Team Coppre
Uma Ganesh
Uma Ganesh came on board Coppre as the Chairperson from 2016 to bring over two decades of experience in profit centre management, strategy formulation, business development, entrepreneurship and human resource empowerment.
A career spanning leadership roles in the Manufacturing, ICE (Information, Communications, and Entertainment) and Education sectors, she is the Founder CEO of GTT, India’s leading skills development company with the mission of capacity building across the nation. Before that, she was the Chief Corporate Development Officer of HSBC Global Resourcing.
Uma has an MBA degree from the Faculty of Management Studies, University of Delhi and a PhD degree from IIT Bombay. She has a regular column in the Financial Express since 2013 and has co-authored a book with Dr. Ganesh Natarajan entitled ‘Unleashing the Knowledge Force’ published by Tata Mc GrawHill.
Aasiya Tejani
Aasiya Tejani joined the board of Coppre as director to bring business strategies and opportunities in the retail space to what she sees as essentially a social enterprise. Being from Pune she knows the work of traditional copper artisans and feels that Studio Coppre gives them a fitting expression.
Aasiya studied in Pune before going to the US for college to major in Business Economics with Philosophy as a minor. She returned to join her family business, Gits Food Products Pvt. Ltd. Not one to rest content with status quo, her passion for social issues has kept her active in Social Venture Partners, Pune Chapter.
Chhanda Bihari
Chhanda Bihari heads Management and Finance at Coppre. She sets up systems, accountability and a competitive positioning for the organization. Her forte lies in fostering consistent organizational growth and improved efficiencies through state-of-the-art management practices. In the past she has been CEO and MD of Commander Watertech Pvt Ltd and Director at Trinity Group of companies.
She is an alumni of IIM Ahmedabad, a qualified Cost Accountant and holds a degree in Chemistry. She cherishes mentoring and nurturing young management talent. She wishes to one day use her expertise to spruce up the cities of India.
Rashmi Ranade
Rashmi Ranade is the Founder and Lead Designer at Coppre. Alumni of Sir J. J. College of Architecture, Rashmi further specialized in Product Design from Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Mumbai.
Over the past 20 years, she has spearheaded Product Design, Planning, Brand Positioning and Graphic Design in her design studio. Some of her cherished projects include designing the Karve Museum with her spouse; designing heritage publications on Aurangabad and the Pune Heritage Map. She has worked on design interventions with a number of craft clusters in India and on Heritage advocacy and documentation. Indian design culture and traditions captivate her imagination.
Sudakshina Sinha Banerjee
Sudakshina Sinha Banerjee leads the Marketing Outreach efforts at Coppre. She brings forth her expertise in Design, Branding, Marketing and Media to her work at Coppre. Alumni of Baroda Art College, she also holds a diploma in Entrepreneurship from IIM Bangalore. In the past she was the Corporate Communications and CSR Head of an IT company and continues to consult with them to enhance organizational effectiveness through leadership development.
She has also revived some forms of visual and performing Arts and Craft forms in her co-owned ventures. She relishes Indian Classical music, Rabindra Sangeet and loves to explore visual arts in its myriad expressions.
Seemantini Mihir
Seemantini Mihir leads the Social Media Marketing and E-commerce at Coppre. She brings her two-fold background and expertise - one in branding and communications and the other in management of social ventures, to Coppre. Her work spans eight years of experience with corporates in Integrated Marketing Communications and with social ventures in Strategic Planning, Cross Sector Collaboration and Branding.
She graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a dual degree in Nonprofit Leadership from Wharton Business School and the School of Social Policy. A heritage craft and design aficionado, she loves to travel and always carries her camera with her.
Adhar Mirchandani
Adhar Mirchandani, late mentor and advisor to Coppre has been instrumental in driving Coppre’s vision to create enhanced livelihoods for skilled craftspeople in India.