funded by her personal endowment.[13]

In December 2016, Nilekani jointly acquired a 2% stake in Fabindia.[14] Rohini and Nandan Nilekani have pledged half of their wealth to charity through The Giving Pledge, a campaign led by Warren Buffett and Bill Gates.[15][16]

Nilekani is on the board of trustees of Ashoka Trust for Research in Ecology and the Environment (ATREE).[17] She serves on the Eminent Persons Advisory Group of the Competition Commission of India since May 2012.[18] In July 2011, she was appointed as a member of the Audit Advisory Board of the Comptroller and Auditor General of India.[19]

Rohini and Nandan Nilekani have donated $5 million each to IIT-Bombay in 2002 and Yale University to fund an India studies program in 2008. Similarly, they have donated Rs 50 crore to the Indian Institute for Human Settlements in 2011.[10] In December 2013, Rohini and Nandan Nilekani donated $8 million to the National Council of Applied Economic Research (NCAER), India's oldest economic think tank.[20] In August 2014, Rohini Nilekani sold $27 million worth of shares in Infosys and deployed it in various charities in the areas of water, education, environment and governance.[13]

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

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.[2]

• In 2007, Rohini Nilekani was awarded the Kelvinator GR8! Women Awards, 2007 by The Indian Television Academy.[21]
• In 2008, she was listed among the 48 Asian Altruists by Forbes.[5]
• In 2009, she received an 'India Today Woman Award' in the public service category.[22]
• She earned her a spot among Forbes Asia's annual list of Asia's Heroes of Philanthropy in 2010.[8]
• She was named one of 2012's Forbes Magazine's 5 Women Changing the World in the social entrepreneur category.[23]
• Rohini Nilekani was honored with Forbes India Philanthropy Award in the Outstanding Philanthropist category for the year 2013.[24][10]
• In 2013, the Nilekani couple was featured on the cover of Forbes India’s philanthropy issue for their philanthropic work.[20]
• Rohini and Nandan Nilekani were ranked #6 in the Top 10 Indian Philanthropists list by Hurun Report Inc’s India Philanthropy List 2013.[25]
• In 2014, she was counted amongst Forbes India's 48 Heroes of Philanthropy in Asia Pacific.[9][26]
• In 2017, Nilekani was inducted as a Foreign Honorary Member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.[27]
• She was placed #6th in the Hurun India Philanthropy List 2019 for a donation of ₹142 crore (US$20 million).[28] She was ranked #1 in the list of Women Philanthropist of 2019, by the Hurun Report India Philanthropy List 2019.[29]