Fighting Chance

Be it rehabilitating acid attack survivors or instituting healthcare programmes for those in need, philanthropist KULSUM SHADAB WAHAB proves that with great privilege comes great responsibility.

- Rajashree Balaram

Kulsum Shadab Wahab has been keeping a gratitude journal for years—a habit she has also instilled in her 13-year-old son and eight-year-old daughter. “We don’t go to sleep till we write down at least one thing in our lives that makes us feel grateful towards the Almighty.” Born into enviable affluence and married to mining tycoon Hothur Shadab Wahab, there is little in her life that can be called ordinary. With a closet packed with the hautest designer labels and a travel itinerary that sees her traipsing across the world, Shadab Wahab leads a charmed life. But there’s another side to her, one that sees her don a different kind of armour. As the CEO of Hothur Foundation, she is advocate, philanthropist and someone who turns privilege into power, the good kind. The Bengaluru-based foundation supports multiple projects and initiatives focused on helping disabled children; education and meal programmes for the underprivileged; health care for the poor; construction of bus shelters and other infrastructure; empowerment and self-reliance initiatives for women; and art therapy for the mentally challenged and children from underprivileged backgrounds.

CALL TO ARMS