About the Foundation


"LiveLoveLaugh aims to give hope to every person experiencing stress, anxiety and depression."

At its core, LiveLoveLaugh is an idea, a movement, and a metaphor for hope. Arising from her personal journey with anxiety and depression, LiveLoveLaugh (LLL) was founded in 2015 by actor Deepika Padukone. The Foundation combines knowledge and domain expertise to create awareness about mental health, reduce stigma associated with mental illness, and provide credible mental health resources.

LLL’s programs and outreach are conducted and implemented through partnerships and collaborations.

Founder


"On 15th February 2014, I vividly remember waking up with a hollow feeling in my stomach. I felt empty and directionless. I had become irritable and would cry endlessly. For someone who loves to multitask, making decisions suddenly felt like a burden. Waking up every morning had become a struggle. I was exhausted and often thought of giving up.

"My mother who recognized that something was amiss, insisted I seek professional help, and I was diagnosed with anxiety and depression.

“The love and support of my family, counselor, and psychiatrist encouraged me through those dark days.

“Through my journey to recovery, as I began to understand the stigma and lack of awareness associated with mental illness, I felt a deep need to save at least one life. It was this very need that motivated me to go public with my illness and set up The Live Love Laugh Foundation.

“Mental illness has presented us all with a very tough challenge. Now more than ever before, we need to prioritize the needs of every individual including those affected by mental illness.

“My love-hate relationship with the illness has taught me so much. To be patient for one, that you are not alone, but most importantly, that there is Hope.”

Board of Trustees

Dr Shyam Bhat


Chairperson, Board of Trustees

Dr. Shyam Bhat is the Chairperson of Live Love Laugh, and a Psychiatrist and Integrative Medicine specialist. Dr. Bhat is among fewer than 600 medical professionals worldwide, with postgraduate training and American Board certifications in Psychiatry (American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology) and Internal Medicine (American Board of Internal Medicine).

In addition, he is also board certified in Psychosomatic Medicine (ABPN subspecialty), which is the study of conditions at the interface of body and mind. Dr Bhat combines these qualifications with a deep study and understanding of Eastern philosophy and healing practices. He developed the evidence-based psychotherapy “Integral Self Therapy” which integrates insights from eastern meditative practices with contemporary therapeutic techniques, to facilitate self-realization.

Dr. Bhat is regarded as a pioneer of holistic psychiatry in India. After a 12 -year stint in the UK and the US encompassing medical training and practice, Dr. Bhat returned to India in 2009 with the vision of practicing a holistic form of psychiatry and medicine that integrates the best of India’s ancient therapies of mind and body, along with the latest evidence-based treatments from western medicine and psychiatry.

Dr Bhat is a consultant on leadership development and stress management for some of the world's leading organizations.

Meet The Team

Anisha Padukone


CEO

At LiveLoveLaugh, Anisha provides strategic leadership across program development, fundraising, policy outreach and other areas. During her tenure as the CEO, LLL has emerged as a leading voice in India’s mental health sector delivering impactful change in championing marginalised communities.

Anisha has a degree in Psychology, Sociology and Economics, and has completed a program in Strategic Nonprofit Management from Harvard Business School and Ashoka University.

She is a former member of the World Economic Forum’s Global Future Council for Mental Health, and has played golf professionally, representing India at international tournaments.

Donors & Volunteers

Donors
FY 2023-2024
FCRA Donors
FY 2023-2024
Sponsorships
FY 2020-2021
Volunteer

Testimonials

We have been partners with TLLLF since 2017 and through the You Are Not Alone Program, we have reached out to 5000+ students and 300+ teachers so far. Through the YANA program, the larger shift that I see is that there is a lot more receptiveness to mental health awareness, not just with school children and teachers, but also the larger school ecosystem, which includes parents and the administration. This is something that I think is a huge takeaway from the YANA program.

I think the most memorable moments for me have been when we end the session and children walk out of the class, they come back and say thank you for talking about anxiety, thank you for talking about depression, thank you for talking about body shaming and bullying. Basically, we have given them a “word” for the experience that they have already been going through and that really helps them. It was very liberating for them to have sat in the sessions. Those faces of those children are what I take away from this experience.”

Connecting Trust, Pune

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