Our Advisory Board
Dr. Mukesh Mahaling
Dr. Mukesh Mahaling currently serves as the Cabinet Minister for Health & Family Welfare, Parliamentary Affairs and Electronics & Information Technology for the Government of Odisha. ...
Before his ministerial appointment, he was a Member of the Odisha Legislative Assembly representing the Loisingha (SC) constituency (first elected 2019) and spent 21 years as an environmental scientist with the State Pollution Control Board (SPCB) of Odisha, where he held roles including regional officer in industrially challenged areas.
Dr. Mahaling holds a B.Sc (Honours), M.Sc, M.Phil and Ph.D in Zoology from Utkal University. His early leadership experience emerged as General Secretary of the Student Union at Anchal College, Padampur and later as Secretary of the Officers’ Association at the SPCB.
As an advisor to Haven Crafts, his experience in public-health infrastructure, digital governance and environmental management brings a grounded interdisciplinary perspective to sustainable craft development and socio-economic inclusion.
Mr. Manoj Kumar Mishra
Mr. Manoj Kumar Mishra is a senior advocate based in Odisha and was elected President of the Orissa High Court Bar Association (OHCBA) in March 2025. ...
His legal practice spans civil litigation and employment law, and he is a recognised leader in the state legal community.
Given the regulatory, governance and compliance dimensions of craft enterprises, Mr. Mishra’s experience offers Haven Crafts an important advisory capacity in navigating legal frameworks, protecting artisan rights, and structuring organisational governance.
Ms. Basanti Rana
Ms. Basanti Rana is a social entrepreneur from Jajpur district, Odisha, who has transformed adversity into opportunity by training over 1,200 women from under-privileged backgrounds in tailoring and stitching over the past decade, of whom around 200 have become independent business-owners. ...
Coming from a modest family and having started with a single sewing machine, Ms. Rana founded a small unit (“Maa Durga Ladies Tailor & Stitching”) and scaled it into a rural employment ecosystem focused on adolescent girls, widows, school-dropouts and indigenous women.
As one of our founder’s biggest mentors, her vision aligns with inclusive socio-economic uplift and craft-sector empowerment, which makes her contribution to Haven Crafts especially valuable in initiatives that seek to blend traditional skill-sets with entrepreneurial opportunity.
Mr. Udaya Mohanty
Mr. Udaya Mohanty is the President of the Odisha Shilpi Mahasangha (OSM) — a key association of handicraft and artisan communities in Odisha. ...
Under his leadership, OSM has been actively engaged in advocacy for artisans’ rights, including addressing raw-material supply issues, market access and policy support for handicrafts. For example, Mr. Mohanty led a sit-in demonstration before the Odisha State Legislature, drawing attention to challenges faced by stone-craft artisans and government procurement policies.
Given his deep engagement in the regional crafts ecosystem and his understanding of artisanal livelihoods, Mr. Mohanty is well-positioned to contribute to Haven Crafts’ strategic alignment with grassroots craft communities and build inclusive value chains.