Founder of Rise Collective, Imaan Kaur Bakshi is a grade 11 student at Vasant Valley School. She has a strong academic and creative interest in gender, identity, and social equity. Through her interdisciplinary coursework in Gender and Integrated Humanities, and global summer programmes focused on public policy and economic development, she has always found herself to be curious about the questions of access, labour, and inclusion.

Alongside academics, Imaan has also contributed to editorial projects on the gender beat, developed award-winning short films, and pursued long-term training in visual arts, with creative projects centered upon identity, selfhood, and representation. These experiences have strengthened her commitment toward understanding how structural barriers affect marginalized communities. This directly informs her eagerness to found Rise Collective, an initiative that brings together her passion for critical inquiry, creative expression, and social concern.