Read More: <\/strong> The 6 Types of Entrepreneurs<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Here\u2019s a list of some of the most famous social entrepreneurs<\/a> in India. These individuals are transforming lives and inspiring others to make a difference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Now let’s know about them in a little detail:<\/p>\n\n\n\n One of the top 10 social entrepreneurs in India, Anshu Gupta founded Goonj<\/strong><\/a>, a pioneering organization that addresses the basic needs of clothing and dignity in rural areas. Goonj collects discarded clothes and essentials from urban households, carefully sorts them, and redistributes them to underprivileged communities in villages. Beyond clothing, the organization drives rural development through initiatives in education, healthcare, sanitation, and community engagemen-empowering people to create lasting change in their local areas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Urvashi Sahni, the visionary founder of SHEF, is a leading female social entrepreneurs in India. An Ashoka Fellow and Nonresident Fellow at Brookings, she also advises the Rajasthan government. Honored as “Social Entrepreneur of the Year” in 2017, her work exemplifies dedication and impact in education and social change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n SELCO<\/strong><\/a> is an energy service company. It provides sustainable and affordable energy solutions to the poor. The company has an innovative business model. It focuses on providing solar-powered lighting to low-income households. They offer energy solutions to schools, and small businesses in rural areas.<\/p>\n\n\n\n FFE India Trust<\/strong><\/a> provides merit-based scholarships to underprivileged students across India. These help them pursue higher education. The organisation has impacted over 16,000 students from economically weaker sections. It has helped them achieve their dreams.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Operation ASHA<\/a> is a non-profit organisation. It provides treatment and prevention services for tuberculosis (TB) in underprivileged communities. The organisation has developed a unique technology platform. It streamlines the treatment process and has treated over 80,000 TB patients to date.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Ayzh<\/strong><\/a> is a social enterprise. It designs and distributes low-cost, life-saving maternal and newborn health products. By providing affordable, high-quality products to women in low-resource settings. Ayzh has made significant strides in reducing maternal and infant mortality rates.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Akshaya Patra Foundation<\/strong><\/a> is a non-profit organisation. It provides mid-day meals to school-going children in India. The organisation is the world’s largest NGO-run kitchen and serves over 1.8 million meals every day. They ensure children receive proper nutrition and stay in school.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Pure Living<\/a> is an environment-friendly cleaning products company. It provides ecological products for homes and workplaces in India. The company’s mission is to create a better environment for all. They achieve this by reducing the use of harmful chemicals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n LeapForWord<\/strong><\/a> is a teaching platform<\/strong><\/a> that aims to bridge the literacy gap in India. The organisation trains and places volunteers in underprivileged schools and communities. They teach English to young children in remote areas. To date, the organisation has trained over 30,000 students across India.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Mirakle Couriers<\/strong><\/a> is a courier service that employs hearing-impaired individuals. The company provides training, employment, and financial stability to those with hearing impairments. It helps them lead a life with dignity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n NextDrop<\/strong><\/a> is a social enterprise that provides real-time water supply information to urban areas in India. NextDrop is active in multiple cities in India and has received recognition from organisations such as Forbes and The Guardian. Sridharan’s work has been instrumental in improving access to water resources. He promotes sustainable water management practices and helps communities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n As per Doctor Jo Johnson, there are four common types of social entrepreneurs:<\/p>\n\n\n\n This entrepreneur works within a small geographic area. They work on a diverse range of issues. The main goal of this entrepreneur is to bring benefits to the local area. These entrepreneurs usually work on a small scale.<\/p>\n\n\n\n They work with the members of the community and local organisations. The results of this social entrepreneurship are visible almost immediately.<\/p>\n\n\n\n These entrepreneurs focus on social gain and not capital gain. They use their profits to increase their services to the people. Shaheen Mistri is one such example of a social entrepreneur. She established Teach for India. It has placed over 700 underprivileged kids in schools.<\/p>\n\n\n\n People with more knowledge of business often take this path to use their skills for good. The results of this entrepreneurship take longer to be visible. But, they have a large-scale impact.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Transformational social entrepreneur uses their skills and resources to address social issues. They positively impact society by combining business principles with social missions and aiming to create sustainable and innovative solutions to social problems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n They are driven by profit and desire to make a meaningful difference in people’s lives. Such entrepreneurs are often focused on empowering marginalised communities<\/strong><\/a> and promoting environmental sustainability. They work to improve education and healthcare and create economic opportunities. They are visionary leaders who inspire others to work towards a better future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A social entrepreneur uses business to tackle social and environmental issues. For social entrepreneurs in India, becoming successful on a global scale involves identifying critical social challenges and creating sustainable business models to address them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This means prioritizing social impact over profit. They also work with local communities to create solutions for their needs. Networking and collaboration are crucial for global social entrepreneurs. They need to work with others who share their values and goals. Finally, a global social entrepreneur must be adaptable and resilient. They must be willing to learn from challenges and failures and always strive to improve their impact on the world.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Social entrepreneurs in India are making a positive difference across various sectors:<\/p>\n\n\n\n If you\u2019re inspired by the work of social entrepreneurs in India and want to start your own venture, here are some essential steps:<\/p>\n\n\n\n These steps can help aspiring social entrepreneurs start meaningful ventures that make a real difference in India.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Many social entrepreneurs in India rely on various funding sources and resources. Here are some notable ones:<\/p>\n\n\n\nTop 11 Social Entrepreneurs in India<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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1. Anshu Gupta – Founder of Goonj<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"social](\"https:\/\/www.cheggindia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/EO-37213-social-entrepreneurs-in-India-V1.png\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n2. Urvashi Sahni – Founder of SHEF<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"social](\"https:\/\/www.cheggindia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/EO-37213-social-entrepreneurs-in-India-V2.png\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n3. Harish Hande – Founder of SELCO India<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"social](\"https:\/\/www.cheggindia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/EO-37213-social-entrepreneurs-in-India-V3-1024x683.png\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n4. Ravi Shankar – Founder of Foundation for Excellence India Trust<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"social](\"https:\/\/www.cheggindia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/EO-37213-social-entrepreneurs-in-India-V4-1024x683.png\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n5. Shelly Batra – Founder of Operation ASHA<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"social](\"https:\/\/www.cheggindia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/EO-37213-social-entrepreneurs-in-India-V5-1024x683.png\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n6. Zubaida Bai – Founder of Ayzh<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"social](\"https:\/\/www.cheggindia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/EO-37213-social-entrepreneurs-in-India-V6.png\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n7. Madhu Pandit Dasa – Founder of Akshaya Patra Foundation<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"social](\"https:\/\/www.cheggindia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/EO-37213-social-entrepreneurs-in-India-V7-1024x683.png\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n8. Lakshmi Menon – Founder of Pure Living<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"Social](\"https:\/\/www.cheggindia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/eo-37213-Social-Entrepreneurs-in-India-v9-1024x512.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n9. Satyen Das – Founder of Leap For Word<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"social](\"https:\/\/www.cheggindia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/EO-37213-social-entrepreneurs-in-India-V9-1024x683.png\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n10. Dhruv Lakra – Founder of Mirakle Couriers<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"social](\"https:\/\/www.cheggindia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/EO-37213-social-entrepreneurs-in-India-V10.png\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n11. Anu Sridharan – Founder of Next Drop<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
![\"social](\"https:\/\/www.cheggindia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/EO-37213-social-entrepreneurs-in-India-V11-1024x683.png\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\n![\"Get](\"https:\/\/www.cheggindia.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/Get-Paid-for-Your-Knowledge-Become-an-Expert-1024x213.png\")
<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\nTypes of Social Entrepreneurs In India<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
1. Community Social Entrepreneur<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
2. Non-Profit Social Entrepreneur<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
3. Transformational Social Entrepreneur<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
4. The Global Social Entrepreneur<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
More Inspiring Entrepreneurs<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Name<\/strong><\/th> Foundation<\/strong><\/th> Purpose<\/strong><\/th><\/tr><\/thead> Ria Sharma<\/td> Make Love Not Scars<\/td> Supports acid attack survivors with rehabilitation and education.<\/td><\/tr> Sunil Bharti Mittal<\/td> Bharti Foundation<\/td> Improves rural education through the Satya Bharti School Program.<\/td><\/tr> Hanumappa Sudarshan<\/td> Karuna Trust<\/td> Delivers quality healthcare and education to remote rural areas.<\/td><\/tr> Ajaita Shah<\/td> Frontier Markets<\/td> Empowers rural women entrepreneurs to distribute clean energy solutions.<\/td><\/tr> Vinita Bali<\/td> Global Alliance for Improved Nutrition (GAIN)<\/td> Advocates for better nutrition and public health in India.<\/td><\/tr> Jeroo Billimoria<\/td> Childline India Foundation<\/td> Offers a 24×7 helpline for children in distress across India.<\/td><\/tr> Shaheen Mistri<\/td> Teach For India<\/td> Works to eliminate education inequality by placing fellows in low-income schools.<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n Sectors Impacted by Social Entrepreneurs in India<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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How to Become a Social Entrepreneur in India in 2025?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Funding and Resources for Social Entrepreneurs in India<\/h2>\n\n\n\n