Safeena Husain is an Indian social activist and entrepreneur. She is known to be the wife of famous film director Hansal Mehta. Safeena Husain is the founder of Educate Girls (EG), an organization dedicated to closing the pervasive gender gap in India.
Wiki/Biography
Safeena Husain was born on Friday, January 21, 1971, in Delhi, India (age 51; as of 2022). She completed her education from Delhi Public School, RK Puram, New Delhi. In 1995, she received a Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Economic History from the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE). In 2012, Safeena Husain completed Harvard Business School’s (HBS) Executive Education Program on Building Global Businesses in India. In 2015, Safeena Husain from Harvard Business School Executive Education completed the Strategic Perspectives on Nonprofit Management (SPNM) course.
family
parents
Her father’s name is Yusuf Bakshish Hussain. He is an actor and historian by profession.
Yusuf Bakshish Hussain, Safinah Hussain’s father
husband and children
Safeena Husain married famous film director Hansal Mehta on May 22, 2022 at Taj Campton Plaza in San Francisco, California.
Safeena and Hansal holding their marriage certificate
Safina Hussain has two daughters. The eldest daughter’s name is Kimaya.
Kimaya, daughter of Safina
Rihanna is the youngest daughter.
Rihanna, daughter of Safina
Relationships/Affairs
Before her marriage, Safeena Husain was in a live-in relationship with Hansal Mehta for 17 years.
Safeena Husain and Hansal Mehta
Profession
Work in the United States
Safina Hussain stayed in London for five years. After graduating from the London School of Economics (LSE) in 1995, Safina moved to San Francisco (Bay Area), where her economics degree helped her land a job in Silicon Valley. Initially, she started working for an internet-based startup that wanted to build a 3D web browser. However; after nine months of working there, the startup folded and Safina lost her job. Safeena wanted to work for social causes from the beginning. In 1995, she took a job with Children’s Family Health International (CFHI). As an employee, Safina visited several South American and Asian countries including Ecuador, Mexico, Bolivia, South Africa and India.
back to india
In 2007, after working for Children and Family Health International, Safeena Husain decided to quit her job and return to India to start her organization. Safeena was aware of the impact these organizations have on closing the gender gap when working with CFHI. When asked about the reason for starting Educate Girls, Safina said in an interview,
I came back to India to advance an agenda that is close to my heart – and that is girls’ education. From the beginning, I had a strong personal motivation to change the education system in India, mainly because I had found my own path in education. The goat is an asset and the girl is a liability. Parents are unwilling to invest in their daughters’ education. Why should we send her to school? She is going to live with her husband. What is the point of her study? “
In the early days of Educating Girls; Safina had to go through a lot of struggles. Safina said in an interview,
They called us mad dogs and slammed doors in our faces… none of which was surprising to us. We are strangers to those people and we try to convince them to challenge the status quo. Discussions about girls’ education were not as common then as they are today. But even now, when we move into a new territory, the resistance has the same core reason – mentality. “
Safeena started her organization in 2007 with just a handful of staff and volunteers. As of 2021, the Educate Girls program has enrolled more than 950,000 girls, benefiting more than 11.5 million families. The organization also has more than 2,000 full-time employees and is assisted by more than 15,000 community volunteers.
Recognition for her social work
Safeena Husain quickly came into the limelight for her work. In 2019, Safina Hussain gave a speech about her journey, life experiences and vision for the future. The speech captivated the audience. The video of her speech was uploaded by TEDx and has been viewed more than 1.7 million times.
Safeena Husain speaks at TEDx
In the same year, Safeena Husain was invited to participate in the talk show “Ted Talks India: Nayi Soch”. The talk show is hosted by Shah Rukh Khan and airs on Star Plus.
Safeena Husain with Indian Ted Talks host Shah Rukh Khan: Nayi Soch
In 2021, Educate Girls signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Department of Women Empowerment, Government of Rajasthan.
Rajasthan government signs MoU with Educate Girls
When asked about her experience working in government, Safina said:
We must build alliances with the government. By identifying government priorities in certain areas and supporting them to achieve their desired goals, we will have a shared vision for success. If the data tells us that the gender gap is largest in a certain area, we seek collaboration and obtain government permission to work in that area. “
In 2021, Safeena’s nonprofit partnered with Starbucks to promote Educating Girls (EG).
Starbucks placard at Indira Gandhi Airport in New Delhi
In 2020, during the second wave of the coronavirus outbreak in India, Educate Girls donated free rations and hygiene products to poor families in Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh. The relief supplies are being distributed under the organization’s COVID-19 relief plan. In 2021, Educate Girls launched the world’s first Development Impact Bond (DIB). DIB is recognized not only in India but also across the world. That same year, her organization was included in the Top 100: The Most Inspiring K-12 Educators.
safina hussain and country girl
Hold important positions in different organizations
In addition to being the Director of Educate Girls, Safeena Husain serves as a consultant to several social service organizations such as India Leaders for Social Sector (ILSS), EdHeroes, Bharat EdTech Initiative, Children’s Investment Fund Foundation (CIFF) and L’Oreal Paris. She also serves as a member of the Dalberg Quality Council, a community leader for the Community Leaders Impact Futures Project – Education, and is a director on the Workex Board of Directors.
Awards, Honors, Achievements
- In 2019, Safeena Husain was awarded the Beyond Business Award by The Economic Times.
Safeena Husain wins ET Prime Women in Leadership Award
- In 2017, Safeena Husain received the Women Changing India Award from NITI Aayog.
Safeena Husain talks to NITI Aayog on ‘Women Changing India’
- In 2016, Safeena Husain received the NDTV-L’Oreal Women of Distinction Award.
Safeena Husain wins NDTV-L’Oréal Women of Distinction Award
- In 2015, Safeena Husain was included in the list of the top 100 most influential women empowerment leaders in the world. The list is published by Empowering One Billion Women.
- In 2015, Safeena Husain won the Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship. The award was presented to her by the Skoll Foundation.
Safeena Husain wins Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship
- In 2015, Safeena Husain won the Qatar Foundation WISE Award.
Safeena Husain attended the World Education Innovation Summit
- In 2014, Safeena Husain received the Star Impact Award from the Star Foundation.
President Bill Clinton with Safina after the Star Power Awards
- In 2014, Safinah Hussein was awarded the USAID Millennium Alliance Award. The award was presented by Nitin Gadkari, Minister of Road Transport and Highways.
Safeena Husain at USAID Millennium Prize Ceremony
- In 2013, Safeena Husain was selected as a Rainer Arnhold Fellow.
- In 2012, Safeena Husain was selected as a Women Changemakers Fellow in India by the Foundation for Women in Geneva, Switzerland.
- In 2011, Safeena Husain was awarded the Edelgive Social Innovation Honor Award by the Edelgive Foundation.
- In 2011, Safeena Husain won the United Nations’ India Development Market Competition.
- In 2010, Safeena Husain received the Dasra Village Capital Award.
Facts/Trivia
- Safeena Husain calls the girl volunteers who work at Educate Girls “Balika Volunteers.”
Balika volunteers at Educate Girls
- Safeena Husain’s parents separated when she was very young. While living with her mother, Safina was often abused by her stepfather, so she fled to a convent. Safina said in an interview,
I felt like I was in a thousand pieces. Instead of going to college, I escaped to a monastery. I started living on the banks of the Ganges and started reading different types of scriptures. ”
- Safina Hussain counts her husband and father as her role models. She said in an interview,
For me, there are only two people who are equal role models that I look up to, and that is my father and my husband. They were all great cooks, which meant I never had to learn to cook. My vision of equality was their vision, so both my father and my husband reshaped my worldview. They are my role models. “
Categories: Biography
Source: HIS Education