OUR STORY
From Listening to Belonging
It began with silence.
Not the absence of sound, but the absence of voice—Indigenous voice—in research, in policy, in education.
As a young anthropologist, our founding director, Dr. Sushree Sangita Mohanty, often found herself in spaces where communities were studied but rarely heard. Knowledge was collected, not shared. Stories were extracted, not honoured.
But within the field, she also encountered something else: resilience, rhythm, reciprocity. Something that didn’t fit within academic checkboxes. Something that called for care.
From this discomfort—and deep love—Ekkathaa was born.
Not just an organisation, but a philosophy. A gathering place. A bridge. A beginning.
Ekkathaa means “One Story,” but it is not singular. It is the weaving of many voices, many knowledge, many futures.
Today, we walk with communities, not in front of them. We co-create, not extract. We honour Indigenous epistemologies, not overwrite them.
And we remain committed to that first act of listening—because listening, when done with heart, becomes belonging.