Welcome to Shanta Nepali Foundation
Kathmandu, Nepal
The Shanta Foundation was founded by Shanta Nepali, a director, producer, cinematographer, and adventurer
based in Kathmandu, Nepal. Throughout her 17-year career in media, filmmaking, and creative practice,
storytelling has been at the center of everything she does, a lens through which she understood society and
a medium through which she found her own voice in the world.
Shanta was inspired to establish the Shanta Foundation by the determination and passion of young women from
Dalit and marginalized communities, who often have little to no resources but still chase their dream of
becoming something in life. Through Shanta Foundation’s work, she wants to ultimately impact the lives of
women like them by rasing their voices.
At the Shanta Foundation, we believe in the transformative power of the arts to create positive social impact
and inspire change within communities. Our mission is to use the arts as a means of addressing a wide range of
social issues, including education, health, environmental sustainability, and social justice, especially
within the context of marginalized communities. We believe that the arts have the ability to bridge divides,
bring people together, and inspire action towards creating a more just and inclusive society.
Our programs and initiatives focus on working with artists, organizations, and community groups to foster
creativity and facilitate the use of the arts as a tool for social engagement and empowerment. Whether it's
through film, music, theater, or visual arts, we believe that the arts have the power to change lives and
bring about real, lasting change in our communities.
Shanta Nepali is the founder and CEO of Shanta Nepali Productions. A highly accomplished and multi-talented
filmmaker based in Kathmandu, Nepal, Shanta has a strong understanding of news media and over a decade of
experience in television production. Her years of work and experience in journalism and television led her
path to the creative industry in Nepal and internationally. Her work is characterized by a unique visual
storytelling style and focuses on a wide range of subjects, including adventure, travel, lifestyle, sports,
human rights, and social issues. Her work have been screened at both local and international networks, such
as the Discovery Channel, Travel Channel, Animal Planet, and Nat Geo.
With Shanta Foundation, she wants to use the transformative power of the arts to create positive social
impact and inspire change within communities by working with artists, organizations, and community groups to
foster creativity and facilitate the use of the arts as a tool for social engagement and empowerment.
As an avid adventurer, Shanta often incorporates her experiences into her work, from climbing mountain peaks
to riding motorbikes through the Himalayas. She is deeply committed to amplifying marginalized communities
voices through her work. She is the founder of Nepali Female Filmmakers, an initiative that facilitates
collaborations, workshops and training for female filmmakers. She has volunteered as Nepal Manager with In
Your Hands working for education of underprivileged children, and served as the vice president of The
Mandala Organization. She has also worked extensively with Nepal Human Rights International Film Festival
and Human Rights Film Center.
Shanta is an alumni of One World Media in the UK and a graduate of the Biratnagar Film Workshop. She has
been mentored by accomplished filmmakers and writers such as Deepak Rauniyar and Aasha Magrati. She holds a
Masters of Arts degree in Rural Development and a Bachelors of Arts degree in Travel and Tourism and
Documentary Filmmaking Course from London Film Academy.
At Shanta Foundation, Puja is focused on leading the foundation’s overall
strategy,
program design, partnerships, resource development, communication, brand, innovation, MERL, and
advocacy.
Puja Yadav’s work is rooted in gender equality, good health and well-being, and climate action in the
context
of marginalized communities. She has founded Humans of Medico, a story sharing platform for people in the
health and medical field to share their ideas and stories and spark meaningful conversations on healthcare
challenges faced by systematically marginalized communities. As a small grant winner from Women Deliver
Young
Leaders program for an advocacy project, she recently worked as a project lead to advocate for the
effective
representation of marginalised community women's voices in the local government.
As an aspiring filmmaker, she is exploring visual storytelling to better understand and communicate ideas and life experiences that shape our world. She is an avid reader, an amateur writer, and loves spending time in nature. Puja is also a Starling Collective Fellow by Giving Tuesday, Women Deliver Young Leader, alumna of Moth Personal Storytelling Workshop, in partnership with UN Women and Gograha Film Workshop 2021 Cohort. Puja recently completed her undergraduate in business and management from UWE-Bristol.
Shanta Nepali Productions
Nepal Human Rights International Film Festival
At Shanta Foundation, we use the power of the arts, storytelling, and filmmaking to inspire and enrich the lives of individuals and communities. We believe in the ability of the arts to bring people together, stimulate creativity, and promote understanding and empathy.
Our work area falls mainly in the following categories:
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Charity means helping the hapless, the needy and the infirm in whatever way I can. That way, I can make them feel that they are not alone in this world.
Customer
Keeping our corporate philosophy of focusing on water conservation, providing nutritious food and education for school children, we are pleased to have been associated with Akshaya Patra. We are particularly impressed with the back end kitchen facilities which were hygienically clean.
Customer
I strongly believe that education is the right vehicle to spread and sustain democracy. Akshaya Patra is doing a yeoman's job by feeding nutritious food to more than 1.6 million children in India.
Customer
Charity means helping the hapless, the needy and the infirm in whatever way I can. That way, I can make them feel that they are not alone in this world.
Customer
Keeping our corporate philosophy of focusing on water conservation, providing nutritious food and education for school children, we are pleased to have been associated with Akshaya Patra. We are particularly impressed with the back end kitchen facilities which were hygienically clean.
Customer
I strongly believe that education is the right vehicle to spread and sustain democracy. Akshaya Patra is doing a yeoman's job by feeding nutritious food to more than 1.6 million children in India.
Customer
