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Dr Sunitha Krishnan Biography: Age, Career, Family and More

F4U Editorial Desk • Updated October 5, 2026 • 3 min read

Quick Info

Date of birth23 May 1969

Age50 Years

BirthplaceBangalore, Karnataka

ProfessionIndian Social Activist

NationalityIndian

Marital statusMarried

SpouseRajesh Touchriver

FamilyFather - Raju Krishnan; Mother - Nalini Krishnan

Dr Sunitha Krishnan Biography

Dr Sunitha Krishnan is an Indian social activist best known as the co-founder of Prajwala, an organisation focused on rescuing and rehabilitating survivors

Early life and background

Sunitha Krishnan was born on 23 May 1969 in Bangalore, Karnataka, into a Palakkad Malayali family. She spent part of her childhood in Visakhapatnam, attending Kendriya Vidyalaya Waltair, and later studied at St. Joseph's College in Bangalore and Yenepoya University in Mangalore. She holds a Master of Social Work and a PhD.

As a child she faced physical challenges; her legs were initially turned backward and she required physiotherapy to learn to walk. From an early age she was involved in community work: by eight she was giving dance lessons to children with intellectual disabilities, and at 12 she started a school for underserved children in a slum area.

Career

Krishnan’s life and work have been shaped by a long-term commitment to combating sexual violence and human trafficking. After experiencing violence herself as a teenager, she channeled her energies into supporting survivors and campaigning for systemic change. In the 1990s she became associated with People’s Initiative Network (PIN) in Hyderabad and worked alongside activists there.

In the mid-1990s she helped evacuate women from a red-light area in Hyderabad and transform a vacated brothel into a school. That initiative evolved into Prajwala, an organisation structured around five pillars: prevention, protection, rescue, rehabilitation and reintegration. Prajwala provides vocational training in trades such as carpentry, welding, printing, masonry and housekeeping, and has assisted thousands of survivors of trafficking.

Krishnan has also worked on policy and institutional initiatives. In 2003, the Andhra Pradesh government adopted recommendations she drafted into a formal policy for rescue and rehabilitation of victims of trafficking. She has been involved in pilot projects to improve police–NGO collaboration, including a crisis counselling centre at the Afzalgunj Police Station in Hyderabad.

Her public outreach includes talks, documentaries and publications. In 2009 she delivered a TED India talk on human trafficking. She has helped produce and co-produce documentaries dealing with trafficking, HIV/AIDS, child marriage, incest and prostitution, and co-authored a document titled The Shattered Innocence. She has appeared on mainstream television to raise awareness, including the programme Satyamev Jayate in 2012 and an appearance on Kaun Banega Crorepati in 2019 alongside her husband.

Public profile

Krishnan’s work has been recognised with numerous awards and honours. Early recognition included an Ashoka Fellowship in 2002 and the Stree Shakti Puraskar from the Government of India in 2003. Subsequent honours include the CNN-IBN Real Hero Award (2008), recognition by the US Department of State’s Trafficking in Persons report (2009), and several national awards from business and civil society groups. She received the Padma Shri for social work in 2016 and the Franco-German Award for Human Rights and the Rule of Law in 2017, among other distinctions.

She has held advisory roles in government initiatives, including an appointment to advise Kerala’s Nirbhaya Policy for Women and Children. She resigned from that advisory role in 2014, and was reappointed in 2015 with expanded authority.

Krishnan’s advocacy has sometimes attracted controversy. A campaign connected with the hashtag #ShameTheRapist drew criticism because people shared violent videos on messaging platforms; this episode was widely discussed in the media. She has also reported receiving threats linked to her public work.

Personal life

Sunitha Krishnan is married to filmmaker Rajesh Touchriver. Her parents are Raju Krishnan, who worked for the Department of Survey in India, and Nalini Krishnan. She lists reading and travelling among her personal interests and has been publicly associated with addresses and work based in Hyderabad and Bangalore.

Latest updates

Krishnan continued to participate in national media appearances and awareness campaigns through 2019. That year she and her husband were featured in a ‘Karmaveer’ episode of a popular television quiz show. Her organisation, Prajwala, remains focused on prevention, rescue and the rehabilitation of trafficking survivors, continuing vocational training and reintegration work.

Editorial Review and Sources

This F4U profile is written from publicly available career and profile information, then reviewed for clarity before publication. If you spot an outdated detail about Dr Sunitha Krishnan, send the page URL and a reliable correction source to f4udotin@gmail.com.

Reference context: StarsUnfolded
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Recent Work

Appearance on Kaun Banega Crorepati 11 (Karmaveer episode)

Sunitha Krishnan appeared with her husband Rajesh Touchriver on the Karmaveer episode aired 18 October 2019.

2019
TED India talk on human trafficking

Delivered a talk on human trafficking at TED India held at the Infosys campus in Mysore; the talk gained wide attention on YouTube.

2009
Satyamev Jayate appearance

Featured on the television programme Satyamev Jayate in 2012 to discuss issues related to sexual violence and trafficking.

2012
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Career Highlights

  1. Co-founder of Prajwala, an organisation focused on prevention, protection, rescue, rehabilitation and reintegration of trafficking survivors
  2. Drafted recommendations adopted by the Andhra Pradesh government as a policy for rescue and rehabilitation of trafficking victims (2003)
  3. Ashoka Fellow (2002) and recipient of the Padma Shri for social work (2016)
  4. Produced and co-produced documentaries and publications on human trafficking and related social issues
Reviewed by F4U Editorial Desk

F4U profile pages are prepared from public career information, checked for readability, and updated when reliable correction sources are shared with the editorial team.

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Frequently Asked Questions

When was Dr Sunitha Krishnan born?

Dr Sunitha Krishnan was born on 23 May 1969.

What is Dr Sunitha Krishnan known for?

Dr Sunitha Krishnan is known for indian Social Activist.

What is Dr Sunitha Krishnan’s marital status?

Dr Sunitha Krishnan's marital status is listed as Married.

Who is Dr Sunitha Krishnan married to?

Dr Sunitha Krishnan is publicly listed as married to Rajesh Touchriver.