Breakthrough is a global human rights organization

working to make violence and discrimination against women and girls unacceptable.

Our mission is to prevent violence against women and girls by transforming the norms and cultures that enable it. We carry out this mission by building a critical mass of change agents worldwide—the Breakthrough Generation—whose bold collective action will deliver irreversible impact on the issue of our time. Working out of centers in India and the U.S., we create innovative, relevant multimedia tools and programs—from short animations to long-term leadership training—that reach individuals and institutions where they are, inspiring and equipping them to build a world in which all people enjoy their human rights.

We believe that human rights begin in our own hearts, homes, and actions.

We work to make human rights real and relevant to everyone,
no matter where or how they live.

We create innovative, relevant multimedia and pop culture that bring
human rights issues and values into the mainstream.

We inspire people to take bold action for social change—
in their own spheres and beyond.

We envision a world where all people enjoy their human rights and live with
dignity, equality and justice.

We can build this world together by making violence and discrimination against women and girls unacceptable.

Our unique approach.
Human rights are universal and fundamental. More than a matter of oppression in far-off lands, they are intrinsic to the way we treat each other in our communities, in our families, and in our homes. For this reason, we use pop culture, multimedia, community engagement, and leadership training to reach people where they are and ignite change in the world around them.

Our focus.
Breakthrough seeks to make discrimination and violence against women and girls unacceptable everywhere and in all its forms, including domestic violence, sexual harassment, street harassment, early marriage, and gender biased sex selection. We also address these issues through the lenses of  immigrant and immigrant women’s rights, racial justice, and sexuality and HIV/AIDS.

Our strategies.
We use five strategies to transform hearts and minds and inspire people to act for change.

• We use media, arts, pop culture, and technology—animations, music videos, video games, social media and more—to reach mass audiences where they are, challenge norms, and make human rights values and issues real, relevant, urgent, and actionable. (Click here to see how we use social media for social change.)
• We train new generations of leaders in schools, neighborhoods, and civil society groups to ignite change in the world around them.
• We develop strategic, game-changing partnerships with communities, governments, businesses, and entertainment leaders to reach maximum scale and lasting impact.
• We cultivate grassroots community engagement to raise awareness and inspire action for local and global human rights issues.
• We measure our impact and share lessons learned in the broader field of innovations for social justice and human rights.

Human rights start with you.

Breakthrough works through centers in India and the United States. All gifts are tax-deductible as allowed by law. Breakthrough is a charitable trust registered u/s 12(A) of the Income Tax Act 1961 in India and a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization in the U.S.