From Breakdown to Breakthroughs: A Founder’s Journey of Building Development Consortium

Leadership Blogs - by Anamika Srivastava - Founder & CEO - Development Consortium

Editorial Note: Some journeys begin with a plan. Others begin with a breakdown. The third edition of our Leadership Blogs is here, featuring a story that built an organisation. Anamika Srivastava, Founder & CEO of DC, takes us behind the scenes of how Development Consortium was born, not in a boardroom, but in a moment of personal upheaval. From Breakdown to Breakthroughs is her candid, heartfelt account of rebuilding from scratch, leaning on friendship, and choosing courage when life felt uncertain.

What’s in a Name?

Life has a way of pushing us into crossroads we never expect, and sometimes, those moments of chaos become the seeds of our greatest clarity in life.

I was working with a UN organization, loving my work, surrounded by incredible colleagues and friends. Everything felt right. But as life would have it, everything shifted at once. My line manager moved to another country, my closest friend left for a fellowship, and at home, we received devastating news - my mother-in-law was diagnosed with last-stage cancer. And my girls were too young to be alone.

I decided to take a short break from work to be with my family, a decision that, unsurprisingly, didn’t go down well with everyone. Many called it impulsive or unwise, or stupid. But deep down, I knew it was the right call. I didn’t owe anyone an explanation. I was choosing family, and I was choosing myself.

That pause became the most defining period of my life. It was painful, yes - full of loss, reflection, and uncertainty, but also powerful. I had spent years breaking down, even emotionally, rebuilding, and learning from every fall. This time, I wanted to rebuild differently and stronger.

After my mother-in-law passed away, the silence at home was heavy. There was grief, but there was also a strange kind of space - space to ask, What next?

And in that silence, an idea began to take shape. What if I could take all I had learned at the UN and the corporate life that I left and build something that mattered - something rooted in community, collaboration, and compassion for those who needed the most…at least more than me?

One day, over lunch with my best friend Vithika (fresh from her fellowship) and a few others, that idea turned into a decision. With the support of my husband, Sanjeev, and this small but determined circle of friends, we birthed an NGO in 2006.

We didn’t have big funding or flashy offices, just a shared belief that together, we could make a difference.

After many cups of chai and plates of samosas (long before Zoom or Google Meet), we found our name.

Development Consortium. With the tagline — “Because together we can.” and “Change that matters.”

The Little Things Mattered

Once the idea took shape, the next big question was - how do we actually run this?

I didn’t have a job anymore. My friends were eager to contribute their time and skills, but funds were scarce. So, I decided to start with what I had - I put ₹17,000 from my savings into our very first account. That small sum was meant to last a couple of months for my home, but it vanished quickly. Still, I kept going. One small step at a time. One small task at a time.

One member volunteered to organize free health check-up camps for domestic workers. Another suggested we visit a nearby village in Rajasthan to understand where and how we could start working on the ground.

Those small acts of showing up, believing, and doing something mattered more than any grant ever could. It wasn’t about the money. It was about faith, friendship, and purpose.

Their belief in me gave me strength. And my belief in “because together we can” started turning from a tagline into a lived truth.

The First Failure/Setbacks

The first year was full of energy and ideas. But slowly, things began to change. Friends got busy with jobs, families, and other commitments. Some moved away, others took different paths.

It wasn’t anyone’s fault, it was just life. But it was painful. Passion alone couldn’t keep everything moving.

As they say, those who stay till the end are your soul connections. And one did. My best friend, my soul sister, Vithika, stayed and is still my 3 am go-to place. Together, we held on.

We both found jobs again, started earning, and put back small bits of what we could into keeping our dream afloat. With every rupee we saved, every evening we brainstormed, and every setback we faced, we kept the ship sailing - slowly, steadily, and with unshakable hope.

It wasn’t glamorous, and it certainly wasn’t easy. But it was honest. We believed in what we had started — and that belief kept us going.

The First Turning Point

We kept moving, slowly, steadily, one small step at a time. Small grants and in-kind support began trickling in, and each contribution, no matter how modest, gave us the courage to keep going.

Then came our first real breakthrough: an international organization agreed to fund us. We were thrilled! It felt like validation of all the sleepless nights, the hard choices, and the quiet faith we had held onto.

At that time, it was just the two of us with one part-time operations person managing what felt like the work of six people. We were juggling full-time jobs while ensuring every task at Development Consortium also met the highest standards of integrity and quality.

I’ve always been fortunate to work with value-aligned organizations that respected my transparency. I openly shared about DC, and they responded with incredible support. That trust meant everything. Thank you, Apala Majumdar, Deepika Chaudhury, Sharath Jeevan and Jo Owen for being such an incredible part of my journey at the time when I needed the most.

But soon, we hit a roadblock; we couldn’t access the international grant because we didn’t have an FCRA certification. And honestly, we didn’t even know where to begin.

That’s when Sanjeev, my constant pillar, stepped in once again. His patience, diligence, and guidance helped us secure our first FCRA registration in 2015, our biggest turning point.

What a sigh of relief that was. The first international grant landed soon after, and from that moment, there was no turning back.

Learnings, Reflections, and Evolution

Since that breakthrough in 2015, the DC journey has been one of constant learning - sometimes gentle, sometimes brutally hard.

Together with Vithika and many others who joined us along the way - some for a reason, some for a season - we built, broke, rebuilt, and grew. We made mistakes, learned lessons, and evolved. Some people left lasting marks; others left lessons. And I’ve come to accept both with gratitude.

If there’s one truth that nineteen years have taught me, it’s this: Trust yourself more than anyone else.

People will come and go. You’ll be misunderstood, taken for granted, even hurt. But your instinct, that quiet voice within, will never betray you. Not even your own shadow stands by you in the dark. You are your own constant.

Today, Development Consortium stands as a reflection of that belief. We’ve evolved, continue learning from every failure, celebrating every win, and staying true to our mission of driving change that matters.

We innovate. We adapt. We amplify. And as we continue this journey, our only hope is to help others in the same way we once needed help, with empathy, courage, and conviction.

Because after all, together we can.

About me

I, Anamika Srivastava, am the Founder and CEO of Development Consortium, a not-for-profit organisation committed to social innovation, inclusion, and systems change. Over the past 19 years, I have led initiatives across education, health, gender and livelihoods, always rooted in the belief that change that matters begins with people who care.