Physics student, illustrator and co-founder of Delhi Zine Collective, Borishan Ghosh believes a folded sheet of paper can still command attention like no Instagram post could.

For Borishan Ghosh, a piece of paper is never just a piece of paper. Fold it the right way and it
might just change your life.
Zines first entered Ghosh’s life when his friend Rinchan, sick of being limited to Canva posts in
the name of art, first showed him one she had made. There isn’t anything remarkable about a
zine. Essentially a mini-magazine, it is composed of a single hand-designed A4 sheet folded
into shape.
“Everyone asks us how we sell this stuff,” laughs the young co-founder of Delhizine, the largest
charitable student-run collective of its kind. Pop-up stalls full of these tiny zines have often
attracted the confused customer, but in that moment of amusement lies the zine’s power. Ghosh
goes on to explain, “I know that every customer of ours has read the zine they bought from
cover-to-cover. Once you hold it in your hand, you don’t have anything to do but read it. It’s
more than you can say for any Instagram post.”
There is something about zines that feels refreshingly authentic in today’s content landscape.
Zines began in the late 1930s as ‘fanzines’, where science-fiction fans discussed novels and
theories at a fraction of the cost of formal publications. It was this accessibility and immense
scope for distribution that fascinated Ghosh and Rinchan. Anybody could have a piece of art out
on a two-rupee printer sheet. Impressed by the sheer heart of the concept, Ghosh decided to
give it a shot himself, uploading his onto a scrappy website he built. From there, things started
falling into place almost by accident.
Today, the Delhi Zine Collective collaborates with various organisations and collectives to
design, produce, and distribute zines, often centred around personal memoirs, political causes
or sheer whimsy. The project has brought together a community of artists and writers. Yet,
according to Ghosh, much of it happened organically. “We barely did any marketing,” he says.
“We just made an email domain and people started writing to us.”
The people he meets have become his favourite part of the project. Zines, he believes, allow
people to reveal parts of themselves they would never otherwise share. Contributors send in
pieces about everyday memories, personal struggles, or fleeting observations — be it a
bittersweet goodbye to an apartment cat or creative interpretations of one’s gender identity.
Holding a finished zine often changes how they see their own writing and art.
“There are literally no rules to zines,” Ghosh says. “You’ve lived seventeen years on this
planet—you already have something to say.”

For Ghosh, the zine is simply another extension of an ever-restless curiosity. A physics student
who illustrates, writes, and reads philosophy with equal enthusiasm, he has never been
comfortable being told what to create—something he says is partly why he repeatedly failed
formal art exams. That independence now defines the ethos of DelhiZine. With plans to pursue
a master’s in mathematics while continuing the project remotely, Ghosh seems unfazed by the
logistics. When asked how he would balance it all, he shrugs it off: “It’s not that hard. You just
staple a bunch of papers.”

Profiled by: Anjali Paruvvu

Avni has delivered over 50 performances and workshops on spoken word poetry but beyond the stage, who is she when the applause fades? An intimate exploration of the artist, where poetry becomes both a mirror and a means of connection.

A lot of axioms on life have been articulated and argued over our existence over what makes a life good,
what achieves happiness, what is the purpose. All is well and good, but one central claim that seems to
have stuck in the mind of Avni, a Delhi-based spoken word artist from Jesus and Mary College, DU, is
the undeniable important of connection with oneself and others and poetry as the fuel that sustains it.
I met her at Lodhi Gardens, an apt scenery to talk about anything art and creation. She had another
engagement in an hour, to watch and review a play nearby. A life occupied by engagement with art.
How wonderful.
Her journey into writing began, like many others, with reading. From her early encounter with Little
Women, she discovered literature’s ability to stretch the self across lives and experiences. That sense of
empathy became central to her work. At 13, encouraged by a pen pal who insisted that writing was
simply about “feeling”, she wrote her first poem. A fleeting moment, a picture of moon, a car ride
home. Hearing her speak about this reminded me of a poem by William Blake,
“To see a world in a grain of sand
And a heaven in a wild flower,
Hold infinity in the palm of your hand
And eternity in an hour.”
It seems that through her performances and workshops, Avni strives to achieve something similar.
Embodying the romantic spirit, she moved towards a form that speaks to the ordinary people around
her. Discovering spoken word through artists like Megha Rao on YouTube was a turning point; she
was drawn to the urgency and power of the medium, particularly its history of being used to speak
about things that need to be heard.
Though she describes herself as a “stage person” (she was kind enough to read out loud a few poems to
me and really the aura shines through her words), who performed for the first time in 10th grade, her
professional commitment solidified during a December 2023 workshop by the Delhi Poetry Slam.
Seeing mature poets in their 60s still practicing their craft taught her that while talent is a start,
discipline and endurance are what keep art alive.

In college, her role further grew to be a community builder as the Vice President of the Poetry Society
at Jesus and Mary College. poetry, once a deeply solitary pursuit, became a shared space. She worked to
create something resembling a living, breathing “Dead Poets Society,”.
Her work extends beyond performance. Since the age of thirteen, she has maintained a digital
sanctuary that evolved from a space for book reviews and PR campaigns into a platform for long-form
articles on the complexities of the modern world. Whether she is dissecting the environmental impact
of fast fashion or the problematic tropes of pop culture, her writing remains an extension of that same
curiosity that once drew her to the “mysteries” of mathematics.
The true weight of her conviction was tested during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic. As the
second wave devastated Delhi, Avni pivoted her blog into a critical resource hub for verified oxygen
leads for those in desperate need.
It is perhaps in moments like these that her poetry finds its meaning:
“i want to fall in love everyday
but there is so much grief
and so much love.
and i know it’s here.
it’s me. it’s you.”
I want to fall in love everyday
Avni Jain

Profiled by: Yashika

For Bhavya Tripathi, shooting isn’t simply a sport, but the very building blocks of her life. In her own words, “Shooting is Me. I am Shooting. I don’t know who I would be without it”. It is perhaps this act of incorporating the sport into every aspect of her life which has paved the way for her tremendous success as a sportsperson.

Bhavya is an international-level trap shooter, who has been the Asian Champion in Individual Trap at the 15th Asian Shooting Championship in Korea. She is a national record holder, who has consistently represented India on the world stage, at world cups, championships, and Olympic qualifiers. She is a member of the Indian National Squad and a Khelo India Athlete, and has also represented Delhi University at the national level.

While shooting for Bhavya only started off as a recreational activity, her experiences as a sportsperson changed that. It was in 2022 at the Junior Shooting World Cup, when she received her first international medal, a silver, when she felt something ignite within her. Since then shooting decidedly transformed from an activity she didn’t enjoy as a child, to one she can’t imagine her life without.

The life of a sportsperson demands intensity, discipline and hard work. While it is incredibly challenging to manage her hectic life, it is in her family’s support, the ability to represent her nation, and her drive to succeed which keep Bhavya going despite the myriad of challenges which come her way. She also greatly values the critical support provided to her by Khelo India, and their personnel of coaches, physiotherapists, nutritionists, and others. 

Moreover, being a female sportsperson comes with its own set of challenges, not only as criticism and mockery, but also as being perceived to be lesser than male sportspeople. According to Bhavya, her time at school and Lady Shri Ram College, has instilled in her the belief that “being a woman doesn’t bring you down, it uplifts you.” As a sportsperson, she practices this belief everyday, and makes it a point to speak her mind, and openly ask questions.

After an exceptional career as a junior, Bhavya is readily eyeing the future. While she is currently training for the All India Inter University Games, and the subsequent Junior World Cup in Cairo, this will be her last year of her junior career. Afterwards, she hopes to transition to a senior team, and finally realise any sportsperson’s ultimate dream – representing India at the Olympic Games and winning an Olympic medal. 

Bhavya discusses even an undeniably daunting task such as qualifying for the Olympics with a sense of ease. Her goals outside of her career – learning how to fly a plane, ride a horse, surf, and ski – carry a similar undercurrent of adventure and tenacity which characterise her as a sportsperson. There’s no arguing when she boldly declares, “I’m made for this.”

Profiled by: Mangalya Singh

At 21, Avishi Gupta represents a distinctive model of student leadership—one that moves decisively from lived experience to structured, scalable impact. A Commerce student at Delhi College of Arts and Commerce, University of Delhi, she has consistently demonstrated an ability to translate research, empathy, and institutional collaboration into ventures that deliver measurable outcomes.

Her most notable initiative, Project Riayat, emerged from a personal encounter with the challenges faced by a family member with a lower limb disability. What began as an observation soon developed into a rigorous inquiry. Avishi and her team conducted primary research through surveys, interviews, and field visits at the Pandit Deendayal Upadhyaya National Institute for Persons with Physical Disabilities, engaging directly with wheelchair users, amputees, and differently-abled performers. These insights informed the design of adaptive clothing solutions—such as side-zippered trousers for prosthetic users, adjustable garments for wheelchair users, and innovations addressing challenges like menstruation management during performances.

However, Riayat’s intervention extends beyond product design. By partnering with organisations such as the Family of Disabled (FOD) and the National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS), Avishi has embedded inclusion within the production process itself. The initiative currently engages 25–30 individuals with disabilities in manufacturing, while impacting over 100 beneficiaries through skill development, employment, and market access. The model integrates both B2B and B2C channels, with revenues directed back to the creators, thereby fostering financial independence alongside social dignity. Riayat has also conducted desensitisation workshops, reaching over 800 individuals, and secured significant orders, including a 350-unit production request, reflecting both demand and scalability.

As President of Enactus DCAC, Avishi has led a 150+ member team across six departments, overseeing more than 120 business meetings, 70 on-ground visits, and upwards of 30 strategic collaborations. Under her leadership, the organisation’s projects have achieved national recognition, including a 3rd position at the Enactus India National Exposition 2023. Her role as Strategic Innovations Consultant for Project Zaraat further highlights her versatility, driving solar-powered agricultural storage solutions that have benefited over 3,000 farmers.

Avishi’s professional experiences reinforce this blend of analytical precision and practical execution. During her tenure at Ernst & Young (EY), she conducted detailed audits of employee costs, identifying inefficiencies exceeding 15% and contributing to a 20% improvement in financial accuracy. Her work also streamlined audit processes, reducing completion time by 30%. At uBreathe, she developed segmentation and positioning strategies, led market and competitor analysis, and facilitated influencer collaborations, while her research internship with the BRICS Chamber of Commerce and Industry culminated in a comparative study of startup ecosystems across BRICS+ nations and a policy paper on India’s EdTech landscape.

Her achievements span over several awards in business competitions and research forums, including top positions at institutions such as IGDTUW, Lady Irwin College, and Jamia Millia Islamia. She has also been recognised for public speaking and academic excellence, securing 95% in her CBSE Class XII examinations and ranking in the 99th percentile in Business Studies, Economics, and English in CUET 2022.

Featured in platforms such as The Better India and YourStory, Gupta’s work has received national visibility, not merely for its innovation but for its emphasis on dignity, accessibility, and systemic change. What distinguishes her is her capacity to build at the intersection of empathy and execution—designing ventures that are not only socially conscious but operationally robust. In doing so, Avishi Gupta exemplifies a new generation of young leaders who are redefining entrepreneurship as a tool for inclusive and sustained impact.

In her own words, Deepika Bhardwaj is someone who is curious, adaptable, and focused on growth. A B.Sc. (Hons) Electronics student at Sri Venkateswara College, University of Delhi, Deepika works relentlessly at the intersection of technology and and social impact. She has worked on projects such as the the creation of Edunex and InfoGlobe chatbots as part of her research internship at SRIVIPRA. These are AI based platforms which aim at building a convenient interface for the user in order to increase accessibility in terms of information and support. In addition to this, she has worked on building CyberGuardian, an AI-powered cybercrime detection platform. Her experience interning as a Gurugram Police Cyber Security Summer Intern (GPCSSI’25) contributed to her exposure to cybercrime awareness, digital safety, and in understanding the practical challenges in maintaining cybersecurity amongst the public.

Deepika enjoys exploring new avenues in the field of technology, stays consistent in her efforts whatever they may be, and is always looking for a way to improve her abilities such that she is able to create a greater impact in her community. She expressed her strong feelings paticularly towards ensuring access to meaningful guidance and opportunities, especially for students who don’t have enough exposure to these. A few months ago, she conducted a small career guidance session for students in a government school, which made her realize the extent to which even basic clarity is able to significantly impact a student’s direction–in their lives, careers, and with regard to decisions as a whole. This specific experience made her realize that working on such issues is something she would like to keep contributing to in the future by helping students make more informed choices. 

More than anything, Deepika is driven by her goal of becoming independent and building something meaningful with the skills she gained in the process. Her commitment to community is evident in her role as a Google Campus Ambassador, under which she was able to interact with a vast student network, in addition to leading initiatives on campus and promoting student programs run by Google. She has also led departmental activities and coordinates student-run initiatives under the Electronics Department of her college, first as the Joint Secretary and now as the President. 

She explained that, in the short term, her goal is to strengthen her technical skills and secure a professional position where she is able to effectively apply what she has learned until then, as well as to continue growing. In the long run, she would want to build a strong and stable career in the field of technology, achieve financial independence, and eventually use her skills to create impactful solutions that add real value to her community and society as a whole.

Profiled by: Manya Marwah

“Agar tum kisi cheez ko bade dil se chaho, toh poori kainaat tumhe usse milane ki koshish mein lag jaati hai” – a line made iconic by Shah Rukh Khan – is the motto Jaya Paul lives by. A total top-down SRK-coded personality, Jaya isn’t just living a life studded in a Khan trilogy; she is living a life dedicated to service, as she frames it through the words of Mahatma Gandhi: “The best way to find yourself is to lose yourself in the service of others.”

Jaya, a student at Lady Shri Ram College for Women, has built a community of hundreds dedicated to service. As the Cultural Secretary of her college’s NSS, she has been responsible for an amazing collection of events. Even in the midst of making things “cool” for the new generation, she hasn’t forgotten those in exclusion. With a strong focus on accessibility and inclusivity, she has transformed events – bringing in a dedicated accessibility team to ensure every individual, especially persons with disabilities (PwD), gets an equal opportunity to experience them. For her, inclusion is simple: the moment we try to define it, we begin inviting exclusion. Her work has been recognised by several entities, including the Equal Opportunity Cell of her college.

She has also held massive drives, one of the most widely recognised being a blood donation drive that saw a turnout of over 100 people. Describing it as one of the most learning and interesting experiences of her life, Jaya reflects on how far this journey has brought her.

Calling herself an SRK girl, Jaya shares how she is now living the dream she once had. Coming from a very different background in West Bengal, her life completely transformed upon arriving in Delhi. She expanded her wings, understood the power of manifestation, and stepped into her own journey – one inspired deeply by her father, whose values of service continue to guide her.

Her activism goes beyond campus, extending all the way to Mumbai. As part of the Mark Your Presence initiative, she has worked on policy issues ranging from Aarey Colony degradation to collaborating with young political voices like Anish Gawande. Her work reflects a grounded, on-foot understanding of the nation’s policy landscape.

This technical foundation was further strengthened during her internship with a Member of Parliament during the Monsoon Session 2025, where she assisted in drafting parliamentary briefs on sustainable urbanisation and gaps in India’s development framework. Currently, as she works with Gurmehar Kaur on research and article development, she continues to learn how to translate complex social issues into narratives that build public and political awareness.

In moments of lightness, she jokes about switching lives with SRK. Yet, she also embraces vulnerability with equal honesty. She speaks about crying not as a moment of weakness, but as a channel – one that allows her to reflect, reconnect with herself, and grow stronger in her own skin.

Jaya carries the excitement of Shah Rukh Khan, but leads with the humility of the Father of the Nation.

Profiled by: Rahul Kumar

Lalnundika Darlong arrived at Shri Ram College of Commerce with a confession he is one of the first to make: he initially chose the institution because the classrooms had air conditioning.

What followed was a collegiate career that most would assume was the result of ruthless calculation. Before graduating, Darlong had secured internships at EY-Parthenon, Deloitte USI, Nestlé, and IBM. He became a UN Millennium Fellow, won national corporate case competitions, and rose to the highest student position at SRCC’s storied Placement Cell. Yet, he insists none of this was the execution of a master plan.

“I approached college like a kid exploring a daycare,” he notes. “Playing with different toys to see how they worked, rather than a kid being handed a pre-packaged toy set and told exactly how to play with it.”

That instinct, to wander before committing, is the throughline of Darlong’s trajectory. Having grown up across Panama, Bhutan, Seychelles, Romania, and India, adapting to new environments is his baseline. It fundamentally shapes his approach to leadership. As Chief Secretary of The Placement Cell, SRCC, overseeing more than eighty members and directing vital PwD recruitment drives, he learned that influence is rarely top-down. “True change rarely comes from the top of the food chain,” he observes. “It requires nurturing the grassroots that others ignore.”

Darlong is unusually candid about the high-achievement systems that often select him. He calls out the survivorship bias inherent in corporate and academic ladders with the precision of someone who has benefited from them but refuses to be blinded by them.

“We assume those selected are inherently the top one per cent, rather than realising they simply become defined as such by the act of selection”, he explains, pointing to the unseen variables and sheer, irrational humanity that often dictate success or failure.

This grounded perspective was hard-won. For Darlong, his most transformative moment wasn’t a missed corporate offer or a failed pitch, but a quiet reckoning. When a junior he had barely interacted with thanked him for being an “amazing senior”, he was struck by how little he had actually assisted her. The gratitude packed a punch, revealing a blind spot: he had misjudged the immense weight of small kindnesses. A resume, he realised, is just paper; the people you impact are the reality.

That visibility carries its own distinct weight. Whether he is the only undergraduate on a team of IIM Bangalore interns, discussing the NEP 2020 with the UGC Chairman, or receiving the Hora Gold Medal from the Chief Minister of Delhi, Darlong represents more than just his own ambition. As a college professor once pointed out, seeing a student from the Northeast break into these exclusive spaces helps others shatter the glass ceilings they have built for themselves.

Beneath the ranks and certificates, Lalnundika’s sights are set on a broader horizon. He is drawn to the complex intersections of public administration, geography, and human nature, striving to remain a generalist in a world that relentlessly demands specialisation.

And if the structured, high-achieving corporate spaces disappeared tomorrow? He doesn’t miss a beat.

“I shall simply perfect the intricate science and art of brewing a phenomenal cup of masala chai and run a quiet little shop,” he says. “Sometimes the most profound societal shifts start over a warm cup of tea anyway.”

Profiled by: Anjali Kumari Jha

“I want to build the machine that builds the machine” has been the philosophy which has guided Niyamat Kochhar’s work, from founding Menstra, a project aimed at addressing period poverty and menstrual waste, to serving as a member of the Youth Committee of the 70th Commission on the Status of Women (CSW70): she has been actively engaged in advocacy, engagement and social entrepreneurship.

Niyamat credits her upbringing and the experiences and opportunities at school for laying the groundwork for her foray into the social advocacy field. She sees her work in the field as a source of fulfillment and her experiences only strengthened her resolve to create an impact. “The more people I interacted with, the more I realised this is what I want to work on.”

Since starting out in Grade 8, she has accomplished a lot. Aside from her involvement in Menstra and CSW70, she has also served as a Global Teen Advisory Board member for Girl Up, a UN Foundation Initiative, organised HerCode, a coding camp for girls from marginalised communities, and connected with activists, young leaders and policymakers globally. She was recently featured in a New York Times article on women and leadership.

A pivotal part in her journey was her experience at a STEAM camp in Kochi, hosted by Girl Up and the UN Foundation, where she had the opportunity to meet women from different parts of the world. Meeting people of diverse backgrounds, and learning of their unique struggles and adversities – such as her roommates who had shared their experiences with civil war and daily unrest – was for Niyamat a testament not only to women’s grit and determination, but also the possibilities of what people could achieve if they had equitable access to the tools and resources only readily available to a chosen few.

Her experiences as a first-year in JMC has given her a similar exposure. Interactions with her professors and her fellow students have simultaneously helped expand her understanding of women’s experiences, and reinforced her commitment to her mission of equitability and gender justice.

With considerable accolades and experience under her belt, Niyamat has big plans for the future. She aims to scale Menstra further and provide support to 10,000+ menstruators including trans and intersex people to secure biodegradable menstrual products, and adopt efficient strategies for disposing menstrual waste, and engage volunteers worldwide.

Niyamat Kochhar possesses a sense of clarity and composure that can make one forget they’re talking to so young a person. Her varied roles as advocate, strategist, and leader in national and international spaces requires effort and rigour, but what carries her through the inevitable challenges and stresses is her passion and faith in the work she does. 

“Building the machine” for Niyamat, refers to the work all of us can do to create a better world; either by building the tools which will directly impact people’s lives, or by laying the foundations of love, empathy and support. This is what Niyamat Kochhar strives to build.

Profiled by: Mangalya Singh

Om Kharola is an 21 year old high-achiever who is an amazing chess player who has represented India at the World Youth Chess Championship, exceptional aptitude in academics and a strategy consultant at L.E.K. Consulting. He is a final year student in Shaheed Sukhdev College of Business Studies.

Chess has been foundational to Om Kharola’s life, it has in his own words “..training me to analyze complex positions, anticipate second-order consequences, and stay composed under sustained pressure.” He has played chess competitively from school to his college, earning him multiple state championship titles across Delhi and Maharashtra, securing a silver medal at the Under-17 national championship, and the distinction of being the highest-rated chess player in Uttar Pradesh. He has also represented India at the World Youth Chess Championship and won both team Gold and individual Bronze at the Asian Youth Chess Championship in Sri Lanka. More recently, he emerged victorious at the Gamers Without Borders Chess event in Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest charitable esports event.

Despite chess tournaments being highly demanding, Om Kharola has maintained a delicate balance of sports and academics. Through discipline and long term planning, he has maintained 8.58/10.00 CGPA up to the 5th semester. Furthermore, chess instead of being a distraction has in fact strengthened his mental framework, allowing him to perform better academically. This is highlighted by the fact that he has secured an All India Rank of 8 in the IPMAT (Integrated Programme in Management Aptitude Test) Indore examination, competing against over 25,000 candidates for one of India’s most challenging commerce entrance tests. He has also been admitted to the ISB Young Leaders Program, a prestigious deferred MBA pathway that accepts approximately 50 pre-final year students annually through a rigorous evaluation of academic excellence, leadership potential, and clarity of purpose.

Career wise, he is an Analyst at L.E.K. Consulting since January 2025, where he has rebuilt location details for over 1,000 contract records, sanitized 200+ expert interview transcripts, and is leading the firm-wide transition from Tableau to PowerBI at the analyst level. His previous roles include serving as a GMAT and GRE Quality Control Specialist at Experts’ Global, where he oversaw the creation of over 4,000 questions, and as Lead Product Strategist at Enzo Prep, where he led a large-scale data migration and revamped customer support systems. He has also contributed to international development initiatives in Africa and Asia, designing market entry strategies and exploring partnerships with NGOs across multiple countries.

Om Kharola shows how even a sport can teach one skills which are transferable to all domains of life. Chess has given him tools that have allowed him to succeed in his academics and career. 

Profiled by: Rewa Rawat