Trustees

Varshini Ravisankar is an animal rights activist dedicated to creating a more compassionate world for animals. Her journey began at the age of 15 when she started caring for community animals in her neighbourhood by feeding and helping those in need. What began as a personal act of kindness gradually evolved into years of hands-on rescue work, rehabilitation, community animal care, and advocacy.

Through direct involvement with injured, abandoned, abused, and vulnerable animals, Varshini witnessed the systemic challenges faced by animals and became committed to addressing them through ethical, humane, and rights-based approaches. Guided by the principle that Animal Rights are inseparable from Human Rights, she believes that compassion, justice, and dignity must extend beyond species boundaries.

Varshini advocates for a fundamental moral principle: animals are not objects, commodities, or resources for human use, but sentient individuals deserving of freedom, dignity, protection, and legal recognition. Her work focuses on preventing cruelty, promoting coexistence, supporting humane and scientific animal population management, strengthening animal welfare systems, and advancing animal rights through education, policy awareness, legal advocacy, and community engagement.

She holds a Bachelor's degree in Biotechnology and has further strengthened her advocacy through specialised training in animal welfare policy, public engagement, legal research, and animal rights frameworks. She successfully completed the Applied Animal Advocacy Certificate Programme conducted by People For Animals Public Policy Foundation and underwent training in Animal Rights Legal Research and Analysis, gaining exposure to animal protection laws, policy advocacy, and legal frameworks relevant to animal welfare.

Driven by the belief that lasting change requires both compassion and action, Varshini founded The Awake Foundation to work toward a society where animals are respected as individuals with inherent value and rights.

Radha's journey in animal welfare began during her childhood, inspired by her father, who cared for community dogs with kindness and compassion. Watching him help animals in need instilled in her a deep sense of empathy and responsibility towards all living beings.

As she grew older, Radha witnessed many instances of animal cruelty and neglect. While others often remained silent, she chose to step forward and help. These experiences strengthened her commitment to standing up for animals and giving a voice to those who could not speak for themselves.

A graduate in M.A. English Literature, Radha combines compassion with excellent communication and interpersonal skills. Her ability to educate, guide, and connect with people has played an important role in promoting awareness and encouraging humane attitudes towards animals.

Over the years, she has actively participated in feeding programmes, rescue efforts, transportation, rehabilitation, post-treatment care, and the day-to-day welfare of community animals. As a Trustee of The Awake Foundation, Radha continues to play a vital role in the organisation's activities — and has been the backbone and support system behind Varshini's journey in animal welfare.

Maheswaran is a working professional with 21 years of engineering experience in various manufacturing sectors. Though he comes from an engineering background and is busy with regular office work, his passion is animal welfare and eco-balance.

He has rescued and treated more than 350 dogs from various situations and still keeps some of them at home, giving them a better life for a lifetime. He also feeds many community dogs and helps them with sterilisation and vaccination. He has sterilised around 450 community dogs as of now — a huge impact on the population of community dogs. He also helps poor and uneducated dog feeders with sterilisation, vaccination and treatment.

He has been volunteering with the ABC programme conducted by Tambaram Corporation since 2022, and has strong knowledge and experience of the operational issues in ABC programmes run by municipalities and corporations. He strongly believes that effective birth control is the only humane solution to reduce dog populations and restore ecological balance.

His compassion is not limited to dogs — he rescues many small animals and birds, treats them at home, and releases them back into their habitat.