The Vrutti Story
In a small sunlit room in rural Karnataka, two young graduates from the Institute of Rural Management Anand sat across a battered wooden desk, their notebooks full of ideas and their hearts full of enthusiasm. They had just returned from villages where they had spoken with farmers working hard everyday to make ends meet, subsisting on their land but never able to lift themselves out of uncertainty.
Hidden in this challenge, they found a spark. What if they could change how people thought about farming? Not just as a way to survive, but as a way to create wealth? What if farming could be a true enterprise?
And so, in 2002, those two graduates founded Vrutti, a non-profit born from deep empathy and bold entrepreneurial zeal. They strongly believed in the innate capacity of every person to contribute meaningfully, regardless of their circumstances. For Vrutti, development is more than just about giving, it's about creating shared value.
Over the years, Vrutti has evolved into a structured livelihood impact partner within the Catalyst Group. Its work is grounded in a set of core beliefs: that people must be at the center of development; that real change requires aligning communities, markets, the state, and facilitators; that innovation thrives under purposeful constraints; and that impact must be continuously measured and improved.
Today, after decades, when the two original founders look
back, they see what has grown from modest beginnings. They
see thousands of farmers whose incomes have tripled,
fisherfolk empowered, vulnerable communities gaining financial
independence, and a living ecosystem that continues to grow
stronger.
They see that their belief in people, in systems, and in
possibility was more than justified. They also see that their
journey is far from over. They know that Vrutti is a living
story of transformation, a testament to what empathy,
innovation, and persistence can do when combined with the
courage to challenge the status quo.
