An MBA from the Indian Institute of Forest Management (IIFM), Bhopal, Akshai has spent 10+ years working in the social sector. He has been involved with studies commissioned by international agencies such as the World Bank, USAID, UNICEF and has also worked on education-related development programmes with Aide-et-Action, an international NGO. His year-long internship with AIESEC in Austria early in his career, shaped his decision to return to his country to work in the development sector.

For Akshai, the missing link in the education system was the reality that characters do get made in the maidaan (made on the field). The playground that had enabled him to be his true, uninhibited self, could give every child in India, irrespective of their background, a level-playing field, the opportunity to shine and a space for children to just be children. It would also prepare them for life by imparting essential values and life skills. With this insight, knowledge and experience, he founded Project KHEL in 2012.