AWARDEE BIO

Started in 2012 by Beena Advani and Anubha Sharma, the Angel Xpress Foundation (AXF) stands as a beacon of hope in Mumbai, uniting empathetic educated volunteers with first-generation learners from marginalized urban communities.

What began with just 18 children in open-air classes at Bandra Bandstand soon blossomed into a city-wide movement. Today, AXF proudly operates 31 Free Learning Centres and multiple in-school programs, reaching over 3,100 children with the unwavering support of more than 1,400 volunteers.

AXF's vision is to forge a future where every child is guided by a caring, knowledgeable mentor, enabling them to discover and realize their true potential. Its mission thrives on collaboration with local schools, corporations, government agencies, and the community at large and to deliver holistic development through tutoring, mentoring, life skills education, emotional wellbeing, and critical thinking.

Its Free Learning Centre model is both flexible and impactful, delivering daily one-hour sessions in English and Math, enhanced with life skill coaching, vocational counseling, and social-emotional support; all these delivered in accessible community spaces like parks and schools.

Over its decade-plus journey, AXF has expanded relentlessly, starting from one centre to over thirty, multiplying its reach and impacting thousands of lives, and innovating its curriculum and pedagogy to meet the evolving needs of underserved children.