Inside the TBI Showcase 2025 Celebration That Brought India’s Changemakers Under One Roof

On 18 September 2025, New Delhi became a meeting ground for change. Optum presents The Better India Showcase, supported by M3M Foundation, brought together some of the country’s most determined changemakers — people who build classrooms, heal communities, revive forests, and create solutions that make daily life better.

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The evening began at The Ashok with a moment that set the tone. A letter from the Hon Prime Minister of India was shared on stage — a note recognising The Better India’s effort to “strengthen the spirit of collective action, making an impact on society and the nation”. The applause that followed carried more than excitement; it carried affirmation — that stories of positive change can shape the way a nation sees itself.

A night of voices and vision

When Amitabh Kant, former G20 Sherpa and one of India’s most respected policy voices, took the stage, the room seemed to lean forward. He spoke of India’s future — a future shaped by innovators and institutions working hand in hand. His words weren’t lofty; they were a reminder that progress depends on collaboration grounded in intent.

Then came B V R Subrahmanyam, CEO of NITI Aayog, whose candid smile and simple words drew an instinctive applause. “I read The Better India every day,” he said, and in that moment, it felt clear that storytelling, too, can be a form of nation-building.

Inclusion framed every part of the evening. Beside the stage, sign-language interpreters ensured that every word, every emotion, reached the entire audience. Across the hall sat founders, farmers, teachers, and students — people connected not by background but by belief.

The changemakers: Hands that build hope

Across nine categories — from sustainability and health to education, innovation, and social impact — nearly 50 changemakers were recognised. Their journeys, captured through short films, held a kind of truth that speaks softly yet stays long after. A teacher who built a school where none existed; a young innovator reimagining rural water systems; a forest reborn through patience and purpose.

Each story reminded the audience that impact rarely arrives overnight. It grows from persistence — from people who choose to act even when the odds feel immovable. When the nine winners finally stood together on stage, it felt like recognition had simply caught up with years of unheralded work.

A gathering of possibilities

The Showcase unfolded differently from the usual award nights. There were no celebrity hosts, no dramatic fanfare — only stories that carried their own light. The evening was anchored by host Sonali Chander, whose grace and ease gave the space an intimacy rare for a hall that size.

Between sessions, the air buzzed with ideas. Farmers shared insights with entrepreneurs; policy thinkers found resonance with teachers; creators and innovators spoke of working together beyond the event. The night felt less like a ceremony and more like a beginning — a growing ecosystem of people who saw hope as a form of action.

What happens next: Ripples of the Showcase

As the lights dimmed, the sense of possibility didn’t fade. Conversations that began in that room have already turned into collaborations — between sustainability leaders, educators, and innovators who found common ground that evening.

For The Better India, the Showcase was never just a one-night celebration. The stories born there will continue to live on through features, films, and campaigns that keep the focus on those who drive real change.

For the winners and nominees, new doors have opened — invitations to policy discussions, partnerships, and a renewed confidence that their work matters beyond their immediate communities.

And for those who watched — in person or online — the impact was lasting. The evening was a reminder that India’s progress is built not in headlines, but in hands that build, teach, heal, and believe.

Change doesn’t wait for the perfect moment. It grows through people who show up, again and again.

And that night, India showed up for them.