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About
Framing Our PhilanthropyAt Nilekani Philanthropies, we hold a simple but powerful belief: a good society is not built by the state or markets alone — it is shaped, protected, and renewed by a strong, relational Samaaj (societal communities). When Samaaj, Sarkaar and Bazaar do together what each does best, we can build the resilience to address complex problems as they emerge and morph.For almost three decades, Nandan and Rohini Nilekani have nurtured complementary visions of public value:• Nandan’s work has focused on architecting the digital public infrastructure enabling scale, inclusion, and state capacity. There has been a strong focus on education, skilling and ecosystem orchestration.• Rohini’s work has centred on strengthening the civic muscle of Samaaj — supporting trust-based institutions, ecological stewardship, access to justice, gender equity, mental health and platforms for civic innovation and leadership.These aren’t separate efforts. They are two sides of the same coin.• DPI provides the architecture of collaboration — open, interoperable systems that reduce friction and preserve diversity.• Samaaj work provides the ethic of participation — building trust, hope, accountability, positive action and moral leadership that drives sustainability for scale and impact.Together, they form a holistic approach to societal transformation, supporting ideas, individuals and institutions that can drive exponential change.Where Rohini tries to see like a Samaaj — contextually, slowly, relationally — Nandan can see as the Sarkaar (state)— structurally, strategically, and at scale. And in the middle lies the Bazaar — dynamic, inventive, and full of possibility when rightly enabled.Nilekani Philanthropies lives in this middle space.The work fosters a dialogue that invites civil society, state institutions, and market actors into a shared project of democratic renewal and resilience to change.We invest in public goods, not just public services.We support systems change that is both architectural and affective.We believe the future of governance is not command and control, but co-creation.We see that citizens want agency and dignity and choice in their lives.And that real impact for them lies in designing for emergence, not in engineering outcomes.Because a good society is braided together by relationships, infrastructure and shared imagination.
