Introduce yourself in three words or phrases
Insatiably curious about everything – right from trying to understand the purpose of life to everything international higher education. Chai evangelist. Fiercely patriotic while conveniently global.
What do you like most about your job?
Building audacious international partnerships that make the world feel gloriously borderless. At this point, my job includes partnering with a high school that is a ship to another that spans 12 countries around the world.
Best work trip / Worst work trip?
Best: The PIE Live Europe 2024 where the champagne flowed freely at Tetr’s opening reception and, mercifully, my inbox forgot I existed.
Worst: A conference that took me 21 hours on a plane to reach… only to be held in a windowless basement that smelt faintly of despair and toilets.
If you could learn a language instantly, which would you pick and why?
Probably French – partly because it’s the linguistic equivalent of velvet draped over logic, and partly because nothing would amuse me more than delivering impassioned speeches about international education while sounding like I’m also about to announce a Michelin-starred menu.
What makes you get up in the morning?
Horseback riding, sharing a cup of chai with my husband and the quiet knowledge that I get to change young human lives by handing them the opportunity of a lifetime.
Champion/cheerleader we should all follow and why?
My supervisor at Oxford – professor Simon Marginson – because if anyone can make higher education policy sound like it’s the only thing that can change the future of humanity (and frankly, that deserves a medal), it’s him. On a more serious note, his papers make you really question what education is and who decides who deserves it.
Beyond education, it would be Indira Gandhi – her reserved yet strong political views, the legacy she carried, her personal disappointments, her loneliness as the first daughter of India, and the leadership qualities she possessed. She was truly the “Iron Lady of the East”. She is inspiring in so many ways and in so many ways a manual of what to do and what not to do in positions of leadership.
Best international ed conference and why
The PIE Live Europe – it’s basically Glastonbury with friends and colleagues from the international education sector, minus the mud and plus the existential jet lag.
Worst conference food/beverage experience
I have had a million “coffees” that tasted like burnt rubber. Still twitch when I smell it.
Book or podcast recommendation for others in the sector?
Books – An Uncertain Glory: India and its Contradictions by Jean Drèze and Amartya Sen, which dives deep into India’s human development challenges, especially in education and health.
Podcast – Ek Koshish: The Bandhu Project which shares stories from teachers, students, and changemakers working at the ground level to transform education in India’s most underserved communities.
Describe a project or initiative you’re currently working on that excites you
Working with Tetr has been truly rewarding, where we are working on amazing transnational education initiatives that are far beyond the usual boiler plate MoUs and cross-border initiatives, putting India at the forefront of international higher education.
Personally, it was launching a scholarship for young entrepreneurs to gleefully disrupt the status quo – essentially curating the next cohort of brilliant, globe-trotting mischief-makers at Tetr.
