Mental health advocate Manasi Gupta and teenage innovator of a low-cost energy solution Uday Bhatia are the Indian winners among a group of 20 worldwide young changemakers to be recognised with the Diana Legacy Awards in London last week.
Taking place every two years, the Diana Legacy Award is a prestigious accolade for exceptional young people from around the world for their social action or humanitarian work in memory of the late Diana, Princess of Wales. This year marks the 25th anniversary of the Diana Award charity set up by her sons Princes William and Harry and the independent judging panel were tasked with selecting 20 winners from a pool of exceptional individuals already recognised for their impact on society with the Diana Award in 2022 or 2023.
Manasi Gupta (24), Founder – Huesofthemind Foundation
When faced with the hurdle of struggling to seek help when battling with her own mental health, Manasi realised the lack of affordable and accessible mental health resources across India. Through this, she understood the importance of non-judgemental spaces to share freely and safely.
Impacting over 50,000 lives through her non-profit Huesofthemind Foundation, Manasi has created an empathetic community for people to support, learn and cope together. In collaboration with over 200 stakeholders, Huesofthemind has delivered innovative campaigns, projects and events globally.
She has personally delivered 100+ sessions nationwide and globally to encourage an emphasis on mental health support. She has also created an illustrated book, ‘Hues of You’, to help raise funds to make therapy more affordable. She has also been raising awareness through social media, reaching more than 1.2 million viewers in the past four years.
Manasi has been awarded for being an “inspirational role model” who is making a “monumental difference within the mental health services landscape across India”.
She said: "It's such a heart-warming experience to receive the Diana Legacy Award. I feel truly humbled by the trust the panel has in the work of my organisation, Huesofthemind Foundation.
“I believe that we have a long way to go to make mental health services more affordable in India and to destigmatise conversations around mental well-being. In Gandhiji's words, I continue to use that barrier as motivation to keep being the change I wish to see – by leveraging the power of communities, expressive arts and compassion. "
Uday Bhatia (18), Founder – Uday Electric
After witnessing the effects of the power crisis in rural India, Uday decided to act and help create a brighter future for communities in need.
As a 16-year-old schoolboy, when Uday began mentoring students in the slums of Bichpuri near Delhi, he saw how frequent power cuts rendered children unable to study or even fulfil their basic needs. To tackle the power crisis, he developed his ground-breaking invention – the Outage Guard bulb. This low-cost solution is designed to provide uninterrupted lighting for up to 10 hours during power cuts.
This led him to create his brand Uday Electric, which has illuminated households in rural India across five states and sold over 7,500 units of his Outage Guard bulb. His efforts resulted in 950 families receiving stable and reliable power, enabling them to conduct their daily activities with ease, boosting their educational and employment opportunities. Uday is now dedicating his efforts to securing a patent for his innovative creation. He is also actively involved in conducting research on the power crisis to explore additional potential solutions.
He has been awarded for demonstrating a “remarkable entrepreneurial spirit” and an unwavering commitment to help others.
He said: “I believe the Diana Legacy Award has significantly acknowledged my efforts, serving as the highest honour and a tremendous motivator for me.
“More than just recognition, it has provided me with a launchpad and a vast network of connections to enhance my impact. I am now driven to ensure that every household in developing countries, not only my own, is illuminated and electrified. Looking ahead, I aim to focus on energy generation alongside energy storage, with the goal of lighting every house across the globe, one bulb at a time.”
*Info: Diana Legacy Awards 2024