Richa Gupta, co-founder and CEO of Labhya, was recognized at the 11th Annual Muhammad Ali Humanitarian Awards, held on Saturday, November 9, 2024, in Louisville, Kentucky, USA. Richa, a globally recognized social entrepreneur and advocate for children’s well-being and education in India, was one of the distinguished honorees at this prestigious event. She accepted the award on behalf of Labhya, a nonprofit that integrates well-being programs into India’s public education system, deeply impacting the well-being and mental health of millions of vulnerable children.
Richa was awarded for embodying Muhammad Ali’s values of compassion and service to others. Under her leadership, Labhya is making a significant impact on over 2.4 million children across 22,000+ government schools in India. “We are not stopping till we impact 30 million children by 2030!” says the young social entrepreneur.
This year’s Muhammad Ali Humanitarian Awards also celebrated other outstanding individuals for their contributions to youth empowerment and social change. NBA Hall of Famer, Shaquille O’Neal, received the Muhammad Ali Humanitarian of the Year Award, while Grammy-Award-winning music producer, Nile Rodgers, was honored with the Global Citizenship Award. Public interest attorney, Bryan Stevenson, received the Lifetime Achievement Award, and award-winning journalist Dawne Gee was recognized as the Kentucky Humanitarian.
The event celebrated Richa Gupta alongside other young changemakers, including Deja Foxx, Sophia Kianni, Shah Chowdhury, Mohammad Yasir, Lianna Genovese, and Charlot Magayi, who are all committed to enacting sustainable and positive change, globally. Together, these young leaders exemplify the values and vision of ‘The Greatest’, Muhammad Ali, continuing his legacy of service, justice, and empowerment.
The Muhammad Ali Humanitarian Awards, established in 2013 by Muhammad Ali’s wife, Lonnie Ali, and his family, honor individuals whose work and lives reflect the core principles that defined the legendary boxing champion, humanitarian, and global icon. The Seasoned Awards celebrates those who have dedicated their lives to service, while the Six Core Principles Awards spotlight young changemakers.
About Muhammad Ali Center
The Muhammad Ali Center, located in Louisville, Kentucky, USA, is a multicultural center and museum inspired by the ideals of Muhammad Ali. It is dedicated to promoting respect, hope, and understanding while inspiring people to be as great as they can be. Through its awards and initiatives, the Center upholds Ali’s legacy by honoring individuals and organizations working toward social change.
About Labhya:
Labhya is a visionary education nonprofit that has pioneered the children’s wellbeing movement in India. Labhya is dedicated to institutionalizing programs that improve the quality of education and wellbeing for children in government schools of India.
Comprehensive content platform covers mental health news, guest posts, features, interviews, podcasts, and more to guide Indians on their mental journey; aims to be the ‘WebMD of mental health’ for India
Bangalore, Jan. 13, 2023 – Metta Media has announced the launch of MyndStories – India’s first platform for verified, accurate mental health content exclusively for Indians.
MyndStories offers comprehensive mental health content tailored to an Indian audience through features, news, interviews, podcasts, first-person essays, curated therapists, and support groups. The platform empowers Indians through their mental health journey with professionally vetted and fact-checked content providing guidance, advice, and insights. All articles on MyndStories are reviewed by a mental health professional or therapist and fact-checked by an editorial board member with a healthcare background.
MyndStories also has a growing number of facilitators and expert coaches for their community-led group therapy support circles called Spaces. The platform seeks to provide more conversations around mental health, given that:
As per recent surveys, almost 150 million Indians require mental health services, but stigma and lack of resources form big barriers to reaching out for support – less than 30 million people seek help.
MyndStories is led by Smitha Murthy and Swati Nair, who have worked across companies like IBM, Egon Zehnder, Thomas White International, and Bosch in diverse, content-related roles for 35 years, cumulatively. They also founded India’s first offbeat travel aggregator in Trippin Traveller, and run a content firm for startups in LifeWordsmith.
Speaking on the launch, MyndStories co-founder Smitha Murthy says, “We believe that post-Covid-19, there’s a huge shift in how people look at wellness and in terms of what they seek online. This is where immersive, inclusive content on mental wellness can help. We want to be the voice of mental health for Indians.”
“We aim to empower people to make the best decisions for their wellness, to create more awareness around mental health by making content that will enhance the quality of our lives. We want to strip the current hesitancy, embarrassment, stigma, and all the other walls surrounding mental health conversations. We want to make mental health conversations cool,” adds co-founder Swati Nair. MyndStories is part of Metta Media Pvt Ltd.
MyndStories, found at www.myndstories.com is India’s first independent mental health content platform that offers original, fact-checked content, news, research, support groups, and podcasts updated daily. MyndStories is based in Bangalore, India, and is owned by Metta Media Pvt. Ltd.
From increased empathy to improved critical thinking, tabletop board games play a vital role in our neurological and emotional development.
Some of my most cherished memories are of playing board games with friends and family. The mere mention of “pass go, collect Rs.200” brings back memories of building hotels and charging my parents rent when they land on my property. It was a nice change of pace from reality! Had I known that there were real benefits to playing board games, I might have honed my skills a bit more. Now that I’m aware, you’ll see me at whatever game night I can find!
There are so many distractions in the world nowadays, and board games help us live in the moment. Instead of doing something that leaves you forgetting some of your most valuable skills, you should consider something a little more challenging, like a board game. With some practice, you can expect better literacy, numeracy, and socialization, to name just a few of the many benefits.
Who knew games could make you smarter?
When you play board games, you stimulate areas of your brain that help you form memories and carry out different thought processes. Board games require critical thinking and help you practice things like decision-making, problem-solving, and strategic planning. Just like you exercise your other muscles to stay in shape, your brain needs to be exercised in order for you to develop and learn.
When you try a new board game, you get exposed to a new set of rules in a new context. You have a chance to gain a new perspective and learn aspects of the game that you can use in real life. Whether your game teaches an old cultural story from centuries ago or focuses on modern geography, there’s always an opportunity to learn something new.
Learning life lessons with tabletop board games
You might not think about learning important life lessons when you’re sitting down to play a game with friends or family, but they exist. If you want to win, you’ll need to be patient and set goals for yourself. I know that I learned a lot about discipline when I look back at the games I played growing up. Even if the game is simple, you’ll always be thinking about the next step, which is something you need to practice in everyday life to find success.
All about empathy
When you learn new things and gain a new perspective, it leads to a greater sense of empathy and understanding. Even if the game itself has nothing to do with a specific person’s background, board games teach a certain amount of patience that we can take into our daily life. When you play board games with others you also have a chance to understand someone else’s behavior in a new way. I don’t know about you, but I think we can all benefit from that!
Connect with your community
Humans are social by nature and having a sense of community is an important part of our survival. Most board games come with a whole community of people interested in them, some fans being more serious than others. Luckily, digital technology makes it easy to find people with similar interests to ours, so even if your close friends and family don’t feel like playing at the same moment as you do, there’s more than likely a forum online discussing topics you’d be interested in.
When you play board games with friends you get to have a sense of inclusion. You are given a purpose for that period of time and don’t have to worry about filling in any blanks or awkward silences. All you need to worry about is how you’re going to play. Not only does this make it easier to focus, but for those who are usually shy, socializing with some sort of structure can give you the confidence you didn’t know you had.
Mind your mental health
Now more than ever, people are taking their mental health more seriously. Sometimes life feels like it’s moving too fast and all we really need to do is slow down for a moment. Tabletop board games are one of my favorite ways to decompress. It’s a perfect moment to spend with friends and family and share a laugh. Just the simple act of laughter and enjoyment will lower your stress levels. Interacting with loved ones in a meaningful way will also improve your relationships and lead to better mental health.
Level up your skills
Depending on the specific game, you’ll get to work on math and language skills. Many games depend on calendars, points, or storytelling. It’s most common that board games have some type of combination of math and language involved in the play. If you have any little ones at home, board games are a great way to introduce new concepts in a fun and engaging way. You’ll be able to harness their attention much easier if there is competition and reward involved.
What is Shastranga?
Aside from being the world’s first modern Indian board game, Shahstranga combines astrology and astronomy, representing over 7500 years of star sequence. It quickly brings the thrill of traveling the night sky to your living room. This highly coveted board game is perfect for a collector with taste. Much like the virtues listed above, Shastranga offers discipline and regimen to regular life. Players will hear memorable stories and learn lessons to last a lifetime. https://youtu.be/D895uqovIZU
While the ideal number of participants is four, you can play this strategy game with two to six players. Full of realistic challenges, this board of 35 playing squares, 27 stars, and 8 temples is sure to take you to another world—right from where you’re sitting.
This beautifully constructed game is highly coveted in India and is a true representation of thoughtful craftsmanship, planning, and tradition. You’ll learn how to survive in the face of adversity and absorb life lessons that you’ll want to pass on for a lifetime.
At the end of the day, tabletop board games should be part of every person’s regular routine. Whether you play something once a month or a few times a week, board games help you exercise parts of your brain that you might otherwise not utilize. In today’s technology-obsessed world, it’s important to take time away from our devices and engage in something different, even if it’s for a short time.
Our world is a constant changing platform wherein something which is important and relevant today might not be that relevant tomorrow. In these times, the only topic which is day by day growing in its importance is Mental Wellness. It’s time to bring this topic out of the closet. Mental health not only includes our psychological wellbeing but also our emotional and social wellbeing. It influences an individual’s thoughts, emotions, and even behaviour in various life situations. Mental health determines how a person handles stressful situations, interpersonal relationships and successfully caters to their peace of mind. Mental wellness is a very important part of our lives which still remains ignored by many. Mental wellness should not only be taken into account when there is some evident mental illness but it’s also important to take care of it in our everyday lives.
There is a growing need for today’s generation to gain awareness about mental Health. Now that mental health is less of a taboo, it needs to gain a platform wherein people can understand how to successfully take care of their own mental health. Our world has recently gone through a global pandemic which was not only a vulnerable period for our physical health but also an equally vulnerable period for our mental health. This makes it a more critical time to focus on how to maintain our mental wellness. As people went through massive life stressors, some of which they might not have faced before, their mental health condition was surely at stake. Starting from adjusting to everything going online such as schools and colleges to staying at home suddenly without being able to go out, these stressful situations were faced by all. In such times, we need to make sure that we do something to ensure better mental wellness.
This is precisely the reason why we should make mental health more of a global priority. In developing countries, like India, mental health is still a concept for the rich. There are innumerable numbers of people going through various mental health illnesses but still do not come forward to seek help because of the social taboos and financial issues associated with it. With growing mental health issues, there is a growing need for quality treatment in India which is seldom fulfilled. Over one lakh fifty thousand MBBS students pass out every year and almost fifteen lakhs engineers graduate each year in India, but the number of mental health professionals to graduate each year is incredibly low. This produces a huge gap in providing the mental wellness care our country now needs. The treatment gap is further widened by the personal and social beliefs in the majority of people along with the unavailability of affordable and quality treatment opportunities.
The road to mental wellbeing, therefore, starts with social awareness. We need to take care of our mental state and start doing things for ourselves. There are small efforts which we can take to make ourselves feel better. Finding time for yourself, doing something which you absolutely love, cultivating a new hobby, practicing mindfulness and different relaxation techniques, regular exercise and journaling are a few of the many things which might be helpful not only in maintaining happiness and life satisfaction in our daily lives but also would help to come through any stressful situations. Along with that, it is also very important to understand that whenever we are in any overwhelming situation, it’s better to ask for professional help. Seeking help is an important step towards taking care of our own mental wellbeing. It doesn’t make us look weak; rather it shows how much we care for our health and love ourselves.
MindPlus is one of the leading mental health service providers in India. Mind Plus is accredited by NABH. We provide a high-quality service at par with international healthcare standards. We aim to provide innovative, consistent and continuously improving preventive and rehabilitative mental health services to sustain and further improve clinical outcomes, patient safety & patient satisfaction. We believe in building trust by being respectful, open, and transparent. We treat individuals whilst maintaining their rights and dignity and that of their families. We work in a multidisciplinary team to make a treatment plan which caters to the overall needs of the patient. The treatment plan not only includes medications and psychotherapy but also includes the needed social skills training, awareness, and support for the patient as well as their caregivers. Mind plus is not only a mental wellness hospital which gives the young professionals an opportunity to provide quality care to the patients but it also gives us the platform to raise much-needed awareness in the community.
An Indian startup, MoodBridge, is shadowing mental health taboos, thus impacting the world with an aim to manage your emotional health at home.
While depression and anxiety are a part of everyday life for several people, the gap between people needing care and those with access to care remains substantial, meaning adequate treatment coverage remains extremely low. In 2011 alone, there were 0.047 psychologists, 0.301 psychiatrists, and 0.166 nurses per 100,000 mental-health patients in India.
“People adjust to emotional pain rather than dealing with it. So we felt an urge to build a support system that can hold every member of our world to help them fight loneliness, overcome addictions, and cope with other mental disorders to bring them back to a place of light and hope.”
~ Founders Mohammad Bohari and Taha Saifee on the startup’s mission.
An on-demand emotional wellness platform, MoodBridge, comprised of professional therapists, trained active listeners, and self-care tools, is coming your way!
Recognized by Startup India, MoodBridge offers multi-dimensional services under one advanced and safe deep technology powered by a compassionate community, caring and trained active listeners, experienced therapists, smart growth paths, and self-care tools.
“Think about your family and friends and guess about the stress they get daily, but they might not feel comfortable sharing their emotional discomforts with those around them. So, the big aim is to build the best emotional support system for the internet because it lets people be anonymous and seek the help they wouldn’t otherwise seek.”
~ Founders Mohammad Bohari and Taha Saifee explained how they plan to break the stigma around mental health.
The platform will also have many self-help guides for different types of emotional issues ranging from anxiety attacks to practicing self-forgiveness, thus strongly influencing the world and helping thousands of lives who need emotional and mental health support.
“MoodBridge is for anyone who wants to live in a world rich with love and support. We understand that each of us is inherently valuable, and we see our differences as a strength. We are connected in our shared purpose of creating a place where all can find acceptance and be welcomed to a home where we all belong.”
~ The Founders told the press.
The startup’s official website is currently in the works, but its presence can be found on Instagram.
![[COMING SOON] Mental Health Startup, MoodBridge, Aims To Deliver The Best Emotional Support On The Internet!](https://indiapressreleases.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/MOODBRIDGE_MENTAL_HEALTH_ARTICLE_ILLUSTRATION-750x350.jpg)
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