Our Team
DBPRF brings together researchers, programme specialists and field professionals with decades of experience across sanitation, public health, gender and social development.
Dr. Sutirtha Sahariah is a researcher, policy communicator and development strategist with expertise in AI governance, gender justice, modern slavery and international development. He holds a PhD in International Development from the University of Portsmouth and an MSc in Media Management from the University of Stirling. He is an Honorary Research Fellow at the University of Portsmouth and serves as Senior Vice President and Head of Communications at Sulabh International. He has authored Sex Work, Labour and Empowerment and his work has appeared in The Guardian, BBC and the World Economic Forum.
Know more →Dr. Bobby Luthra Sinha is a Social Anthropologist and Political Scientist serving as Senior Research Fellow at DBPRF. An independent scholar, author, documentary filmmaker and digital archivist, her work focuses on vulnerable and marginalised communities — including tribal and forest-dwelling peoples — with emphasis on identity, migration, environmental justice, and spiritual, cultural and ecological rights. Her research spans diaspora and migration, gender studies, public health, MHM and WASH, social movements, food security and ethnographic methodologies across Asia, Africa and Latin America. She holds a PhD from the University of Basel, Switzerland (2017) and completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa (2019). She is a Core Committee Member of the Scientific Commission on Migration at the International Union of Anthropological and Ethnological Sciences (IUAES).
Know more →Professor Tamsin Bradley is an applied social anthropologist and Co-Director of the Centre for the Advancement of Equality Gender and Inclusion Studies (AEGIS) at the University of Portsmouth. Her research focuses on ending violence against women and girls, harmful cultural practices, gender-based violence, women's rights, religion and gender, and social inclusion. She has published four monographs including Global Perspectives on Violence against Girls (2020, Routledge) and has received funding from the ESRC, AHRC and British Academy. She holds a PhD in Social Anthropology from SOAS, University of London.
Know more →Our programme and field team brings operational expertise, community knowledge and implementation experience to DBPRF's research activities across India.
Deepali Bhattacharya has over three decades of experience in the Indian development sector. She holds an MPhil from Jawaharlal Nehru University and has worked as a gender trainer and programme evaluator across organisations including ActionAid International, CRY, ChildFund International and Action Against Hunger India. She was invited as a panellist at the Berlin Human Rights Film Festival in 2022, where she spoke on food sovereignty and traditional food practices of women in the Global South. She currently consults with Sulabh International and SEEDS.
Sanjay Suman is a public health and development professional with over 20 years of experience across India, including Bihar, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Gujarat and the North-East. He holds an MPhil in Social Work and an MSc in Anthropology from the University of Delhi, with advanced certifications from the Humanitarian Academy at Harvard University, the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, the World Health Organization and IIPH Gandhinagar. He has held senior roles at the Piramal Foundation, CARE India, Global Health Strategies, Oxfam India and CRY. His core expertise spans public health, health advocacy and communication, child rights and disaster risk reduction.