Raviraj Shetty
ORA India 2025 Fellow
Mumbai, Maharashtra
Raviraj Shetty is an occupational therapist, educator, and children’s book author who works at the intersection of mental health, storytelling, and social change. He is the co-founder of Narrative Practices India (NPI) and the creator of the Wellness Lab in Tezpur, Assam, which supports marginalized communities navigating the intersecting crises of mental health, ecological loss, and systemic injustice.
At NPI, Raviraj and his peers introduce Narrative Practice as a people-led alternative to conventional mental health approaches—centered on healing through stories, relationships, and collective wisdom. Through workshops, dialogues, and training programs, NPI invites individuals and communities to map their experiences and memories—helping them externalize problems, reclaim agency, and rewrite stories of resistance and care.
Over the past five years, NPI has trained more than 450 therapists, educators, social workers, artists, and policymakers to develop community-rooted mental health and healing programs grounded in dignity, connection, and justice.
Learn more at narrativepracticesindia.com/people or follow @npicollective.
“In a world that is participating and pushing practitioners towards hopelessness and burnout, I often ask who and what systems of oppressive power benefit if we are made to feel hopeless, isolated, and burnt out. In a world where we all are fighting for love, what would it mean to fight with love, and separate accountability from shaming and guilt-tripping practices? I want to hold space where practitioners can reclaim themselves from burnout because we are not machines but hearts who are hurting and in need of friendships. The kind of friendships where we can cry and sit in our shared tears, laugh out loud until it hurts, hold hands for as long as it takes, share warm food cooked from my mother’s house, and shoulders to lean into when we are tired. The ORA fellowship gives me an opportunity to lean into my mother’s wisdom to keep pleasure at the center of everything I do.”
- Linkdine
