Mallika Dutt

Mallika Dutt (born March 29, 1962) is an Indian-American human rights activist. Dutt is founder, president and CEO of Breakthrough, a human rights organization dedicated to making violence against women unacceptable. Dutt has twice been named one of Verve's Top 50 most influential women and has received multiple awards in recognition of her human rights activism, including the 2016 Skoll Award for Social Entrepreneurship. Dutt is co-founder of Sakhi for South Asian Women, a women's rights organization.

Dutt was born in Kolkata, India in 1962, and grew up in Kolkata and Mirzapur. She received a Bachelor of Arts in International Affairs at Mount Holyoke College. Dutt also received a Masters in International Affairs and South Asian Studies from Columbia University in 1986, and graduated with a Juris Doctor from New York University Law School in 1989. In May 2012, Dutt received an Honorary Doctorate in Humane Letters from Mount Holyoke College.

In 2000, Dutt founded Breakthrough with Mann ke Manjeeré, an album and music video on women’s rights. Launched as an experiment in using pop culture and media for social justice, Mann ke Manjeeré remained on the Indian pop charts for six weeks, going on to win the 2001 National Screen Award in India for Best Music Video. Working from centers in India and the United States, Breakthrough's mission is to build a world in which violence against women is unacceptable and all beings can thrive.

In 1989, Dutt co-founded SAKHI for South Asian Women, an organization providing community support to end violence against women of South Asian origin. SAKHI creates a safe space for education and other support services, while also engaging a broader South Asian community against domestic violence.

From 1992-1994, Dutt worked as a director at the Norman Foundation, a New York-based organization supporting efforts of communities to determine their own economic, environmental and social well-being.

In 1994 -1996, Dutt served as the Associate Director of Rutgers University, Center for Women’s Global Leadership. In this role, Dutt directed the Center’s contributions to UN World Conferences including Hearings and Tribunals at World Summit on Social Development, International Conference on Population and Development, and World Conference on Women.

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