About the
Purple Economy Movement
Built from lived experience. Shaped into a movement. Scaling through systems.
Our Journey
1999–2020
Value of Persons with Disabilities
EnAble India’s 25-year journey of changing the narrative around persons with disabilities as active citizens and changemakers through livelihoods.
2020–2021
Population Scale Thinking
Shifting the lens to systems and societal thinking (Shanti Raghavan in ASPIRe)
May 2021
Birth of the Economic Narrative
EnAble India’s webinar with ILO and IIM Bangalore @Catalyst 2030
Jun 2022
ASPIRe Share Your Mission
Shanti Raghavan unveiled the societal transformation roadmap
Jan 2023
Purple Economy Term Unveiled
Shanti Raghavan’s Keynote Address at Purple Fest Goa
Aug 2023
Narrative Strengthened
Shanti Raghavan’s Talk at IIM Bangalore – 75 years of India’s independence
Feb 2024
International Visibility
Shanti Raghavan’s talk at Zero Project, United Nations, Vienna and INSEAD France
Jan 2025
Visibility at the World Economic Forum
Purple Economy discussed in Yes Cities press conference
Mar 2025
Launch of Purple Economy Movement
Hosted by EnAble India in Bangalore where initial pioneers signed up
Jun 2025
UN COSP Side Event in New York
Hosted by EnAble India in New York
Oct 2025
Turning Point @ International Purple Fest
Delegates from more than 10 countries pledged their support for the Purple Economy Movement.
DPI for Disability – Open Purple Network (OPuN)
Launched the Digital Public Infrastructure for Disability.
How the Purple Economy Movement Began
Inclusion is not a charity.
It's a strategy.
The Purple Economy was born from a simple but powerful insight by Shanti Raghavan: disability inclusion could not remain limited to charity, compliance, or employment alone. Persons with disabilities had to be seen as customers, creators, entrepreneurs, workers, innovators, and full participants in the economy.
What began as a way to reframe disability through an economic lens was shaped further by Dipesh Sutariya, who gave it the architecture of a movement connecting the idea to pledges, dialogues, pathways, partnerships, and institutional action.
With Neeraj Krishnan leading the movement forward, the Purple Economy has evolved from awareness-building into sectoral action shaping initiatives across mobility, banking, insurance, digital systems, entertainment, industrial development, and global platforms.
Meet the Team
The people building the Purple Economy Movement
Shanti Raghavan
Shanti Raghavan is the Founder of EnAble India and the visionary behind the Purple Economy. A global leader in disability inclusion, she has spent decades building pathways for persons with disabilities to access livelihoods, dignity, agency, and economic participation. Her thinking anchors the Purple Economy in lived experience, systems change, and the belief that inclusion must move from the margins to the mainstream of society and markets.
Dipesh Sutariya
Dipesh Sutariya has played a key role in shaping the Purple Economy from a powerful idea into a movement. He has helped define the pathways, partnerships, institutional structures, and strategic direction needed to take the concept beyond conversations and into action. His leadership brings together policy, ecosystem-building, partnerships, and long-term movement architecture.
Neeraj Krishnan
Neeraj Krishnan leads the Purple Economy Movement, driving its narrative, partnerships, dialogues, sector initiatives, and global positioning. With over 15 years of experience in journalism, strategy, media, and communications, he works at the intersection of inclusion, business, policy, and market transformation. He also anchors the Purple Economic Zone concept, positioning inclusion as industrial and economic infrastructure.
