Lakshmi Chilukuri ❲2026❳

“We don’t need more heroes. We need more hosts—people who make room for others at the table, then give them the knife.”

The results have been startling: 94% of Sankalp Fellows break the cycle of intergenerational poverty within five years. But Chilukuri is prouder of the less quantifiable outcome: “They don’t leave their identities at the door. They become the people who can write a grant proposal and explain it to their grandmother in her mother tongue.” lakshmi chilukuri

That bluntness has cost her partnerships. It has also earned her fierce loyalty from grassroots leaders who feel seen for the first time. “We don’t need more heroes

Lakshmi Chilukuri was born in Andhra Pradesh, India, and moved to the United States with her family at a young age. Growing up in a multicultural and multireligious community, she was exposed to various faiths and traditions. Her parents, who were devotees of Lord Vishnu, encouraged her to learn about Hinduism and its rich spiritual heritage. They become the people who can write a

One of Lakshmi's most notable achievements is her work in establishing the Sri Lakshmi Temple in Ashburn, Virginia. The temple, which was dedicated in 2010, is one of the first Hindu temples in the United States to be established by a woman. The temple serves as a vibrant spiritual center for the Hindu community, offering a range of programs, services, and events that promote Hinduism and its values.

“If the people you’re helping aren’t in the room when budgets are cut,” she says flatly, “you’re not helping. You’re performing.”

She immigrated to the U.S. from India in the 1980s and earned her PhD in Marine Biology from UC San Diego in 1998. Family and Personal Life