#RiseIndia - 5 Girls. 5 Skills. 5 Futures.

Across government schools in the remote villages of Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Uttar Pradesh, something remarkable is happening.

Every week, thousands of adolescent girls are stepping into RISE classrooms where they aren't just learning lessons…they're building futures. Through Girl Rising's RISE curriculum, students are developing the skills that matter most for the world they're growing up in: social-emotional learning, gender equality, leadership, communication, digital literacy, AI readiness, financial literacy and climate resilience. 

But the most powerful outcomes can't always be measured in classrooms. They're found in the moments when a girl speaks up, refuses an early marriage, questions an unfair norm, manages her emotions, or dares to dream bigger than her circumstances.

These are five of those stories.

1. Jyoti - The girl who said no

At 16, Kumari Jyoti Ghritlahere begins every day cooking, cleaning and caring for her family before heading to school in Bharni village, Chhattisgarh. After her father's passing, responsibilities at home grew heavier, and like many girls around her, she believed her future depended on simply accepting what adults decided for her.

RISE changed that. Through lessons on goal-setting, confidence and gender equality, and through Kusum's story in Kusum's Adventurous Innings, Jyoti realised that her dreams deserved just as much space as her responsibilities. When her family later began discussing her marriage, she found the courage to speak up. She said no. Supported by her mother, she chose education instead. Today, Jyoti dreams of starting her own social organisation so she can help other girls shape futures on their own terms.

Skill that changed her life: Confidence to advocate for herself.

2. Shruti: The girl who found her voice

When Shruti Vastrakar was born, her family had hoped for a son. Years later, when she learned how differently her birth had been received compared to her brother's, she began to understand the quiet ways gender inequality shaped her life.

RISE helped her see that those expectations didn't define her potential. It also gave her the confidence to use her voice. When her class stopped receiving Hindi lessons because their teacher was absent, Shruti rallied her classmates and approached the school principal. The issue was resolved, classes resumed, and her classmates' results improved. Supported by her teacher, Shruti was recently selected to speak on a panel in Mumbai about gender and the future of work…her first step into leadership. The first girl from her school to travel to a city and represent her community on a public stage, she has shown both her family and herself that daughters deserve to be celebrated every bit as much as sons.

Skill that changed her life: Leadership through speaking up.

3. Pallavi: The girl who refused to be defined by gender

When Pallavi first attended a RISE session in Bilaspur, she expected another ordinary classroom lecture. Instead, she found comic books, films, discussions and questions that challenged everything she thought she knew about the world.

For the first time, she questioned why girls were expected to cook and clean while boys were encouraged to dream bigger. Slowly, those ideas stopped feeling normal. Today, Pallavi believes opportunity has nothing to do with gender. "If a boy can become a police officer, a girl can too," she says. More than anything, she wants to be known not as someone's daughter or daughter-in-law, but simply as Pallavi, a person with dreams, ambition and her own identity.

Skill that changed her life: Challenging gender stereotypes.

4. Reshma: The girl who chose books over jewellery

Fifteen-year-old Reshma Banjare was nervous when the RISE programme began at her school. She wasn't sure what to expect. Soon, it became the class she looked forward to most every week.

The curriculum helped her build confidence through social-emotional learning, making it easier to speak in public and understand her emotions. But one lesson stayed with her long after class ended: financial literacy. When her parents planned to buy her jewellery, Reshma asked them to spend the money on her education instead. They bought her books. Today, she believes that investing in learning is the greatest investment of all, and that girls can achieve anything when they're given the chance.

Skill that changed her life: Financial literacy and informed decision-making.

5. Santni: The girl who stopped fearing failure

Like many girls in her village, Santni Anuragi balanced school with household work every day. By the time she reached class, she was often exhausted, and every poor marks felt like a sign that her dreams were slipping away.

Through RISE, Santni discovered something just as important as academic knowledge… resilience. Reading Kusum's Adventurous Innings taught her about family support and perseverance, while classroom activities encouraged her to embrace mistakes as part of learning. Today, she studies with a timetable she created herself, approaches exams with confidence instead of fear, and believes setbacks are simply steps toward success.

Skill that changed her life: Social-emotional resilience and goal setting.

These stories come from different villages, different families and different realities. Yet they share one powerful truth: when girls gain the skills to think critically, lead confidently, make informed decisions and believe in themselves, they don't just change their own lives, they begin changing the communities around them.

Every RISE classroom is creating more girls like Jyoti, Shruti, Pallavi, Reshma and Santni. Girls who aren't waiting for permission to dream. They're building the skills to make those dreams happen.