Team Takshashila

Dr. M. Govinda Rao is the Councillor of Takshashila Institution. He is an economist and was a member of the 14th Finance Commission.

Dr. Rao has previously served as the Director of National Institute of Public Finance and Policy and as the Director of Institute for Social and Economic Change.

Hema Hattangady is a B Com from Karnataka University Dharwad and an MBA from IIM Kolkata. She joined the business established by her late father-in-law, Shri H. Vasanth Rao, a renowned innovator and entrepreneur.

Aditya is an Associate Fellow with the Takshashila Institution. A journalist by training, he has previously worked at Mint and as a freelancer. He has also researched and written on colonial-era Indian military history.

Dr. Kajari Kamal is a PhD in Political Science from the University of Hyderabad. Her dissertation assesses the salience of Kautilyan ideas to better understand the drivers of India’s foreign policy. She teaches a course on the relevance of Arthashastra in India’s strategic discourse in Takshashila’s GCPP (DFA) programme.

Bharath Reddy is an Associate Fellow with the High-Tech Geopolitics Programme at the Takshashila Institution. His research interests are at the intersections of technology, geopolitics, and India's national interests, focusing on AI governance, open-source technologies, and telecommunications. He also manages the Graduate Certificate in Public Policy (Technology and Policy).

KPM Das is an Adjunct Fellow with the Takshashila Institution and the National Cybersecurity and Trust Officer for Cisco driving the emerging cyber security initiatives in India and Asia Pacific. Formerly with the Indian Army until 2003, he graduated from the National Defence Academy and Defence Services Staff College, Wellington. KPM set up the Information/Cyber Warfare Cell in the Military Operations Directorate at Army HQ during Operation Vijay.

A mechanical engineer by qualification and a businessman by profession, Yusuf is an Adjunct Scholar at Takshashila. He has a keen interest in defence and geopolitics and runs India's largest online discussion forum on defence and strategic affairs.

Sridhar Krishna is a Senior Scholar at the Takshashila Institution where he led the 20 million jobs project before joining the group researching on AI Governance. He graduated from BITS, Pilani and has an MBA from SP Jain, Mumbai. He also works with ambitious young IT firms helping them scale and with a civil society organisation on judicial reform. Till recently, he was a Managing Director at Accenture where he worked on analytics and AI.

Ameya Naik is an Associate Fellow (non-resident) with the geostrategy programme at the Takshashila Institution. He teaches courses on public policy analysis to the students of our public policy programmes.

Rijesh is a Fellow with the High-Tech Geopolitics programme at the Takshashila Institution. He works on issues related to the evolution of and geopolitics surrounding quantum technologies.

Dr Y. Nithiyanandam is a professor and the head of the Takshashila Institution's Geospatial Program. He is working on several themes in defense and national security.

Jatan Mehta is an adjunct scholar at the Takshashila Institution. He is a globally published independent space writer and the author of Moon Monday, the world’s only newsletter dedicated to covering lunar exploration developments from around the globe. He also writes Indian Space Progress, a monthly report contextualizing the progress of India’s increasingly relevant space capabilities in the global arena.

Sanjay Palsamudram is an Adjunct Specialist at Takshashila's Siliconpolitik project. With over a quarter-century at the forefront of technology, Sanjay has distinguished himself as an engineer, serial entrepreneur, venture capitalist, and mentor in the fields of semiconductors, software, and systems. He holds board memberships across several tech companies and venture funds.

Sowmya is the Chief Operating Officer (COO) at the Takshashila Institution. She has 20 years of diverse experience, combining both the corporate and social sectors. At Takshashila, she leads all the efforts towards HR, corporate engagement, outreach and partnerships.

Malathi Renati is enjoying her role as the Associate Dean of The Takshashila Institution.

Leah is an Assistant Programme Manager for the Graduate Certificate in Public Policy (Defence & Foreign Affairs) programme at Takshashila Institution.

Anwesha Sen is an Assistant Programme Manager for the Graduate Certificate in Public Policy (Defence & Foreign Affairs) programme at Takshashila Institution. She holds a Master's in Human Rights and International Politics from the University of Glasgow and also researches AI governance and tech policy in India.

Sourav Mannaraprayil is the Communications Manager at Takshashila Institution. He is a digital marketing professional and creative enthusiast with a passion for photography. He graduated from George Brown College, Toronto, and has gained experience through internships in digital marketing. He has worked in roles encompassing social media strategy, content creation, and growth hacking, notably serving as a Social Media Coordinator at Pinch Social.

Suman is the programme manager for the Graduate Certificate in Public Policy (Advanced Public Policy) programme at Takshashila. She has over twelve years of experience in the corporate sector across recruitment, communications and process & quality management.

Shreya is a Programme Manager of the Graduate Certificate in Public Policy (Advanced Public Policy) program at Takshashila. Before this, she worked in the sustainability, education, and consumer goods sectors in roles involving communications, stakeholder engagement, and key account management.

Kripa Koshy is a Programme Manager (for the Post Graduate Programme in Public Policy) at the Takshashila Institution. She has previously worked with the public and third sector. She holds a Bachelors in International Development Studies from McGill University and a Masters in Public Administration from Queen’s University.

Rohan is the Assistant Programme Manager of the Graduate Certificate in Public Policy (Technology and Policy) programme at Takshashila. He graduated cum laude from Ashoka University with a BA (Hons) in History & International Relations interdisciplinary major and a Media Studies concentration.

Wini is a Communications Manager at the Takshashila Institution. She graduated with a Master’s degree in International Relations from the Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi. She holds a Bachelor’s degree (with Honours) in Political Science from Jesus and Mary College, University of Delhi. Prior to joining Takshashila, she worked as a Research Analyst with the Institute of South Asian Studies at the National University of Singapore.

Mariam is an Assistant Programme Manager for the Fellowship Programmes at Takshashila Institution. She is also part of the planning and execution of Takshashila’s corporate engagement programmes and events. She holds a Bachelor’s degree (with Honours) in Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Legislative Law.

Carl Jaison is Manager (Programme Development) at Takshashila Institution where he leads the planning and execution of Takshashila's events and corporate engagement programmes.

Saurabh tracks the geopolitics of emerging technologies, especially in biotechnology and nuclear power. His research interests also include export controls, WMD issues, and the geostrategic dynamic between India, China, and the United States. He manages the Network for Advanced Study of Technology Geopolitics (NAST) Fellowship at the Takshashila Institution and is a consultant with Inklude Labs.