NEW DELHI: Piya Chakraborty, who is currently grabbing headlines for marrying Parambrata Chatterjee, an Indian actor and director, is a mental health activist and singer.
Early Life:
Chakraborty hails from Kolkata, West Bengal, and was raised in a Bengali Hindu household. Her immediate family consists of her father, a retired engineer, and her mother, a homemaker. She also has a younger brother who is a software engineer.
Piya Chakraborty did her schooling at Ashok Hall Girls’ Higher Secondary School in Kolkata and underwent training at Dakshinee, a local music academy. In 2008, she graduated from Presidency College, Kolkata, where she pursued a Bachelor’s degree in sociology. Progressing in her educational pursuits, she completed an M.Phil in Social Sciences from the Centre for Studies in Social Sciences in Kolkata from 2010 to 2012.
Career And Achievements:
Piya started her professional journey as a lecturer in Sociology at Lady Shri Ram College for Women in New Delhi, a prominent women’s college in India. Over two years, she taught undergraduate and postgraduate courses focused on sociology, gender, and development. Additionally, she contributed to academic discourse by publishing numerous papers and articles in both national and international journals and magazines.
Between 2012 and 2014, she served as a researcher in the Department of Sociology at the University of Umea in Sweden. In 2019, she became a part of Anjali Mental Health Rights Organisation, a Kolkata-based non-governmental organisation committed to instigating widespread systemic transformations in the mental health sector.
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The organisation aims to foster intersectional and inclusive approaches in mental health institutions, systems, and communities. Taking charge of the Voices Programme, she endeavours to offer psychosocial support, advocacy, and empowerment to individuals with mental health conditions residing in state-run mental hospitals and communities.
Heading a team of grassroots mental health professionals, she collaborated with hospital residents and community members, striving to enhance their quality of life, uphold their dignity, and safeguard their rights. Additionally, she engages in partnerships with the state government, media, and various civil society organisations to advocate for policy changes and raise awareness about mental health issues.
In December 2020, she assumed the role of CEO at the NGO named HEDS – Health & Ecodefence Society. Furthermore, in December 2021, she became a part of Anjali – A Mental Health Rights Organisation.
Previous Marriage:
Previously, she was married to Indian singer-songwriter Anupam Roy. However, after tying the knot in 2015, the couple mutually decided to separate, citing personal reasons, in 2021. In 2019, Piya Chakraborty sang the Bengali track ‘Tomar Bhetor Theke,’ composed by her ex-husband Anupam Roy. She also lent her voice to numerous songs in the 2023 Bengali album ‘Bhalobashar Rong’ by Prantik Chakraborty.