Our story
The Happiness Project is a Kerala-based social research and action lab, started in 2026 by Dr.Ananthu S.
The happiness project started with a question.
What stops people from being happy, and what can we actually do about it?
In 2024, Dr. Ananthu began supporting individuals and families across Kerala who were dealing with problems around housing, education, health and financial security.
One person needed a home. Another needed help continuing their education. Someone else needed support getting through a difficult situation.
The interventions were different, but they led to a bigger question. What if, instead of only helping people deal with these problems one at a time, we tried to understand why these problems exist in the first place?
That question led to the Project we have today.
Based in Kerala, we look closely at the problems people face, understand what is getting in the way, and explore what can actually be changed.
The goal is not to have an answer before we begin. It is to understand the problem properly, try something that might help, and learn from what happens.
That is how we hope to take the work from helping individuals to working on problems at the level of communities, and ultimately make happiness attainable to more people.
Our Founder
Founder-Patron of the Happiness Project
Dr. Ananthu S
Dr. Ananthu S is the founder of Xylem Learning and Dr. Ananthu Productions.
Alongside his work in these ventures, Ananthu has been involved in individual-level philanthropy across Kerala since 2024. He has supported people and families facing different challenges, including housing, education, health and financial difficulties.
Many of these interventions have also been documented and shared publicly. The Happiness Project grew from this experience, but with a different direction.
Ananthu wanted to move beyond helping one person at a time and start working on problems at the community level. The aim is to understand these problems more deeply, find things that can actually be changed, and increase the reach and impact of the work.
He started The Happiness Project with a simple vision: to spread happiness and make it attainable to more people.
Our Team
Abhina Sathyan
Abhina is an independent consultant based in Bangalore and the founder of Afterimages, an independent documentary channel.
Before joining The Happiness Project, she spent over eight years as a software engineer.
At The Happiness Project, she leads strategy and execution, including partner selection, field oversight and day-to-day operations.
Get in touch
Have a question, want to know more about our work, or want to talk to us?
We’d be happy to hear from you.
© 2026 Happiness Project. Kerala, India.