Born into a Dalit family, Lakshmi was married at the age of eight to her maternal uncle. Surviving domestic violence, she raised her family on meagre earnings as a village health worker. Today, she is a leader in an organisation dedicated to advancing the rights of rural single women in Maharashtra. Lakshmi has trained 190 single women leaders like herself, and together, they have lifted more than 17,000 women and families from poverty and violence.