Kohinoor Darda
Cognitive Neuroscientist, Bharatanatyam & Kuchipudi Dancer, Scuba Diver, Bibliophile. Triathlete. Founder-Director, ARISA Foundation
Based in Maharashtra, India
Kohinoor Darda holds a PhD in Social Cognitive Neuroscience from Bangor University (UK) and has worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Glasgow (Glasgow, UK), Macquarie University (Sydney, Australia), and the University of Pennsylvania (Philadelphia, USA). Her work explores how the human brain and mind engage with art and how humans navigate their social worlds. She is the founder, director, and CEO of the ARISA Foundation, a not-for-profit research and social work organisation based in Pune, India. At ARISA, she leads initiatives that bridge the arts and sciences, aiming to foster interdisciplinary and intersectional research, promote social transformation, and make psychology, neuroscience, and art more open, equitable, and accessible for all. Kohinoor is particularly passionate about open science, believing that knowledge should be transparent, inclusive, and collaborative. Outside of the research lab, she enjoys social interactions with fictional characters in novels and underwater aesthetic experiences when scuba diving. A classical dancer trained in Bharatanatyam and Kuchipudi, Kohinoor likes to integrate her background in the arts with her interest in psychology and neuroscience in both her research and choreographic endeavours. She is also a triathlete, finding inspiration and resilience in long-distance endurance sports. Wearing many hats is part of her everyday life—and philosophy. She believes that the most meaningful change arises when diverse disciplines, perspectives, and people intersect.
