Tulasi Munda

Tulasi Munda (born 15 July 1947) is a social activist from the Indian state of Odisha. She was awarded the Padma Shri in 2001 by Government of India for her contribution to spreading literacy among the impoverished adivasi peoples of Odisha. Munda started an informal school in 1964 in Odisha's iron ore mining area to educate children from local adivasi populations, who would otherwise have ended up as child labour in the mines. She had been a child labourer in the mines of Keonjhar herself.

Munda is illiterate and has no formal education. She belongs to the Ho ethnic group of adivasis, the collective term in mainland South Asia for indigenous peoples.

She is popularly known as "Tulasi Apa", literally meaning "Sister Tulasi" in Odia.

Early life Munda was born on 15 July 1947 in Kainshi village located in the present-day Keonjhar district in Odisha. Keonjhar is one of the most economically underdeveloped districts in Odisha. As a child, she wished to study but the idea of educating girls and women was largely socially unacceptable at the time. Since 1964, she has educated more than 20,000 children and helped the government establish 17 schools for primary or secondary education.

Awards Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian award given by the Government of India, in 2001, for her contribution to the field of "social work". Odisha Living Legend Award for Excellence in Social Service, 2011. Lakshmipat Singhania - IIM Lucknow National Leadership Award, in the category of Community Service and Social Upliftment (Leader), 2009.

Biopic Tulasi Apa, a biographic film based on her based on her life was released in 2015 at the Kolkata Film Festival, where it received critical acclaim. The film was also screened at the 4th edition of the Tehran Jasmine International Film Festival (TJIFF) on 30 October 2016.