What if leadership wasn’t about holding power, but giving it away? What if it wasn’t about command, but community?
The answer lies among the millions of people who shape the GivingTuesday movement every day.
And with our latest film Udarta ke Neta – Generous Leadership in Action – we’re seeing more answers take shape in vibrant, deeply local, and transformative ways across India.
A Movement, Not a Model
When GivingTuesday was born 13 years ago, its founders did something radical – they gave the idea away. They released it into the world, not as a brand to be managed, but as a movement to be shaped by many.
Why? Because they understood something crucial: the people closest to the challenges are also closest to the solutions. Communities know best what they need — and how to achieve those solutions.
Today, this principle of distributed leadership powers the GivingTuesday movement globally. It’s not about a single strategy or voice — it’s about millions of hyperlocal leaders, like Anurag, Baali, and Nargis in India, unlocking generosity in ways that are most true to their communities.
Generosity as a Leadership Superpower
In Udarta ke Neta, we meet leaders who aren’t waiting for permission, or recognition. They are already doing the work. They are creating change, not as lone heroes, but in deep collaboration with their communities.
Take Baali, a first-generation learner and now teacher from Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, who was part of the first cohort of the Starling India Collective. She’s reviving her native language by helping young children learn to read and write in Gondi, Ojha Gondi, and Pardhi. But she realizes she can’t do it alone. She’s involved community elders, storytellers, and artists — not just to teach, but to co-create songs, poems, and stories. Her leadership is about building collective pride and preserving Gond culture as a shared inheritance.
Or another Starling Nargis, a 21-year-old community leader working with Breakthrough Trust, from Sangam Vihar in Delhi, who was invited to lead a government workshop on reducing violence against women.
Or take Nargis, a 21-year-old community leader from Sangam Vihar in Delhi, working with Breakthrough Trust. She was invited to lead a government workshop on reducing violence against women. She chose not to lead alone. Instead, she brought in another young facilitator, believing that shared leadership would bring more depth and perspective. Despite initial resistance from the participants, both women (also, both named Nargis) slowly earned their trust, opening up conversations that had long been silenced. For Nargis, leadership means creating space — not just to speak, but to listen, learn, and share power.
And then there’s GivingTuesday community leader Anurag, founder of Manzil Mystics, a nonprofit that transforms lives through music. In 2023, inspired by the GivingTuesday movement, he reimagined their annual fundraising campaign. Instead of asking people to give to them, he asked them to give with them. Their campaign, #StrumASmile, encouraged people to spread joy and kindness through music — anywhere, to anyone. They celebrated other nonprofits, performed in public spaces, and invited others to join in. It wasn’t just a campaign, it became a sound wave of generosity! And in the end, this act of giving away the spotlight actually brought the organization more visibility and support than any past campaign.
The Power of Distributed Leadership
What connects these stories isn’t geography, funding, or even focus. It’s a shared belief in generosity as a force for change. These leaders are part of a larger, interconnected movement — one that thrives not on control, but on trust.
Because when communities are trusted to lead, they build what’s needed most: resilience. They forge bonds, respond faster, and act with cultural intelligence. And when these efforts are connected — across geographies, causes, and contexts — the result isn’t just impact. It’s sustainable change.
So, Why Does This Matter Now?
India has deep historical traditions and cultures of giving — but we can’t take them for granted. To keep generosity alive and evolving, we must invest in leaders who reflect it in action. Udarta ke Neta is more than a film — it’s a snapshot of a transformative kind of leadership. One that is already emerging in our gallis, bastis, and backyards.
Udarta ke Neta invites us to imagine a new future — one where generosity leads, and everyone has the power to act.
This is your invitation. Watch the film. Share it. Better yet — do you wish to be a part of the conversation?
