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Meet The Team

Founder/ Editor-In-Chief

Priya M Menon

Priya M Menon is an award-winning writer and journalist based in Chennai. She began her career with The New Indian Express, Chennai, in 1999, and also worked with The New Sunday Express, Chennai. She was part of the launch team of The Times of India in Chennai and worked as Features Editor with the edition. She now works as Senior Journalism Advisor, South Asia, with the Journalism Centre on Global Trafficking.
Though she has written on a wide range of issues, Priya specialises in covering human rights and gender issues as well as animal welfare. She was the only Indian journalist selected to participate in the Foreign Press Center Reporting Tour: A Developing Narrative: LGBT Rights and Issues in the US, in 2012.
She has received several awards and recognitions for her work, including the Laadli Media & Advertising Awards for Gender Sensitivity 2023 (English: Newspaper Feature, Southern Region), and the Second Anjali Gopalan Srishti Social Justice Journalism Award (2019).
She has also received the Ally Award from Orinam, for being one of the first to write about LGBT issues in media (2018); the joint second prize at SCARF Media For Mental Health Awards 2017, the TAI-VHS award for working for transgender welfare (2014), the 'Rainbow Ambassador' award for writing sensitively on LGBT issues (2013); the Nirangal Award for Excellence in Journalistic Coverage of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Issues (2012) and the Jaigopal Garodia Voice For Animals Award from People for Animals (PfA) in 2005.
Priya has also authored a book, ‘Hand of God: A Biography of Dr K M Cherian’ (2015). She loves animals, painting and travelling.
Co-Founder & Technology Head

Akin Babu Joseph

A technology enthusiast and community builder, Akin is known for his innovative approach to leveraging online communities for social good.
With years-long industry experience under his belt, he truly believes that technology is the solution to a multitude of problems and challenges. In 2019, he gave a TEDx talk, which discussed the critical role that online communities play in assisting disaster relief efforts.
Akin is also the co-founder of Project Telecation, a successful nonprofit initiative that took shape in the pandemic-hit months of 2000. It developed a unique framework that provided over-the-call classes to more than 70 students in tribal regions of Odisha, bridging the digital divide faced by children with limited or no internet access.
Currently, Akin is a Developer Relations Specialist, and he connects tech startups with developers, facilitating the growth of new developer tools.
Editor

T.S Preetha

Preetha, a seasoned journalist and writer based in Kerala, has more than 25 years of experience in mainstream news reporting, editing, and content curation. She has worked with prominent newspapers, including The Times of India, The New Indian Express, and Deccan Chronicle.
Preetha began her career with Vanitha magazine, part of the Malayala Manorama Group, before transitioning to English language newspaper reporting. As a journalist she has written on diverse topics – from fashion shows and elections to natural disasters and festivals. Her areas of expertise lie in health, education, gender, and religion.
Preetha has also made a mark as a content curator. She has contributed to books, websites, video scripts, and marketing campaigns. Notable titles bearing her name as an author/ editor include ‘White Magic’, a biography of M P Ramachandran, the founder of Jyothy Labs; ‘Beyond Tracks’, a coffee table book for Kochi Metro Rail Limited; ‘K.P. Hormis: A Legacy Beyond Banking’,a memoir on the founder of Federal Bank; ‘Beyond Gold’, a book on Manappuram Finance; and the translation of ‘A Small Step in a Long Journey’, a memoir by transgender activist Akkai Padmasali.
Currently, Preetha is working on a biography, translating a novel from English, and pursuing her ambition of writing a crime thriller.
Intern

Sahil Pradhan

A full-time graduate student of Delhi University, Sahil is a Laadli Media awardee of 2023. They won this award for the article on an Odia festival that celebrates menstruation, which still carries a heavy load of shame and stigma. They are also the winner of prestigious fellowships, including Global Citizen Year Academy '22, Young Leaders for Active Citizenship (Young Researchers for Social Impact ’22, and Counter Speech Fellow ’21), Civics Unplugged (Civics Innovator Fellowship ’22), and One Future Collective (One Future Fellow ’23).
Sahil regularly writes for Thred Media, and also for Youth Ki Awaaz as an alumnus of the Justice-Makers WTP ’22. They are passionate about queer rights, advocacy, climate change and pop culture, and the intersection between these. When they are not writing on issues closer to their heart, you can catch Sahil watching movies and plays, listening to K-Pop, or procrastinating.
Head, Design

Reon Saji

A product designer by profession and passion, Reon has extensive experience in creating products and services from concept to launch. He enjoys the process of problem-solving while shaping intuitive, consistent and user-centered experiences. He is the name behind several great products in many startup, big-company and consulting environments.
Reon thrives wearing many hats, tackling complex problems, and leading design in highly-collaborative platforms. His expertise spans across user experience design, design thinking, product strategy, visual design, rapid prototyping and design process, and he excels in uncovering product opportunities using qualitative research and quantitative analysis.