PVLF 2025

Interview with Dr. Kalpana Sankar Author of The Scientist Entrepreneur: Empowering Millions of Women

In this insightful interview, Dr. Kalpana Sankar shares her inspiring journey from nuclear physicist to social entrepreneur, empowering millions of women.
on Oct 14, 2024

Frontlist: Your journey from nuclear physicist to social entrepreneur is remarkable. What inspired you to transition into the world of social impact, and what challenges did you face in making that shift?

Kalpana Sankar - I pursued my PhD in nuclear physics with my thesis vetted at the famous Los Almos University in USA where Nobel Laureate Albert Einstein got his PhD. My first stint post my doctorate was in the radiation department at Madras Cancer Institute. I quit in just a day as it pained me to watch people suffer. After this I had an opportunity to serve as Ex Officio of Indian Red Cross and Women’s Voluntary Service. These were eye opening as I could see poverty very close and very differently. I knew that my work was cutout for me in social service.

The leap from science to social impact was not easy. It was a totally new domain, so I had to equip myself to handle new tasks and read up on material. As Monitoring & Evaluation Officer of the Tamil Nadu Women’s Development Corporation, I had a unique opportunity to work on a policy level document for the World Bank’s Tamil Nadu Poverty Reduction Project in the mid-90s. This gave me immense insight into metrics and indices of rural Tamil Nadu.

When joining Hand in Hand, working with the grassroots was yet again a different experience with a steep learning curve. The work, although interesting came with its fair share of challenges including setting up the right team, understand local contexts, gaining community confidence and building a solid relationship with multiple stakeholders. This entire process took 2-3 years, much longer than expected but the results after two decades are well worth it!

Frontlist: The Scientist Entrepreneur highlights the creation of Hand in Hand India. Can you share the most significant moment in the early stages of this venture that shaped its future success?

Kalpana Sankar - While I worked with the Government of Tamil Nadu’s World Bank project, we estimated the level of poverty in the state as 1.3 million people living below the poverty line. Based on this statistic, in 2004, I set a tall goal of creating 1.3 million jobs for women. We achieved this goal in 2010! The journey to 1.3 million jobs and now near 10 million jobs was possible because of a multi stakeholder approach and by working closely with the community. I also leveraged some of my close contacts through the Government project such as with M V Foundation that helped us with the initial strategy and plan for Hand in Hand.

Frontlist: You've faced significant gender barriers in your leadership role. How did you overcome them, and what advice would you give to women aspiring to leadership positions in male-dominated fields?

Kalpana Sankar - Rising as a woman leader is not easy but at the same time not impossible! Even till date, there are men who take decisions on behalf of us without giving our view a proper hearing. My strategy to make it to the top as a woman leader is to be forthright and to express ourselves clearly. We should not shy from talking about our work and should vocalize our views. If our work is meritorious, we will automatically be recognized and valued in any setup. For this, we must not only work hard but also be relevant through upskilling and being confident. My style is to continue to work without disturbing the status quo – when we do this, men will change the view about our contributions at the workplace. Aside from this, women should spent quality time to network and uplift other women outside the workplace!

Frontlist: Your book emphasizes the combination of business acumen with social goals. How do you balance financial sustainability with your mission of empowering women and underserved communities?

Kalpana Sankar - My model of balancing a social goal with strong business acumen has made my journey unique and successful! We have clear objectives for both Hand in Hand and Belstar. Hand in Hand builds the social capital through social mobilization, financial inclusion training and enterprise development for women. Belstar provides credit, i.e. financial capital to help these women achieve their entrepreneurial goals. Together, the model creates value for both organizations as well as for millions of women!

Frontlist: What was the most difficult part of writing about your own life and achievements, and how did you ensure that the story would inspire others without losing its authenticity?

Kalpana Sankar - I documented this book so that more young people can be inspired and learn from my journey of social entrepreneurship. The challenges that I have spoken about barely scratch the surface of what all I have faced to get here. The main idea was to focus on the positives of my journey in an interesting way !

Frontlist: How do you see the role of social entrepreneurship evolving in the future, particularly for women, and what role do you believe education plays in this?

Kalpana Sankar - Social entrepreneurship is the way forward as it allows for women (and men) to pursue their passions while keeping a social goal in mind. Women are particularly passionate about education, health and empowering other women. In all these domains there is immense opportunity to innovate and build models to scale. There are a billion people in our country, and every new idea is an opportunity to help someone. Social entrepreneurship is also a great way to collaborate with the Public Private Partnerships model. With a lot of products and services going digital, women can use their skills to reach more people with just their mobile.

Education is a great tool for bridging the social divide – it empowers both men and women while building confidence.

Frontlist: In light of World Mental Health Day, how do you believe empowering women and fostering community support can contribute to mental well-being in underserved populations?

Kalpana Sankar - Covid19 has come and gone but has left us all talking about how important it is to focus on mental health and well being. The correlation between mental health and its impact on physical health has also been researched vastly. It is important for women to focus on both – mental and physical health. If there are any problems, women should face them boldly and should talk about it with their trusted circle – family member, friend or mentor. They should not shy away from speaking and think there is a dead end. There are solutions and they should learn to stay positive, be happy, keep learning and empowering yourself and people around you!