Who Is BASS?

Bay Area Solidarity Summer is organized by a volunteer group of progressive activists committed to supporting and mentoring the next generation of young South Asian organizers. Contact us if you're interested in volunteering or have other questions.

Our core organizers include:

Anirvan Chatterjee

Anirvan Chatterjee is a technologist, storyteller, and activist. He founded pioneering ecommerce startup BookFinder.com, now a subsidiary of Amazon. He co-curates the Berkeley South Asian Radical History Walking Tour and Black/Desi Secret History. He also works with ASATA and the Desi Queer Helpline.

Anu Mandavilli

Anu Mandavilli has been involved in social justice work with community organizations, social movements, and labor unions in India and the U.S. She was part of the Mining Zone Peoples’ Solidarity Group research collective, working with communities in Orissa, India, fighting land grabs by steel giant POSCO. She has worked on campaigns around Hindu nationalism and corporate accountability with Friends of South Asia and the Free Binayak Sen campaign. Locally, she works with the San Jose Peace and Justice Center and the Coalition for Justice and Accountability towards civilian oversight of the SJPD.

Arati Warrier

Arati Warrier is a poet, educator, and BASS 2017 alum. She's a 2014 national collegiate poetry slam champion and a recipient of the Academy of American Poets prize. She also has 5 years of experience working for youth poets. Arati currently works organizes with the Alliance of South Asians Taking Action and works as a full time high school English teacher.

Asha Mehta

Asha Mehta is a project director at CompassPoint, working with nonprofits from across the country. She has previously been a community school coordinator, high school teacher, youth empowerment program director, and executive director. She loves to spend time listening to music with her son, reading, and swimming. She secretly dreams of being a standup comic one day.

Dave Kalloor

Dave Kalloor is a community-based clinical social worker living in Oakland. Dave grew up in Texas, where he became passionate about community organizing after witnessing his community face detention and deportations. He has worked with youth and communities of color on issues such as the school-to-prison pipeline, immigrant rights, and toxic masculinity. Dave thrives off of pizza, coffee, and hugs.

Harjindar Lally

Harjindar Lally is a first generation Fiji-Indian American. She has 12 years of experience working with youth of color, immigrant and LGBTQ youth focusing on social justice activism, healing and liberation. She is a clinical social worker currently providing anti-oppression based therapy to youth of color in the East Bay. She enjoys good laughs, meditation, working out and chocolate.

Kriti Garg

Kriti Garg is a BASS 2012 alum and current graduate student in organizational studies. Previously, she worked in higher education and student affairs, supporting students in campus advocacy, cultural and political programs, and social justice peer education. She was raised in the South Bay/Silicon Valley, with family and roots in northern India.

Nathaniel Shara

Nathaniel Shara is a social justice therapist and community educator. Since 2008 he has worked with the Oakland-based organization Generative Somatics, bringing a body-based trauma and healing framework into movements for social and environmental justice. Nathan participated in Youth Solidarity Summer in New York City in 2002. He is passionate about intersectional feminism, California camping, his favorite podcasts and healthy relationships.

Prithika Balakrishnan

Prithika Balakrishnan is an attorney at the San Francisco Public Defender’s Office. Prior to becoming a lawyer, she worked as an organizer for Local 2, the San Francisco hotel workers union, focusing on issues of immigrant rights. A long-time Bay Area resident, she was previously on the board of Trikone.

Sandhya Jha

Sandhya Jha is an ordained Christian minister, an anti-racism and Faith Rooted Organizing trainer, and a workers' rights activist. She's the founder and director of the Oakland Peace Center, and former Director of Interfaith Programs for East Bay Housing Organizations. She's the author of two books, Pre Post Racial America and Transforming Communities.