Creating a small, substitute safe space for a handful of children is not enough—we cannot rely on the ‘Oasis approach.’42 Protsahan’s vision goes further: the system itself must be strengthened to create lasting spaces of safety and concern. This means engaging directly with frontline duty bearers – teachers, child protection officers, lawyers, the judiciary, and the police. While no single organization can do everything, Protsahan makes strategic choices about which actors to work with, ensuring that its grassroots practice informs and influences systemic change.

“My visit to Protsahan’s GEC has been extremely delightful. The aspects that I have learned from them are areas I have never grappled with first-hand. Be it the fellowship program that strives to enhance the capacities of the young women from the low-income communities dwelling in and around Uttam Nagar, West Delhi is a powerful instrument through which Protsahan can groom them towards choosing better career options. Their skills are honed for joining various industries and government roles which in turn will help in eradicating poverty from these sections of society. The privacy of the kids that are enrolled in the centre for classes is well protected by a group of passionate teachers and guides who remained undisturbed by our visit. Moreover, the idea of Protsahan to remain connected to the community actually states their passion and concern towards these communities and particularly for the children. I have heard about Protsahan as an organization even before this visit but to know that they work for the community with such vigour has been a great learning to be honest. They gave us a subtle lesson as to what working at the grassroots means and also how continuous effort, despite myriads of hurdles can help realise the goal of preserving the rights of these girls and help them with a better future. The process of imparting wellness education on menstruation and SRHR through non-threatening forms of art, theater along with direct linkages to critical government services was, in my opinion, most path-breaking insight of my visit. There is always lots to learn from Team Protsahan.”

“Protsahan is an organization built from the heart. It brings a real change in the lives of the most underserved girls of our community. I have been supporting the Protsahan Girl Champion Program for over 18 months now, and it’s just incredible to see the passion and commitment of the team on ground, to work with each and every girl in the program to not only improve their daily lives but to teach them and empower them to dream to achieve a life that they never thought was possible.”

I really endorse Protsahan, even grassroots social workers are inspiring and speak with clarity like the organization’s CEO. That percolation is rare, and I would strongly recommend their work. Their focus on the neuroscience of childhood trauma care in India’s local contexts is pathbreaking. I have not seen this in my 33 years of work in the child protection space in India. I have learned a lot with them, both at different editions of Hriday Dialogues (their annual stakeholder consultation) and other CareVerse training in Delhi for Child Welfare Committees (CWCs) and District Child Protection Units (DCPUs).

“I had the most wonderful day yesterday at Protsahan and it was a beautiful reminder of why I do what I do. One thing that stood out for me was the dignity and respect with which the girls were treated at Protsahan Most girls the non-profit works with experience abuse and violence. I spent an entire day going around the different learning centres Protsahan runs in Uttam Nagar and not one team member introduced a girl with their story of abuse. I speak to a ton of non-profits and this is definitely not the norm. Intentionally or unintentionally, a lot of non-profits tend to play a huge part in making the trauma faced a part of their beneficiaries’ identities and fail to realize that this can have deep impact on the child and their sense of self while also subjecting them to triggers that can cause them pain. Sonal, I am incredibly grateful for all the work that you and your team do. It filled my heart to see how every member of your team treated every girl who walked into the centre with such love, empathy and respect. And I am amazed by how your entire team strives to support the girls in a deep and holistic way. Words cannot do justice to what I experienced interacting with the Rockstars you serve and work with. More power to you, your entire team and every girl you help find light.”

We are confident that Protsahan’s program is working well under it’s leadership. That confidence enables us to speak about Protsahan in different forums and to refer to the organization whenever opportunities arise.

“Protsahan is doing very important work to fight child sexual abuse and to empower adolescent girls through the power of education and creativity at the last mile. They have created very powerful resources like the colorful magnets, posters and more to build advocacy on the issue. They believe not just in prevention, but healing children by providing them safe spaces to be and thrive in.”

“I am so happy that Protsahan is spreading joy & art in the lives of young girls, lighting the lamps of empowerment and breaking their silence around violence through photography, music, dance and painting to encourage them. I believe in the power of creativity & musical slogans and with my young friends, I am getting inspired to do more and be more.”

Protsahan is bringing together grassroots NGOs through dialogues to build a collective community capable of addressing traumatic childhood experiences. These efforts have also contributed to policy shifts on issues such as sexual violence against children, positioning them as system leaders via a collaborative civil society model. They don’t go forward alone, they take hundreds of others along with them on this journey because they deeply understand they can’t solve this alone.

“Protsahan girls have created very beautiful Madhubani art, showing a woman cricketer who is not afraid to follow her dreams. Thank you for your work to empower girls through education and creativity.”

Protsahan goes beyond service provision. Even while driving systems change, the approach consistently keeps children’s well-being at the core. It creates spaces that are not just about education or information, but about safety, healing, and the courage to rethink one’s life. By addressing trauma head-on, it builds spines where social conditioning has weakened them — offering girls an alternate conditioning rooted in dignity and resilience. Systems, after all, are made of people. And when individuals heal and transform, systems begin to change.

“Protsahan is an incredible idea; built with persistence, commitment and a hunger to create a better world… Their contribution towards building a manual on psychosocial aid for children along with capacity building trainings, will help the CHILDLINE network of hundreds of frontline workers reach out to children in distress with more tools, more skills and more clarity! We look forward to doing more together in the years ahead.”