Katha Lab School - India

In the narrow, bustling lanes of Govindpuri—Delhi's largest slum cluster housing nearly 150,000 people—stands a school that has quietly been rewriting the possibilities of what education can mean for India's most underserved children. Founded in 1990 by Padma Shri awardee Geeta Dharmarajan, the Katha Lab School has spent 35 years proving that when creativity meets compassion, poverty doesn't have to be destiny.

Serving 600 children from crèche to Class 12, the school operates in a community where typical family incomes range from just $200–$700 per year, violence and substance abuse are common, and most children are first-generation learners. Yet the results are extraordinary: over 90% of students pass their Class 10 and 12 board exams (against a national average under 40%), 56% pursue higher education (compared to under 10% in comparable schools), and the school maintains 94% attendance and 97% retention.

At the heart of this transformation lies StoryPedagogy™—Geeta Dharmarajan's pioneering educational framework that replaces textbooks with storybooks until Class 8. Drawing on her expertise in Bharata's Natyashastra and Bharatanatyam, she created an approach where children "learn to read and read to learn" simultaneously, exploring language, science, mathematics, and social studies through 2,500 years of literary heritage. Students are invited into TADAA!—Think, Ask, Discuss, Act, and take Action—transforming passive learners into active citizens.

Arts aren't an add-on at Katha; they're the very architecture of learning. The mud-coated walls are painted by children themselves. Kala Nivas, the four arts centre, nurtures music, dance, theatre and fine arts. Students like Chandrika, the "Expression Queen," master Bharatanatyam while Zara, the "Imagination Queen," codes compassionate ScratchJr animations about animal welfare. Zara's artwork won first prize at the Korean Art Contest 2025, weaving Korean lantern traditions with Indian sensibilities, while her ideas earned second prize at Feeding India's Annarakshak competition. Projects like "Meera's Village by the Sea" see children designing recycling machines, sustainable houses, and river-cleaning models—learning by making.

The school has drawn global recognition, hosting visits from TRH The Prince of Wales and The Duchess of Cornwall. Honours include the Millennium Alliance Award 2013, ICICI India Inclusive Award 2012, nominations for the Astrid Lindgren Memorial Award (2010, 2013), the Business Standard Award, the mBillionth South Asia Award 2018, and a Platinum Certificate for Transparency from GuideStar India. Alumni like Kamal—now Head of Fine Arts at an international school after earning his Masters from Jamia Millia Islamia—prove the model works.

With the Prize funds, Katha would partner with professional theatre groups, music schools and practising artists to give first-generation learners access to masterclasses, instruments, and the board examination fees that currently lock many out of formal certification. The goal: ensuring that artistic excellence is determined not by a child's background, but by opportunity, mentorship, and sustained practice. Because at Katha, every child's story matters—and every story can change a world.